Gamma irradiation increases the antioxidant properties of Tualang honey stored under different conditions

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of evaporation, gamma irradiation and temperature on the total polyphenols, flavonoids and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging activities of Tualang honey samples (n = 14) following storage over three, six or twelve months. The mean polyphenol concentrations of the six gamma irradiated honey samples at three, six and twelve months, respectively, were 96.13%, 98.01% and 102.03% higher than the corresponding values of the eight non-gamma irradiated samples. Similarly, the mean values for flavonoids at three, six and twelve months were 111.52%, 114.81% and 110.04% higher, respectively, for the gamma irradiated samples. The mean values for DPPH radical-scavenging activities at three, six and twelve months were also 67.09%, 65.26% and 44.65% higher, respectively, for the gamma irradiated samples. These data indicate that all gamma irradiated honey samples had higher antioxidant potential following gamma irradiation, while evaporation and temperature had minor effects on antioxidant potential.     

Synthesis,Characterization, and X‐ray Structures of Ru3(CO)9(dotpm)(L) Complexes [L = PPh3, P(C6H4Cl‐p)3, and PPh2(C6H4Br‐p)]

The reaction of Ru₃(CO)₁₀(dotpm) ( 1 ) [dotpm = (bis(di‐ortho‐tolylphosphanyl)methane)] and one equivalent of L [L = PPh₃, P(C₆H₄Cl‐p)₃ and PPh₂(C₆H₄Br‐p)] in refluxing n‐hexane afforded a series of derivatives [Ru₃(CO)₉(dotpm)L] ( 2 – 4 ), respectively, in ca. 67–70 % yield. Complexes 2 – 4 were characterized by elemental analysis (CHN), IR, ¹H NMR, ¹³C{¹H} NMR and ³¹P{¹H} NMR spectroscopy. The molecular structures of 2 , 3 , and 4 were established by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. The bidentate dotpm and monodentate phosphine ligands occupy equatorial positions with respect to the Ru triangle. The effect of substitution resulted in significant differences in the Ru–Ru and Ru–P bond lengths.     

Detection of Sn(II) ions via quenching of the fluorescence of carbon nanodots

We report that fluorescent carbon nanodots (C-dots) can act as an optical probe for quantifying Sn(II) ions in aqueous solution. C-dots are synthesized by carbonization and surface oxidation of preformed sago starch nanoparticles. Their fluorescence is significantly quenched by Sn(II) ions, and the effect can be used to determine Sn(II) ions. The highest fluorescence intensity is obtained at a concentration of 1.75 mM of C-dots in aqueous solution. The probe is highly selective and hardly interfered by other ions. The quenching mechanism appears to be predominantly of the static (rather than dynamic) type. Under optimum conditions, there is a linear relationship between fluorescence intensity and Sn(II) ions concentration up to 4 mM, and with a detection limit of 0.36 μM.

Recovery of a Bacteriocin-Like Inhibitory Substance from Lactobacillus bulgaricus FTDC 1211 Using Polyethylene-Glycol Impregnated Amberlite XAD-4 Resins System

Lactobacillus bulgaricus is a LAB strain which is capable of producing bacteriocin substances to inhibit Staphylococcus aureus. The aim of this study was to purify a bacteriocin-like inhibitory substance (BLIS) produced by L. bulgaricus FTDC 1211 using an aqueous impregnated resins system consisting of polyethylene-glycol (PEG) impregnated on Amberlite XAD4. Important parameters influencing on purification of BLIS, such as the molecular weight and concentration of PEG, the concentration and pH of sodium citrate and the concentration of sodium chloride, were optimized using a response surface methodology. Under optimum conditions of 11% (w/w) of PEG 4000 impregnated Amberlite XAD4 resins and 2% (w/w) of sodium citrate at pH 6, the maximum purification factor (3.26) and recovery yield (82.69% ± 0.06) were obtained. These results demonstrate that AIRS could be used as an alternate purification system in the primary recovery step.     

Impedance spectroscopy of carbon nanotube/solid polymer electrolyte composites

New composite polymer electrolytes (CPE) have been prepared by a solution-casting technique, using polyethylene oxide, lithium hexafluorate (LiPF₆) as the doping salt, ethylene carbonate (EC) as the plasticizer and amorphous carbon nanotubes (αCNTs) as the filler. The crystallinity and ionic conductivity of the CPE are examined. Differential scanning calorimetry shows a decrease in melting temperature and crystallinity upon the addition of LiPF₆, EC and αCNTs to the polymer electrolyte system. The addition of salt increases the conductivity up to 10⁻⁵ S cm⁻¹. The incorporation of EC and αCNTs into the salted polymer shows a significant conductivity increase of 10⁻⁴ and 10⁻³ S cm⁻¹. The complexation process is examined using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The Vogel-Tamman-Fulcher (VTF) plots suggest that the temperature dependence of conductivity is a thermally activated process.     

Effects of Al2O3 nanofiller and EC plasticizer on the ionic conductivity enhancement of solid PEO-LiCF3SO3 solid polymer electrolyte

A solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) is synthesized by solution casting technique. The SPE uses poly(ethylene oxide) PEO as a host matrix doped with lithium triflate (LiCF₃SO₃), ethylene carbonate (EC) as plasticizer and nano alumina (Al₂O₃) as filler. The polymer electrolytes are characterized by Impedance Spectroscopy (IS) to determine the composition of the additive which gives the highest conductivity for each system. At room temperature, the highest conductivity is obtained for the composition PEO-LiCF₃SO₃-EC-15%Al₂O₃ with a value of 5.07 10^− 4 S/cm. The ionic conductivity of the polymer electrolytes increases with temperature and obeys the Arrhenius law. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) studies indicate that the conductivity increase is due to an increase in amorphous content which enhances the segmental flexibility of polymeric chains and the disordered structure of the electrolyte. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectra show the occurrence of complexation and interaction among the components. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images show the changes morphology of solid polymer electrolyte.     

Studies of fractal growth patterns in poly (ethylene oxide) and chitosan membranes

Polymer electrolyte membranes containing various weight percent of salt have been prepared in the authors’ laboratory for the study of their potential applications in solid state electrochemical devices; however, the polymer electrolyte membranes were found to become sort of media for fractal growth, months after they were prepared. Fractal growth patterns in polymer membranes of poly (ethylene oxide) and chitosan membranes have been analyzed, and their fractal dimensions were determined. A diffusion-limited aggregate model which is based on the Brownian motion theory is applied to simulate the experimentally obtained fractal patterns. The approach was extended by performing computer simulations with computing resources available. The fractal dimension values of the simulated and the experimentally obtained original fractal patterns were marginally close. This indicates that the simulation work has successfully produced fractal patterns that are in fairly acceptable conformity with the fractal patterns observed in the polymer membranes.     

Conductivity and dielectric relaxation of Li salt in poly(ethylene oxide) and epoxidized natural rubber polymer electrolytes

Two types of polymer electrolytes were studied: poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and epoxidized natural rubber (ENR) both filled with lithium perchlorate. Universal dielectric behavior and impedance relaxation were investigated at room temperature over a wide range of salt concentration. Complex impedance plots exhibit one semicircle in some cases (PEO polymer electrolytes) with an extended spike at low frequencies. This implies a double layer capacity strongly influences conductivity at low frequencies. In the ENR–salt system, semicircles can be obtained only at very high concentrations. This points towards stable resistor dominated networks only develop at very high salt concentrations for this system. Centers of the semicircles lie below real axis indicating non-Debye dielectric relaxation. The relaxation peak broadens and shifts to higher frequencies with increasing salt content. It indicates that the relaxation time of polarization relaxations decreases with ascending salt content. Relaxations occur at extremely low salt concentrations in PEO and only at very high salt concentrations in ENR. Hence, conductivity of ENR–salt is one to two orders of magnitude lower as for PEO–salt.     

Comparative Study of The Yield and Physicochemical Properties of Collagen from Sea Cucumber (Holothuria scabra), Obtained through Dialysis and the Ultrafiltration Membrane

Collagen was extracted from the body wall of sea cucumber (Holothuria scabra) using the pepsin-solubilized collagen method followed by isolation using dialysis and the ultrafiltration membrane. The yield and physicochemical properties of the collagen obtained from both isolation methods, denoted as D-PSC and UF-PSC, were compared. The ultrafiltration method affords a higher yield of collagen (11.39%) than that of the dialysis (5.15%). The isolated collagens have almost the same amino acid composition, while their functional groups, referred to as amide A, B, I, II, and III bands, were in accordance with commercial collagen, as verified by Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The UV-Vis absorption peaks at 240 nm and 220 nm, respectively, indicated that the collagens produced are type-I collagen. The D-PSC showed interconnecting sheet-like fibrils, while the UF-PSC exhibited a flaky structure with flat-sheets arranged very close to each other. The higher yield and comparable physicochemical properties of the collagen obtained by ultrafiltration as compared with dialysis indicate that the membrane process has high potential to be used in large-scale collagen production for food and pharmaceutical applications.     

Synthesis of highly enantioenriched hydroxy- and dihydroxy-fatty esters: substrate precursors for cytochrome P450BioI

A series of highly enantioenriched hydroxy- and dihydroxy-fatty esters were required as part of our ongoing investigation into cytochrome P450_BioI. This mediates the biosynthesis of pimelic acid via C–C bond cleavage of long chain fatty acids within Bacillus subtilis. Herein we report the synthesis of various stereoisomers of methyl 7-hydroxytetradecanoate, methyl 8-hydroxytetradecanoate, and methyl 7,8-dihydroxytetradecanoate in highly enantioenriched form, using a combination of asymmetric synthesis and a preparative enantioselective HPLC is reported.