Antibacterial effects of the essential oils of commonly consumed medicinal herbs using an in vitro model

The chemical composition and antibacterial activity of essential oils from 10 commonly consumed herbs: Citrus aurantium, C. limon, Lavandula angustifolia, Matricaria chamomilla, Mentha piperita, M. spicata, Ocimum basilicum, Origanum vulgare, Thymus vulgaris and Salvia officinalis have been determined. The antibacterial activity of these oils and their main components; i.e. camphor, carvacrol, 1,8-cineole, linalool, linalyl acetate, limonene, menthol, a-pinene, b-pinene, and thymol were assayed against the human pathogenic bacteria Bacillus subtilis, Enterobacter cloacae, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Micrococcus flavus, Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enteritidis, S. epidermidis, S. typhimurium, and Staphylococcus aureus. The highest and broadest activity was shown by O. vulgare oil. Carvacrol had the highest antibacterial activity among the tested components.     

Sol–gel silica hybrid biomaterials for application in biodegradation of toxic compounds

The purpose of the present work is the sol–gel synthesis, structure characterization and potential application of hybrid biomaterials based on silica precursor (MTES) and natural polymers such as gelatin or pectin. The structure formation in the biomaterials was investigated by XRD, FTIR, BET and AFM. The results showed that all studied hybrid biomaterials have an amorphous structure. The FT-IR spectra of the obtained materials with MTES showed chemical bonds at 2,975, 1,255, 880 and 690 cm⁻¹ due to the presence of Si–O–R (CH₃ and C₂H₅) and Si–C bonds. In the samples synthesized with TEOS the inorganic and organic components interact by hydrogen bonding, Van der Waals or electrostatic forces. Surface area of investigated samples decreases with increasing of the natural polymers content. The structure evolution was studied by AFM and roughness analysis. Depending on the chemical composition a different design and size of particles and their aggregates on the surface structure were established. The hybrid biomaterials were used for immobilization of bacterial cells and applied in the biodegradation of the toxic compound 4-chlorobutyronitrile, possible constituent of waste water effluents in a laboratory glass bioreactor. Optimization of the process at different temperatures was carried out.     

Ice-mediated coating of macroporous cryogels by carbon nanotubes: a concept towards electrically conducting nanocomposites

Electrically conducting super-macroporous polymer/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) composites have been fabricated with the aid of cryogenic treatment. CNTs are selectively deposited onto the inner surface of interconnected polymer walls surrounding large air-filled pores. The present concept provides highly conducting nanocomposites at a very low nanotubes content.     

Mössbauer and Nuclear orientation study of magnetic atom behaviour in AuFe below the percolation threshold

An⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer study and⁶⁰Co and⁵⁴Mn nuclear orientation (NO) studies of the Au₈₆Fe₁₄ alloy have been performed. A transition to the spin glass state was observed below approximately 50 K. NO of the⁶⁰Co impurity showed absence of the polarization of the⁶⁰Co nuclei. For⁵⁴Mn impurities the dependence of the Mn effective magnetic field on external field andtemperature was found.     

Birkhoff coordinates for KdV on phase spaces of distributions

The purpose of this paper is to extend the construction of Birkhoff coordinates for the KdV equation from the phase space of square integrable 1-periodic functions with mean value zero to the phase space of mean value zero distributions from the Sobolev space endowed with the symplectic structure More precisely, we construct a globally defined real-analytic symplectomorphism where is a weighted Hilbert space of sequences supplied with the canonical Poisson structure so that the KdV Hamiltonian for potentials in is a function of the actions alone.     

Separate continuity, joint continuity and the Lindelöf property

In this paper we prove a theorem more general than the following. Suppose that is Lindelöf and -favourable and is Lindelöf and Cech-complete. Then for each separately continuous function there exists a residual set in such that is jointly continuous at each point of .

     

Time-varying many-server finite-queues in tandem: Comparing blocking mechanisms via fluid models

This paper focuses on the mechanism of Blocking Before Service (BBS), in time-varying many-server queues in tandem. BBS arises in telecommunication networks, production lines and healthcare systems. We model a stochastic tandem network under BBS and develop its corresponding fluid limit, which includes reflection due to jobs lost. Comparing our fluid model against simulation shows that the model is accurate and effective. This gives rise to design/operational insights regarding network throughput, under both BBS and BAS (Blocking After Service).