Publications by authors named "Mario A A Cunha"

Microencapsulation has emerged as a promising strategy to enhance the stability and protection of bioactive compounds. In this work, roasted mate tea was microencapsulated using 15 % maltodextrin and lasiodiplodan (0.5-1.

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The growing concern about the emergence of increasingly antibiotic-r4esistant bacteria imposes the need to search and develop drugs to combat these microorganisms. This, combined with the search for low-cost synthesis methods, was the motivation for the elaboration of this work. Abietic acid present in the resin of was used to generate a sodium salt by salification.

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The present study proposes the production of vinegars from pineapple processing residues as an eco-friendly strategy for adding value and economic strengthening of the production chain. Pineapple pulp and peel wines were produced and acetificated to vinegar by wild strains of acetic bacteria using Orlean's method (traditional system) followed by enrichment with leaf extract of Red-Jambo, Syzygium malaccense. Appreciable phenolic contents and antioxidant potential were found in pulp and peel vinegars with the added leaf extract.

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The search for less expensive and viable products is always one of the challenges for research development. Commonly, the synthesis of coordination compounds involves expensive ligands, through expensive and low-yield routes, in addition to generating toxic and unusable residues. In this work, the organic ligand used is derived from the resin of a reforestation tree, Pinus elliottii var.

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Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) is a persistent human pathogen, and the emergence of strains resistant to Acyclovir (ACV, reference drug) shows the urgency to develop new treatments. We report the antiherpetic mechanism of the action of lasiodiplodan (LAS-N, (1 → 6)-β-d-glucan) and its sulfonated derivative (LAS-S3) in vitro and in vivo. LAS-S3 showed anti-HSV-1 action with high selectivity indices for HSV-1 KOS (88.

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The infection of mammalian cells by enveloped viruses is triggered by the interaction of viral envelope glycoproteins with the glycosaminoglycan, heparan sulfate. By mimicking this carbohydrate, some anionic polysaccharides can block this interaction and inhibit viral entry and infection. As heparan sulfate carries both carboxyl and sulfate groups, this work focused on the derivatization of a (1→3)(1→6)-β-D-glucan, botryosphaeran, with these negatively-charged groups in an attempt to improve its antiviral activity.

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Flour from Pereskia aculeata leaf and green banana were used as ingredients in the formulation of a cereal bar with added Lactobacillus acidophilus LA02-ID-1688. Encapsulation in a calcium-alginate hydrogel reinforced with magnesium hydroxide was used as a strategy to protect the probiotic cells under gastrointestinal conditions and to prolong shelf-life. The results are relevant especially for maintaining cell viability during shelf-life; a challenge for the food industry in relation to dry probiotic products.

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A hydrogel containing exocellular (1 → 6)-β-D-glucan (lasiodiplodan, LAS) was developed and its wound healing potential was evaluated. β-Glucans have attracted much interest by the cosmetic industry sector because of their bioactive and functional properties and in promoting skin health. In the present work an β-glucan was studied as a healing biomaterial that has not hitherto been reported in the scientific literature.

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Apple pomace was studied as a raw material for the production of xylitol and 2G ethanol, since this agroindustrial residue has a high concentration of carbohydrate macromolecules, but is still poorly studied for the production of fermentation bioproducts, such as polyols. The dry biomass was subjected to dilute-acid hydrolysis with HSO to obtain the hemicellulosic hydrolysate, which was concentrated, detoxified and fermented. The hydrolyzate after characterization was submitted to submerged fermentations, which were carried out in Erlenmeyer flasks using, separately, the yeasts Candida guilliermondii and Kluyveromyces marxianus.

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The present study reports on the remediation of an effluent from the wood-laminate industry using Pleurotus ostreatus EB 016 in combination with photo-Fenton oxidation. Fermentation of the effluent with P. ostreatus EB-016 was carried out in agitated flasks to evaluate the influence of pH, and concentrations of carbon and nitrogen sources by a multivariate approach.

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Exocellular (1→6)-β-d-glucan (lasiodiplodan) produced by the fungus MMPI was derivatized by carboxymethylation using different concentrations of a derivatizing agent. Lasiodiplodan was derivatized by carboxymethylation in an attempt to increase its solubility and enhance its biological activities. Carboxymethylglucans with degrees of substitution (DS) of 0.

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Exopolysaccharides are high-valued bio-products produced by various microbial species and have been described to possess biological response modifying activities. These bio-products have been effective as therapeutic agents in various human disease conditions. The objective of this study was to examine the effects of levan (a (2→6)-β-d-fructan) produced on sucrose by the halophilic bacterium, Halomonas smyrnensis AAD6, in human breast cancer MCF-7 cells.

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In trinitrotoluene (TNT) purification process, realized in industries, there are two washes carried out at the end of the procedure. The first is performed with vaporized water, from which the first effluent, called yellow water, is originated. Then, a second wash is performed using sodium sulfite, generating the red water effluent.

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Fungal β-d-glucans of the (1→3)-type are known to exhibit direct antitumor effects, and can also indirectly decrease tumor proliferation through immunomodulatory responses. The underlying molecular mechanisms involved in decreasing tumor formation, however, are not well understood. In this study, we examined the antiproliferative role and mechanism of action of three different fungal exocellular β-glucans in MCF-7 breast cancer cells.

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Context: Obesity is the main risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus. Secondary metabolites with biological activities and pharmacological potential have been identified in species of the Baccharis genus that are specifically distributed in the Americas.

Objective: This study evaluated the effects of methanol extracts from Baccharis dracunculifolia DC.

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D-Glucans possess immunomodulatory activities and potential for the development of new therapeutic agents. Biological activities can be enhanced in these biopolymers through chemical derivatization, e.g.

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D-Glucans have triggered increasing interest in commercial applications in the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors because of their technological properties and biological activities. The glucans are foremost among the polysaccharide groups produced by microorganisms with demonstrated activity in stimulating the immune system, and have potential in treating human disease conditions. Chemical alterations in the structure of D-glucans through derivatization (sulfonylation, carboxymethylation, phosphorylation, acetylation) contributes to their increased solubility that, in turn, can alter their biological activities such as antioxidation and anticoagulation.

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β-D-Glucans are known to present antitumor, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory activities that are influenced by their own antioxidant capacity. The antioxidant activity of botryosphaeran, an exopolysaccharide of the (1 → 3;1 → 6)-β-D-glucan type produced by the Botryosphaeria rhodina MAMB-05 was evaluated and compared to some other β-D-glucans (lasiodiplodan an exocellular (1 → 6)-β-D-glucan from Lasiodiplodia theobromae, laminarin and curdlan), and oligosaccharides, disaccharides, and monosaccharides in a study of scavenging activities of free radicals in-vitro. Botryosphaeran displayed high total antioxidant activity (80%) as well as good scavenging activity against hydroxyl radical (90.

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The aim of this work was to evaluate the performance of the fungus Lentinula edodes UEC 2019 in the treatment of an effluent derived from a wood laminate manufacturing process. The factorial design methodology was employed to verify the influence of the source of nitrogen, co-substratum and treatment time variables on the color and total phenols reduction. Assays were conducted in Erlenmeyer flasks and bench bioreactor and the obtained results showed that the best conditions for the effluent remediation were observed when using the effluent itself as the nitrogen source (1g/L) and glucose (79 g/L) as co-substratum (glucose) during a treatment period of 30 days.

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Viable cells of Candida guilliermondii were immobilized by inclusion into polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogel using the freezing-thawing method. Entrapment experiments were planned according to a 2(3) full factorial design, using the PVA concentration (80, 100, and 120 g L(-1)), the freezing temperature (-10, -15, and -20 degrees C), and the number of freezing-thawing cycles (one, three, and five) as the independent variables, integrated with three additional tests to estimate the errors. The effectiveness of the immobilization procedure was checked in Erlenmeyer flasks as the pellet capability to catalyze the xylose-to-xylitol bioconversion of a medium based on sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysate.

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The operational conditions for xylitol production by fermentation of sugarcane bagasse hydrolysate in a fluidized bed reactor with cells immobilized on zeolite were evaluated. Fermentations were carried out under different conditions of air flowrate (0.0125-0.

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