To
break oil-in-water emulsions with an average oil droplet size
of <2 μm, a series of hyperbranched polyglycerol (HPG)-based
demulsifiersmethacrylated hyperbranched polyglycerol (HPG-MA)are
synthesized successfully by controlling the ratio of HPG to glycidyl
methacrylate (GMA). Dosage, temperature, settling time, and salinity
are taken into account to evaluate the performance of these demulsifiers,
respectively. The oil removal ratio with the addition of HPG-MA demulsifier
can exceed 86% within 40 min to reach the equilibrium of demulsification,
in comparison with ∼90 min for previously reported demulsifiers.
Because of the specific branched structure, the demulsifier can multipointly
adhere to the oil/water interface, and then shorten the time of adsorption
and increase the rupture rate of oil droplets. The oil–water
interfacial tensions with the demulsifier in the water phase are further
measured to help comprehend the demulsification mechanism. The change
of oil droplet size against time, which reflects flocculation and
coalescence of oil droplets, is vividly monitored during the process
of demulsification. The demulsification performance indicates that
the novel HPG-MA demulsifier displays great promise in the petroleum
industry.
Novel compounds and more efficient treatment options are urgently needed for the treatment of cystic echinococcosis (CE), which is caused by
Echinococcus granulosus
. The decoction of
Sophora moorcroftiana
(Fabaceae) has been used to treat parasitosis for years in traditional Tibetan medicine. The aim of this study was to screen insecticidal water-soluble alkaloids from
S. moorcroftiana
seeds and evaluate the therapeutic effects against CE and the immune response induced by the alkaloidal fraction. Low polarity compounds (E2-a) were isolated from water-soluble alkaloid (E2) and matrine and sophocarpine were identified as major components. The E2-a fraction was more effective against protoscoleces than other constituents from
S. moorcroftiana
. After 20 weeks of secondary infection with protoscoleces, mice were orally treated with E2-a (100 mg/kg/day) for 6 weeks to evaluate therapeutic and immunoregulatory activities. Compared with the untreated group, E2-a treatment induced a significant reduction in cyst weight (mean 2.93 g) (
p
< 0.05) and an impaired ultrastructural modification of the cyst. Interestingly, the application of E2-a resulted in a significant increased frequency of CD3
+
CD4
+
T-cell subsets and decreased frequency of CD3
+
PD-1
+
T-cell subsets, compared with protoscolece-infected mice without treatment. The E2-a fraction of
S. moorcroftiana
can inhibit the cyst development of CE and boost the specific immune response by reducing the expression of PD-1 and accelerate the cytokine secretion of antigen-specific T-cells. All data suggest the E2-a fraction from
S. moorcroftiana
seeds may be used as a new potential therapeutic option against
E. granulosus
infection.
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