This study aimed at developing protein nanoparticles with desirable loading efficiency (LE) and low cross-linker concentration. Using β-lactoglobulin (BLG) and curcumin as a model system, this work demonstrated that the LE could be improved by up to 157% by maintaining low antisolvent content before mild evaporation. Moreover, the optimal level of glutaraldehyde decreased by 50% as the curcumin/protein ratio increased, suggesting that toxic cross-linkers could be partly replaced with natural phenols such as curcumin. The BLG-curcumin nanoparticles showed average size of 164-214 nm, zeta potential of -42 mV, and LE of up to 11%. Interestingly, BLG nanoparticles demonstrated rapid disintegration and nutraceutical release in simulated gastric fluid (SGF) at pH 2, despite the known resistance of BLG against pepsin. However, they maintained integrity in SGF at pH 5. This phenomenon, followed by extensive degradation in simulated intestinal fluid, suggested the controlled-release property of BLG nanoparticles when administered orally.
Abstract Background Frailty has become one of the most serious global public health challenges. Whether the assessments tools are useful for frailty needs further evaluation. Objectives This study aims to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of measurement tools for frailty in older people. Design This study was registered on PROSPERO (registration number: CRD: 42023415074.) Medline, Web of Science, Embase, China Knowledge Resource Integrated Database (CNKI), Wanfang databases, and VIP databases were searched from their inception to March 31, 2022. Measurements Two reviewers independently scored quality of the studies based on the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2(QUADAS-2) tool in Review manager 5.4.1 software, a summary receiver operating characteristics (SROC) curve was plotted and area under curve (AUC)was calculated to evaluate the accuracy of the frailty assessment tool. Results A total of 23 articles were included. The sample size ranges from 45 to 1037. The pooled sensitivity, specificity and AUC of FRAIL was 0.75 (95% CI: 0.56 - 0.88), 0.81 (95% CI: 0.71 - 0.88) and 0.88 (95% CI: 0.85 - 0.91), respectively; the pooled sensitivity, specificity and AUC of PRISMA-7 scale was 0.81 (95% CI: 0.71 - 0.88), 0.78 (95% CI: 0.69 - 0.85) and 0.86 (95% CI: 0.82 - 0.88) , respectively; the pooled sensitivity, specificity and AUC of GFI was 0.72 (95% CI: 0.62 - 0.80), 0.74 (95% CI: 0.67-0.81) and AUC of 0.79 (95% CI: 0.76 - 0.83) , respectively. Conclusion Our study suggests that, compared with the FP scale, the FRAIL and PRISMA-7 scales have a wide range of applications in the frail older population.
Abstract Pathogen inactivation efficacy is substantially lower on cracks/crevices than on smooth produce surfaces. In this study, an interlocking design of three‐dimensionally printed chip coated with zein‐ N,N ‐diethyl‐p‐phenylenediamine (DPD) film is developed to study chlorine permeation in simulated cracks. The primary interaction of zein and DPD in film is hydrogen bonding evidenced by the blue shift of the amide II band of zein. The chlorine‐sensing chip exhibits a dose‐dependent magenta color change upon immersion in chlorine solutions. Lab‐scale experiment is performed on chips with full‐depth cracks. At crack widths of 0.2, 0.5, and 1.0 mm, respectively. The static chlorine permeation distances are 11.6, 15.3, and 20.0 mm, when the cracks are perpendicular to the liquid level, compared to 0, 3.3, and 4.3 mm when the cracks are parallel to the liquid level. Complete permeation was detected after dynamic washing for 30 s at chlorine solution Re numbers of 12.5 and 125. In a pilot‐industrial scale washer, chlorine‐permeated distance of 20 mm is detected for full‐depth chlorine‐sensing chips, and 0, 9.4, and 20 mm for half‐depth chips at width of 0.2, 0.5, and 1.0 mm, respectively. Results demonstrated that gravity and boundary pressure facilitates chlorine permeation. This work provides a potential platform for studying the accessibility of sanitizers in narrow gaps under lab‐/industry‐relevant conditions.
Abstract Maintaining food safety and quality is critical for public health and food security. Conventional food preservation methods, such as pasteurization and dehydration, often change the overall organoleptic quality of the food products. Herein, we demonstrate a method that affects only a thin surface layer of the food, using beef as a model. In this method, Joule heating is generated by applying high electric power to a carbon substrate in <1 s, which causes a transient increase of the substrate temperature to > ~2000 K. The beef surface in direct contact with the heating substrate is subjected to ultra-high temperature flash heating, leading to the formation of a microbe-inactivated, dehydrated layer of ~100 µm in thickness. Aerobic mesophilic bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, yeast and mold on the treated samples are inactivated to a level below the detection limit and remained low during room temperature storage of 5 days. Meanwhile, the product quality, including visual appearance, texture, and nutrient level of the beef, remains mostly unchanged. In contrast, microorganisms grow rapidly on the untreated control samples, along with a rapid deterioration of the meat quality. This method might serve as a promising preservation technology for securing food safety and quality.
Abstract A series of lanthanide metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) possessing 4f homometallic 2D noninterpenetrating (6,3) honeycomb topological network structures with lanthanide atoms acting as three‐connected centers have been assembled by using a semirigid bridging ligand with lanthanide nitrates, namely [{Ln 2 (NO 3 ) 6 L 3 } · (H 2 O) 2 · (CHCl 3 )] n (Ln = Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Er; L = 2,5‐dimethyl‐1,4‐bis[{(2′‐benzylaminoformyl)phenoxy}methyl]benzene. The coordination layers are linked by intermolecular hydrogen bonds to form a 3D cage structure with 1D supramolecular channels along the c axis, in which chloroform and lattice water molecules are located to stabilize the structure. Under specific excitation, the Sm III , Eu III , Tb III , and Dy III MOFs exhibit characteristic emissions. The lowest triplet‐state energy level of the ligand indicates that the energy level of the ligand matches better to the resonance levels of Tb III and Dy III rather than Sm III and Eu III ions.
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