Interaction of pendimethalin (PM) herbicide with the major transporter in human circulation, human serum albumin (HSA), was studied using fluorescence, circular dichroism (CD), and molecular modeling methods. The attenuation of the fluorescence intensity of HSA in the presence of PM revealed formation of the PM-HSA complex. Analysis of the fluorescence quenching data showed moderately strong binding affinity between PM and HSA. Both hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonding were suggested to stabilize the PM-HSA complex, based on thermodynamic data. Binding of PM to HSA induced perturbation in the microenvironment around the aromatic fluorophores as well as secondary and tertiary structural changes in the protein. Complexation of PM with HSA led to an increase in its thermal stability. Both site marker displacement and molecular modeling results suggested site I, located in subdomain IIA as the preferred binding site of PM on HSA.
The objective of this research was to study the oxidative stability and antioxidant properties of microencapsulated kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) seed oil (MKSO) produced by co-extrusion technology upon accelerated storage. The combination of sodium alginate, high methoxyl pectin, and chitosan were used as shell materials. The oxidative stability of the kenaf seed oil was determined by iodine value, peroxide value, p-Anisidine value, total oxidation (TOTOX), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances assay, and free fatty acid content. Total phenolic content, 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) cation radical-scavenging assay and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging assay were used to examine the antioxidant properties of oils. Oxidative stability tests showed that bulk kenaf seed oil (BKSO) was oxidized significantly higher (P < 0.05) than MKSO. The total increment of TOTOX value of BKSO was 165.93% significantly higher (P < 0.05) than MKSO. Co-extrusion technology has shown to be able to protect kenaf seed oil against lipid oxidation and delay the degradation of natural antioxidants that present in oil during storage.