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Summary: The physical connection between mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is an essential signaling hub to ensure organelle and cellular functions. In skeletal muscle, ER-mitochondria calcium (Ca2+) signaling is crucial to maintain cellular homeostasis during physical activity. High expression of BCL2L13, a member of the BCL-2 family, was suggested as an adaptive response in endurance-trained human subjects. In adult zebrafish, we found that the loss of Bcl2l13 impairs skeletal muscle structure and function. Ca2+ signaling is altered in Bcl2l13 knockout animals and mitochondrial complexes activity is decreased. Organelle fractioning in mammalian cells shows BCL2L13 at mitochondria, ER, and mitochondria-associated membranes. ER-mitochondria contact sites number is not modified by BCL2L13 modulation, but knockdown of BCL2L13 in C2C12 cells changes cytosolic Ca2+ release and mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake. This suggests that BCL2L13 interaction with mitochondria and ER, and its role in Ca2+ signaling, contributes to proper skeletal muscle function.

Au/ZrO2 catalysts (1.5 wt% Au loading) undergone to a final calcination at different temperature (423, 573, 773 and 923 K) to opportunely modulate the Au size were proven to be highly active and selective in furfural oxidative esterification to methyl-2-furoate. The catalysts were tested according to previously optimized reaction conditions, employing O2 as benign oxidant and without any base co-catalyst. The strong dependence of the catalytic activity on the Au size was previously ascribed to the presence of Au clusters able to dissociate O2 and producing atomic O that can activate methanol. However, despite the absence of clusters, also the catalysts containing larger Au nanoparticles were active, even if conversion and selectivity were remarkably lower if compared to the other samples. The nature and the role of Au active sites exposed at the surface of clusters and nanoparticles were then investigated by HR-TEM, CO chemisorption and FTIR spectroscopy of adsorbed CO, molecular oxygen, methanol and furfural to establish structure-activity relationships. Metal nanoparticles can activate oxygen and form superoxo species and atomic O, whereas experiments performed on the pre-hydrated samples revealed that Au perimeter sites at the metal-support interface play a key role in methanol activation during furfural oxidative esterification.

Nowadays, the world is facing a general problem of resource overconsumption and waste overproduction: to address these two issues, the United Nations delivered the 12th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), which has the objective of ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns. Currently, polymers are present in every aspect of our lives and have the disadvantage of mostly coming from fossil sources and causing pollution when disposed of the wrong way. Agriculture plays a key role in the overall world environmental issues, being responsible for the creation of between 13 and 21% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Moreover, it represents a continuously growing field, producing large amounts of waste. These residues can cause serious environmental concerns and high costs when disposed. However, agri-food waste (AFW) is a natural source of natural biopolymers, such as lignin, cellulose, pectin, and starch, but can also be used as a substrate to produce other non-toxic and biodegradable biopolymers, such as chitosan, polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), and polylactic acid (PLA) through microbial fermentation. These polymers find applications in agricultural practices such as mulching films, soil stabilizers, hydrogels, nanocarriers, and coating for seeds, fruits, and vegetables. The employment of AFW in the production of non-toxic, sustainable, and biodegradable biopolymers for their agricultural utilization is an example of a virtuous circular economy approach that could help agriculture to be more sustainable.

The United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP’s) Food Waste Index Report 2021 highlights a global annual food waste of 1 billion tons. The UNEP plays a crucial role in achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12.3, which aims to halve per capita global food waste (FW) at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains globally by 2030. On the other hand, the agricultural sector faces the challenge of increasing productivity to feed the world’s growing population while reducing the environmental impact on ecosystems and human health. In this context, the conversion of agri-food waste (AFW) into biocides, bio-based fertilizers (BBFs) and biostimulants could represent a successful approach to tackle all these issues. This review shows the latest findings on the different sources of AFW and the application of their bioactive compounds in agriculture. Increasing crop yields and improving plant physiology through the utilization of AFW-derived value products aligns with a circular economy approach, bolstering people’s confidence in managing food waste for improved food production.

Objective: Ectopic lipid accumulation is a hallmark of metabolic diseases, linking obesity to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, insulin resistance and diabetes. The use of zebrafish as a model of obesity and diabetes is raising due to the conserved properties of fat metabolism between humans and zebrafish, the homologous genes regulating lipid uptake and transport, the implementation of the ‘3R’s principle and their cost-effectiveness. To date, a method allowing the conservation of lipid droplets (LDs) and organs in zebrafish larvae to image ectopic lipids is not available. Our objectives were to develop a novel methodology to quantitatively evaluate organ-specific LDs, in skeletal muscle and liver, in response to a nutritional perturbation. Methods: We developed a novel embedding and cryosectioning protocol allowing the conservation of LDs and organs in zebrafish larvae. To establish the quantitative measures, we used a three-arm parallel nutritional intervention design. Zebrafish larvae were fed a control diet containing 14% of nutritional fat or two high fat diets (HFDs) containing 25 and 36% of dietary fats. In muscle and liver, LDs were characterized using immunofluorescence confocal microscopy. In liver, intrahepatocellular lipids were discriminated from intrasinusoid lipids. To complete liver characteristics, fibrosis was identified with Masson’s Trichrome staining. Finally, to confirm the conservation and effect of HFD, molecular players of fat metabolism were evaluated by RT-qPCR. Results: The cryosections obtained after setting up the embedding and cryopreservation method were of high quality, preserving tissue morphology and allowing the visualization of ectopic lipids. Both HFDs were obesogenic, without modifying larvae survival or development. Neutral lipid content increased with time and augmented dietary fat. Intramuscular LD volume density increased and was explained by an increase in LDs size but not in numbers. Intrahepatocellular LD volume density increased and was explained by an increased number of LDs, not by their increased size. Sinusoid area and lipid content were both increased. Hepatic fibrosis appeared with both HFDs. We observed alterations in the expression of genes associated with LD coating proteins, LD dynamics, lipogenesis, lipolysis and fatty acid oxidation. Conclusions: In this study, we propose a reproducible and fast method to image zebrafish larvae without losing LD quality and organ morphology. We demonstrate the impact of HFD on LD characteristics in liver and skeletal muscle accompanied by alterations of key players of fat metabolism. Our observations confirm the evolutionarily conserved mechanisms in lipid metabolism and reveal organ specific adaptations. The methodological advancements proposed in this work open the doors to study organelle adaptations in obesity and diabetes related research such as lipotoxicity, organelle contacts and specific lipid depositions.

Abstract Background Human milk is a vehicle for bioactive compounds and beneficial bacteria which promote the establishment of a healthy gut microbiome of newborns, especially of preterm infants. Pasteurized donor human milk (PDHM) is the second-best option when preterm mother’s own milk is unavailable. Since pasteurization affect the microbiological quality of donor milk, PDHM was inoculated with different preterm milk samples and then incubated, in order to evaluate the effect in terms of bacterial growth, human milk microbiome and proteolytic phenomena. Methods In an in-vitro study PDHM was inoculated at 10% v/v using ten preterm milk samples. Microbiological, metataxonomic and peptidomic analyses, on preterm milk samples at the baseline (T0), on PDHM and on inoculated milk (IM) samples at T0, after 2 h (T1) and 4 h (T2) of incubation at 37 °C, were conducted. Results IM samples at T2 showed a Total Bacterial Count not significantly different (p > 0.01) compared to preterm milk samples. At T2 lactic acid bacteria level was restored in all IM. After inoculation, metataxonomic analysis in IM samples showed that Proteobacteria remained the predominant phylum while Firmicutes moved from 3% at T1 to 9.4% at T2. Peptidomic profile of IM resembled that of PDHM, incubated for the same time, in terms of number and type of peptides. Conclusion The study demonstrated that inoculation of PDHM with mother’s own milk could restore bacterial growth and personalize human milk microbiome in PDHM. This effect could be beneficial because of the presence of maternal probiotic bacteria which make PDHM more similar to mother’s own milk.

With the increase in the world’s population and per capita wealth, oil producers must not only increase edible oil production but also meet the demand for a higher quality and variety of products. Recently, the focus has shifted from single processing steps to the entire vegetable oil production process, with an emphasis on introducing innovative technologies to improve quality and production efficiency. In this review, conventional methods of oilseed storage, processing and extraction are presented, as well as innovative processing and extraction techniques. Furthermore, the parameters most affecting the products’ yields and quality at the industrial level are critically described. The extensive use of hexane for the extraction of most vegetable oils is undoubtedly the main concern of the whole production process in terms of health, safety and environmental issues. Therefore, special attention is paid to environmentally friendly solvents such as ethanol, supercritical CO2, 2-methyloxolane, water enzymatic extraction, etc. The state of the art in the use of green solvents is described and an objective assessment of their potential for more sustainable industrial processes is proposed.

The recovery of valuable bioactive compounds from the main underutilised by-products of the food industry is one of the greatest challenges to be addressed in circular economy. Potato peels are the largest waste generated during potato processing. However, they could be a potential source of valuable bioactive compounds, such as polyphenols, that can be reused as natural antioxidants. Currently, environmentally benign enabling technologies and new types of non-toxic organic solvents for the extraction of bioactive compounds may dramatically improve the sustainability of these processes. This paper focuses on the potential inherent in the valorisation of violet potato peels (VPPs) by recovering antioxidants using natural deep eutectic solvents (NaDES) under ultrasound (US)- and microwave (MW)-assisted extraction. Both the enabling technologies provided performances that were superior to those of conventional extractions in terms of antioxidant activity determined by the DPPH· (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) assay. In particular, the most promising approach using NaDES is proven to be the acoustic cavitation with a Trolox eq. of 1874.0 mmolTE/gExtr (40 °C, 500 W, 30 min), vs. the 510.1 mmolTE/gExtr of hydroalcoholic extraction (80 °C, 4 h). The shelf-life of both hydroalcoholic and NaDES-VPPs extracts have been assessed over a period of 24 months, and found that NaDES granted a 5.6-fold shelf-life extension. Finally, the antiproliferative activity of both hydroalcoholic and NaDES-VPPs extracts was evaluated in vitro using the MTS assay on human tumour Caco-2 cells and normal human keratinocyte cells (HaCaT). In particular, NaDES-VPPs extracts exhibited a significantly more pronounced antiproliferative activity compared to the ethanolic extracts without a noteworthy difference between effects on the two cell lines.

This paper reports a new sustainable protocol for the microwave‐assisted catalytic conversion of levulinic acid into N‐substituted pyrrolidones over tailor‐made mono (Pd, Au) or bimetallic (PdAu) catalysts supported on either highly mesoporous silica (HMS) or titania‐doped HMS, exploiting the advantages of dielectric heating. MW‐assisted reductive aminations of levulinic acid with several amines were first optimized in batch mode under hydrogen pressure (5 bar) in solvent‐free conditions. Good‐to‐excellent yields were recorded at 150 °C in 90 min over the PdTiHMS and PdAuTiHMS, that proved recyclable and almost completely stable after six reaction cycles. Aiming to scale‐up this protocol, a MW‐assisted flow reactor was used in combination with different green solvents. Cyclopentyl methyl ether (CPME) provided a 99 % yield of N‐(4‐methoxyphenyl) pyrrolidin‐2‐one at 150 °C over PdTiHMS. The described MW‐assisted flow synthesis proves to be a safe procedure suitable for further industrial applications, while averting the use of toxic organic solvents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing demand for alternative clean energy sources and environmental crises are causing great concern for humankind. Researchers have devoted effort to finding cheap, eco-friendly, and robust functional materials for future development of the biorefinery process. Among biomass valorisation processes, gasification and pyrolysis are the most explored thermal treatments exploiting biomass-derived catalysts, especially for H2 and bio-oil production, which possess great potential in the energetical framework proposed by the European Green Deal. While biomass conversion provides intriguing insights, its industrial development has been limited to date. The economic and environmental sustainability of biomass-derived catalyst production is pivotal for reducing pollutant emissions. However, scientists face a bottleneck in synthesizing materials with a high surface area, strong functionalization, and cost-effectiveness to compete with fossil resources. To address this challenge, life cycle assessment emerges as a valuable tool to study process sustainability. This assessment can be coupled with artificial intelligence technologies to predict the properties of biomass-derived catalysts accurately, facilitating comprehensive sustainability analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]