The simultaneous extraction of crocin and geniposide from gardenia fruits (Gardenia jasminoides Ellis) was performed by integrating natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) and ultrasound-assisted ...extraction (UAE). Among the eight kinds of NADES screened, choline chloride-1,2-propylene glycol was the most suitable extractant. The probe-type ultrasound-assisted NADES extraction system (pr-UAE-NADES) demonstrated higher extraction efficiency compared with plate-type ultrasound-assisted NADES extraction system (pl-UAE-NADES). Orthogonal experimental design and a modified multi-index synthetic weighted scoring method were adopted to optimize pr-UAE-NADES extraction process. The optimal extraction conditions that had a maximum synthetic weighted score of 29.46 were determined to be 25 °C for extraction temperature, 600 W for ultrasonic power, 20 min for extraction time, and 25% (w/w) for water content in NADES, leading to the maximum yields (7.39 ± 0.20 mg/g and 57.99 ± 0.91 mg/g, respectively) of crocin and geniposide. Thirty-three compounds including iridoids, carotenoids, phenolic acids, flavonoids, and triterpenes in the NADES extract were identified by LC-Q-TOF-MS
coupled with a feature-based molecular networking workflow. The kinetics evaluation of the conjugated dienes generation on Cu
-induced low density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation via the four-parameter logistic regression model showed that crocin increased the lag time of LDL oxidation in a concentration-dependent manner (15 μg/mL, 30 μg/mL, 45 μg/mL) by 12.66%, 35.44%, and 73.42%, respectively. The quantitative determination for fluorescence properties alteration of the apolipoprotein B-100 exhibited that crocin effectively inhibited the fluorescence quenching of tryptophan residues and the modification of lysine residues caused by reactive aldehydes and malondialdehydes. The pr-UAE-NADES showed significant efficiency toward the simultaneous extraction of crocin and geniposide from gardenia fruits. And this study demonstrates the potential utility of gardenia fruits in developing anti-atherogenic functional food.
Drought stress is an annual global phenomenon that has devastating effects on crop production, so numerous studies have been conducted to improve crop drought resistance. Plant-associated microbiota ...play a crucial role in crop health and growth; however, we have a limited understanding of the key processes involved in microbiome-induced crop adaptation to drought stress. In this review, we summarize the adverse effects of drought stress on crop growth in terms of germination, photosynthesis, nutrient uptake, biomass, and yield, with a focus on the response of soil microbial communities to drought stress and plant-microbe interactions under drought stress. Moreover, we review the morpho-physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms underlying the mitigation effect of microbes on crop drought stress. Finally, we highlight future research directions, including the characterization of specific rhizosphere microbiome species with corresponding root exudates and the efficiency of rhizobacteria inoculants under drought conditions. Such research will advance our understanding of the complex interactions between crops and microbes and improve crop resistance to drought stress through the application of beneficial drought-adaptive microbes.
The effect of individually mixing Lactobacillus paracasei C5 and Lactobacillus pentosus D1 with yeast as starter cultures on bread flavor was investigated via electronic-nose, electronic-tongue, and ...GC × GC-ToF-MS methods The electronic-nose results showed that the bread smell could be completely distinguished. Electronic-tongue analysis revealed that the taste of mixed-fermented bread was positively correlated with sourness, sweetness, saltiness, and umami, while the taste of yeast-fermented bread was positively correlated with bitterness and astringency. GC × GC-TOF-MS was used to further detect volatile organic compounds, from which 15 (L. paracasei bread) and 18 (L. pentosus bread) major contributing aroma compounds were screened (ROAV ≥1 and VIP >1). Additionally, Lactobacillus was found to be positively correlated with 35 flavor substances and positively regulated the aroma profile of the bread, especially sweet-caramel, coffee-like, and roasted aromas. In conclusion, LAB involved in fermentation can improve the flavor of bread.
•The composition of the dough bacterial community was different.•The flavor of the bread improved with the addition of LAB sourdough.•Lactobacillus were positively correlated with a variety of bread flavor substances.•Lactic acid bacteria positively modulated the bread typical baking flavor profiles.
The dispersibility of silica sol particles modified by γ-methacryloxy propyl trimethoxyl silane (γ-MPS) in an ethanol–water mixed solvent was investigated. In the modification process, the ...hydrolysate of γ-MPS condensed to form oligomers, which further formed hydrogen bonds with the hydroxyl groups on the surface of the silica sol particles to cause agglomeration. Increasing the ethanol concentration inhibited the hydrolysis of γ-MPS and the formation of oligomers, thus inhibiting the agglomeration of silica sol particles. When the ethanol concentration was above 74 wt%, the γ-MPS-modified silica sol slurry was transparent and with a TEM image in a single-particle dispersed state. The dispersibility of the silica sol particles was determined by a double electric layer repulsion mechanism before modification and a steric hindrance mechanism by organic molecules grafted on the surface of the particles after modification. The grafting density of γ-MPS on the surface of silica sol particles affected the hydrophobicity of the modified particles, which can be effectively controlled.
Display omitted
•High ethanol concentration facilitates high dispersibility of particles.•High ethanol concentration inhibits γ-MPS hydrolysis and particle agglomeration.•Modified particles are single-particle dispersed by steric-hindrance.•Particle hydrophobicity has a positive correlation with γ-MPS grafting density.
An effective amination for SiO2 nanoparticles using aminobutanol to increase surface reactivity was realized via aqueous mixing, spray drying, and thermal treatment. The apparent grafting density of ...2-aminobutanol obtained reached to 2.20 nm−2, with a monomolecular layer. The amino group in aminobutanol acts as a self-catalyst in the amination reaction. The reactivity of SiO2 particles after amination is obviously increased, which enables the subsequent modification of carboxylic acids more readily, and increases the grafting density of carboxylic acids on the SiO2 particle surface significantly.
Display omitted
•Surface amination of nanosilica using aminobutanol was effectively achieved.•Aminobutanol amination increases the surface reactivity of nanosilica particles.•The amino group in aminobutanol acts as a self-catalyst in the amination reaction.•The amination of aminobutanol in monomolecular layer was achieved.
The impact of particle hydrophobicity on the morphology and structure of hollow microspheres prepared by spray drying of silica sol was investigated through modification with ...γ-methylacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (γ-MPS). Hydrophobic attraction among the hydrophobic silica particles in the aqueous phase drives particles to gather inward the droplet at the early stages of dehydration, which delays the shell formation of the droplets. During the later stages of dehydration, hydrophobic particles form hydrophobic nanoconfined channels among themselves. Afterward, water undergoes rapid evaporation via the formation of molecular clusters, facilitating the formation of a thicker and stronger shell, which mitigates the formation of the tail vortex resulting from the adverse effects of airflow. After continued dehydration, regular hollow microspheres are formed. Cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) was absorbed onto the negatively charged particle surface of silica sol, thereby inducing hydrophobicity via electrostatic attraction. Subsequently, the CTAB-adsorbed silica sol is spray dried in a mixed solvent phase of ethanol and water, resulting in the preparation of regular, morphologically uniform hollow microspheres. The robust synthesis and the underlying mechanistic study provide a scalable and sustainable route to prepare hollow microspheres for potential application in cosmetics.
A hybrid Cartesian-based body-fitted adaptive grid method for compressible Navier-Stokes equations is implemented and investigated. In this method, the body-fitted structured grids are generated ...around the geometries, and the left regions are filled with Cartesian grids. To transfer the data between the different grids, the donor cell searching technique is adopted. An unstructured data-based finite volume update procedure is used, and least squares method is suggested to retain the second order in the overlap region. The moving shock waves with different speeds and vortex passing through the interfaces of the hybrid Cartesian grid are used to explore the accuracy and conservation. A new technique is presented to deal with the non-physical stagnation of slowly moving shock wave around the interface of grid. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the results. The three-dimensional extension has also been shown by a benchmark problem.
For the truck appointment system in a container terminal, optimizing the configuration of gate lane and yard crane based on the appointment information is the key to shorten the external truck ...waiting time and reduce the redundancy of terminal resource. A hybrid approach combining deep neural network and optimization model is proposed. The deep neural network is applied to predict the truck waiting time in the yard based on the yard data. The optimization configuration model for gate lane and yard crane is established by combining the predicted result. The average waiting time of trucks, the configuration of gate lanes and yard cranes before and after optimization are compared. The results show the effectiveness of the proposed approach, which also provides a new road map for optimizing container terminal resource configuration.
Abstract
The clinical applications of magnetic hyperthermia therapy (MHT) have been largely hindered by the poor magnetic-to-thermal conversion efficiency of MHT agents. Herein, we develop a facile ...and efficient strategy for engineering encapsulin-produced magnetic iron oxide nanocomposites (eMIONs) via a green biomineralization procedure. We demonstrate that eMIONs have excellent magnetic saturation and remnant magnetization properties, featuring superior magnetic-to-thermal conversion efficiency with an ultrahigh specific absorption rate of 2390 W/g to overcome the critical issues of MHT. We also show that eMIONs act as a nanozyme and have enhanced catalase-like activity in the presence of an alternative magnetic field, leading to tumor angiogenesis inhibition with a corresponding sharp decrease in the expression of HIF-1α. The inherent excellent magnetic-heat capability, coupled with catalysis-triggered tumor suppression, allows eMIONs to provide an MRI-guided magneto-catalytic combination therapy, which may open up a new avenue for bench-to-bed translational research of MHT.