Gelatin-based films containing clinoptilolite-Ag for application as wound dressing.

Dressings used in burns and chronic wounds treatment must present antimicrobial characteristics. Silver-based compounds are used for a long time as antiseptics, but they present problems related to the release of silver. In order to control the release, Ag+ ions may be immobilized in supports that must be dispersed in the film used as wound dressing. In this work gelatin-based films using glycerol as plasticizer and incorporated with different concentrations of clinoptilolite zeolite impregnated with silver ions were prepared and characterized, and the potential antimicrobial activity was investigated. For this purpose, films were produced by casting and evaluated in relation to their mechanical, chemical, thermal, morphological and antimicrobial properties, in addition the amount of silver present in the films was quantified and the kinetics of Ag+ release in vitro was studied. The antimicrobial analysis was done qualitatively, using Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria and the microorganisms commonly present on human skin collected with a swab, and quantitatively, using Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Characterization tests demonstrated that the glycerol concentration of 25% and the zeolite concentration of 0.5% resulted in films with more suitable properties for wound dressing applications and the silver release test showed that the release of the active compound occurs slowly, as expected. All gelatin/clinoptilolite-Ag films showed antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and human skin bacteria, not presenting expressive differences on the size of the formed halo. Moreover, by the quantitative antimicrobial analisys, it was observed that as the glycerol concentration increases, the antimicrobial action was faster and at the end of the experiment, there were no S. aureus in the solutions where the films were immersed and for the assay with E. coli, the bactericidal activity is slower and probably is needed a higher concentration of silver ions in the sample to completely inhibit the bacteria. However, the bactericidal activity of the gelatin/clinoptilolite-Ag films was satisfactory due its effectiveness in reducing bacterial growth of E. coli and S. aureus. Based on these results the prepared gelatin/clinoptilolite-Ag films could serve as a promising wound dressing with great antibacterial properties, thus possibly helping also the wound healing.

Separation of phycocyanin from Spirulina platensis using ion exchange chromatography.

This paper presents the evaluation of some important parameters for the purification of phycocyanin using ion exchange chromatography. The influences of pH and temperature on the equilibrium partition coefficient were investigated to establish the best conditions for phycocyanin adsorption. The equilibrium isotherm for the phycocyanin-resin system was also determined. The separation of phycocyanin using the Q-Sepharose ion exchange resin was evaluated in terms of the pH and elution volume that improved the increase in purity and recovery. The highest partition coefficients were obtained in the pH range from 7.5 to 8.0 at 25 degrees C. Under these conditions the equilibrium isotherm for phycocyanin adsorption was well described by the Langmuir model, attaining a Q (m) of 22.7 mg/mL and K (d) of 3.1 x 10(-2) mg/mL. The best conditions for phycocyanin purification using the ion exchange column were at pH 7.5 with an elution volume of 36 mL, obtaining 77.3% recovery and a 3.4-fold increase in purity.