Microbial transglutaminase: An overview of recent applications in food and packaging

Abstract

The glue of proteins, microbial transglutaminase (MTG) has been adopted in the food processing industries for its broad enzymatic action. Microorganisms such as Streptoverticillium and Streptomyces are the major sources, to decrease the cost of manufacturing animal origin transglutaminase. The net % increase of its demands in the food processing is estimated at 21.9% per year. In fact, MTG is consumed by most food industries, spanning the meat, dairy, seafood and fish, plant proteins, edible film preparation and more. It used to improve gelation and change foaming, emulsification, viscosity, consistency and water-holding capacity properties. This paper presents an overview of the literature that described and explored the recent microbial origins, production media and applications of microbial transglutaminase.     

Human spinal GABA neurons alleviate spasticity and improve locomotion in rats with spinal cord injury

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Punica granatum waste to ethanol valorisation employing optimized levels of saccharification and fermentation

Pomegranate peels (PPW) as municipal waste is inexpensive biomass that could be a renewable source of sugars particularly rich in hemicellulosic contents. The subsequent conversion of available sugars in PPW can provide prospective strategy for cost-effective bioenergy production. In this study, an experimental setup based on CCD was implemented with the aim of bioconversion of biomass into bioethanol. The factors considered were Hydrochloric acid concentration (X₁), the hydrolysis temperature (X₂) and time (X₃) for optimization with dilute Hydrochloric acid (HCl) saccharification. The present study investigates the optimised level of bioethanol synthesis from acid pre-treated PPW explained by RSM. Subsequently, three yeasts viz. Saccharomyces cerevisiae K7, Metschnikowia sp. Y31 and M. cibodasensis Y34 were utilized for fermentation of acid hydrolysed and detoxified feed stocks. Optimum values of reducing sugars 48.02 ± 0.02 (gL^?1) and total carbohydrates 205.88 ± 0.13 (gL^?1) were found when PPW was hydrolyzed with 1% HCl concentration at 100?C of temperature for 30 min. Later on, fermentation of PPWH after detoxification with 2.5% activated charcoal. The significant ethanol (g ethanol/g of reducing sugars) yields after fermentation with Metschnikowia sp. Y31 and M. cibodasensis Y34 found to be 0.40 ± 0.03 on day 5 and 0.41 ± 0.02 on last day of experiment correspondingly. Saccharomyces cerevisiae K7 also produce maximum ethanol 0.40 ± 0.00 on last day of incubation utilizing the PPWH. The bioconversion of commonly available PPW into bioethanol as emphasize in this study could be a hopeful expectation and also cost-effective to meet today energy crisis.     

Genetic Variability and Geographic Differentiation in Thymus daenensis subsp. daenensis, an Endangered Medicinal Plant, as Revealed by Inter Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR) Markers

Thymus daenensis is an aromatic medicinal plant endemic to Iran. We used inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers to detect genetic polymorphism in this herb using 17 T. daenensis accessions collected from different geographic regions in Iran. The 15 primers chosen for analysis revealed 256 bands, of which 228 (88.9%) were polymorphic. Jaccard’s similarity indices based on ISSR profiles were subjected to UPGMA cluster analysis. The generated dendrogram revealed two major groups. The Tc group included the accessions collected from the center of the Zagros Mountains, and the Te group was collected from the extremes of the Zagros range. A principal coordinate analysis confirmed the results of clustering. The results showed that the divergence of accessions based on the Zagros Mountains is more logical in comparison with classification on the basis of provincial borders. Gene diversity and expected heterozygosity were greater in the Tc group than in the Te group, suggesting that the germplasm collected from the center of the Zagros Mountains is more variable.     

The recovery of fertility during breast-feeding in Assiut, Egypt

A longitudinal study of twenty-six breast-feeding and twelve non-breast-feeding postpartum women was conducted in Assiut, Egypt in order to determine the time that ovulation resumed after childbirth, and the effect of breast-feeding frequency on the period of lactational anovulation. Breast-feeding women experienced the onset of follicular development, vaginal bleeding, ovulation and pregnancy significantly later than women who did not breast-feed. Ovulatory and non-ovulatory breast-feeders reported similar frequencies of breast-feeding episodes. The introduction of dietary supplements commonly preceded ovulation. An algorithm using three simple variables observable to the breast-feeding mother was found to predict up to 100% of the first ovulations. All breast-feeding women who did not give supplements and did not have a vaginal bleeding episode by 6 months postpartum were anovular by strict criteria for ovulation. Ovulation did not precede bleeding or supplementation in the women who experienced these events before 6 months, yielding a highly effective formula for preventing unplanned pregnancy by the informed use of breast-feeding.     

Protective Effects of Quercetin and Melatonin on Indomethacin Induced Gastric Ulcers in Rats

Background: Medications to prevent the development of NSAID-induced gastric ulcers have a large range of unpleasant side effects. Recent efforts have been focused on determining safer alternative nontoxic and natural forms of anti-ulcer treatments. Methods:Twenty-four male rats were divided into 4 groups: 1: control group that received no treatment; 2: the ndomethacin-treated group that received 20 mg/kg of indomethacin for 2 days to induce the development of gastric ulcers; 3: quercetin-treated group that in addition to the indomethacin treatment, received 50 mg/kg of quercetin 6 hours after and then daily for 14 days and; 4: the melatonin-treated group which received 20 mg/kg of melatonin 6 hours after each indomethacin treatment and then daily for 14 days. All drugs were administered orally. The following parameters were assessed in each group: mean ulcer index of gastric tissue, gastric acid volume and pH, oxidative stress markers: malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH), inflammatory markers: PGE-2, TNF-α, and IL-10, nitric oxide (NO) levels and the relative gene expression of BAX, BCL-2 and COX-2 by real time PCR.Results:Our findings revealed that the indomethacin-treated group had a significantly increased (p< 0.05) ulcer index, gastric acid volume, and elevated levels of stress, inflammatory, and apoptotic markers compared to controls. In the groups that received quercetin or melatonin, these factors were all significantly decreased (p< 0.05). Between quercetin and melatonin, there was no significant difference in their gastroprotective effect. Conclusion:Both quercetin and melatonin had protective antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiapoptotic activity against indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers.Key Words: Gastric ulcer, Indomethacin, Melatonin, Quercetin     

Tri-block co-polymer nanocarriers for enhancement of oral delivery of felodipine: preparation,in vitro characterization and ex vivo permeation

This study aimed to prepare, optimize and characterize novel felodipine-loaded polymeric nanomicelles, using a pluronic mixture of F127 and P123. Thin-film hydration method was adopted for the preparation of different polymeric nanomicelles (T1–T12) according to a 4¹.3¹ full factorial design. Factors studied were: Pluronic®:drug ratio (P:D ratio) (10, 20, 30 and 40?w/w) and percent of hydrophilic polymer (F127%) (33.33%, 50% and 66.67% w/w). Optimization criteria were to maximize transmittance percent (T%) and entrapment efficiency percent (EE%) and to minimize particle size (PS) and polydispersity index (PDI). The optimized formulation was further characterized by DSC, FTIR and ¹H NMR studies. It was also subjected to stability testing and ex vivo permeation using rabbit intestines. Spherical nanomicelles of particle size ranging from 26.18 to 87.54?nm were successfully obtained. The optimized formulation was found to be the already prepared formulation T12 (P:D ratio of 40 and 66.67% F127) with suitable T% and EE% of 95.12% and 91.75%, respectively. DSC, FTIR and ¹H NMR studies revealed felodipine (FLD) incorporation within T12 nanomicelles. T12 enhanced the ex vivo intestinal permeation of FLD when compared to a drug suspension and showed good stability. Therefore, pluronic nanomicelles could be promising for improved oral delivery of FLD.     

Clinical application of near infrared fiber optic spectroscopy for noninvasive bone assessment

Approaches for noninvasive bone quality assessment are of great clinical need, particularly in individuals that require close monitoring of disease progression. X‐ray measurements are standard approaches to assess bone quality; however, they have several disadvantages. Here, a nonionizing approach for noninvasive assessment of the second metacarpal bone based on near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy was investigated. Transcutaneous bone signal detection was experimentally confirmed with cadaveric hand data, and Monte Carlo modeling further indicated that 50% of the measured signals arise from bone. Spectral data were collected via a NIR fiber optic from the bone of individuals with osteogenesis imperfecta, a disease marked by frequent bone fractures and fragility. Multiple significant correlations were found between spectral parameters related to water, protein and fat, and standard bone quality parameters obtained by X‐ray measurements. The results from this preliminary study highlight the potential application of NIR spectroscopy for the noninvasive assessment of bone quality.