Consuming iodine enriched eggs to solve the iodine deficiency endemic for remote areas in Thailand

Background  

Evidence showed that the occurrence of iodine deficiency endemic areas has been found in every provinces of Thailand. Thus, a new pilot programme for elimination of iodine deficiency endemic areas at the community level was designed in 2008 by integrating the concept of Sufficient Economic life style with the iodine biofortification of nutrients for community consumption.     

Hsp70/Hsp90 co‐chaperones are required for efficient Hsp104‐mediated elimination of the yeast [PSI+] prion but not for prion propagation

The continued propagation of the yeast [PSI⁺] prion requires the molecular chaperone Hsp104 yet in cells engineered to overexpress Hsp104; prion propagation is impaired leading to the rapid appearance of prion‐free [psi^?] cells. The underlying mechanism of prion loss in such cells is unknown but is assumed to be due to the complete dissolution of the prion aggregates by the ATP‐dependent disaggregase activity of this chaperone. To further explore the mechanism, we have sought to identify cellular factors required for prion loss in such cells. Sti1p and Cpr7p are co‐chaperones that modulate the activity of Hsp70/Ssa and Hsp90 chaperones and bind to the C‐terminus of Hsp104. Neither Sti1p nor Cpr7p is necessary for prion propagation but we show that deletion of the STI1 and CPR7 genes leads to a significant reduction in the generation of [psi^?] cells by Hsp104 overexpression. Deletion of the STI1 and CPR7 genes does not modify the elimination of [PSI⁺] by guanidine hydrochloride, which inhibits the ATPase activity of Hsp104 but does block elimination of [PSI⁺] by overexpression of either an ATPase‐defective mutant of Hsp104 (hsp104^K218T/K620T) or a ‘trap’ mutant Hsp104 (hsp104^E285Q/E687Q) that can bind its substrate but can not release it. These results provide support for the hypothesis that [PSI⁺] elimination by Hsp104 overexpression is not simply a consequence of complete dissolution of the prion aggregates but rather is through a mechanism distinct from the remodelling activity of Hsp104. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Production of functional substances from black rice bran by its treatment in subcritical water

Black rice bran was treated by water and subcritical water at temperatures ranging from 20 to 260 °C for 5 min and at 200 and 260 °C for 5-120 min. The bran extracts were analyzed for their radical scavenging activity, protein and carbohydrate contents, molecular-mass distribution, antioxidation activity, emulsifying activity, and emulsion-stabilizing activity. The radical scavenging activity and the protein content of the extract were higher at higher treatment temperature. The carbohydrate content also increased with increasing temperature up to 200 °C, then steeply decreased at the temperatures higher than 200 °C. The bran extracts treated at 260 °C for 5 min exhibited a suppressive activity toward autoxidation of linoleic acid with the increasing the weight ratio of the bran extract to linoleic acid. The bran extracts prepared at 40-200 °C for 5 min showed the emulsifying- and emulsion-stabilizing activities, while the extracts prepared at 220-260 °C were low in the activities.     

Factors influencing the small‐scale melt spinning of poly(ε‐caprolactone) monofilament fibres

Some of the main factors affecting the small‐scale melt spinning of poly(ε‐caprolactone), PCL, monofilament fibres have been studied. These factors included spinning temperature, extrusion rate, take‐up rate and draw ratio. The underlying influence of the polymer's own characteristic properties, in particular its chemical structure, transition temperatures (T_g, T_m) and crystallizability, were also interpreted within the context of the melt spinning process. Physically, the as‐spun fibres obtained were uniform in diameter and smooth in surface appearance. They were also semi‐crystalline (>50%) in morphology. Mechanically, however, they were still very weak and highly extensible. Subsequent off‐line cold‐drawing at room temperature introduced the required degree of molecular orientation to reinforce the fibres, yielding tensile strengths of approaching 300 MPa. PCL fibres of precisely controlled physical dimensions and matrix morphology are attracting increasing interest for use in biomedical applications. This paper describes how this control can be achieved through the processing operation. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry     

Controllable Band‐Notched Slot Antenna for UWB Communication Systems

We propose a slot antenna consisting of a rectangular slot on the ground plane, fed by a microstrip line with a rectangular‐ring‐shaped tuning stub that can be deployed in ultra‐wideband (UWB) communication systems to avoid interference with wireless local area network (WLAN) communication. Our antenna can achieve a single band‐notched property from the 5 GHz frequency to the 6 GHz frequency owing to a controllable band notch that uses L‐ and J‐shaped parasitic elements. The antenna characteristics can be modified to tune the band‐notched property (4 GHz to 5 GHz or 6 GHz to 7 GHz) and the bandwidth of the band notch (1 GHz to 2 GHz). Furthermore, the shifted notch with enhanced width of the band notch from 1 GHz to 1.5 GHz is described in this paper. The UWB slot antenna and L‐ and J‐shaped parasitic elements also provide the band‐rejection function for reference in the WiMAX (3.5 GHz) and WLAN (5 GHz to 6 GHz) regions of the spectrum. Experiment results evidence the return loss performance, radiation patterns, and antenna gains at different operational frequencies.     

Synthesis and characterization of a random terpolymer of L‐lactide, ϵ‐caprolactone and glycolide

A random terpolymer of L ‐lactide (LL), ?‐caprolactone (CL) and glycolide (G) has been synthesized in bulk at 130 °C using stannous octoate as the coordination–insertion initiator. The terpolymer, poly(LL‐ran‐CL‐ran‐G), has been characterized by a combination of analytical techniques: GPC, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, DSC and TG. Molecular weight characterization by GPC shows a unimodal molecular weight distribution with values of M _n = 1.01 × 10⁵ g mol^?1 and M _w / M _n = 2.17. Compositional and microstructural analysis by ¹H NMR and ¹³C NMR, respectively, reveal a terpolymer composition of LL:CL:G = 74:15:11 (mol%) with a chain microstructure consistent with random monomer sequencing. This latter view is supported by the terpolymer temperature transitions (T_g and T_m) from DSC and the thermal decomposition profile from TG. The results and, in particular, the conclusion that it is a random rather than a statistical terpolymer are discussed in the light of current theories regarding the mechanism of this type of polymerization. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry     

Suppression of the oxidation of methyl linoleate encapsulated with the extract from defatted rice bran by a compressed hot water treatment

Bran extracts prepared by a compressed hot water treatment at 120, 150, and 180 °C for 7.5 min were used in association with maltodextrin for encapsulation of methyl linoleate. Mixtures of the bran extracts at 120 and 150 °C showed a higher emulsion-stabilizing ability than that at 180 °C. The bran extracts prepared at the higher temperature provided a higher oxidative stability as shown by the longer induction period for the oxidation of the encapsulated methyl linoleate. The induction periods of the encapsulated methyl linoleate using the bran extract prepared at 250 °C for 5 min as the aqueous phase were 3–6 times longer than those of the encapsulated methyl linoleate using water.     

Properties of Extract from Okara by Its Subcritical Water Treatment

Okara was treated with subcritical water at temperatures ranging from 170 to 260°C for various times. After clarification, the extracts were analyzed for their protein and carbohydrate contents, DPPH radical scavenging activity, and antioxidative activity. The carbohydrate content significantly decreased with the increasing treatment temperature and time. The protein content, however, increased with the increasing treatment temperature and slightly decreased with a heating time longer than 10 min. The extract obtained from the subcritical water treatment at 240°C for 5 min, which would be used to evaluate the antioxidative activity, provided the relatively highest radical scavenging activity and the activity tended to decrease with the prolonging heating time and temperature. The extract also exhibited a suppressive activity to the autoxidation of linoleic acid with the increasing weight ratio of the extract to linoleic acid. The results clearly showed okara still contained highly valuable substances for human consumption.     

Preparation of a poly(L-lactide-co-caprolactone) copolymer using a novel tin(II) alkoxide initiator and its fiber processing for potential use as an absorbable monofilament surgical suture

A poly(L-lactide-co-caprolactone) copolymer, P(LL-co-CL), of composition 75:25 mol% was synthesized via the bulk ring-opening copolymerization of L-lactide and ε-caprolactone using a novel bis[tin(II) monooctoate] diethylene glycol coordination-insertion initiator, OctSn-OCH₂CH₂OCH₂CH₂O-SnOct. The P(LL-co-CL) copolymer obtained was characterized by a combination of analytical techniques, namely nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography, dilute-solution viscometry, differential scanning calorimetry, and thermogravimetric analysis. For processing into a monofilament fiber, the copolymer was melt spun with minimal draw to give a largely amorphous and unoriented as-spun fiber. The fiber's oriented semicrystalline morphology, necessary to give the required balance of mechanical properties, was then developed via a sequence of controlled offline hot-drawing and annealing steps. Depending on the final draw ratio, the fibers obtained had tensile strengths in the region of 200–400 MPa.