Potential of bacteriocinogenic Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis inhabiting low pH vegetables to produce nisin variants

Antimicrobial behavior of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) has been explored since many years to assess their ability to produce bacteriocin, a natural preservative, to increase the shelf life of food. This study aims to characterize bacteriocin producing strains of lactic acid bacteria isolated from acidic to slightly acidic raw vegetables including tomato, bell pepper and green chili and to investigate their potential to inhibit food related bacteria. Among twenty nine LAB screened for antimicrobial activity, three exhibited antagonism against closely related bacterial isolates which was influenced by varying temperature and pH. They were identified up to strain level as Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis TI-4, L. lactis subsp. lactis CE-2 and L. lactis subsp. lactis PI-2 based on 16S rRNA gene sequence. Their spectrum of inhibition was observed against food associated strains of Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus. Moreover, L. lactis subsp. lactis PI-2 selected on the basis of higher antimicrobial activity was further evaluated for bacteriocin production which was detected as nisin A and nisin Z. These findings suggest the possible use of L. lactis strains of vegetable origin as protective cultures in slightly acidic as well as slightly alkaline food by the bio-preservative action of bacteriocins.     

Physiological and Nutraceutical Perspectives of Fructan

Functional and nutraceutical foods have captured the global market owing to trends and perceptions of consumers on the natural products and diet-health linkages. Health promoting potential of such foods has been attributed to the presence of essential bioactive moieties. Wheat, being staple food in many parts of the world, gained substantial attention of researchers particularly for the extraction of various functional components. Among these, fructan oligosaccharides in nature bestow quality of baked products and provide protection against various physiological disorders. Addition of fructan in various baked products enhances softness and color, especially in bread, and also imparts textural improvement. Moreover, fructans boost mineral absorption, hypocholesterolemic, and hypoglycemic perspectives, bifidogenic nature and controlling cancer insurgence. The benefits allied with fructan are mainly dose and time dependent. In this context, its industrial applications for vulnerable groups are increasing worldwide.     

Anti‐inflammatory Potential of Quercetin‐3‐O‐β‐D‐(“2”‐galloyl)‐glucopyranoside and Quercetin Isolated from Diospyros kaki calyx via Suppression of MAP Signaling Molecules in LPS‐induced RAW 264.7 Macrophages

Diospyros kaki (DK) contains an abundance of flavonoids and has been used in folk medicine in Korea for centuries. Here, we report for the first time the anti‐inflammatory activities of Quercetin (QCT) and Quercetin 3‐O‐β‐(“2”‐galloyl)‐glucopyranoside (Q32G) isolated from DK. We have determine the no cytotoxicity of Q32G and QCT against RAW 264.7 cells up to concentration of 50 μM. QCT and Q32G demonstrated potent anti‐inflammatory activities by reducing expression of nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, interleukin (IL)‐1β, IL‐6 inducible NO synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase (COX)‐2, and mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPKs) in mouse RAW 264.7 macrophages activated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Both QCT or Q32G could decrease cellular protein levels of COX‐2 and iNOS as well as secreted protein levels of NO, PGE₂, and cytokines (TNF‐α, IL‐1β, and IL‐6) in culture medium of LPS‐stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages. Immunoblot analysis showed that QCT and Q32G suppressed LPS‐induced MAP kinase pathway proteins p‐p38, ERK, and JNK. This study revealed that QCT and Q32G have anti‐inflammatory potential, however Q32G possess comparable activity as that of QCT and could be use as adjuvant to treat inflammatory diseases.     

Numerical and experimental study of bistable piezoelectric energy harvester

Piezoelectric energy harvesting from mechanical vibrations is a reliable technology to charge low power electronic equipment. It has been reported in the literature that low frequency broadband vibrations cannot be harvested effectively using linear piezoelectric energy harvester (PEH). In this paper a bistable nonlinear PEH with two distinct energy wells generated using repulsive magnetic interactions between a cantilever magnetic proof mass and an external magnet is considered. It has been modeled using finite element method and validated with experimental results. Experimental results verify that, for our study, distance between magnetic proof mass and external magnet of 1.32 T flux density should be less than or equal to 8.5?mm for maintaining bistability. This distance also affects to the resonance frequency of harvester. Maximum efficiency of the harvester has been noticed at 8.5mm. Further it has been shown experimentally that the bistable nonlinear piezoelectric energy harvester takes almost half of the time taken by its linear counterpart to charge a 20 mAh battery.     

Structural and magnetic properties of erbium doped nanocrystalline Li–Ni ferrites

A series of nanocrystalline Li_0.25Ni_0.5Fe_2.25−xEr_xO₄ (x=0.00, 0.02, 0.06, 0.08, and 0.10) ferrite powders, having a cubic spinel crystal structure and a low value of coercivity, was synthesized by the sol–gel auto-combustion route. The structure, morphology and magnetic properties of the prepared nanoferrites were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and the magnetic property measurement system (MPMS). A well-defined single phase spinel structure is confirmed in all the samples by X-ray diffraction analysis. The lattice parameters of the samples increase slightly with increasing the erbium content. The crystallite size of the Er-doped samples is smaller than that of pure Li–Ni ferrite, and decrease regularly in the range of 36.0–14.5 nm. It has been observed that the magnetic properties of these ferrites are strongly influenced by the added erbium content. The magnetic measurements indicate that saturation magnetization (M_s) and coercivity (H_c) decrease gradually with the increase of Er content in the lattice.     

Scratch adhesion and wear failure characteristics of PVD multilayer CrTi/CrTiN thin film ceramic coating deposited on AA7075-T6 aerospace alloy

This study highlights the scratch adhesion failure characterization and tribo-mechanical properties of physical vapor deposited (Cr, Ti) N coating on AA7075-T6 by using magnetron-sputtering technique. The surface morphology, microstructure and chemical composition of CrTi/CrTiN film were inspected by an optical microscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM) incorporated with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) in addition to focused ion beam milling. The coating to substrate critical load of about 1261 mN was obtained, by employing coating deposition parameters of; DC power (300 W, RF power (200 W)), temperature (300 °C) and nitrogen flow rate (6%). Failure adhesion characteristics exhibited initial arc-tensile cracking followed by chipping and spallation that led to complete coating failure at L_c3. The tribo-mechanical aspects were evaluated by a pin-on-plate reciprocating testing unit, which showed a lower friction coefficient of 0.36 for CrTiN as compared with 0.43 for AA7075-T6. Subsequently, the wear depth was also reduced from 9.5 to 5.9 μm. It was revealed that the wear mechanism for AA7075-T6 was extensive deformation, abrasion and delamination, while the CrTiN exhibited slightly oxidative abrasive wear mode.     

L-cystein modified bentonite-cellulose nanocomposite (cellu/cys-bent) for adsorption of Cu2+, Pb2+, and Cd2+ ions from aqueous solution

In this study, L-cystein modified bentonite-cellulose (cellu/cys-bent) nanocomposite was synthesized and characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM with EDS, TGA, and TEM techniques. In order to optimize the process the effect of various operational parameters such as pH, adsorbent dosage, contact time, and temperature were also investigated. The adsorption experiments were carried out in initial concentrations range of 20-100 mg L^?1and the adsorbent affinity for metal ions was found to be in order of Cu²⁺ > Pb²⁺ > Cd²⁺. The optimum pH for adsorption of Cu²⁺ and Cd²⁺ was observed at 5 while for Pb²⁺ it was pH 6. Based on the Langmuir model, the maximum adsorption capacity of Cu²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Cd²⁺ at 50^?C was found to be 32.36, 18.52, and 16.12 mg g^?1, respectively. The Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-second order model were found to be better fitted than the other isotherms and kinetic models. The results of thermodynamic parameters confirmed the process to be endothermic and spontaneous in nature.     

Mechanical transfer of electrochemically grown molybdenum sulfide layers to silicon wafer

Journal of Applied Electrochemistry - Large area MoS2 ultra-thin film deposition is one of the big challenges in the recent years. Electrodeposition provides an opportunity to grow such ultra-thin...     

Fabrication of different conductive matrix supported binary metal oxides for supercapacitors applications

Here, we have fabricated the spinel binary-metal oxide (FeCo₂O₄) via a solvent-free and cost-effective approach. The nanocomposites of the as-fabricated binary-metal spinel oxide have been prepared with three different conductive-matrices, namely r-GO, CNTs, and PANI, via ultra-sonication approach. The spinel phase and surface functionalities of the fabricated FeCo₂O₄ sample have been confirmed via XRD and FT-IR analyses, respectively. The morphological-structure and elemental composition of the fabricated samples have been probed via FESEM and EDX results. The role of added conductive-matrices in the improvement of the electrical conductivities of the fabricated nanocomposites has been investigated via I–V experiments. The electrochemical experiments, conducted in half-cell configuration, showed that FeCo₂O₄/PANI nanocomposite exhibited the highest specific capacitance (658.9 Fg^-1) than that of the remaining two nanocomposites. Furthermore, FeCo₂O₄/PANI nanocomposite exhibited excellent cyclic stability as it lost just 8.3% of its initial specific capacitance even after 3000 cyclic tests. The superior capacitive-activity of the FeCo₂O₄/PANI nanocomposite is accredited to its high conductivity, large surface area, and synergy effects between the pseudocapacitance derived from the PANI and FeCo₂O₄ nanostructure. The electrochemical and electrical measurements suggested that FeCo₂O₄/PANI nanostructure is an emerging contender for energy storage applications.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Hetero-metallic Oxides-Reduced Graphene Oxide Nanocomposites for Photocatalytic Applications

A new AgO.CuO.WO₃/rGO nanocomposite was designed for the investigation of the degradation ability of the hybrid material under visible light irradiation. The AgO, CuO, WO₃ NPs, and AgO.CuO.WO₃ hetero-metallic oxides were fabricated via the chemical co-precipitation method. The crystallite sizes and phase analyses were investigated by recording X-ray diffraction patterns. The crystallite sizes of three metal oxides in the AgO.CuO.WO₃ hetero metal oxide were 16.7, 15.9, and 16.9 nm, respectively. The FESEM images at various magnifications were probed to study the morphology of synthesized materials. The micrographs of hetero-metallic oxides AgO.CuO.WO₃ exposed that three metal oxides merged like small particles and gives a large bulbous appearance. EDX analyses confirmed the formation of required materials with high purity. FTIR data was in agreement with the literature which facilitated to ensure the purity of synthesized samples. The optical bandgap energy was calculated via the Tauc plot indicating that the blend of three metal oxides generated a new energy level in the electronic structure is suitable for photocatalysis in the presence of visible light. The bandgap energy of hetero metallic oxides was 1.25 eV which is less than individual metal oxides signifying the tuning of the bandgap. The incorporation of rGO in AgO.CuO.WO₃ hetero-metallic oxides gives a new photocatalyst for optimum photodegradation of methylene blue in minimum time. The percentage degradation via AgO.CuO.WO₃ was 87.20% in 70 min while the percentage degradation via AgO.CuO.WO₃/rGO recorded by photocatalytic experiment was 95% in 40 min. The photocatalysis data revealed that AgO.CuO.WO₃ hetero-metallic oxides-rGO nanocomposite ensured a strong potential to uptake organic dyes from water by promoting redox reactions during photocatalysis in the minimum time limit.