Combined Effects of Zein Nanofiber Coating Containing Laurel (Laurus nobilis) and Air Fryer Cooking on Quality Properties of Fish Fillets during Cold Storage.

In this study, the effects of zein nanofibers (Zn) containing ground laurel leaves (GLL) and air fry cooking on the quality characteristics of Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were investigated. The zein nanofibers possessing 335.8 ± 43.6 nm average diameters were fabricated containing GLL. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) results of the zein, Zn, GLL, and zein nanofibers containing GLL (LZn) confirmed the electrospinning encapsulation of GLL into Zn and their interactions. The effects of the combination of LZn coating and air fryer cooking of fish fillets on the quality characteristics during storage at 4 °C for 10 days were monitored in terms of oxidative and microbiological stability, color, and sensory parameters. As compared to the control, the combination of LZn coating and air fryer cooking provided a microbial limitation of up to 45.21% during the analysis (p < 0.05). The changes in ΔE values between the control and the LZn-coated samples were obtained as ≤7.56 during 6 days, but then a dramatic color difference was observed. Besides overall sensory acceptability, particularly the odor parameter in the cooked fish samples coated with LZn was significantly preferred (p < 0.05). The combination of LZn coating and air fryer cooking delayed the thiobarbituric acid increase in the fish meat samples (3.51 to 2.57 mg malondialdehyde (MDA)/kg) up to the third day of storage. This study showed that LZn coating is a very functional layer on the fish meat and could be applied for not only fresh fish meat but also other fresh meat products.

Extraction of carotenoid compounds from watermelon pulp with microemulsion based technique: Optimization studies.

The application of two microemulsion based extraction methods (Extraction-1 and Extraction-2) were investigated for the extraction of carotenoids from watermelon pulp in the present study. Span 20 and glycerol for Extraction-1, and sucrose monopalmitate (SMP) with salt (NaCl) for Extraction-2 demonstrated the highest extraction efficiency. Optimization studies by response surface methodology were applied to these conditions. The optimum conditions were conducted as 6.025 g/g of Span 20/pulp sample-(S), 8.827 of glycerol/S, 38.75 °C of temperature and 18.75 min of time; 1.13 g/g of SMP/S, 7.53 g/g of Salt/S, 66.25 °C and 46.3 min of temperature and time for Extraction-1 and Extraction-2, respectively. The extraction efficiency for the optimum conditions were determined as 96.5% and 83.6% for Extraction-1 and Extraction-2, respectively. The results showed that the proposed methods can be successfully performed in the extraction of carotenoids from watermelon pulp compared to conventional solvent extraction.

Deciphering the mechanism and binding interactions of Pemetrexed with dsDNA with DNA-targeted chemotherapeutics via spectroscopic, analytical, and simulation studies.

Pemetrexed is a well-known and widely used antineoplastic drug under the category of cytotoxic, folate anti-metabolites that is used in chemotherapeutic treatments, especially in malignant mesothelioma and non-small cell lung carcinoma. Here, the binding mechanism and interactions of Pemetrexed with double strain fish sperm deoxyribonucleic acid (dsDNA) were studied thoroughly both experimentally and theoretically, using multi-spectroscopic techniques and molecular docking simulations. Our ultimate goal is to understand better the potential of such antineoplastic drugs and, hence, to design drugs with high dsDNA binding affinities and fewer adverse effects. We employed several techniques yielding different but complementary results such as UV, fluorescence, thermal denaturation, electrochemical and viscosity, and molecular docking studies under physiological conditions. Our results revealed that the Pemetrexed binds fairly strongly to dsDNA's minor groove through hydrogen bond interactions with the mostly adenine and guanine bases via its p-carbamide and p-carboxylic groups. MD simulations of the drug-dsDNA complex were followed for 50 ns to confirm that interaction is stable and robust electrostatic interactions were due to hydrogen bonding mostly with the adenine and guanine nucleotides in the minor groove.

Fabrication and characterization of basil essential oil microcapsule-enriched mayonnaise and its antimicrobial properties against Escherichia coli and Salmonella Typhimurium.

Nowadays, as consumers tend to avoid foods containing synthetic preservatives, technologically processed plant extracts can be a good alternative to these preservatives. In this study, previously obtained basil essential oil microcapsules (BEOM) were added to mayonnaise in order to produce a microbiologically safe product with improved physicochemical properties. Mayonnaises were prepared with 0%, 0.3%, 0.6%, and 0.9% BEOM replacement of the total oil content, called Mayo-Control, Mayo-0.3% BEOM, Mayo-0.6% BEOM, and Mayo-0.9% BEOM, respectively. Additionally, Mayo-SP containing ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid and potassium sorbate was prepared. The enriched mayonnaises displayed better antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli than Mayo-SP and Mayo-Control. Mayo-SP showed the best antimicrobial activity against Salmonella Typhimurium, followed by Mayo-0.9% BEOM. At the end of storage, Mayo-0.9% BEOM had the highest apparent viscosity, G', and G'' values due to its high content of gum molecules. Trans-2-heptanal, an oxidation product, was not identified in the enriched mayonnaises or Mayo-SP. Finally, BEOM were efficient in providing microbial safety of mayonnaise and also improved the product's oxidative stability, viscosity, and aroma.

Mechanism of Interactions of dsDNA Binding with Apigenin and Its Sulfamate Derivatives Using Multispectroscopic, Voltammetric, and Molecular Docking Studies.

DNA binding investigations are critical for designing better pharmaceutical compounds since the binding of a compound to dsDNA in the minor groove is critical in drug discovery. Although only one in vitro study on the DNA binding mode of apigenin (APG) has been conducted, there have been no electrochemical and theoretical studies reported. We hereby report the mechanism of binding interaction of APG and a new class of sulfonamide-modified flavonoids, apigenin disulfonamide (ADSAM) and apigenin trisulfonamide (ATSAM), with deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). This study was conducted using multispectroscopic instrumentation techniques, which include UV-vis absorption, thermal denaturation, fluorescence, and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and electrochemical and viscosity measurement methods. Also, molecular docking studies were conducted at room temperature under physiological conditions (pH 7.4). The molecular docking studies showed that, in all cases, the lowest energy docking poses bind to the minor groove of DNA and the apigenin-DNA complex was stabilized by several hydrogen bonds. Also, π-sulfur interactions played a role in the stabilization of the ADSAM-DNA and ATSAM-DNA complexes. The binding affinities of the lowest energy docking pose (schematic diagram of table of content (TOC)) of APG-DNA, ADSAM-DNA, and ATSAM-DNA complexes were found to be -8.2, -8.5, and -8.4 kcal mol-1, respectively. The electrochemical binding constants K b were determined to be (1.05 × 105) ± 0.04, (0.47 × 105) ± 0.02, and (8.13 × 105) ± 0.03 for APG, ADSAM, and ATSAM, respectively (all of the tests were run in triplicate and expressed as the mean and standard deviation (SD)). The K b constants calculated for APG, ADSAM, and ATSAM are in harmony for all techniques. As a result of the incorporation of dimethylsulfamate groups into the APG structure, in the ADSAM-dsDNA and ATSAM-dsDNA complexes, in addition to hydrogen bonds, π-sulfur interactions have also contributed to the stabilization of the ligand-DNA complexes. This work provides new insights that could lead to the development of prospective drugs and vaccines.

Serum Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) Level in Children with Specific Learning Disabilities. / Özgül Ögrenme Bozuklugu Olan Çocuklarda Serum Beyin Kaynakli Nörotrofik Faktör (BKNF) Düzeyi.

OBJECTIVE: Specific learning disorder (SLD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder frequently seen in childhood with deficits in many areas of functioning. Although the etiology of SLD is known to be multifactorial, research findings are limited. In this study, we aimed to compare the serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in children with SLD to healthy children to find out whether BDNF has a role in the pathophysiology of SLD. METHOD: The study included 30 children between the ages of 7-12, diagnosed with SLD and 30 age and gender matched healthy controls. The groups were tested on the Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia Interview Schedule for School-age Children-Now and Lifetime Form (K-SADS-PL), the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-revised form (WISC-R), the Teacher Information Form (TIF) and the Specific Learning Difficulty Battery (SLDB). RESULTS: No difference the serum BDNF levels in children with SLD and the healthy controls. BDNF levels did not correlate with the WISC-R scores and reading rate in the SLD group. CONCLUSION: An association was not determined between SLD and and serum BDNF levels. Our study was the first to investigate this relationship and provided preliminary data on this topic. There is a need for further studies with large patient groups of phenotypic homogeneity.

Elucidation of binding interactions and mechanism of Fludarabine with dsDNA via multispectroscopic and molecular docking studies.

Fludarabine is a purine derivative, anti-neoplastic drug and is still being used in the treatments of chronic lymphocytic leukemia, small lymphocytic lymphoma, acute myeloid leukemia, Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. It achieves its function by interacting with DNA. Therefore, the binding interactions of such drugs with deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is an important subject for pharmaceutical and biochemical studies aiming at designing better DNA binding drugs. Although DNA binding mode of some of the anti-neoplastic drugs has been studied, DNA interaction of Fludarabine has not been explored yet. For this reason, this work has been dedicated to deciphering the experimental and theoretical investigation of Fludarabine binding mechanism via multispectroscopic techniques including UV absorption spectroscopy, thermal denaturation, fluorescence and FTIR spectroscopy, electrochemical and viscosity measurement methods as well as with molecular docking studies under physiological conditions. We observed in the lowest energy docking poses that Fludarabine binds to DNA via major groove binding mode. The nonplanar and extended structure and hydrogen bonding interactions of Fludarabine with the Adenine-Thymine base-pair played a very decisive role in the binding mode as supported by the experimental results.

The uniaxial and coaxial encapsulations of sour cherry (Prunus cerasus L.) concentrate by electrospinning and their in vitro bioaccessibility.

Sour cherry (Prunus cerasus L.) is rich in polyphenols which are known to be protective agents against several diseases. Polyphenols are highly sensitive against temperature, pH, oxygen, and light conditions, leading to low bioaccessibility. In this study, polyphenols of sour cherry concentrate (SCC) were encapsulated by uniaxial or coaxial electrospinning with gelatin or gelatin-lactalbumin. Results showed that phenolic acids had higher encapsulation efficiencies than anthocyanins. Encapsulation efficiencies were found as 89.7 and 91.3% in terms of phenolic acids and 70.3 and 77.8% in terms of flavonoids for the uniaxially electrospun samples with gelatin and gelatin-lactalbumin, respectively. The content of polyphenols in SCC decreased after intestinal tract whereas all electrospun samples showed improved bioaccessibility. According to in vitro digestion results, electrospinning encapsulation provided 8 times better protection of cyanidin-3-glucoside compared to the non-encapsulated SCC. Results showed that especially coaxial electrospinning encapsulation is an effective method for sour cherry polyphenols.

The influence of thermal processing on emulsion properties of defatted hazelnut flour.

In this study, the influences of roasting and the amount of hazelnut flour on the formation and stabilization of emulsions containing different amounts of oil were investigated. After hazelnuts were roasted in an oven at 140°C for 40 min, the oil content was removed. The emulsions with defatted hazelnut flour containing corn oil at 3%, 10% and 50% were prepared. Roasting process significantly decreased the interfacial tension values of samples down to 1.9 mN/m due to protein denaturation. There was no significant difference between the particle sizes of oil droplets in emulsions with roasted and raw hazelnut flour at the same concentration. However, diffusion coefficients of oil droplets increased for emulsions containing roasted defatted flour samples. The zeta (ζ) potential values of all emulsions increased when roasted hazelnut flour was used, indicating the stabilization of suspensions and the solution resistance against aggregation. Storage modulus (G'), loss modulus (G″) and complex viscosity (η(∗)) of emulsions were measured. G' value was found to be greater than the G″ value, which fits into weak gel model. The roasting process resulted with lower transition temperatures but with increased transition enthalpies of the flour samples based on differential scanning (DSC) measurements. Lower transition temperatures may be attributed to the partial gelatinization of starch in the flour and partial denaturation of proteins. These results may help to tailor the properties of defatted hazelnut flour when it is used in food products containing emulsions such as sauces, dressings and creams for stabilizing purposes.

A review on traditional Turkish fermented non-alcoholic beverages: microbiota, fermentation process and quality characteristics.

Shalgam juice, hardaliye, boza, ayran (yoghurt drink) and kefir are the most known traditional Turkish fermented non-alcoholic beverages. The first three are obtained from vegetables, fruits and cereals, and the last two ones are made of milk. Shalgam juice, hardaliye and ayran are produced by lactic acid fermentation. Their microbiota is mainly composed of lactic acid bacteria (LAB). Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus brevis and Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei in shalgam fermentation and L. paracasei subsp. paracasei and Lactobacillus casei subsp. pseudoplantarum in hardaliye fermentation are predominant. Ayran is traditionally prepared by mixing yoghurt with water and salt. Yoghurt starter cultures are used in industrial ayran production. On the other hand, both alcohol and lactic acid fermentation occur in boza and kefir. Boza is prepared by using a mixture of maize, wheat and rice or their flours and water. Generally previously produced boza or sourdough/yoghurt are used as starter culture which is rich in Lactobacillus spp. and yeasts. Kefir is prepared by inoculation of raw milk with kefir grains which consists of different species of yeasts, LAB, acetic acid bacteria in a protein and polysaccharide matrix. The microbiota of boza and kefir is affected from raw materials, the origin and the production methods. In this review, physicochemical properties, manufacturing technologies, microbiota and shelf life and spoilage of traditional fermented beverages were summarized along with how fermentation conditions could affect rheological properties of end product which are important during processing and storage.

Human herpesvirus 6 infection in hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis patients.

BACKGROUND: Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) infection occurs worldwide and can be reactivated from latency during periods of immunosuppression, especially after organ transplantation. No previous study has evaluated the influence of dialysis type on HHV-6 infection. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of HHV-6 antibodies in hemodialysis (HD) and peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. METHODS: We studied 36 PD patients, 35 HD patients, and 20 healthy subjects, all with no history of organ transplantation. After systematic inquiries and a physical examination, blood was drawn for determination of biochemical parameters, cytomegalovirus immunoglobulin M (IgM) and immunoglobulin G (IgG), hepatitis B surface antigen, and the hepatitis C and human immunodeficiency virus antibodies. Titers of HHV-6 IgM and IgG antibodies were determined by ELISA. RESULTS: Titers for HHV-6 IgM antibody were positive in 9 HD patients (25.7%), 8 PD patients (22.2%), and 2 control subjects (10.0%, p > 0.05). More HD patients (20.0%) than PD patients (5.6%, p = 0.07) or control subjects (0.0%, p = 0.03) were positive for HHV-6 IgG antibody. In HD patients, HHV-6 IgG seropositivity and duration of dialysis were positively correlated (R = 0.33, p = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Infection with HHV-6 is not rare in PD and HD patients. In addition, HHV-6 IgG seropositivity was significantly higher in HD patients than in control subjects and approached significance when compared with seropositivity in PD patients. Moreover, in HD patients, HHV-6 IgG seropositivity correlated with duration on HD. These preliminary findings provide insight into the pre-transplantation period for patients and may aid our understanding of how to best protect patients against HHV-6 after transplantation.

Influence of drying temperature, water content, and heating rate on gelatinization of corn starches.

The gelatinization properties of starch extracted from corn and waxy corn dried at different temperatures were determined at various water contents and heating rates by differential scanning calorimetry. All gelatinization transition temperatures increased with drying temperature and heating rate. Onset and peak temperatures remained relatively constant, whereas end temperature decreased in the presence of excess water. The gelatinization enthalpy (deltaH(g)) of corn starch decreased with drying temperature at 50% water; however, it remained constant for waxy corn starch. The effects of water content and heating rate on deltaH(g) were dependent on each other. The minimum water levels required for gelatinization of starch extracted from corn dried at 20 and 100 degrees C are 21 and 29%, respectively. The activation energy (E(a)) was calculated using an Arrhenius-type equation and two first-order models; the degree of conversion (alpha) was predicted using a newly proposed model that produced good results for both E(a) and alpha.