Physico-chemical properties of potato starches

Starches were isolated and characterised from 10 potato cultivars grown under the same conditions (with a commercial starch for reference). The chemical composition revealed some differences amongst the starches with protein ranging from 0.30% to 0.34%, amylose 25.2% to 29.1% and phosphorus 52.6–66.2 mg 100 g⁻¹. High performance size-exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) fractionation of isoamylase debranched amylopectin showed that the amylopectin molecules were less branched and consisted of more B1, but less A-chains, than cereal starches. Gelatinisation onset (T_o), peak (T_p) and conclusion (T_c) temperatures of the native potato starches ranged from 58.7 to 62.5 °C, 62.5 to 66.1 °C and 68.7 to 72.3 °C, respectively, whilst the gelatinisation enthalpies ranged from 15.1 to 18.4 J g⁻¹. The gelatinisation temperatures of the starches increased in common with the amounts of short and intermediate sized amylopectin chains. The ¹³C magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (¹³C CP-MAS NMR) and wide angle X-ray diffraction (XRD) data (30.6% ± 0.22% crystallinity on average) showed little variance amongst the samples. Particle sizing results, however, revealed more variance (20.6–30.9 μm mean diameter). Overall, these data reveal the subtleties of cultivar specific variation against a background of constant environmental conditions.     

Analysis of antibiotic resistance patterns and detection of mecA gene in Staphylococcus aureus isolated from packaged hamburger

Presence of Staphylococcus aureus, antibiotic resistance pattern and PCR detection of mecA gene in isolated strains were investigated in total of 256 packaged hamburgers in Iran-Tehran. For this purpose we used standard disk-diffusion method and sensitive and specific PCR technique, respectively. Results showed that 25% of samples were positive for S. aureus. Resistance to meticillin, erythromycin, penicillin G, cefazolin, ciprofloxasin, vacomycin and amoxiclave was determined 89%, 20.3%, 18.7%, 15.6%, 14%, 26.6% and 12.5%, respectively. According to the obtained results from PCR analysis of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), mecA gene was present in 100% of the resistant isolates, 0% of intermediate-resistance isolates and 25% of susceptible isolates. The results obtained from PCR detection of mecA gene showed high correlation with standard disk diffusion test.     

Unravelling Novel Roles of Salivary Exosomes in the Regulation of Human Corneal Stromal Cell Migration and Wound Healing

Salivary exosomes have demonstrated vast therapeutic and diagnostic potential in numerous diseases. This study pioneers previously unexplored roles of SE in the context of corneal wound healing by utilizing primary corneal stromal cells from healthy (HCFs), type I diabetes mellitus (T1DMs), type II DM (T2DMs), and keratoconus (HKCs) subjects. Purified, healthy human SEs carrying tetraspanins CD9+, CD63+, and CD81+ were utilized. Scratch and cell migration assays were performed after 0, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h following SE stimulation (5 and 25 µg/mL). Significantly slower wound closure was observed at 6 and 12 h in HCFs with 5 μg/mL SE and T1DMs with 5 and 25 μg/mL SE. All wounds were closed by 24-hour, post-wounding. HKCs, T1DMs, and T2DMs with 25µg/mL SE exhibited a significant upregulation of cleaved vimentin compared to controls. Thrombospondin 1 was significantly upregulated in HCFs, HKCs, and T2DMs with 25 µg/mL SE. Lastly, HKCs, T1DMs, and T2DMs exhibited a significant downregulation of fibronectin with 25 μg/mL SE. Whether SEs can be utilized to clinical settings in restoring corneal defects is unknown. This is the first-ever study exploring the role of SEs in corneal wound healing. While the sample size was small, results are highly novel and provide a strong foundation for future studies.     

Role of confinement on carrier transport in Ge-Si(x)Ge(1-x) core-shell nanowires

We examine the impact of shell content and the associated hole confinement on carrier transport in Ge-Si(x)Ge(1-x) core-shell nanowires (NWs). Using NWs with different Si(x)Ge(1-x) shell compositions (x = 0.5 and 0.7), we fabricate NW field-effect transistors (FETs) with highly doped source/drain and examine their characteristics dependence on shell content. The results demonstrate a 2-fold higher mobility at room temperature, and a 3-fold higher mobility at 77K in the NW FETs with higher (x = 0.7) Si shell content by comparison to those with lower (x = 0.5) Si shell content. Moreover, the carrier mobility shows a stronger temperature dependence in Ge-Si(x)Ge(1-x) core-shell NWs with high Si content, indicating a reduced charge impurity scattering. The results establish that carrier confinement plays a key role in realizing high mobility core-shell NW FETs.     

Phytotherapeuthics Affecting the IL-1/IL-17/G-CSF Axis: A Complementary Treatment Option for Hidradenitis Suppurativa?

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS; also designated as acne inversa) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by painful skin lesions that occur in the axillary, inguinal, gluteal and perianal areas of the body. These lesions contain recurring deep-seated, inflamed nodules and pus-discharging abscesses and fistulas. Affecting about 1% of the population, this common disease has gained appropriate clinical attention in the last years. Associated with numerous comorbidities including metabolic syndrome, HS is considered a systemic disease that severely impairs the quality of life and shortens life expectancy. Therapeutic options for HS are limited, comprising long-term antibiotic treatment, the surgical removal of affected skin areas, and neutralization of TNF-α, the only approved systemic treatment. Novel treatment options are needed to close the therapeutic gap. HS pathogenesis is increasingly better understood. In fact, neutrophilic granulocytes (neutrophils) seem to be decisive for the development of the purulent destructive skin inflammation in HS. Recent findings suggest a key role of the immune mediators IL-1β, IL-17A and G-CSF in the migration into and activation of neutrophils in the skin. Although phytomedical drugs display potent immunoregulatory properties and have been suggested as complementary therapy in several chronic disorders, their application in HS has not been considered so far. In this review, we describe the IL-1/IL-17/G-CSF axis and evaluate it as potential target for an integrated phytomedical treatment of HS.     

Comparative study on the influence of surface characteristics on de-icing evaluation

Journal of Materials Science - A comparative study of de-icing evaluation methods was conducted in this work, and their variations in response to surface characteristics were investigated. The...     

Skin-Inspired Nanofluid-Filled Surfaces with Tunable Icephobic,Photothermal, and Energy Absorption Properties

Ice buildup can significantly and negatively impact system performance in various industrial sectors, and has remained a persistent challenge for decades. Many compliant materials exhibit excellent de-icing performance but are easily eroded by impacts from supercooled water droplets, sand, dust, and debris. A composite panel inspired by animal skin, consisting of a facesheet protecting a nanofluid layer beneath, which exhibits durable anti-icing and tunable photothermal properties is proposed. The viscous liquid layer beneath the facesheet increases flexural rigidity, preventing large deflections and increasing deformation resistance, which alters ice's adhesion to the surface. The non-uniform fluid pressure exerted by the viscous nanofluid-filled composite panels facilitates ice detachment, resulting in ice adhesion strengths as low as τ_ice ≈ 10 kPa. Further, by altering the fluid properties, different additional functionalities can be endowed to the system. Incorporating fumed silica in a fluid-filled composite panel results in rheopectic behavior, and this doubles their impact resistance when the shear thickening properties are properly tuned. Additionally, the combination of a transparent facesheet and a solar light absorbent nanofluid allows for tunable photothermal properties, further enhancing the anti-icing performance of the system. This durable and tunable nanofluid-filled composite panel shows great promise as a multifunctional de-icing material.     

A tensor-based hierarchical process monitoring approach for anomaly detection in additive manufacturing

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a technology that enables the creation of complex shapes with advanced structural and functional properties. It has transformed the traditional manufacturing operations into a more flexible and efficient process, reshaping the whole value chain and allowing new levels of product customization. AM is a layer-by-layer manufacturing process, in which materials are deposited in each layer to create the object of interest. Due to the layer-wise nature of the process, anomalies and defects might occur within each layer, across several layers or throughout the whole sample. An accurate and responsive detection strategy that enables the detection of various types of anomalies is essential for ensuring the quality and integrity of the manufactured product. In this paper, a hierarchical in situ process monitoring approach, namely, a three level monitoring strategy, is proposed to detect local, layer-wise, and sample-wise anomalies using thermal videos acquired during the manufacturing process. The proposed approach integrates hierarchical low-rank tensor decomposition methods with statistical monitoring techniques to effectively detect anomalies at different levels, namely, the within-layer level, the layer level, and the sample level. Simulations are used to evaluate the performance of the method and compare with existing benchmarks. The proposed approach is also applied to thermal videos acquired during the laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) process to illustrate its effectiveness in practice.     

Improved Cytotoxicity and Induced Apoptosis in HeLa Cells by Co-loading Vitamin E Succinate and Curcumin in Nano-MIL-88B-NH2

One of the strategies for improved therapeutic effects in cancer therapy is combination chemotherapy. In this study, a flexible nano-MOF (Fe-MIL-88B-NH₂) was synthesized in a sonochemical process, then co-loaded with α-tocopheryl succinate (TOS) and curcumin (CCM). The anticancer activity of co-loaded Fe-MIL-88B-NH₂ (Fe-MIL-88B-NH₂/TOS@CCM) against the HeLa cells was compared with that of the single-loaded counterpart (Fe-MIL-88B-NH₂@CCM). MTT analysis indicates improved cytotoxicity of Fe-MIL-88B-NH₂/TOS@CCM. The data from the cell apoptosis assay indicated more apoptosis in the case of the co-loaded nano-MOF. This study indicates the positive effect of the presence of TOS on enhancing the anticancer effect of Fe-MIL-88B-NH₂@CCM to prepare a more efficient drug delivery nanosystem.