Sucralose hydrogels: Peering into the reactivity of sucralose versus sucrose under lipase catalyzed trans-esterification

Unveiling the profound influence of sucralose on metabolism and its role in shaping obesity trends

Artificial sweeteners, prominently exemplified by sucralose, have become pervasive in contemporary diets, prompting intriguing questions about their impact on metabolism and their potential role in the unfolding trends of obesity. Covering topics from its discovery to analytical methods for detection and determination in food samples, the manuscript scrutinizes the metabolic effects of sucralose. Notably, the association between sucralose intake and obesity is examined, challenging the conventional belief of its role in weight management. The document comprehensively examines in vivo studies, revealing sucralose's implications on insulin resistance, gut microbiota, and metabolic syndrome, providing a nuanced comprehension of its impact on human health. Additionally, it explores sucralose's effects on glucose and lipid metabolism, blood pressure, and cardiovascular health, underscoring its possible involvement in malignancy development. The review concludes with a call for increased public awareness, education, and updated dietary guidelines to help individuals make informed choices about sweetener consumption. The future perspectives section highlights the need for longitudinal studies, exploring alternative sweeteners, and refining acceptable daily intake limits to ensure public health recommendations align with evolving regulatory guidelines. Overall, the manuscript provides a comprehensive overview of sucralose's multifaceted impact on health, urging further research and a balanced perspective on sweetener consumption.

Value-added product from sugarcane molasses: Conversion of sugarcane molasses to non-caloric sweetener for applications in food and pharmaceutical industries

Molasses is a by-product from sugarcane processing industries that contains some useful natural compounds. This paper proposes a method to produce sucralose, a non-caloric sweetener, from sugarcane molasses. In the first step, sugarcane molasses was converted to dried molasses powder using the low-temperature spray drying process in order to preserve natural compounds. Response surface methodology and artificial neural network were used to determine the experimental condition for maximal bioactive compounds content and antioxidant activity. Dried molasses powder could be produced with maximal values of sucrose yield, total phenolic content, total flavonoid content and antioxidant activity. In the final step, sucralose was derived from dried molasses powder. The yield of molasses-derived sucralose obtained from the proposed method was 0.628±0.01 g/g dried molasses powder with the purity of 99.95±0.02 %. The proposed method paves the way to convert sugarcane molasses to a non-caloric sweetener for applications in food and pharmaceutical industries.

Curing Behavior of Sucrose with p-Toluenesulfonic Acid

With respect to the fossil resources shortage, the development of bio-based wood adhesives is an important research topic in wood science. There has been research on using sucrose for bio-based adhesives. However, a high acid catalyst content and a high hot-pressing temperature are required when manufacturing particleboards. In this study, to explore the possibility of p-toluenesulfonic acid (PTSA) as a promising acid catalyst for sucrose-based adhesives, the curing behavior of sucrose with PTSA (Suc-PTSA) was clarified. The thermal analysis results showed that the thermal properties of sucrose decreased significantly with the addition of PTSA. Based on the results of the insoluble matter rate, the optimal mixture ratio and heating conditions were determined to be 95:5 and 180 °C for 10 min, respectively. According to the results of FT-IR, the heat-treated Suc-PTSA contained furan compounds. In the context of the dynamic viscoelasticity, the onset temperature at which the storage modulus (E') begins to rise was significantly lower than those of the other sucrose-based adhesives. PTSA has the potential to cure sucrose more efficiently and at lower temperatures than previous sucrose-based adhesives, making it a promising acid catalyst for sucrose.

Antibacterial Hydrogel as a Self-Drug-Delivery System Derived from Zn(II)-bis-imidazole/NSAID-Based Organic-Inorganic Hybrids

A skin wound is prone to bacterial infection and growth. An antibacterial topical hydrogel that can act as a self-drug-delivery (SDD) system is reported here. Two bidentate ligands (L2/L1) derived from imidazole/benzimidazole derivatives when reacted with Zn(NO3)2 and a series of nonsteroidal-anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) produced crystalline products, which were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SXRD). Simple mixing of the ingredients of the crystalline products (stoichiometry guided by the corresponding crystal structure) produced an aqueous gel (DMSO/water) when the bidentate ligand was water-insoluble L2, whereas water-soluble L1 readily produced hydrogels under similar conditions. Dynamic rheology and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were employed to characterize the gels. Zone inhibition diameters, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), and hemolysis data suggested that among the hydrogelators, L1MEC derived from L1, meclofenac and Zn(NO3)2, was found to be the best against the Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli. The corresponding hydrogel L1MEC_HG and a piece of a dried cloth bandage coated with the hydrogel also showed appreciable activity against E. coli. The antibacterial property of L1MEC_HG against E. coli, thus demonstrated, is relevant in developing an antibacterial SDD system because E. coli is reported to be present in infected wounds.

An injectable supramolecular hydrogel as a self-drug-delivery system for local chemoimmunotherapy against melanoma

Skin-cancer melanoma caused 57k death in 2020. Some of the available therapies are: topical application of a gel loaded with an anti-skin cancer drug and intravenous injection of immune cytokines; however, both the approaches have drawbacks such as inefficient internalization of the drug in cancer cells and a short half-life with severe side effects, respectively. Interestingly, we observed for the first time that a subcutaneously implanted hydrogel designed and synthesized by coordinating NSAIDs and 5-AP with Zn(II) can effectively combat melanoma cell (B16-F10)-induced tumors in C57BL/6 mice. Both in vitro and in vivo results show that it can effectively reduce PGE2 expression, consequently upregulating IFN-γ and IL-12 that eventually engage M1-macrophages for activating T cells (CD8+), triggering apoptosis. This unique all-in-one self-drug-delivery approach, wherein the hydrogel implant is made from the drug molecules itself providing both chemotherapy and immunotherapy in combating deadly melanoma, highlights the supramolecular chemistry-based bottom-up approach in cancer therapy.