Applications of nanotechnology to combat the problems associated with modern food

Currently, modern lifestyle diseases (LSD) such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular and thyroid disease are commonly seen among people of different age groups. One of the root causes of this LSD is the type of food that we are eating. Staple crops like rice, sugarcane, vegetables and wheat are grown with the application of agrochemicals (e.g., glyphosate), traces of which are found in our food; after that, it gets ultra-processed in factories; e.g., chips and snacks are fried using saturated fats (trans fat); sugar and wheat (derivatives bread, buns, cookies) are processed using toxic chemicals (bleaching agents). As a result, the nutritional value of food is compromised due to low dietary fiber content and synthetic additives – e.g., sucralose (artificial sweetener) – which promotes inflammation and weakens our immune system, causing our body to become sensitive to microbial infection and many other LSDs. To strengthen the immune system, people start taking synthetically prepared supplements and drugs for a prolonged time, which further deteriorates the body organs and their normal function; e.g., prolonged medication for hypothyroidism poses a risk of heart attack and joint pain. Nanotechnology solves the above problems in the food, nutraceuticals and agriculture sectors. Nanotechnology-based naturally processed products such as nano-nutraceuticals, nanofood, nanofertilizers and nanopesticides will benefit our health. They possess desirable properties such as high bioavailability, targeted delivery, least processing and sustained release. With the help of nanotechnology, we can get nutritional and agrochemical-free food. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.     

电子封装用无铅焊料的最新进展

随着WEEE/RoHS法令的颁布,电子封装行业对于无铅焊接提出了更高的要求.根据国际上对无铅焊料的最新研究进展提出了无铅焊料"三大候选"的概念.总结了目前无铅焊料尚存的三大主要弱点,并对国际上推荐使用的几种无铅焊料的优缺点进行了概述.     

Theoretical investigation of electroluminescent alkoxy substituted 4,4′-bis(2-phenylethenyl)biphenyls as guest in blue OLEDs

A quantum-chemical investigation on the structural and opto-electronic properties of several alkoxy substituted 4,4′-bis(2-phenylethenyl)biphenyls (PEBP) as building blocks for π-conjugate polymer is performed in order to display the effect of changing the position of alkoxy substituents on the peripheral phenyl rings on their opto-electronic and physico-chemical properties. Added to the good agreement between theoretical and experimental observations, it has been observed that the substitution effect depends on the position of the methoxy group: in ortho- or para-positions it acts as a mesomeric electrons donor, while as an inductive electrons acceptor in meta-positions. Substitution in ortho-positions causes significant structural deformations of PEBP backbone due to the steric interaction between the substituents and the hydrogens of the vinylene functions. Bridging of ortho, para-PEBP (24PEBP) by CC(CN)₂ decreases significantly its band gap. This model can have very interesting opto-electronic ownerships.     

GsRSS3L,a Candidate Gene Underlying Soybean Resistance to Seedcoat Mottling Derived from Wild Soybean (Glycine soja Sieb. and Zucc)

Soybeans are a major crop that produce the best vegetable oil and protein for use in food and beverage products worldwide. However, one of the most well-known viral infections affecting soybeans is the Soybean Mosaic Virus (SMV), a member of the Potyviridae family. A crucial method for preventing SMV damage is the breeding of resistant soybean cultivars. Adult resistance and resistance of seedcoat mottling are two types of resistance to SMV. Most studies have focused on adult-plant resistance but not on the resistance to seedcoat mottling. In this study, chromosome segment-substituted lines derived from a cross between Suinong14 (cultivated soybean) and ZYD00006 (wild soybean) were used to identify the chromosome region and candidate genes underlying soybean resistance to seed coat mottling. Herein, two quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were found on chromosome 17, and eighteen genes were found in the QTL region. RNA-seq was used to evaluate the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) among the eighteen genes located in the QTLs. According to the obtained data, variations were observed in the expression of five genes following SMV infection. Furthermore, Nicotiana benthamiana was subjected to an Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression assay to investigate the role of the five candidate genes in SMV resistance. It has also been revealed that Glyma.17g238900 encoding a RICE SALT SENSITIVE 3-like protein (RSS3L) can inhibit the multiplication of SMV in N. benthamiana. Moreover, two nonsynonymous single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were found in the coding sequence of Glyma.17g238900 derived from the wild soybean ZYD00006 (GsRSS3L), and the two amino acid mutants may be associated with SMV resistance. Hence, it has been suggested that GsRSS3L confers seedcoat mottling resistance, shedding light on the mechanism of soybean resistance to SMV.     

不同栽培方式银耳多糖单糖组成分析及体外抗氧化活性比较

对代料和段木两种栽培方式的银耳子实体采用碱式提取其多糖,通过测定多糖的营养成分、单糖组成及体外抗氧化活性,比较两种栽培方式银耳品质的差别。结果表明,脱蛋白后段木和代料银耳多糖中蛋白质残留量分别2.65±0.05、0.45±0.06 mg/mL,两种银耳多糖的单糖都由甘露糖、葡萄糖、木糖和葡萄糖醛酸组成,代料银耳与段木银耳多糖中葡萄糖的质量比为13.62:2.43。不同银耳多糖的体外抗氧化能力均小于维生素C,在两种银耳DPPH清除率趋于稳定时,段木银耳多糖的DPPH自由基清除率比代料银耳高3%,而代料银耳羟自由基清除率比段木银耳高0.25%。     

Dissolution Behaviour of Chromium Substituted Haematites in an Oxidative/Reductive-Complexing Agent Environment

The dissolution behaviour of 3.5–12.5 at% Cr substituted haematites in a citric acid-EDTA-ascorbic acid (CEA) reductive-complexing formulation with and without alkaline permanganate (AP) oxidative pre-treatment is presented. In the direct treatment, with increasing Cr content of the oxide, employing CEA formulations containing increased concentrations of ascorbic acid could either completely or significantly solubilise the oxide. In the 3.5–10 at% Cr in the oxide, the concentrations of reducing agent employed in the CEA formulation to achieve a solubility of >40% in iron have been demarcated. The AP pre-treatment resulted in a release of only <4% of Cr from the oxide irrespective of the Cr content of the oxide and the concentrations of the permanganate. Nevertheless, such a pre-treatment was found to improve the percentage dissolution of the oxide significantly in the subsequent treatment with the reductive-complexing formulation. With AP pre-treatment, CEA formulations containing a lower concentration of the reducing agent dissolved as much oxide as the one by CEA formulations containing a higher concentration of the reducing agent in the direct treatment. Both with and without pre-treatment methods of dissolution yielded a preferential solubilization of Fe over Cr.     

低硅含量钨尾矿制备蒸压加气混凝土的研究

探索了使用低硅含量钨尾矿替代石英砂生产蒸压加气混凝土的可行性，得出了钨尾矿生产蒸压加气混凝土的最佳配合比。所制得的蒸压加气混凝土平均密度为643 kg/m3，平均抗压强度为4.5 MPa，符合标准GB/T 11968—2020中A3.5，B06级蒸压加气混凝土合格品的要求。同时，对钨尾矿蒸压加气混凝土的微观结构分析表明，当铝含量较高时，会形成铝代托贝莫来石晶体，起到补强作用。