Computational and experimental study of dental resin composites with high filler content

Journal of Materials Science - Nanocomposites have been used in various industries due to their excellent properties. For some of them, high filler content (over 50 wt%) is beneficial to improving...     

Self-healing,elastic and deformable novel composite phase change polymer based on thermoplastic elastomer SEBS for wearable devices

Journal of Materials Science - Form-stable composite phase change materials (C-PCMs) prepared by microencapsulation method and porous matrix adsorption method need for compression molding after...     

Measuring the disparity among scientific disciplines using Library of Congress Subject Headings

Scientometrics - Examining the relationships among scientific disciplines is important today, but existing methods are limited by the contents and structure of their bibliographic databases. We...     

Fresh beef tumbling at different post-mortem times to improve tenderness and proteolytic features of M. longissimus lumborum

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of tumbling at different post-mortem times on the proteolytic features and quality attributes of beef loins (M. longissimus lumborum). Loins (n = 12) were cut into 4 sections and assigned to tumbling at 1, 6 or 11 days post-mortem or non-tumbled control. Upon tumbling, additional ageing was applied to a common post-mortem time of 16 days. In general, tumbling had no considerable impacts on water-holding ability of samples. Tumbling resulted in an immediate decrease in shear force values (WBSF) of beef samples. Tumbling at 1 day post-mortem with no ageing had similar WBSF compared to the non-tumbled controls at 16 days (P > 0.05). With ageing, tumbling increased amounts of protein degradation, myofibrillar fragmentation and calpain-1 autolysis of samples. These results suggest that early post-mortem tumbling coupled with ageing can synergistically impact the tenderness development of beef loins and shorten the necessary ageing period.     

Ferulic acid and EGCG alter the structural characteristics of ovalbumin and its application in mineral loading

This study aims to fabricate mineral-loading nanocarriers using natural materials. The interaction patterns between ovalbumin (OVA) and four water-soluble polyphenols, namely ferulic acid (FA), (-)-Epigallo-catechin 3-gallate (EGCG), gallic acid (GA) and epicatechin (EC), were investigated. Results showed that the optimised conditions for preparing stable OVA–polyphenol complexes are at the OVA–polyphenol ratio of 4:1 at pH 6, under which OVA–FA and OVA–EGCG showed the highest stability and mineral-loading capacity among four OVA–polyphenol complexes. The fluorescence results indicated that the addition of EGCG and FA induced a significant fluorescence quenching to OVA. The interaction between OVA and polyphenols involved hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interaction and electrostatic interaction. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis suggested that both FA and EGCG enhanced the stability and orderliness of the structure of OVA. The transmission electron microscopy images also exhibited the spherical structure of OVA after the addition of FA and EGCG. Furthermore, scanning electron microscope–energy dispersive X-ray spectrum results suggested that OVA–FA and OVA–EGCG complexes were better mineral carriers than OVA–GA and OVA–EC. This study may serve as the theoretical support for the promising application of OVA in the fabrication of mineral-loading nanocarriers in functional food and pharmaceutic.     

Influence of fermentation with different lactic acid bacteria and in vitro digestion on the change of phenolic compounds in fermented kiwifruit pulps

The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of fermentation and gastrointestinal digestion of three kinds of fermented kiwifruit pulps with different Lactobacillus (Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus casei). The changes in bioactive substances (total phenolic acid, total flavonoid, vitamin C and the viable count), antioxidant capacity (DPPH, ABTS, hydroxyl radical and superoxide anion radical scavenging activity) and phenolic profiles (protocatechuic acid, protocatechualdehyde, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid and p-coumaric acid) were detected. The result showed, compared to non-fermented kiwifruit pulp, fermentation with LP and LA had higher content of TPA, TF and V_C, as well as antioxidant capacity. Fermentation with LP and the content of protocatechualdehyde, p-coumaric acid and chlorogenic acid were increased. However, after digestion, LP showed more effect in maintaining the content of antioxidants, antioxidant capacity and the viable count rather than LA. During digestion, the content of protocatechualdehyde and p-coumaric acid was increased in fermented samples compared with non-fermented samples. Overall, compared with LA and LC, LP is more suitable for the fermentation of kiwifruit pulp.