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Lower urinary tract inflammation is a very common problem which occurs particularly in women. That is why the idea of a biotextronics system for preventive and supportive treatment came to be. The system is a kind of a therapeutic clothing in the form of underwear integrated with a four-layer pantiliner with biological active compounds (from chamomile essential oil) immobilized on the insert with a cellulose agar or microcrystalline cellulose agar film. In this research, the outer part of the insert was investigated for its ability to release compounds with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory activity under the temperature of the treatment (40 °C). The research was conducted on the day of the insert preparation (day 0) and also after 7, 14, 28, and 56 days to test the ability of the insert to be stored without changing its properties. The results showed that even after 56 days of storage, there are compounds released that are known to have antibacterial activity, such as α-bisabolol. The system requires further tests involving bacteria; however, chamomile essential oil seems to be good substrate for biotextronics systems for preventive and supportive treatment of lower urinary tract inflammations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing trend in plant protection is replacing chemical preparations with environmentally friendly biological compositions. Chitosan, due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, and bioactivity, is an effective agent against plant diseases. The purpose of the study was to evaluate chitosan as a potential biopesticide for potato plants. Three variants of chitosan were tested: high (310–375 kDa, >75% deacetylated), medium (190–310 kDa, 75–85% deacetylated), and low (50–190 kDa, 75–85% deacetylated) molecular weight. The chitosan variants were dissolved in lactic and succinic acids and tested for antibacterial and antifungal properties against eight strains of mould and two strains of bacteria responsible for potato diseases. The possible cytotoxicity of chitosan was evaluated against different cell lines: insect Sf-9, human keratinocyte HaCaT, and human colon carcinoma Caco-2. The bioprotective activities of the chitosan were also evaluated in situ on potato tubers. Chitosan inhibited the growth of almost all the selected phytopathogens. The most active was medium molecular chitosan in lactic acid. This formula was characterized by low toxicity towards human cells and high toxicity towards Sf-9 cells. It was also found to have positive effects on the growth of stems and roots, gas exchange, and chlorophyll index in potato plants. Selected chitosan formulation was proposed as a functional biopesticide for potato protection against phytopathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The food contamination issue requires continuous control of food at each step of the production process. High quality and safety of products are equally important factors in the food industry. They may be achieved with several, more or less technologically advanced methodologies. In this work, we review the role, contribution, importance, and impact of ozone as a decontaminating agent used to control and eliminate the presence of microorganisms in food products as well as to extend their shelf-life and remove undesirable odors. Several researchers have been focusing on the ozone's properties and applications, proving that ozone treatment technology can be applied to all types of foods, from fruits, vegetables, spices, meat, and seafood products to beverages. A compilation of those works, presented in this review, can be a useful tool for establishing appropriate ozone treatment conditions, and factors affecting the improved quality and safety of food products. A critical evaluation of the advantages and disadvantages of ozone in the context of its application in the food industry is presented as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It was shown that the method for obtaining hydrolates from lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) influences the content of active compounds and the aromatic, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of the hydrolates. The content of volatile organic compounds ranged from 9.12 to 97.23 mg/100 mL of hydrolate. Lavender hydrolate variants showed low antimicrobial activity (from 0% to 0.05%). The radical scavenging activity of DPPH was from 3.6 ± 0.5% to 3.8 ± 0.6% and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORACFL) results were from 0 to 266 μM Trolox equivalent, depending on the hydrolate variant. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Tekstil: Journal of Textile & Clothing Technology is the property of Croatian Association of Textile Engineers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Acta Scientiarum Polonorum. Formatio Circumiectus is the property of Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Rolniczego im. Hugona Kollataja w Krakowie and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The effect of an enzyme preparation derived from the nonpathogenic filamentous fungus M ucor circinelloides on the bioactivity, quality and yield of essential oil from waste carrot seeds ( D aucus carota) was investigated. The Taguchi method was applied to determine the levels of input factors ensuring the greatest efficiency of hydrodistillation (p H 4.9-5.0; 4.0 g enzyme preparation/100 g of seeds; time - 6.0 h). Under these conditions, the oil yield increased by approximately 30%. The main constituent compounds of the oil are: carotol (34.6%), sabinene (8.0%), alpha-pinene (6.4%) and daucol (4.3%). Essential oil obtained from enzyme-pretreated carrot seeds has the same antimicrobial activity against B acillus subtilis, S taphylococcus aureus, E scherichia coli, P seudomonas aeruginosa, C andida sp., A spergillus niger and P enicillium expansum as that from the control sample. Practical Applications The proposed innovative method of preparation of plant material prior to hydrodistillation leads to an increase in essential oil extraction efficiency by about 30%, and thus enables better exploitation of the potential of the plant. The proposed method may be implemented on an industrial scale, thanks to tools of computational statistics that allow one to determine the optimum technological parameters of the process. Developed in this way, the technology is environmentally friendly and provides significant economic benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]