Comparison of bioactive compounds,antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of Mon Thong durian during ripening

The aim of this investigation was to compare the bioactive and nutrient compounds, fatty acids, and antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of Mon Thong durian at different stages of ripening. It was found that the total polyphenols, flavonoids, flavanols, ascorbic acid, tannins and the antioxidant activity determined by four assays (CUPRAC, DPPH, ABTS and FRAP) differed in immature, mature, ripe and overripe samples. The content of polyphenols and antioxidant activity were the highest in overripe durian, flavonoids were the highest in ripe durian, and flavanols and antiproliferative activity were the highest in mature durian (p < 0.05). FTIR spectra of polyphenols, HPLC profiles of fatty acids, the antioxidant and antiproliferative activities can be used as indicators to characterise different stages of durian ripening.     

Antioxidant activity of enzymatic extracts from a brown seaweed Ecklonia cava by electron spin resonance spectrometry and comet assay

The potential antioxidant activity of enzymatic extracts from Ecklonia cava was evaluated by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), hydroxyl and alkyl radical scavenging using a electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrophotometer compared with ESR signal intensity and inhibitory effect of DNA damage on comet assay. E. cava was enzymatically hydrolyzed with five food industrial carbohydrases (AMG, Celluclast, Termamyl, Ultraflo and Viscozyme) from Novozyme Nordisk. All the tested extracts exhibited strong radical scavenging activities and the values were dose-dependent. The DPPH and hydroxyl radical scavenging activities of the enzymatic extracts were compatible with the vitamin C, which the alkyl radical scavenging activity was even higher than that of vitamin C. Also in the present study, the enzymatic extracts showed strong inhibitory effect against DNA damage in a dose dependent manner. These results indicated that the E. cava might be valuable natural antioxidative source.     

US consumers’ acceptability of soy sauce and <Emphasis Type="Italic">bulgogi</Emphasis>

This study investigated acceptability and consumer segmentation of soy sauce and famous Korean dish, bulgogi. A total of 123 participants evaluated intensity of 18 attributes and sensory liking of 4 commercial soy sauce samples and bulgogi samples made by aforementioned soy sauces. The overall results showed that appearance liking was the only significant different attribute among soy sauce samples and there were no significant differences among bulgogi samples. Furthermore, there was little correlation between overall liking of soy sauce and bulgogi samples. However, different segments of consumer groups were found by cluster analysis. Four and five subgroups of consumers were identified on evaluation of soy sauce samples and bulgogi samples, respectively. These results demonstrated that consumers’ different preference pattern. In conclusion, this study specified characteristics of commercial soy sauce perceived by consumers and consumers’ acceptability toward soy sauces and bulgogi made using soy sauces.     

Environmentally conscious hard turning of cemented carbide materials on the basis of micro-cutting in SEM (2nd report): stress turning with three kinds of cutting tools

Environmentally conscious hard turning and technology have placed increasing importance on the machining process. Cutting fluids have a significant impact on the environment, thus numerous research works are being performed to minimize their use. However, tool wear is very severe in hard turning cemented carbides without the use of cutting fluids. In this research, the effects of dry and wet cutting methods (vegetable oil mist and mineral oil) and tool material on cutting resistance and wear characteristics of cutting tools were experimentally investigated to study the possibility of creating an environmentally conscious hard turning of cemented carbides. Mist and wet cutting of the cemented carbides using poly-crystalline diamond (PCD) cutting tools were adopted to investigate how tool wear on the basis of micro-cutting in the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) can be reduced. Additionally, the poly-crystalline cubic boron nitride (PcBN) and the usual cBN cutting tools were compared with the PCD cutting tools. This paper was presented at the 9^th Asian International Conference on Fluid Machinery (AICFM9), Jeju, Korea, October 16–19, 2007.recommended for publication in revised form by Associate Editor Dae-Eun Kim HEO Sung Jung was born in Busan, R. O. K., in 1958. He received the Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Osaka University, Osaka, Japan. He is a Full Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Doowon Technical College, Ansong -si, Gyonggi-do, Republic of Korea. His current research interests are in the areas of cutting of difficult-to-cut materials, environmentally conscious machining and cutting tool design.     

Molecular characterization and tissue distribution of ferritin M in kelp grouper, Epinephelus bruneus

This study, reports the identification and analysis of ferritin M chain, from kelp grouper, Epinephelus bruneus (EbFerM); it comprises 1004 base pair (bp), including 528 bp open reading frame (ORF) which encodes 176 amino acid (aa) residues; the calculated molecular weight is 20 kDa. The 5′-untranslated region (UTR) possesses 476 bp proceeded by a putative Iron Regulatory Element (IRE). Pair wise alignments showed that EbFerM shared 94% identity with that of Larimichthys crocea and Sciaenops. It is expressed in abundance in liver, spleen, and kidney when challenged with Vibrio anguillarum, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), or poly I:C.     

Asymmetric One‐Pot Synthesis of 1,4‐Dihydroquinolines via an Organocatalytic Aza‐Michael/Michael Cascade Strategy

A synthetic method for the construction of fully substituted enantioenriched 1,4‐dihydroquinolines using an organocatalytic aza‐Michael/Michael cascade reaction has been developed. The asymmetric reaction of 2‐(tosylamino)phenyl α,β‐unsaturated ketones with alkynyl aldehydes, promoted by diphenylprolinol O‐TMS ether as an organocatalyst, generated chiral 1,4‐dihydroquinolines in good to high yields with excellent enantioselectivities (up to 97 % ee).

     

Phenolic phytochemicals in cabbage inhibit amyloid β protein-induced neurotoxicity

The antioxidative and neuronal protective effects of red and white cabbages were investigated against amyloid β protein (Aβ)-induced cytotoxicity in neuron-like PC12 cells. Red cabbage phenolic phytochemicals showed higher antioxidative effect. In cell viability assay using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), red cabbage showed more protective effect on Aβ-induced neurotoxicity. Since oxidative stress causes membrane breakdown, the protective effect of cabbage phytochemicals was investigated by lactate dehydrogenase and trypan blue exclusion assays. Red cabbages showed more efficient cell protective effects among samples. The overall relative neuronal cell protection activity of red cabbages by three tests was much higher than white cabbages. The degree of neuronal cell protection was closely correlated with their phenolic contents and their antioxidative capacities. Moreover, anthocyanins in cabbage appeared to be the major contributors.