Ganoderma lucidum was characterized in terms of nutritional value and chemical composition. Thereafter, ethanolic Soxhlet extracts were evaluated for antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antityrosinase, ...antimicrobial and cytotoxic effects, and further characterized in terms of phenolic acids, polysaccharides and triterpenoids. Finally, the obtained extracts were tested as cosmeceutical ingredients. G. lucidum proved to be a source of macronutrients and important bioactive compounds such as terpenoids, specially triterpenoids, and polysaccharides. In the extracts, ganoderic acids C2, A and H were the most abundant triterpenic acids and protocatechuic, p-hydroxibenzoic and syringic acids the identified phenolics. The developed cosmeceutical formulation preserved the extract bioactivities, presented a light-yellow colour and a pH of 4.6, which is considered appropriate for cosmeceutical's design. Behind the important nutritional/bioactive composition of G. lucidum, a potential towards its valorisation in the field of cosmeceuticals is foreseeable, as deduced from the bioactivities of its ethanolic extract and preservation in the tested formulation.
•Ganoderma lucidum (Curtis) P. Karst. extracts are sources of biomolecules.•Ganoderic acid H was the most abundant compound.•Biological activities important in the development of cosmeceuticals were displayed.•Its nutritional components could also provide extra benefits to the body and skin.
Water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions have high potential for several industrial areas as delivery systems of hydrophilic compounds. In general, they are less studied than oil-in-water (O/W) systems, namely ...in what concerns the so-called fluid systems, partly due to problems of instability. In this context, this work aimed to produce stable W/O emulsions from a natural oil, sweet almond oil, to be further tested as vehicles of natural hydrophilic extracts, here exemplified with an aqueous cinnamon extract. Firstly, a base W/O emulsion using a high-water content (40/60,
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) was developed by testing different mixtures of emulsifiers, namely Tween 80 combined with Span 80 or Span 85 at different contents. Among the tested systems, the one using a 54/46 (
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) Span 80/Tween 80 mixture, and subjected to 12 high-pressure homogenizer (HPH) cycles, revealed to be stable up to 6 months, being chosen for the subsequent functionalization tests with cinnamon extract (1.25-5%;
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; water-basis). The presence of cinnamon extract leaded to changes in the microstructure as well as in the stability. The antimicrobial and antioxidant analysis were evidenced, and a sustained behavior compatible with an extract distribution within the two phases, oil and water, in particular for the higher extract concentration, was observed.
This work is a contribution to the introduction of emergent technologies in the textile sector, namely the microencapsulation of fragrances and its application to obtain added-value products.
...Interfacial polymerization was used to produce polyurethane/urea (PUU) microcapsules with a perfume for industrial application on textile substrate having in view man suits production.
The extent of reaction of PUU microcapsules formation was followed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Size distribution and morphology of the produced microcapsules were studied using particle size analysis, optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
Impregnation on textile substrates was tested both at laboratory level and at industrial scale. The fragrance release from textile substrates was measured with headspace chromatography. The content of microcapsules was released with light abrasion to simulate day-to-day wear, and fabrics impregnated at laboratory scale have survived to 9000 abrasion cycles. Microcapsules have continued to release aroma up to five dry cleaning washing cycles.
•Microencapsulation has numerous industrial applications.•The choice of the appropriate technique depends on several factors.•Coacervation is one of the preferable techniques to encapsulate essential ...oils.•Microencapsulation efficiency depends on several variables.•The release profile of essential oils can be explained by a diffusion mechanism.
Microencapsulation provides an important tool for cosmetic and/or pharmaceutical industry, enabling protection and controlled release of several active agents. The encapsulation of essential oils in core–shell or matrix particles has been investigated for various reasons, e.g., protection from oxidative decomposition and evaporation, odor masking or merely to act as support to ensure controlled release. A large number of microencapsulation methods have been developed in order to be adapted to different types of active agents and shell materials, generating particles with a variable range of sizes, shell thicknesses and permeability, providing a tool to modulate the release rate of the active principle.
With this work, an overview regarding properties and applications of essential oils and biodegradable polymers in the cosmetic field, focusing the use of polylactide as the base material to encapsulate thyme oil, as well as of microencapsulation processes with a particular emphasis on the coacervation, will be presented.
Fragrant and antimicrobial properties were conferred to cotton fabrics following microencapsulation using green materials. Limonene and vanillin microcapsules were produced by complex coacervation ...using chitosan/gum Arabic as shell materials and tannic acid as hardening agent. The effect of two emulsifiers; Span 85 and polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR), on the encapsulation efficiency (EE%), microcapsule’s size and morphology, and cumulative release profiles was studied. The mean diameter of the produced microcapsules ranged between 10.4 and 39.0 μm, whereas EE% was found to be between 90.4% and 100%. The use of Span 85 resulted in mononuclear morphology while PGPR gave rise to polynuclear structures, regardless of the core material (vanillin or limonene). The obtained microcapsules demonstrated a sustained release pattern; namely the total cumulative release of the active agents after 7 days at 37 ± 1 °C was 75%, 52% and 19.4% for the polynuclear limonene microcapsules, the mononuclear limonene microcapsules and the polynuclear vanillin microcapsules, respectively. Grafting of the produced microcapsules onto cotton fabrics through an esterification reaction using citric acid as a nontoxic cross-linker followed by thermofixation and curing, was confirmed by SEM and FTIR spectroscopy. Standard antibacterial assays conducted on both microcapsules alone and impregnated onto the fabrics indicated a sustained antibacterial activity.
Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), the most frequent thyroid cancer, is characterized by low proliferation but no apoptosis, presenting frequent lymph-node metastasis. Papillary thyroid carcinoma ...overexpress transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β). In human cells, TGF-β has two opposing actions: antitumoral through pro-apoptotic and cytostatic activities, and pro-tumoral promoting growth and metastasis. The switch converting TGF-β from a tumor-suppressor to tumor-promoter has not been identified. In the current study, we have quantified a parallel upregulation of TGF-β and nuclear p27, a CDK2 inhibitor, in samples from PTC. We established primary cultures from follicular epithelium in human homeostatic conditions (h7H medium). TGF-β-dependent cytostasis occurred in normal and cancer cells through p15/CDKN2B induction. However, TGF-β induced apoptosis in normal and benign but not in carcinoma cultures. In normal thyroid cells, TGF-β/SMAD repressed the p27/CDKN1B gene, activating CDK2-dependent SMAD3 phosphorylation to induce p50 NFκB-dependent BAX upregulation and apoptosis. In thyroid cancer cells, oncogene activation prevented TGF-β/SMAD-dependent p27 repression, and CDK2/SMAD3 phosphorylation, leading to p65 NFκB upregulation which repressed BAX, induced cyclin D1 and promoted TGF-β-dependent growth. In PTC samples from patients, upregulation of TGF-β, p27, p65 and cyclin D1 mRNA were significantly correlated, while the expression of the isoform BAX-β, exclusively transcribed in apoptotic cells, was negatively correlated. Additionally, combined ERK and p65 NFκB inhibitors reduced p27 expression and potentiated apoptosis in thyroid cancer cells while not affecting survival in normal thyroid cells. Our results therefore suggest that the oncoprotein p27 reorganizes the effects of TGF-β in thyroid cancer, explaining the slow proliferation but lack of apoptosis and metastatic behavior of PTC.
Connectivity between ecosystems has been widely recognised as an important issue in ecological studies. Sandy beaches are very dynamic and open ecosystems, mainly supported by allochthonous subsidies ...of stranded organic matter (mostly macroalgae), also termed wrack supply. The magnitude and composition of algal wrack biomass throughout the annual cycle was assessed for 6 sandy beaches on the Galician coast, NW Spain. The effect of wave action and the topographical features of each beach in the wrack deposition process were investigated. Wrack species composition, biomass and coverage were measured monthly along 6 transects at each beach. Mean dry weight of wrack fluctuated from 14 ± 5.3 to 9189 ± 3594 g m–1(along transects) between locations. Wrack was predominantly composed of brown algae, which accounted for 70% of the average biomass year round; the dominant species wereCystoseirasp. (30.3 ± 17.4%) andSargassum muticum(14.2 ± 7.1%). A cyclical pattern in wrack composition, coupled with the life cycle of the predominant macroalgae, was observed. Wrack biomass and species composition were mostly explained by wave height and the ratio of beach length to beach area. Small, wave-sheltered beaches received the largest inputs of wrack, and had the lowest relative contribution of brown algae. These results provide evidence that variability in wrack supply on sandy beaches can be explained through interactions between wave exposure, coastal topography and seasonality.
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•Non-ionizing radiation could constitute a toxic environment, altering the morphology and functioning of parafollicular cells.•EMFs activate stress stimuli in the thyroid gland, which ...is associated with C-cell hyperplasia.•Non-ionizing radiation modulates expression of Heat Shock Protein 90 in calcitonin-positive cells.
In this study we analyzed the response of parafollicular cells in rat thyroid gland after exposure to radiofrequency at 2.45 GHz using a subthermal experimental diathermy model. Forty-two Sprague Dawley rats, divided into two groups of 21 rats each, were individually exposed at 0 (control), 3 or 12 W in a Gigahertz Transverse Electro-Magnetic (GTEM) chamber for 30 min. After radiation, we used simple or fluorescence immunohistochemistry to measure calcitonin cells or cellular stress levels, indicated by the presence hyperplasia of parafollicular cells, heat shock protein (HSP) 90. Immunomarking of calcitonin-positive cells was statistically significant higher in the thyroid tissue of rats exposed to 2.45 GHz radiofrequency and cell hyperplasia appeared 90 min after radiation at the SAR levels studied. At the same time, co-localized expression of HSP-90 and calcitonin in parafollicular cells was statistically significant attenuated 90 min after radiation and remained statistically significantly low 24 h after radiation, even though parafollicular cell levels normalized. These facts indicate that subthermal radiofrequency (RF) at 2.45 GHz constitutes a negative external stress stimulus that alters the activity and homeostasis of parafollicular cells in the rat thyroid gland. However, further research is needed to determine if there is toxic action in human C cells.
Due to non-linear interactions, the effects of contaminant mixtures on aquatic ecosystems are difficult to assess, especially under temperature rise that will likely exacerbate the complexity of the ...responses. Yet, under the current climatic crisis, assessing the effects of water contaminants and temperature is paramount to understanding the biological impacts of mixtures of stressors on aquatic ecosystems. Here, we use an ecosystem model followed by global sensitivity analysis (GSA) to prioritize the effects of four single emerging contaminants (ECs) and their mixture, combined with two temperature rise scenarios, on the biomass production of a NE Atlantic estuary. Scenarios ran for 10 years with a time-step of 0.1 days. The results indicate that macroinvertebrate biomass was significantly explained by the effect of each single EC and by their mixture but not by temperature. Globally, the most adverse effects were induced by two ECs and by the mixture of the four ECs, although the sensitivity of macroinvertebrates to the tested scenarios differed. Overall, the present approach is useful to prioritize the effects of stressors and assess the sensitivity of the different trophic groups within food webs, which may be of relevance to support decision making linked to the sustainable management of estuaries and other aquatic systems.
Abstract Acute graft pyelonephritis is a very common infection in renal transplantation. The impact of acute graft pyelonephritis (AGPN) on graft and patient outcome has not yet been established. ...Eight hundred seventy kidney and kidney-pancreas transplants were retrospectively studied, over last 13 years, to verify occurrence of AGPN in the first 30 days post-transplantation. We found that 112 patients (15.8%) presented post-transplantatiom AGPN up to 30 days after a kidney transplantation. The occurrence was higher in older patients ( P = .005) and in those with ureteral stents ( P = .06). Escherichia coli was the most frequent microorganism in urine cultures (32%). Ureteral stent (relative risk = 1.7; confidence interval CI, 1.1–2.5; P = .018) was a major risk factor for AGPN as well as older ages (RR = 1.02; CI 1.01–1.04; P = .001), length of hospitalization stay (RR = 1.01; CI, 1.01–1.02; P < .001), and anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) induction (RR = 1.6; CI, 1.022–2.561; P = .04). Long-term graft and patient survival was significantly lower in patients with pyelonephritis in the first 30 days after transplantation (OR 1.43; 95% CI, 0.95–2.16; P = .024 and OR 1.77; 95% CI, 1.12–2.80; P = .006, respectively). Acute pyelonephritis in the first 30 days after transplantation is therefore associated with a lower long-term graft and patient survival.
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