Optimization of Pathogen Capture in Flowing Fluids with Magnetic Nanoparticles

Magnetic nanoparticles have been employed to capture pathogens for many biological applications; however, optimal particle sizes have been determined empirically in specific capturing protocols. Here, a theoretical model that simulates capture of bacteria is described and used to calculate bacterial collision frequencies and magnetophoretic properties for a range of particle sizes. The model predicts that particles with a diameter of 460 nm should produce optimal separation of bacteria in buffer flowing at 1 L h⁻¹. Validating the predictive power of the model, Staphylococcus aureus is separated from buffer and blood flowing through magnetic capture devices using six different sizes of magnetic particles. Experimental magnetic separation in buffer conditions confirms that particles with a diameter closest to the predicted optimal particle size provide the most effective capture. Modeling the capturing process in plasma and blood by introducing empirical constants (c_e), which integrate the interfering effects of biological components on the binding kinetics of magnetic beads to bacteria, smaller beads with 50 nm diameters are predicted that exhibit maximum magnetic separation of bacteria from blood and experimentally validated this trend. The predictive power of the model suggests its utility for the future design of magnetic separation for diagnostic and therapeutic applications.     

High‐intensity sweeteners in espresso coffee: ideal and equivalent sweetness and time–intensity analysis

The efficient substitution of sucrose by a sweetener in beverages requires the application of some sensory techniques. First, one must determine the concentrations of the sweeteners under study, equivalent in sweetness to the ideal sucrose concentration. In addition, it is fundamental to determine which is most similar to sucrose. The objectives of this study were to determine the ideal sweetness for espresso coffee and the equivalent concentrations in sweetness of different sweeteners, as well as characterise the time–intensity profile of each sweetener in relation to sweetness. The sweeteners evaluated were sucralose, aspartame, neotame, a cyclamate/saccharin mixture (2:1) and stevia. The sucrose concentration considered ideal by consumers was 12.5% (w/v), and the equivalent concentrations of the sweeteners were 0.0159% for sucralose, 0.0549% for aspartame, 0.0016% for neotame, 0.0359% for the cyclamate/saccharin mixture and 0.0998% for stevia. The time–intensity analysis indicated that possibly the sweeteners neotame, aspartame and sucralose would be the best substitutes for sucrose.     

Migration of Point Defects in the Field of a Temperature Gradient

The influence of the temperature gradient over the thickness of the cladding of a fuel element of a fast-neutron reactor on the migration of point defects formed in the cladding material due to neutron irradiation has been studied. It has been shown that, under the action of the temperature gradient, the flux of vacancies onto the inner surface of the cladding is higher than the flux of interstitial atoms, which leads to the formation of a specific concentration profile in the cladding with a vacancy-depleted zone near the inner surface. The experimental results on the spatial distribution of pores over the cladding thickness have been presented with which the data on the concentration profiles and vacancy fluxes have been compared.