Carrageenan for encapsulation and immobilization of flavor,fragrance, probiotics,and enzymes: A review

Carrageenans are sulfated polysaccharides obtained from sea weed. There are six types of carrageenans. They have been explored as gelling agents, control release vehicles, and encapsulating agents. It has been established that carrageenans, in the form of gels, beads and films, can efficiently encapsulate flavors, fragrances, probiotics, and enzymes. Flavors and fragrances are encapsulated to reduce their volatility. Probiotic encapsulation results in enhanced stability. Immobilization of enzymes in carrageenans improves their biocatalytic performance and stability. This review has summarized how carrageenans have been extensively investigated as potential encapsulating agents for the above-mentioned attributes.     

Improved performance of aluminum pigments encapsulated in hybrid inorganic–organic films

An organic silane acrylate resin (PMBK) was synthesized by free-radical solution polymerization using methyl methacrylate, butyl acrylate and (3-methacryloxypropyl)trimethoxysilane as monomers. Aluminum (Al) particles were then encapsulated in inorganic–organic hybrid films that were prepared by hydrolysis and condensation of PMBK and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) on the surface of Al pigments. Characterization results showed that PMBK and TEOS could simultaneously hydrolyze and condense with hydroxyl groups on the surface of the Al particles to form composite Al particles coated with inorganic–organic hybrid films. Compared with raw Al particles, the corrosion resistance and adhesive properties of paint films containing the composite Al particles were improved greatly, while the glossiness of the paint films decreased slightly, from 48.6° to 47.0°. In alkaline media (pH 11), the volume of evolved H₂ of composite Al particles was only 3.5 mL, whereas that of raw Al was 83.5 mL. The glossiness of paint films containing composite Al particles decreased by 1.66% after immersion in alkaline media for 24 h, whereas that of raw Al decreased by 14.82%. Peel-off tests of the paint films showed that the composite particles moved slightly away from the paint films. In contrast, the raw Al particles were seriously desquamated, suggesting encapsulation of hybrid films can greatly improve the adhesive properties of Al particles in paint films.     

Techniques of aligning carbon nanotubes

This paper reviews major techniques of aligning carbon nanotubes, either during the growth or by the post-growth processing. A number of post-processing alignment techniques are discussed, which employ mechanical stretching, fracture, compression, friction, filtration, fiber drawing, gas flow, liquid crystals, Langmuir-Blodgett technique, acoustic, magnetic and electric fields. The suitability of those techniques to industrial applications is analyzed.      

A simple encapsulation method for organic optoelectronic devices

The performances of organic optoelectronic devices, such as organic light emitting diodes and polymer solar cells,have rapidly improved in the past decade. The stability of an organic optoelectronic device has become a key problem for further development. In this paper, we report one simple encapsulation method for organic optoelectronic devices with a parafilm, based on ternary polymer solar cells(PSCs). The power conversion efficiencies(PCE) of PSCs with and without encapsulation decrease from 2.93% to 2.17% and from 2.87% to 1.16% after 168-hours of degradation under an ambient environment, respectively. The stability of PSCs could be enhanced by encapsulation with a parafilm. The encapsulation method is a competitive choice for organic optoelectronic devices, owing to its low cost and compatibility with flexible devices.     

Reversibly self-assembled pH-responsive PEG-p(CL-g-TMC) polymersomes

Polymersomes have gained much interest within the biomedical field as drug delivery systems due to their ability to transport and protect cargo from the harsh environment inside the body. For an improved drug efficacy, control over cargo release is however also an important factor to take into account. An often employed method is to incorporate pH sensitive groups in the vesicle membrane, which induce disassembly and content release when the particles have reached a target site in the body with the appropriate pH, such as the acidic microenvironment of tumor tissue or the endosome. In this paper, biodegradable poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(caprolactone-gradient-trimethylene carbonate)-based polymeric vesicles have been developed with disassembly features at mild acidic conditions. Modifying the polymer backbone with imidazole moieties results in vesicle disassembly upon protonation due to the lowered pH. Furthermore, upon increasing the pH efficient re-assembly into vesicles is observed due to the switchable amphiphilic nature of the polymer. When this re-assembly process is conducted in presence of cargo, enhanced encapsulation is achieved. Furthermore, the potency of the polymeric system for future biomedical applications such as adjuvant delivery is demonstrated.     

Antifungal activity of silver nanoparticle-encapsulated β-cyclodextrin against human opportunistic pathogens

Silver nanoparticles were synthesised by reducing silver acetate with a long-chain aliphatic amine. β-Cyclodextrin (CD)-stabilised silver nanoparticles were successfully synthesised and characterised by the UV–vis spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy analysis. This system was examined for their antifungal activity against opportunistic human pathogens such as Aspergillus fumigatus, Mucor ramosissimus and Chrysosporium species. This study clearly demonstrates that the present system is a powerful antifungal agent against human opportunistic pathogenic fungi.     

A Microgel Construction Kit for Bioorthogonal Encapsulation and pH‐Controlled Release of Living Cells

pH‐Cleavable cell‐laden microgels with excellent long‐term viabilities were fabricated by combining bioorthogonal strain‐promoted azide–alkyne cycloaddition (SPAAC) and droplet‐based microfluidics. Poly(ethylene glycol)dicyclooctyne and dendritic poly(glycerol azide) served as bioinert hydrogel precursors. Azide conjugation was performed using different substituted acid‐labile benzacetal linkers that allowed precise control of the microgel degradation kinetics in the interesting pH range between 4.5 and 7.4. By this means, a pH‐controlled release of the encapsulated cells was achieved upon demand with no effect on cell viability and spreading. As a result, the microgel particles can be used for temporary cell encapsulation, allowing the cells to be studied and manipulated during the encapsulation and then be isolated and harvested by decomposition of the microgel scaffolds.     

Inhomogeneity in Distribution and Conformation of Bovine Serum Albumin in Sol–Gel: A Closer Look with a Near-Infrared Multispectral Imaging Technique

Concentration distributions and conformations of bovine serum albumin (BSA) entrapped in sol–gels were successfully determined for the first time by use of the recently developed NIR multispectral imaging instrument. It was found that BSA molecules were inhomogeneously distributed within the sol–gel matrix, independent of its concentration. At relatively high concentration (366 mg/mL) the encapsulation process does not seem to produce any observable changes in the conformation of BSA. However, when the concentration of BSA was decreased to 220 mg/mL, pronounced changes in the spectra of the protein were observed as a function of (sol–gel reaction) time. The observed inhomogenity might be traced to both a non-uniform concentration distribution of BSA and changes in protein native conformation resulting from interactions between the charged protein and the silicate anions. Results obtained seem to suggest that the protein molecules might adapt themselves to accommodate evolving geometry and sites of the silica network.