Electrodeposition of Bi from Choline Chloride-Malonic Acid Deep Eutectic Solvent.

Deep eutectic solvent (DES) has been widely used in the field of metal electrodeposition as an economical and environmentally friendly green solvent. Metallic bismuth films were prepared by electrodeposition from choline chloride-malonic acid (ChCl-MA) deep eutectic solvent (DES) containing BiCl3. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy were used to study the structure of ChCl-MA-BiCl3, and the results showed that Bi(III) was in the form of [BiCl6]3- ions. The viscosity of ChCl-MA-BiCl3 ranges from 200 to 1200 mPa·s at temperatures from 363 K to 323 K. The conductivity of 0.01 M Bi(III) in ChCl-MA is 3.24 ms·cm-1 at 363 K. The electrochemical behavior and electrodeposition of Bi(III) in DES were investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and chronoamperometry. The results showed that the electrodeposition reaction was a quasi-reversible reaction controlled by the diffusion and the nucleation of bismuth was a three-dimensional instantaneous nucleation. The diffusion coefficient of Bi(III) in ChCl-MA was 1.84 × 10-9 cm2·s-1. The electrodeposition product was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the results showed that the deposition potential has a significant influence on the morphology of the bismuth film. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) shows that bismuth and bismuth oxides are present in the deposited film obtained by electrodeposition.

A Zn-Ce Redox Flow Battery with Ethaline Deep Eutectic Solvent.

Compared with conventional aqueous and ionic liquid electrolytes, deep eutectic solvent (DES) are considered as electrolyte for redox flow batteries because they have a wider electrochemical window and relatively low price. In this study, CeIV /CeIII and ZnII /Zn redox couples are used as the positive and negative active materials, respectively, in an electrolyte consisting of choline chloride ethylene glycol (ethaline). The structure of CeIII in the positive electrolyte is inferred through spectrum detection. CeIV /CeIII and ZnII /Zn redox couples show a stable potential difference of 2.2 V (vs. Ag) through cyclic voltammetry. The charge and discharge performance of battery was tested at different current densities. In addition, battery performance was evaluated at different temperatures and concentrations of cerium in the electrolyte. Consequently, at a current density of 0.5 mA cm-2 at room temperature and using 1.0 m CeIII , the battery performance reaches the best coulombic efficiency of 84 %.

Synthetic peptide, Ala-Arg-Glu-Gly-Glu-Met, abolishes pro-proliferative and anti-apoptotic effects of high glucose in vascular smooth muscle cells.

Apoptosis plays a critical role in normal vascular development and atherosclerosis. However, high glucose has been reported to generate a certain level of ROS that can inhibit vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) apoptosis, with the underlying mechanism remaining unclear. In this study, a synthetic peptide AREGEM (Ala-Arg-Glu-Gly-Glu-Met) exhibited antioxidative effects and was used to investigate its function in VSMCs during hyperglycaemia. MTT assay results demonstrated that AREGEM significantly attenuated high glucose-induced VSMCs proliferation. Flow cytometry displayed that high glucose levels inhibited cell apoptosis, whereas this effect was attenuated by pre-incubation with AREGEM. In addition, the 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA) fluorescent probe assay further demonstrated that AREGEM reduced intracellular ROS accumulation in VSMCs. Furthermore, this peptide was able to prevent the decrease of caspase-3 activity and the increase of the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax protein in VSMCs exposed to high glucose. These findings demonstrated that AREGEM is able to abolish the effects of high glucose in VSMCs; therefore, this peptide can be a potential candidate to develop a novel strategy for curing diabetic related diseases.

A novel antioxidant peptide derived from wheat germ prevents high glucose-induced oxidative stress in vascular smooth muscle cells in vitro.

The ingestion of whole wheat products is responsible for the prevention of a number of chronic diseases. The aim of this study is to characterize the molecular properties of a novel wheat germ-derived antioxidant peptide (AOP) in protection against high glucose-induced oxidative stress in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). AOP (amino acid sequence AREGETVVPG) was isolated from wheat germ albumin using dual-enzymatic hydrolysis/separation, followed by MS/MS. The in vitro IC50 value for Fe2+ chelation was 0.77 mM. The stability of purified AOP was confirmed by hydrolyzation in a simulated gastrointestinal (GI) digestion system in vitro. Furthermore, AOP significantly prevented high glucose-induced cell growth by 37.4 ± 2.7%, decreased the generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) by 22.3 ± 4.6%, suppressed the phosphorylation of PKCζ, AKT and Erk1/2, and inhibited Nox4 protein expression. Our findings suggested that AOP exerted a protective role against high glucose-induced oxidative stress through the inhibition of the PKCζ/Nox4 signaling pathway in VSMCs.