Mineral element composition of spinach

An extensive study has been made on the mineral element compositions of spinach leaves and stems. Twenty two locally grown different spinach samples have been analysed for 16 elements using ICP and atomic absorption spectrophotometric techniques. Both spinach leaves and stems were analysed separately. A detailed elucidation of the inorganic matrix in spinach leaves and stems has been provided. © 1998 SCI.     

Cytochrome P450 inhibitory potential of selected Indian spices — possible food drug interaction

Spices constitute an important group of food which is virtually indispensable in the culinary art. In a view, these spices feared to pose a probability to affect the disposition of conventional pharmaceuticals through inhibition of human cytochrome P450 (CYPs) enzymes. In the present study an approach has been made to evaluate the possible CYP inhibition potential with some Indian spices (Capsicum annuum, Murraya koenigii, Zingiber officinale) and their major bioactive compounds, in combination with pooled microsome; as well as commercially available recombinant human CYP3A4, CYP2D6, CYP2C9 and CYP1A2. Quantification of the bioactive compound was determined through RP-HPLC, in order to standardize the plant material. CYP–carbon monoxide (CYP–CO) complex assay result indicated that all the plants and their bioactive compounds have an interaction potential with CYPs. Fluoregenic assay results indicated that the spice extracts have higher inhibition potential comparing to their single bioactive molecule. The higher enzyme inhibition potential by the extracts may be related to the synergistic effects due to the presence of other constituents in the extract. Capsaicin and C. annuum showed the lowest IC₅₀ value and 6-gingerol and Z. officinale extract showed the highest IC₅₀ value among the entire sample tested. The entire sample showed significantly less (P < 0.001, P < 0.01) interaction potential than known inhibitors. These findings indicate that selected spices are unlikely to cause clinically relevant drug interactions involving the inhibition of major CYP isozymes.     

Rheological, textural and spectral characteristics of sorbitol substituted mango jam

Full replacement of sucrose with sorbitol is feasible in mango jam manufacturing. Dynamic rheological tests characterized mango jam manufactured with sucrose/sorbitol as a weak gel. Mango jam did not follow Cox-Merz or modified Cox-Merz rule. The storage- and loss- moduli increased with sucrose concentration up to 60%, but decreased at higher sucrose concentrations. Gel strength decreased with increasing sorbitol concentration because of weaker junction zones in pectin gel network. FTIR spectra revealed that C-O and C-C stretching vibrations are indicators of the gel strength because pectin polymeric chain network formation in fruit jam is due to hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions.     

p-Version plate and curved shell element for geometrically non-linear analysis

This paper presents a p-version geometrically non-linear formulation based on the total Lagrangian approach for a nine node three dimensional curved shell element. The element geometry is defined by the coordinates of the nodes located on its middle surface and nodal vectors describing the bottom and top surfaces of the element. The element displacement approximation can be of arbitrary and different polynomial orders in the plane of the element and in the transverse direction. The element approximation functions and the corresponding nodal variables are derived from the Lagrange family of interpolation functions. The resulting approximation functions and the nodal variables are hierarchical and the element displacement approximation ensures C° continuity. The element properties are established using the principle of virtual work and the hierarchical element approximation. In formulating the properties of the element complete three dimensional stresses and strains are considered, hence the element is equally effective for very thin as well as extremely thick shells and plates. Incremental equations of equilibrium are derived and solved using the standard Newton–Raphson method. The total load is divided into increments, and for each increment of load, equilibrium iterations are performed until each component of the residuals is within a preset tolerance. Numerical examples are presented to show the accuracy, efficiency and advantages of the present formulation. The results obtained from the present formulation are compared with those available in the literature.     

Stem cell biomanufacturing under uncertainty: A case study in optimizing red blood cell production

As breakthrough cellular therapy discoveries are translated into reliable, commercializable applications, effective stem cell biomanufacturing requires systematically developing and optimizing bioprocess design and operation. This article proposes a rigorous computational framework for stem cell biomanufacturing under uncertainty. Our mathematical tool kit incorporates: high‐fidelity modeling, single variate and multivariate sensitivity analysis, global topological superstructure optimization, and robust optimization. The advantages of the proposed bioprocess optimization framework using, as a case study, a dual hollow fiber bioreactor producing red blood cells from progenitor cells were quantitatively demonstrated. The optimization phase reduces the cost by a factor of 4, and the price of insuring process performance against uncertainty is approximately 15% over the nominal optimal solution. Mathematical modeling and optimization can guide decision making; the possible commercial impact of this cellular therapy using the disruptive technology paradigm was quantitatively evaluated. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 64: 3011–3022, 2018     

Cluster Based Localization Scheme with Backup Node in Underwater Wireless Sensor Network

Wireless Personal Communications - The localization is a process of finding out the exact location of sensor nodes. For underwater, it is very difficult task to locate sensor nodes as the...     

Trap‐State Suppression and Improved Charge Transport in PbS Quantum Dot Solar Cells with Synergistic Mixed‐Ligand Treatments

The power conversion efficiency of colloidal PbS‐quantum‐dot (QD)‐based solar cells is significantly hampered by lower‐than‐expected open circuit voltage (V_OC). The V_OC deficit is considerably higher in QD‐based solar cells compared to other types of existing solar cells due to in‐gap trap‐induced bulk recombination of photogenerated carriers. Here, this study reports a ligand exchange procedure based on a mixture of zinc iodide and 3‐mercaptopropyonic acid to reduce the V_OC deficit without compromising the high current density. This layer‐by‐layer solid state ligand exchange treatment enhances the photovoltaic performance from 6.62 to 9.92% with a significant improvement in V_OC from 0.58 to 0.66 V. This study further employs optoelectronic characterization, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy to understand the origin of V_OC improvement. The mixed‐ligand treatment reduces the sub‐bandgap traps and significantly reduces bulk recombination in the devices.