Abdul Qayum,Arif Rashid,Asif Ali Khan,Mingming Zhong,Yuxuan Liu,Muhammad Hussain,Muhammad Safiullah Virk,Zahoor Ahmed,Abdur Rehman,Abid Hussain,Qiufang Liang,Xiaofeng Ren,Haile Ma,Ekram Abd El-Salam,Song Miao
Tri-frequency ultrasound (TFU) at 20-40-60 kHz was used to systematically examine the effects on the multi-scale network structure of an emulsion gel containing orange essential oil prepared with glycosylated whey protein (WP). Treatment intervals of pre-and-post 10, 20, and 30 min were utilized to evaluate the influence and interactions on functional (particle size, zeta-potential), rheological (storage modulus (G′) and loss modulus (G″), and oxidative stability (conjugated diene and peroxide value). The optimized tri-frequency pre- and post-treated sample demonstrated enhanced physical stability as compared to the un-treated sample, as evidenced by droplet size, (from 468.14 ± 0.56 to 214.21 ± 0.42 nm), ζ-Potential (mV) (from −29.67 ± 0.31 to −39.98 ± 1.42), and structural morphology. Structure analysis using FTIR that the aforementioned improvements were made possible through TFU enhanced hydrogen bonds, molecular arrangements with greater order, and improved intermolecular compatibility. XRD results showed gradual shift from 8.32° to 8.64° and from 19.2° to 19.5°, respectively. TFU post-treatment gels exhibited higher viscosity, more pronounced pseudoplastic behavior compare to pre-treatment, attributed to strong interaction forces and three-dimensional gel network. Our results provide valuable insights into the application of multi-frequency ultrasound as a promising technique for designing protein emulsion gels tailored for nutrient delivery systems.
This study demonstrated a controllable release properties and synergistic antibacterial actions between orange essential oil (OEO) and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) incorporated onto cellulose (CL) nanofibers. The preparation of AgNPs attached on CL nanofibers was conducted through multiple processes including the deacetylation process to transform cellulose acetate (CA) nanofibers to CL nanofibers, the in situ synthesis of AgNPs, and the coating of as-prepared silver composite CL nanofibers using OEO solutions with two different concentrations. The success of immobilization of AgNPs onto the surface of CL nanofibers and the incorporation of OEO into the polymer matrix was confirmed by SEM-EDS, TEM, XRD, and FT-IR characterizations. The tensile strength, elongation at break, and Young’s modulus of the nanofibers after each step of treatment were recorded and compared to pristine CA nanofibers. The high antibacterial activities of AgNPs and OEO were assessed against Gram-positiveB. subtilisand Gram-negativeE. colimicroorganisms. The combined effects of two antimicrobials, AgNPs and OEO, were distinctively recognized againstE. coli.Keywords:cellulose nanofiber;silver nanoparticle;electrospinning;orange essential oil;antibacterial activity