Jinshuo Wang, Lida Xing, Fulong Zhang, Chuanfu Liu^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.12, No.1, pp. 89-102, 2024, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2023.029057

Abstract Wood-based functional materials have developed rapidly. But the flammability significantly limits its further application. To improve the flame retardancy, the balsa wood was delignified by NaClO₂ solution to create a cellulose scaffold, and then alternately immersed in CaCl₂ ethanol solution and NaHCO₃ aqueous solution under vacuum. The high porosity and wettability resulting from delignification benefited the following mineralization process, changing the thermal properties of balsa wood significantly. The organic-inorganic wood composite showed abundant CaCO₃ spherical particles under scanning electron microscopy. The peak of the heat release rate of delignified balsa-CaCO₃ was reduced by 33% compared to the native balsa, according… More > Graphic Abstract

HAIYING CHEN, YUQING WU, BAOJIAN HUANG, LEI HAN^*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.6, pp. 1213-1223, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028035

Abstract Microbial cell surface display technology is a recombinant technology to express target proteins on the cell membrane, which can be used to redesign the cell surface with functional proteins and peptides. Bacterial and yeast surface display systems are the most common cell surface display systems of prokaryotic and eukaryotic proteins, that are widely applied as the core elements in the field of biosensors due to their advantages, including enhanced stability, high yield, good safety, expression of larger and more complex proteins. To further promote the performance of biosensors, the biomineralized microbial surface display technology was proposed. This review summarized the… More >

Miguel Ángel Ramírez¹, Luis Alfonso^†, Patricia González², Juan Reinerio Fagundo², Margaret Suarez³, Clara Melian³, Tania Rodríguez¹, Carlos Peniche^4,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.3, No.1, pp. 73-80, 2015, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634116

Abstract The demineralization kinetics of deproteinized lobster shells using CO₂ were studied. Demineralization reaction proceeds until the concentration of Ca⁺² in solution reaches an equilibrium value. The introduction of a cation exchange resin (cationite), in an open system for CO₂ , allows replacement of the solution Ca²⁺ ions by Na⁺ ions, whereby the equilibrium shifts and an effective dissolution of the exoskeletons’ calcite is achieved. The mathematical relationships between the conductivity of the solution and the concentrations of major ions, the rate constants and kinetic parameters of the reaction in the absence and presence of the resin were obtained. It was… More >

Fazli Wahid¹, Muhammad Sharif², Shah Fahad³, Amjad Ali⁴, Muhammad Adnan¹, Rafiullah¹, Shah Saud⁵, Subhan Danish^6,*, Muhammad Arif Ali⁶, Niaz Ahmed⁶, Hüseyin Arslan⁷, Doğan Arslan⁸, Murat Erman⁸, Ayman EL Sabagh^8,9,*, Fatemeh Gholizadeh¹⁰, Rahul Datta¹¹

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.91, No.2, pp. 257-278, 2022, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2022.016512

Abstract Phosphorus (P) is a critical nutrient that plays an essential role in improving soil fertility for optimum plant growth and productivity. It is one of the most deficient macro-nutrients in agricultural soils after nitrogen and is considered inadequate for plant growth and production. To P availability in soils, the farmers are applying huge amounts of synthetic P fertilizers that adversely affect the wider environment, groundwater, soil fertility and microbial population. Many beneficial microbes are known to release and supply soluble P for improving growth and yield of a variety of plants in a sustainable manner in P deficient soils. Thus,… More >

Ramírez Gerardo MG¹, MA Chávez-García², J Mejía-Carranza²

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.84, No.2, pp. 397-406, 2015, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2015.84.397

Abstract In the floriculture region of Tenancingo in the State of Mexico, the application of stabilized organic matter, such as vermicompost and leachates, contributes to improve the quality of the soil and plant nutrition. However, it is important to know the chemical composition of a vermicompost and the mineralization process. This is because the amount and speed of nutrient release which will be available to the crop will depend on that knowledge. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of the application of a vermicompost and leachates on various quantitative variables of Solidago x hybrid, and the mineralization… More >

Miguel Ángel Ramírez¹, Patricia González², Juan Reinerio Fagundo², Margaret Suarez³, Clara Melian³, Tania Rodríguez¹, Carlos Peniche^4*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.1, pp. 30-37, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634121

Abstract The inorganic components of crustacean shells are usually removed using HCl solutions. This provokes undesirable modifications in the extracted chitin. In the present procedure, deproteinized lobster shells were demineralized with CO2 and a cationic resin (cationite). The resulting chitin (CHI-CO2) is compared in terms of degree of acetylation (DA), crystallinity index (CrI) and thermal stability with chitins obtained by demineralization procedures with HCl (CHI-HCl) and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (CHI-EDTA). The ash content of chitins demineralized with CO2 was similar to that of chitins prepared using HCl or EDTA. However, the resultant DA and CrI of CHI-HCl and CHI-EDTA were lower than… More >

Sudhakar Muniyasamy^1,2, Osei Ofosu^1,2, Maya Jacob John^1,2, Rajesh D. Anandjiwala^1,2*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.4, No.2, pp. 133-145, 2016, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634104

Abstract The present study investigates the mineralization of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-covalerate) (PHBV), and PLA/PHBV blend in compost and soil burial environments. The mineralization was assayed on the basis of carbon dioxide (CO2) release from the test materials incubated in compost and soil for a period of 200 days. The degradation was followed by means of fragmentation, thermogravimetric (TGA), FTIR spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses. The results showed that PLA, PHBV and blend of PLA/PHBV achieved almost 90% biodegradation under composting conditions, while PHBV, PLA/PHBV blend and PLA respectively achieved only 35%, 32% and 4% biodegradation under soil… More >

Syed A Jamal^*

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.10, No.4, pp. 267-273, 2013, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2013.010.267

Abstract Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells (hUCMSCs) were subjected to in vitro osteogenic differentiation using a novel combination of signaling molecules including BMP-2 and purmorphamine. Differentiation outcomes were assessed by calcein staining and by microscopic examination of the cytoskeleton. Calcein staining showed appreciable degree of calcium mineralization in cell culture, and changes in the morphological attributes of differentiating cells were observed vis-a-vis the actin cytoskeleton. Finally, positive calcein staining, altered cytoskeletal profile, and stress fiber formation in treated cells demonstrated, for the first time, a potentially synergistic interplay between BMP-2 and the hedgehog agonist, purmorphamine. This study lends support to… More >

Donald F. Ward Jr.^*, William A. Williams^*, Nicole E. Schapiro^*, Samuel R. Christy^*, Genevieve L. Weber^*, Megan Salt, Robert F. Klees^*, Adele Boskey^†, George E. Plopper ^∗,‡

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.4, No.4, pp. 177-188, 2007, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2007.004.177

Abstract Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is a key integrator of integrin-mediated signals from the extracellular matrix to the cytoskeleton and downstream signaling molecules. FAK is activated by phosphorylation at specific tyrosine residues, which then stimulate downstream signaling including the ERK1/2 pathway, leading to a variety of cellular responses. In this study, we examined the effects of FAK point mutations at tyrosine residues (Y397, Y925, Y861, and Y576/7) on osteogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells exposed to collagen I and cyclic tensile strain. Our results demonstrate that FAK signaling emanating from Y397, Y925, and to a lesser extent Y576/7, but not… More >

V. Sansalone^1,∗, V. Bousson², S. Naili¹, C. Bergot², F. Peyrin³, J.D. Laredo², G. Haïat¹

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.87, No.5, pp. 387-410, 2012, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2012.087.387

Abstract This paper investigates the effects of the heterogeneous distribution of the Haversian Porosity (HP) and Tissue Mineral Density (TMD) on the elastic coefficients of bone in the human femoral neck. A bone specimen from the inferior femoral neck was obtained from a patient undergoing standard hemiarthroplasty. The specimen was imaged using 3-D synchrotron micro-computed tomography (voxel size of 10.13 mm), leading to the determination of the anatomical distributions of HP and TMD. These experimental data were used to estimate the elastic coefficients of the bone using a three-step homogenization model based on continuum micromechanics: (i) At the tissue scale (characteristic… More >