Combined effect of antimicrobial edible coatings with reduction of initial microbial load on the shelf-life of fresh hake (Merluccius merluccius) medallions

Two distinct strategies were combined to preserve fresh fish (Merluccius merluccius) under refrigeration at 4 °C for 12 days: (i) the application of an antimicrobial edible coating enriched with oregano essential oil (OEO) or carvacrol (CV) and (ii) the reduction of initial microbial load by good handling practise and the use of sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl). The action of antimicrobial coatings alone retarded the growth of Enterobacteriaceae, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and H₂S producing bacteria on fish samples. The reduction of initial microbial load by itself only affected the evolution of LAB, but not the rest of the bacterial groups. When using both techniques combined, edible antimicrobial coatings were significantly more effective with additional and significant delays in the growth of mesophilic, psychrotrophic and Pseudomonas bacteria. Thus, the use of both strategies combined resulted in a reduction of the counts of all bacterial groups after 12 days of storage which ranged from 1.5 log and 8 log, in Pseudomonas and H₂S producing bacteria, respectively. Moreover, no significant differences were observed when comparing the microbiological evolution of samples treated with OEO compared to those only treated with CV.     

Design and analysis of a new wave energy converter based on a point absorber and a hydraulic system harvesting energy from waves near the shore in calm seas

The aim of this paper is to illustrate the design of a new wave energy converter, composed of a point absorber and a hydraulic system (power take off) and sized for recovering energy in calm seas from waves near the shore. The point absorber is consisting of a rectangular shaped buoy integrating a piston pump. The set buoy‐pump oscillates under the waves action and moves natural water in a closed circuit hydraulic system (power take off) composed of a piping connecting the piston pump itself, a pressurized reservoir, a hydraulic turbine and a discharge tank. The methodology adopted for designing the main constituents involves a 1D mathematical model, settled for understanding the motion of the buoy under the hypothesis of regular waves and fully developed sea, and a sizing procedure applied for the design of all the components of the hydraulic system. The project related to the Calabrian site of Cetraro (Mediterranean Sea—south Italy) led to designing a system with a 4 m large buoy, associated with a small 13 cm diameter micro Pelton turbine, so that more than 22 000 kWh could be recovered in a year.     

Enriched multi-agent middleware for building rule-based distributed security solutions for IoT environments

The Journal of Supercomputing - The increasing number of connected devices and the complexity of Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystems are demanding new architectures for managing and securing these...     

Fluorescent Amino Acid Initiated de novo Cyclic Peptides for the Label-Free Assessment of Cell Permeability**

The major obstacle in applying peptides to intracellular targets is their low inherent cell permeability. Standard approaches to attach a fluorophore (e. g. FITC, TAMRA) can change the physicochemical properties of the parent peptide and influence their ability to penetrate and localize in cells. We report a label-free strategy for evaluating the cell permeability of cyclic peptide leads. Fluorescent tryptophan analogues 4-cyanotryptophan (4CNW) and β-(1-azulenyl)-L-alanine (AzAla) were incorporated into in vitro translated macrocyclic peptides by initiator reprogramming. We then demonstrate these efficient blue fluorescent emitters are good tools for monitoring peptide penetration into cells.     

Effects of Human and Porcine Adipose Extracellular Matrices Decellularized by Enzymatic or Chemical Methods on Macrophage Polarization and Immunocompetence

The decellularized extracellular matrix (ECM) obtained from human and porcine adipose tissue (AT) is currently used to prepare regenerative medicine bio-scaffolds. However, the influence of these natural biomaterials on host immune response is not yet deeply understood. Since macrophages play a key role in the inflammation/healing processes due to their high functional plasticity between M1 and M2 phenotypes, the evaluation of their response to decellularized ECM is mandatory. It is also necessary to analyze the immunocompetence of macrophages after contact with decellularized ECM materials to assess their functional role in a possible infection scenario. In this work, we studied the effect of four decellularized adipose matrices (DAMs) obtained from human and porcine AT by enzymatic or chemical methods on macrophage phenotypes and fungal phagocytosis. First, a thorough biochemical characterization of these biomaterials by quantification of remnant DNA, lipids, and proteins was performed, thus indicating the efficiency and reliability of both methods. The proteomic analysis evidenced that some proteins are differentially preserved depending on both the AT origin and the decellularization method employed. After exposure to the four DAMs, specific markers of M1 proinflammatory and M2 anti-inflammatory macrophages were analyzed. Porcine DAMs favor the M2 phenotype, independently of the decellularization method employed. Finally, a sensitive fungal phagocytosis assay allowed us to relate the macrophage phagocytosis capability with specific proteins differentially preserved in certain DAMs. The results obtained in this study highlight the close relationship between the ECM biochemical composition and the macrophage’s functional role.     

Design,Synthesis and Evaluation of 2,4-Diaminoquinazoline Derivatives as Potential Tubulin Polymerization Inhibitors

Microtubules are highly dynamic polymers composed of α- and β-tubulin proteins that have been shown to be potential therapeutic targets for the development of anticancer drugs. Currently, a wide variety of chemically diverse agents that bind to β-tubulin have been reported. Nocodazole (NZ) and colchicine (COL) are well-known tubulin-depolymerizing agents that have close binding sites in the β-tubulin. In this study, we designed and synthesized a set of nine 2,4-diaminoquinazoline derivatives that could occupy both NZ and COL binding sites. The synthesized compounds were evaluated for their antiproliferative activities against five cancer cell lines (PC-3, HCT-15, MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, and SK-LU-1), a noncancerous one (COS-7), and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). The effect of compounds 4 e and 4 i on tubulin organization and polymerization was analyzed on the SK-LU-1 cell line by indirect immunofluorescence, western blotting, and tubulin polymerization assays. Our results demonstrated that both compounds exert their antiproliferative activity by inhibiting tubulin polymerization. Finally, a possible binding pose of 4 i in the NZ/COL binding site was determined by using molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) approaches. To our knowledge, this is the first report of non-N-substituted 2,4-diaminoquinazoline derivatives with the ability to inhibit tubulin polymerization.     

Anthocyanin profile of red fruits and black carrot juices,purees and concentrates by HPLC‐DAD‐ESI/MS‐QTOF

A fast and reliable method for anthocyanin extraction and identification by HPLC‐DAD‐ESI/MS‐QTOF was used to analyse the anthocyanin composition of commercial red fruit juices (blackberry, redcurrant and pomegranate), purees (strawberry, cherry and raspberry) and concentrates (elderberry, blueberry and red grape). The anthocyanin profile of black carrot juice is also reported. The extraction and analysis method allowed us to detect and quantify a wide range of individual anthocyanins in a simple and rapid way. Pelargonidin‐3‐glucoside was detected in redcurrant for the first time and petunidin‐3‐galactoside quantified for the first time in blueberries. Considering the health benefits that have been associated with anthocyanin consumption, all these fruit and vegetables processed products could appear as a good source of this group of phytochemical compounds for their direct consumption or their use as ingredients for the design of new food product or food supplements.     

Optimization of MRI Acquisition and Texture Analysis to Predict Physico-chemical Parameters of Loins by Data Mining

The main objective of this study was to configure the acquisition and analysis of low-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to predict physico-chemical characteristics of Iberian loin, evaluating the use of different MRI sequences (spin echo, SE; gradient echo, GE; turbo 3D, T3D), computational texture feature methods (GLCM, NGLDM, GLRLM, GLCM + NGLDM + GLRLM), and data mining techniques (multiple linear regression, MLR; isotonic regression, IR). Moderate to very good correlation coefficients and low mean absolute error were found when applying MLR or IR on any method of computational texture features from MRI acquired with SE or GE. For T3D sequence, accurate results are only obtained by applying IR on GLCM or GLCM + NGLDM + GLRLM methods. Considering not only the accuracy of the methodology but also consumed time and required resources, the use of SE sequences for MRI acquisition, GLCM method for MRI texture analysis, and MLR could be indicated for prediction physico-chemical characteristics of loin.