Serpentine is an alkaloid found in the roots of Rosa Centifolia that acts as an insulin sensitizer to assist insulin in lowering blood glucose.Serpentine activates the phosphorylation of AMPK, which stimulates glucose uptake by C2C12 cells.Serpentine increases the expression of GSK-3β mRNA in muscle tissues, which enhances glucose uptake.Serpentine also increases glucose production and hepatic gluconeogenesis.Serpentine has a significant effect on glucagon secretion and hepatic gluconeogenesis. Serpentine significantly increased glucagon secretion and hepatic gluconeogenesis. In high-fat diet/streptozotocin (HFD/STZ)-induced diabetic mice, Serpentine significantly prolonged insulin hypoglycemia, significantly decreased exogenous insulin use, and inhibited endogenous insulin secretion.

本研究调查了自然产生石棉(NOA)环境调查中，因交生蛇纹石矿物可能带来的分析变异性。通过获取加利福尼亚北部沿海可能的NOA地点的Franciscan复合体和蛇纹岩样本，并结合地理信息系统(GIS)地图，采用偏振光显微镜(PLM)、透射电子显微镜结合能量色散X射线分析和选区电子衍射(TEM/SAED/EDS)、以及环境扫描电子显微镜结合EDS(ESEM/EDS)进行分析。通过TEM形态标准和参考SAED叠加图迅速区分了外表与纤维石相似的非石棉蛇纹石纤维。在94个NOA纤维中，有62%被归类为纤维石形态的蛇纹石，34%为polygonal Serpentine，2%为蜥蜴石卷曲和2%为蜥蜴石板条。纤维石纤维宽度（平均值=42nm）与多边形蛇纹石和蜥蜴石板条（分别为167nm和505nm）显著不同，但与蜥蜴石卷曲（37nm）无显著差异。