Crystallization of progesterone polymorphs using polymer-induced heteronucleation (PIHn) method

Progesterone is a natural hormone steroid used in humans for several treatments and in livestock for artificial insemination, which exhibits two polymorphic forms at ambient conditions: form 1 and form 2. Form 2 is metastable and more soluble than form 1; however, it is not suitable to use as powder raw material because it transforms into form 1 by the effects of grinding. A polymorphic screening of progesterone based on polymer-induced heteronucleation method was performed as an alternative to prepare the metastable form. Polyvinyl alcohol, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), dextran, gelatin, polyisoprene (PI) and acrylonitrile-butadiene (NBR) copolymer were used. Crystals were prepared from 0.5, 10 and 40?mg/mL solutions in acetone at room temperature by solvent evaporation. The samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microcopy and attenuated total reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy. Form 1 was nucleated from 40?mg/mL solutions on the six polymers and from 10?mg/mL solutions on PI and NBR. The mixture of form 1 and form 2 was obtained from 10?mg/mL solution on HPMC, dextran and gelatin and from 0.5?mg/mL solution crystallizations. Therefore, the polymeric devices, which crystallized the metastable and more soluble polymorph (2) of progesterone, would be a promissory alternative for the pharmaceutical applications.     

Bioactive compounds and antioxidant activities of the Korean lotus leaf (Nelumbo nucifera) condiment: volatile and nonvolatile metabolite profiling during fermentation

Recent studies have shown that lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) leaf has various pharmacological effects. However, there have been no scientific investigations into these leaves as a fermented crude liquid. This study compared the in vitro antioxidant capacity of lotus leaf‐fermented broth (LLFB) with that of 57° Brix sugar broth (SB) as a control over a period of 6 months based on 1,1‐diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity, ferric ion reducing power, superoxide dismutase‐like activity, tyrosinase inhibition and nitrite scavenging activity. The dominant species during fermentation process were Leuconostoc lactis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae for LLFB. A total of thirty‐six metabolites such as alkaloids, fatty acids, organic acids, phenolics, sugar and sugar derivatives, ethyl esters and monoterpenoids differed between SB and LLFB using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Meanwhile, nine volatile compounds in LLFB contributed pleasant, slightly sweetish and fruity odour of condiment and sensory evaluation score of 4.06 ± 1.52 in the proportion of 1:9 LLFB/water.     

Compensation paradox: the influence of monetary rewards on user behaviour

Many e-commerce companies collect users’ personal data for marketing purposes despite privacy concerns. Information-collecting companies often offer a monetary reward to users to alleviate privacy concerns and ease the collection of personal information. This study focused on the negative effects of monetary rewards on both information privacy concerns (IPC) and information disclosure. A survey approach was used to collect data and 370 final responses were analysed using a two-way analysis of variance and a binomial logistic regression model. The results show that monetary rewards increase IPC when an information-collecting company requires sensitive information. Additional results indicate that building trust is a more effective way of collecting personal data. This study identifies how organisations can best execute information-collection activities and contributes additional insights for academia and practitioners.     

Application of chitosan–alginate microspheres for the sustained release of bacteriophage in simulated gastrointestinal conditions

This study was designed to evaluate the acid stability, release property and antimicrobial efficacy of Escherichia coli O157:H7 bacteriophages encapsulated in chitosan–alginate microspheres under the simulated gastrointestinal conditions. The bacteriophages belonging to Myoviridae family were stable at the pH above 4 in trypticase soy broth. The chitosan–alginate microspheres exhibited protective effect on the viability of bacteriophages in the simulated gastric conditions at pH 2.0 and pH 2.5, showing 4.8 and 5.6 log PFU mL^‐1, respectively, after 1 h of incubation at 37 °C. The release per cent of bacteriophages from microspheres gradually increased up to 65% in the simulated intestinal condition (pH 7.5) at 37 °C for 6 h. The lytic efficacy of chitosan‐ and alginate‐encapsulated bacteriophages against E. coli O157:H7 was significantly maintained in the simulated intestinal conditions to 10 h of incubation (1.3 log reduction). The results suggest that the chitosan–alginate microspheres can be used as a reliable delivery system for bacteriophages.     

A Two-Dimensional Numerical Analysis for Thermal Performance of an Intermittently Operated Radiant Floor Heating System in a Transient External Climatic Condition

Abstract

Building thermal inertia and operation control strategies have impacted on the thermal performance of a radiant floor heating system. This study conducts a two-dimensional numerical analysis of an intermittently operated radiant floor heating system using the Re-Normalization Group model with Discrete Ordinates Radiation model. A detailed numerical simulation setups and various analyses are provided, including grid independency analysis, initial condition, time step sizes and external boundary conditions. Three different weekend day intermittent operation strategies are investigated. The results showed that Case 3 designed with pre-heating of 20?h has better performance compared to Case 1 designed with pre-heating of 8?h and Case 2 designed with pre-heating of 14?h. The average indoor air temperature differences of approximate 2.1, 1.6 and 1.2 K are observed for Case 1, Case 2 and Case 3, respectively, when comparing two-time slot at 8:00am on Friday morning and Monday morning. This significantly highlights the effect of thermal inertia and the potential of energy saving due to the utilization of intermittent operation. Therefore, the current study presents numerical simulation potential in evaluating the radiant floor heating effects on indoor thermal environment, taking into account building thermal inertia and transient external climatic conditions.     

Distribution of carbon contamination in MgAl2O4 spinel occurring during spark-plasma-sintering (SPS) processing: I – Effect of heating rate and post-annealing

Carbon contamination from the carbon paper/dies during spark-plasma-sintering (SPS) processing was examined in the MgAl₂O₄ spinel. The carbon contamination sensitively changes with the heating rate during the SPS processing. At the high heating rate of 100 °C/min, the carbon contamination having organized structures occurred over almost the entire area from the surface to deep inside the SPSed spinel disk. In contrast, at the slow heating rate of 10 °C/min, the carbon contamination having disordered structures occurred only around the surface area. The carbon phases transform into high pressure CO/CO₂ gases by post-annealing in air and lead to pore formation along the grain junctions. The pore formation significantly occurs at the high heating rate due to the large amount of the contaminant carbon phases. This suggests that if once the carbon contamination was formed in the materials, it is very difficult to remove the carbon phases from the materials.     

Tangeretin Ameliorates Glucose-Induced Podocyte Injury through Blocking Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition Caused by Oxidative Stress and Hypoxia

Podocyte injury inevitably results in leakage of proteins from the glomerular filter and is vital in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy (DN). The underlying mechanisms of podocyte injury facilitate finding of new therapeutic targets for DN treatment and prevention. Tangeretin is an O-polymethoxylated flavone present in citrus peels with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This study investigated the renoprotective effects of tangeretin on epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition-mediated podocyte injury and fibrosis through oxidative stress and hypoxia caused by hyperglycemia. Mouse podocytes were incubated in media containing 33 mM glucose in the absence and presence of 1–20 μM tangeretin for up to 6 days. The in vivo animal model employed db/db mice orally administrated with 10 mg/kg tangeretin for 8 weeks. Non-toxic tangeretin inhibited glucose-induced expression of the mesenchymal markers of N-cadherin and α-smooth muscle actin in podocytes. However, the reduced induction of the epithelial markers of E-cadherin and P-cadherin was restored by tangeretin in diabetic podocytes. Further, tangeretin enhanced the expression of the podocyte slit diaphragm proteins of nephrin and podocin down-regulated by glucose stimulation. The transmission electron microscopic images revealed that foot process effacement and loss of podocytes occurred in diabetic mouse glomeruli. However, oral administration of 10 mg/kg tangeretin reduced urine albumin excretion and improved foot process effacement of diabetic podocytes through inhibiting loss of slit junction and adherenes junction proteins. Glucose enhanced ROS production and HIF-1α induction in podocytes, leading to induction of oxidative stress and hypoxia. Similarly, in diabetic glomeruli reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and HIF-1α induction were observed. Furthermore, hypoxia-evoking cobalt chloride induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process and loss of slit diaphragm proteins and junction proteins in podocytes, which was inhibited by treating submicromolar tangeretin. Collectively, these results demonstrate that tangeretin inhibited podocyte injury and fibrosis through blocking podocyte EMT caused by glucose-induced oxidative stress and hypoxia.