Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Properties of Total Polyphenols of Anchusa italica Retz

Anchusa italica Retz has been used for a long time in phytotherapy. The aim of the present study was to determine the antioxidant and antibacterial activities of extracts from the leaves and roots of Anchusa italica Retz. We first determined the content of phenolic compounds and flavonoids using Folin–Ciocalteu reagents and aluminum chloride (AlCl₃). The antioxidant activity was determined using three methods: reducing power (FRAP), 2.2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), total antioxidant capacity (TAC). The antimicrobial activity was investigated against four strains of Escherichia coli, two strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae and coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, and one fungal strain of Candida albicans. The results showed that the root extract was rich in polyphenols (43.29 mg GAE/g extract), while the leave extract was rich in flavonoids (28.88 mg QE/g extract). The FRAP assay showed a strong iron reduction capacity for the root extract (IC₅₀ of 0.11 µg/mL) in comparison to ascorbic acid (IC₅₀ of 0.121 µg/mL). The DPPH test determined an IC₅₀ of 0.11 µg/mL for the root extract and an IC₅₀ of 0.14 µg/mL for the leaf extract. These values are low compared to those for ascorbic acid (IC₅₀ of 0.16 µg/mL) and BHT (IC₅₀ 0.20 µg/mL). The TAC values of the leaf and root extracts were 0.51 and 0.98 mg AAE/g extract, respectively. In vitro, the extract showed inhibitory activity against all strains studied, with diameters of zones of inhibition in the range of 11.00–16.00 mm for the root extract and 11.67–14.33 mm for the leaf extract. The minimum inhibitory concentration was recorded for the leaf extract against E. coli (ATB:57), corresponding to 5 mg/mL. Overall, this research indicates that the extracts of Anchusa italica Retz roots and leaves exert significant antioxidant and antibacterial activities, probably because of the high content of flavonoids and polyphenols.     

Estimation of the surface energetic heterogeneity of fillers by inverse gas chromatography

The surface properties of the fillers are determining for obtaining high performance filled polymers. Yet, their determination is most difficult. This paper proposes to use inverse gas chromatography, either at infinite dilution or finite concentration conditions, to estimate surface energy and nanomorphological characteristics, but also surface heterogeneity of different clays, talcs of various origins and ground muscovites.     

A control volume finite element method for three-dimensional three-phase flows

A novel control volume finite element method with adaptive anisotropic unstructured meshes is presented for three-dimensional three-phase flows with interfacial tension. The numerical framework consists of a mixed control volume and finite element formulation with a new P₁DG-P₂ elements (linear discontinuous velocity between elements and quadratic continuous pressure between elements). A “volume of fluid” type method is used for the interface capturing, which is based on compressive control volume advection and second-order finite element methods. A force-balanced continuum surface force model is employed for the interfacial tension on unstructured meshes. The interfacial tension coefficient decomposition method is also used to deal with interfacial tension pairings between different phases. Numerical examples of benchmark tests and the dynamics of three-dimensional three-phase rising bubble, and droplet impact are presented. The results are compared with the analytical solutions and previously published experimental data, demonstrating the capability of the present method.     

A Survey of Information Entropy Metrics for Complex Networks

Information entropy metrics have been applied to a wide range of problems that were abstracted as complex networks. This growing body of research is scattered in multiple disciplines, which makes it difficult to identify available metrics and understand the context in which they are applicable. In this work, a narrative literature review of information entropy metrics for complex networks is conducted following the PRISMA guidelines. Existing entropy metrics are classified according to three different criteria: whether the metric provides a property of the graph or a graph component (such as the nodes), the chosen probability distribution, and the types of complex networks to which the metrics are applicable. Consequently, this work identifies the areas in need for further development aiming to guide future research efforts.     

Auger electron emission in proton-induced interactions in living matter: A TILDA-V Monte Carlo tracking

The present work focuses on studying the contribution of the Auger electron emission in proton-induced interactions in biological matter. The Monte Carlo track-structure code, TILDA-V, was then used for modeling the protons beams of 10 keV to 100 MeV in biological matter, namely, water vapor and hydrated DNA. The main ionizing processes are described by means of an extensive set of ab initio differential and total cross sections computed within a quantum-mechanical CDW-EIS approximation.     

Long‐Lived Charge‐Transfer State Induced by Spin‐Orbit Charge Transfer Intersystem Crossing (SOCT‐ISC) in a Compact Spiro Electron Donor/Acceptor Dyad

We prepared conceptually novel, fully rigid, spiro compact electron donor (Rhodamine B, lactam form, RB)/acceptor (naphthalimide; NI) orthogonal dyad to attain the long‐lived triplet charge‐transfer (³CT) state, based on the electron spin control using spin‐orbit charge transfer intersystem crossing (SOCT‐ISC). Transient absorption (TA) spectra indicate the first charge separation (CS) takes place within 2.5 ps, subsequent SOCT‐ISC takes 8 ns to produce the ³NI* state. Then the slow secondary CS (125 ns) gives the long‐lived ³CT state (0.94 μs in deaerated n‐hexane) with high energy level (ca. 2.12 eV). The cascade photophysical processes of the dyad upon photoexcitation are summarized as ¹NI*→¹CT→³NI*→³CT. With time‐resolved electron paramagnetic resonance (TREPR) spectra, an EEEAAA electron‐spin polarization pattern was observed for the naphthalimide‐localized triplet state. Our spiro compact dyad structure and the electron spin‐control approach is different to previous methods for which invoking transition‐metal coordination or chromophores with intrinsic ISC ability is mandatory.     

Form factors in the presence of integrable defects

Form factor axioms are derived in two dimensional integrable defect theories for matrix elements of operators localized both in the bulk and on the defect. The form factors of bulk operators are expressed in terms of the bulk form factors and the transmission factor. The structure of the form factors of defect operators is established in general, and explicitly calculated in particular, for the free boson and for some operator of the Lee–Yang model. Fusion method is also presented to generate boundary form factor solutions for a fused boundary from the known unfused ones.