Gelation mechanism of agarose and κ-carrageenan solutions estimated in terms of concentration fluctuation

The gelation mechanism of agarose and κ-carrageenan aqueous solutions was investigated by using polarized light scattering and X-ray diffraction techniques in terms of the liquid-liquid phase separation. When an incident beam of He-Ne gas laser was directed to the gel prepared by quenching the agarose solution, the logarithm of scattered intensity increased linearly in the initial stage and tended to deviate from this linear relationship in the latter stage. If the linear increase in the initial stage could be analyzed within the framework of the linear theory of spinodal decomposition proposed by Cahn, the phase diagram indicated that the gelation is attributed to the phase separation due to the concentration fluctuation of solution. Furthermore, in the later stage showing the deviation of the linear relationship, light scattering under Hv polarization condition showed a X-type pattern indicating the existence of optically anisotropic rods, the optical axes being parallel or perpendicular with respect to the rod axis. In spite of the existence of the rods, no crystallites were confirmed by the corresponding X-ray diffraction and DSC measurements. For κ-carrageenan solutions, the logarithm of scattered intensity against time showed a constant value. This indicated that the gelation of κ-carrageenan solutions is independent of liquid-liquid phase separation but is due to the rapid formation of cross-linking points. Accordingly it turns out that the small difference of chemical structure between agarose and κ-carrageenan causes quite different gelation mechanism.     

TEM and DFT investigation of CVD TiN/κ-Al2O3 multilayer coatings

This paper investigates the interfacial structure in hot-wall CVD TiN/κ-Al₂O₃ multilayer coatings using both HREM and DFT modeling. Two multilayers with different thicknesses of the TiN layers (50 and 600 nm) separating the κ-Al₂O₃ layers are analyzed. The general microstructure of the two multilayers is relatively similar. The TiN layer in the thicker TiN/κ-Al₂O₃ coating is thick enough to be several TiN grains high. This means that epitaxial columns, which are often found in the thinner TiN/κ-Al₂O₃ coatings, are not present. However, the orientation relationships at the TiN/κ-Al₂O₃ interfaces are the same in both multilayers. The HREM investigations show that κ-Al₂O₃ (001) planes can grow directly on flat (111) TiN faces, without any other phases or detectable amounts of impurities, such as sulphur, present. Where the TiN layers are more curved, γ-Al₂O₃ can be grown, at least partly stabilized by the cube-on-cube orientation relationship between γ-Al₂O₃ and the underlying TiN. The DFT calculations show very similar adsorption strengths for an O monolayer positioned on Ti-terminated TiC(111) and TiN(111) surfaces, with preferred adsorption in the fcc site. O adsorption on N-terminated TiN(111) is much weaker, with preferred adsorption in the top site. Calculated elastic-energy contributions yield a higher stability for κ-Al₂O₃ on TiN(111) than on TiC(111) and a higher stability for κ-Al₂O₃ than for α-Al₂O₃ on both TiC and TiN. This indicates that the observed higher stability of κ-Al₂O₃ on TiC(111) than on TiN(111) is not due to the lattice mismatch, while the preferred epitaxial growth of κ-Al₂O₃ over α-Al₂O₃ can be partly attributed to the mismatch.     

导流板型防风网的流场模拟与抑尘研究

针对常规型防风网庇护范围有限等缺点,采用导流、整流措施,设计了导流板型防风网。应用CFD模拟软件FLUENT 6.2提供的标准κ-ε模型,以流场数值模拟的方法对导流板型防风网结构及其网后流场进行数值模拟,研究了导流板型防风网对物料堆表面速度、压力和湍流强度变化的影响,并与常规防风网的挡风抑尘作用进行了比较。模拟结果表明:导流板具有导向作用,使渗流风以一定角度上扬,减小了渗流风对防风网后物料堆表面的直接作用,同时延缓了绕流风对料堆顶部的影响;与常规防风网后料堆表面性质相比,导流板型防风网后料堆表面速度较小,压力变化较小,顶部附近湍流强度变化较小;综合分析各因素,导流板型防风网挡风效果明显。     

Influence of micro-blasting on the microstructure and residual stresses of CVD κ-Al2O3 coatings

Cemented carbides coated with CVD multilayers are commonly used in metal cutting turning and milling operations. For many applications, a micro-blasting finishing procedure based on an impact treatment of the surfaces is carried out in order to smooth the coated surface and reduce sharp cutting edges. In this work, micro-blasting with corundum in aqueous solution at pressures between 0.05 and 0.3 MPa was applied to CVD TiN/Ti(C,N)/κ-Al₂O₃ multilayer coatings deposited onto cemented carbides in order to investigate its influence on the micro-topography, microstructure and residual stresses. The results showed that the micro-blasting reduces the surface roughness and affects the coating thickness. TEM investigations revealed no significant changes on the microstructure of the κ-Al₂O₃ top layer. Synchrotron X-ray investigations showed that the residual stress state of the as-deposited κ-Al₂O₃ top layer is not affected by the micro-blasting treatment under the conditions investigated.     

原儿茶酸通过Toll样受体4/核因子κB途径减轻高脂饮食诱导的肝脏炎症

原儿茶酸（protocatechuic acid,PCA）是花青素在体内的主要代谢产物之一,具有良好的抗炎活性。本实验利用高脂饮食（high fat diet,HFD）诱导C57BL/6J小鼠肝脏炎症,通过灌胃100 mg/（kg mb·d）PCA研究其对小鼠肝脏的保护效果,并通过体外实验进一步研究其潜在机制。体内研究结果表明,PCA干预12 周后,可显著降低HFD诱导C57BL/6J小鼠的体质量和肝脏脂肪含量;血清和肝脏中白细胞介素（interleukin,IL）-1β、IL-6、肿瘤坏死因子α（tumor necrosis factor α,TNF-α）和脂多糖（lipopolysaccharide,LPS）等炎症因子水平均明显降低。体外转录组测序及原代肝细胞和肝脏的免疫印迹分析结果表明,PCA可显著降低Toll样受体4（Toll like receptor 4,TLR4）基因和蛋白的表达,然后通过下调核因子κB（nuclear factor κB,NF-κB）的磷酸化抑制炎症因子（如IL-6）的表达。综上,PCA可有效改善HFD诱导的肝脏炎症,其可能是通过下调TLR4/NF-κB信号通路来实现。     

Study of milk/κ-carrageenan mixtures by atomic force microscopy

Structural characteristics of milk components and milk/κ-carrageenan mixtures were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Samples were adsorbed on highly ordered pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) and mica substrates. Sample attachment by physisorption and imaging in air by AFM resulted in a very promising technique to investigate structures and interactions between biological macromolecules under “near-native” conditions. Differences in adsorption of casein micelles on HOPG and mica surfaces were observed. Casein micelles were adsorbed satisfactorily on HOPG while poor adsorption was obtained on mica surface. Topographical images of casein micelles adsorbed on HOPG denoted pseudo-spherical structures forming aggregates which were polydisperse in size and shape. In the case of milk/κ-carrageenan mixtures, it was observed that as κ-carrageenan concentration increased, the amount of casein micelles attached on HOPG surface decreased. An opposite behavior was observed when samples were adsorbed on mica. Hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions between samples and substrates helped in improving the understanding of the interactions between the macromolecules studied. Our findings agreed with previous studies suggesting a surface level interaction between casein micelles and κ-carrageenan, the structures observed being dependent on polysaccharide concentration. It can also be concluded that mica may be a suitable substrate for imaging milk/κ-carrageenan mixtures.     

Effect of κ-carrageenan on rheological properties, microstructure, texture and oxidative stability of water-in-oil spreads

The effect of κ-carrageenan concentration (0-7.5 g kg⁻¹) on the rheology, microstructure, texture and oxidative stability of water-in-oil (W/O) spreads (600 g fat kg⁻¹ emulsion) was examined over 60 days storage time. Results showed that increasing the κ-carrageenan concentration to 7.5 g kg⁻¹ significantly increased the viscosity of the aqueous phase (to 42.7 mPa s at 60 °C) resulting in gelation of the aqueous phase on cooling. The microstructure of the spreads was disrupted by higher levels of κ-carrageenan, resulting in a less homogeneous distribution of the aqueous phase. Melt temperature (where tan δ > 1) decreased significantly from 62 to 56.2 °C with increasing κ-carrageenan concentration from 0 to 7.5 g kg⁻¹. The firmness and the G′ at 6 °C for all samples were significantly increased after 60 days storage with only small effects due to κ-carrageenan levels. Oxidation of the fat phase was evident by the significant increases in peroxide values of all spreads on storage, with κ-carrageenan exhibiting no antioxidant behaviour. While increased κ-carrageenan levels modified the microstructure of W/O spreads in terms of the droplet size of the aqueous phase and its distribution few changes were evident in the continuous fat phase.     

沙葱总黄酮水洗组分的体外抗炎活性

本实验在体外应用脂多糖（lipopolysaccharides,LPS）诱导小鼠腹腔巨噬细胞建立炎症模型的基础上,探讨沙葱总黄酮水洗组分的体外抗炎活性。应用CCK-8法检测0、50、100、200、400、800 μg/mL沙葱总黄酮水洗组分对小鼠腹腔巨噬细胞增殖活力的影响;将细胞分为空白对照组、LPS应激模型组及不同质量浓度沙葱总黄酮水洗组分预处理组,采用Griess法及酶联免疫吸附测定法分别测定各处理组细胞上清液中NO浓度和肿瘤坏死因子-α（tumor necrosis factor-α,TNF-α）、白细胞介素（interleukin,IL）-1β、IL-6、IL-10的质量浓度,反转录实时荧光定量聚合酶链式反应法检测各处理组细胞中诱导型一氧化氮合酶（inducible nitric oxide synthase,iNOS）、TNF-α、IL-1β、IL-6、IL-10、髓样分化蛋白（myeloid differential protein,MyD）88、核因子 κB（nuclear factor κB,NF-κB）mRNA的表达水平。结果显示：与对照组相比,沙葱总黄酮水洗组分在50～800 μg/mL时对小鼠腹腔巨噬细胞无明显细胞毒性作用。与LPS应激模型组相比,沙葱总黄酮水洗组分能够极显著抑制促炎介质NO、TNF-α、IL-1β、IL-6质量浓度及其mRNA的表达（P＜0.01或P＜0.001）;高度显著提高抗炎细胞因子IL-10质量浓度及其mRNA的表达（P＜0.001）,且呈剂量依赖效应;极显著降低MyD88、NF-κB mRNA的表达水平（P＜0.01或P＜0.001）。由此得出,沙葱总黄酮水洗组分对LPS诱导的小鼠腹腔巨噬细胞具有抗炎作用,其抗炎活性可能是通过抑制促炎性介质NO、TNF-α、IL-1β、IL-6的分泌并提高抗炎性细胞因子IL-10的质量浓度实现的,其作用机制可能与NF-κB信号通路有关。     

动物双歧杆菌乳亚种XLTG11对克林霉素诱导的抗生素相关性腹泻的改善作用

目的：通过克林霉素诱导抗生素相关性腹泻(antibiotic-associated diarrhea,AAD)模型,探究动物双歧杆菌乳亚种XLTG11缓解小鼠AAD的作用。方法：将48只6周龄C57BL/6N雄鼠随机分为4组：对照组、模型组、低剂量组和高剂量组,除对照组外,各组小鼠连续14 d灌胃克林霉素(250 mg/(kg m_b·d))诱导AAD模型,然后低剂量组和高剂量组灌胃不同剂量(0.2 mL,5×10⁶、1×10⁷ CFU)动物双歧杆菌乳亚种XLTG11,测定小鼠体质量增长量、盲肠质量、粪便含水量和粪便稠度,测定结肠肿瘤坏死因子α、白细胞介素6(interleukin 6,IL-6)、IL-1β、IL-10水平,血清脂多糖(lipopolysaccharide,LPS)和D-乳酸质量浓度,测定肠道菌群组成及短链脂肪酸含量,以及肠道屏障和核因子κB(nuclear factor kappa-B,NF-κB)信号通路相关基因表达水平。结果：高剂量动物双歧杆菌乳亚种XLTG11显著提高AAD模型小鼠的体质量增长量和...     

Heat-induced aggregation of whey proteins in the presence of κ-casein or sodium caseinate

Aggregates were formed by heating mixtures of whey protein isolate (WPI) and pure κ-casein or sodium caseinate at pH 7 and 0.1 M NaCl. The aggregates were characterized by static and dynamic light scattering and size exclusion chromatography. After extensive heat-treatment at 80 °C for 24 h, almost all whey proteins and κ-casein formed mixed aggregates, but a large proportion of the sodium caseinate did not aggregate. At a given WPI concentration the size of the aggregates decreased with increasing κ-casein or sodium caseinate concentration, but the overall self-similar structure of the aggregates was the same. The presence of κ-casein or caseinate therefore inhibited growth of the heat-induced whey protein aggregates. The results were discussed relative to the reported chaperone-like activity of casein molecules towards heat aggregation of globular proteins.