Ginseng-berry-mediated gold and silver nanoparticle synthesis and evaluation of their in vitro antioxidant, antimicrobial, and cytotoxicity effects on human dermal fibroblast and murine melanoma skin cell lines

Jimé,nez Pé,rez, Zuly Elizabeth,Mathiyalagan, Ramya,Markus, Josua,Kim, Yeon-Ju,Kang, Hyun Mi,Abbai, Ragavendran,Seo, Kwang Hoon,Wang, Dandan,Soshnikova, Veronika,Yang, Deok Chun DOVE MEDICAL PRESS 2017 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NANOMEDICINE Vol.12 No.-

<P>There has been a growing interest in the design of environmentally affable and biocompatible nanoparticles among scientists to find novel and safe biomaterials. <I>Panax ginseng</I> Meyer berries have unique phytochemical profile and exhibit beneficial pharmacological activities such as antihyperglycemic, antiobesity, antiaging, and antioxidant properties. A comprehensive study of the biologically active compounds in ginseng berry extract (GBE) and the ability of ginseng berry (GB) as novel material for the biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles (GBAuNPs) and silver nanoparticles (GBAgNPs) was conducted. In addition, the effects of GBAuNPs and GBAgNPs on skin cell lines for further potential biological applications are highlighted. GBAuNPs and GBAgNPs were synthesized using aqueous GBE as a reducing and capping agent. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized for their size, morphology, and crystallinity. The nanoparticles were evaluated for antioxidant, anti-tyrosinase, antibacterial, and cytotoxicity activities and for morphological changes in human dermal fibroblast and murine melanoma skin cell lines. The phytochemicals contained in GBE effectively reduced and capped gold and silver ions to form GBAuNPs and GBAgNPs. The optimal synthesis conditions (ie, temperature and v/v % of GBE) and kinetics were investigated. Polysaccharides and phenolic compounds present in GBE were suggested to be responsible for stabilization and functionalization of nanoparticles. GBAuNPs and GBAgNPs showed increased scavenging activity against 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl free radicals compared to GBE. GBAuNPs and GBAgNPs effectively inhibited mushroom tyrosinase, while GBAgNPs showed antibacterial activity against <I>Escherichia coli</I> and <I>Staphylococcus aureus</I>. In addition, GBAuNPs were nontoxic to human dermal fibroblast and murine melanoma cell lines, and GBAgNPs showed cytotoxic effect on murine melanoma cell lines. The current results evidently suggest that GBAgNPs can act as potential agents for antioxidant, anti-tyrosinase, and antibacterial activities. In addition, GBAuNPs can be further developed into mediators in drug delivery and as antioxidant, anti-tyrosinase, and protective skin agents in cosmetic products. Consequently, the study showed the advantages of using nanotechnology and green chemistry to enhance the natural properties of GBs.</P>

Influence of hydrodynamic parameters in plate heat exchangers in ice slurry transport

Jiménez Pacheco Hugo Guillermo,Milon Guzmán Juan José,Miranda Ramos Lilia Mary,Delgado Sarmiento Pavel Kewin,Linares Flores Castro Antonio Erick,Leal Braga Sergio 대한설비공학회 2023 International Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refr Vol.31 No.1

Ice slurry is applied in different refrigeration and air conditioning systems, and among its main advantages is the ability to store latent heat and be pumpable as cold water. This fluid can be used for thermal storage instead of cold water or solid ice, since, at certain concentrations, it can be pumped through heat exchangers. For this technology to be widely used, the equipment must be designed considering the heat exchange characteristics. This study developed an experimental system to study the parameters that influence heat exchange, using ice slurry in a plate heat exchanger and water as a thermal load. Several situations with different flows and initial fractions of ice in ice slurry were analyzed. The input conditions of the thermal load were kept constant, the temperature, the pressure drop and the flow of the ice slurry in the heat exchanger were controlled, according to the Nusselt, Prandtl, and Reynolds coefficients. Results show that the global heat exchange coefficient increases with the increase of the initial ice fraction; the cooling capacity of the heat exchanger increases when ice slurry is used as a fluid. For flow rates greater than 0.16 kg/s and ice fractions above 11%, ice crystals are generated at the heat exchanger outlet, due to the ice slurry’s higher viscosity, at approximately 0.003 Pa at the outlet, since the pressure drop increases as the initial ice fraction increases. Results show ice slurry thermohydraulic behavior. Its use shows favorable characteristics in heat exchange. Ice slurry is applied in different refrigeration and air conditioning systems, and among its main advantages is the ability to store latent heat and be pumpable as cold water. This fluid can be used for thermal storage instead of cold water or solid ice, since, at certain concentrations, it can be pumped through heat exchangers. For this technology to be widely used, the equipment must be designed considering the heat exchange characteristics. This study developed an experimental system to study the parameters that influence heat exchange, using ice slurry in a plate heat exchanger and water as a thermal load. Several situations with different flows and initial fractions of ice in ice slurry were analyzed. The input conditions of the thermal load were kept constant, the temperature, the pressure drop and the flow of the ice slurry in the heat exchanger were controlled, according to the Nusselt , Prandtl , and Reynolds coefficients. Results show that the global heat exchange coefficient increases with the increase of the initial ice fraction; the cooling capacity of the heat exchanger increases when ice slurry is used as a fluid. For flow rates greater than 0.16 kg/s and ice fractions above 11%, ice crystals are generated at the heat exchanger outlet, due to the ice slurry’s higher viscosity, at approximately 0.003 Pa at the outlet, since the pressure drop increases as the initial ice fraction increases. Results show ice slurry thermohydraulic behavior. Its use shows favorable characteristics in heat exchange.

Assessment of radical scavenging, whitening and moisture retention activities of <i>Panax ginseng</i> berry mediated gold nanoparticles as safe and efficient novel cosmetic material

Jimé,nez, Zuly,Kim, Yeon-Ju,Mathiyalagan, Ramya,Seo, Kwang-Hoon,Mohanan, Padmanaban,Ahn, Jong-Chan,Kim, Yu-Jin,Yang, Deok Chun Informa UK (TaylorFrancis) 2018 Artificial cells, nanomedicine, and biotechnology Vol.46 No.2

On-Shoe Wearable Sensors for Gait and Turning Assessment of Patients With Parkinson's Disease

Jimé,nez, Mayté,Castro IEEE 2013 IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering Vol.60 No.1

<P>Assessment of locomotion through simple tests such as timed up and go (TUG) or walking trials can provide valuable information for the evaluation of treatment and the early diagnosis of people with Parkinson's disease (PD). Common methods used in clinics are either based on complex motion laboratory settings or simple timing outcomes using stop watches. The goal of this paper is to present an innovative technology based on wearable sensors on-shoe and processing algorithm, which provides outcome measures characterizing PD motor symptoms during TUG and gait tests. Our results on ten PD patients and ten age-matched elderly subjects indicate an accuracy ± precision of 2.8 ± 2.4 cm/s and 1.3 ± 3.0 cm for stride velocity and stride length estimation compared to optical motion capture, with the advantage of being practical to use in home or clinics without any discomfort for the subject. In addition, the use of novel spatio-temporal parameters, including turning, swing width, path length, and their intercycle variability, was also validated and showed interesting tendencies for discriminating patients in ON and OFF states and control subjects.</P>

The Role of Ethnocentrism and Firms Reputation of a Country of Origin on Consumer Purchase Intention

Nadia Jiménez,Sonia San Martín 한국마케팅학회 2009 ASIA MARKETING JOURNAL Vol.11 No.2

The growth of international trade and the formation of supranational economic and political trading blocks have noticeably widened the presence on the market of products of different national origins. This has stimulated interest in explaining the Country-of-Origin (COO) role in domestic and international markets and its consequences on consumer behaviour. Since the consumer purchasing decisions can be decisive to the success of a company’s strategy in domestic and foreign markets, the objective of this study is to present empirical evidence on the extent to which reputation of firms associated to a certain COO are related to consumer purchase intention. Additionally our study considers ethnocentrism as a variable that partially explains the rejection of imports products based on its foreign origin. The empirical application of the proposed model is related to the purchase of Korean automobiles which represents 5.7% of the national market share in Spain. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data collected from 202 personal interviews carried out in a large Spanish region. The results show that reputation of firms associated to a certain COO in an important factor to establish business relationships involving consumers and firms from different countries and increase intentions to purchase Korean products. Additionally, ethnocentric consumers prefer to purchase domestic products rather than foreign imports as an attempt to protect national economy however the negative effect of ethnocentrism is weaker than positive effect of firms reputation of a COO.

A plasma circulating miRNAs profile predicts type 2 diabetes mellitus and prediabetes: from the CORDIOPREV study

Rosa Jiménez-Lucena,Antonio Camargo,Juan Francisco Alcalá-Diaz,Cristina Romero-Baldonado,Raúl Miguel Luque,Ben van Ommen,Javier Delgado-Lista,Jose María Ordovás,Pablo Pérez-Martínez,Oriol Alberto Rang 생화학분자생물학회 2018 Experimental and molecular medicine Vol.50 No.-

We aimed to explore whether changes in circulating levels of miRNAs according to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) or prediabetes status could be used as biomarkers to evaluate the risk of developing the disease. The study included 462 patients without T2DM at baseline from the CORDIOPREV trial. After a median follow-up of 60 months, 107 of the subjects developed T2DM, 30 developed prediabetes, 223 maintained prediabetes and 78 remained disease-free. Plasma levels of four miRNAs related to insulin signaling and beta-cell function were measured by RT-PCR. We analyzed the relationship between miRNAs levels and insulin signaling and release indexes at baseline and after the follow-up period. The risk of developing disease based on tertiles (T1-T2-T3) of baseline miRNAs levels was evaluated by COX analysis. Thus, we observed higher miR-150 and miR-30a-5p and lower miR-15a and miR-375 baseline levels in subjects with T2DM than in disease-free subjects. Patients with high miR-150 and miR-30a-5p baseline levels had lower disposition index (p = 0.047 and p = 0.007, respectively). The higher risk of disease was associated with high levels (T3) of miR-150 and miR-30a-5p (HRT3-T1 = 4.218 and HRT3-T1 = 2.527, respectively) and low levels (T1) of miR-15a and miR- 375 (HRT1-T3 = 3.269 and HRT1-T3 = 1.604, respectively). In conclusion, our study showed that deregulated plasma levels of miR-150, miR-30a-5p, miR-15a, and miR-375 were observed years before the onset of T2DM and pre-DM and could be used to evaluate the risk of developing the disease, which may improve prediction and prevention among individuals at high risk for T2DM.

Synthesis of lithium aluminate by thermal decomposition of a lithium dawsonite-type precursor

J. Jiménez-Becerril,I. García-Sosa 한양대학교 세라믹연구소 2011 Journal of Ceramic Processing Research Vol.12 No.1

Of all ceramic materials, lithium aluminate has been widely studied and has become a good candidate to be used as both a fusion blanket and as a matrix in molten carbonate fuel cells. On behalf of these lithium aluminate applications, a variety of procedures has been proven to prepare adequate crystalline and pure material. In this study, lithium aluminate was synthesized by thermally decomposing a lithium dawsonite-type precursor using aluminum nitrate and chloride as a starting material. The lithium aluminate was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction. According to the results the crystalline form, in mixtures of several phases, of the lithium aluminate obtained depends strongly on the thermal treatment.

Subjective Evaluation of Mood and Cognitive Functions in a General Neurology Clinic: Patients versus Informants

Adolfo Jiménez-Huete,Antonio Del Barrio,Elena Riva,Pablo Campo,Rafael Toledano,Oriol Franch 대한신경과학회 2017 Journal of Clinical Neurology Vol.13 No.3

Background and Purpose We aimed to determine the correlation between subjective evaluations of mood and cognitive functions by patients and informants, and the findings of a battery of neuropsychological tests. Methods We analyzed 74 subjects recruited from a general neurology clinic, comprising 37 patients with cognitive complaints and 37 informants (either relatives or caregivers in close contact with the patients). Four ordinal scales concerning recent memory, verbal expression, initiative, and mood were correlated with the findings of a series of neuropsychological tests and questionnaires using the tau b coefficient. Results The scores for the patients on the scales were most strongly correlated with scores on the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), while the scores for the informants were most strongly correlated with scores on GDS-15, the Informant Questionnaire on Cognitive Decline, and the Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ). The most significant correlation was between the initiative scale from informants and FAQ (tau b=-0.591, p<0.001), and it was the only one that remained significant after correcting for multiple testing (p Holm=0.013). Conclusions Cognitive complaints from patients mainly reflect their mood, whilst informant reports mainly reflect both the functional ability and mood of the patients.

Biodiversity analysis of natural arthropods enemies in vineyard agroecosystems in La Rioja, Spain

L. Jiménez-García,Y.G. García-Martínez,V. Marco-Mancebón,I. Pérez-Moreno,D. Jiménez-García 한국응용곤충학회 2019 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.22 No.1

Major knowledge gaps exist regarding effects of landscape-level agroecosystem composition on the presence of natural enemies of agricultural pests. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of landscape mosaic characteristics on the diversity of predators and parasitoids of a viticultural landscape in La Rioja, Spain. Five habitats were evaluated: Mediterranean forest, Mediterranean scrub, olive groves, natural grassland, and vineyards. In all, we collected 28,640 arthropods, representing 10 orders: Araneae, Coleoptera, Dermaptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Mantodea, Neuroptera, Solifugae, and Thysanoptera. The grassland habitat presented the highest arthropod abundances. Carabid beetles showed preferences for Mediterranean forest and scrub, whereas reduviid bugs showed preferences for natural grassland. Landscape heterogeneity and connectivity with natural elements in the study area turn out to be effective in conservation of diversity of natural enemies of viticulture.

COSMETIC SURGERY: A CATALYST FOR CHANGES TO THE SELF AND MATERIALIST CONSUMPTION

Héctor González-Jiménez,Sujin Song 글로벌지식마케팅경영학회 2018 Global Marketing Conference Vol.2018 No.07

Individuals consume products and services as a means of symbolic self-expression in private and public contexts (Ahuvia, 2005; Belk, 1988; Harmon-Kizer et al., 2013). The body should be seen as the continuation of the individual, as the self is exhibited to others via its embodiment (Borelli and Casotti, 2012). Thus, the body functions as object that can serve self-expressive purposes and consumption behaviors (Schouten, 1991). Meanwhile, cosmetic surgery is described as a “fashion object” (Venkatesh et al., 2010, p. 468) and a form of extreme symbolic consumption that uses the body as an object to express the self (Schouten, 1991). Research indicates that individuals use of cosmetic surgery as a means of self-identity reconstruction (Askegard et al., 2002) and that motivational antecedents such as sociocultural influences, competition with others, media influence, body appreciation, and a materialist orientation are drivers of cosmetic surgery (Henderson-King and Brooks, 2009; Markley-Roundtree and Davis, 2011; Swami et al., 2009). Contrary to prior evidence, we argue that besides being a consequence, cosmetic surgery acts also as an antecedent that influences materialist consumption practices through changes to a consumers’ self. Surprisingly, despite the growing number of cosmetic surgery procedures around the globe and the self as a key driver of consumer behavior, no study to date has explored how cosmetic surgery acts as an antecedent of materialistic consumption practices through potential alterations of an individual’s self. We carried out semi-structured in-depth interviews with 10 South Korean participants. Our participants were 22 to 57 years old, representing a range of income and professional roles. They had previously undergone plastic surgery procedures such as double eyelid surgery, breast enhancementt and nose surgery. First, our findings suggest that materialism is not just an antecedent of cosmetic surgery propensity (Henderson-King and Brooks, 2009), but also that cosmetic surgery influences materialist consumption practices (e.g. cosmetics, beach vacations) through changes to the self. Second, our findings indicate that individuals need to control influences how cosmetic surgery shapes the self. Specifically, consumers seek cosmetic surgery to bridge the discrepancy between the physical self (provided by nature) and their “sought” psychological self. Third, our findings illustrate the role of marketplace cultures and, in particular, socio-cultural driven factors that interact with the self in a cosmetic surgery context (Arnoud and Thompson, 2005). Fourth, our findings show that cosmetic surgery leads to various emotional outcomes through changes to the self (i.e. pride, self-satisfaction, subjective happiness, and increased guilt). We contribute to discourses of embodied practices (e.g. cosmetic surgery) related to the self and materialism (e.g., Richins, 2012; Schouten, 1991; Venkatesh et al., 2010).