Introduction: Alternative anti-biofilm agents are needed to combat Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. The mechanisms behind these new agents also need to be revealed at a molecular level. Materials and methods: The anti-biofilm effects of 10 plant-derived compounds on P. aeruginosa biofilms were investigated using minimum biofilm eradication concentration (MBEC) and virulence assays. The effects of ciprofloxacin and compound combinations on P. aeruginosa in mono and triple biofilms were compared. A metabolomic approach and qRT-PCR were applied to the biofilms treated with ciprofloxacin in combination with baicalein, esculin hydrate, curcumin, and cinnamaldehyde at sub-minimal biofilm inhibitory concentration (MBIC) concentrations to highlight the specific metabolic shifts between the biofilms and to determine the quorum sensing gene expressions, respectively. Results: The combinations of ciprofloxacin with curcumin, baicalein, esculetin, and cinnamaldehyde showed more reduced MBICs than ciprofloxacin alone. The quorum sensing genes were downregulated in the presence of curcumin and cinnamaldehyde, while upregulated in the presence of baicalein and esculin hydrate rather than for ciprofloxacin alone. The combinations exhibited different killing effects on P. aeruginosa in mono and triple biofilms without affecting its virulence. The findings of the decreased metabolite levels related to pyrimidine and lipopolysaccharide synthesis and to down-regulated alginate and lasI expressions strongly indicate the role of multifactorial mechanisms for curcumin-mediated P. aeruginosa growth inhibition. Conclusions: The use of curcumin, baicalein, esculetin, and cinnamaldehyde with ciprofloxacin will help fight against P. aeruginosa biofilms. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study of its kind to define the effect of plant-based compounds as possible anti-biofilm agents with low MBICs for the treatment of P. aeruginosa biofilms through metabolomic pathways.

Background/Objectives: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) alters maternal metabolism during pregnancy and may impact the biochemical composition of breast milk. Given the critical role of human milk in early-life metabolic programming, identifying metabolic alterations in GDM milk and understanding the effects of insulin therapy has important implications for neonatal health. This study aims to investigate the metabolomic profile of transitional breast milk in mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus compared with healthy controls and to evaluate the impact of insulin therapy on milk metabolite composition. Methods: Breast milk samples were collected between postpartum days 10 and 15 from 80 mothers with GDM and 80 matched controls. Metabolomic profiling was performed using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), and data were analyzed using multivariate and univariate statistical techniques including PCA, PLS–DA, logistic regression, and ROC analysis. Conclusions: A total of 133 metabolites were identified, and GDM mothers exhibited a distinct metabolomic signature characterized by significant alterations in carbohydrate, amino acid, and microbial-derived metabolites. In particular, galactinol, arabitol, and pyrogallol were significantly decreased, while α-ketoglutaric acid and citric acid were elevated in the GDM group. Insulin-treated mothers showed unique metabolic changes involving glycolytic intermediates (glycerone phosphoric acid), purine metabolism (xanthine), and oxidative pathways (isocitric acid, gluconic acid lactone). Multivariate models based on the top metabolites achieved moderate discriminatory performance (AUC = 0.68). GDM is associated with substantial metabolic changes in transitional breast milk, and insulin therapy appears to modulate these alterations further. These findings suggest that maternal metabolic status and its treatment can shape the neonatal nutritional environment, potentially influencing early metabolic programming.

Utilizing waste materials in broiler diets supports the principles of the circular economy and promotes environmental sustainability. However, it is essential to ensure that such practices do not compromise meat quality or composition. This experiment evaluated how incorporating shrimp processing waste into broiler diets influences breast meat physicochemical properties, nutrient composition, amino acid profiles, and antioxidant properties. A total of 315 Ross 308 male broiler chicks were allocated to diets containing varying inclusion levels of shrimp waste and reared for 42 days. At the end of the feeding period, seven birds from each treatment group were selected for slaughter, and a total of 35 breast muscle samples were collected for laboratory analyses. Parameters including pH, color, water-holding capacity, cooking loss, nutrient content, amino acid composition, and antioxidant indices were determined. Dietary shrimp waste did not influence pH₁₅ but increased pH₂₄ values. Lightness and redness remained unaffected, whereas yellowness increased. Cooking loss, water-holding capacity, and nutrient composition were not significantly altered. Alanine and aspartic acid levels decreased in groups supplemented with shrimp waste, whereas glycine content increased in the group receiving 1% shrimp waste during the first 10 days. Antioxidant parameters and the oxidative stress index were also unchanged. These findings indicate that incorporating shrimp waste into broiler diets can enhance feed sustainability without compromising meat quality.

Background/Objectives: Hereditary hemolytic anemias (HHAs) are rare genetic disorders characterized by chronic hemolysis, systemic oxidative stress, and inflammation. Altered lipid homeostasis has previously been reported in HHAs; however, untargeted plasma lipidomic studies comparing HHA subtypes remain limited. This exploratory study aimed to characterize shared and subtype-specific plasma lipid alterations across five HHA subtypes. Methods: Forty-eight participants were enrolled, including 29 patients with HHA (6 with β-thalassemia, 5 with hereditary xerocytosis, 7 with hereditary spherocytosis, 5 with sickle cell disease, and 6 with congenital dyserythropoietic anemia) and 19 healthy controls. Plasma lipids were analyzed by untargeted liquid chromatography–quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry, followed by multivariate, univariate, and lipid pathway analyses. Results: A total of 375 lipid species were putatively annotated, revealing both shared and putative subtype-specific lipid alterations across the five HHA subtypes. The putatively annotated species Cer 59:7;4O and PC 46:1 remained significantly altered after false discovery rate correction, whereas species such as PC 34:4 and Cer 42:3;2O showed only nominal subtype-specific differences. Mostly nominal alterations in individual ceramide, triglyceride, and phosphatidylcholine species were observed across most hemolytic groups relative to controls. Congenital dyserythropoietic anemia exhibited the fewest nominal differences from controls. Among the 25 species with nominal Kruskal–Wallis differences, SM 37:1;2O was the only lipid species that nominally differed from controls exclusively in this subtype. Conclusions: These exploratory, hypothesis-generating findings suggest that plasma lipidomics may help characterize lipid alterations accompanying chronic hemolysis. However, the candidate lipid species and predicted pathways require validation in larger, age-matched, independent cohorts.

Background and Objectives: Berberine is a promising phytochemical for obesity prevention due to its effects on adipogenesis and adipose tissue browning. Despite the benefits shown in cell studies, the clinical use of berberine is limited because of its low stability and bioavailability. Materials and Methods: Our study aimed to investigate the effects of intravenous liposomal and free berberine on body weight and adipose tissue browning in C57BL/6J mice. The mice were divided into two main groups for obesity prevention and treatment: the prevention group received treatment with a high-fat diet for 10 weeks; the recovery group received treatment after 10 weeks on a high-fat diet. Treatments included liposomal berberine (10 mcM), free berberine (10 mcM), and void nano-encapsule, and PBS was used as a control. Results: Berberine did not affect body weight in the prevention group. In the treatment group, nano-berberine reduced weight gain, while free berberine caused weight loss (p < 0.05). PRDM16 and CIDEA expressions in white and brown adipose tissues were higher in the berberine-treated groups (p < 0.05). No changes were observed in UCP1, PGC1α, C/EBPβ, and FABP4 expressions. The protein concentrations of UCP1, PGC1α, and PPARγ did not change. Conclusions: The effects of liposomal berberine on gene expression and protein concentrations were not different from the free form, but the nano form had higher stability.