Flow Properties of Lambda Carrageenan in Aqueous Systems

Small amplitude oscillatory and steady shear measurements at 25°C were used to investigate the rheological behavior of λ‐carrageenan solutions at pH 7.0 ± 1.0 without and with added sodium counterion. The dynamic moduli, G′(ω) and G″(ω), show the typical behavior of macromolecular solutions in which the viscous character predominates. The steady shear flow exhibits a Newtonian zero‐shear viscosity (η0) region followed by a shear‐thinning zone. Viscosity data can be well described by the Carreau‐Yasuda model. Without added Na+, the intrinsic viscosity, [η], and the critical overlap concentration, C*, are 204 dL/g and 0.21%, respectively. With 20 mmol/dm3 Na+, [η] = 14.7 dL/g and C* = 0.38%. For concentrations below C*, the viscous character is more sensitive to the presence of added Na+, and the opposite occurs when the concentration exceeds C*. The dynamic moduli and viscosity increase with the increase of polysaccharide concentration, but they decrease with added Na+, confirming the polyelectrolyte nature of λ‐carrageenan. Empirical shift factors were used to obtain master curves for the dynamic moduli and apparent viscosity for different polysaccharide and added Na+ concentrations

Chemoenzymatic synthesis of polypeptides in neat 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane solvent

Chemoenzymatic polypeptide synthesis offers several advantages over chemical or other biological routes, however, the use of aqueous-based media suffers from reverse hydrolysis reactions that challenge peptide chain propagation. Herein, the protease from subtilisin Carlsberg biocatalyzed the synthesis of poly-L-PheOEt, poly-L-LeuOEt, and the copolymers poly-L-PheOEt-co-L-LeuOEt from their amino acid ethyl ester substrates in a neat liquid 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane solvent. The products, achieved in acceptable yields (ca. 50%), were fully characterized showing relatively high molar mass (ca. 20 000 Da for poly-L-PheOEt). This non-toxic low-boiling hydrofluorocarbon enhances enzymatic peptide propagation by limiting hydrolysis owing to its hydrophobic and relatively polar characteristics that sustain the protease activity and solubilize substrates and products. Computational molecular dynamic calculations were used to assess the L-PheOEt/L-LeuOEt-solvent and polypeptide-solvent interactions in this system. Additionally, the homopolypeptides displayed higher crystallinity than the copolypeptides with random incorporation of amino acid ethyl esters, notwithstanding the significantly highest specificity for Phe in this system. Interestingly, secondary structure characterization of the products by FTIR and circular dichroism suggests a non-common peptide folding

Intragastric structuring of anionic polysaccharide kappa-carrageenan filled gels under physiological in vitro digestion conditions

In the present work, sodium alginate (SA), low methoxyl pectin (PEC) and κ-carrageenan (κ-CAR) were evaluated for their intragastric structuring ability by means of light microscopy and dynamic oscillatory rheology. SA and PEC solutions, their Ca2+ complexed gel analogues as well as their binary blends with ionically or thermally set sheared κ-CAR gels, were subjected to in vitro orogastric conditions. SA and PEC – Ca2+ complexed sheared gels exerted the highest vulnerability to digestive fluid exposure due to the dialysis of egg-box dimer structures via proton-calcium exchange. Incorporation of SA and PEC systems to κ-CAR gels prevented the loss of mechanical strength of the gastric gels due to the ability of κ-CAR to undergo spontaneous gelation in the presence of Na+ and K+ ions. Binary blends of SA and PEC – Ca2+ complexed sheared gels with κ-CAR-Ca2+ gels exerted a significantly lower mechanical strength loss sensitivity against pH and counterion composition of the gastric fluids

Physicochemical characterization of sodium stearoyl lactylate (SSL), polyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate (Tween 20) and κ-carrageenan

Surfactant-polymer mixtures are common in food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. These components can interact with each other. The interactions depend on the type of polymer and surfactant, the purity of the ingredients, the ionic content and their concentration. Therefore, the data presented here provide valuable information that could be useful for those working with these mixtures in different applications, particularly in blends with polyelectrolytes and their counterions. This article contains experimental data about the physicochemical characterization of sodium stearoyl lactylate (SSL), polyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate (Tween 20) and κ-carrageenan. Techniques included atomic absorption, DSC, FTIR-ATR, NMR, and surface tension. Keywords: Sodium stearoyl lactylate, Tween 20, κ-carrageenan, Surface tension, Calorimetry, IR, NM

A novel approach to quantify dynamic variability during walking

Bibliography: p. 98-114Includes copies of ethics approval. Original copies with original Partial Copyright Licence

A holistic approach to study the temporal variability in gait

Movement variability has become an important field of research and has been studied to gain a better understanding of the neuro-muscular control of human movements. In addition to studies investigating “amplitude variability” there are a growing number of studies assessing the “temporal variability” in movements by applying non-linear analysis techniques. One limitation of the studies available to date is that they quantify variability features in specific, pre-selected biomechanical or physiological variables. In many cases it remains unclear if and to what degree these pre-selected variables quantify characteristics of the whole body movement. This technical note proposes to combine two analysis techniques that have already been applied for gait analysis in order to quantify variability features in walking with variables whose significance for the whole movements are known. Gait patterns were recorded using a full-body marker set on the subjects whose movements were captured with a standard motion tracing system. For each time frame the coordinates of all markers were interpreted as a high-dimensional “posture vector”. A principal component analysis (PCA) conducted on these posture vectors identified the main one-dimensional movement components of walking. Temporal variability of gait was then quantified by calculating the maximum Lyapunov Exponent (LyE) of these main movement components. The effectiveness of this approach was demonstrated by determining differences in temporal variability between walking in unstable shoes and walking in a normal athletic-type control shoe. Several additional conceptual and practical advantages of this combination of analysis methods were discussed