Structure‐Function Relationships of Rhamnolipid and Exopolysacharide Biosurfactants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa as Therapeutic Targets in Cystic Fibrosis Lung Infections

Chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection is the cause of much morbidity and most of the mortality in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. The high prevalence of P. aeruginosa infections in CF is related to the microbe\u27s large genome and mechanisms of adaptation to the CF lung environment, the host immune system and antibiotic resistance. Among a wide range of P. aeruginosa metabolites involved in infection development in CF, the biosurfactant compounds, rhamnolipids (RLs) and exopolysaccharides (EPSs), have important roles in the early stages of P. aeruginosa infection in CF. RLs and EPSs are involved in bacterial adhesion, biofilm formation, antibiotic resistance, and impairment of host immune system pathways, as well as in processes such as biofilm maintenance and the mucoid phenotype of P. aeruginosa, which lead to development of chronic infection. Due to the proposed roles of RLs and EPSs and the importance of prevention and treatment of P. aeruginosa respiratory infections in CF, these compounds are promising targets for patient therapy. In the future, impairment of P. aeruginosa quorum sensing (QS) pathways and modification of host respiratory mucus epithelial membranes should be considered as potential approaches in preventing respiratory infections caused by this microbe in CF patients

The fungistatic activity of organic selenium and its application to the production of cultivated mushrooms Agaricus bisporus and Pleurotus spp.

The activity of organic selenium against pathogenic molds and its use as a potential selenium source in the production of enriched mushrooms were examined. The effect of commercial selenized yeast on mycelia growth was examined using a method with mycelia disks and a well diffusion method. For mushroom enrichment, different concentrations of selenium were added to a growth substrate. The results presented in this paper suggest that the most suitable concentration of selenized yeast that inhibits the growth of the mycopathogenic molds is 70-100 mg/kg of selenium. With the addition of this concentration to the substrate, mushroom fruit bodies will uptake a high level of selenium, about 100 μg/g for Pleurotus spp., and 200 μg/g for Agaricus bisporus in dry weight of the mushroom. Thereby a double effect in the cultivation of mushrooms is achieved

The thermal stability of poly(methyl methacrylate) prepared by RAFT polymerisation

Poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA, was prepared by reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer, RAFT, polymerisation using 2-(2-cyanopropyl)-dithiobenzoate, CPDB, as the RAFT agent. The thermal stability of the resulting polymer approached that of anionically prepared PMMA, as determined by thermogravimetry. This was the consequence of the RAFT prepared polymer having no head-to-head links and no chain end double bonds, which are responsible for the relatively low thermal stability of radically prepared PMMA