Pingitore, A. et al. (2017) The diet-derived short chain fatty acid propionate improves beta-cell function in humans and stimulates insulin secretion from human islets in vitro. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 19(2), pp. 257-265. (doi:10.1111/dom.12811) This is the author's final accepted version.There may be differences between this version and the published version. You are advised to consult the publisher's version if you wish to cite from it.http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/130703/ Accepted ArticleThe diet-derived short chain fatty acid propionate improves beta-cell function in humans and stimulates insulin secretion from human islets in vitro. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. propionate on β-cell function in humans and the direct effects of propionate on isolated human islets in vitro. Materials and Methods:For 24 weeks human subjects ingested an inulinpropionate ester that delivers propionate to the colon. Acute insulin, GLP-1 and nonesterified fatty acid (NEFA) levels were quantified pre-and post-supplementation in response to a mixed meal test. Expression of the SCFA receptor FFAR2 in human islets was determined by western blotting and immunohistochemistry. Dynamic insulin secretion from perifused human islets was quantified by radioimmunoassay and islet apoptosis was determined by quantification of caspase 3/7 activities.Results: Colonic propionate delivery in vivo was associated with improved β-cell function with increased insulin secretion that was independent of changes in GLP-1 levels. Human islet β-cells expressed FFAR2 and propionate potentiated dynamic glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in vitro, an effect that was dependent on signalling via protein kinase C. Propionate also protected human islets from apoptosis induced by the NEFA sodium palmitate and inflammatory cytokines. Conclusions:Our results indicate that propionate has beneficial effects on β-cell function in vivo, and in vitro analyses demonstrated that it has direct effects to potentiate glucose-stimulated insulin release and maintain β-cell mass through

This article provides a conceptual model for the pathways by which climate change could operate to impact geographies and property markets whose inferior or superior qualities for supporting the built environment are subject to a descriptive theory known as 'Climate Gentrification.' The article utilizes Miami-Dade County, Florida (MDC) as a case study to explore the market mechanisms that speak to the operations and processes inherent in the theory. This article tests the hypothesis that the rate of price appreciation of single-family properties in MDC is positively related to and correlated with incremental measures of higher elevation (the 'Elevation Hypothesis'). As a reflection of an increase in observed nuisance flooding and relative SLR, the second hypothesis is that the rates of price appreciation in lowest the elevation cohorts have not kept up with the rates of appreciation of higher elevation cohorts since approximately 2000 (the 'Nuisance Hypothesis'). The findings support a validation of both hypotheses and suggest the potential existence of consumer preferences that are based, in part, on perceptions of flood risk and/or observations of flooding. These preferences and perceptions are anticipated to be amplified by climate change in a manner that reinforces the proposition that climate change impacts will affect the marketability and valuation of property with varying degrees of environmental exposure and resilience functionality. Uncovering these empirical relationships is a critical first step for understanding the occurrence and parameters of Climate Gentrification.

A series of bridged triarylamines, which constitute a new class of heterohelicenes, have been synthesized using a simple three-step procedure. These compounds are shown to be highly luminescent chromophores and are capable of being oxidized. The solid-state structures of these helicenes show a tendency for pi-stacking interactions into an overall zigzag motif.

The reactions of CCI3O2• (a model of alkyl peroxyl radicals which can be selectively generated in nanoseconds) with a range of carotenoids (/3-carotene, septapreno-/3-carotene, canthaxanthin, astaxanthin, zeaxanthin, and lutein) in the heterogeneous micellar environment, aqueous 2% Triton X-100, have been studied by pulse radiolysis. For all carotenoids investigated two reaction products, absorbing in the near-infrared region, are observed and assigned to the carotenoid radical cation and an addition radical. With the exception of astaxanthin, the carotenoid radical cation formation is biexponential and the slower component matches the first-order decay of the addition radical. In the case of astaxanthin, no radical cation is formed directly by reaction with CCI3O2", it is formed exclusively from the decay of the addition radical. The results are discussed in terms of the antioxidant properties of carotenoid pigments.

Harlequin ichthyosis (HI) is the most severe form of autosomal-recessive, congenital ichthyosis. Affected infants have markedly impaired barrier function and are more susceptible to infection. Abnormalities in the localization of epidermal lipids as well as abnormal lamellar granule formation are features of HI skin. Previously, we and others have shown that mutations in the ABCA12 gene encoding an adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette (ABC) transporter underlie the skin disease HI. In this study, we have sequenced the ABCA12 gene in an additional 14 patients and show that all contain mutations, with the majority being either nonsense substitution or frameshift mutations. Eleven HI patients had bi-allelic ABCA12 mutations, whereas in the remaining three HI patients in this study, ABCA12 mutations were detected on only one allele by sequencing. In addition, the one patient from the previous study where no sequence mutations were detected was screened for heterozygous deletions. A combination of oligonucleotide arrays, multiplex PCR analysis and single-nucleotide polymorphism genotyping revealed a heterozygous intragenic deletion in exon 8. These mutation data establish ABCA12 as the major HI gene.