• Energy Research

Three commercial Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast strains: Viniferm Revelación, Viniferm SV and Viniferm PDM were evaluated for the production of pomegranate wine from a juice coupage of the two well-known varieties Mollar and Wonderfull. Further malolactic fermentation was carried out spontaneously. The same fermentation patterns were observed for pH, titratable acidity, density, sugar consumption, and ethanol and glycerol production. Glucose was exhausted while fructose residues remained at the end of alcoholic fermentation. A high ethanol concentration (10.91 ± 0.27% v/v) in combination with 1.49 g/L glycerol was achieved. Citric acid concentration increased rapidly a 31.7%, malic acid disappeared as result of malolactic fermentation and the lactic acid levels reached values between 0.40 and 0.96 g/L. The analysis of CIEa parameter and total anthocyanin content highlights a lower degradation of monomeric anthocyanins during winemaking with Viniferm PDM yeast. The resulting wine retains a 34.5% of total anthocyanin content of pomegranate juice blend.

Background and Aims: Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) accounts for 70% of liver-related deaths in Europe, with no effective approved therapies. Although mitochondrial dysfunction is one of the earliest manifestations of alcohol-induced injury, restoring mitochondrial activity remains a problematic strategy due to oxidative stress. Here, we identify methylation-controlled J protein (MCJ) as a mediator for ALD progression and hypothesize that targeting MCJ may help in recovering mitochondrial fitness without collateral oxidative damage. Approach and Results: C57BL/6 mice [wild-type (Wt)] Mcj knockout and Mcj liver-specific silencing (MCJ-LSS) underwent the NIAAA dietary protocol (Lieber-DeCarli diet containing 5% (vol/vol) ethanol for 10 days, plus a single binge ethanol feeding at day 11). To evaluate the impact of a restored mitochondrial activity in ALD, the liver, gut, and pancreas were characterized, focusing on lipid metabolism, glucose homeostasis, intestinal permeability, and microbiota composition. MCJ, a protein acting as an endogenous negative regulator of mitochondrial respiration, is downregulated in the early stages of ALD and increases with the severity of the disease. Whole-body deficiency of MCJ is detrimental during ALD because it exacerbates the systemic effects of alcohol abuse through altered intestinal permeability, increased endotoxemia, and dysregulation of pancreatic function, which overall worsens liver injury. On the other hand, liver-specific Mcj silencing prevents main ALD hallmarks, that is, mitochondrial dysfunction, steatosis, inflammation, and oxidative stress, as it restores the NAD+/NADH ratio and SIRT1 function, hence preventing de novo lipogenesis and improving lipid oxidation. Conclusions: Improving mitochondrial respiration by liver-specific Mcj silencing might become a novel therapeutic approach for treating ALD.