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- ItemStudy of Water Productivity of Industrial Hemp under Hot and Dry Conditions in Brandenburg (Germany) in the Year 2018(Basel : MDPI, 2020) Drastig, Katrin; Flemming, Inken; Gusovius, Hans-Jörg; Herppich, Werner B.Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) is a high-yielding multi-purpose crop, but its hydrological functioning is poorly understood. Studies on the interception processes in hemp have been lacking so far. This study contributes to the understanding of the influences of evaporation of intercepted water and other hydrological fluxes within plants of two cultivars, “Santhica 27” and “Ivory”, on the water productivity. To determine water productivity and evaporation from interception, field measurements were conducted on plants of both cultivars at different stages of development. Precipitation (P), throughfall (TF), transpiration (T), and volumetric water content (VWC) were measured along with leaf area index (LAI) and yield of selected plant components. For the entire vegetation period, the cumulative P of 44 mm was converted into 13 mm TF (30%). The inferred evaporation of intercepted water (I) was high at 31 mm (71%). For the assessment water fluxes, the evaporation of intercepted water must be considered in the decision-making process. Besides the LAI, the plant architecture and the meteorological conditions during the cropping cycle seem to be the main factors determining I in the case of plants of both cultivars. Water productivity (WPDM) of the whole plant varied between 3.07 kg m−3 for Ivory and 3.49 for Santhica 27. In the case of bast yield, WPDM was 0.39 kg m-3 for Santhica 27 and 0.45 kg m−3 for Ivory. After the propagation of the uncertainties, the bandwidth of the WPDM of the whole plant was between 0.42 kg m−3 and 2.57 kg m−3. For bast fiber a bandwidth of the WP between 0.06 kg m−3 and 0.33 kg m−3 was calculated. The results show furthermore that even with a precise examination of water productivity, a high bandwidth of local values is revealed on different cultivars. However, generic WP values for fiber crops are not attainable.
- ItemApplications of Electronic Nose, Electronic Eye and Electronic Tongue in Quality, Safety and Shelf Life of Meat and Meat Products: A Review(Basel : MDPI, 2023) Munekata, Paulo E. S.; Finardi, Sarah; de Souza, Carolina Krebs; Meinert, Caroline; Pateiro, Mirian; Hoffmann, Tuany Gabriela; Domínguez, Rubén; Bertoli, Sávio Leandro; Kumar, Manoj; Lorenzo, José M.The quality and shelf life of meat and meat products are key factors that are usually evaluated by complex and laborious protocols and intricate sensory methods. Devices with attractive characteristics (fast reading, portability, and relatively low operational costs) that facilitate the measurement of meat and meat products characteristics are of great value. This review aims to provide an overview of the fundamentals of electronic nose (E-nose), eye (E-eye), and tongue (E-tongue), data preprocessing, chemometrics, the application in the evaluation of quality and shelf life of meat and meat products, and advantages and disadvantages related to these electronic systems. E-nose is the most versatile technology among all three electronic systems and comprises applications to distinguish the application of different preservation methods (chilling vs. frozen, for instance), processing conditions (especially temperature and time), detect adulteration (meat from different species), and the monitoring of shelf life. Emerging applications include the detection of pathogenic microorganisms using E-nose. E-tongue is another relevant technology to determine adulteration, processing conditions, and to monitor shelf life. Finally, E-eye has been providing accurate measuring of color evaluation and grade marbling levels in fresh meat. However, advances are necessary to obtain information that are more related to industrial conditions. Advances to include industrial scenarios (cut sorting in continuous processing, for instance) are of great value.
- ItemSeparation, characterization, and handling of microalgae by dielectrophoresis(Basel : MDPI, 2020) Abt, Vinzenz; Gringel, Fabian; Han, Arum; Neubauer, Peter; Birkholz, MarioMicroalgae biotechnology has a high potential for sustainable bioproduction of diverse highvalue biomolecules. Some of the main bottlenecks in cell-based bioproduction, and more specifically in microalgae-based bioproduction, are due to insufficient methods for rapid and efficient cell characterization, which contributes to having only a few industrially established microalgal species in commercial use. Dielectrophoresis-based microfluidic devices have been long established as promising tools for label-free handling, characterization, and separation of broad ranges of cells. The technique is based on differences in dielectric properties and sizes, which results in different degrees of cell movement under an applied inhomogeneous electrical field. The method has also earned interest for separating microalgae based on their intrinsic properties, since their dielectric properties may significantly change during bioproduction, in particular for lipid-producing species. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of dielectrophoresis-based microfluidic devices that are used for handling, characterization, and separation of microalgae. Additionally, we provide a perspective on related areas of research in cell-based bioproduction that can benefit from dielectrophoresis-based microdevices. This work provides key information that will be useful for microalgae researchers to decide whether dielectrophoresis and which method is most suitable for their particular application. © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
- ItemDegradation Kinetics of Lignocellulolytic Enzymes in a Biogas Reactor Using Quantitative Mass Spectrometry(Basel : MDPI, 2023) Küchler, Jan; Willenbücher, Katharina; Reiß, Elisabeth; Nuß, Lea; Conrady, Marius; Ramm, Patrice; Schimpf, Ulrike; Reichl, Udo; Szewzyk, Ulrich; Benndorf, DirkThe supplementation of lignocellulose-degrading enzymes can be used to enhance the performance of biogas production in industrial biogas plants. Since the structural stability of these enzyme preparations is essential for efficient application, reliable methods for the assessment of enzyme stability are crucial. Here, a mass-spectrometric-based assay was established to monitor the structural stability of enzymes, i.e., the structural integrity of these proteins, in anaerobic digestion (AD). The analysis of extracts of Lentinula edodes revealed the rapid degradation of lignocellulose-degrading enzymes, with an approximate half-life of 1.5 h. The observed low structural stability of lignocellulose-degrading enzymes in AD corresponded with previous results obtained for biogas content. The established workflow can be easily adapted for the monitoring of other enzyme formulations and provides a platform for evaluating the effects of enzyme additions in AD, together with a characterization of the biochemical methane potential used in order to determine the biodegradability of organic substrates.
- ItemInfluence of redox stress on crosstalk between fibroblasts and keratinocytes(Basel : MDPI, 2021) Bhartiya, Pradeep; Masur, Kai; Shome, Debarati; Kaushik, Neha; Nguyen, Linh N.; Kaushik, Nagendra Kumar; Choi, Eun HaAlthough the skin is constantly subjected to endogenous and exogenous stress, it maintains a homeostatic state through wound repair and regeneration pathways. Treatment for skin diseases and injury requires a significant understanding of the various mechanisms and interactions that occur within skin cells. Keratinocytes and fibroblasts interact with each other and act as key players in the repair process. Although fibroblasts and keratinocytes are widely studied in wound healing and skin remodeling under different conditions, the influence of redox stress on keratinocyte-fibroblast crosstalk has not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, we used cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) to generate and deliver oxidative stress to keratinocytes and fibroblasts and to assess its impact on their interactions. To this end, we used a well-established in vitro 3D co-culture model imitating a realistic scenario. Our study shows that low CAP exposure is biocompatible and does not affect the viability or energetics of fibroblasts and keratinocytes. Exposure to low doses of CAP enhanced the proliferation rate of cells and stimulated the expression of key genes (KGF, MMP2, GMCSF, IL-6, and IL-8) in fibroblasts, indicating the activation and initiation of the skin repair process. Additionally, enhanced migration was observed under co-culture conditions under the given redox stress conditions, and expression of the upstream regulator and the effectors of the Hippo pathway (YAP and CYR61, respectively), which are associated with enhanced migration, were elevated. Overall, this study reinforces the application of CAP and redox stress in skin repair physiology.
- ItemConsensusPrime—A Bioinformatic Pipeline for Ideal Consensus Primer Design(Basel : MDPI, 2022) Collatz, Maximilian; Braun, Sascha D.; Monecke, Stefan; Ehricht, RalfBackground: High-quality oligonucleotides for molecular amplification and detection procedures of diverse target sequences depend on sequence homology. Processing input sequences and identifying homogeneous regions in alignments can be carried out by hand only if they are small and contain sequences of high similarity. Finding the best regions for large and inhomogeneous alignments needs to be automated. Results: The ConsensusPrime pipeline was developed to sort out redundant and technical interfering data in multiple sequence alignments and detect the most homologous regions from multiple sequences. It automates the prediction of optimal consensus primers for molecular analytical and sequence-based procedures/assays. Conclusion: ConsensusPrime is a fast and easy-to-use pipeline for predicting optimal consensus primers that is executable on local systems without depending on external resources and web services. An implementation in a Docker image ensures platform-independent executability and installability despite the combination of multiple programs. The source code and installation instructions are publicly available on GitHub.
- ItemEffect of Stacking Fault Energy on Microstructure and Texture Evolution during the Rolling of Non-Equiatomic CrMnFeCoNi High-Entropy Alloys(Basel : MDPI, 2020) Dan Sathiaraj, G.; Kalsar, Rajib; Suwas, Satyam; Skrotzki, WernerThe evolution of microstructure and texture in three non-equiatomic CrMnFeCoNi high-entropy alloys (HEAs) with varying stacking fault energy (SFE) has been studied in up to 90% rolling reductions at both room and cryogenic temperature. All the HEAs deform by dislocation slip and additional mechanical twinning at intermediate and shear banding at high rolling strains. The microstructure is quite heterogeneous and, with strain, becomes highly fragmented. During rolling, a characteristic brass-type texture develops. Its strength increases with a decreasing SFE and the lowering of the rolling temperature. The texture evolution is discussed with regard to planar slip, mechanical twinning, and shear banding. © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
- ItemPhase Formation, Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Mg67Ag33 as Potential Biomaterial(Basel : MDPI, 2021) Kosiba, Konrad; Prashanth, Konda Gokuldoss; Scudino, SergioThe phase and microstructure formation as well as mechanical properties of the rapidly solidified Mg67Ag33 (at. %) alloy were investigated. Owing to kinetic constraints effective during rapid cooling, the formation of equilibrium phases is suppressed. Instead, the microstructure is mainly composed of oversaturated hexagonal closest packed Mg-based dendrites surrounded by a mixture of phases, as probed by X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. A possible non-equilibrium phase diagram is suggested. Mainly because of the fine-grained dendritic and interdendritic microstructure, the material shows appreciable mechanical properties, such as a compressive yield strength and Young’s modulus of 245 ± 5 MPa and 63 ± 2 GPa, respectively. Due to this low Young’s modulus, the Mg67Ag33 alloy has potential for usage as biomaterial and challenges ahead, such as biomechanical compatibility, biodegradability and antibacterial properties are outlined.
- ItemMeasurement of Water Vapor Condensation on Apple Surfaces during Controlled Atmosphere Storage(Basel : MDPI, 2023) Linke, Manfred; Praeger, Ulrike; Neuwald, Daniel A.; Geyer, MartinApples are stored at temperatures close to 0 °C and high relative humidity (up to 95%) under controlled atmosphere conditions. Under these conditions, the cyclic operation of the refrigeration machine and the associated temperature fluctuations can lead to localized undershoots of the dew point on fruit surfaces. The primary question for the present study was to prove that such condensation processes can be measured under practical conditions during apple storage. Using the example of a measuring point in the upper apple layer of a large bin in the supply air area, this evidence was provided. Using two independent measuring methods, a wetness sensor attached to the apple surface and determination of climatic conditions near the fruit, the phases of condensation, namely active condensation and evaporation, were measured over three weeks as a function of the operating time of the cooling system components (refrigeration machine, fans, defrosting regime). The system for measurement and continuous data acquisition in the case of an airtight CA-storage room is presented and the influence of the operation of the cooling system components in relation to condensation phenomena was evaluated. Depending on the set point specifications for ventilation and defrost control, condensed water was present on the apple surface between 33.4% and 100% of the duration of the varying cooling/re-warming cycles.
- ItemIntegrating Biophysics in Toxicology(Basel : MDPI, 2020) Del Favero, G.; Kraegeloh, A.Integration of biophysical stimulation in test systems is established in diverse branches of biomedical sciences including toxicology. This is largely motivated by the need to create novel experimental setups capable of reproducing more closely in vivo physiological conditions. Indeed, we face the need to increase predictive power and experimental output, albeit reducing the use of animals in toxicity testing. In vivo, mechanical stimulation is essential for cellular homeostasis. In vitro, diverse strategies can be used to model this crucial component. The compliance of the extracellular matrix can be tuned by modifying the stiffness or through the deformation of substrates hosting the cells via static or dynamic strain. Moreover, cells can be cultivated under shear stress deriving from the movement of the extracellular fluids. In turn, introduction of physical cues in the cell culture environment modulates differentiation, functional properties, and metabolic competence, thus influencing cellular capability to cope with toxic insults. This review summarizes the state of the art of integration of biophysical stimuli in model systems for toxicity testing, discusses future challenges, and provides perspectives for the further advancement of in vitro cytotoxicity studies.