Fungal Pathogens Associated With Roselle (Hibiscus Sabdariffa) In Penang, And Controls

The main objective of this study was to identify and characterize fungal pathogens associated with Roselle diseases in Penang, and to study their control. A total of 200 fungal isolates were obtained from 90 samples of symptomatic Roselle tissues. The isolates were identified based on cultural and morphological characteristics, as well as their pathogenicity. The fungal pathogen most frequently isolated was Phoma exigua (present in 45 % of the samples collected), followed by Fusarium nygamai (25 %), Rhizoctonia solani (19 %) and F. camptoceras (11 %)

Synthesis, characterization,andcytotoxicityoftheplasmidEGFP-p53 loaded onpullulan–spermine magneticnanoparticles

Magnetic nanoparticleshavebeenusedaseffectivevehiclesforthetargeteddeliveryoftherapeutic agents thatcanbecontrolledintheirconcentrationanddistributiontoadesiredpartofthebodyby using externallydrivenmagnets.Thisstudyfocusesonthesynthesis,characterization,andfunctionali- zation ofpullulan–spermine (PS)magneticnanoparticlesformedicalapplications.Magnetitenano- powder wasproducedbythermaldecompositionofgoethite(FeOOH)inoleicacidand1-octadecene; pullulan–spermine wasdepositedonthemagnetitenanoparticlesintheformofpullulan–spermine clusters. EGFP-p53plasmidwasloadedonfunctionalizedironoleatetotransferintocells.Synthesized nanoparticles werecharacterizedbyFouriertransforminfraredspectroscopy(FTIR),dynamiclight scattering (DLS),vibratingsamplemagnetometry(VSM),andtransmissionelectronmicroscopy(TEM). The encapsulationefficiency anddrugloadingefficiency ofthenanocomplexesweretested.FTIRstudies showedthepresenceofoleicacidand1-octadeceneintheironoleatenanopowderandverified the interactionbetweenspermineandpullulan.ThecharacteristicbandsofPSinthespectrumofthepull- ulan–spermine-coated ironoleate(PSCFO)confirmed thatPScoveredthesurfaceoftheironoleate particles. TEMstudiesshowedtheaveragesizeoftheironoleatenanopowder,thePSCFO,andthe plasmid-carrying PSCFO(PSCFO/pEGFP-p53)tobe34712nm,100750 nmand17273 nm,respec- tively.MagneticmeasurementsrevealedthatmagneticsaturationofthePSCFOwaslowerincomparison with theironoleatenanopowderduetothepresenceoforganiccompoundsintheformer.Incytotoxicity tests performedusingU87cellsasglioblastomacells,a92

Cationic b-Cyclodextrin–Chitosan Conjugates as Potential Carrier for pmCherry-C1 Gene Delivery

In this study cationic b-cyclodextrin-chitosanmediated nanoparticles were used to transfer pmCherry-C1 into glioblastoma cells and their transfection efficiency were compared to lipofectamine and electroporation. Physicochemical characteristics of nanoparticles were evaluated by photon correlation spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Electrophoretic nuclease resistance and stability assays were used to check the protection of DNA from nucleases digestion. mCherry reporter construct was used for visualization, followed by quantitation of cell survival and gene expression by fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis and fluorescence microscopy. Particle size was approximately 200 nm and did not change at 4 �C even after 12 weeks. Importantly, the positively charged complexes interacted with DNA could serve as an efficient DNA delivery systems. Most of the gene was associated with the nanoparticles and was efficiently protected from DNAse I digestion. More than 80 % of transfected cells expressed mCherry efficiently

Suspension Culture Alters Insulin Secretion in Induced Human Umbilical Cord Matrix-Derived Mesenchymal Cells

Objective: Worldwide, diabetes mellitus (DM) is an ever-increasing metabolic disorder. A promising approach to the treatment of DM is the implantation of insulin producing cells (IPC) that have been derived from various stem cells. Culture conditions play a pivotal role in the quality and quantity of the differentiated cells. In this experimental study, we have applied various culture conditions to differentiate human umbilical cord matrix-derived mesenchymal cells (hUCMs) into IPCs and measured insulin production. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, we exposed hUCMs cells to pancreatic medium and differentiated them into IPCs in monolayer and suspension cultures. Pancreatic medium consisted of serum-free Dulbecco’s modified eagle’s medium Nutrient mixture F12 (DMEM/F12) medium with 17.5 mM glucose supplemented by 10 mM nicotinamide, 10 nM exendin-4, 10 nM pentagastrin, 100 pM hepatocyte growth factor, and B-27 serum-free supplement. After differentiation, insulin content was analyzed by gene expression, immunocytochemistry (IHC) and the chemiluminesence immunoassay (CLIA). Results: Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) showed efficient expressions of NKX2.2, PDX1 and INSULIN genes in both groups. IHC analysis showed higher expression of insulin protein in the hanging drop group, and CLIA revealed a significant higher insulin production in hanging drops compared with the monolayer group following the glucose challenge test. Conclusion: We showed by this novel, simple technique that the suspension culture played an important role in differentiation of hUCMs into IPC. This culture was more efficient than the conventional culture method commonly used in IPC differentiation and cultivation

Potential Use of Microbial Surfactant in Microemulsion Drug Delivery System: A Systematic Review

Background: Microemulsions drug delivery systems (MDDS) have been known to increase the bioavailability of hydrophobic drugs. The main challenge of the MDDS is the development of an effective and safe system for drug carriage and delivery. Biosurfactants are preferred surface-active molecules because of their lower toxicity and safe characteristics when compared to synthetic surfactants. Glycolipid and lipopeptide are the most common biosurfactants that were tested for MDDS. The main goal of the present systematic review was to estimate the available evidence on the role of biosurfactant in the development of MDDS. Search Strategy: Literature searches involved the main scientific databases and were focused on the period from 2005 until 2017. The Search filter composed of two items: �Biosurfactant� and/or �Microemulsion.� Inclusion Criteria: Twenty-four studies evaluating the use of biosurfactant in MDDS were eligible for inclusion. Among these 14 were related to the use of glycolipid biosurfactants in the MDDS formulations, while four reported using lipopeptide biosurfactants and six other related review articles. Results: According to the output study parameters, biosurfactants acted as active stabilizers, hydrophilic or hydrophobic linkers and safety carriers in MDDS, and among them glycolipid biosurfactants had the most application in MDDS formulations. Conclusion: Synthetic surfactants could be replaced by biosurfactants as an effective biosource for MDDS due to their excellent self-assembling and emulsifying activity properties. © 2020 Ohadi et al