Interaction Of Divalent Cations Research Articles

Functionalization of a cast NaAl/binary ZnO/SiO2 nanohybrid with amine and Schiff base ligands as an adsorbent of divalent cations in water system.

Casting method was used to synthesize a novel sodium alginate nanohybrid functionalized with aminated ZnO/SiO2 Schiff base for adsorption of nickel (Ni2+) and copper (Cu2+) divalent cations in single and binary water systems. The cast Schiff base nanohybrids were investigated using FESEM, XRD, BET, FTIR, TGA, and XPS analyses. The influence of unfunctionalized binary ZnO/SiO2 nano oxides and aminated Schiff base ligands formed by the reaction between salicylaldehyde and O-phenylenediamine on the adsorption of Ni2+ and Cu2+ cations was evaluated. The results confirmed that the aminated Schiff base ligands led to a higher adsorption ability of the cast nanohybrids containing interaction of divalent cations with nitrogen and oxygen atoms, as well as carboxyl and hydroxyl groups. The adsorption kinetics and isotherm for both cations followed a double-exponential model and the Redlich-Peterson model, respectively. The maximum monolayer capacity was found to be 249.8mg/g for Cu2+ cation and 96.4mg/g for Ni2+ cation. Thermodynamic analysis revealed an endothermic and spontaneous adsorption process with an increase in entropy. Furthermore, the synthesized Schiff base adsorbent could be easily reused over five times. The simultaneous adsorption in binary system exhibited a higher adsorption selectivity of the cast Schiff base nanohybrid for Cu2+ cation compared to Ni2+ cation. It was found that the removal percentages of Cu2+ and Ni2+ from industrial electroplating wastewater were 91.3 and 64.5%, respectively. Lastly, cost analysis of the synthesized nanohybrid was investigated.

In silico prediction of molecular mechanisms of toxicity mediated by the leptospiral PF07598 gene family-encoded virulence-modifying proteins.

Mechanisms of leptospirosis pathogenesis remain unclear despite the identification of a number of potential leptospiral virulence factors. We recently demonstrated potential mechanisms by which the virulence-modifying (VM) proteins-defined as containing a Domain of Unknown function (DUF1561), encoded by the PF07598 gene family-found only in group 1 pathogenic Leptospira-might mediate the clinical pathogenesis of leptospirosis. VM proteins belongs to classical AB toxin paradigm though have a unique AB domain architecture, unlike other AB toxins such as diphtheria toxin, pertussis toxin, shiga toxin, or ricin toxin which are typically encoded by two or more genes and self-assembled into a multi-domain holotoxin. Leptospiral VM proteins are secreted R-type lectin domain-containing exotoxins with discrete N-terminal ricin B-like domains involved in host cell surface binding, and a C-terminal DNase/toxin domain. Here we use the artificial intelligence-based AlphaFold algorithm and other computational tools to predict and elaborate on details of the VM protein structure-function relationship. Comparative AlphaFold and CD-spectroscopy defined the consistent secondary structure (Helix and ß-sheet) content, and the stability of the functional domains were further supported by molecular dynamics simulation. VM proteins comprises distinctive lectic family (QxW)3 motifs, the Mycoplasma CARDS toxin (D3 domain, aromatic patches), C-terminal similarity with mammalian DNase I. In-silico study proposed that Gln412, Gln523, His533, Thr59 are the high binding energy or ligand binding residues plausibly anticipates in the functional activities. Divalent cation (Mg+2-Gln412) and phosphate ion (PO4]-3-Arg615) interaction further supports the functional activities driven by C-terminal domain. Computation-driven structure-function studies of VM proteins will guide experimentation towards mechanistic understandings of leptospirosis pathogenesis, which underlie development of new therapeutic and preventive measures for this devastating disease.

Development and Characterization of a Novel Soil Amendment Based on Biomass Fly Ash Encapsulated in Calcium Alginate Microspheres.

Biomass fly ash (BFA) from a biomass cogeneration plant was encapsulated into calcium alginate microspheres (ALG/Ca) and characterized. An FTIR analysis indicated that BFA loading weakened molecular interactions between ALG/Ca constituents (mainly hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions), thus changing the crosslinking density. SEM and AFM analyses revealed a wrinkled and rough surface with elongated and distorted granules. The in vitro release of BFA’s main components (K, Ca, and Mg) was controlled by diffusion through the gel-like matrix, but the kinetics and released amounts differed significantly. The smaller released amounts and slower release rates of Ca and Mg compared to K resulted from the differences in the solubility of their minerals as well as from the interactions of divalent cations with alginate chains. The physicochemical properties of the novel microsphere formulation reveal significant potential for the prolonged delivery of nutrients to crops in a safe manner.

Pivotal role of a conserved histidine in Escherichia coli ribonuclease HI as proposed by X-ray crystallography.

The ribonuclease (RNase) H family of enzymes catalyze the specific cleavage of RNA strands of RNA/DNA hybrid duplexes and play an important role in DNA replication and repair. Since the first report of the crystal structure of RNase HI, its catalytic mechanisms, which require metal ions, have been discussed based on numerous structural and functional analyses, including X-ray crystallography. In contrast, the function of the conserved histidine residue (His124 in Escherichia coli) in the flexible loop around the active site remains poorly understood, although an important role was suggested by NMR analyses. Here, novel high-resolution X-ray crystal structures of E. coli RNase HI are described, with a particular focus on the interactions of divalent cations with His124 oriented towards the active site. The enzyme-Mg2+ complex contains two metal ions in the active site, one of which has previously been observed. The second ion lies alongside the first and binds to His124 in an octahedral coordination scheme. In the enzyme-Zn2+ complex a single metal ionwas found to bind to the active site, showing a tetrahedral coordination geometry with the surrounding atoms, including His124. These results provide structural evidence that His124 plays a crucial role in the catalytic activity of RNase HI by interacting weakly and transiently with metal ions in the catalytic center.

Characterization of Divalent Cation Interactions with AASTY Nanodiscs

Characterization of Divalent Cation Interactions with AASTY Nanodiscs

Interaction of divalent cations and amino acids in bulk water: Molecular simulations with neural network potentials

Understanding the interaction mechanism between divalent metal ions with amino acids is of great significance to understand the interaction between metal ions with proteins. In this study, the interaction mechanisms of Mg2+, Ca2+, and Zn2+ with amino acid side chain analogs in water were systematically studied by combining neural network potential energy surface, molecular dynamics simulation and umbrella sampling. The calculated potential mean forces not only reveal the binding process of each ion and amino acid, the most stable coordination structure, but also show the difference between different ions. In addition, we also use the neural network based potential of mean force as a standard to benchmark classical force fields, which is also meaningful for the development of force fields targeting metal ions.

Solid-State NMR Study to Probe the Effects of Divalent Metal Ions (Ca2+ and Mg2+) on the Magnetic Alignment of Polymer-Based Lipid Nanodiscs.

Divalent cations, especially Ca2+ and Mg2+, play a vital role in the function of biomolecules and making them important to be constituents in samples for in vitro biophysical and biochemical characterizations. Although lipid nanodiscs are becoming valuable tools for structural biology studies on membrane proteins and for drug delivery, most types of nanodiscs used in these studies are unstable in the presence of divalent metal ions. To avoid the interaction of divalent metal ions with the belt of the nanodiscs, synthetic polymers have been designed and demonstrated to form stable lipid nanodiscs under such unstable conditions. Such polymer-based nanodiscs have been shown to provide an ideal platform for structural studies using both solid-state and solution NMR spectroscopies because of the near-native cell-membrane environment they provide and the unique magnetic-alignment behavior of large-size nanodiscs. In this study, we report an investigation probing the effects of Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions on the formation of polymer-based lipid nanodiscs and the magnetic-alignment properties using a synthetic polymer, styrene maleimide quaternary ammonium (SMA-QA), and 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) lipids. Phosphorus-31 NMR experiments were used to evaluate the stability of the magnetic-alignment behavior of the nanodiscs for varying concentrations of Ca2+ or Mg2+ at different temperatures. It is remarkable that the interaction of divalent cations with lipid headgroups promotes the stacking up of nanodiscs that results in the enhanced magnetic alignment of nanodiscs. Interestingly, the reported results show that both the temperature and the concentration of divalent metal ions can be optimized to achieve the optimal alignment of nanodiscs in the presence of an applied magnetic field. We expect the reported results to be useful in the design of nanodisc-based nanoparticles for various applications in addition to atomic-resolution structural and dynamics studies using NMR and other biophysical techniques.

Quantifying the influence of divalent cations mass transport on critical flux and organic fouling mechanism of forward osmosis membrane

Understanding the insightful impact of divalent cations mass transport on the complex organic fouling of forward osmosis (FO) membrane is vital when seawater/brine is utilized in a FO hybrid process. Our works deeply focused on quantifying the influence of divalent cations on not only critical flux but also the organic fouling mechanism. The presence of divalent cations in aqueous solutions caused a decrease in critical flux values. The fouling mechanism is mainly governed by intermolecular and ion-mediated interactions. The findings suggested the interaction of divalent cations with organic matters close to the membrane surface is more noticeable than that in the feed solution. These interactions combined with an operation at the flux ≥30 LMH led to the formation of a compact and cohesive cake layer (4.8–9.1 μm) where the great divalent cations were deposited on membrane surface after 30 h operation (Ca2+: 162.13–256.72 g/m2, Mg2+: 182.60–374.38 g/m2). In contrast, 21 LMH below critical value exhibited minor fouling with a very thin cake layer (0.5 μm) and minimized deposited divalent cations (Ca2+: 79.47 g/m2, Mg2+: 46.65 g/m2). Overall, the extended operation of 30 h suggested 16–21 LMH were threshold values for FO fouling control.

Interactions of divalent metal cations with headgroups of monomers, dimers, and trimers of anionic surfactant

The goal of this work was to investigate the interaction and binding of the metal divalent cations, Me2+, with the headgroups of monomers, dimers, and trimers of anionic surfactant, for the alkaline earth metal cations (Me2+ = Be2+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Sr2+, Ba2+), the transition metal ions (Me2+ = Mn2+, Fe2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Cd2+, Hg2+), and Sn2+ and Pb2+ ions. Herein, sodium dodecyl sulfate, SDS, was applied as an anionic surfactant. In this study mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization was used, which allowed determination of the preference of Me2+ binding to DS monomers (PMemon) and dimers (PMedim) and the total energies of interaction (bonding), Ebind, of divalent metal ions with DS trimers. The PMemon, PMedim, and Ebind parameters were correlated with different ion properties to characterize the interactions between Me2+ ions and a given anionic surfactant. The metal ions were ordered according to their affinity to DS monomers and dimers and their strength of binding with DS trimers. As follows from the results presented, from among the alkaline earth metal cations, the Ca2+ ions are the easiest to bind with DS monomers, dimers, and trimers and make the strongest bonds with them, while among the other Me2+ ions considered, the Hg2+, Sn2+, and Pb2+ cations interact very weakly and poorly with DS monomers, dimers, and trimers. From the results obtained in this work, it can be concluded which divalent metal ions should be used to introduce more or less significant changes in the aggregate structures of anionic surfactants.

Chelate formation and stability analysis of cobalt, nickel and copper with lomatiol

The pH-metric studies on the interaction of divalent metal cations, Co (II), Ni (II) and Cu (II) with lomatiol have been performed under the thermodynamic conditions achievable at constant ionic strength and infinite dilution in which a mole of divalent metal, combined with 02 mol of lomatiol. Lomatiol being bidentate could replace two water molecules at a time. The values of stepwise formation constants showed no conspicuous difference at 25 °C and 35 °C, and the complexes, registered a decrease in their stability values suggesting the low temperature as a favorable condition under which the chelation of metal with lomatiol is feasible. The reaction takes place without the use of any specific catalyst although under alkaline conditions. The reactions of lomatiol with metal cations in solution had been adjudged as the spontaneous reaction on account of the negative ΔG value in all the metal lomatiol systems. Also the study showed the positive experimental values of entropy changes in all the systems and negative value of free energy. The continuous fall in the values of the stepwise formation constants (k1 > k2 > k3) in the divalent metal-lomatiol system has been assigned to the statistical factor.

Probing Interaction of Divalent Cations with Illite Basal Surfaces by Atomic Force Microscopy

Smooth basal surfaces of illite were prepared successfully, and the interaction forces between a Si3N4 tip and illite basal surface with various concentration divalent cations in 10 mM KCl solution at pH 8.0 and 10.8 were measured using an atomic force microscope (AFM). The influence of divalent cation concentration on the interaction forces were investigated, and the surface potentials of the basal surfaces in varying concentration divalent cations solutions were determined by fitting the interaction forces with the classical Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory. With increasing CaII or MgII concentration, the surface potentials became less negative in pH 8.0 solution, while the surface potentials reversed from negative to positive after adding 1.0 mM or more divalent cations in pH 10.8 solution. Electrostatic interaction and specific adsorption were the major contributors to the interaction between divalent cations and illite basal surface in solutions at pH 8.0 and 10.8, respectively. CaII an...

Interactions of Monovalent and Divalent Cations at Palmitoyl-Oleoyl-Phosphatidylcholine Interface

Li+ is a biologically active and medically important cation. Experiments show that Li+ modulates some phospholipid bilayer properties in a manner similar to divalent cations, rather than other monovalent cations. We previously performed a comparative simulation study of the interaction of several monovalent cations with palmitoyl-oleoyl-phosphatidylcholine bilayers and reported that Li+ exhibited the highest association with lipids and formed a unique tetrahedral coordinated structure with lipid head groups. Here we extend these studies to two biologically important divalent cations, Mg2+ and Ca2+, and observe that, just like monovalent cations, Mg2+ and Ca2+ reduce bilayer areas and increase chain order. Bilayer area changes induced by cations are strongly correlated with the amount of charge inside the headgroup region; however, Mg2+ and Li+ are clear outliers. At the same time though, Mg2+ adsorption in the bilayer is the smallest among all cations, which is in contrast to Li+ that binds strongly to lipids. In fact, in contrast to all other cations, Mg2+ remains fully hydrated in the lipid headgroup region. However, Li+ and Mg2+ share high overlap between their inner-shell coordination topologies. This suggests that Li+ can structurally replace Mg2+, which is bound to other biomolecules with up to fourfold coordination, provided such replacement is energetically feasible. We compute structural topologies and compare them quantitatively using a new weighted-graphs-based method. Finally, we find that the specificity of cation interaction with lipid head groups exhibit consistent trend with the solvation shell energetics of ions in lipid headgroup and bulk water regions.

Interaction of divalent cations with carboxylate group in TEMPO-oxidized microfibrillated cellulose systems

Cellulose-based films can potentially replace non-biodegradable plastic films in various applications such as food packaging. In this work we produced and studied films made of mixtures of chemical pulps and catalytically oxidized microfibrillated cellulose. The films were prepared on a support which was then soaked in solutions of CaCl2 and MgCl2 to exchange the sodium ions originally present in the film to divalent metal cations. We assumed that the electrostatic interaction of the anionic pulp fibers and the fibrils with Ca2+ and Mg2+ would promote internal bonding of the fiber-fibril network that would then reflect positively on the film properties. The immersion of the wet film into aqueous CaCl2 or MgCl2 solidified the film with time. When the solidified films were dried with an excess of the salt, elastic, skin-like materials were formed. Rewetting in water and redrying the materials produced paper-like films with improved mechanical properties in comparison with films prepared without the divalent cation salts. SEM imaging of the fracture surfaces provided support for the increased internal film strength by the divalent cations. The new knowledge on their role could be utilized in tailoring cellulosic film properties for specific uses.

Interactions of Monovalent and Divalent Cations with Cardiolipin Monolayers.

Cardiolipin is a mitochondrial phospholipid with four alkyl chains and two phosphate moieties. Tetramyristoyl cardiolipin (TMCL, (14:0)4CL) monolayers at the air-water interface are characterized by compression isotherms, which show a liquid expanded/liquid condensed phase transition. The phase transition surface pressure πc depends on the composition of the aqueous solution. In a calculation, this is attributed to the electrostatic double layer, which is induced by the head groups of the model membrane, and competitive ion binding. The intrinsic binding constant is large for protons ( KH = 10 L/mol) and small for monovalent cations ( KM (Na+, K+, Cs+) = 10-3 L/mol). The different intrinsic binding constants explain the non-monotonic behavior of πc on increasing the salt concentration: raising the monovalent salt concentration increases πc by charging the TMCL monolayer until 0.1 mol/L, then screening effects dominate and decrease πc by reducing the electrostatic repulsion between lipid head groups. When at fixed 0.15 mol/L NaCl concentration, the concentration of divalent cations is increased, πc decreases. The intrinsic binding constants of divalent cations follow the sequence Sr2+ < Mg2+ < Mn2+ ≈ Zn2+ ≈ Ca2+ ( KD,Ca = 1.2 L/mol). The predictive power of the calculations was tested with different solutions.

Lupresan, a new drug that prevents or reverts the formation of nonbilayer phospholipid arrangements that trigger a murine lupus resembling human lupus

Non-bilayer phospholipid arrangements (NPA) are lipid associations different from the bilayer, formed by the interactions of conic anionic lipids and divalent cations that produce an inverted micelle which is inserted between the lipid layers, so the polar heads of the outer lipids spread and expose new antigens. Since these structures are transient, they are not immunogenic, but if they are stabilized by drugs, such as chlorpromazine, they become immunogenic and induce anti-NPA antibodies that trigger a lupus-like disease in mice. Chloroquine is a drug used for the treatment of lupus; chloroquine has a quinoline ring and two positive charges that interact with conic anionic lipids and prevent or revert the formation of NPA. However, the polyamine spermidine is more effective, since it has three positive charges and interacts with more lipids, but polyamines cannot be used as drugs, because they are highly toxic. Here we report the design and synthesis of Lupresan, an analogous of chloroquine with its quinoline ring but with three positive charges. Lupresan is more effective in preventing or reverting the formation of NPA than chloroquine or spermidine, and as a consequence, it decreased auto-antibody titers and healed the malar rash in mice with lupus to a greater extent than chloroquine. A drug as Lupresan could be used for the treatment of human lupus.

Structural and Mechanical Effects of Calcium on the Lipid Bilayer

Calcium is a ubiquitous divalent cation involved in fundamental biochemical and biophysical processes. Its integral roles in cell signaling, protein-mediated fusion, and action potential propagation have been well studied with a variety of techniques. Calcium is also commonly maintained at strong asymmetric concentration gradients, which often span several orders of magnitude, across mammalian cell membranes in proper physiological conditions. Yet, there has been a comparative lack of investigation of the effect of divalent cations on lipid bilayer structure and mechanical properties. Of the few studies done, experimental methods are limited to undefined resolutions and indirect spectroscopic or fluorescent techniques. This is in part due to the inherent difficulty in preparing well aligned samples with ions for high resolution experiments; common multilayer preparation techniques are subject to miscibility limits and sample segregation. Computationally, molecular dynamics simulations have predicted a calcium “condensing” effect that is associated with bilayer thickening and increased hydrocarbon chain order. However, these methods are limited by still-developing approaches to modeling divalent cation structure and interactions. Here, we report lamellar x-ray diffraction measurements of lipid bilayer thickness in partially charged multilayers containing calcium. Additionally, we report an apparent calcium-induced mechanical softening effect in giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) as measured by micropipette aspiration. This effect is marked by a measurable reduction in the elastic stretching coefficient of GUVs in calcium-rich environments. Both the thickening and mechanical softening effects may be important for proteins and molecules that couple directly to the lipid bilayer in physiological calcium concentrations. Future investigations involving PG-containing membranes and bacterial protoplasts may help lead to a better understanding of how invading bacteria thrive in calcium-rich environments, or if calcium-rich membrane domains have some non-trivial influence on the mechanisms of antibiotics and/or host defense antimicrobial peptides.

Impact of water chemistry on the behavior and fate of copper nanoparticles.

A full-factorial test design was applied to systematically investigate the contribution and significance of water chemistry parameters (pH, divalent cations and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration) and their interactions on the behavior and fate of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs). The total amount of Cu remaining in the water column after 48h of incubation was mostly influenced by divalent cation content, DOC concentration and the interaction of divalent cations and DOC. DOC concentration was the predominant factor influencing the dissolution of CuNPs, which was far more important than the effect of pH in the range from 6 to 9 on the dissolution of the CuNPs. The addition of DOC at concentrations ranging from 5 to 50mgC/L resulted in a 3-5 fold reduction of dissolution of CuNPs after 48h of incubation, as compared to the case without addition of DOC. Divalent cation content was found to be the most influential factor regarding aggregation behavior of the particles, followed by DOC concentration and the interaction of divalent cations and DOC. In addition, the aggregation behavior of CuNPs rather than particulate dissolution explained most of the variance in the sedimentation profiles of CuNPs. These results are meaningful for improved understanding and prediction of the behavior and fate of metallic NPs in aqueous environments.

Membrane Order Is a Key Regulator of Divalent Cation-Induced Clustering of PI(3,5)P2 and PI(4,5)P2.

Although the evidence for the presence of functionally important nanosized phosphorylated phosphoinositide (PIP)-rich domains within cellular membranes has accumulated, very limited information is available regarding the structural determinants for compartmentalization of these phospholipids. Here, we used a combination of fluorescence spectroscopy and microscopy techniques to characterize differences in divalent cation-induced clustering of PI(4,5)P2 and PI(3,5)P2. Through these methodologies we were able to detect differences in divalent cation-induced clustering efficiency and cluster size. Ca2+-induced PI(4,5)P2 clusters are shown to be significantly larger than the ones observed for PI(3,5)P2. Clustering of PI(4,5)P2 is also detected at physiological concentrations of Mg2+, suggesting that in cellular membranes, these molecules are constitutively driven to clustering by the high intracellular concentration of divalent cations. Importantly, it is shown that lipid membrane order is a key factor in the regulation of clustering for both PIP isoforms, with a major impact on cluster sizes. Clustered PI(4,5)P2 and PI(3,5)P2 are observed to present considerably higher affinity for more ordered lipid phases than the monomeric species or than PI(4)P, possibly reflecting a more general tendency of clustered lipids for insertion into ordered domains. These results support a model for the description of the lateral organization of PIPs in cellular membranes, where both divalent cation interaction and membrane order are key modulators defining the lateral organization of these lipids.

Colloidal behavior of goethite nanoparticles modified with humic acid and implications for aquifer reclamation

Nanosized colloids of iron oxide adsorb heavy metals, enhance the biodegradation of contaminants, and represent a promising technology to clean up contaminated aquifers. Goethite particles for aquifer reclamation were recently synthesized with a coating of humic acids to reduce aggregation. This study investigates the stability and the mobility in porous media of this material as a function of aqueous chemistry, and it identifies the best practices to maximize the efficacy of the related remediation. Humic acid-coated nanogoethite (hydrodynamic diameter ∼90 nm) displays high stability in solutions of NaCl, consistent with effective electrosteric stabilization. However, particle aggregation is fast when calcium is present and, to a lesser extent, also in the presence of magnesium. This result is rationalized with complexation phenomena related to the interaction of divalent cations with humic acid, inducing rapid flocculation and sedimentation of the suspensions. The calcium dose, i.e., the amount of calcium ions with respect to solids in the dispersion, is the parameter governing stability. Therefore, more concentrated slurries may be more stable and mobile in the subsurface than dispersions of low particle concentration. Particle concentration during field injection should be thus chosen based on concentration and proportion of divalent cations in groundwater.

Negative effects of divalent mineral cations on the bioaccessibility of carotenoids from plant food matrices and related physical properties of gastro-intestinal fluids.

Carotenoid intake and tissue levels have been frequently associated with reduced risk of chronic diseases. However, their bioavailability is low and influenced by many dietary related parameters. Divalent mineral cations have been suggested to interfere with carotenoid digestion and to hamper micellarization, a prerequisite for their uptake, via complexation of bile salts and precipitation of fatty acids. In the present investigation, we have evaluated the effects of increasing concentrations of magnesium (0-300 mg L-1), calcium (0-1500 mg L-1), zinc (0-200 mg L-1), and sodium (0-1500 mg L-1; control monovalent cation), on carotenoid bioaccessibility from frequently consumed food items rich in carotenoids (tomato juice, carrot juice, apricot nectar, spinach and field salad), following simulated gastro-intestinal digestion. In addition, physicochemical parameters of digesta (macroviscosity, surface tension), micelle size, and zeta-potential were evaluated. All divalent minerals (DM) reduced bioaccessibility of total carotenoids (P < 0.01), as well as of individual carotenoids. Calcium and magnesium led to reductions of up to 100% at the 2 highest concentrations. Curiously, sodium increased (P < 0.01) carotenoid bioaccessiblity of most investigated matrices. The absolute value of the zeta-potential decreased with increasing concentrations of DM, suggesting a decreased stability of the colloidal digesta dispersion. Viscosity decreased, except for apricot nectar samples, while surface tension increased with DM concentration (P < 0.05). Thus, at physiological ranges, calcium and magnesium could negatively impact carotenoid bioavailability, while for zinc, negative effects were only seen at supplemental concentrations. The potential negative effects of DM on carotenoid bioavailability should be further studied in vivo.