Branislav R. Simonović

Removal of mineral oil and wastewater pollutants using hard coal.

This study investigates the use of hard coal as an adsorbent for removal of mineral oil from wastewater. In order to determine the efficiency of hard coal as an adsorbent of mineral oil, process parameters such as sorption capacity (in static and dynamic conditions), temperature, pH, contact time, flow rate, and chemical pretreatment were evaluated in a series of batch and continuous flow experiments. There were significant differences in the mineral oil removal for various pH values examined. The adsorption of mineral oil increased as pH values diverged from 7 (neutral). At lower temperatures, the adsorption was notably higher. The wastewater flow rate was adjusted to achieve optimal water purification. Equilibrium was reached after 10 h in static conditions. At that time, more than 99% of mineral oil had been removed. At the beginning of the filtering process, the adsorption rate increased rapidly, only to show a minor decrease afterwards. Equilibrium data were fitted to Freundlich models to determine the water-hard coal partitioning coefficient. Physical adsorption caused by properties of the compounds was the predominant mechanism in the removal process.

Cytotoxic Effect of Wine Polyphenolic Extracts and Resveratrol Against Human Carcinoma Cells and Normal Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells

Red and white wine polyphenols have been reported to provide substantial health benefits. In this study, the cytotoxic activity of red and white wine polyphenolic extracts and of resveratrol was evaluated against different cancer cell lines--human cervix adenocarcinoma HeLa, human breast adenocarcinoma MDA-MB-361, and human breast carcinoma MDA-MB-453--and normal human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Qualitative and quantitative compositions of wine polyphenolic extracts obtained by fractional vacuum distillation of corresponding wines were determined using spectrophotometric methods and high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection and liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry analysis. It was demonstrated that wine polyphenolic extracts and resveratrol exerted higher cytotoxic activity against HeLa and MDA-MB-453 cells in comparison to MDA-MB-361 cells and unstimulated and stimulated PBMCs. Furthermore, white wine polyphenolic extract exhibited a significantly higher antiproliferative action on cancer cell lines than red wine extract. The presence of condensed or fragmented nuclei in HeLa cells, pretreated with extract of white wine and stained with a mixture of acridine orange and ethidium bromide, pointed to the morphological signs of apoptosis. In addition, HeLa cells in late stages of apoptosis or secondary necrosis were also observed. Results from our study suggest that polyphenolic extracts from red and white wine may have anticarcinogenic potential.

Characterization of recombinant antibodies for detection of TNT and its derivatives

Diverse recombinant immunoreagents specific for TNT-derivatives were tested in different assay forms in order to analyze their specificity and sensitivity. Performance of immunoassays was based on TNP-protein conjugates immobilization on a solid surface. In this work, the detection limit for TNT-analog TNP-Tris was 250 fmol or 87 pg mL−1 (87 ppt), which represents the most sensitive assay published until now, regarding the detection of recombinant antibodies.