Cornelia Bejenaru

Calcium Fructoborate for Bone and Cardiovascular Health

Calcium fructoborate (CF), a natural sugar-borate ester found in fresh fruits and vegetables, is a source of soluble boron. CF contains three forms of borate (diester, monoester, and boric acid) and all are biologically active, both at the intracellular (as free boric acid) and extracellular level (as fructose-borate diester and monoester). At the cellular and molecular level, CF is superior to the boric acid/borate, exhibiting a complex “protective” effect against inflammatory response. CF is commercially available in the USA as a “nature-identical” complex, an active compound for dietary supplements. It provides effective and safe support against the discomfort and lack of flexibility associated with osteoarticular conditions (arthritis and joint degeneration), and improves Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis (WOMAC) and McGill indexes. In addition, orally administered CF is effective in ameliorating symptoms of physiological response to stress, including inflammation of the mucous membranes, discomfort associated with osteoarthritis disorders, and bone loss, and also for supporting cardiovascular health. Clinical studies have exhibited the ability of CF to significantly modulate molecular markers associated with inflammatory mechanisms, mainly on the elevated serum levels of C-reactive protein (CRP).

Prevention of Microbial Communities: Novel Approaches Based Natural Products

Firmly attached to different living or non-living, solid or fluid surfaces rich in nutrients and moisture, microbial biofilm is a matter of great interest due to its major importance for the healthcare community. Depending on common strategies such as mutual protection and hibernation (quiescent bacteria), the resistance, survival and virulence of microbial communities have large implications for human pathology, clinical environment and biomedical devices. The microbial biofilm is continuously changing, stimulating inflammation, increasing vascular permeability and preventing the action of macrophages. About 80% of human infections affecting the gastrointestinal, genitourinary and respiratory systems, oral mucosa and teeth, eyes, middle ear and skin are caused by biofilm-associated microorganisms. Therefore, the search for modern strategies is even more important as microbial biofilms resistant to conventional antibiotics, antiseptics and disinfectants are involved in the frequent treatment failures of some chronic inflammatory diseases and wounds. Natural products containing secondary metabolites, such as aromatic compounds, sulphurated derivatives, terpenoids (essential oils) and alkaloids as quorum-sensing inhibitors and biofilm disruptors, are promising alternatives for the prophylaxis and treatment of chronic infections. Surface modification of medical devices with non-polar functionalized nanoparticles stabilizes the natural compounds antibiofilm activity and inhibits microbial adhesion and biofilm formation and growth for a longer period of time. In this regard, an interdisciplinary approach is needed due to the large number of natural derivatives alone or in combination with biocompatible and biodegradable micro-/ nano-engineered materials.

Simultaneous Quantitation of Boric Acid and Calcium Fructoborate in Dietary Supplements by HPTLC–Densitometry

The paper describes a new, simple, selective and precise high-performance thin-layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method for the simultaneous identification and quantitative determination of boric acid (BA) and calcium fructoborate (CFB) in bulk and tablet/capsule dosage forms of dietary supplements. HPTLC silica gel G 60 F254 precoated glass plates were used as the stationary phase. The mobile phase consisted of 2-propanol-water 8:2 (v/v). The two boron-based compounds were adequately separated with the Rf values of 0.83 ± 0.01 (BA) and 0.59 ± 0.01 (CFB).

Natural products used for food preservation

Abstract Preservation is one of the most important processes for quality assurance in nutrition science and food technology, requiring an interdisciplinary and integrated approach. Natural products and secondary metabolites are commonly used as antimicrobial and antioxidant biopreservatives, due to their biocompatibility, biodegradability, low toxicity, safety, and cost efficiency: phenolic derivatives (simple phenols, polyphenolcarboxylic acids, floroglucinols, flavonoids, tannins), essential oils rich in monoterpenoids (geranial, 1,8-cineole, α-terpineol, linalool, borneol, camphor, carvacrol, thymol, limonene, p -cymene, α-pinene), and aromatic derivatives (eugenol, isoeugenol, eugenone, cinnamaldehyde), organosulfur compounds (thiosulfinates, allyl isothiocyanate), bacteriocins (nisin, pediocins, reuterin, sakacins, lactocin S, lacticin 3147, enterocins), lysozyme, lactoperoxidase system, lactoferrin, chitosan, vitamins, sugar, polysaccharides (starch, agarose), organic acids. High-quality standards in food producing, processing, and packaging require application of modern techniques (dehydration and freeze-drying, chilling, curing, vacuum and modified-atmosphere packaging, aseptic processing and packaging, hurdle technology, nanobiotechnology) and natural (or “green”) preservatives, as an alternative and safe approach to synthetic derivatives.

Pharmacological Approaches for Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Abstract Background and aims: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFDL) is a multifactorial condition with a wide spectrum of histological severities, from asymptomatic hepatic steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with or without fibrosis. NAFLD is highly common and potentially serious in children and adolescents and affects approximately one third of the general population. It is closely associated with obesity, insulin resistance and dyslipidemia. NASH is a histological diagnosis and has a great significance because it can progress to cirrhosis, liver failure, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and is associated with both increased cardiovascular and liver related mortality. The purpose of this review is to summarize the evidence for current potential therapies of NAFLD. Material and Methods: We searched MEDLINE from 2010 to the present to identify the pharmacological approaches for NAFLD. Results and conclusions: NAFLD may be a new risk factor for extrahepatic diseases such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), chronic kidney disease (CKD), colorectal cancer, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and osteoporosis. Currently there is no specific targeted treatment for NAFLD/NASH.

Applications of nanobiopolymers for soft tissue engineering

Abstract Nowadays, tissue engineering (TE) has become an extremely active interdisciplinary research area. Neural outgrowth and regeneration, cardiovascular diseases, cartilage and ligament disorders, skin burns, and wounds are the main clinical applications of soft TE. Fabricated by electrospinning, molecular self-assembly, or phase separation, nanobiomaterials must be safe, nontoxic, nonimmunogenic, biocompatible, and biodegradable, with adequate mechanical properties, high surface area, and a macroporous structure. Natural and synthetic polymers are the main biocompatible and biodegradable nanobiomaterials used for soft TE and include: collagen, chitosan, heparin, fibrin, gelatin, alginate, hyaluronic acid, silk; polylactic acid, polyglycolic acid, poly(lactic- co -glycolic acid), poly-e-caprolactone, poly( l -lactic acid- co -e-caprolactone), polyethylene oxide, polyurethane, polyethylene terephthalate, and polymethyl methacrylate.

Natural and synthetic polymers for drug delivery and targeting

During recent decades, interdisciplinary research has led to the development of modern generations of pharmaceutical systems with improved performance in terms of active principle release, such as: pharmaceutical systems with prolonged or sustained release, with controlled release, and with targeted delivery (to the specific site of action), respectively. By the ability to control and manipulate some biological structures, at nanometric, molecular or even atomic level, pharmaceutical nanobiotechnology paved the way for both the treatment and diagnosis of diseases and for real-time monitoring of biosystems. In this respect, the use of liposomes, niosomes, polymeric nanoparticles, and therapeutic polymers (e.g., polymeric micelles, dendrimers, colloidal nanogels, polymeric artificial cells), as “intelligent,” biocompatible and biodegradable systems for targeted drug delivery, are highly topical and perspective guidelines for biomedical area. In this context, benefiting from the advances of molecular medicine, genomics and proteomics, pharmaceutical nanobiotehnology has significantly contributed to the development of nanomedicine (nanoimmunology, nanooncology, nanocardiology, etc.) and personalized therapy.

Marine Natural Products in Fighting Microbial Infections

Nowadays, antibiotic resistance remains a crucial matter in fighting microbial infections. Thus, the screening for novel antimicrobial compounds mainly encompasses the exploration of natural resources, including marine products. Recent data highlighted the impact of marine-derived bacteria, fungi, algae, sponges, and other invertebrates (eg, corals, dinoflagellates, mollusks, gastropods, and tubeworms) for the production of novel antibiotics. Actinomycetes secondary metabolites, cyanobacterial alkaloids and nonribosomal peptides, exopolysaccharides, glycolipids, lipopeptides, bromopyrrole, chloropyrrole, and bromophenyl derivatives are the leading antimicrobial active ingredients from marine bacteria. Marine fungi also biosynthesize antimicrobial compounds, such as cephalosporins, anthraquinones, polyketides, alkaloids, peptides, diterpenoids, steroids, and glicosphingolipids. Fatty acids, bromophenol derivatives, sesquiterpenoid quinones, diterpenoids, and cyclic depsipeptides are antibacterial and antifungal substances isolated from marine algae. Concerning broad-spectrum antimicrobial compounds, sponges are characterized by the highest chemical diversity of all marine natural products, in terms of fatty acids, brominated phenols, sesquiterpenoid quinones, diterpenoids, sesterterpenoids, macrolides, sulfated sterols, meroterpenoids, bromopyrrole alkaloids, steroidal alkaloids, lipopeptides, and cyclodepsipeptides.