Initial Color Research Articles

Label-free colorimetric analysis strategies based on adsorption-responsive surface-enhanced photochromic phenomena of tungsten(VI) oxide nanoparticles for amino acids.

Herein, we present a colorimetric detection method based on the surface-enhanced photochromic phenomenon of tungsten (VI) oxide (WO3) nanocolloid particles for α-amino acid (AA) molecules, including L-aspartic acid (Asp), L-glutamic acid (Glu), L-histidine (His), L-isoleucine (Ile), L-leucine (Leu), L-lysine (Lys), L-phenylalanine (Phe), and L-valine (Val). The UV-induced photochromic phenomena in the AA/WO3 binary aqueous systems were investigated using UV-Vis absorption spectrometry. The adsorption properties of the AA molecules on the surface of the WO3 nanocolloid particles have been identified using a combination of adsorption isotherm analysis and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy. A good linear correlation between the concentration of the AAs adsorbed on the surface of the WO3 nanocolloid particles and the initial photochromic coloration rate in the corresponding UV-irradiated WO3 colloidal aqueous solution was obtained with over three orders of magnitude, indicating that the surface-enhanced photochromic phenomenon of the WO3 nanocolloid particle can be used to detect the AA molecules. In addition, based on the results of the UV-Vis absorption, ATR-FTIR, and adsorption isotherm analyses, we have experimentally demonstrated that the AA/WO3 binary aqueous system with inner-sphere adsorbed Ile, Leu, Lys, or Val molecules on the surface of the WO3 nanocolloid particles exhibits a more significant surface-enhanced photochromic phenomenon than the system with outer-sphere adsorbed Asp, Glu, His, or Phe molecules. The strong inner-sphere adsorption of the AA molecules successfully improved the limit of detection. This study provides valuable insights into a "label-free" colorimetric assay system based on the surface-enhanced photochromic phenomenon of the WO3 nanocolloid probe.

Majority opinion diffusion: when tie-breaking rule matters

Consider a graph G, which represents a social network, and assume that initially each node is either blue or white (corresponding to its opinion on a certain topic). In each round, all nodes simultaneously update their color to the most frequent color in their neighborhood. This is called the Majority Model (MM) if a node keeps its color in case of a tie and the Random Majority Model (RMM) if it chooses blue with probability 1/2 and white otherwise. We study the convergence properties of the above models, including stabilization time, periodicity, and the number of stable configurations. In particular, we prove that the stabilization time in RMM can be exponential in the size of the graph, which is in contrast with the previously known polynomial bound on the stabilization time of MM. We provide some bounds on the minimum size of a winning set, which is a set of nodes whose agreement on a color in the initial coloring enforces the process to end in a coloring where all nodes share that color. Furthermore, we calculate the expected final number of blue nodes for a random initial coloring, where each node is colored blue independently with some fixed probability, on cycle graphs. Finally, we conduct some experiments which complement our theoretical findings and also let us investigate other aspects of the models.

Cyclodextrin-Assisted Surface-Enhanced Photochromic Phenomena of Tungsten(VI) Oxide Nanoparticles for Label-Free Colorimetric Detection of Phenylalanine.

Herein are presented the results of experiments designed to evaluate the effectiveness of host-guest interactions in improving the sensitivity of colorimetric detection based on surface-enhanced photochromic phenomena of tungsten(VI) oxide (WO3) nanocolloid particles. The UV-induced photochromic coloration of WO3 nanocolloid particles in the presence of aromatic α-amino acid (AA), l-phenylalanine (Phe) or l-2-phenylglycine (Phg), and heptakis(2,3,6-tri-O-methyl)-β-cyclodextrin (TMβCDx) in an aqueous system was investigated using UV-vis absorption spectrometry. The characteristics of the adsorption modes and configurations of AAs on the WO3 surface have also been identified by using a combination of adsorption isotherm analysis and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR). A distinct linear relationship was observed between the concentration of AAs adsorbed on the WO3 nanocolloid particles and the initial photochromic coloration rate in the corresponding UV-irradiated colloidal WO3 in aqueous media, indicating that a simple and sensitive quantification of AAs can be achieved from UV-induced WO3 photochromic coloration without any complicated preprocessing. The proposed colorimetric assay in the Phe/TMβCDx/WO3 ternary aqueous system had a linear range of 1 × 10-8 to 1 × 10-4 mol dm-3 for Phe detection, with a limit of detection of 8.3 × 10-9 mol dm-3. The combined results from UV-vis absorption, ATR-FTIR, and adsorption isotherm experiments conclusively indicated that the TMβCDx-complexed Phe molecules in the Phe/TMβCDx/WO3 ternary aqueous system are preferentially and strongly inner-sphere adsorbed on the WO3 surface, resulting in a more significant surface-enhanced photochromic phenomenon. The findings in this study provided intriguing insights into the design and development of the "label-free" colorimetric assay system based on the surface-enhanced photochromic phenomenon of the WO3 nanocolloid probe.

Effect of Simulated Gastric Juice on Color Stability of Different Artificial Teeth

Objective: The current study aimed to evaluate the gastric juice effect on the artificial teeth discoloration in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) under in vitro conditions.
 Methods: Three different artificial teeth (Ivostar, Vivodent PE, Phonares II) were used in the study (n=12). A spectrophotometer (VITA Easyshade Compact; VITA Zahnfabrik, Bad Säckingen, Germany) was used for initial color measurements after keeping the specimens in distilled water for 24 h. Then, they were immersed in 5% hydrochloric acid (HCl) at 37°C (pH=2) for 91 h and the color measurements were
 repeated. The CIEDE2000 formulation was used to calculate the color changes. The statistical analysis was performed with one-way ANOVA and Tukey HSD tests.
 Results: Although the color differences of Vivodent PE and Phonares II materials did not exhibit a statistically significant difference (p=.95; p > .05), there was a significant difference between Ivostar and other materials (p=.02, p=.01). The 50:50% detection threshold (PT) was exceeded with Vivodent PE and Phonares II materials, while the 50:50% acceptability threshold (AT) was exceeded with Ivostar material.
 Conclusion: After exposure to gastric acid, all groups exhibited perceptible color differences. In the group of acrylic resin artificial teeth, the color difference was above acceptability threshold and would be better to improve. While the acrylic resin artificial teeth exhibited the highest discoloration, artificial teeth containing nanohybrid composite resin showed the least discoloration. These should be considered in
 the selection of artificial teeth in patients with GERD.

Colorimetric Pressure Sensing by Plasmonic Decoupling of Silver Nanoparticles Confined within Polymeric Nanoshells.

Employing a plasmonic decoupling mechanism, we report the design of a colorimetric pressure sensor that can respond to applied pressure with instant color changes. The sensor consists of a thin film of stacked uniform resorcinol-formaldehyde nanoshells with their inner surfaces functionalized with silver nanoparticles. Upon compression, the flexible polymer nanoshells expand laterally, inducing plasmonic decoupling between neighboring silver nanoparticles and a subsequent blue-shift. The initial color of the sensor is determined by the extent of plasmonic coupling, which can be controlled by tuning the interparticle distance through a seeded growth process. The sensing range can be conveniently customized by controlling the polymer shell thickness or incorporating hybrid nanoshells into various polymer matrices. The new colorimetric pressure sensors are easy to fabricate and highly versatile, allow for convenient tuning of the sensing range, and feature significant color shifts, holding great promise for a wide range of practical applications.

73 Deworming to improve growth in early-weaned spring born hair sheep lambs

Abstract In lambs, the stress of weaning and the lack of a fully developed immune system can increase susceptibility to gastrointestinal nematodes (GIN). Lack of an effective GIN control strategy around this time can have a significant impact on lamb growth, productivity and mortality. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of deworming at weaning on growth performance in hair sheep lambs. St. Croix (STX) and Barbados Blackbelly (BB) lambs used in the study were born on pasture, weaned at 60.2 ± 0.4 d of age, and transitioned in pens for 87 d post-weaning before turning out to pasture. After accounting for initial FAMACHA eyelid color score, breed, and birth type (single or multiple) at weaning, 54 STX (n = 32) and BB (n = 22) lambs weighing 11.7 ± 0.4 kg were dewormed (DEW) or not (CON) with a combination of levamisol (Prohibit; 8 mg/kg BW) moxidectin (Cydectin; 0.2 mg/kg BW) and albendazole (Valbazen; 7.5 mg/kg BW). To evaluate the effect of deworming treatment, BW and body condition scores (BCS; scale 1-5) were recorded at weaning and at end of transition to pasture. Blood and fecal samples were also collected for determination of packed cell volume (PCV) and fecal egg counts (FEC). Pooled treatment group feces (d 0 – 98) were collected and cultured to determine GIN genera at weaning. Data were analyzed using repeated measures in a mixed model, and FEC were log transformed prior to analysis. There was a mixed population of GIN at weaning averaging 65% and 35% for H. contortus and Tricostrongylus spp. At weaning, BCS, PCV, and FEC were similar between treatment groups and averaged 1.6 ± 0.07, 36.5 ± 0.6%, and 399 ± 54.4 epg, respectively. Combination deworming reduced FEC by 99%. At turnout, DEW lambs (2.3 ± 0.1) tended (P = 0.08) to have greater BCS than CON lambs (2.0 ± 0.1) and PCV was greater (P < 0.001) in DEW versus CON lambs (37.2 ± 0.9 and 33.3 ± 0.8%, respectively). There was also a tendency (P = 0.09) for breed to influence BCS (2.3 ± 0.1 and 2.0 ± 0.1 for BB and STX, respectively). The FEC at turnout was not influenced by treatment or breed (496.7 ± 75.1 epg). Additionally, DEW lambs (131.8 ± 5.2) tended (P = 0.09) to grow faster than CON (119.9 ± 4.7 g/d) lambs, a difference more pronounced in STX DEW (g/d) than STX CON lambs (136 ± 6.1 vs 110 ± 6.5 g/d; P < 0.05). Even though deworming tended to promote faster growth rates in lambs used in this study, alternative, more sustainable, parasite control strategies should be considered in the wake of increasing dewormer resistance.

An Optimization Study of Advanced Fenton Oxidation Methods (UV/Fenton–MW/Fenton) for Treatment of Real Epoxy Paint Wastewater

The use of various advanced oxidation methods in the treatment of wastewater has become the subject of many studies published in recent years. In particular, it is exceedingly significant to compare these treatment methods for industrial wastewater to reduce environmental effects and optimize plant operations and economics. The present study is the first to deal with the treatability of real epoxy paint wastewater (EPW) using MW- and UV-assisted Fenton processes within an optimization framework. A three-factor, three-level Box–Behnken experimental design combined with response surface methodology (RSM) was conducted for maximizing the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and color removal efficiencies of ultraviolet (UV)/Fenton and microwave (MW)/Fenton processes in the treatment of the real epoxy paint wastewater (EPW, initial COD = 4600 ± 90 mg/L, initial color = 114 ± 4 Pt-Co), based on 15 different experimental runs. Three independent variables (reaction time ranging from 20 to 60 min (UV) and from 5 to 15 min (MW), power ranging from 20 to 40 W (UV) and from 300 to 600 W (MW), and H2O2/Fe2+ ratio ranging from 0.2 to 0.6 (for both UV and MW)) were consecutively coded as A, B, and C at three levels (−1, 0, and 1), and four second-order polynomial regression equations were then derived to estimate the responses (COD and color removals) of two distinct systems. The significance of the independent model components and their interrelations were appraised by means of a variance analysis with 99% confidence limits (α = 0.01). The standardized differences of the independent variables and the consistency between the actual and predicted values were also investigated by preparing normal probability residual plots and experiment-model plots for all processes. The optimal operating conditions were attained by solving the quadratic regression models and analyzing the surface and contour plots. UV/Fenton and MW/Fenton processes, which constitute combined Fenton processes, were performed using advanced oxidation methods, while Fenton processes were utilized as the standard method for wastewater treatment. When UV/Fenton and MW/Fenton processes were applied separately, the COD removal efficiencies were determined to be 96.4% and 95.3%, respectively. For the color parameter, the removal efficiencies after the application of both processes were found to exceed 97.5%. While these efficiencies were achieved in 1 h with a 38 W UV unit, they were achieved in 15 min with a MW power of 570 W. According to the RSM-based regression analysis results, the R2 values for both processes were greater than 0.97 and p values were less than 0.003.

First Report of Leaf Spot Blight of Camellia oleifera Caused by Diaporthe mahothocarpus in China.

Camellia oleifera Abel. is one of the native and important natural edible oil species in China. The cultivation of C. oleifera has vigorously increased in Guizhou Province in recent years. From June to August 2022, a severe leaf spot blight was observed on C. oleifera in Longli Plantation, with an incidence of 53.5% (n=200), which caused severe defoliation, negatively affected plant growth, and led to significant economic losses. Pale yellow and sub-circular leaf spots of 2-5 mm in diameter first appeared in the margin. The center of the spots then turned grey, and the edges turned brown. The symptomatic leaves gradually developed symptoms of blight with some brown acervular conidiomata, died, and fell off, with many deep black spots on the leaves (Fig. 1A-B). The fungal isolates GZU-Y2 and GZU-Y3 were obtained from the infected leaves of five-year-old symptomatic C. oleifera trees using the tissue isolation method, and a voucher specimen was deposited in the Forest Protection Laboratory, Guizhou University. Cultures grown on potato dextrose agar medium (PDA) were incubated at 28℃, 16L/8D. A round cream-like colony was formed on PDA, with a white surface, while the back gradually turned brown (Fig. 1C-E). The aerial hypha grew vigorously with an initial milky white color before turning grayish white. At 10 days after incubation, the pycnidia were dark brown to black and spherical, with a diameter of 563.3 μm (500 to 700) (n=20). The alpha conidia were unicellular, hyaline, aseptate, oval or fusiform and measured 6.1 μm (4.1 to 8.0) × 2.6 μm (1.9 to 3.6) (n=50). However, no beta conidia were observed (Fig. 1I). For further identification, total DNA from the pure culture was extracted using a DNA extraction kit (Sangon, Shanghai, China), and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS), translation elongation factor 1-α (TEF-1α), and beta-tubulin (TUB2) were amplified by PCR using the primers ITS1/ITS4 (White et al., 1990), EF1-728F/EF1-986R (Carbone and Kohn, 1999) and Bt2a/Bt2b (Glass and Donaldson, 1995), respectively, and sequenced for a BLASTn analysis and phylogenetic tree construction. The sequences of ITS, TEF-1α and TUB2 were deposited in GenBank as accession numbers OQ168242 (99.25%), OQ689451 (99.71%) and OQ689453 (100.00%) for GZU-Y2 and OQ674554 (99.25%), OQ689452 (99.71%) and OQ689454 (100.00%) for GZU-Y3, respectively. A phylogenetic tree (Fig. 2) was constructed with the software MEGA X using the Neighbor-Joining algorithm (Felsenstein, 1985). Based on its morphological and molecular characteristics, the pathogen was identified as Diaporthe mahothocarpus, one of the synonyms of D. eres and the teleomorph of Phomopsis mahothocarpi (Gao et al., 2014 and 2015; Chaisiri et al., 2021). A pathogenicity test was conducted by spraying spore suspensions (2 × 107 spores/mL) of isolate GZU-Y2 on the leaves of 20 pots of annual C. oleifera seedlings in vivo. The same number of control seedings were sprayed with sterile water. The seedlings were placed at a constant room temperature of 28°C, with the inoculation points wrapped in Parafilm for 5 d to retain moisture. After 10 d, typical symptoms appeared on the inoculated leaves (Fig. 1F-H), and the re-isolated fungal culture was identical in morphology and ITS sequence to that originally obtained, fulfilling Koch's postulates. To our knowledge, this is the first report of D. mahothocarpus causing leaf spot blight of C. oleifera in China. In our future work, we tend to study the green prevention and control of this disease.

Colorful graphene-based wearable e-textiles prepared by co-dyeing cotton fabrics with natural dyes and reduced graphene oxide

In addition to the functionality of electronic textiles (e-textiles), their aesthetic properties should be considered to expand their marketability. In this study, premordanted cotton fabrics were co-dyed with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and natural dyes to develop ecofriendly and colorful graphene-based wearable e-textiles. The color attributes of the textiles were analyzed in terms of the dyeing conditions, namely, rGO loading, mordant type, and natural dye type. The lightness of the dyed samples increased in the order of cochineal < gardenia blue < rhubarb. Regardless of the natural dye and rGO loading, the lightness of the fabrics mordanted with Fe was lower than that with Al and Cu. Moreover, the rhubarb- and gardenia blue-dyed fabrics exhibited broad chroma and hue dispersions, indicating the strong impact of the dyeing conditions. With increasing rGO loading, the chroma of the rhubarb-dyed fabrics substantially decreased, resulting in decreased color saturation. The initial greenish-blue color of the gardenia blue-dyed fabrics gradually changed to yellowish-green and then yellow. Regardless of the natural dye, drastic overall color changes were observed, with average values of 7.60, 11.14, 12.68, and 13.56 ΔECMC(2:1) at increasing rGO loadings of 1, 3, 5, and 7% owb, respectively.

RCF-ST: RICHER CONVOLUTIONAL FEATURES NETWORK WITH STRUCTURAL TUNING FOR THE EDGE DETECTION ON NATURAL IMAGES

Context. The problem of automating of the edge detection on natural images in intelligent systems is considered. The subject of the research is the deep learning convolutional neural networks for edge detection on natural images.&#x0D; Objective. The objective of the research is to improve the edge detection performance of natural images by structural tuning the richer convolutional features network architecture.&#x0D; Method. In general, the edge detection performance is influenced by a neural network architecture. To automate the design of the network structure in the paper a structural tuning of a neural network is applied. Computational costs of a structural tuning are incomparably less compared with neural architecture search, but a higher qualification of the researcher is required, and the resulting solution will be suboptimal. In this research it is successively applied first a destructive approach and then a constructive approach to structural tuning of the based architecture of the RCF neural network. The constructive approach starts with a simple architecture network. Hidden layers, nodes, and connections are added to expand the network. The destructive approach starts with a complex architecture network. Hidden layers, nodes, and connections are then deleted to contract the network. The structural tuning of the richer convolutional features network includes: (1) reducing the number of convolutional layers; (2) reducing the number of convolutions in convolutional layers; (3) removing at each stage the sigmoid activation function with subsequent calculation of the loss function; (4) addition of the batch normalization layers after convolutional layers; (5) including the ReLU activation functions after the added batch normalization layers. The obtained neural network is named RCF-ST. The initial color images were scaled to the specified size and then inputted in the neural network. The advisability of each of the proposed stages of network structural tuning was reseached by estimating the edge detection performance using the confusion matrix elements and Figure of Merit. The advisability of a structural tuning of the neural network as a whole was estimated by comparing it with methods known from the literature using the Optimal Dataset Scale and Optimal Image Scale.&#x0D; Results. The proposed convolutional neural network has been implemented in software and researched for solving the problem of edge detection on natural images. The structural tuning technique may be used for informed design of the neural network architectures for other artificial intelligence problems.&#x0D; Conclusions. The obtained RCF-ST network allows to improve the performance of edge detection on natural images. RCF-ST network is characterized by a significantly fewer parameters compared to the RCF network, which makes it possible to reduce the resource consumption of the network. Besides, RCF-ST network ensures the enhancing of the robustness of edge detection on texture background.

Tailoring photocatalytic performance through Fe-doped TiO2/ZnO for effective remediation of organic contaminants

The development of highly efficient photocatalysts holds significant promise for addressing contemporary environmental challenges. This study focuses on the synthesis and characterization of a novel photocatalyst, iron-doped TiO2/ZnO particles, created through the sol-gel technique. The incorporation of iron ions into the crystalline structure of TiO2/ZnO aims to enhance the photocatalytic efficiency of TiO2. The findings revealed that Fe–ZnO/TiO2 exhibits a more thermally stable lattice compared to TiO2/ZnO, thereby retarding the phase transformation from anatase to rutile under higher calcination temperature. The photocatalytic performance of the synthesized photocatalyst was evaluated through the degradation of methyl orange under visible light irradiation. A statistical response surface methodology based on a central composite design was employed to develop a predictive model for color removal (as the dependent variable) considering variations in irradiation intensity, initial color concentration, catalyst concentration, reaction time, and pH (as independent variables). The analysis of variance identified the initial color concentration as the most influential factor, negatively affecting the predicted response. The experimental values of color removal exhibited good agreement with the predicted values from the regression model with a coefficient of determination of 0.949, indicating the accuracy of this model in predicting the mentioned outcomes. The presented model indicated that, for a sample of methyl orange with an initial concentration of 21.97 ppm, a reaction time of 117.69 min under direct irradiation of 21.63 W, a catalyst concentration of 0.61 g/L, and a pH of 4.74, the optimal color removal efficiency of 78.99 % was achieved.

Post-cure Heat Treatments Influence the Mechanical and Optical Properties of Acrylic and Bis-acryl Composite Resins.

To evaluate the influence of post-cure heat treatments (PCHT) on Knoop microhardness (KHN) and color change of bis-acryl composite resin (Protemp 4 - 3M ESPE, USA and PrimmaArt - FGM, Brazil) and chemically activated acrylic resins (Dencôr - Clássico, Brazil, and Duralay - Cotia, Brazil). Specimens (12×1 mm) were prepared for each material (n=10/group). Thirty minutes after curing, the specimens were subjected to PCHT for 10 minutes at 70°, 100°, or 130°C. The control group was kept at room temperature (24°C) for the same amount of time. KHN was analyzed 24 hours after PCHT (n=10). Following Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage (CIE) Delta E 2000 (CIEDE2000 [ΔE00]), color measurements were obtained at three time points: 1. after polymerization; 2. after PCHT; and 3. after 30 days of storage in water, coffee, or red wine. Data for each material were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) (p<0.05). The PCHT at 130°C produced the highest KHN values. Except for the 70°C groups from Dencôr and Protemp, all PCHTs increased the initial color values (p>0.05). In general, chemically activated acrylic resins showed an increase in color stability when subjected to PCHT (p>0.05). For bis-acryl composite resin, PCHT did not influence color stability (p<0.05). Overall, the results showed that PCHT increased the tested materials' color changes and Knoop microhardness. However, except for PCHT at 130°C in Duralay, the color changes remained within acceptable values. The PCHT treatment resulted in better color stability for most of the composite resins studied.

Effect of different tea solutions on the color stability of composite resins

Aims: The aim of this study is to evaluate the color change of supra-nanophile (Estelite ? Quick) and nano-hybrid (Clearfil Majesty Esthetic) composites kept in three different brands of black tea (İstikan, Yellow Label and Çaykur) for three different periods (24 hours, 7 days and 28 days). Methods: Specially produced Teflon molds with an inner diameter of 10 mm, an outer diameter of 12 mm, and a thickness of 2 mm were used. 28 pieces of Tokuyama Estelite Sigma Quick composite material and 28 pieces of Kuraray Clearfil Majesty Esthetic composite material were placed in the molds and polimerized. All samples were polished and initial color measurements were taken. The samples were divided into three experimental groups (Istikan, Lipton yellow label, Çaykur tiryaki) and a control group (distilled water) (n=7). The samples were kept in this solution for 1 day, 7 days and 28 days, and at the end of the period, color measurements were measured with a spectrophotometer. Data were recorded according to the CIE Lab system. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey test were used to analyze the data, and the Kruskal Wallis H test was used to make comparisons based on variables with more than two categories in the data. Results: It was observed that there was a statistically significant difference between the 24-hour and 7th-day coloration results of Tokuyama brand according to the beverages (p&lt;0.05). According to the beverages, it was observed that there was a statistically significant difference between the 28-day coloration results of Tokuyama and Kuraray brands. Conclusion: In the supra-nanofilled and nanohybrid filler composite resins we used in our study; it was observed that the coloration increased as the residence time in the solution increased.

Effect of Storage Conditions on Physical Properties, Lipid Oxidation, Isoflavones and Antioxidant Capacity of Flour Prepared from Soy Milk By-Product

During the production of soy milk, a by-product is produced, which is typically treated as a waste material. This by-product has significant levels of dietary fibre, proteins, isoflavones and antioxidant capacity. As such, it has been recommended as an effective functional ingredient when milled to a flour after drying at 100 °C. The shelf-life stability of this dried by-product is relatively unknown when stored under different storage conditions (2 °C, 20 °C and 40 °C) and initial moisture content (9%, 12% and 14%), both packaged and exposed to immediate environments. This study investigated the impact of storage over ten weeks on the physical properties, lipid oxidation, antioxidant capacity and stability of isoflavones of this functional ingredient. The results showed that exposure significantly affected the stability of flour, especially on moisture content, water activity, isoflavone concentration and lipid oxidation. Different initial moisture contents significantly affected the initial and final colour, alongside final moisture and water activity when stored covered at 2 °C and 20 °C. Different storage temperatures were found to affect the moisture content, water activity, lipid oxidation, conversion of isoflavones and antioxidant capacity, with all tested initial moisture contents. Of note, higher conversion rates of malonyl isoflavones to β-glucosides were observed at high temperatures and longer times, while a minimum change in aglycone content occurred. In conclusion, the stability of this flour is least influenced by the initial moisture content but is more affected by high storage temperature and unpackaged conditions.

Genome-wide identification of grape ANS gene family and expression analysis at different fruit coloration stages

BackgroundAnthocyanin synthase (ANS) is the enzyme downstream of the anthocyanins synthesis pathway and the rate-limiting enzyme of the synthesis pathway. It catalyzes the conversion of colorless anthocyanins to anthocyanins and plays an important role in plant color presentation and stress resistance. However, ANS gene is rarely studied in grapes.ResultsIn this study, 121 VvANS genes were identified and distributed on 18 chromosomes, VvANS family members were divided into 8 subgroups. Secondary structure prediction showed mainly irregular coils and α-helices, and subcellular localization indicated that VvANS gene family is mainly located in chloroplast, cytoplasm and nucleus. The promoter region of the VvANS gene family contains multiple cis-acting elements that are associated with light, abiotic stress, and hormones. Intraspecific collinearity analysis showed that there were 13 pairs of collinearity between VvANS genes. Interspecific collinearity analysis showed that there was more collinearity between grape, apple and Arabidopsis, but less collinearity between grape and rice. Microarray data analysis showed that VvANS17, VvANS23 and VvANS75 had higher expression levels in flesh and peel, while VvANS25, VvANS64 and VvANS106 had higher expression levels in flower. The results of qRT-PCR analysis showed that VvANS genes were expressed throughout the whole process of fruit coloring, such as VvANS47 and VvANS55 in the green fruit stage, VvANS3, VvANS64 and VvANS90 in the initial fruit color turning stage. The expression levels of VvANS21, VvANS79 and VvANS108 were higher at 50% coloring stage, indicating that these genes play an important role in the fruit coloring process. VvANS4, VvANS66 and VvANS113 had the highest expression levels in the full maturity stage.ConclusionsThese results indicated that different members of VvANS gene family played a role in different coloring stages, and this study laid a foundation for further research on the function of ANS gene family.

Fabrication of coconut shell activated carbon filter system for removal of colour and pollutants in textile dye effluent

The present study evaluates the Decolorization and pollutant removal efficiency of chemically impregnated coconut shell-activated carbon using textile dye effluent in the filtration system. The coconut shell zinc chloride activated carbon (CSZAC) was used as a filtering media in wastewater treatment due to its wider pore space with better surface area (590.80 m2 g−1) and higher adsorption capacity. The SEM micrograph revealed that the activated carbon had networks of parallel running pores with internal microstructure and more active sites. The designed activated carbon filter system has dimensions of 90 x 60 x 30 cm; the sections included are the holding tank (50 liters capacity), filtration tank and storage tank with the optimized flow rate of 5 x 10−4 m3 min−1. The Color, pH, EC, TDS, TSS, BOD and COD of textile dyeing wastewater were significantly reduced, after the treatment through the CSZAC filtration system. The initial color concentration of textile dye effluent was 7021 HU and after treatment, the color was fully reduced and became colorless. CSZAC treatment reduced the BOD from 600 mg L−1 to 89.7 mg L−1 (80.6 per cent) and COD from 2500 mg L−1 to 205 mg L−1 (90.5 per cent). Therefore, CSZAC can be used as an effective adsorbent material to remove different dye compounds and pollutants from textile wastewater.

Majority vote in social networks

Consider a graph G and suppose that initially each node is colored either black or white. In the majority model, in each round all nodes simultaneously update their color to the most frequent color among their neighbors.Experiments on the graph data from the real world social networks (SNs) suggest that if an extremely small set of high-degree nodes, often referred to as the elites, all agree on a color, that color becomes the dominant color at the end of the process. We propose two countermeasures that can be adopted by individual nodes relatively easily and guarantee that the elites will not have this disproportionate power to engineer the dominant output color. The first countermeasure essentially requires each node to make some new connections at random, while the second one demands the nodes to be more reluctant towards changing their color. We verify their effectiveness and correctness both theoretically and experimentally.We also investigate the majority model and a variant of it when the initial coloring is random on the real world SNs and several random graph models. In particular, our results on the Erdős-Rényi and regular random graphs confirm or support several theoretical findings or conjectures by the prior work regarding the threshold behavior of the process.

The effect of carbonyl components of printing substrates on the durability of UV thermochromic prints

Special effects on a printed product can increase consumer’s interest in a product and therefore lead to higher revenues in consumer industries. For that purpose, graphic industry introduced various technologies and materials that would have such an effect and enhance consumer-goods interaction. One of those solutions is thermochromic printing. Although bringing added value, thermochromic inks have some challenges in application due to their higher sensitivity, especially when exposed to UV light. Therefore, the goal of this work is to determine whether amount of the UV radiation during curing of UV thermochromic prints, as well as exposure after printing would degrade the thermochromic print on various substrates. UV thermochromic prints were made on three different paper printing substrates using the screen printing method and dried in a laboratory controlled unit. Synthetic paper, recycled paper containing 100 % recycled cellulose fibers and bulky voluminous paper were used as printing substrates. During the UV curing of the ink, no photooxidation of the prints occurred. Additional exposure of the prints to UV radiation (after the ink has hardened) leads to their photooxidative degradation, i.e., a change in the initial color. The obtained colour difference (ΔE) is increasing with the increase of the irradiation amount. The highest colour difference is on the synthetic paper while prints on two other substrates are more resistant to UV light. A print on synthetic paper photooxidizes the fastest due to the presence of most carbonyl groups in it. Generated free radicals promote the instability of prints on synthetic paper. Research has proven that when using synthetic paper or substrates with similar characteristics, care should be taken to accurately determine the amount of UV energy required for curing in order to prevent photodegradation of the ink. The results also show that to explain any degradation of prints, the chemical components of the paper needs to be taken into account, which is rarely done.

Stability kinetics of orevactaene pigments produced by Epicoccum nigrum in solid-state fermentation

Abstract Orevactaene yellow pigment was produced by solid-state fermentation of broken rice using Epicoccum nigrum. The pigment was extracted using water as a solvent and subjected to stability studies at different temperatures (30, 40, 60, and 80°C), pH (4, 6, and 8), sterilization, and sunlight exposure treatment. The observed data were fitted in the first-order kinetic model. Yellow pigment stability was found to vary at different temperatures studied. At 30°C, only a 4% decrease in color intensity was observed after 2 h; at 40°C, an 8% decrease was observed, and at 80°C and pH 6.0, 17% of color intensity was lost. These results showed that the orevactaene pigment produced by E. nigrum is heat-sensitive and changes in color intensity should be expected in heat-processed products. After 180 min at 80°C, yellow pigments maintained 82 and 76% of the initial color at pH 6 and 8, while a 65% decrease in color intensity was observed at 80°C, pH 4. Autoclaving resulted in 69% decay and exposure of pigment to sunlight for 2 h showed 1% decay. The half-life period of the pigment at different temperatures varied from 82.5 to 5.25 h. The decimal reduction time decreased from 275 to 17.5 h with an increase in the temperature. Thermodynamic parameters for pigment decay at pH 6.0 were represented in terms of enthalpy ∆H, activation energy E a, free energy ∆G, and entropy ∆S. The values observed were 44.52–44.93, 48.48, 96.60–105.18 kJ/mol, and −170.50 to −171.85 J/mol/K, respectively. All these parameters help in predicting the quality changes in terms of appearance during thermal processing and optimizing the process.

Do Polishing Methods and Colorant Beverages Affect the Color Stainability of 3D-printed Permanent Restorations?

Aim: This in vitro study evaluated the effect of polishing methods on the color stainability of 3D-printed permanent restorations while immersed in colorant beverages (distilled water, tea, coffee, and red wine) for 30 days. Materials and Methods: A total of 120-disc-shaped samples (10 mm × 1.5 mm) were fabricated using a stereolithography printer (Formlabs 3B, Formlabs, Massachusetts) with a three-dimensional (3D)-printable permanent resin (Permanent Crown, Formlabs, Massachusetts). The samples were polished with mechanical polishing, Optiglaze (GC Dental Products Corp, Aichi, Japan), or Vita Akzent LC (VITA Zahnfabrik, Bad Säckingen, Germany) ( n = 40). Initial color measurements were performed using a spectrophotometer (VITA Easyshade V; Vita Zahnfabrik). Then the samples were divided into four different subgroups depending on beverages immersed in distilled water, coffee, tea, and red wine ( n = 10). After immersion in beverages for 30 days, color measurements were repeated. Color changes were calculated using the CIEDE2000 color change (Δ E00) formula. Δ E00 was evaluated according to 50:50% color perceptibility (PT00 = 0.81) and acceptability (AT00 = 1.81) thresholds. A two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Tukey HSD test with Bonferroni adjustment, and paired-sample t-tests were used for statistical evaluation. Results: The highest ΔE00 was noted in mechanical polishing groups ( p &lt; .001). Red wine caused the most significant discoloration in the mechanical polishing group ( p &lt; .05). ΔE00 of mechanical polish groups showed a significantly higher color change than the perceptibility and acceptability thresholds ( p &lt; .001). Optiglaze can reduce 3D-printed permanent restoration discoloration caused by all beverages, Vita Akzent LC can reduce discoloration caused by tea and red wine. Conclusion: Glaze materials can reduce the restoration discoloration caused by colorant beverages.