Nanosystems for drug delivery of coenzyme Q10

Coenzyme Q10 is an antioxidant present in the human body. Coenzyme Q10 has an essential role in various biochemical reactions. The deficiency of coenzyme Q10 in the body leads to disorders including neurological degeneration, ageing and cancer. Clinical trials have tested coenzyme Q10 as a drug or a dietary supplement. However, the major pharmaceutical issue of coenzyme Q10 delivery is its high molecular weight and poor water solubility. This limitation leads to its poor oral bioavailability. Several methods have been designed to overcome the poor water solubility of coenzyme Q10, such as size reduction and ionization. This article presents nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems for coenzyme Q10 with special emphasis on pharmacokinetic perspectives and clinical relevance. Systems include nanoparticles, solid dispersions, liposomes, nanoemulsions, self-emulsifying drug delivery systems, nanostructured lipid carriers, cyclodextrins and nanocapsules.     

Nanoscience in food and agriculture: research,industries and patents

High population rise and climate changes are increasing issues of agricultural production and food safety. Nanotechnology is finding revolutionary applications to improve agricultural and food systems, notably for better crop production and food preservation. Here we review research, industrial and patent trends of nanoscience in food and agriculture. In a literature survey, we found 44.6% publications in the nano-food research area during the years 2013–2015 and 59.09% publications in the nano-agriculture research area during 2012–2015. USA is leading in the development of nanotechnology firms with a maximum share of 75.5% of the total firms, followed by Germany and France with 8.10 and 4.74%, respectively. USA is leading in the nano-food research with 22 granted patents, whereas China is placed first in nano-agriculture research with 28 granted patents during assessment years 2011–2015. Nano-food research focused mainly on nano-food packaging with 76.84% contributions, whereas in nano-agriculture research, focus has been on nano-fertilizers with 90% contributions. Germany, France, Korea, Italy, Czech Republic, Slovenia and Slovak republic have more than 20% of dedicated nanotechnology firms. A growth of about 45% in nano-food patents has been observed for USA during 2011–2015, and China is leading in the nano-agriculture patents with an increase of 60.7% during 2012–2015.     

High zinc removal from water and soil using struvite-supported diatomite obtained by nitrogen and phosphate recovery from wastewater

Zinc is known as an essential element of human life. However, excessive zinc discharge into water and soil causes water pollution, leading to serious health issues such as septicemia, meningitis and iron-deficiency anemia. Here, a novel material made of struvite-supported diatomite was obtained from eutrophic water treated by mesoporous MgO-modified diatomite. This material was applied for zinc remediation in aqueous solutions and contaminated soils to test the reuse of P-containing products. Struvite-supported diatomite was characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Results show that the maximum removal efficiency of Zn(II) from wastewater streams reached 90.54% at an initial pH of 5 and struvite-supported diatomite dosage of 0.3 g/L. Moreover, the X-ray diffraction patterns of precipitates after Zn(II) sorption show that the combination between zinc and the phosphate group played a key role for zinc removal in solution. For Zn-contaminated soils amended with 10% struvite-supported diatomite, available Zn decreased by 65.38% and acid soluble Zn decreased by 56.9% after 56 days.     

High CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> adsorption by amino-modified bio-spherical cellulose nanofibres aerogels

Climate change has become increasingly serious due to the greenhouse effect. It is therefore necessary to control the content of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, using, for instance, CO₂-adsorbing materials. Here, we synthesized ultra-lightweight and spherical cellulose nanofibres aerogels by a suspension titration method using an efficient amination process. These functional materials with high porosity, higher than 96.54%, and three-dimensional network structure, were prepared by freeze-drying spherical cellulose nanofibres hydrogel. Their maximum CO₂ adsorption capacity reaches 1.78 mmol/g, and they show excellent regeneration, of more than 10 cycles. This synthesis of bioaerogels represents a new method for the preparation of bio-CO₂ adsorbents.     

Free radical-assisted electrocoagulation processes for wastewater treatment

The combination of electrocoagulation with another process is a promising approach to enhance the removal efficiency of water pollutants. For instance, free radical-assisted electrocoagulation is a new combination showing higher performance. There are different combinations depending on the free radical source. This article reviews free radical-assisted electrocoagulation processes. We discuss electrocoagulation mechanisms; ozone-assisted electrocoagulation processes; advanced oxidation-assisted electrocoagulation processes; and ultrasound-assisted electrocoagulation. We present kinetic models used in free radical-assisted electrocoagulation, scale-up of free radical-assisted electrocoagulation and cost estimation. The major points are: most of the available studies have been done at laboratory scale with synthetic wastewater, and lack holistic and systematic approaches to consider the process complexity. The performance of the combined process is improved, and the removal efficiency is increased especially with ozone-assisted electrocoagulation, which gives a removal efficiency of more than 95%. The use of ultrasound energy with electrocoagulation is advantageous in reducing the problem of electrode passivation.     

Reaction pathways of dimethyl phthalate degradation in TiO2-UV-O2 and TiO2-UV-Fe(VI) systems

The photocatalytic degradation of dimethyl phthalate (DMP) in aqueous TiO₂ suspension under UV illumination has been investigated using oxygen (O₂) and ferrate (Fe(VI)) as electron acceptors. The experiments demonstrated that Fe(VI) was a more effective electron acceptor than O₂ for scavenging the conduction band electrons from the surface of the catalyst. Some major intermediate products from DMP degradation were identified by HPLC and GC/MS analyses. The analytical results identified dimethyl 3-hydroxyphthalate and dimethyl 2-hydroxyphthalate as the two main intermediate products from the DMP degradation in the TiO₂–UV–O₂ system, while in contrast phthalic acid was found to be the main intermediate product in the TiO₂–UV–Fe(VI) system. These findings indicate that DMP degradation in the TiO₂–UV–O₂ and TiO₂–UV–Fe(VI) systems followed different reaction pathways. An electron spin resonance analysis confirmed that hydroxyl radicals existed in the TiO₂–UV–O₂ reaction system and an unknown radical species (most likely an iron–oxo species) is suspected to exist in the TiO₂–UV–Fe(VI) reaction system. Two pathway schemes of DMP degradation in the TiO₂–UV–O₂ and TiO₂–UV–Fe(VI) reaction systems are proposed. It is believed that the radicals formed in the TiO₂–UV–O₂ reaction system preferably attack the aromatic ring of the DMP, while in contrast the radicals formed in the TiO₂–UV–Fe(VI) reaction systems attack the alkyl chain of DMP.     

垂直潜流人工湿地堵塞微观概念模型的提出

根据垂直潜流人工湿地发生堵塞的成因主要是基质层中不可滤物质积累的结论,在分析垂直潜流人工湿地堵塞物形态及成分粒径的基础上,首次提出了基质间不可滤物质积累微观概念模型的假设;并根据微观概念模型,在考虑生物膜、无机物积累等动态变化因素条件下提出基质间完全堵塞所需时间、基质表面发生雍水所需时间及基质渗透系数随时间变化的关系.     

淀山湖沉水植物死亡分解过程中营养物质的释放

测定了上海淀山湖5种常见沉水植物的营养成分含量及其死亡后在好氧(DO>3.5 mg/L)或低氧(DO<3.5 mg/L)状态下分解释放TN、TP和有机物(以高锰酸盐指数计,下同)等营养物质的动态过程,并对营养物质释放强度与营养成分含量的相关性进行了分析.结果表明, 5种沉水植物中,金鱼藻的TN和TP含量最高,质量分数分别为(4.07±0.22)%和(0.99±0.09)%;好氧状态下TN和有机物的释放强度大于低氧状态,两种状态下TP的释放强度没有显著差异;TP的释放比TN快,一般需10 d左右,而TN和有机物的释放分别需要29 d和20 d左右;在好氧状态下,NO-2-N、NO-3-N和可溶性总磷酸盐的平均释放强度与植物TN含量呈显著正相关(p<0.05),NH 4-N的平均释放强度与植物TP含量呈显著正相关(p<0.05);在低氧状态下,NO-2-N的平均释放强度与植物TN含量、NO-3-N的平均释放强度与植物TP含量分别呈显著正相关(p<0.05);有机物的平均释放强度与植物TP含量呈极显著负相关(p<0.01).     

基于SWAT模型的流域面源污染模拟影响分析

针对流域面源污染模型往往忽略或简化河道内污染物变化过程的缺陷,探讨了河道水质模型对流域面源污染模拟的影响.以太湖流域浙西区的西苕溪流域为研究对象,选取具有一定物理机制的分布式面源污染模型SWAT模型,分别以激活和不激活其嵌套的河道水质模型QUAL2E,即SWAT模型与QUAL2E模型紧密耦合和松散耦合两种情况进行模拟,并比较了对TN及TP的模拟效果.结果表明,丰水期与平水期的模拟结果并没有显著差别;但在枯水期,由于水量较小,河道内污染物变化过程对模拟结果影响较大.同时引入QUAL2K模型,分析认为改进河道水质模型对提高SWAT模型模拟精度有一定的效果.