The potential of the Malaysian oil palm biomass as a renewable energy source

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancer, a cancer of different organs of the digestive system, is one of the most common cancers around the world. The incidence and death rate of some of these cancers are very high. Although a large variety of chemotherapeutic agents have been introduced since the last few decades to combat GI cancer, most of them are very expensive and have side effects. Therefore, the compounds derived from natural sources, which are considered to be safe and cost effective, are needed. Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is one of the most widely used natural products consumed as a spice and medicine for treating nausea, dysentery, heartburn, flatulence, diarrhea, loss of appetite, infections, cough, and bronchitis. Experimental studies showed that ginger and its active components including 6-gingerol and 6-shogaol exert anticancer activities against GI cancer. The anticancer activity of ginger is attributed to its ability to modulate several signaling molecules like NF-κB, STAT3, MAPK, PI3K, ERK1/2, Akt, TNF-α, COX-2, cyclin D1, cdk, MMP-9, survivin, cIAP-1, XIAP, Bcl-2, caspases, and other cell growth regulatory proteins. In this review, the evidences for the chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic potential of ginger extract and its active components using in vitro, animal models, and patients have been described.

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Ginger and Its Constituents: Role in Prevention and Treatment of Gastrointestinal Cancer

Peng-Robinson equation of state: 40 years through cubics

Fat-structured food materials are an important component of our diet. The role that fat plays in material functionality, flavor perception, texture and health characteristics is due in large part to its physical properties. An understanding of these physical properties is relevant from scientific, technological and medical perspectives. The physical properties of fat materials, are, in turn, governed by a complex confluence of the various structural levels in a fat material beginning with triglyceride molecules. The formation of nanoscale structural elements by these molecules is the first step in the formation of a fat material as we know it. This review shows how these microstructural elements can be imaged and characterized. It is also shown that the formation of these nanocrystals is affected by the attendant crystallization parameters. Through simulation and a discussion of van der Waals forces, it is shown that these nanoscale elements assemble into colloidal aggregates with fractal character. The influence of microstructure on the mechanical properties of a fat material is explained using a variety of mechanical models. Lastly, this review examines methods by which the properties and characteristics of the various structural levels can be engineered. Shear has been shown to affect the polymorphism and phase transition kinetics of triglyceride crystals. As well, shear has been shown to modify the aggregation of nanocrystals, with consequences for the porosity and diffusivity of oil through the fat crystal network.

Structure and functionality of edible fats

Electrical transformer insulation systems are evaluated based on economic, safety, and environmental standpoints using total life cycle analysis. Because of the inherent high efficiency of liquid-cooled transformer designs, new developments focus on improving the environmental and safety properties of fire resistant (less-flammable, high fire point) fluids. This article reports the latest findings on dielectric systems using natural ester (vegetable oil) fluids. Because esters naturally have lower oxidation resistance than mineral oils, a novel blend of base oils and additives were developed to overcome this potential handicap. Single- and three-phase prototype field installations using these new dielectric coolants are discussed.

Vegetable-oil-based dielectric coolants

The liquid specific heat capacity of fatty acids can be accurately estimated using the Rowlinson-Bondi method. This method requires the specific heat capacity of ideal gases, the critical temperature, and the acentric factor for each acid. The liquid specific heat capacity of triacylglycerols and vegetable oils can be estimated using mixture properties corre- sponding to the fatty acid composition and a correction factor, which accounts for the triacylglycerol form. The experimental data of triacylglycerols were used to produce the generalized correction factor. The estimated values were compared to ex- perimental values and the error was found to be within ± 5%. Paper no. J9307 in JAOCS 77, 1001-1005 (September 2000). A critical review of the existing estimation methods and their reliability in the estimation of physical properties of triacyl- glycerols and palm oil has been given by Noor Azian et al. (1). It can be deduced from this review that the method pro- posed by Phillips and Mattamal (2) for estimating liquid spe- cific heat capacity is rather specific and no generalization can be drawn from this method. On the other hand, the method proposed by Halvorsen et al. (3) for the estimation of liquid density of triacylglycerols and oil mixtures is rather attractive and may be extended to other properties. The fact that the properties of different types of oil can be estimated using the method makes it doubly at- tractive. This paper proposes an estimation method for specific heat capacity of fatty acids, triacylglycerols, and vegetable oils uti- lizing experimental data obtained in this work based on the approach proposed by Halvorsen et al. (3) for liquid density EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES The specific heat capacity of simple triacylglycerols (trilaurin, trimyristin, tripalmitin, and tristearin); mixed triacylglycerols (1,2-dimyristoyl-3-oleoyl (MMO), 1,2-dimyristoyl-3-palmi- toyl (MMP), 1,2-dipalmitoyl-3-oleoyl (PPO), and 1,2-dioleoyl- 3-palmitoyl (OOP)); 1,3-dipalmitoyl-2-oleoyl (POP); 1-palmi- toyl-2-oleoyl-3-stearoyl (POS); 1,3-distearoyl-2-oleoyl (SOS); 1-palmitoyl-2,3-dioleoyl (POO); 1,2-dioleoyl-3-stearoyl (OOS); triolein (OOO); refined, bleached, deodorized palm oil (RBDPO), and cocoa butter were determined using a Seiko (Seiko Instrument Inc., Tokyo, Japan) heat-flux differential

Liquid Specific Heat Capacity Estimation for Fatty Acids, Triacylglycerols, and Vegetable Oils Based on Their Fatty Acid Composition

The development of chemopreventive approaches using a concoction of phytochemicals is potentially viable for combating many types of cancer including colon carcinogenesis. This study evaluated the anti-proliferative effects of ginger and Gelam honey and its efficacy in enhancing the anti-cancer effects of 5-FU (5-fluorouracil) against a colorectal cancer cell line, HCT 116. Cell viability was measured via MTS (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulphenyl)-2H-tetrazolium) assay showing ginger inhibiting the growth of HCT 116 cells more potently (IC 50 of 3mg/mL) in comparison to Gelam honey (IC 50 of 75mg/mL). Combined treatment of the two compounds (3mg/mL ginger+75mg/mL Gelam honey) synergistically lowered the IC 50 of Gelam honey to 22mg/mL. Combination with 35 mg/mL Gelam honey markedly enhanced 5-FU inhibiting effects on the growth of HCT 116 cells. Subsequent analysis on the induction of cellular apoptosis suggested that individual treatment of ginger and Gelam honey produced higher apoptosis than 5-FU alone. In addition, treatment with the combination of two natural compounds increased the apoptotic rate of HCT 116 cells dosedependently while treatment of either ginger or Gelam honey combined with 5-FU only showed modest changes. Combination index analysis showed the combination effect of both natural compounds to be synergistic in their inhibitory action against HCT 116 colon cancer cells (CI 0.96 < 1). In conclusion, combined treatment of Gelam honey and ginger extract could potentially enhance the chemotherapeutic effect of 5-FU against colorectal cancer.

https://www.koreascience.or.kr:443/article/JAKO201426636276075.pdf

Gelam Honey and Ginger Potentiate the Anti Cancer Effect of 5-FU against HCT 116 Colorectal Cancer Cells

Novel mixed matrix membranes were prepared from polysulfone (PSf), talc and Fe3O4–talc nanocomposite by phase inversion technique. PSf/Fe3O4–talc membranes showed higher lead and nickel rejections compared to PSf/talc membranes, which reaches to 99.4 and 96.2% for lead and nickel ions, respectively, at feed pH 5 and lower rejections at pH 3.5 and 2. Higher surface area in Fe3O4–talc nanocomposite than talc could be considered as a main reason of higher heavy metals removal in PSf/Fe3O4–talc membranes. The heavy metals removal enhances with the increase in nanocomposite content from 7 to 9 wt.% because higher numbers of vacant sites in membrane morphology were available for adsorption. Heavy metals rejection reduces in higher nanocomposite concentrations (11 and 13 wt.%) due to the formation of macrovoids in membrane substructure. In addition, a reduction in the metal ion rejection was recognized by enhancement in feed solution concentration and applied pressure. This is caused by difficulty for th...

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High efficient removal of lead(II) and nickel(II) from aqueous solution by novel polysulfone/Fe3O4–talc nanocomposite mixed matrix membrane

The PI3K-Akt-mTOR, Wnt/β-catenin and apoptosis signaling pathways have been shown to be involved in genesis of colorectal cancer (CRC). The aim of this study was to elucidate whether combination of Gelam honey and ginger might have chemopreventive properties in HT29 colon cancer cells by modulating the mTOR, Wnt/β-catenin and apoptosis signaling pathways. Treatment with Gelam honey and ginger reduced the viability of the HT29 cells dose dependently with IC50 values of 88 mg/ml and 2.15 mg/ml respectively, their while the combined treatment of 2 mg/ml of ginger with 31 mg/ml of Gelam honey inhibited growth of most HT29 cells. Gelam honey, ginger and combination induced apoptosis in a dose dependent manner with the combined treatment exhibiting the highest apoptosis rate. The combined treatment downregulated the gene expressions of Akt, mTOR, Raptor, Rictor, β-catenin, Gsk3β, Tcf4 and cyclin D1 while cytochrome C and caspase 3 genes were shown to be upregulated. In conclusion, the combination of Gelam honey and ginger may serve as a potential therapy in the treatment of colorectal cancer through inhibiton of mTOR, Wnt/β catenin signaling pathways and induction of apoptosis pathway.

Mechanism of Chemoprevention against Colon Cancer Cells Using Combined Gelam Honey and Ginger Extract via mTOR and Wnt/β-catenin Pathways.

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) is a group of biopolymers that are extensively researched for such purpose due to the biocompatibility with mammal tissue and similar properties with conventional plastic. However, commercialization of PHA is impended by its high total production cost, which half of it are from the cost of pure carbon source feedstock. Thus, cheap and sustainable feedstocks are preferred where waste materials from various industries are looked into. This paper will highlight recent studies done on PHA production by utilizing crop and agro waste material and review its potential as alternative feedstock.

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1755-1315/36/1/012040/pdf

Noor Azian Morad

Papers

Liquid Specific Heat Capacity Estimation for Fatty Acids, Triacylglycerols, and Vegetable Oils Based on Their Fatty Acid Composition

Gelam Honey and Ginger Potentiate the Anti Cancer Effect of 5-FU against HCT 116 Colorectal Cancer Cells

High efficient removal of lead(II) and nickel(II) from aqueous solution by novel polysulfone/Fe3O4–talc nanocomposite mixed matrix membrane

Mechanism of Chemoprevention against Colon Cancer Cells Using Combined Gelam Honey and Ginger Extract via mTOR and Wnt/β-catenin Pathways.

Polyhydroxyalkanoates production from waste biomass