Application of chitosan–alginate microspheres for the sustained release of bacteriophage in simulated gastrointestinal conditions

This study was designed to evaluate the acid stability, release property and antimicrobial efficacy of Escherichia coli O157:H7 bacteriophages encapsulated in chitosan–alginate microspheres under the simulated gastrointestinal conditions. The bacteriophages belonging to Myoviridae family were stable at the pH above 4 in trypticase soy broth. The chitosan–alginate microspheres exhibited protective effect on the viability of bacteriophages in the simulated gastric conditions at pH 2.0 and pH 2.5, showing 4.8 and 5.6 log PFU mL^‐1, respectively, after 1 h of incubation at 37 °C. The release per cent of bacteriophages from microspheres gradually increased up to 65% in the simulated intestinal condition (pH 7.5) at 37 °C for 6 h. The lytic efficacy of chitosan‐ and alginate‐encapsulated bacteriophages against E. coli O157:H7 was significantly maintained in the simulated intestinal conditions to 10 h of incubation (1.3 log reduction). The results suggest that the chitosan–alginate microspheres can be used as a reliable delivery system for bacteriophages.     

On‐the‐Spot Immobilization of Quantum Dots,Graphene Oxide,and Proteins via Hydrophobins

Class I hydrophobin Vmh2, a peculiar surface active and versatile fungal protein, is known to self‐assemble into chemically stable amphiphilic films, to be able to change wettability of surfaces, and to strongly adsorb other proteins. Herein, a fast, highly homogeneous and efficient glass functionalization by spontaneous self‐assembling of Vmh2 at liquid–solid interfaces is achieved (in 2 min). The Vmh2‐coated glass slides are proven to immobilize not only proteins but also nanomaterials such as graphene oxide (GO) and quantum dots (QDs). As models, bovine serum albumin labeled with Alexa 555 fluorophore, anti‐immunoglobulin G antibodies, and cadmium telluride QDs are patterned in a microarray fashion in order to demonstrate functionality, reproducibility, and versatility of the proposed substrate. Additionally, a GO layer is effectively and homogeneously self‐assembled onto the studied functionalized surface. This approach offers a quick and simple alternative to immobilize nanomaterials and proteins, which is appealing for new bioanalytical and nanobioenabled applications.     

Characterization of the Residence Time Distribution in Spray Dryers

In this work it is presented a study on the residence time distribution (RTD) of particles in a co-current pilot-plant spray dryer operated with a rotary atomization system. A nuclear technique is applied to investigate the RTD responses of spray dryers. The methodology is based on the injection of a radioisotope tracer in the feed stream followed by the monitoring of its concentration at the outlet stream. The experiments were performed during the drying of aqueous suspensions of gadolinium oxide. The RTD responses obtained experimentally presented good reproducibility, indicating that the technique applied is well suited to investigating fluid-dynamics of spray dryers. In addition to the experimental investigation, a mathematical model was used to describe the RTD experimental curves.     

Clarification of a wheat straw‐derived medium with ion‐exchange resins for xylitol crystallization

BACKGROUND: Xylitol bioproduction from lignocellulosic residues comprises hydrolysis of the hemicellulose, detoxification of the hydrolysate, bioconversion of the xylose, and recovery of xylitol from the fermented hydrolysate. There are relatively few reports on xylitol recovery from fermented media. In the present study, ion‐exchange resins were used to clarify a fermented wheat straw hemicellulosic hydrolysate, which was then vacuum‐concentrated and submitted to cooling in the presence of ethanol for xylitol crystallization. RESULTS: Sequential adsorption into two anion‐exchange resins (A‐860S and A‐500PS) promoted considerable reductions in the content of soluble by‐products (up to 97.5%) and in medium coloration (99.5%). Vacuum concentration led to a dark‐colored viscous solution that inhibited xylitol crystallization. This inhibition could be overcome by mixing the concentrated medium with a commercial xylitol solution. Such a strategy led to xylitol crystals with up to 95.9% purity. The crystallization yield (43.5%) was close to that observed when using commercial xylitol solution (51.4%). CONCLUSION: The experimental data demonstrate the feasibility of using ion‐exchange resins followed by cooling in the presence of ethanol as a strategy to promote the fast recovery and purification of xylitol from hemicellulose‐derived fermentation media. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Preparation and characterization of chitosan‐based dispersions

Complexation of chitosan in aqueous solutions by low molecular weight electrolytes is one of the simplest methods for the preparation of aqueous chitosan dispersions. In this work, the influence of storage time, sulfate concentration, method of preparation and surfactant content on some properties of the resultant chitosan dispersions (turbidity, viscosity and zeta potential) was analyzed. Turbidimetry was adequate to monitor the formation of particles, while viscometry was suitable to monitor changes in the dispersing phase. An analysis of the properties of these systems, mainly in terms of particle–particle and macromolecule–macromolecule interactions was carried out. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

Fluorescence and IR characterization of epoxy cured with aliphatic amines

Cure reactions of the stoichiometric mixtures of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) and two very low molecular weight aliphatic polyether diamines (PED) were studied by using fluorescence and mid- and near-IR spectroscopic techniques. As the cure proceeded, the primary amine groups in PED are converted to the secondary and the tertiary amines. Near-IR spectral analysis was used to calculate the concentration of the three amine groups as a function of cure time. The decrease in the fluorescence intensity of DGEBA at about 307 nm was observed due to more effective quenching of the tertiary amine groups in PED, in comparison to the primary and the secondary amine groups. A large decrease in fluorescence intensity at 75 and 95 °C cure was observed. The amount of all the amine species was estimated from NIR spectra to shed light on the cure kinetics of PPO (polypropylene oxide) in comparison with PEO (polyethylene oxide) epoxy, as well as to explain their fluorescence behavior.The fluorescence intensity changes were correlated to the extent of epoxy reaction obtained by mid- and near-IR spectroscopy.