Magnetic polymer nanocomposites are inherently multifunctional and harbor assorted physiochemical actions for applications thereof as novel drug nanocarriers. Herein, Fe3O4-nanoparticles were supported on rice straw cellulose for 5-fluorouracil carrier abbreviated as MC/5-FU for potential colorectal cancer treatments. Several analyses indicated the multifunctional properties of MC/5-FU bionanocomposites. Transmission and scanning electron microscopy study demonstrated that Fe3O4 nanofillers covered the cellulose matrix. The drug release from MC/5-FU was evaluated under various pH and temperature conditions, showing the maximum release at pH 7.4 and 44.2 °C. In in vitro anticancer assay, MC/5-FU exhibited enhanced selectivity and anticancer actions against 2D monolayer and 3D tumour spheroid models colorectal cancer cells. The anticancer effects of MC/5-FU with magnetic targeting and heat induction were also examined. This easily synthesized MC/5-FU indicated the potential in application as a low-cost drug formulation for colorectal cancer treatments.
Being abundant in many tropical part of the world, Dioscorea sp. as food is limited due to its toxicity. However polysaccharides derive from these tubers could be important for other applications. Here we developed a Highly Luminescent Carbon Nanodots (C-dots) via acid hydrolysis of Gadong starch (GS). The hydrolysis rate of GS increased from 49% to 86% within 7 days while the X-ray diffraction showed the native GS particle is a C-crystalline type. The GS particles were either round or oval with diameters ranging from 50-90 nm. Further acid dehydration and surface oxidation reduced the size of GS nanoparticles to 6-25 nm. The C-dots produced a fluorescent emission at wavelength 441 nm. Toxicity tests demonstrate that zebrafish embryo were able to tolerate the C-dots for 48 h after exposure. This study has successfully demonstrated a novel approach of converting GS into excellent fluorescent C-dot.
Utilization of macroalgae biomass for bioethanol production appears as an alternative source to lignocellulosic materials. In this study, for the first time, Amberlyst (TM)-15 was explored as a potential catalyst to hydrolyze carbohydrates from Eucheuma cottonii extract to simple reducing sugar prior to fermentation process. Several important hydrolysis parameters were studied for process optimization including catalyst loading (2-5%, w/v), reaction temperature (110-130°C), reaction time (0-2.5 h) and biomass loading (5.5-15.5%, w/v). Optimum sugar yield of 39.7% was attained based on the following optimum conditions: reaction temperature at 120°C, catalyst loading of 4% (w/v), 12.5% (w/v) of biomass concentration and reaction time of 1.5h. Fermentation of the hydrolysate using Saccharomyces cerevisiae produced 0.33 g/g of bioethanol yield with an efficiency of 65%. The strategy of combining heterogeneous-catalyzed hydrolysis and fermentation with S. cerevisiae could be a feasible strategy to produce bioethanol from macroalgae biomass.
The aim of this study is to investigate the technical feasibility of converting macroalgae cellulosic residue (MCR) into bioethanol. An attempt was made to present a novel, environmental friendly and economical pretreatment process that enhances enzymatic conversion of MCR to sugars using Dowex (TM) Dr-G8 as catalyst. The optimum yield of glucose reached 99.8% under the optimal condition for solid acid pretreatment (10%, w/v biomass loading, 4%, w/v catalyst loading, 30min, 120°C) followed by enzymatic hydrolysis (45FPU/g of cellulase, 52CBU/g of β-glucosidase, 50°C, pH 4.8, 30h). The yield of sugar obtained was found more superior than conventional pretreatment process using H2SO4 and NaOH. Biomass loading for the subsequent simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of the pretreated MCR was then optimized, giving an optimum bioethanol yield of 81.5%. The catalyst was separated and reused for six times, with only a slight drop in glucose yield.
This study aims to derive regenerated cellulose (RC) from lignin/hemicellulose-free Eucheuma cottonii for its independent stabilization of Pickering emulsion. The RC exhibits a fibrillar morphology with diameters ranging from 17 to 157 nm and stabilizes paraffin oil-Pickering emulsions without any co-stabilizer. It was found that the emulsion stability, viscosities and viscoelasticity correlate positively with RC concentration. All emulsion samples depict gel-like behavior. Under different oil fraction at a constant RC concentration, anomalies were found in emulsion properties. This can be attributed to the aggregating behavior of RC at the oil-water interface, the degree of gel-like structure formation due to materials interaction within the emulsion system, and the variations of microscopic droplet cluster interactions under shear condition. The emulsions portrayed excellent robustness against harsh salinity, high temperature and extreme pH fluctuation. Hence, these findings had elucidated the plausibility of macroalgae-derived RC in enhanced oil recovery application.
Carboxymethyl starch (CMS) was produced from sago starch via carboxymethylation. The CMS with different degree of substitution (DS) ranges from 0.4 to 0.8 were mixed with polyethylene glycol (PEG) of different molecular weight and distilled water and the hydrogel was cured by electron beam irradiation with doses ranging from 25 to 35 kGy. The results revealed that CMS-PEG hydrogels with DS 0.4 give the optimum gel content when radiated at 30 kGy and with PEG 600. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) revealed that there are two phases exist in CMS with DS 0.4 in contrast to the three steps decomposition occurs in DS 0.6 and 0.8. It shows that the CMS with DS 0.4 is more thermally stable. Surface morphology revealed crosslinking among the blends when subjected into the radiation dose. The study shows both radiation and PEG addition improved most of the properties of CMS irrespective of the DS value.
In this study, a biodegradable photodynamic antibacterial film (Car-Cur) was prepared using casting method with κ-Carrageenan (κ-Car) as film-forming substrate and curcumin-β-cyclodextrin (Cur-β-CD) complex as photosensitizer. The comprehensive performance of this Car-Cur film was investigated. The obtained results showed that the concentration of Cur-β-CD was an important factor determining the properties of film including tensile strength (TS) elongation at break (EB), water vapor permeability (WVP), water content (WC) and thermal stability. When the concentration of Cur-β-CD is 1%, the film demonstrated the maximum TS and EB, increased thermal stability, with desirable WVP and WC. Furthermore, this film also showed good photodynamic antibacterial potential against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli upon irradiation of blue LED light. Moreover, the film can be degraded in the soil in one week. In conclusion, our results suggested Car-Cur photodynamic film could be developed as biodegradable antimicrobial packaging material for food preservation.
Carbon and nitrogen sources in culture medium of Antrodia cinnamomea were optimized to eliminate the interference of exterior macromolecules on exopolysaccharide (EPS) yield by submerged fermentation. The results suggested that culture medium containing 50 g/L of glucose and 20 g/L of yeast extract as the optimal carbon and nitrogen sources could produce 1.03 g/L of exopolysaccharides. After purification, two heteropolysaccharides (AC-EPS1 and AC-EPS2) were obtained and characterized to provide the basic structure information. As the main component of the produced EPS, AC-EPS2 (accounting for 89.63%) was mainly composed of galactose (87.42%) with Mw (molecular weight) and R.M.S. (root-mean-square) radius of 1.18 × 105 g/mol and 25.3 nm, respectively. Furthermore, the spherical and flexible chain morphologies of EPS were observed in different solvents by TEM. The structural and morphological information of purified EPS were significant for further study on their structure-activity relationship and related applications.
Pectins are a diverse family of biopolymers with an anionic polysaccharide backbone of α-1,4-linked d-galacturonic acids in common. They have been widely used as emulsifiers, gelling agents, glazing agents, stabilizers, and/or thickeners in food, pharmaceutical, personal care and polymer products. Commercial pectin is classified as high methoxy pectin (HMP) with a degree of methylation (DM) >50% and low methoxy pectin (LMP) with a DM <50%. Amidated low methoxy pectins (ALMP) can be obtained through aminolysis of HMP. Gelation of HMP occurs by cross-linking through hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic forces between the methyl groups, assisted by a high co-solute concentration and low pH. In contrast, gelation of LMP occurs by the formation of ionic linkages via calcium bridges between two carboxyl groups from two different chains in close proximity, known as the 'egg-box' model. Pectin gels exhibit Newtonian behaviour at low shear rates and shear-thinning behaviour when the shear rate is increased. An overview of pectin from its origin to its physicochemical properties is presented in this review.
In recent years, increasing environmental concerns focused greater attention on the development of biodegradable materials. A thermoplastic starch derived from bioresources, sugar palm tree was successfully developed in the presence of biodegradable glycerol as a plasticizer. Sugar palm starch (SPS) was added with 15-40 w/w% of glycerol to prepare workable bioplastics and coded as SPS/G15, SPS/G20, SPS/G30 and SPS/G40. The samples were characterized for thermal properties, mechanical properties and moisture absorption on exposure to humidity were evaluated. Morphological studies through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to explain the observed mechanical properties. Generally, the addition of glycerol decrease the transition temperature of plasticized SPS. The mechanical properties of plasticized SPS increase with the increasing of glycerol but up to 30 w/w%. Meanwhile, the water absorption of plasticized SPS decrease with increasing of glycerol.
The main aim of this study was to investigate the effect of different coating materials (i.e. Na-alginate and chitosan) on the viability and release behavior of Bifidobacterium pseudocatenulatum G4 in the simulated gastric fluid (SGF) and simulated intestinal fluid (SIF). This study reports the viability of encapsulated B. pseudocatenulatum G4 coated using different alginate (2-4 g/100mL) and chitosan (0.2-0.8 g/100mL) concentrations. The results indicated that the highest concentration of alginate (4.4142 g/100mL) along with 0.5578 g/100mL chitosan resulted in the highest viability of B. pseudocatenulatum G4. The release behavior of the encapsulated probiotics in SGF (pH 1.5) in 2h followed by 4h in SIF (pH 7.4) was also assessed. The resistance rate of alginate-chitosan capsule in SGF was higher than SIF. The alginate-chitosan encapsulated cells had also more resistance than alginate capsules. The current study revealed that alginate encapsulated B. Pseudocatenulatum G4 exhibited longer survival than its free cells (control).
Acrylated abietic acid (acrylated AbA) and acrylated abietic acid-grafted bacterial cellulose pH sensitive hydrogel (acrylated AbA-g-BC) were prepared by a one-pot synthesis. The successful dimerization of acrylic acid (AA) and abietic acid (AbA) and grafting of the dimer onto bacterial cellulose (BC) was confirmed by 13C solid state NMR as well as FT-IR. X-ray diffraction analysis showed characteristic peaks for AbA and BC; further, there was no effect of increasing amorphous AA content on the overall crystallinity of the hydrogel. Differential scanning calorimetry revealed a glass transition temperature of 80°C. Gel fraction and swelling studies gave insight into the features of the hydrogel, suggesting that it was suitable for future applications such as drug delivery. Scanning electron microscopy observations showed an interesting interpenetrating network within the walls of hydrogel samples with the lowest levels of AA and gamma radiation doses. Cell viability test revealed that the synthesized hydrogel is safe for future use in biomedical applications.
This work reports on a complete isolation and characterization of lignocellulosic compounds from oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) by ionic liquid (IL) treatment and alkaline treatment processes. The fractionated lignocellulosic compounds were confirmed by FTIR and CP/MAS 13CNMR analyses. The yield of the cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin fractions was 52.72±1.50% wt., 27.17±1.68% wt. and 16.82±1.15% wt. with molecular weight of 1869g/mol, 1736g/mol and 2695g/mol, and degradation temperature of 325.65°C, 236.25°C, and 201.40°C, respectively. The SEM image illustrates the bundle-like fiber of cellulose fraction and smaller particle size of hemicellulose and lignin fractions with inconsistent shape. The XRD patterns depict the crystalline cellulose, amorphous lignin and partially amorphous hemicellulose fractions property. The IL could be recovered and reused with an overall recovery of 48% wt. after the fourth cycle.
The enhancement of lignocellulose hydrolysis using enzyme complexes requires an efficient pretreatment process to obtain susceptible conditions for the enzyme attack. This study focuses on removing a major part of the lignin layer from kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) while simultaneously maintaining most of the hemicellulose. A two-stage pretreatment process is adopted using calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)₂, and peracetic acid, PPA, to break the recalcitrant lignin layer from other structural polysaccharides. An experimental screening of several pretreatment chemicals, concentrations, temperatures and solid-liquid ratios enabled the production of an optimally designed pretreatment process for kenaf. Our results showed that the pretreatment process has provide 59.25% lignin removal while maintaining 87.72% and 96.17% hemicellulose and cellulose, respectively, using 1g of Ca(OH)₂/L and a 8:1 (mL:g) ratio of liquid-Ca(OH)₂ at 50 °C for 1.5 h followed by 20% peracetic acid pretreatment at 75 °C for 2 h. These results validate this mild approach for aiding future enzymatic hydrolysis.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of different purification and drying methods on the viscoelastic behaviour and rheological properties of durian seed gum. The results indicated that the purified gum A (using isopropanol and ethanol) and D (using hydrochloric acid and ethanol) showed the highest and lowest viscosity, respectively. Four drying techniques included oven drying (105 °C), freeze drying, spray drying and vacuum oven drying. In the present work, all purified gums exhibited more elastic (gel-like) behaviour than the viscous (liquid-like) behaviour (G″
Graft copolymerisation of methyl methacrylate (MMA) onto Agave angustifolia was conducted with ceric ammonium nitrate (CAN) as the redox initiator. The maximum grafting efficiency was observed at CAN and MMA concentrations of 0.91 × 10(-3) and 5.63 × 10(-2)M, respectively, at 45°C for 3h reaction time. Four characteristic peaks at 2995, 1738, 1440, and 845 cm(-1), attributed to PMMA, were found in the IR spectrum of grafted cellulose. The crystallinity index dropped from 0.74 to 0.46, while the thermal stability improved upon grafting. The water contact angle increased with grafting yield, indicating increased hydrophobicity of cellulose. SEM images showed the grafted cellulose to be enlarged and rougher. The changes in the physical nature of PMMA-grafted cellulose can be attributed to the PMMA grafting in the amorphous regions of cellulose, causing it to expand at the expense of the crystalline component.
This research involves the rare utilisation of the kapok fibre (Ceiba pentandra) as a raw material for the fabrication of cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) and self-assembled CNC membranes. The isolation of CNC from Ceiba pentandra began with the extraction of cellulose via the chemical alkali extraction by using 5wt% NaOH, followed by the typical acidified bleaching method and, finally, the CNC production through acid hydrolysis with 60wt% H2SO4 at the optimum time of 60min. The prepared CNC was then employed for the preparation of self-assembled membrane through the water suspension casting evaporation technique. The obtained CNC membrane was characterised in terms of its composition, crystallinity, thermal stability, as well as, structural and morphological features with the use of several techniques including FTIR, XRD, AFM, TEM, FESEM, and TGA. The FESEM and AFM analyses had illustrated the achievement of a self-assembled CNC membrane with a smooth surface and a well-distributed nano-porous structure, with the porosity of 52.82±7.79%. In addition, the findings proved that the self-assembled CNC membrane displayed good adsorption capability indicated by the recorded efficiency of 79% and 85% for 10mg/L and 5mg/L of methylene blue in an aqueous solution, respectively.
In this study, a novel fibrous membrane of hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC)/poly(vinyl alcohol) blend was successfully fabricated by electrospinning technique and characterized. The concentration of HEC (5%) with PVA (15%) was optimized, blended in different ratios (30-50%) and electrospun to get smooth nanofibers. Nanofibrous membranes were made water insoluble by chemically cross-linking by glutaraldehyde and used as scaffolds for the skin tissue engineering. The microstructure, morphology, mechanical and thermal properties of the blended HEC/PVA nanofibrous scaffolds were characterized by scanning electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning colorimetry, universal testing machine and thermogravimetric analysis. Cytotoxicity studies on these nanofibrous scaffolds were carried out using human melanoma cells by the MTT assays. The cells were able to attach and spread in the nanofibrous scaffolds as shown by the SEM images. These preliminary results show that these nanofibrous scaffolds that supports cell adhesion and proliferation is promising for skin tissue engineering.
Polymer electrolytes were developed by solution casting technique utilizing the materials of cellulose acetate (CA), lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (LiTFSI) and deep eutectic solvent (DES). The DES is synthesized from the mixture of choline chloride and urea of 1:2 ratios. The increasing DES content well plasticizes the CA:LiTFSI:DES matrix and gradually improves the ionic conductivity and chemical integrity. The highest conducting sample was identified for the composition of CA:LiTFSI:DES (28 wt.%:12 wt.%:60 wt.%), which has the greatest ability to retain the room temperature ionic conductivity over the entire 30 days of storage time. The changes in FTIR cage peaks upon varying the DES content in CA:LiTFSI:DES prove the complexation. This complexation results in the collapse of CA matrix crystallinity, observed from the reduced intensity of XRD diffraction peaks. The DES-plasticized sample is found to be more heat-stable compared to pure CA. Nevertheless, the addition of DES diminishes the CA:LiTFSI matrix's heat-resistivity but at the minimum addition the thermal stability is enhanced.
A series of polymer electrolytes composed of corn starch (CS), lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (LITFSI) and deep eutectic solvent (DES) were fabricated by solution casting technique. The DES was synthesized from a mixture of choline chloride and urea at a molar ratio of 1:2. The addition of DES is crucial in enhancing the room temperature ionic conductivity by increasing the amorphous elastomeric phase in CS:LITFSI matrix. The ionic transport mechanism is improved and appreciable amount of ion conducting polymer electrolytes is produced. The highest ionic conductivity achieved for the polymer electrolyte composition CS:LiTFSI:DES (14wt.%:6wt.%:80wt.%) is 1.04×10-3Scm-1. The anomalies that were observed with the addition of DES upon formation of neutral ion multiples were visually revealed by the SEM micrographs. The possible dipole-dipole interaction between the constituents was visualized by the FTIR spectroscopy upon change in cage peaks.