Optimization of bioprocess of Schleiferilactobacillus harbinensis Ca12 and its viability in frozen Brazilian berries (Açai, Euterpe oleracea Mart.).

Amazonian palm berries (açaí, Euterpe oleracea Mart.) are fruits with high nutritional value and antioxidant activity and have aroused the interest of consumers, popularizing fruit pulps enriched with probiotics. Amazonian palm berries (açaí, Euterpe oleracea Mart.) are fruits with high nutritional potential, providing a source of carbohydrates, fibers, proteins, lipids, vitamins, and minerals. Furthermore, açai provides several health benefits, including antioxidant activity. Nutritionally enhanced foods have aroused the interest of consumers, popularizing fruit pulps enriched with probiotics. Probiotics are dietary supplements consisting of live, beneficial microorganisms in the host which improve the intestinal microbiota. The objective of this study was to isolate, identify, and characterize the probiotic potential of an isolated Schleiferilactobacillus harbinensis strain (dubbed Ca12) and provide an optimized bioprocess for its production, using the complete factorial and central rotational compound design to supplement the frozen açai pulp. The isolated strain S. harbinensis Ca12 presented adequate resistance to gastric juice and bile salts, microbial activity against different Candida strains, self-aggregation and coaggregation properties, high adhesion in HT-29 cells, and 35% inhibition of Salmonella in HT-29 cells. When optimized, the cellular biomass production of the S. harbinensis Ca12 strain was approximately 600% higher than the unsupplemented whey, with a production of 3.6 × 1010 CFU mL-1. The S. harbinensis Ca12 strain's viability in the creamy and traditional frozen açai pulp was shown to be stable for up to 6 months at 20 °C. The impact of this study involved for the first time the S. harbinensis Ca12 described in the Brazilian cocoa pulp with activity against Candida albicans of clinical importance, creating the potential of a new functional food with important benefits to human health as prevention for candidiasis.

Vancomycin-loaded N,N-dodecyl,methyl-polyethylenimine nanoparticles coated with hyaluronic acid to treat bacterial endophthalmitis: Development, characterization, and ocular biocompatibility.

Vancomycin-loaded N,N-dodecyl,methyl-polyethylenimine nanoparticles coated with hyaluronic acid (VCM-DMPEI nanoparticles/HA) were synthesized as an adjuvant for the treatment of bacterial endophthalmitis. The nanoparticles were formulated by experimental statistical design, thoroughly characterized, and evaluated in terms of bactericidal activity and both in vitro and in vivo ocular biocompatibility. The VCM-DMPEI nanoparticles/HA were 154 ± 3 nm in diameter with a 0.197 ± 0.020 polydispersity index; had a + 26.4 ± 3.3 mV zeta potential; exhibited a 93% VCM encapsulation efficiency; and released 58% of the encapsulated VCM over 96 h. VCM and DMPEI exhibited a synergistic bactericidal effect. The VCM-DMPEI nanoparticles/HA were neither toxic to ARPE-19 cells nor irritating to the chorioallantoic membrane. Moreover, the VCM-DMPEI nanoparticles/HA did not induce modifications in retinal functions, as determined by electroretinography, and in the morphology of the ocular tissues. In conclusion, the VCM-DMPEI nanoparticles/HA may be a useful therapeutic adjuvant to treat bacterial endophthalmitis.