Bacillus coagulans, a tannery wastewater isolate, previously shown to bind dissolved Cr(VI), retained its ability to biosorb Cr(VI) in different matrices. Polymeric materials like agar, agarose, calcium alginate and polyacrylamide were screened. Agarose emerged as the suitable candidate for biomass immobilization mainly due to its higher stability and integrity in acidic pH. Aptness of agarose ...

BACKGROUND Expansion and differentiation of stem cells relies on the soluble materials as well as the physical conditions of their microenvironment. Several methods have been studied in attempt to enhance the growth and differentiation rates of different adult stem cells extracted from different sources. OBJECTIVES The purpose was to improve the three-dimensional (3D) culture condition of the...

Polymers reinforced with high performance fibres are successfully replacing metal alloys in lightweight aircraft structures. A critical factor in structural design is the resistance of a structure to progressive damage which develops during its service time. The brittle nature of matrix cracking is the main source of composite failure initiating ply delamination and fibre to matrix debonding. B...

Core-shell alginate-poly (lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) microparticles are potential candidates to improve hydrophilic drug loading while facilitating controlled release. This report studies the influence of the alginate core size on the drug release profile of alginate-PLGA microparticles and its size. Microparticles are synthesized through double-emulsion fabrication via a concurrent ionotr...

Background & Aims: Chronic pulmonary infection in patients with cystic fibrosis is predominantly due to infection by mucoid strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Mucoid P. aeruginosa is due to the production of exopolysaccharide called also alginate. Alginate in addition to interference with the clearance of lung has antiphagocytic property. Optimal killing activity of P. aeruginosa requires opson...

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are being recognized as a viable cell source for cartilage repair and members of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) superfamily are a key mediator of MSC chondrogenesis. While TGF-β mediated MSC chondrogenesis is well established in in vitro pellet or hydrogel cultures, clinical translation will require effective delivery of TGF-βs in vivo. Here, we invest...

A bacterium, Sphingomonas sp. strain A1, can incorporate alginate into cells through a novel ABC (ATP-binding cassette) transporter system specific to the macromolecule. The transported alginate is depolymerized to di- and trisaccharides by three kinds of cytoplasmic alginate lyases (A1-I [66 kDa], A1-II [25 kDa], and A1-III [40 kDa]) generated from a single precursor through posttranslational ...

BACKGROUND This work investigates a general method for producing alginate gel matrices using an internal mode of gelation that depends solely on soluble alginate and alginate/gelling ion particles. The method involves the formulation of two-component kits comprised of soluble alginate and insoluble alginate/gelling ion particles. Gelling kinetics, elastic and Young's moduli were investigated fo...

Alginate is a hydrogel commonly used for cell culture by ionically crosslinking in the presence of divalent Ca(2+) ions. However these alginate gels are mechanically unstable, not permitting their use as scaffolds to engineer robust biological bone, breast, cardiac or tumor tissues. This issue can be addressed via encapsulation of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) serving as a reinforcing p...

We investigated the effect of bioglass (bioactive glass) on growth and mineralization of bone-related SaOS-2 cells, encapsulated into a printable and biodegradable alginate/gelatine hydrogel. The hydrogel was supplemented either with polyphosphate (polyP), administered as polyP • Ca2+-complex, or silica, or as biosilica that had been enzymatically prepared from ortho-silicate by silicatein. The...