The aim of this study was to determine the Cd
removal capacity of a biosorbent system formed by
in calcium alginate beads. The adsorption of Cd
by a
-alginate system was tested either by batch or ...fixed-bed column experiments. The
-alginate system was characterized using dynamic light scattering (DLS, zeta potential), size, hardness, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Beads of the
-alginate system showed a spherical-elliptical morphology, diameter of 1.62 ± 0.02 mm, 96% moisture, negative surface charge (-29.3 ± 2.57 mV), and texture stability during storage at 4 °C for 20 days. In batch conditions, the system adsorbed 4.3 µg of Cd
/g of yeast-alginate beads, using a Cd
initial concentration of 5 mg/L. Adsorption capacity increased to 15.4 µg/g in a fixed-bed column system, removing 83% of total Cd
. In conclusion, the yeast-alginate system is an efficient option for the removal of cadmium at low concentrations in drinking water.
Acute monocytic leukemia is a type of myeloid leukemia that develops in monocytes. The current clinical therapies for leukemia are unsatisfactory due to their side effects and nonspecificity toward ...target cells. Some lectins display antitumor activity and may specifically recognize cancer cells by binding to carbohydrate structures on their surface. Therefore, this study evaluated the response of the human monocytic leukemia cell lines THP‐1 to the Olneya tesota PF2 lectin. The induction of apoptosis and reactive oxygen species production in PF2‐treated cells was evaluated by flow cytometry, and the lectin‐THP‐1 cell interaction and mitochondrial membrane potential were evaluated by confocal fluorescence microscopy. PF2 genotoxicity was evaluated by DNA fragmentation analysis via gel electrophoresis. The results showed that PF2 binds to THP‐1 cells, triggers apoptosis and DNA degradation, changes the mitochondrial membrane potential, and increases reactive oxygen species levels in PF2‐treated THP‐1 cells. These results suggest the potential use of PF2 for developing alternative anticancer treatments with enhanced specificity.
Glycoconjugates consist of glycans attached to proteins or lipids. Glycans are involved in important biological functions such as trafficking of glycoconjugates, mediation, and modulation of cell ...adhesion and signaling. This study was conducted to obtain neoglycoconjugates containing a large number of carbohydrates, added through the condensation of reducing sugars with protein amino groups, whose structures were recognized by lectins. Neoglycoconjugates (BSA-Lac) of bovine serum albumin (BSA) with d-lactose were obtained using two sets of glycation conditions, each previously selected by its ability to glycate proteins extensively. The conditions included dry heat at 60 °C (for 7, 14, 21, and 28 days) and wet heat in 43% relative humidity (RH) at 50 °C (for 5, 10, 15, and 20 h). Products were characterized by gel electrophoresis, tryptophan fluorescence emission spectra, mass spectrometry, free amino group analysis, and their biological recognition established by a galactose-specific lectin and Escherichia coli K88 adhesins. BSA-Lac when compared to BSA revealed an increase in monomer mass due to addition of either 13 (dry heat) or 14 (wet heat) lactoses and formation of polymers (in wet conditions). All BSA-Lac products showed reduced intensity of intrinsic fluorescence, decreased amino groups’ availability, and were recognized by Ricinus communis I lectin (RCAI) and by E. coli K88 adhesins. Overall, glycation using both conditions was time-dependent, but greater biorecognition was observed with wet-heat products, due to a higher global glycation and/or to the carbohydrate accessibility. The strategy used in this work represents a simple procedure to obtain glycoconjugates that could be used for recognition studies in biological systems.
Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (L. rhamnosus GG) loaded calcium alginate microbeads were prepared via an airbrush system and subsequently coated with regular butter milk proteins (RBMP). Scanning ...electron micrographs and changes in zeta potential demonstrated the presence of RBMP on microbeads surface. Survivability of probiotics after microbead lyophilization was higher in coated microbeads (8.91 ± 0.03 log cfu) than in the uncoated ones (7.67 ± 0.09 log cfu). After storage at −20 °C for 30 d, the coated and uncoated microbeads showed 0.4 log and 0.8 log cfu/g loss in cell number, respectively. RBMP also enhance the survival of L. rhamnosus GG after exposure to sequential simulated gastrointestinal conditions. These results suggest that coating alginate capsules with RBMP is an effective strategy for the survival of L. rhamnosus GG when encapsulated with an airbrush system.
•Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG were encapsulated in alginate via airbrush encapsulation.•Airbrush system allowed the production of microbeads with recommended sizes to improve probiotic survival.•Microbeads were coated with Regular Buttermilk Proteins (RBMP).•RBMP coating protects encapsulated cells in simulated gastrointestinal conditions.
Untargeted metabolomics approaches are emerging as powerful tools for the quality evaluation and authenticity of food and beverages and have been applied to wine science. However, most fail to report ...the method validation, quality assurance and/or quality control applied, as well as the assessment through the metabolomics-methodology pipeline. Knowledge of Mexican viticulture, enology and wine science remains scarce, thus untargeted metabolomics approaches arise as a suitable tool. The aim of this study is to validate an untargeted HS-SPME-GC-qTOF/MS method, with attention to data processing to characterize Cabernet Sauvignon wines from two vineyards and two vintages. Validation parameters for targeted methods are applied in conjunction with the development of a recursive analysis of data. The combination of some parameters for targeted studies (repeatability and reproducibility < 20% RSD; linearity > 0.99; retention-time reproducibility < 0.5% RSD; match-identification factor < 2.0% RSD) with recursive analysis of data (101 entities detected) warrants that both chromatographic and spectrometry-processing data were under control and provided high-quality results, which in turn differentiate wine samples according to site and vintage. It also shows potential biomarkers that can be identified. This is a step forward in the pursuit of Mexican wine characterization that could be used as an authentication tool.
Doxorubicin (Dox) is the most widely used chemotherapeutic agent and is considered a highly powerful and broad-spectrum for cancer treatment. However, its application is compromised by the cumulative ...side effect of dose-dependent cardiotoxicity. Because of this, targeted drug delivery systems (DDS) are currently being explored in an attempt to reduce Dox systemic side-effects. In this study, DDS targeting hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been designed, specifically to the asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR). Dox-loaded albumin-albumin/lactosylated (core-shell) nanoparticles (tBSA/BSALac NPs) with low (LC) and high (HC) crosslink using glutaraldehyde were synthesized. Nanoparticles presented spherical shapes with a size distribution of 257 ± 14 nm and 254 ± 14 nm, as well as an estimated surface charge of -28.0 ± 0.1 mV and -26.0 ± 0.2 mV, respectively. The encapsulation efficiency of Dox for the two types of nanoparticles was higher than 80%. The in vitro drug release results showed a sustained and controlled release profile. Additionally, the nanoparticles were revealed to be biocompatible with red blood cells (RBCs) and human liver cancer cells (HepG2 cells). In cytotoxicity assays, Dox-loaded nanoparticles decrease cell viability more efficiently than free Dox. Specific biorecognition assays confirmed the interaction between nanoparticles and HepG2 cells, especially with ASGPRs. Both types of nanoparticles may be possible DDS specifically targeting HCC, thus reducing side effects, mainly cardiotoxicity. Therefore, improving the quality of life from patients during chemotherapy.
The uptake of arsenite As(
iii
) and arsenate As(
v
) by functionalized calcium alginate (Ca-Alg) beads from aqueous solutions was investigated. Ca-Alg beads were protonated with poly-
l
-lysine ...(PLL) or polyethyleneimine (PEI) using 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide/
N
-hydroxysuccinimide (EDC/NHS) or glutaraldehyde (GA) as crosslinking agents. Four types of protonated beads were prepared: Ca-Alg-EDC/NHS (PLL or PEI) and Ca-Alg-GA (PLL or PEI). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in total attenuated reflection mode (FTIR-ATR), analysis showed presence and increased intensity of bands corresponding to OH, NH, CH
2
and CH
3
groups in modifications with both polycations. In addition, thermogravimetric analysis and atomic force microscopy of all modified capsules showed an increase in thermal stability and uniformity of the capsules, respectively. Ca-Alg-EDC/NHS-PLL beads had the maximum adsorption capacity of As(
v
) (312.9 ± 4.7 μg g
−1
of the alginate) at pH 7.0 and 15 minute exposure, while Ca-Alg-EDC/NHS-PEI beads had the maximum adsorption capacity of As(
iii
) (1052.1 ± 4.6 μg g
−1
of alginate). However, all these EDC containing beads were degraded in the presence of citrate. Ca-Alg-GA-PEI beads removed 252.8 ± 9.7 μg of As(
v
) μg g
−1
of alginate and 524.7 ± 5.3 de As(
iii
) μg g
−1
of alginate, resulting the most stable capsules and suitable for As removal.
A simple protonation of alginate beads allows the absorption of arsenate and arsenite.
In this work, previously synthesized and characterized core-shell silica nanoparticles (FCSNP) functionalized with immobilized molecular bait, Cibacron blue, and a porous polymeric bis-acrylamide ...shell were incubated with pooled urine samples from adult women or men with normal weight, overweight or obesity for the isolation of potential biomarkers. A total of 30 individuals (15 woman and 15 men) were included. FCSNP allowed the capture of a variety of low molecular weight (LMW) proteins as evidenced by mass spectrometry (MS) and the exclusion of high molecular weight (HMW) proteins (>34 kDa) as demonstrated by SDS-PAGE and 2D SDS-PAGE. A total of 36 proteins were successfully identified by MS and homology database searching against the
subset of the Swiss-Prot database. Identified proteins were grouped into different clusters according to their abundance patterns. Four proteins were found only in women and five only in men, whereas 27 proteins were in urine from both genders with different abundance patterns. Based on these results, this new approach represents an alternative tool for isolation and identification of urinary biomarkers.
Lactobacillus rhamnosus
GG (
L. rhamnosus
GG) cells were encapsulated in buttermilk proteins by spray drying, alone (E), or with
Agave tequilana
fructans (CEF). Buttermilk proteins acted as a ...thermo-protector for the probiotic cells undergoing the spray-dried process. The addition of
Agave
fructans in CEF microcapsules significantly enhanced storage stability and survival to in vitro simulated gastrointestinal conditions, compared to E capsules. After 14 days storage at − 20 °C, the number of living cells in CEF microcapsules was in the order of 7.7 log CFU • mL
−1
and the survivability in simulated gastrointestinal environment was 73.23%. Spray-dried microparticles were cultured in goat milk to study biomass production.
Agave
fructans offered a favorable microenvironment and better growth substrate. The population of CEF viable cells reached 1.08 ± 0.02 × 10
10
CFU • mL
−1
after 18 h of fermentation. In contrast, the population of E viable cells were 3.0 ± 0
.
01 × 10
9
CFU • mL
−1
. The generation time of CEF,
L. rhamnosus
GG was 15% faster than E,
L. rhamnosus
GG. Encapsulation with buttermilk proteins in the presence of
Agave
fructans by spray drying could be suitable for preservation of probiotic powders and may be for a more effective application of probiotics in goat dairy products.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ranks fifth in occurrence and second in mortality of all cancers. The development of effective therapies for HCC is urgently needed. Anticancer drugs targeted to the ...liver-specific asialoglycoprotein receptors (ASGPRs) are viewed as a promising potential treatment for HCC. ASGPRs facilitate the recognition and endocytosis of molecules, and possibly vehicles with galactose end groups, by the liver. In this study, bovine serum albumin (BSA) was conjugated with lactose using a thermal treatment. The formation of lactosylated BSA (BSA-Lac) was confirmed by a change of the chemical structure, increased molecular mass, and
lectin recognition. Subsequently, the low-crosslinking BSA-Lac nanoparticles (LC BSA-Lac NPs) and high-crosslinking BSA-Lac nanoparticles (HC BSA-Lac NPs) were synthesized. These nanoparticles presented spherical shapes with a size distribution of 560 ± 18.0 nm and 539 ± 9.0 nm, as well as an estimated surface charge of -26 ± 0.15 mV and -24 ± 0.45 mV, respectively. Both BSA-Lac NPs were selectively recognized by ASGPRs as shown by biorecognition, competition, and inhibition assays using an
model of HCC. This justifies pursuing the strategy of using BSA-Lac NPs as potential drug nanovehicles with selective direction toward hepatocellular carcinoma.
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