Anticoagulant, Antioxidant and Antitumor Activities of Heterofucans from the Seaweed Dictyopteris delicatula

In the present study, six families of sulfated polysaccharides were obtained from seaweed Dictyopteris delicatula by proteolytic digestion, followed by acetone fractionation and molecular sieving on Sephadex G-100. Chemical analyses demonstrated that all polysaccharides contain heterofucans composed mainly of fucose, xylose, glucose, galactose, uronic acid, and sulfate. The fucans F0.5v and F0.7v at 1.0 mg/mL showed high ferric chelating activity (～45%), whereas fucans F1.3v (0.5 mg/mL) showed considerable reducing power, about 53.2% of the activity of vitamin C. The fucan F1.5v presented the most prominent anticoagulant activity. The best antiproliferative activity was found with fucans F1.3v and F0.7v. However, F1.3v activity was much higher than F0.7v inhibiting almost 100% of HeLa cell proliferation. These fucans have been selected for further studies on structural characterization as well as in vivo experiments, which are already in progress.     

Effect of Eu-implantation and annealing on the GaN quantum dots excitonic recombination

Undoped self-assembled GaN quantum dots (QD) stacked in superlattices (SL) with AlN spacer layers were submitted to thermal annealing treatments. Changes in the balance between the quantum confinement, strain state of the stacked heterostructures and quantum confined Stark effect lead to the observation of GaN QD excitonic recombination above and below the bulk GaN bandgap. In Eu-implanted SL structures, the GaN QD recombination was found to be dependent on the implantation fluence. For samples implanted with high fluence, a broad emission band at 2.7 eV was tentatively assigned to the emission of large blurred GaN QD present in the damage region of the implanted SL. This emission band is absent in the SL structures implanted with lower fluence and hence lower defect level. In both cases, high energy emission bands at approx. 3.9 eV suggest the presence of smaller dots for which the photoluminescence intensity was seen to be constant with increasing temperatures. Despite the fact that different deexcitation processes occur in undoped and Eu-implanted SL structures, the excitation population mechanisms were seen to be sample-independent. Two main absorption bands with maxima at approx. 4.1 and 4.7 to 4.9 eV are responsible for the population of the optically active centres in the SL samples.     

SEM study of the morphology of asymmetric cellulose acetate membranes produced from recycled agro-industrial residues: sugarcane bagasse and mango seeds

Cellulose, obtained both from sugarcane bagasse and mango seeds, was used for synthesizing cellulose acetate in order to produce asymmetric membranes. These were compared to membranes of commercial cellulose acetate (Rhodia). All produced membranes were asymmetric, characterized by the presence of a dense skin and a porous support. Differences regarding the morphology of the surfaces as well as of the porous support can be noticed. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) showed that the morphology of the superficial layer, responsible for transport, depends on the different lignin content of the starting material and also on the viscosity average molecular weight of the cellulose acetates produced from sugarcane bagasse, mango seed, and Rhodia’s commercial cellulose acetate.     

XANES investigation of the enhanced chemical stability of Pd in supported Pd–Mo catalysts

The XANES (X-ray absorption near edge structure) technique was used to study Pd and Mo catalysts deposited on supported Al₂O₃/SiO₂ and Al₂O₃/Si-MCM-41 in the form of monometallic and bimetallic systems. The results indicate that Pd has stronger chemical stability when in the presence of Mo and is always in the metallic form, which is surprising, because the samples were not subjected to reducing conditions prior to the measurements. The increased stability was attributed to the formation of a core-shell structure with a Pd rich core and a Mo rich surface.     

Functional properties of collagenous material from chicken feet

Collagenous material was obtained from chicken feet skins and tendons, defatted with ethylic ether and treated with 0.05 M and 0.6 M NaCl solutions. Part of the material was dried at 35 degrees C in a forced air convection oven and another was freeze-dried. The air dried material had 77.2 g/100 g of collagen and the freeze-dried material 76.7 g/100 g. Both dehydrated materials showed the same behaviour for gel formation and cold water holding capacity. The material air dried had higher emulsifying capacity than the freeze-dried one. The collagen of freeze-dried material had higher solubility in 0.5 M acetic acid and water at 70 degrees C than air dried material. Gel strength, emulsion stability and water holding capacity at 60 degrees C were higher for freeze-dried material. The results indicate the potential use of these materials as functional ingredients in meat products.     

Cholesterol and fatty acids profile of Brazilian commercial chicken giblets

This study was carried out to determine the chemical composition, cholesterol contents and fatty acids profile of Brazilian commercial chicken giblets. The analysis were performed in gizzard, liver and heart in natura and also in cooked gizzard, fried liver and roasted heart. Fat and cholesterol contents ranged from 0.88% and 72.68 mg/100 g, in cooked gizzard, to 22.19% and 213.18 mg/100 g, in roasted heart. As the fat content gets higher, so does the cholesterol content. Palmitic (C16:0) and stearic acids (C18:0) were the predominant saturated fatty acids (SFA). The C16:0 ranged from 6.39% in cooked gizzard to 18.51% in fried liver. The C18:0 level ranged from 6.62% in roasted heart to 19.19% in cooked gizzard. Linoleic acid (C18:2 omega 6) was the predominant polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA). The data revealed that the three different analysed giblets presented a good PUFA/SFA ratio, with values of 1.11, 1.14 and 1.40 for cooked gizzard, fried liver and roasted heart, respectively.     

The effect of grazing intensity and the presence of a forage legume on nitrogen dynamics in Brachiaria pastures in the Atlantic forest region of the south of Bahia, Brazil

It has been shown that with careful grazing management and addition of Pand K, but not N, fertilisers Brachiaria pastures are ableto maintain sustainable live weight gains over many years. However, standardon-farm practice, which generally involves high stocking rates, leads after afew years to pasture decline due mainly to N deficiency for grass regrowth. Togenerate an understanding of the mechanism of pasture decline and possiblemanagement options to mitigate this process, a study was performed in theAtlantic forest region of the south of Bahia state to study the N dynamics inpastures of Brachiaria humidicola subject to threedifferent stocking rates of beef cattle, with and without the presence of theforage legume Desmodium ovalifolium. Despite the fact thatthe C:N ratio of the deposited litter was high (60 to 70) the rate ofdecomposition was very rapid (k –0.07 gg^–1 day^–1) and annual rates of Nturnover through the litter pathway were between 105 and 170 kg Nha^–1 year^–1. In the grass-onlypasturesas stocking rate increased from 2 to 3 head ha^–1, N recycledinthe litter decreased by 11%, but a further increase to 4 headha^–1 decreased N recycling by 30% suggesting thatbeyonda certain critical level higher grazing stocking rates would lead to pasturedecline if there was no N addition. High stocking rates decreased theproportionof the legume in the sward, but at all rates the concentration of N in both thegreen and dead grass in the forage on offer and in the litter was higher in themixed sward. The presence of the legume caused a decrease in the C:N ratio ofthe microbial biomass while both soil N mineralisation and nitrificationincreased. This increased rate of turnover of the microbial biomass and thecontribution of N₂ fixation to the legume resulted in largeincreasesin the N recycled via litter deposition ranging from 42 to 155 kg Nha^–1 year^–1.     

Experimental procedure for kinetic studies on egg-shell catalysts: The case of liquid-phase hydrogenation of 1,3-butadiene and n-butenes on commercial Pd catalysts

A study of the liquid-phase hydrogenation of 1,3-butadiene on commercial Pd/Al₂O₃ catalysts of the “egg-shell” type has been performed. Experimental conditions (40°C, 4 atm and high conversion of the di-olefin) were selected in accordance to industrial operating conditions employed for selective hydrogenation of 1,3-butadiene. Three experimental schemes were tested: a slurry reactor, a rotating-basket reactor, and a recirculation system with an external fixed-bed reactor. Significant drawbacks shown by the two former devices were mainly derived from the very high activity and the egg-shell structure of the catalysts. Instead, the recirculation system was found to be an excellent alternative.

Although Pd is present only within a very thin external layer (around 50–250 μm), strong diffusion effects impairing selectivity were observed. Plausible kinetic expressions corresponding to nine series–parallel overall reactions are derived from a mechanistic model. To deal with this network of fast reactions, a rather complex set of computational and predictive tools were employed. A worked out example from several replicates demonstrates the capability of both, experimental and data analysis procedures, for inferring kinetic parameters of the proposed model.     

Development of semitransparent wood‐polymer composites

A new material has been developed consisting of pieces of wood embedded within a matrix of acrylic polymer, resulting in a transparent or semitransparent wood‐based product. This material presents quite appealing aesthetic features, thereby opening new possibilities for decorative applications. Because acrylic and methacrylic monomers are in the liquid state at room temperature, it is possible to introduce wood (in the current case, walnut wood) into a mixture of acrylic (hydroxypropyl acrylate) and/or methacrylic monomers (methyl methacrylate and 2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) along with a plasticizer (dioctyl phthalate) in the presence of a chemical initiator (benzoyl peroxide). A transparent polymeric matrix with dispersed wood is then obtained through bulk free‐radical polymerization. Introducing this reaction mixture along with pieces of wood into a mold results in a wood‐polymer composite. A 2^4?1 experimental fractional factorial design was implemented to study the importance of the composition of these materials on several relevant properties. The sheets produced were characterized by tensile testing, dynamic mechanical thermal analysis, thermal gravimetric analysis, and heat deflection temperature. The models obtained for predicting each property pointed to valuable insights regarding the influential constituents. In particular, our results suggested that monomers to be used in future applications of this material should be selected in terms of their cost and the desired flexibility for the final product, not in terms of their polarity. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 2012. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Antioxidant protection of high-pressure processed minced chicken meat by industrial tomato products

Pressure-treatment at 300 MPa of minced chicken breast meat did not induce significant lipid oxidation during chill storage for up to 15 days, while pressure-treatment at 600 and 800 MPa enhanced formation of secondary lipid oxidation products measured as thiobarbituric acid reactive substances. However, a waste product from industrial tomato paste production was found to yield efficient protection against lipid oxidation in pressurized chicken meat. Addition of 0.30% tomato waste or of 0.10% final tomato paste to minced meat led to a lag phase of 6 days for formation of secondary oxidation products in meat pressure treated at 600 MPa. The waste product seemed special efficient in protecting chicken meat pressurized at 800 MPa, as a notably lower rate of formation of secondary oxidation products was found. Flavonoids washed out with the waste fraction may be more efficient as antioxidant than the other phenolics or carotenoids present in the other paste processing fractions. Addition of tomato paste fractions did not influence radical formation measured by electron spin resonance spectroscopy and the tomato waste is considered to be effective as antioxidant at subsequent reactions leading to secondary lipid oxidation products.