Nanostructured materials are fascinating since they are promising for intensely enhancing materials' performance, and they can offer multifunctional features. Creating such high-performance nanocomposites via effective and mild approaches is an inevitable requirement for sustainable materials engineering. Nanocomposites, which combine two-star nanomaterials, namely, cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) and graphene derivatives (GNMs), have recently revealed interesting physicochemical properties and excellent performance. Despite numerous studies on the production and application of such systems, there is still a lack of concise information on their practical uses. In this review, recent progress in the production, modification, properties, and emerging uses of CNFs/GNMs hybrid-based nanocomposites in various fields such as flexible energy harvesting and storage, sensors, adsorbents, packaging, and thermal management, among others, are comprehensively examined and described based on recent investigations. Nevertheless, numerous challenges and gaps need to be addressed to successfully introduce such nanomaterials in large-scale industrial applications. This review will certainly help readers understand the design approaches and potential applications of CNFs/GNMs hybrid-based nanocomposites for which new research directions in this emerging topic are discussed.
This study aims to optimize sequential ultrasound-microwave assisted extraction (UMAE) on pomelo peel using citric acid. The effects of pH, sonication time, microwave power and irradiation time on the yield and the degree of esterification (DE) of pectin were investigated. Under optimized conditions of pH 1.80, 27.52min sonication followed by 6.40min microwave irradiation at 643.44W, the yield and the DE value of pectin obtained was respectively at 38.00% and 56.88%. Based upon optimized UMAE condition, the pectin from microwave-ultrasound assisted extraction (MUAE), ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) and microwave assisted extraction (MAE) were studied. The yield of pectin adopting the UMAE was higher than all other techniques in the order of UMAE>MUAE>MAE>UAE. The pectin's galacturonic acid content obtained from combined extraction technique is higher than that obtained from sole extraction technique and the pectin gel produced from various techniques exhibited a pseudoplastic behaviour. The morphological structures of pectin extracted from MUAE and MAE closely resemble each other. The extracted pectin from UMAE with smaller and more regular surface differs greatly from that of UAE. This has substantiated the highest pectin yield of 36.33% from UMAE and further signified their compatibility and potentiality in pectin extraction.
Effect of simulated honey sugar cocktail (SHSC) on chemical and thermal stability of ovalbumin (OVA) was investigated using multiple-spectroscopic techniques. Urea-induced denaturation of OVA produced a transition, characterized by the start-, the mid- and the end-points at 3.2 M, 5.9/5.6 M and 8.5/8.0 M urea, respectively, when studied by MRE222nm and tryptophan fluorescence measurements. Presence of 10% or 20% (w/v) SHSC in the incubation mixture shifted the transition curve towards higher urea concentration in a concentration dependent manner. A comparison of far- and near-UV CD, UV-difference, ANS fluorescence and 3-D fluorescence spectral results of native OVA and 5.9 M urea-denatured OVA (U-OVA), obtained in the absence and the presence of 20% (w/v) SHSC suggested SHSC-induced stabilization of U-OVA. Furthermore, a significant shift towards higher denaturant concentration was also noticed in the GdnHCl and thermal transition curves of OVA in the presence of 20% (w/v) SHSC. Taken together, all these results suggested stabilization of OVA against chemical and thermal denaturations by SHSC.
With the rapid development of biodiesel, biodiesel-derived glycerol has become a promising renewable bioresource. The key to utilizing this bioresource lies in the value-added conversion of crude glycerol. While purifying crude glycerol into a pure form allows for diverse applications, the intricate nature of this process renders it costly and environmentally stressful. Consequently, technology facilitating the direct utilization of unpurified crude glycerol holds significant importance. It has been reported that crude glycerol can be bio-transformed or chemically converted into high-value polymers. These technologies provide cost-effective alternatives for polymer production while contributing to a more sustainable biodiesel industry. This review article describes the global production and quality characteristics of biodiesel-derived glycerol and investigates the influencing factors and treatment of the composition of crude glycerol including water, methanol, soap, matter organic non-glycerol, and ash. Additionally, this review also focused on the advantages and challenges of various technologies for converting crude glycerol into polymers, considering factors such as the compatibility of crude glycerol and the control of unfavorable factors. Lastly, the application prospect and value of crude glycerol conversion were discussed from the aspects of economy and environmental protection. The development of new technologies for the increased use of crude glycerol as a renewable feedstock for polymer production will be facilitated by the findings of this review, while promoting mass market applications.
This study investigates the effects of SCG embedded into biodegradable polymer blends and aimed to formulate and characterise biomass-reinforced biocomposites using spent coffee ground (SCG) as reinforcement in PHB/PLA polymer blend. The effect of SCG filler loading and varying PHB/PLA ratios on the tensile properties and morphological characteristics of the biocomposites were examined. The results indicated that tensile properties reduction could be due to its incompatibility with the PHB/PLA matrixSCG aggregation at 40 wt% content resulted in higher void formation compared to lower content at 10 wt%. A PHB/PLA ratio of 50/50 with SCG loading 20 wt% was chosen for biocomposites with treated SCG. Biological treatment of SCG using Phanerochaete chrysosporium CK01 and Aspergillus niger DWA8 indicated P. chrysosporium CK01 necessitated a higher moisture content for optimum growth and enzyme production, whereas the optimal conditions for enzyme production (50-55 %, w/w) differed from those promoting A. niger DWA8 growth (40 %, w/w). SEM micrographs highlighted uniform distribution and effective wetting of treated SCG, resulting in improvements of tensile strength and modulus of biocomposites, respectively. The study demonstrated the effectiveness of sustainable fungal treatment in enhancing the interfacial adhesion between treated SCG and the PHB/PLA matrix.
β-glucans are soluble fibers found in cereal compounds, including barley, oats etc., as an active component. They are used as a dietary fiber to treat cholesterol, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. These polysaccharides are important because they can provide many therapeutic benefits related to their biological activity in human like inhibiting tumour growth, anti-inflammatory action, etc. All these activities were usually attached to their molecular weight, structure and degree of branching. The present manuscript reviews the background of β-glucan, its characterization techniques, the possible ways to extract β-glucan and mainly focuses on membrane-based purification techniques. The β-glucan separation methods using polymeric membranes, their operational characteristics, purification methods which may yield pure or crude β-glucan and structural analysis methods were also discussed. Future direction in research and development related to β-glucan recovery from cereal were also offered.
3-D Bioprinting is employed as a novel approach in biofabrication to promote skin regeneration following chronic-wounds and injury. A novel bioink composed of carbohydrazide crosslinked {polyethylene oxide-co- Chitosan-co- poly(methylmethacrylic-acid)} (PEO-CS-PMMA) laden with Nicotinamide and human dermal fibroblast was successfully synthesized via Free radical-copolymerization at 73 °C. The developed bioink was characterized in term of swelling, structural-confirmation by solid state 13C-Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), morphology, thermal, 3-D Bioprinting via extrusion, rheological and interaction with DNA respectively. The predominant rate of gelation was attributed to the electrostatic interactions between cationic CS and anionic PMMA pendant groups. The morphology of developed bioink presented a porous architecture satisfying the cell and growth-factor viability across the barrier. The thermal analysis revealed two-step degradation with 85 % weight loss in term of decomposition and molecular changes in the bioink moieties By applying low pressure in the range of 25-50 kPa, the optimum reproducibility and printability were determined at 37 °C in the viscosity range of 500-550 Pa. s. A higher survival rate of 92 % was observed for (PEO-CS-PMMA) in comparison to 67 % for pure chitosan built bioink. A binding constant of K ≈ 1.8 × 106 M-1 recognized a thermodynamically stable interaction of (PEO-CS-PMMA) with the Salmon-DNA. Further, the addition of PEO (5.0 %) was addressed with better self-healing and printability to produce skin-tissue constructs to replace the infected skin in human.
Stimuli-responsive drug release and controlled delivery play crucial roles in enhancing the therapeutic efficacy and lowering over-dosage induced side effects. In this paper, we report magnetically-triggered drug release and in-vitro anti-colon cancer efficacy of Fe3O4@cellulose nanocrystal (MCNC)-stabilized Pickering emulsions containing curcumin (CUR). The loading efficiency of CUR in the micron-sized (≈7 μm) MCNC-stabilized Pickering emulsions (MCNC-PE) template was found to be 99.35%. The drug release profiles showed that the exposure of MCNC-PE to external magnetic field (EMF) (0.7 T) stimulated the release of bioactive from MCNC-PE achieving 53.30 ± 5.08% of the initial loading over a 4-day period. The MTT assay demonstrated that the CUR-loaded MCNC-PE can effectively inhibits the human colon cancer cells growth down to 18% in the presence of EMF. The formulation also resulted in 2-fold reduction on the volume of the 3-D multicellular spheroids of HCT116 as compared to the control sample. The MCNC particle was found to be non-toxic to brine shrimp up to a concentration of 100 μg/mL. Our findings suggested that the palm-based MCNC-PE could be a promising yet effective colloidal drug delivery system for magnetic-triggered release of bioactive and therapeutics.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, has gradually emerged as a public health challenge worldwide. Carrageenan is a popular food additive that has been in use for decades. However, controversy exists regarding to the safety of carrageenan due to its exacerbation of colitis in experimental models. In this study, we studied the effects of vehicle and host intestinal microflora on carrageenan inflammatory properties in C57BL/6 J mice. We found that in high-fat diet model, native carrageenan in drinking water increased the disease activity index (DAI), myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity and the mRNA expression of TLR4 in colon, whereas carrageenan-supplemented diet has no visible effects. However, no signs of colitis were observed under low-fat diet regardless of the mode of vehicle used. Moreover, we discovered that carrageenan-induced colitis in high-fat diet model was robustly correlated with changes in the composition of gut microbiota, specifically Alistipes finegoldii and Bacteroides acidifaciens. Hence, we propose that the inflammatory property of carrageenan is influenced greatly by its intake form via modification of host intestinal microecology.
Jackfruit is now receiving extensive attention as a new source of starch. However, jackfruit seeds are discarded as waste, although they are rich in starch. The functional properties of the starches were investigated from new Chinese jackfruit species. All the starches have a high amylose (26.56-38.34%) with a potential to become functional foods rich in resistant starch. The jackfruit starches varied from trigonal and tetragonal, round to semi-oval/bell shapes and showed significant variations in particle sizes (5.53-14.46μm). These variations led to significant differences in their functional properties, and significant correlations were found in their pasting, thermal, crystal and texture parameters. Hierarchical cluster analysis sorted the samples into three groups of 1) Malaysia 8 (M8) and ZhenZhu (ZZ); 2) Malaysia 2, Malaysia 3 and Malaysia 4, (M2, M3, M4); and 3) Xiangyinsuo 11, Xiangyinsuo 4, Xiangyinsuo 3 and Xiangyinsuo 2 (X11, X4, X3, X2). The first group could be used as food thickening or gelling agents. The second group could be applied in glutinous foods. The third group make them suitable for fillings in confectionery or weaning foods.
Snakebite envenoming is a medical emergency requiring urgent and specific treatment. Unfortunately, snakebite diagnostics are scarce, time-consuming and lacking specificity. Hence, this study aimed to develop a simple, quick and specific snakebite diagnostic assay using animal antibodies. Anti-venom horse immunoglobulin G (IgG) and chicken immunoglobulin Y (IgY) were produced against the venoms of four major medically important snake species in Southeast Asia, i.e., the Monocled Cobra (Naja kaouthia), Malayan Krait (Bungarus candidus), Malayan Pit Viper (Calloselasma rhodostoma), and White-lipped Green Pit Viper (Trimeresurus albolabris). Different capture:detection configurations of double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were constructed using both immunoglobulins, and the horse IgG:IgG-HRP configuration was found to be most selective and sensitive in detecting the corresponding venoms. The method was further streamlined to develop a rapid immunodetection assay, which is able to produce a visual color change within 30 min for discrimination between different snake species. The study shows it is feasible to develop a simple, quick and specific immunodiagnostic assay using horse IgG, which can be derived directly from antisera prepared for antivenom production. The proof-of-concept indicates it is a sustainable and affordable approach in keeping with on-going antivenom manufacturing activities for specific species in the region.
Diabetes is a chronic, metabolic disease characterized by hyperglycemia resulting from either insufficient insulin production or impaired cellular response to insulin. Exopolysaccharides (EPS) produced by Lactobacillus spp. demonstrated promising therapeutic potential in terms of their anti-diabetic properties. Extraction and purification of EPS produced by Lactobacillus acidophilus and Limosilactobacillus reuteri were performed using ethanol precipitation, followed by alcohol/salt based aqueous two-phase system (ATPS). The purification process involved ethanol precipitation followed by an alcohol/salt-based ATPS. The study systematically investigated various purification parameters in ATPS, including ethanol concentration, type and concentration of ionic liquid, type and concentration of salt and pH of salt. Purified EPS contents from L. acidophilus (63.30 μg/mL) and L. reuteri (146.48 μg/mL) were obtained under optimum conditions of ATPS which consisted of 30 % (w/w) ethanol, 25 % (w/w) dipotassium hydrogen phosphate at pH 10 and 2 % (w/w) 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium octyl sulfate. The extracted EPS content was determined using phenol sulphuric acid method. In α-amylase inhibition tests, the inhibitory rate was found to be 92.52 % (L. reuteri) and 90.64 % (L. acidophilus), while in α-glucosidase inhibition tests, the inhibitory rate was 73.58 % (L. reuteri) and 68.77 % (L. acidophilus), based on the optimized parameters selected in ATPS. These results suggest that the purified EPS derived from the postbiotics of Lactobacillus spp. hold promise as potential antidiabetic agents.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that leads to progressive loss of neurons which often results in deterioration of memory and cognitive function. The development of AD is highly associated with the formation of senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. Amyloid β (Aβ) induces neurotoxicity and contributes to the development of AD. Recent evidences also highlighted the importance of neuroglobin (Ngb) in ameliorating AD. This study assessed the ability of fucosterol, a phytosterol found in brown alga, in protecting SH-SY5Y cells against Aβ-induced neurotoxicity. Its effects on the mRNA levels of APP and Ngb as well as the intracellular Aβ levels were also determined in Aβ-induced SH-SY5Y cells. SH-SY5Y cells were exposed to fucosterol prior to Aβ treatment. The effect on apoptosis was determined using Annexin V FITC staining and mRNA expression was studied using RT-PCR. Flow cytometry confirmed the protective effects of fucosterol on SH-SY5Y cells against Aβ-induced apoptosis. Pretreatment with fucosterol increased the Ngb mRNA levels but reduced the levels of APP mRNA and intracellular Aβ in Aβ-induced SH-SY5Y cells. These observations demonstrated the protective properties of fucosterol against Aβ-induced neurotoxicity in neuronal cells.
Envenomation by Naja annulifera (snouted cobra), a non-spitting African cobra, can result in local tissue damage and fatal paralysis but a species-specific antivenom treatment is currently lacking. In this study, we investigated the quantitative proteome of N. annulifera venom, incorporating HPLC and LC-MS/MS to elucidate the venom toxicity. The immunoreactivities and in vivo neutralization activities of two hetero-specific antivenom products (Premium Serums Pan Africa polyvalent antivenom, PANAF and VINS African polyvalent antivenom, VAPAV) against the venom were subsequently examined. N. annulifera venom comprises 10 toxin families, with three-finger toxin (3FTx) being the most abundantly expressed (~78%). Within 3FTx, cytotoxin is the most dominant form and made up three-quarter of the venom bulk (~74%), whereas alpha-neurotoxins constitute <4% of the total venom proteins. Phospholipase A2 was undetected in the venom proteome, consistent with the unusual absence of PLA2 from the venoms of cobras in the Uraeus subgenus. In ELISA, PANAF and VAPAV showed comparable immunoreactivity toward the protein antigens of N. annulifera venom. These antivenoms, despite being raised against hetero-specific venoms, were capable of cross-neutralizing the lethal effect of N. annulifera venom in mice, with PANAF being marginally more potent.
Depending on its physicochemical properties and antibacterial activities, chitosan can have a wide range of applications in food, pharmaceutical, medicine, cosmetics, agriculture, and aquaculture. In this experimental study, chitosan was extracted from shrimp waste through conventional extraction, microwave-assisted extraction, and conventional extraction under microwave process conditions. The effects of the heating source on the physicochemical properties and antibacterial activity were investigated. The results showed that the heating process parameters affected the physicochemical properties considerably. The conventional procedure yielded high molecular weight chitosan with a 12.7 % yield, while the microwave extraction procedure yielded a porous medium molecular weight chitosan at 11.8 %. The conventional extraction under microwave process conditions led to medium molecular weight chitosan with the lowest yield (10.8 %) and crystallinity index (79 %). Antibacterial assessment findings revealed that the chitosan extracted using the conventional method had the best antibacterial activity in the agar disk diffusion assay against Listeria monocytogenes (9.48 mm), Escherichia coli. (8.79 mm), and Salmonella Typhimurium (8.57 mm). While the chitosan obtained by microwave-assisted extraction possessed the highest activity against E. coli. (8.37 mm), and Staphylococcus aureus (8.05 mm), with comparable antibacterial activity against S. Typhimurium (7.34 mm) and L. monocytogenes (6.52 mm). Moreover, the minimal inhibitory concentration and minimal bactericidal concentration assays demonstrated that among the chitosan samples investigated, the conventionally-extracted chitosan, followed by the chitosan extracted by microwave, had the best antibacterial activity against the target bacteria.
Chitosan, collagen, gelatin, polylactic acid and polyhydroxyalkanoates are notable examples of biopolymers, which are essentially bio-derived polymers produced by living cells. With the right techniques, these biological macromolecules can be exploited for nanotechnological advents, including for the fabrication of nanocarriers. In the world of nanotechnology, it is highly essential (and optimal) for nanocarriers to be biocompatible, biodegradable and non-toxic for safe in vivo applications, including for drug delivery, cancer immunotherapy, tissue engineering, gene delivery, photodynamic therapy and many more. The recent advancements in understanding nanotechnology and the physicochemical properties of biopolymers allows us to modify biological macromolecules and use them in a multitude of fields, most notably for clinical and therapeutic applications. By utilizing chitosan, collagen, gelatin, polylactic acid, polyhydroxyalkanoates and various other biopolymers as synthesis ingredients, the 'optimal' properties of a nanocarrier can easily be attained. With emphasis on the aforementioned biological macromolecules, this review presents the various biopolymers utilized for nanocarrier synthesis along with their specific synthetization methods. We further discussed on the characterization techniques and related applications for the synthesized nanocarriers.
The utilization of nanocellulose has increasingly gained attentions from various research fields, especially the field of polymer nanocomposites owing to the growing environmental hazardous of petroleum based fiber products. Meanwhile, the searching of alternative cellulose sources from different plants has become the interests for producing nanocellulose with varying characterizations that expectedly suit in specific field of applications. In this content the long and strong bast fibers from plant species was gradually getting its remarkable position in the field of nanocellulose extraction and nanocomposites fabrications. This review article intended to present an overview of the chemical structure of cellulose, different types of nanocellulose, bast fibers compositions, structure, polylactic acid (PLA) and the most probable processing techniques on the developments of nanocellulose from different bast fibers especially jute, kenaf, hemp, flax, ramie and roselle and its nanocomposites. This article however more focused on the fabrication of PLA based nanocomposites due to its high firmness, biodegradability and sustainability properties in developed products towards the environment. Along with this it also explored a couple of issues to improve the processing techniques of bast fibers nanocellulose and its reinforcement in the PLA biopolymer as final products.
The utilization of renewable and functional group enriched nano-lignin as bio-additve in fabricating composite has become the focus of attention worldwide. Herein, lignin nanoparticles in the form of hollow spheres with the diameter of the order of 138 ± 39 nm were directly prepared from agro-industrial waste (palm kernel shell) using recyclable tetrahydrofuran in an acidified aqueous system without any chemical modification steps. We then fabricated a new chitosan/nano-lignin composite material as highly efficient sorbent, as demonstrated by efficient removal (~83%) of methylene blue (MB) dye under natural pH conditions. The adsorption process obeyed pseudo-second-order kinetics and adequate fitting of the adsorption data using Langmuir model suggested a monolayer adsorption with a maximum adsorption capacity of 74.07 mg g-1. Moreover, thermodynamic study of the system revealed spontaneous and endothermic nature of the sorption process. Further studies revealed that chitosan composite with nano-lignin showed better performance in dye decontamination compared to native chitosan and chitosan/bulk lignin composite. This could essentially be attributed to synergistic effects of size particularity (nano-effect) and incorporated functionalities due to lignin nanoparticles. Recyclability study performed in four repeated adsorption/regeneration cycles revealed recyclable nature of as-prepared composite, whilst adsorption experiments using spiked real water samples indicated recoveries as high as 89%. Based on this study, as-prepared bio-nanocomposite may thus be considered as an efficient and reusable adsorptive platform for the decontamination of water supplies.
A halophilic bacterium isolated from mangrove soil sample in Northern Vietnam, Yangia sp. ND199 was found capable of producing homopolymer poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) [P(3HB)], copolymer poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) [P(3HB-co-3HV)], and copolymer poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) [P(3HB-co-4HB)] from different carbon sources. The presence of 3HB, 3HV, and 4HB monomers were confirmed by gas chromatography and nuclear magnetic resonance analysis. Only P(3HB) was produced using carbon sources such as fructose or by a combination of fructose with 1,5-pentanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, sodium hexanoate, or sodium octanoate. The biosynthesis of P(3HB-co-3HV) was achieved by adding cosubstrates such as sodium valerate and sodium heptanoate. When 1,4-butanediol, γ-butyrolactone or sodium 4-hydroxybutyrate was added to the culture medium, P(3HB-co-4HB) containing 4.0-7.1mol% 4HB fraction was accumulated. The molecular weights and thermal properties of polyesters were determined by gel permeation chromatography and differential scanning calorimeter, respectively. The results showed that Yangia sp. ND199 is able to produce polyester with high weight average molecular weight ranging from 1.3×10(6) to 2.2×10(6) Dalton and number average molecular weight ranging from 4.2×10(5) to 6.9×10(5) Dalton. The molecular weights, glass transition temperature as well as melting temperature of homopolymer P(3HB) are higher than those of copolymer P(3HB-co-3HV) or P(3HB-co-4HB).
The ability of Delftia acidovorans to incorporate a broad range of 3-hydroxyvalerate (3HV) monomers into polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) copolymers was evaluated in this study. Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) [P(3HB-co-3HV)] containing 0-90 mol% of 3HV was obtained when a mixture of sodium 3-hydroxybutyrate and sodium valerate was used as the carbon sources. Transmission electron microscopy analysis revealed an interesting aspect of the P(3HB-co-3HV) granules containing high molar ratios of 3HV whereby, the copolymer granules were generally larger than those of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) [P(3HB)] granules, despite having almost the same cellular PHA contents. The large number of P(3HB-co-3HV) granules occupying almost the entire cell volume did not correspond to a higher amount of polymer by weight. This indicated that the granules of P(3HB-co-3HV) contain polymer chains that are loosely packed and therefore have lower density than P(3HB) granules. It was also interesting to note that a decrease in the length of the side chain from 3HV to 4-hydroxybutyrate (4HB) corresponded to an increase in the density of the respective PHA granules. The presence of longer side chain monomers (3HV) in the PHA structure seem to exhibit steric effects that prevent the polymer chains in the granules from being closely packed. The results reported here have important implications on the maximum ability of bacterial cells to accumulate PHA containing monomers with longer side chain length.