Preparation of Edible Corn Starch Phosphate with Highly Reactive Sodium Tripolyphosphate in the Absence of Catalyst

Purpose: To prepare edible corn starch phosphate under optimized experimental conditions.Methods: Edible corn starch phosphate was prepared via the reaction of starch with active sodium tripolyphosphate. Reaction efficiency and viscosity were used as indices to optimize experimental conditions. Freeze-thaw stability and transparency of starch phosphate and native starch were comparatively studied.Results: Starch phosphate with optimal combined phosphate content (0.39 %) was obtained under optimized conditions: reaction duration, 90 min; temperature, 160 oC; pH, 5.0; and phosphate, 1.5 g. Starch phosphate with optimal viscosity (230 cp) was obtained under different conditions: reaction duration, 120 min; temperature, 140 oC; pH, 6.0; and phosphate, 1.5 g. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed in syneresis and paste transparency of starch phosphate and native starch.Conclusion: Edible corn starch phosphate has been successfully prepared under optimized experimental conditions whose freeze-thaw stability and paste transparency has obvious improvement compared with native starch.Keywords: Starch phosphate, Combined phosphate, Sodium tripolyphosphate, Syneresis, Paste efficienc

3D fracture propagation simulation and pressure decline analysis research for I-shaped fracture of coalbed

After hydraulic fracturing, some treatments intended for production enhancement fail to yield predetermined effects. The main reason is the insufficient research about the fracture propagation mechanism. There is compelling evidence that I-shaped fracture, two horizontal fractures at the junction of coalbed and cover/bottom layer, and one vertical fracture in the coalbed have formed in part of the coalbed after hydraulic fracturing. Therefore, this paper aims at I-shaped fracture propagation simulation. A novel propagation model is derived on the basis of a three-dimensional (3D) model, and the coupling conditions of vertical fracture and horizontal fractures are established based on the flow rate distribution and the bottom-hole pressure equality, respectively. Moreover, an associated PDA (pressure decline analysis of post-fracturing) model is established. Both models complement with each other and work together to guide fracturing treatment. Finally, a field case is studied to show that the proposed models can effectively investigate and simulate fracture initiation/propagation and pressure decline

Development and validation of a sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for clonidine hydrochloride in pig urine and pork samples

Clonidine hydrochloride (CLO) is a new substitute for a traditionally used adrenergic agonist. The illegal use of CLO in the livestock industry possess potential harm to human health. Hence, it is an urgent need for the rapid detection of CLO residues. Here, we prepared a highly sensitive and specific monoclonal antibody (mAb) and it used to develop an indirect competitive ELISA (ic-ELISA) for the rapid screening of CLO residues. The limit of detection and limit of quantification values of ic-ELISA were as follows: 0.033 and 0.054 ng/mL for pig urine and 0.061 and 0.096 ng/mL for pork, respectively. Recovery experiment indicated that the ic-ELISA posed outstanding accuracy and precision. Furthermore, the results of ic-ELISA were strongly correlated to the results of HPLC. Thus, the ic-ELISA provided a sensitive and rapid on-site detection of CLO residues in pig urine and pork samples

Impaired Inflammatory Responses in Murine Lrrk2-Knockdown Brain Microglia

LRRK2, a Parkinson's disease associated gene, is highly expressed in microglia in addition to neurons; however, its function in microglia has not been evaluated. Using Lrrk2 knockdown (Lrrk2-KD) murine microglia prepared by lentiviral-mediated transfer of Lrrk2-specific small inhibitory hairpin RNA (shRNA), we found that Lrrk2 deficiency attenuated lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced mRNA and/or protein expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase, TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6. LPS-induced phosphorylation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and stimulation of NF-κB-responsive luciferase reporter activity was also decreased in Lrrk2-KD cells. Interestingly, the decrease in NF-κB transcriptional activity measured by luciferase assays appeared to reflect increased binding of the inhibitory NF-κB homodimer, p50/p50, to DNA. In LPS-responsive HEK293T cells, overexpression of the human LRRK2 pathologic, kinase-active mutant G2019S increased basal and LPS-induced levels of phosphorylated p38 and JNK, whereas wild-type and other pathologic (R1441C and G2385R) or artificial kinase-dead (D1994A) LRRK2 mutants either enhanced or did not change basal and LPS-induced p38 and JNK phosphorylation levels. However, wild-type LRRK2 and all LRRK2 mutant variants equally enhanced NF-κB transcriptional activity. Taken together, these results suggest that LRRK2 is a positive regulator of inflammation in murine microglia, and LRRK2 mutations may alter the microenvironment of the brain to favor neuroinflammation

Effects of low molecular sugars on the retrogradation of tapioca starch gels during storage.

The effects of low molecular sugars (sucrose, glucose and trehalose) on the retrogradation of tapioca starch (TS) gels stored at 4°C for different periods were examined with different methods. Decrease in melting enthalpy (ΔHmelt) were obtained through differential scanning calorimetry analysis. Analysis of decrease in crystallization rate constant (k) and increase in semi-crystallization time (τ1/2) results obtained from retrogradation kinetics indicated that low molecular sugars could retard the retrogradation of TS gels and further revealed trehalose as the best inhibitor among the sugars used in this study. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis indicated that the intensity ratio of 1047 to 1022 cm-1 was increased with the addition of sugars in the order of trehalose > sucrose > glucose. Decrease in hardness parameters and increase in springiness parameters obtained from texture profile analysis (TPA) analysis also indicated that low molecular sugars could retard the retrogradation of TS gels. The results of FTIR and TPA showed a consistent sugar effect on starch retrogradation with those of DSC and retrogradation kinetics analysis

Prevalence, Molecular Characterization, and Antibiotic Susceptibility of Cronobacter sakazakii Isolates from Powdered Infant Formula Collected from Chinese Retail Markets

Cronobacter sakazakii is an opportunistic pathogen that causes severe infections in neonates and infants through contaminated powdered infant formula (PIF). Therefore, the aim of this study was a large-scale study on determine the prevalence, molecular characterization and antibiotic susceptibility of C. sakazakii isolates from PIF purchased from Chinese retail markets. Two thousand and twenty PIF samples were collected from different institutions. Fifty-six C. sakazakii strains were isolated, and identified using fusA sequencing analysis, giving a contamination rate of 2.8%. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was more discriminatory than other genotyping methods. The C. sakazakii isolates were divided into 14 sequence types (STs) by MLST, compared with only seven clusters by ompA and rpoB sequence analysis, and four C. sakazakii serotypes by PCR-based O-antigen serotyping. C. sakazakii ST4 (19/56, 33.9%), ST1 (12/56, 21.4%), and ST64 (11/56, 16.1%) were the dominant sequence types isolated. C. sakazakii serotype O2 (34/56, 60.7%) was the primary serotype, along with ompA6 and rpoB1 as the main allele profiles, respectively. Antibiotic susceptibility testing indicated that all C. sakazakii isolates were susceptible to ampicillin-sulbactam, cefotaxime, ciprofloxacin, meropenem, tetracycline, piperacillin-tazobactam, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. The majority of C. sakazakii strains were susceptible to chloramphenicol and gentamicin (87.5 and 92.9%, respectively). In contrast, 55.4% C. sakazakii strains were resistant to cephalothin. In conclusion, this large-scale study revealed the prevalence and characteristics of C. sakazakii from PIF in Chinese retail markets, demonstrating a potential risk for neonates and infants, and provide a guided to effective control the contamination of C. sakazakii in production process

Retrogradation kinetics parameters of TS gel without or with sugars.

<p>Retrogradation kinetics parameters of TS gel without or with sugars.</p

<i>R</i>(1047/1022) of TS gel (10%) without or with sugars after refrigerated storage.

<p>(Samples No. 1 is TS gel without sugars and sample Nos. 2, 3 and 4 are TS gel with glucose, sucrose and trehalose, respectively).</p

Retrogradation kinetics parameters of TS gel without or with sugars.

<p>Retrogradation kinetics parameters of TS gel without or with sugars.</p

IR spectra of TS gel (10%) without sugars after refrigerated storage.

<p>(a) Original IR spectra (b) deconvoluted IR spectra (c) peak-fitted IR spectra.</p