The Effect of Encapsulating a Prebiotic-Based Biopolymer Delivery System for Enhanced Probiotic Survival.

Orally delivered probiotics must survive transit through harsh environments during gastrointestinal (GI) digestion and be delivered and released into the target site. The aim of this work was to evaluate the survivability and delivery of gel-encapsulated Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) to the colon. New hybrid symbiotic beads alginate/prebiotic pullulan/probiotic LGG were obtained by the extrusion method. The average size of the developed beads was 3401 µm (wet), 921 µm (dry) and the bacterial titer was 109 CFU/g. The morphology of the beads was studied by a scanning electron microscope, demonstrating the structure of the bacterial cellulose shell and loading with probiotics. For the first time, we propose adding an enzymatic extract of feces to an artificial colon fluid, which mimics the total hydrolytic activity of the intestinal microbiota. The beads can be digested by fecalase with cellulase activity, indicating intestinal release. The encapsulation of LGG significantly enhanced their viability under simulated GI conditions. However, the beads, in combination with the prebiotic, provided greater protection of bacteria, enhancing their survival and even increasing cell numbers in the capsules. These data suggest the promising prospects of coencapsulation as an innovative delivery method based on the inclusion of probiotic bacteria in a symbiotic matrix.

Characterization of cadmium-tolerant endophytic fungi isolated from soybean (Glycine max) and barley (Hordeum vulgare).

Cadmium stress disrupts plant-microbial interactions and reduces plant growth and development. In plants, the tolerance to stress can be increased by inoculation with endophytic microorganisms. The aim of this study was to investigate the distribution of endophytic fungi in various plant organs of barley and soybean and evaluate their Cd removal ability. Two hundred fifty-three fungal strains were isolated from various organs of barley (Hordeum vulgare cv Arna) and soybean (Glycine max cv Almaty). The colonization rate ranged from 13.6% to 57.3% and was significantly higher in the roots. Ten genera were identified: Fusarium, Penicillium, Aspergillus, Metarhizium, Beauveria, Trichoderma, Rhodotorula, Cryptococcus, Aureobasidium and Metschnikowia. Twenty-three fungal strains have a Cd tolerance index from 0.24 to 1.12. Five strains (Beauveria bassiana T7, Beauveria bassiana T15, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa MK1, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa RH2, Metschnikowia pulcherrima MP2) with the highest level of Cd tolerance have minimum inhibitory concentrations from 290 to 2400 µg/ml. These fungi were able to remove Cd up to 59%. The bioaccumulation capacity ranged from 2.3 to 11.9 mg/g. Selected fungal strains could be considered as biological agents for their potential application in the bioremediation of contaminated sites.

Prediction of miRNA interaction with mRNA of stroke candidate genes.

BACKGROUND: The role of miRNA in tissue affected by stroke is actively studied, but it remains unclear which miRNAs and target genes are involved in the development of stroke. METHODS: The MirTarget program defines the following features of a miRNA binding to a mRNA: the binding start site, the location of the binding site in mRNA, the free energy of a miRNA binding with a mRNA, and the interaction schemes of miRNA and mRNA. RESULTS: The interaction of 6565 miRNAs with mRNAs of stroke candidate genes was determined. The association of the mRNAs of stroke candidate genes with miRNAs depends on the level of gene expression. Some highly expressed candidate genes are targets of miR-619-5p and miR-5095, which have binding sites located on overlapping mRNA nucleotide sequences (clusters). miR-619-5p and miR-5095 bind to mRNA of 15 genes. Clusters for the binding of miR-1273f,d,e are in mRNAs of highly expressed genes. The start sites of miR-1273d and miR-1273e binding in all clusters are in sequences with one and ten nucleotides, respectively. The clusters of multiple miR-574-5p and ID00470.5p-miR binding sites and the clusters of the miR-466, ID01030.3p-miR, and ID00436.3p-miR binding sites are in mRNAs of some genes expressed at low levels. CONCLUSION: The organization of miRNA binding sites into clusters reduces the length of mRNA and creates competition between miRNAs for binding to mRNA of a target gene. The characteristics of miRNA associations with target genes can be used to recommend markers for a diagnosis of stroke.

Herbal extracts in the treatment of Diabetic Foot Syndrome.

INTRODUCTION: One of the most serious complications of diabetes is the formation of Diabetic Foot Syndrome. Herbal extracts that combine high antioxidant and antimicrobial properties can be used to treat the resulting neuropathy.The aim of this study was to determine antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of crude extracts isolated from plants growing in Kazakhstan, which could be used to develop products for treatment of Diabetic Foot Syndrome. METHOD: Different solvents, including dichloromethane and ethanol, were used to prepare plant extracts. The crude extracts from the plants were tested for antimicrobial activity using a modified version of the CLSI/NCCLS methods. All organisms were obtained from American Type Culture Collection. These included the fungi Candida glabrata ATTC 90030, the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213, and Methicillin-resistant S. aureus ATCC 43300. The 2,2-diphеnyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay, 2,2-azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) radical scavenging assay were used to analyzed the antioxidant capacity. RESULTS: The results clearly indicate that antibacterial and antifungal activities vary with plant species. Dichloromethane extracts produced favorable results in all assays. Epilobium hirsutum, Rhodiola quadrifida, Rumex confertus showed antifungal activity against Candida glabrata in all extracts where IC50 less than 3 µg/ml. Rumex confertus, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis and Vexibia alopecuroides showed anti-fungal activity against Staphylococcus aureus (IC50 =10.80 µg/ml), (IC50 =11.10 µg/ml), (IC50 =3.05 µg/ml) and Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (IC50 =16.20 µg/ml), (IC50 =11.00 µg/ml), (IC50 =2.90 µg/ml) respectively. In spite of this, Vexibia alopecuroides extract showed no antioxidant activity. The other extracts showed a dose dependent ABTS scavenging activity. IC50 values were for the following: 6.6 µg/ml Epilobium hirsutum; 4.5 µg/ml Rumex confertus; 3.8 µg/ml Rhodiola quadrifida, 5.7 µg/ml Glycyrrhiza Uralensis. Extracts of Epilobium hirsutum and Rumex confertus had high antioxidant activity greater than 85% inhibition of DPPH (P ≤ 0.05). CONCLUSION: The demonstrated antimicrobial and antioxidant activities showed evidence supporting the use of herbal extracts to treat Diabetic Foot Syndrome.