In this work, Sn(II)-exchanged Keggin heteropoly acid salts were evaluated as solid catalysts in glycerol esterification reactions with acetic acid. All the Sn(II) heteropoly salts and their ...precursor Keggin acids were characterized by FT-IR/ATR, XRD, TG/DSC, BET, and EDS/SEM analyses. Among salts synthesized (i.e., Sn3/2PW12O40, Sn2SiW12O40, and Sn3/2PMo12O40), Sn3/2PW12O40 was the most active and selective catalyst toward glycerol esters. Effects of thermal treatment on the physical and chemical properties of Sn3/2PW12O40 were investigated. The Sn3/2PW12O40-300 K catalyst was efficiently recovered and reused without a loss in activity. The influences of main reaction parameters such as reaction temperature, the stoichiometry of reactants, load, and thermal treatment temperature of the Sn3/2PW12O40 catalyst were assessed. The simple workup of synthesis and the high activity and selectivity for glycerol esters in addition to the high efficiency during successive recycles are positive aspects of this catalyst.
One of the main issues related to the management of forage legumes is the fact that these plants can be found in a broad diversity of morphology, structures and growth habits. This study evaluated ...the structural and productive characteristics of forage legumes with different growth habits Clitoria ternatea L.; Desmanthus pernambucanus (L.) Thellung; and Stylosanthes spp. cv. Campo Grande, in response to two harvesting frequencies (60 and 90 days). The experimental design was completely randomized in blocks, with a split-plot scheme and four replications (n=4). The type of forage legume influenced the number of secondary branches, the number of leaves per branch, leaf area index (LAI), light interception (LI), percentage of leaves and stems (%), leaf/stem ratio, and pod production (P<0.05). D. pernambucanus had the lowest LI and LAI (P < 0.05). Stylosanthes spp. cv. Campo Grande and C. ternatea showed a greater leaf percentage and leaf/stem ratio (P < 0.05). There was an effect of the harvesting frequency on the percentage of stems, leaves, pod production, and total production (P < 0.05). Longer harvesting frequencies affected differently these legumes, especially the accumulation of stems in D. pernambucanus, which displayed an intense increase after 60 days of growth. The choice of the best harvesting frequency for these legumes evaluated should consider the proposal of the usage. In our study, it was shown that harvesting at 60 days did not affect the total forage mass accumulated, which possibly is the most advantageous choice.
RESUMO: Uma das principais questões relacionadas ao manejo de leguminosas forrageiras é o fato de que essas plantas podem ser encontradas em uma ampla diversidade de morfológica, estruturais e de hábitos de crescimento. O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar características morfológicas, estruturais e produtivas de leguminosas forrageiras com diferentes hábitos de crescimento Clitoria ternatea L.; Desmanthus pernambucanus (L.) Thellung; e Stylosanthes spp. cv. Campo Grande, em resposta a duas frequências de colheita (60 e 90 dias). O delineamento experimental foi inteiramente casualizado em blocos, com esquema de parcelas subdivididas e quatro repetições (n=4). O tipo de leguminosa forrageira influenciou no número de ramos secundários, número de folhas por ramo, índice de área foliar (IAF), interceptação luminosa (IL), porcentagem de folhas e colmos (%), razão folha/colmo e produção de vagens (P<0,05). D. pernambucanus apresentou os menores IL e IAF (P<0,05). Stylosanthes spp. cv. Campo Grande e C. ternatea apresentaram maior porcentagem de folhas e relação folha/colmo (P<0,05). Houve efeito da frequência de colheita na porcentagem de produção de hastes, folhas e vagens e na produção total (P<0,05). Frequências de colheita mais longas afetaram de forma diferente as leguminosas forrageiras avaliadas, principalmente o acúmulo de caules em D. pernambucanus, que apresentou aumento intenso após 60 dias de crescimento. A escolha da melhor frequência de colheita para essas leguminosas avaliadas deve levar em consideração a sua forma de uso. No presente estudo, foi demonstrado que a colheita aos 60 dias não afetou a massa forragem total acumulada, o que possivelmente é a escolha mais vantajosa.
Summary
The study of sensory, microbiological and physical–chemical properties are important in local products where the level of inspection and quality control are low. The present study aimed to ...determine the shelf‐life of an egg‐based moist cake, relating sensory, microbiological and physical–chemical properties. Slices of Cavacas de Resende were collected, stored at two different temperatures (7 and 22 °C) and analysed over time (0, 6 h, 1, 2, 4, 7 and 10 days). Salmonella, Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli, were not detected. On 10 days of storage at 22 °C results were above the allowed limit for Staphylococcus aureus. The counts of mesophiles, moulds and yeasts exceeded the allowed limits in the last days of storage at 22 °C. Most of sensory variables presented a positive and highly significant correlation with freshness, with emphasis to brightness (crust and batter), moist, softness and succulence. Hardness and fracturability (both instrumental) showed a highly significant correlation with sensory freshness. Loss of moisture and mould development were main factors for product quality decrease. Better conservation of the product was achieved at 7 °C with a shelf‐life limit of 7 days. At 22 °C, it is recommended to consume the product in 3 days.
Descriptors used in sensory analyses.
The activity of the sodium salts of vanadium-doped phosphomolybdic acid was assessed in the oxidative esterification reaction of benzaldehyde with hydrogen peroxide in alkyl alcohol solutions. The ...effect of main reaction parameters, such as temperature, catalyst load, vanadium doping level, and reactant stoichiometry, on the conversion and reaction selectivity was investigated. Among the tested heteropoly salts, Na4PMo11VO40 was the most active and selective catalyst, achieving almost complete conversion of benzaldehyde and high ester selectivity regardless of the alcohol investigated. The efficiency of the catalyst was correlated with its vanadium content. The size of the carbon chain of alcohol and the steric hindrance on the hydroxyl group played a key role in the reaction selectivity. While methyl and ethyl alcohols selectively provided the ester as the main product (ca. 90–95%) and benzoic acid as a subproduct, the other alcohols also afforded acetal, a condensation product, and benzaldehyde peroxide, an oxidation reaction intermediate, as secondary products. The use of an inexpensive, environmentally benign, and atom-efficient oxidant, mild conditions, and short reaction times were the positive aspects of this one-pot process.
Many efforts have been made to understand the pathogenesis of bovine mastitis to reduce losses and promote animal welfare. Staphylococcus aureus may cause bovine clinical mastitis, but it is mainly ...associated with subclinical infection, which is usually persistent and can easily reoccur. Here, we conducted a comparative genomic analysis between strains of S. aureus causing subclinical infection (Sau170, 302, 1269, 1364), previously sequenced by our group, and two well-characterized strains causing clinical mastitis (N305 and RF122) to find differences that could be linked to mastitis outcome. A total of 146 virulence-associated genes were compared and no appreciable differences were found between the bacteria. However, several nonsynonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in genes present in the subclinical strains when compared to RF122 and N305, especially in genes encoding host immune evasion and surface proteins. The secreted and surface proteins predicted by in silico tools were compared through multidimensional scaling analysis (MDS), revealing a high degree of similarity among the strains. The comparison of orthologous genes by OrthoMCL identified a membrane transporter and a lipoprotein as exclusive of bacteria belonging to the subclinical and clinical groups, respectively. No hit was found in RF122 and N305 for the membrane transporter using BLAST algorithm. For the lipoprotein, sequences of Sau170, 302, 1269, and 1364 with identities between 68-73% were found in the MDS dataset. A conserved region found only in the lipoprotein genes of RF122 and N305 was used for primer design. Although the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) on field isolates of S. aureus did not validate the findings for the transporter, the lipoprotein was able to separate the clinical from the subclinical isolates. These results show that sequence variation among bovine S. aureus, and not only the presence/absence of virulence factors, is an important aspect to consider when comparing isolates causing different mastitis outcomes.
Indomethacin (INDO) has a mechanism of action based on inhibiting fatty acids cyclooxygenase activity within the inflammation process. The action mechanism could be correlated with possible ...anticancer activity, but its high toxicity in normal tissues has made therapy difficult. By the coprecipitation method, the drug carried in a layered double hydroxides (LDH) hybrid matrix would reduce its undesired effects by promoting chemotherapeutic redirection. Therefore, different samples containing INDO intercalated in LDH were synthesized at temperatures of 50, 70, and 90 °C and synthesis times of 8, 16, 24, and 48 h, seeking the best structural organization. X-ray diffraction (XRD), vibrational Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), spectrophotometric analysis in UV-VIS, and differential thermogravimetric analysis (TGA/DTA) were used for characterization. Our results indicate that higher temperatures and longer synthesis time through coprecipitation reduce the possibility of INDO intercalation. However, it was possible to establish a time of 16 h and a temperature of 50 °C as the best conditions for intercalation. In vitro results confirmed the cell viability potential and anticancer activity in the LDH-INDO sample (16 h and 50 °C) for gastric cancer (AGP01, ACP02, and ACP03), breast cancer (MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7), melanoma (SK-MEL-19), lung fibroblast (MRC-5), and non-neoplastic gastric tissue (MN01) by MTT assay. Cell proliferation was inhibited, demonstrating higher and lower toxicity against MDA-MB-231 and SK-MEL-19. Thus, a clinical redirection of INDO is suggested as an integral and adjunctive anticancer medication in chemotherapy treatment.
The catalytic activity of sulfated γ-Al2O3 was evaluated for glycerol esterification using response surface methodology (RSM) with a central composite design (CCD), having as response variable ...triacetin (TAG) yield. Temperature, glycerol/acetic acid molar ratio, and catalyst load were chosen as variables. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) verified that, for the studied range, only the temperature, molar ratio, their interactions, and quadratic terms were significant statistically. Among the adopted conditions for sulfated γ-Al2O3, the best result attained was 100% glycerol conversion and 39.9% TAG yield at 106.8 °C, 1:8 molar ratio, and 0.75 wt % catalysts. The optimization indicated a maximum yield of 43.6% at 106.8 °C, 1:11.4 molar ratio, and 0.53 wt % SO4 2–/γ-Al2O3. The kinetic study of the reaction rate suggests the first-order dependence on glycerol concentration and activation energy of 59.91 kJ mol–1.
In this work, vanadium-doped phosphomolybdic acids were evaluated as catalysts in green oxidation routes of terpene alcohols with hydrogen peroxide. A series of phosphomolybdic acids containing a ...variable load of vanadium cations (
, V
ions) were synthesized, and tested as catalysts in geraniol oxidation, the model molecule selected. All the catalysts were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, attenuated diffuse reflectance infrared spectroscopy, UV-Vis spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, N
adsorption-desorption isotherms, scanning electronic microscopy, X-ray dispersive spectroscopy, and
-butylamine potentiometric titration. Various catalysts were evaluated; phosphomolybdic acids with general formulae H
PMo
V
O
(
= 0, 1, 2 and 3), and common Brønsted acids (
, H
SO
, H
PO
, and
-toluene sulfonic acid). Among them, vanadium monosubstituted phosphomolybdic acid was the most active catalyst and selective toward epoxide. The effect of main reaction variables, such as temperature, load catalyst, and reactant stoichiometry was assessed. Evaluating the effect of substrate, it was verified that only allylic alcohols such as geraniol and nerol were successfully epoxidized, demonstrating that this is a hydroxy group-assisted reaction. The effect of vanadium doping on the physicochemical properties of the phosphomolybdic acid catalysts was evaluated and used to explain their catalytic performance.
In this work, efficient solid acid catalysts were obtained from the stoichiometric reactions of Keggin heteropolyacids with SnSO4 and evaluated in the etherification reactions of glycerol with ...tert-butyl alcohol (TBA). Among the salts synthesized, the Sn2SiW12O40 catalyst was the most active and selective toward glyceryl ethers. High yields of mono- and di-glyceryl tert-butyl ethers were achieved after 4 h of reaction at 393 K. The impacts of the main reaction parameters such as stoichiometry of the reactants, catalyst load, time, and reaction temperature were assessed. The efficiency of the Sn2SiW12O40 catalyst was also assessed in etherification reactions of ethylene glycol with TBA, and etherification reactions of glycerol with other alcohols (i.e., n- or sec-butyl alcohol, and n- or iso-propyl alcohol). A proposal that describes the reaction pathway including the catalyst participation was also described.
Background: Music can influence human behavior and may be used as a complementary therapy in health care. Objectives: To assess the effect of music interventions on symptoms, adverse events, and ...quality of life (QoL) of breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy (CT). Design: Nonblinded, randomized clinical trial. Women with breast cancer undergoing adjuvant CT were randomized into 2 groups—Group Music (GM) or Group Control (GC)—and followed during the first 3 cycles of treatment. Measurements: Sociodemographic data, WHOQOL-BREF, BDI-II, BAI, and Chemotherapy Toxicity Scale were assessed. Patients were evaluated after each session of the first 3 CT cycles. GM underwent a 30-minute musical intervention before CT. There was no intervention in the GC. Continuous data were analyzed by Student’s t test, and χ2 test was used to compare qualitative variables. Results: Higher QoL scores on functional scales were observed for the GM in comparison to the GC after the first and third sessions of CT. Depression (P < .001) and anxiety scores (P < .001) and vomiting (P < .01) incidence were lower for the GM in the third session of CT. All the participants in the GM reported positive changes in life in the Subjective Impression of the Subject questionnaire, as well as improvement in fatigue and reduced stress levels. Conclusions: Improvements in QoL, anxiety, depression, and incidence of vomiting were associated with the music intervention, suggesting a positive effect of the music intervention on adverse events of cancer CT.