On the existence of free-surface azimuthal equatorial flows

This paper is concerned with the governing equations (together with the free boundary and the bottom boundary conditions) for an inviscid, incompressible fluid, written in spherical coordinates which are fixed at a point on the rotating Earth. For a special type of a steady flow moving only in the azimuthal direction, with no variation in this direction, we provide a functional-analytic study of the link between the pressure at the free surface of the ocean and the distortion of that surface.     

On Some Electroconvection Models

We consider a model of electroconvection motivated by studies of the motion of a two-dimensional annular suspended smectic film under the influence of an electric potential maintained at the boundary by two electrodes. We prove that this electroconvection model has global in time unique smooth solutions.     

Attempts for Developing Novel Sugar-Based and Sugar-Free Sea Buckthorn Marmalades

Sea buckthorn (Hippophaė rhamnoides L.) is recognized as a valuable source of vitamin C and antioxidants, frequently used as nutraceuticals and cosmeceuticals. In the present study, attempts are made to produce and characterize a novel type of marmalade using sea buckthorn berries processed at 102 °C into marmalade in two combinations, with whole cane or stevia sugar. Changes in the phytochemical profile, antioxidant activity, color, shelf-life, texture, microbiological, and sensorial characteristics were determined. The total carotenoids content in the marmalades were significantly different, with values of 0.91 ± 0.03 mg/g dry weight (DW) in the sample with whole sugar cane (C_z) and 2.69 ± 0.14 mg/g DW in the sample with Stevia sugar (C_s). Significant values of polyphenols were found, of 59.41 ± 1.13 mg GAE/g DW in C_z and 72.44 ± 2.31 mg GAE/g DW in C_s, leading to an antioxidant activity of 45.12 ± 0.001 μMol Trolox/g DW and 118.07 ± 0.01 μMol Trolox/g DW, respectively. Accelerated storage study showed a decrease in all the phytochemicals, however no significant changes were found in antioxidant activity. Values of <100 CFU/g for yeasts and molds and <5 CFU/g for Enterobacteriaceae after 21 days of storage at the room temperature of the marmalades were determined. The sensorial and color results were more than acceptable. Overall, the results highlighted the potential of using sea buckthorn as a potential rich source of bioactive compounds to be used in the sugar-based products manufacturing.     

Electrochemical Peptide-Based Sensors for Foodborne Pathogens Detection

Food safety and quality control pose serious issues to food industry and public health domains, in general, with direct effects on consumers. Any physical, chemical, or biological unexpected or unidentified food constituent may exhibit harmful effects on people and animals from mild to severe reactions. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), unsafe foodstuffs are especially dangerous for infants, young children, elderly, and chronic patients. It is imperative to continuously develop new technologies to detect foodborne pathogens and contaminants in order to aid the strengthening of healthcare and economic systems. In recent years, peptide-based sensors gained much attention in the field of food research as an alternative to immuno-, apta-, or DNA-based sensors. This review presents an overview of the electrochemical biosensors using peptides as molecular bio-recognition elements published mainly in the last decade, highlighting their possible application for rapid, non-destructive, and in situ analysis of food samples. Comparison with peptide-based optical and piezoelectrical sensors in terms of analytical performance is presented. Methods of foodstuffs pretreatment are also discussed.     

Synthesis and Antimicrobial Evaluation of Some New 4,5′‐Bisthiazoles

Thiazole and bisthiazole derivatives represent a prevalent scaffold in the antimicrobial drug discovery. Therefore, we have decided to synthesize some new series of 4,5′‐bisthiazoles. A total of 17 compounds were synthesized, their structural elucidation being based on elemental analysis (C,H,N,S) and spectroscopic data (MS and ¹H NMR). Their in vitro antimicrobial activities were assessed against several Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacteria strains and also against one fungal strain (Candida albicans) using the difusimetric method. Some of the compounds showed modest to good antibacterial activity against Gram‐negative Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium and Gram‐positive Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus bacterial strains. All of the synthesized compounds showed moderate to very good antifungal activity against C. albicans.     

A Self‐Reporting Tetrazole‐Based Linker for the Biofunctionalization of Gold Nanorods

A photochemical approach based on nitrile imine‐mediated tetrazole‐ene cycloaddition is introduced to functionalize gold nanorods with biomolecules. For this purpose, a bifunctional, photoreactive linker containing thioctic acid as the Au anchoring group and a tetrazole moiety for the light‐induced reaction with maleimide‐capped DNA was prepared. The tetrazole‐based reaction on the nanoparticles’ surface results in a fluorescent pyrazoline product allowing for the spectroscopic monitoring of the reaction. This first example of nitrile imine‐mediated tetrazole‐ene cycloaddition (NITEC)‐mediated biofunctionalization of Au nanorods paves the way for the attachment of sensitive biomolecules, such as antibodies and other proteins, under mild conditions and expands the toolbox for the tailoring of nanomaterials.     

Electrochemical Behaviour and Rapid Determination of L‐Dopa at Electrochemically Pretreated Screen Printed Carbon Electrode

A simple and rapid voltammetric method based on a disposable electrochemically pretreated screen‐printed carbon electrode is proposed for the determination of L ‐dopa. Under optimum differential pulse voltammetry conditions a limit of detection of 3.6×10^?7 M for L ‐dopa was obtained. The method was successfully applied to the determination of L ‐dopa in a commercial pharmaceutical formulation.     

Dynamics of the thermocline in the equatorial region of the Pacific ocean

This paper is devoted to the subsurface current dynamics in equatorial regions, where the hallmark of a strong stratification is a sharp interface (thermocline), separating two layers of different density, and whose depth is dependent upon the strength of the winds above the ocean's surface. We give here a few monotonicity results concerning the dynamics of the thermocline in the equatorial region. The most important one asserts that the level of the thermocline decreases as the strength of the wind at ten meters above the ocean surface, denoted |U_w|, increases. Moreover, the strength of the current at the thermocline decreases as |U_w| increases.     

Investigations involving shock waves generation and shock pressure measurement in direct ablation regime and confined ablation regime

Recent investigations involving shock waves generation and shock pressure measurement in direct ablation regime and confined ablation regime for aluminium, copper, titanium and steel (40C130) materials are reported. Experimental measurements demonstrated that in direct ablation regime the peak pressures typically are less than 10 Pa when the incident laser intensity is about 10 W/cm and the time duration of the applied pressure is roughly equal to the laser pulse duration. It is shown that confinement of the surface with a transparent overlayer provided an effective method of enhancing laser-induced shock waves pressure in the target material with an order of magnitude for same laser intensity. Also, in this second regime, the pressure is applied over a period much longer than the laser-pulse duration. As an application measurements of the hardness of target surface before and after laser irradiation in direct ablation regime and confined ablation regime are given, and it is shown that the maximum value of surface hardness is obtained in confined ablation regime. Received 10 March 2001 / Accepted 13 April 2001     

Different spectrophotometric methods for antioxidant activity assay of four Romanian herbs

The present study investigates the antioxidant activities of some Romanian plants, using different spectrophotometric methods (FRAP I, FRAP II, and CUPRAC). The plants investigated are hawthorn (Crataegus oxyacantha), bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.), rosehip (Rosa canina), and chokeberries (Aronia melanocarpa). Hawthorn is used to treat a wide variety of inflammatory conditions, but the primary use is generally restricted for treating hypertension, ischemic heart disease, congestive heart failure, and arrhythmia. Investigations have proved the safe and reliable use of plant and plant extracts for treatment of cardiovascular disorders.