Chemical composition effects onto antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of propolis collected from different regions of Turkey

Chrysin, apigenin, flavonoids, flavanones, naringenin, ethyl oleate, 3-4-dimethoxy-cinnamic acid and 9-octadecenoic acid were the predominant components of propolis samples collected from different regions of Turkey. The extracts of P3 from Denizli-Ba?karci, P5 from Denizli and P7 from Tekirda? had effective antibacterial activities on Gram-negatives. Chrysin, which has antibacterial activity, was found to be high concentration. The extracts of P3, P2B from Aydin and P6 from Konya had much more effective antibacterial activities on Gram-positives. The total antioxidant activity increased with the increasing amount of extracts added to linoleic acid emulsion. All doses of propolis ethanol extract displayed antioxidant activity.     

Antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of ethanolic extract fromLepista nuda (Bull.) Cooke

Antioxidant capacity and antimicrobial activities ofLepista nuda (Bull.) Cooke extracts obtained with ethanol were investigated. Four complementary test systems, namely DPPH free radical scavenging, β-carotene/linoleic acid systems, total phenolic compounds and total flavonoid concentration, have been used. Linoleic, acid inhibition values ofL. nuda ethanolic extract, BHA and α-to copherol standards were found to be 84.3% 98.9% and 99.2% respectively in the concentration of 160μg/ml. Total flavonoid amount was 8.21 ± 0.56 μg mg^?1 quercetin equivalent while the phenolic compound amount was 48.01 ± 0.29 μg mg^?1 pyrocatechol equivalent in the extract. The antimicrobial activity ofL. nuda extract was testedin vitro by using the agar-well diffusion method. TheL. nuda extract showed antibacterial activity againstMicrococcus flavus, Micrococcus luteus, Bacillus cereus, Yersinia enterocolitica, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella enteritidis andEscherichia coli. TheL. nuda extract did not exhibit antican didal activity againstCandida albicans. The extracts could be suitable as antimicrobial and antioxidativeagents in the food industry.     

Determination of the Effects of Bee Venom on Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells in Vitro

Honeybees provide multiple products such as bee venom (BV) which are used for various nutritional and medicinal purposes. BV has received great attention due to its wide range of bioactive components with potential anti-cancer effects on different cancers. Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is defined as an aggressive type of breast cancer and new therapeutic targets are required for its treatment. In the current literature information is varied about the composition and quantity of BV bioactive compounds as well as the origin of BV and its significance. In this context, the cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of BV with a higher rate of mellitin from Apis mellifera anatoliaca (Muğla ecotype) on MDA-MB-231 cells was evaluated, in vitro. The cytotoxic, apoptotic and morphological effects of BV were determined by WST-1, Annexin V, cell cycle analysis and Acridine Orange staining. The results showed that BV caused apoptotic cell death in TNBC cells at a lower dose (0.47 μg/mL, p<0.01). This study suggests that BV could be developed as a potential therapeutic agent for cancer treatment. However, the mechanism of BV-induced apoptosis death should be clarified at the molecular level.     

Predicting dominant phytoplankton quantities in a reservoir by using neural networks

A 14.6 m long profile from the northern part of the Hulun lake, the furthest north of the large lakes of China, has provided a sedimentary and diatom record since the late Glacial. The chronological sequence was established based on 10 radiocarbon dates. Sedimentological study and diatom analysis are synthesized for the reconstruction of the history of lake-level changes. The results show that the Hulun basin was not occupied by a lake during the Last Glaciation. A rapid transition to a deep lake occurred since 12850 yr B.P., and this high level phase lasted to 11200 yr B.P., although there existed several subordinate lake level fluctuations. An abrupt lake level drop and dry climatic conditions occurred during 11200–10600 yr B.P. The lake became deeper again from 10600 yr B.P. to 10300 yr B.P. Hulun lake at the early Holocene was characterized by the low lake-level, and the lake level rose again in 7200–5800 yr B.P., though the lake-levels changed quite variably. A dry condition occurred and lake level declined again during 5800–3000 yr B.P. The presence of the palaeosol on the top of this profile indicates the persistence of low lake levels after 3000 yr B.P. The comparison with the other lake-level records from northern China has suggested that the Hulun Lake shows a different lake level history from the lakes in monsoon areas.     

Waypoint based path planner for socially aware robot navigation

Cluster Computing - Social navigation is beneficial for mobile robots in human inhabited areas. In this paper, we focus on smooth path tracking and handling disruptions during plan execution in...     

Seasonal and long term changes of the phytoplankton in the lake Tortum in relation to environmental factors, Erzurum, Turkey

Seasonal changes in phytoplankton community structure of the lake Tortum were studied over one year period, from March 2002 to February 2003. The collected data were compared with the data collected 21 years ago. Chlamydomonas microsphaerella, Cyclotella krammeri, C. glomerata, and Ceratium hirundinella were identified to be dominant several times during the study period. Species diversity and biomass of the phytoplankton were very low in spite of sufficient and high levels of nutrient concentrations. Maximum phytoplankton density levels were observed during summer and late autumn. Phytoplankton density was positively correlated with nutrients, temperature and pH, and it was negatively correlated with Secchi depth and dissolved oxygen. Phytoplankton growths were negatively affected from water transparency and high levels of water mass transport (circulation) and velocity in the lake.