Effect of DES lignin incorporation on physicochemical, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of carboxymethyl cellulose-based films.

Herein, three pretreated grapevine lignins were incorporated into carboxymethyl cellulose films. The effects of traditional NaOH pretreated lignin and DES (ChCl-LA, ChCl-LA & K2CO3-EG) pretreated lignin on film properties were compared. Modern analytical techniques were employed to systematically characterize the pretreated lignin and the different CMC-lignin films. The results showed that DES lignin was of high purity, low molecular weight, and homogeneous structure. It outperformed traditional NaOH lignin in terms of compatibility with CMC, enabling it to perform its bioactivity and physicochemical functions in films. This feature effectively enhanced the hydrophobicity, UV shielding ability, water vapor barrier, thermal stability, mechanical properties, and biological activity of CMC-DES lignin film. NMR (2D HSQC) showed that the excellent antioxidant and antibacterial capabilities of CMC-DES lignin film are due to the retention of butyl (S) and p-hydroxyphenyl (H) units in DES lignin, resulting in its rich phenolic hydroxyl content. The detailed structural elucidation of DES lignin's chemical interactions with CMC provided valuable insights into the advantageous properties observed in the films, presenting innovative solutions for applications in the food packaging and preservation industries.

Effects of different processing (Paozhi) on structural characterization and antioxidant activities of polysaccharides from Cistanche deserticola.

In this study, five polysaccharides were extracted from processed Cistanche deserticola. The processing included crude product, enzymatic hydrolysis, hot air drying, stir-baking with wine and high-pressure steaming, and these polysaccharides were named as CP-CDPs, EH-CDPs, HAD-CDPs, SBW-CDPs and HPS-CDPs, respectively. The structural characteristics and biological activities were explored. The results showed that processing changed properties of C. deserticola polysaccharides. CP-CDPs had the highest brightness value L*(93.84) and carbohydrate content (61.27 %). EH-CDPs had minimum Mw (1531.50 kDa), while SBW-CDPs had maximum Mw (2526.0 kDa). Glucose was major predominant monosaccharide in CP-CDPs (89.82 %), HAD-CDPs (79.3 %), SBW-CDPs (59.41 %) and HPS-CDPs (63.86 %), while galactose was major monosaccharide in EH-CDPs (29.44 %). According to SEM, SBW-CDPs showed compact structures, while HPS-CDPs and HAD-CDPs had similar looser structure than SBW-CDPs; meanwhile, CP-CDPs showed irregular agglomeration shape and EH-CDPs was dense blocky shape. The AFM showed SBW-CDPs had the largest molecular chain than other polysaccharides. When scavenging activity reaching 50 %, the concentrations of CP-CDPs, EH-CDPs, HAD-CDPs, SBW-CDPs, HPS-CDPs are 2.25, 0.25, 0.75, 1.8 and 1.5 mg/mL, respectively. This study sheds light on the effects of traditional Chinese medicine processing on characteristics, bioactivities of C. deserticola polysaccharides, and provides the basis for applications in food and pharmaceutical industries.

Comparative study of encapsulated cannabidiol ternary solid dispersions prepared by different techniques: The application of a novel technique jet milling.

Jet milling is a common technique in ultrafine powder preparation field. It has never been used to design delivery systems. Cannabidiol (CBD) is an important cannabinoid of hemp but poor aqueous solubility limited its applications. In this study, solid dispersion (SD) technique was combined with cyclodextrin complexation technique, and jet milling was used for the first time to prepare SDs for improving CBD solubility. Different characterizations demonstrated that the dispersion effect and complexation structure of CBD SD3 prepared by jet milling were comparable to that of CBD SD2 prepared by spray drying (a common solution-based method), and were better than that of CBD SD1 prepared by cogrinding. The water solubility of CBD was increased to 20.902 µg/mL (909-fold) in CBD SD3. Besides, the antioxidant activity and cytotoxicity to tumor cells of CBD were enhanced by dispersion. This work indicated that jet milling, as a new technique with low cost and excellent applicability, could be further developed for the delivery of food functional factors or bioactive molecules.

Resveratrol-loaded folic acid-grafted dextran stearate submicron particles exhibits enhanced antitumor efficacy in non-small cell lung cancers.

In this study, we have aimed to prepare folic acid-conjugated dextran stearate (DF) polymeric micelles to target resveratrol in lung cancers. The polymeric micelle was nanosized and exhibited a controlled drug release pattern. The resveratrol (RSV)-loaded dextran stearate (RSV-DF) micelles exhibited an enhanced cellular uptake in A549 cells due to the folic acid-based receptor interactions. We have demonstrated that RSV-DF polymeric micelles retain the cytotoxic and metabolic effects of RSV on A549 cancer cells with potencies similar to that of the free compound. Furthermore, RSV-DF showed an enhanced cellular apoptosis of cancer cells compared to that of free RSV. We have found that apoptosis induced by RSV-DF was associated with the higher expression of p53, caspase-3, and BAX than the free RSV. The higher level of BAX and caspase-3 further indicates the involvement of mitochondria-dependent apoptosis in the anticancer efficacy of formulations. Based on these results, it can be concluded that natural compound like RSV could be an interesting prospect to treat lung cancers and the fact that folic acid-conjugated dextran stearate could be a potential carrier to deliver the drug in the cancer cells.

Whole mitochondrial genome sequencing and analysis for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease rat strain.

Mitochondrial genome plays a central role in aging, cancer, apoptosis and metabolism. We sequenced a complete mitochondrial genome sequence of a rat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease rat strain for the first time. The total length of the mitochondrial genome was 16,310 bp and coding 13 protein-coding genes, two ribosomal RNA genes, 22 transfer RNA genes. This genome describing information will supply the potential use of mtDNA mutations as markers in cancer.