Karlová T., Poláková L., Šmidrkal J., Filip V. (2010): Antimicrobial effects of fatty acid fructose esters. Czech J. Food Sci., 28: 146-149.Antimicrobial effects of various fatty acids and their esters have been extensively studied. Esters with saccharides (glucose, sucrose) have been found to have a broad spectrum of microbicidal activity. The objective of this study was to investigate the susceptibility of four microbial strains (Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Fusarium culmorum) to the antimicrobial properties of fatty acid (capric, lauric, myristic, and palmitic) fructose esters. Microorganisms were cultivated in liquid media supplemented with various concentrations of the tested agents. A spectrophotometric method was used for the quantitative detection of the microbial growth. Both the cultivation and measuring of the absorbance was carried out in microtiter plates. Our results indicate that the addition of the tested compounds strongly reduce the number of viable microorganisms. Higher concentrations caused microbicidal effect. The inhibitory action decreased rapidly as the chain length increased. Caprinoylfructose proved to be the most active.
Hemochromatosis (iron overload) encompasses a group of diseases that are characterized by a toxic hyperaccumulation of iron in parenchymal organs. Currently, only few treatments for this disease have been approved; however, all these treatments possess severe side effects. In this study, a paradigm for hemochromatosis maintenance/preventive therapy is investigated: polymers with negligible systemic biological availability form stable complexes with iron ions in the gastrointestinal tract, which reduces the biological availability of iron. Macroporous polymer beads are synthesized with three different iron‐chelating moieties (benzene‐1,2‐diol, benzene‐1,2,3‐triol, and 1,10‐phenanthroline). The polymers rapidly chelate iron ions from aqueous solutions in vitro in the course of minutes, and are noncytotoxic and nonprooxidant. Moreover, the in vivo biodistribution and pharmacokinetics show a negligible uptake from the gastrointestinal tract (using 125I‐labeled polymer and single photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography), which generally prevents them from having systemic side effects. The therapeutic efficacy of the prepared polymers is successfully tested in vivo, and exhibits a significant inhibition of iron uptake from the gastrointestinal tract without any noticeable signs of toxicity. Furthermore, an in silico method is developed for the prediction of chelator selectivity. Therefore, this paradigm can be applied to the next‐generation maintenance/preventive treatment for hemochromatosis and/or other diseases of similar pathophysiology.
A series of model linear copolymers of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and a sterically hindered amine derivative [N-(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperidin-4-yl)methacrylamide (HAS)] were synthesized and characterized. Scavenging activities of the copolymers against reactive oxygen species (peroxyl and hydroxyl radicals) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals were determined. It was found that copolymers with medium HAS content (3.5-4.0 mol %) were better scavengers than copolymers with lower and higher HAS content and also than polyHEMA and polyHAS homopolymers and the HAS monomer. Importantly, these copolymers compared favorably even to established low-molecular weight antioxidant standards (BHA and dexpanthenol). Monomer reactivity ratios were determined, and the microstructure of the copolymers was assessed. Subsequently, cross-linked copolymers in the powder and film forms with optimal HAS content were synthesized. Their scavenging activities against the three types of radicals were determined, revealing that these hydrogels are potent scavengers of reactive oxygen species.
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