Effects of Ganoderma lucidium (Lingzhi) on cell proliferation and cytokine production of synovial fibroblasts from rheumatoid arthritis

published_or_final_versio

mTOR pathway and mTOR inhibitors in head and heck cancer

published_or_final_versio

Outcome analysis of epilepsy surgery in Queen Mary Hospital

published_or_final_versio

mTOR pathway and mTOR inhibitors in head and heck cancer

published_or_final_versio

Hypoxia in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

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Expression of Epstein-Barr virus-encoded BamH1-A rightward transcript 7 microRNA in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells modulates the responsive to irradiation treatment

published_or_final_versio

Effect of heat, pH and coating process with stearic acid using a fluidized bed granulator on viability of probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri C 10

This study was conducted to investigate the use of a fluidized bed granulator to coat a probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri C 10 with stearic acid with a view to enhance its survival rate during storage. L reuteri C 10 cells of two treatments, namely, freeze-dried cells incorporated with trehalose and sucrose as cryoprotectants prior to freeze-drying, and freeze-dried cells without any incorporation of cryoprotectants were evaluated. Since the pH of stearic acid is 5.5 and the melting point is 57.23°C, and the inlet temperature of the fluidized bed granulator could be as high as 70°C, a preliminary study was initiated to determine the tolerance of L. reuteri C 10 cells to heat exposure from 58 to 70°C and acidic conditions of pH 4 to 6 for 60 min, during which the cell viabilities were determined every 15 min. In the coating process, 2:3 ratio of freeze-dried L. reuteri C 10 cells and stearic acid, fluidization air of 20 to 50 rpm, coating rate of 40 to 80 g/min and inlet and outlet temperatures of between 50 to 70°C were assessed for optimization of the fluidized bed granulator. Results of the  preliminary study showed that freeze-dried L. reuteri C 10 cells incorporated with cryoprotectants exhibited significantly (P < 0.05) less cell loss than cells without cryoprotectants when exposed to 62°C for 15 to 60 min, 64 °C for 15 to 30 min, 66°C for 30 min and 68°C for 15 to 30 min. Freeze-dried L. reuteri C 10 cells with cryoprotectants were also able to survive for 15 min at 70°C, but not freeze-dried L. reuteri C 10 cells without cryoprotectants. Freeze-dried L. reuteri C 10 cells with or without cryoprotectants could tolerate acidic conditions and there was growth and increase in cell viability at pH 4, 5 and 6. However, cells with cryoprotectants had significantly (P < 0.05) more growth when exposed to pH 5 for 30 to 60 min, and pH 6 for 15 to 60 min than cells without cryoprotectants. The application of a fluidized bed granulator to coat L. reuteri C 10 cells with or without cryoprotectants with melted stearic was not successful in this study because the fluidized bed granulator could not maintain the temperature of stearic acid above its melting point which led to clogging of the tube and spray nozzle of the fluidized bed granulator or resulted in the formation of a big lump of stearic acid and L. reuteri C 10 cells instead of uniform coated cell granules. Installation of a temperature jacket on the fluidized bed granulator may be necessary to control the temperature of stearic acid in the tube and spray nozzle above melting point.Key words: Coating, fluidized bed granulator, Lactobacillus reuteri C10, stearic acid

The diagnostic value of methylated DNA in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma: meta-analysis

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Efficiency of rice straw lignocelluloses degradability by Aspergillus terreus ATCC 74135 in solid state fermentation

The ability of Aspergillus terreus for the production of cellulolytic enzymes and reduction of lignocellulose contents of rice straw in solid state fermentation was investigated in this study. Results suggested that, 8 days fermentation was appropriate, with enzymes activities as follows: FPase = 410.76 U/gDM, CMCase = 351.96U/gDM, -glucosidase = 16.37 U/gDM, xylanase = 6166.01 U/gDM and amyloglucosidase = 425.04 U/gDM (with maximum 993.71 U/gDM on day 6). In addition, the solid state fermentation significantly (P < 0.01) reduced the concentrations of NDF, ADF, cellulose and hemicellulose in the rice straw by 19.96, 13.8, 16.32 and 32.87%, respectively. The high degradation of the hemicellulose was reflected by the high activity of xylanase enzyme, which hydrolyses xylan in hemicellulose to xylose. Higher reducing sugar and microbial cell mass productions were also obtained after 8 days fermentation. Present data showed that, A. terreus is capable of producing high quantity of cellulolytic enzymes for the reduction of lignocellulose contents of biomass in a shorter incubation time when compared with the previously reported for biological treatment of agricultural by-products using white rot fungi.Key words: Aspergillus terreus, biomass, biological treatment, enzyme activity, solid state fermentation

Effects of Aspergillus niger (K8) on nutritive value of rice straw

The objective of this study was to evaluate the use of solid state fermentation for the improvement of the quality of rice straw as animal feed. Rice straw was fermented using Aspergillus niger (K8) with and without additional nitrogen source (urea). Cellulose, hemicelluloses, organic matter (OM), dry matter (DM), acid detergent fibre (ADF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent lignin (ADL) contents of rice straw were determined before and after 10 days of fermentation. Fermentation has significant (P < 0.01) effect on NDF, but not ADF and ADL contents. Addition of urea as nitrogen source significantly reduced (P < 0.01) the NDF and hemicellulose contents of fermented rice straw. Cellulose content of the rice straw was not affected (P > 0.05), but crude protein (CP) increased significantly (P < 0.01) after fermentation. In vitro gas production technique was used to evaluate the effect of the biological treatment on activity of rumen microorganisms. Fermentation of rice straw using A. niger significantly reduced total gas production (P < 0.01), DM disappearance (P < 0.01) and acetate, propionate and  total volatile fatty acids (VFA) production (P < 0.05). Results of the present study showed that solid state fermentation of rice straw using A. niger reduced lignocellulose content, but has negative effect on microbial activity in the rumen ecosystem, presumably due to antagonistic activity of A. niger, or other intermediate products from the fermentation, on the rumen microorganisms.Key words: Aspergillus niger, biomass, solid state fermentation, biological treatment, in vitro gas production