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This research has successfully combined an industrially prominent biocatalyst, CRL, and a biocompatible, environmentally suitable carrier, HAP, into an immobilized preparation with improved catalytic properties. The obtained CRL preparation has excellent potential for the food and flavor industries, major consumers in the global enzyme market. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Citations are an important, but often overlooked, part of every scientific paper. They allow the reader to trace the flow of evidence, serving as a gateway to relevant literature. Most scientists are aware of citations errors, but few appreciate the prevalence of these problems. The purpose of this study was to examine how often frequently cited papers in biomedical scientific literature are cited inaccurately. The study included an active participation of first authors of included papers; to first-hand verify the citations accuracy. Findings from feasibility study, where we reviewed 1,540 articles containing 2,526 citations of 14 most cited articles in which the authors were affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine University of Belgrade, were further evaluated for external confirmation in an independent verification set of articles. Verification set included 4,912 citations identified in 2,995 articles that cited 13 most cited articles published by authors affiliated with the Mayo Clinic Division of Nephrology and Hypertension. A citation was defined as being accurate if the cited article supported or was in accordance with the statement by citing authors. At least one inaccurate citation was found in 11% and 15% of articles in the feasibility study and verification set, respectively, suggesting that inaccurate citations are common in biomedical literature. The most common problem was the citation of nonexistent findings (38.4%), followed by an incorrect interpretation of findings (15.4%). One fifth of inaccurate citations were due to chains of inaccurate citations. Based on these findings, several actions to reduce citation inaccuracies have been proposed.

In this work, novel phase diagrams for aqueous solutions of 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium-and 1-butyl-3-ethylimidazolium-based ILs combined with phosphate-based salts, namely, K 3 PO 4 or K 2 HPO 4 , are reported and discussed. To correlate the binodal data, the Merchuk equation is applied. The tie lines and tie-line lengths are also presented. The anion influence on the ability to form aqueous biphasic system (ABS) is investigated for the IL with the same1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium cation, [bmim] + , and various anions, for example, salicylate, [SAL] − ; trifluoromethanesulfonate, [TFS] − ; dicyanamide, [DCA] − ; and chloride, [Cl] − . The order of studied anions to form ABS is [TFS]The effect of alkyl chain length on imidazolium ion on liquid− liquid equilibrium is discussed in terms of increasing ionic liquid hydrophobicity and poorer affinity for water. It is shown that 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ionic liquid has a better ability to form ABS comparing to ionic liquid with butyl chain and the same anion. Newly synthesized ionic-liquidcontaining ethyl group 1-butyl-3-ethylimidazolium bromide was also investigated, showing the influence of both ethyl group and bromide anion on the ability of ABS formation. ■ INTRODUCTIONIonic liquids (ILs) are the salts with melting point lower than 373.15 K showing low toxicity, biodegradability, a negligible vapor pressure, high conductivity and thermal stability. 1 Such unique properties make them alternative solvents for toxic volatile organic compounds. Due to their tunable physical and chemical properties, they are called designed solvents and can be applied in many industrial and technological processes, as well in analytical separation techniques. 2−8 Recently, the newest generation of ILs with targeted biological properties containing biologically active components extends the sphere of their use in pharmacy, medicine, and agriculture as potential drugs. 9−17 Liquid−liquid extraction based on ionic liquids and waterstructuring salts as aqueous biphasic systems have been reported for the first time in 2003. 18 These systems have been successfully used to separate drugs, 19−22 proteins, 23 dyes, 24 and pesticides. 25 Liquid−liquid equilibrium (LLE) data at different temperatures and compositions are essential for the optimization of extraction process using ABS. For this purpose, water-soluble hydrophilic ionic liquids can be used as extracting solvent, as they induce formation of aqueous biphasic systems with suitable kosmotropic agents forming a new type of partitioning systems. 18,26,27 Such ABS with the right proportions of ionic liquid and kosmotropic salt can be used as an alternative extraction medium to conventional systems of either liquid−liquid or liquid−solid type.Contrary to previous reports that hydrophilic ionic liquids are structure breakers or "chaotropes", 28−31 kosmotropic properties of many imidazolium-based ILs containing different anions such as halide, dicyanamide or salicylate were reported. 32−34 It was described that these ILs strongly in...

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The production of lipase from Pseudozyma aphidis (DSM 70725) was determined in six different media. The highest lipase production was observed in a medium with glucose as the sole carbon source, and yeast extract and sodium nitrate as the nitrogen sources. The time course studies of growth and lipase production in the optimal medium revealed that the highest lipase production was achieved at the end of the log phase of growth, reaching the value of 35.0 U cm -3 in the fifth day of cultivation. The effects of various polar, water-miscible, organic solvents on the activity and stability of the crude lipase produced by P. aphidis were evaluated. The hydrolytic activity of the crude lipase towards p-nitrophenyl palmitate (p-NPP) in aqueous media and in organic solvents was determined, using the same spectrophotometric assay in both the aqueous and organic media. The crude lipase preparation exhibited activity towards p-NPP only in acetone and acetonitrile, while the lipase was stable only in acetone, with 23 % residual activity after 24 h of incubation. These results suggested that lipase from P. aphidis can be used as a biocatalyst for potential applications in such organic solvents.

Expired energy drinks are rich in bioactive value-added compounds that can be recovered and reused in order to valorize food waste within a circular economy perspective. However, to accomplish such requirements, it is necessary to develop sustainable extraction and recovery processes, which must consist of decreasing the number of steps required or developing integrated strategies. In this work, novel aqueous biphasic systems (ABS) composed of ionic liquids (ILs) and a biocompatible polymer polypropylene glycol (400 g·mol–1, PPG 400) were studied for the simultaneous extraction and recovery of three value-added compounds, namely, caffeine, taurine, and niacin, from expired energy drinks. ILs were designed and synthesized in order to have similar anions to the target compounds, thus allowing enhanced selectivity and biological activity, while avoiding an extra step of separation of these high-value compounds from the IL-rich phase. To this end, cholinium-based ILs comprising the anions lactate, pyruvate, taurate, and nicotinate were synthesized, and their cytotoxicity and ecotoxicity credentials were evaluated. Overall, taurine and niacin are majorly enriched in the IL-rich phase, while caffeine preferentially migrates in the majority of the cases toward the PPG-rich phase. However, caffeine also partitions to the IL-rich phase in the ABS formed by cholinium pyruvate or cholinium nicotinate. The ABS formed by cholinium nicotinate and PPG 400 is the best system identified, allowing the almost complete recovery (recovery efficiencies > 82%) of all target compounds into the IL-rich phase in one step. Furthermore, cholinium nicotinate exhibits marginal cytotoxic potential and is harmless from an ecotoxicological point of view. This system is thus a promising platform to simultaneously extract, recover, and reuse value-added compounds from expired energy drinks without the need of removing the IL or recovering the target compounds from the IL-rich phase, thus contributing to a sustainable and circular food economy.