Preparation of β-glucan and antioxidant-rich fractions by stone milling of hull-less barley

Stone milling of hull-less barley in combination with size-based separation of the milled fractions was used for preparation of flours with different compositions of macronutrients and bioactive compounds. According to similar compositions, specific milled fractions were combined to define three flours. The flour with the largest mass fraction (~70%) comprised particle sizes < 124 μm, which showed lower fibre, residual ash and antioxidant contents than the unfractionated flour. The flour with particles from 124 to 250 μm (~20% mass fraction) had >twofold greater β-glucan content, and the flour with particles > 250 μm (~10% mass fraction) had >threefold greater content of antioxidants than unfractionated flour. Each of these three flour fractions represents valuable material that can be incorporated into bakery products to enhance functional and health-related properties. Large enrichment factors of bioactive compounds in barley flours can be obtained using small-scale and widely available milling equipment.     

Elastic liposomes-in-vehicle formulations destined for skin therapy: the synergy between type of liposomes and vehicle

Objective: The present study is focused on optimization of elastic liposomes-in-vehicle formulations in respect to drug release and formulation properties. By combining penetration potential of elastic liposomes containing high ratio of entrapped drug and physicochemical properties of vehicles, both affecting the release and texture properties, optimal formulation could be achieved.

Materials and methods: Deformable, propylene glycol-containing or conventional liposomes with hydrophilic model drug (diclofenac sodium) were incorporated into the following vehicles appropriate for skin application: a hydrogel, a cream base and derma membrane structure base cream (DMS base). Each formulation was assessed for in vitro drug release and mechanical properties.

Results and discussion: The composition and type of both liposomes and the vehicle affected the rate and amount of the released drug. The cream base exhibited the slowest release, followed by the hydrogel and DMS base. Similar release profiles were achieved with both types of elastic vesicles (deformable and propylene glycol liposomes); the slowest release was observed for conventional liposomes, regardless of the vehicle used. The drug release profiles from different liposomes-in-vehicle formulations were in agreement with the physicochemical properties of the formulations. All of the liposomes were found to be compatible with the hydrogel preserving its original textures, whereas a significant decrease in all texture parameters was observed for liposomes-in-DMS base, regardless of liposome type.

Conclusion: Propylene glycol liposomes-in-hydrogel is considered as the optimal formulation for improving skin delivery of hydrophilic drug. Further investigations involving in vivo animal studies are necessary to confirm its applicability in skin therapy.     

Carbonaceous materials passivation on amine functionalized magnetic nanoparticles and its application for metal affinity isolation of recombinant protein

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with an amine functionalized surface (MH) were passivated with carbonaceous materials (MH@C) by carbonization of glucose under hydrothermal reaction conditions. The carboxylate groups in carbonaceous shell could be enriched to 0.285 mmol/g when acrylic acid was added as a functional monomer in the carbonization reaction (MH@C-Ac). The carbonaceous shell not only protected the magnetic core from acidic erosion but also showed a high adsorption capacity toward Ni(2+) ion. The Ni(2+) ion complexed on MH@C and MH@C-Ac could specifically isolate 6×His tagged recombinant proteins from crude bacterial extracts via metal affinity interaction. The superparamagnetic property facilitates the easy retrieval of the carbonaceous material passivated MNPs from the viscous proteins solutions. Recombinant green fluorescence protein (GFP) and hyaluronic acid (HA) lyase of 9.4 mg and 2.3 mg could be isolated by 1 g of MH@C-Ac-Ni, respectively.     

The characterisation of lactic acid bacteria during the fermentation of an artisan Serbian sausage (Petrovská Klobása)

Petrovská Klobása is an artisan Serbian sausage made only from meat and spices without any additives or starter cultures. In order to characterise lactic acid bacteria (LAB) microflora, a total number of 404 LAB strains were isolated from 15 samples collected during 90 days of the fermentation and 120 days of storage of one batch of Petrovská Klobása. The isolates were preliminarily identified by phenotypic tests and subjected to (GTG)₅-PCR fingerprinting. Representatives of each group were identified by 16S rDNA sequencing. The results showed that among the isolates, Lactobacillus sakei and Leuconostoc mesenteroides predominate with 36.4% and 37.1% of total LAB strains, respectively. Pediococcus pentosaceus was also isolated in high proportion (18.4%) whereas Enterococcus durans and Enterococcus caseliflavus made only 1% and 6% of the total isolates, correspondingly. The analysis of vacuum packed and modified atmosphere packed (MAP) samples showed higher presence of L. mesenteroides and L. sakei in the total microflora.     

Forbidding and enforcing in membrane computing

Motivated by biochemistry and the non-deterministic reactions between molecules,the authors in (Ehrenfeucht and Rozenberg, 2003) introduced the concept of forbidding-enforcing systems(fe-systems) that define families of languages. Using the same concept we propose to study forbidding and enforcing within membrane systems. Two approaches are presented; in the first case the membrane system generates families of languages and in the second casethe membrane system generates a single language. We show that by using forbidding-enforcing in membranes, families of languages that cannot be defined by any fe-system can be generated. When a single language is generated, we show that SAT can be solved in a constant time (at price of using an exponential space). Also we show an example of a context-free language that can be generated without any forbidders.     

Control relevant identification for robust optimal control

This paper presents an approach to designing the input signal for an identification experiment, in which the process model estimate is to be used to formulate and solve for a robust (in a worst case sense) optimal controller. The input signal is designed to contain the information that is relevant for the end use of the model, that is for control purposes. The proposed approach uses sensitivity analysis to determine the input signal frequencies that are important with respect to a certain measure of achievable controller performance in conjunction with a frequency sampling filter model of the process. Based on the sensitivity analysis, an iterative experimental design methodology is suggested.     

Characterization of poly(vinyl alcohol)/gold nanocomposites obtained by in situ gamma-irradiation method

Gamma-irradiation induced reduction of gold (Au) ions was performed in aqueous poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) solution. PVA/Au nanocomposites with different contents of inorganic phase were prepared by solvent evaporation. The colloids and corresponding nanocomposites show visible light absorption with strong excitonic peak in the wavelength range from 520 to 550 nm. Morphological and structural characterizations of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) and nanocomposites were performed by TEM, XRD, and FTIR measurements. Also, Mie and Maxwell-Garnett theories were applied to calculate optical properties of Au colloids and PVA/Au nanocomposites, respectively. The changes of heat resistance upon the increase of inorganic phase were correlated to the decrease in crystal perfection of polymer. Improvement of thermal stability of nanocomposites, compared with the neat PVA, was observed when the content of inorganic phase exceeds 1 wt %. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Carbon monoxide electrooxidation on Pt and PtRu modified zeolite X

Zeolite NaX was modified by Pt and Pt/Ru nanodispersed metallic clusters. This modification was achieved by zeolite impregnation with acetylacetonate salt/acetone solution, followed by acetone evaporation and thermal decomposition of organometallic complex. Samples characterization was performed by X-ray diffraction analysis, nitrogen adsorption?Cdesorption measurements and Raman spectroscopy. The incorporation of metal into zeolite cavities induced the amorphisation of the zeolite framework on the local level. The mixture of modified zeolite and 10?wt% of carbon black, in a form of thin layer, was pasted to a glassy carbon surface by Nafion. Electrocatalytic properties of metal-modified zeolites were tested in CO electrooxidation reaction. The mutual influence between Pt and Ru atoms enhanced electroactivity of Pt/Ru-modified zeolite toward carbon monoxide electrooxidation. The behavior of untreated 13X zeolite was investigated under the same condition in order to asses the influence of the support. Gradual deactivation of 13X electrode occurred.     

Plant viruses in aqueous environment - Survival, water mediated transmission and detection

The presence of plant viruses outside their plant host or insect vectors has not been studied intensively. This is due, in part, to the lack of effective detection methods that would enable their detection in difficult matrixes and in low titres, and support the search for unknown viruses. Recently, new and sensitive methods for detecting viruses have resulted in a deeper insight into plant virus movement through, and transmission between, plants. In this review, we have focused on plant viruses found in environmental waters and their detection. Infectious plant pathogenic viruses from at least 7 different genera have been found in aqueous environment. The majority of the plant pathogenic viruses so far recovered from environmental waters are very stable, they can infect plants via the roots without the aid of a vector and often have a wide host range. The release of such viruses from plants can lead to their dissemination in streams, lakes, and rivers, thereby ensuring the long-distance spread of viruses that otherwise, under natural conditions, would remain restricted to limited areas.The possible sources and survival of plant viruses in waters are therefore discussed. Due to the widespread use of hydroponic systems and intensive irrigation in horticulture, the review is focused on the possibility and importance of spreading viral infection by water, together with measures for preventing the spread of viruses. The development of new methods for detecting multiple plant viruses at the same time, like microarrays or new generation sequencing, will facilitate the monitoring of environmental waters and waters used for irrigation and in hydroponic systems. It is reasonable to expect that the list of plant viruses found in waters will thereby be expanded considerably. This will emphasize the need for further studies to determine the biological significance of water-mediated transport.