Evaluation of potential interfering agents on in vitro methods for the determination of the antioxidant capacity in anthocyanin extracts

The evaluation of the effects of sugars, metals, acids and other antioxidants on the in vitro antioxidant capacity of purified anthocyanin extract by different techniques was the purpose of this study. Three methods and the ways of expressing their results were evaluated: ABTS_TEAC (capacity equivalent to Trolox, by ABTS (2,2′‐azino‐bis(3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulphonic acid))), DPPH_TEAC (capacity equivalent to Trolox, by DPPH (2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl)), DPPH_EC50 (50% reduction in the radical, by DPPH), DPPH_%Sca (reduction in the scavenging capacity, by DPPH), FRAP_TEAC (capacity equivalent to Trolox, by FRAP (reduction power of iron)) and FRAP_EC50 (50% reduction in the radical, by FRAP). The way of expressing DPPH and FRAP results as EC50 showed the greater interfering extent, mainly when the medium contained tartaric and ascorbic acids. The most coherent method was ABTS_TEAC in which only ascorbic acid interfered. Ascorbic acid was shown to interfere in all methods; thus, it must be removed prior to determining the in vitro antioxidant capacity of anthocyanins in food materials.     

Hancornia speciosa latex for biomedical applications: physical and chemical properties,biocompatibility assessment and angiogenic activity

The latex obtained from Hancornia speciosa is used in folk medicine for treatment of several diseases, such as acne, warts, diabetes, gastritis and inflammation. In this work, we describe the biocompatibility assessment and angiogenic properties of H. speciosa latex and its potential application in medicine. The physical–chemical characterization was carried out following different methodologies (CHN elemental analyses; thermogravimetric analyses and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy). The biocompatibility was evaluated through cytotoxicity and genotoxicity tests in fibroblast mouse cells and the angiogenic properties were evaluated using the chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assay model. The physical–chemical results showed that the structure of Hancornia speciosa latex biomembrane is very similar to that of Hevea brasiliensis (commercially available product). Moreover, the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity assays showed that H. speciosa latex is biocompatible with life systems and can be a good biomaterial for medical applications. The CAM test showed the efficient ability of H. speciosa latex in neovascularization of tissues. The histological analysis was in accordance with the results obtained in the CAM assay. Our data indicate that the latex obtained from H. speciosa and eluted in water showed significant angiogenic activity without any cytotoxic or genotoxic effects on life systems. The same did not occur with H. speciosa latex stabilized with ammonia. Addition of ammonia does not have significant effects on the structure of biomembranes, but showed a smaller cell survival and a significant genotoxicity effect. This study contributes to the understanding of the potentialities of H. speciosa latex as a source of new phytomedicines.     

Xylitol crystallization from culture media fermented by yeasts

Among sugar substitutes, an important role is played by xylitol, an aliphatic pentitol provided with some interesting properties which make it a high value product for pharmaceutical, odontological and food industries. Its production by biotechnological methods is based on fermentation of agro-industrial residues and could potentially compete with the traditional chemical way. However, crystallization is an important stage of xylitol production, since in many respects it determines the yield and quality of the target product. In the present work tests were made in order to determine the best conditions to clarify fermented media, which were then subjected to isothermal crystallization in the presence or in the absence of residual xylose and varying xylitol concentration as well as cooling temperature (−10 ≤ T_c ≤ 15 °C). Besides, the kinetics of xylitol crystallization from fermented solutions was investigated as function of the initial solution supersaturation and cooling temperature. The effect of the presence of residual xylose on the rate of crystallization was also evaluated. The best clarifying treatment was found to be 20 g l⁻¹ activated charcoal at room temperature for 1 h. The study of xylitol crystallization revealed the positive effect of the presence of residual xylose, which ensured a 1.6-fold increase in the crystallization yield (from 0.27 to 0.42).     

Silica nanocontainers for active corrosion protection

Novel self-healing protective coatings with nanocontainers of corrosion inhibitors open new opportunities for long-term anticorrosion protection of different metallic materials. In this paper a new type of functional nanoreservoir based on silica nanocapsules (SiNC) synthesized and loaded with corrosion inhibitor 2-mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT) in a one-stage process is reported for the first time. Unlike conventional mesoporous silica nanoparticles, SiNC possess an empty core and shell with gradual mesoporosity, arising from the particular conditions of the synthetic route adopted, which confers significant loading capacity and allows prolonged and stimuli-triggered release of the inhibiting species. The kinetics of inhibitor release was studied at different pH values and concentrations of NaCl. The results show a clear dependence of the release profiles on corrosion relevant triggers such as pH and Cl(-) concentration. When SiNC loaded with MBT are dispersed in NaCl solution, there is a significant decrease of the corrosion activity on aluminium alloy 2024. More importantly, when SiNC-MBT is added to a conventional water-based coating formulation, the modified coating hampers corrosion activity at the metal interface, better than in the case of direct addition of corrosion inhibitor. Furthermore, self-healing is observed before and after artificially inflicting defects in the modified coatings. As a result, the developed nanocontainers show high potential to be used in new generation of active protective coatings.     

Monitoring in precision metal drilling process using multi-sensors and neural network

This paper presents a new method to estimate hole diameters and surface roughness in precision drilling processes, using coupons taken from a sandwich plate composed of a titanium alloy plate (Ti6Al4V) glued onto an aluminum alloy plate (AA 2024T3). The proposed method uses signals acquired during the cutting process by a multisensor system installed on the machine tool. These signals are mathematically treated and then used as input for an artificial neural network. After training, the neural network system is qualified to estimate the surface roughness and hole diameter based on the signals and cutting process parameters. To evaluate the system, the estimated data were compared with experimental measurements and the errors were calculated. The results proved the efficiency of the proposed method, which yielded very low or even negligible errors of the tolerances used in most industrial drilling processes. This pioneering method opens up a new field of research, showing a promising potential for development and application as an alternative monitoring method for drilling processes.