A Study on mPPO Development and Injection Molding Process for Lightweight Stack Enclosure of FCEV.

The automobile industry is focused on eco-friendly vehicles with the goal of carbon neutrality (Netzero), and vehicle weight reduction is essential to achieve high fuel efficiency for driving performance and distance compared to internal combustion engines. This is important for the light-weight stack enclosure of FCEV. Moreover, mPPO needs to be developed with injection molding for the replacement of existing material (aluminum). For this purpose, this study develops mPPO and presents it through physical property tests, predicts the injection molding process flow system for stack enclosure production, proposes injection molding process conditions to secure productivity, and verifies conditions through mechanical stiffness analysis. As a result of the analysis, the runner system with pin-point gate and tab gate's sizes are proposed. In addition, injection molding process conditions were proposed with the results of cycle time 107.627 s and reduced weld lines. As a result of the strength analysis, it can withstand the load 5933 kg. Therefore, it is possible to reduce weight and material costs using the mPPO existing manufacturing process with existing aluminum, and it is expected that there would be effects, such as reducing the production cost by securing productivity through reducing cycle time.

Effect of catechins and high-temperature-processed green tea extract on scavenging reactive oxygen species and preventing Aß1-42 fibrils' formation in brain microvascular endothelium.

The present study investigated the effect of high-temperature-processed green tea extract (HTP_GTE) and its bioactive components on the reduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and amyloid-beta (Aß) protein in human microvascular endothelial cells. Compared to Aß1-42-only treatment, pretreatment of HTP_GTE was revealed to effectively inhibit ROS generation (P<0.05). HTP_GTE and catechins not only inhibit Aß1-42 fibril formation but also destabilize preformed Aß1-42 fibrils. The presence of HTP_GTE, Aß1-42 fibril formation was significantly inhibited in a dose-dependent manner at 12.5-100 µg/ml of HTP_GTE, showing 86-56%, respectively. Treatment of various concentrations of HTP_GTE and catechins steadily destabilized the preformed Aß1-42 fibrils for 24 h in a dose-dependent manner. It was observed that the gallated groups such as epigallocatechin gallate, epicatechin gallate, gallocatechin gallate, and catechin gallate more effectively disturbed Aß1-42 fibril formation and destabilized the preformed Aß1-42 fibrils than the non-gallated group. Taken together, these findings supported that sterilized green tea could be promising natural anti-amyloidogenic agents associated with therapeutic approaches in Alzheimer's disease by scavenging ROS generation and Aß fibril in the brain tissue.

Delta- and mu-opioid pathways are involved in the analgesic effect of Ocimum basilicum L in mice.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Ocimum basilicum L. is a perennial herb that has been used in traditional Asian Indian medicine for thousands of years as a natural anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, diuretic, and analgesic. AIM OF THE STUDY: The present study was conducted to investigate the analgesic effects of basil essential oil (BEO) in inflammatory pain models and identify underlying mechanisms. We further investigated whether BEO affects physiological pain and motor coordination. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The analgesic effects of BEO were assessed in various mouse experimental pain models using formalin, acetic acid, heat, and carrageenan as stimuli. BEO was administered by intraperitoneal injection or inhalation. The involvement of various pathways in the analgesic effect of BEO was assessed by pretreating mice with selective pharmacological inhibitors, administered intraperitoneally. Opioid pathways were tested using the κ-opioid antagonist 5'-guanidinonaltrindole (GNTI; 0.3 mg/kg), δ-opioid antagonist naltrindole (NTD; 5 mg/kg) and µ-opioid antagonist naloxone (NAL; 8 mg/kg); nitric oxide (NO) pathways were tested using the NO synthase inhibitor N-nitro l-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME; 37.5 mg/kg) and NO precursor L-arginine (L-Arg; 600 mg/kg); and KATP channel pathways were tested using the ATP-sensitive K+ channel blocker, glibenclamide-hippuric acid (GHA, 2 mg/kg). Potential effects of BEO on motor coordination were assessed using a rotarod test. RESULTS: BEO exerted analgesic effects in all pain models. Notably, pretreatment with naltrindole, naloxone, or L-arginine significantly reduced the analgesic effects of BEO in the formalin test. BEO increased mean withdrawal latencies in a thermal plantar test at a high dose, but not at lower doses. BEO had no effect on motor coordination. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that the analgesic effects of BEO are primarily mediated by delta- and mu-opioid pathways and further suggest that BEO has potential for development as an analgesic agent for the relief of inflammatory pain.

Increased Intestinal Absorption of Vitamin U in Steamed Graviola Leaf Extract Activates Nicotine Detoxification.

Graviola leaves contain much vitamin U (vit U), but their sensory quality is not good enough for them to be developed as food ingredients. Addition of excipient natural ingredients formulated alongside vit U as active ingredients could enhance not only its sensory quality but also its bioavailability. The objectives of this study were to measure the bioaccessibility and intestinal cellular uptake of bioactive components, including rutin, kaempferol-rutinoside, and vit U, from steamed extract of graviola leaves (SGV) and SGV enriched with kale extract (SGK), and to examine how much they can detoxify nicotine in HepG2 cells. The bioaccessibility of vit U from SGV and SGK was 82.40% and 68.03%, respectively. The cellular uptake of vit U in SGK by Caco-2 cells was higher than that in SGV. Cotinine content converted from nicotine in HepG2 cells for 120 min was 0.22 and 0.25 µg/mg protein in 50 µg/mL of SGV and SGK, respectively, which were 2.86 and 3.57 times higher than the no-treatment control. SGK treatment of HepG2 cells upregulated CYP2A6 three times as much as did that of SGV. Our results suggest that graviola leaf extract enriched with excipient ingredients such as kale could improve vit U absorption and provide a natural therapy for detoxifying nicotine.

Quercetin and fisetin enhanced the small intestine cellular uptake and plasma levels of epi-catechins in in vitro and in vivo models.

Quercetin and fisetin, known as catechol-containing flavonoids, could positively affect the absorption of catechins due to their strong affinity for catechol-O-methyl transferase (COMT), which can methylate and cause the excretion of catechins. The current study examined the effect of quercetin and fisetin on the absorption of epi-catechins (ECs) by using a Caco-2 cell line and an in vivo model. The intestinal transport of total catechins by Caco-2 cells was enhanced from 1.3- to 1.6-fold and 1.4- to 1.7-fold by adding quercetin and fisetin, respectively, compared to the control. It was even higher in the treatment with a mixture of quercetin and fisetin. While EC had the highest value of intestinal transport (169% of the control) in 10% quercetin treatment, EGC (235%), EGCG (244%), and ECG (242%) were significantly transported in the treatment with a 5% mixture of quercetin and fisetin (p < 0.05). In an in vivo pharmacokinetic study, the values of the area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC, ng h mL-1) were also higher in rats orally administered EGCG with 10% quercetin (365.5 ± 25.5) or 10% fisetin (825.3 ± 46.7) than in those administered EGCG only (111.3 ± 13.1). Methylated quercetin and methylated fisetin were determined to be m/z 317.24 and m/z 301.25 [M + H]+ with their own product ions, respectively. The results indicate that quercetin or fisetin is superior to ECs for methylation by COMT.

Impact of commercial cigarette smoke condensate on brain tissue co-cultured with astrocytes and blood-brain barrier endothelial cells.

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of two commercial cigarette smoke condensates (CCSC) on oxidative stress and cell cytotoxicity in human brain (T98G) or astrocytes (U-373 MG) in the presence of human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMEC). Cell viability of mono-culture of T98G or U-373 MG was markedly decreased in a concentration-dependent manner, and T98G was more susceptible than U-373 MG to CCSC exposure. Cytotoxicity was less prominent when T98G was co-cultured with HBMEC than when T98G was co-cultured with U-373 MG. Significant reduction in trans-epithelial electric resistance (TEER), a biomarker of cellular integrity was noted in HBMEC co-cultured with T98G (HBMEC-T98G co-culture) and U-373 MG co-cultured with T98G (U-373 MG-T98G co-culture) after 24 or 48 hr CCSC exposure, respectively. TEER value of U-373 MG co-cultured with T98G (79-84%) was higher than HBMEC co-cultured with T98G (62-63%) within 120-hr incubation with CCSC. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by CCSC in mono-culture of T98G and U-373 MG reached highest levels at 4 and 16 mg/ml, respectively. ROS production by T98G fell when co-cultured with HBMEC or U-373MG. These findings suggest that adverse consequences of CCSC treatment on brain cells may be protected by blood-brain barrier or astrocytes, but with chronic exposure toxicity may be worsened due to destruction of cellular integrity.