Search results for: BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES
-
Antioxidants: a premature scientific hypothesis that reshuffled the traditional food pyramid
PublicationAntioxidants present in substantial amounts in foods, plant-based products in particular, have been suggested as chemopreventive agents that can curb the development of undesirable health effects caused by oxidative stress simply by enriching diet in such compounds. This idea has been enthusiastically accepted by consumers, as well as food and pharmaceutical industry, and created great demand for products containing antioxidant...
-
Scientific research in the Department of Machine Design and Automotive Engineering
PublicationShort descriptions of various research subjects taken up at the Department of Machine Design and Automotive Engineering are included in the paper. The subjects cover a wide range of bearing systems and tribology research and the research on tires and road surfaces. A third field of activity is biomedical engineering – with the attempts to improve methods of modelling biological materials in FEM calculations. The Department has...
-
Fiber optic microsphere with a ZnO thin film for potential application in a refractive index sensor – theoretical study
PublicationOptical fiber sensors of refractive index play an important role in analysis of biological and chemical samples. This work presents a theoretical investigation of spectral response of a fiber optic microsphere with a zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film deposited on the surface and evaluates the prospect of using such a structure for refractive index sensing. A microsphere is fabricated by an optical fiber tapering method on the base of...
-
Distribution and extent of benthic habitats in Puck Bay (Gulf of Gdańsk, southern Baltic Sea)
PublicationThe majority of the southern Baltic Sea seabed encompasses homogenous soft-bottom sediments of limited productivity and low biological diversity, but shallow productive areas in the coastal zone such as wetlands, vegetated lagoons and sheltered bays show a high variety of benthic habitat types offering favourable biotopic conditions for benthic fauna. Within Polish marine areas, semi-enclosed Puck Bay (the western part of the...
-
Synthesis, characterization, and interactions of single-walled carbon nanotubes modified with doxorubicin with Langmuir–Blodgett biomimetic membranes
PublicationThe synthesis, characterization, and the influence of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) modified with an anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOx) on the properties of model biological membrane as well as the comparison of the two modes of modification has been presented. The drug was covalently attached to the nanotubes either preferentially on the sides or at the ends of the nanotubes by the formation of hydrazone bond. The efficiency...
-
Cyclodextrin polymers as efficient adsorbents for removing toxic non-biodegradable pimavanserin from pharmaceutical wastewaters
PublicationPresence of even small amount of active pharmaceutical ingredients in the environment carries risks tohuman and animal health, presenting an important issue. The paper presents issues related to the newdrug - pimavanserin (PMV). Biological treatment efficiency of pimavanserin (PMV) was evaluated usinglab-scale Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR). It has been shown to have a negative effect on aquatic or-ganisms by classifying it as...
-
Electrochemical determination of neurotransmitter serotonin using boron/nitrogen co-doped diamond-graphene nanowall-structured particles
PublicationElectrode fouling is a major issue in biological detection due to the adhesion of the protein itself and polymerization of biomolecules on the electrode surface, impeding the electron transfer ability and decreasing the current response. To overcome this issue, the use of anti-fouling material, especially boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrode, is an alternative way. However, the electrocatalytic activity of BDD is inadequate compared...
-
Influence of Different Nanometals Implemented in PMMA Bone Cement on Biological and Mechanical Properties
PublicationCemented arthroplasty is a common process to fix prostheses when a patient becomes older and his/her bone quality deteriorates. The applied cements are biocompatible, can transfer loads, and dampen vibrations, but do not provide antibacterial protection. The present work is aimed at the development of cement with antibacterial effectivity achieved with the implementation of nanoparticles of different metals. The powders of Ag,...
-
Electrochemistry/mass spectrometry (EC/MS) for fast generation and identification of novel reactive metabolites of two unsymmetrical bisacridines with anticancer activity.
PublicationThe development of a new drug requires knowledge about its metabolic fate in a living organism, regarding the comprehensive assessment of both drug therapeutic activity and toxicity profiles. Electrochemistry (EC) coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) is an efficient tool for predicting the phase I metabolism of redox-sensitive drugs. In particular, EC/MS represents a clear advantage for the generation of reactive drug transformation...
-
Comparative Analysis of Exoskeletal Actuators
PublicationSince the beginning of the development of exoskeletons in the early 1960s there was a constant need for improving their actuators technology. Requirements for high power and torque for the lower body and very high precision for the hand motion, while maintaining the flexibility of biological muscles, are still not fully satisfied. The problem lies not just in the lack of appropriate actuator technology, but also in the inability...
-
Evolution of Animats Following a Moving Target in an Artificial Ecosystem
PublicationMany biological animals, even microscopically small, are able to track moving sources of food. In this paper, we investigate the emergence of such behavior in artificial animals (animats) in a 2-dimensional simulated liquid environment. These "predators" are controlled by evolving artificial gene regulatory networks encoded in linear genomes. The fate of the predators is determined only by their ability to gather food and reproduce—no...
-
Phosphate and Thiophosphate Biphenyl Analogs as Steroid Sulfatase Inhibitors
PublicationIn the present work, we report convenient methods for the synthesis and biological evaluation of phosphate and thiophosphate biphenyl derivatives exhibiting steroid sulfatase (STS) activity. The described synthesis is based on straightforward preparation of biphenyl-4-ol and 40-hydroxybiphenyl- 4-carboxylic acid ethyl ester modified with various phosphate or thiophosphate moieties. The inhibitory effects of these compounds were...
-
Biocompatibility and Bioactivity of Load-Bearing Metallic Implants
PublicationThe main objective of here presented research is to develop the titanium (Ti) alloy base composite materials possessing better biocompatibility, longer lifetime and bioactivity behaviour for load-bearing implants, e.g. hip joint and knee joint endoprosthesis. The development of such materials is performed through: modeling the material behaviour in biological environment in long time and developing of new procedures for such evaluation;...
-
Bacterial nanocellulose as a microbiological derived nanomaterial
PublicationBacterial nanocellulose (BNC) is a nanofibrilar polymer produced by strains such as Gluconacetobacter xylinus, one of the best bacterial species which given the highest efficiency in cellulose production. Bacterial cellulose is a biomaterial having unique properties such as: chemical purity, good mechanical strength, high flexibility, high absorbency, possibility of forming any shape and size and many others. Such a large number...
-
Crystal structures of (E)-3-(4-hydroxybenzylidene)chroman-4-one and (E)-3-(3-hydroxybenzylidene)-2-phenylchroman-4-one
PublicationThe synthesis and crystal structures of (E)-3-(4-hydroxybenzylidene)chroman-4-one, C16H12O3,I, and (E)-3-(3-hydroxybenzylidene)-2-phenylchroman-4-one,C22H16O3,II, are reported. These compounds are of interest with respect to biological activity. Both structures display intermolecular C—H---O and O—H---O hydrogen bonding, forming layers in the crystal lattice. The crystal structure of compound I is consolidated...
-
On phase equilibrium of an elastic liquid shell with wedge disclination
PublicationBased on the six-parameter shell theory we consider the phase equilibrium of a two-phase liquid membrane containing a wedge disclination. The considered problems are related to modelling of phase transitions in biological or lipid membranes. In order to capture the membrane behaviour we consider a special case of elastic shells which energy is invariant under major transformations of a reference configuration and can be treated...
-
Application of ionic liquids in microextraction techniques: Current trends and future perspectives
PublicationIonic liquids (ILs) with their unique properties found so far numerous analytical applications. Among them ILs both in their liquid form and immobilized on the surface or within the pores of a solid support were successfully utilized in microextraction techniques. The scope of this review will cover a comprehensive summarizing of available literature data on selected properties of ILs playing a key role in analytical purposes,...
-
Efficient synthesis and antifungal investigation of nucleosides’ quaternary ammonium salt derivatives
PublicationQuaternary ammonium salts are a group of compounds with diverse biological properties, the most important of which are their antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal activities. The quaternization reactions of 5'-O-tosyl derivatives of uridine and thymidine with triethylamine, trimethylamine, 4-(N ,N -dimethylamino)pyridine, 2-methylpyridine, and pyridine are described in this article. Two of the synthesized compounds are exceptional...
-
Label‐free optical detection of cyclosporine in biological fluids
PublicationIn this paper, a spectroscopic method for determination of cyclosporine concentrations in biological fluids is presented. Blood plasma and hemoglobin solutions are chosen for the experiment. For various cyclosporine concentrations in blood plasma and hemoglobin, absorbance measurements in spectra range from 600 to 1100 nm are performed. The measurement results are analyzed by the use of a dedicated algorithm. The obtained data...
-
The Role of Proteins in Food
PublicationThis chapter describes the effect of proteins on the sensory attributes and the biological value and safety of foods. The role of proteins depends on their amino acid composition and structure, on changes due to storage and processing, as well as on interactions with other food components. The effect on the sensory quality of foods is brought about by hydrophobicity, solubility, water holding capacity, gelling, film formation,...
-
The role of slowly biodegradable substrate in a full-scale biological nutrient removal activated sludge systems
PublicationThis paper contains futher results obtained at ''Wschod'' WWTP in Gdańsk under transient conditions (spring season) and comparation of similar experiments carried out at a recently upgraded ''Debogorze'' WWTP in Gdynia. The removal of colloidal and particulate fractions resulted in similar effects (reduced process rates) at both plants. For example, the initial denitrification rates (NUR1) were up to 30% lower during the ''conventional''...
-
Efficiency of acoustic heating in the Maxwell fluid
PublicationThe nonlinear effects of sound in a fluid describing by the Maxwell model of the viscous stress tensor is the subject of investigation. Among other, viscoelastic biological media belong to this non-newtonian type of fluids. Generation of heating of the medium caused by nonlinear transfer of acoustic energy, is discussed in details. The governing equation of acoustic heating is derived by means of the special linear combination...
-
Treatment Wetland for Overflow Stormwater Treatment: The Impact of Pollutant Particles Size
PublicationThe problem of stormwater treatment in urban areas has become increas- ingly crucial. It has been widely recognized that both mechanical and biological treatment of stormwater is necessary to protect surface water against pollution. Moreover, technology must be applied to ensure effective treatment in changing hydraulic conditions and to serve, to the extent possible, as a retention volume. Treatment wetland (TW) could be...
-
Application of Bladder Acellular Matrix in Urinary Bladder Regeneration: The State of the Art and Future Directions
PublicationConstruction of the urinary bladder de novo using tissue engineering technologies is the “holy grail” of reconstructive urology. The search for the ideal biomaterial for urinary bladder reconstruction has been ongoing for decades. One of the most promising biomaterials for this purpose seems to be bladder acellular matrix (BAM). In this review we determine the most important factors, which may affect biological and physical properties...
-
The use of HPLC-Q-TOF-MS for comprehensive screening of drugs and psychoactive substances in hair samples and several “legal highs” products
PublicationNon-targeted screening of drugs present in herbal products, known as “legal high” drugs and in hair as a biological matrix commonly used in toxicological investigations was accomplished with the use of high pressure liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-Q-TOF-MS). In total, 25 and 14 therapeutical drugs and psychoactive substances/metabolites were detected in investigated hair samples...
-
Molecular Umbrellas Modulate the Selective Toxicity of Polyene Macrolide Antifungals
PublicationAntifungal polyene macrolide antibiotics Amphotericin B (AmB) and Nystatin (NYS) were conjugated through the ω-amino acid linkers with diwalled “molecular umbrellas” composed of spermidine-linked deoxycholic or cholic acids. The presence of “umbrella” substituents modulated biological properties of the antibiotics, especially their selective toxicity. Some of the AmB-umbrella conjugates demonstrated antifungal in vitro activity...
-
Efficiency of acoustic heating in the Maxwell fluid
PublicationThe nonlinear effects of sound in a fluid describing by the Maxwell model of the viscous stress tensor is the subject of investigation. Among other, viscoelastic biological media belong to this non-newtonian type of fluids. Generation of heating of the medium caused by nonlinear transfer of acoustic energy, is discussed in details. The governing equation of acoustic heating is derived by means of the special linear combination...
-
Recent developmentsinthesynthesisand biological activityofacridine/acridoneanalogues
PublicationMany people in the world struggle with cancer or bacterial, parasitic, viral, Alzheimer's and other diseases. Therefore, many scientists seek new, more effective, more selective and less toxic drugs. Acridine/acridone derivatives constitute a class of compounds with a broad spectrum of biological activity and are of great interest to scientists. Todate, many acridine/acridone analogues have been obtained,which, inter alia, exhibit...
-
Development of polyurethanes for bone repair
PublicationThe purpose of this paper is to review recent developments on polyurethanes aimed at the design, synthesis, modifications, and biological properties in the field of bone tissue engineering. Different polyurethane systems are presented and discussed in terms of biodegradation, biocompatibility and bioactivity. A comprehensive discussion is provided of the influence of hard to soft segments ratio, catalysts, stiffness and hydrophilicity...
-
Innovative strategies: Combining treatments for advanced wastewater purification
PublicationWater scarcity is a pressing global challenge, driving the urgent need for effective wastewater treatment solutions. With untreated wastewater extensively employed, particularly in agriculture, the significance of proper treatment becomes evident, as it presents a more practical and ecologically responsible alternative. This chapter explores the diverse treatment approaches encompassing chemical, physical, and biological methods,...
-
Non-Nutritive Bioactive Compounds in Food of Plant Origin
PublicationThe increasing knowledge on the health benefits of certain food ingredients, in particular, those of plant origin, opened the discussion of the possibility of using edible plants or their active components in the prevention of non-communicable diseases. The health-promoting properties of plant foods are related to the presence of non-nutritive compounds, mainly plant secondary metabolites, which can affect many biological mechanisms...
-
Estimation and modeling hydrolysis of slowly biodegradable substrate based on the batch respirometric tests in activated sludge systems
PublicationNowadays, appropriate determination of chemical oxygen demand (COD) fractionation together with degradation kinetics of organic compounds have a prime importance on the design and operation of activated sludge systems. Batch respirometric tests based on the oxygen uptake rates (OUR) and corresponding COD is accepted method to reflect the consumption of biodegradable substrates. The influence of the readily biodegradable (Ss) fraction...
-
Determination of trace levels of eleven bisphenol A analogues in human blood serum by high performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry
PublicationChemicals showing structural or functional similarity to bisphenol A (BPA), commonly called BPA analogues, have recently drawn scientific attention due to their common industrial and commercial application as a substitute for BPA. In the European Union, the use of BPA has been severely restricted by law due to its endocrine disrupting properties. Unfortunately, it seems that all BPA analogues show comparable biological activity,...
-
Novel 2-(2-alkylthiobenzenesulfonyl)-3-(phenylprop-2-ynylideneamino)guanidine derivatives as potent anticancer agents – Synthesis, molecular structure, QSAR studies and metabolic stability
PublicationA series of new 2-(2-alkylthiobenzenesulfonyl)-3-(phenylprop-2-ynylideneamino)guanidine derivatives have been synthesized and evaluated in vitro by MTT assays for their antiproliferative activity against cell lines of colon cancer HCT-116, cervical cancer HeLa and breast cancer MCF-7. The obtained results indicated that these compounds display prominent cytotoxic effect. The best anticancer properties have been observed for derivatives...
-
Comparing Arbitrary Unrooted Phylogenetic Trees Using Generalized Matching Split Distance
PublicationIn the paper, we describe a method for comparing arbitrary, not necessary fully resolved, unrooted phylogenetic trees. Proposed method is based on finding a minimum weight matching in bipartite graphs and can be regarded as a generalization of well-known Robinson-Foulds distance. We present some properties and advantages of the new distance. We also investigate some properties of presented distance in a common biological problem...
-
Revision of Biological Methods for Determination of EDC Presence and Their Endocrine Potential
PublicationEndocrine-disrupting compounds (EDC) are chemicals responsible for disturbances in the hormonal balance of organisms. This group of chemicals includes both egzogenic and endogenic substances or their mixtures that impact functioning of natural hormones in organisms. In the available literature one can find information on the application of chromatographic and related techniques in the analysis of environmental samples for detection,...
-
Selected Methods for the Chemical Phosphorylation and Thiophosphorylation of Phenols
PublicationThis Focus Review gathers together a selection of methods for the chemical phosphorylation of phenols that employ three‐ and four‐coordinate phosphorus compounds. Phosphorylated scaffolds can exhibit enhanced properties compared to their non‐phosphorylated analogues, such as increased biological activity and increased/decreased solubility; as such, phosphorus compounds have gained more and more interest in organic and medicinal...
-
Birds' feathers – Suitable samples for determination of environmental pollutants
PublicationThe intensive development of industry and human population results in large amounts of different xenobiotic emitted into individual ecosystem components. As a consequence, monitoring of the level of pollution of particular elements of the environment by exotoxins has become a common interest. The determination of environmental changes by different types of biological indicators is called bioindication, which is used as one of the...
-
The Creation of an Antimicrobial Coating on Contact Lenses by The Use of Nanocopper
PublicationThe aim of the research was to creation an antimicrobial coating on contact lens and examine the ability of copper nanoparticles to decrease microbial adhesion and prevent the growth of bacteria. The creation was based on the immersion method in solution with dispersed nanoparticles of copper at concentration 200 pm. There were evaluated follows factors: time of immersion and base to dispersed nanoparticles. Three solutions: ethyl...
-
Rhodotorulic Acid and its Derivatives: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications
PublicationSiderophores are low molecular weight compounds produced by microorganisms to scavenge iron in iron-deficient environments. Rhodotorulic acid (RA), a natural hydroxamate siderophore, plays a vital role in iron acquisition for fungi and bacteria. As the simplest natural hydroxamate siderophore, RA exhibits a high affinity for ferric ions, enabling it to form stable complexes that facilitate iron uptake and transport within microorganisms....
-
Proteomic and Metabolomic Changes in Psoriasis Preclinical and Clinical Aspects
PublicationSkin diseases such as psoriasis (Ps) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) are immune-mediated inflammatory diseases. Overlap of autoinflammatory and autoimmune conditions hinders diagnoses and identifying personalized patient treatments due to different psoriasis subtypes and the lack of verified biomarkers. Recently, proteomics and metabolomics have been intensively investigated in a broad range of skin diseases with the main purpose...
-
RESIDUE ANALYSIS OF ETU AND PTU BY LC/MS
PublicationDithiocarbamates (DTCs) are important organosulfur compounds, which act as inhibitors of metal dependant and sulphydryl enzymes and have a serious consequence on biological systems. They possess variety of applications in agriculture as fungicides, as well as, in the rubber industry as vulcanization accelerators and antioxidants. In this way, DTCs are the main group of fungicides used to control approximately 400 pathogens of more...
-
Multistage treatment wetland for treatment of reject waters from digested sludge dewatering
PublicationThe paper presents the influence of sewage composition on treatment in pilot-scale facility for reject waters (RW) from sewage sludge centrifugation. The facility consisted of mechanical (two tanks with 10 d retention each) and biological parts composed of three subsurface flow reed beds working in batch. Two years of monitoring of the facility proved high efficiency removal of predominant pollutants: COD 75–80%, BOD 82.2–95.5%...
-
Capillary Electrophoresis in Determination of Low Molecular Mass Organic Acids
PublicationThis paper presents overviews the capabilities of capillary electrophoretic techniques to determine low molecular mass organic acids in a variety of aqueous, gas and solid samples. It mainly focuses on short - chain carboxylic acids containing one or more carboxylic groups and possibly some other functional groups (hydroxyl, keto-, amino- etc.). Finally the procedures applied to the determine the acids in different matrices are...
-
Task Scheduling – Review of Algorithms and Analysis of Potential Use in a Biological Wastewater Treatment Plant
PublicationThe idea of task scheduling is to increase the efficiency of a system by minimising wasted time, evenly loading machines, or maximising the throughput of machines. Moreover, the use of appropriate scheduling algorithms often leads to a reduction in the energy costs of the process. Task scheduling problems are found in a variety of industrial areas, and their scale changes significantly depending on the problem. This review shows...
-
Nitrogen-Doped Diamond Film for Optical Investigation of Hemoglobin Concentration
PublicationIn this work we present the fabrication and characterization of a diamond film which can be utilized in the construction of optical sensors for the investigation of biological samples. We produced a nitrogen-doped diamond (NDD) film using a microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (MWPECVD) system. The NDD film was investigated with the use of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Raman...
-
Direct measurements of odorous volatile organic compounds present in biosolids cakes by Proton Transfer Reaction – Mass Spectrometry Technique
PublicationThis paper show the results of investigation of concentration of odorous chemical compounds emitted upon ageing of anaerobically stabilised biosolids that could contribute to the overall odour character of nuisance emissions. Biosolids samples from wastewater treatment plant were collected in spring time. Concentrations of volatile organic compounds using a US EPA flux hood and Proton Transfer Reaction-Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry...
-
Recent trends in determination of neurotoxins in aquatic environmental samples
PublicationAnatoxins, saxitoxins, ciguatoxins, beta-N-methylamino-l-alanine and its isomers are groups of neurotoxins which have a highly specific effect on the nervous system of animals, including humans, by interfering with the transmission of nerve impulses. In order to assess the human exposure to these neurotoxins, selective, interlaboratory-validated analytical methods are being developed to facilitate obtaining reliable results on...
-
Vaccinium Species—Unexplored Sources of Active Constituents for Cosmeceuticals
PublicationThe genus Vaccinium is represented by shrubs growing in a temperate climate that have been used for ages as traditional remedies in the treatment of digestive problems, in diabetes, renal stones or as antiseptics due to the presence of polyphenols (anthocyanins, flavonoids and tannins) in their fruits and leaves. Recent studies confirm their marked potential in the treatment of skin disorders and as skin care cosmetics. The aim...
-
What defines excellent lighting design for humans and animals?
PublicationWhat defines excellent lighting design for humans and animals? The answer to the above question is more than complex. It is not enough nowadays to design a project to make it aesthetically pleasing. Nor is it sufficient to create nicely lit environments, or simply to achieve the light levels required by the lighting norms or standards. With the new scientific research of the last few decades that relates directly or indirectly...