Ivana Pajic-Lijakovic

Investigation of Ca-alginate hydrogel rheological behaviour in conjunction with immobilized yeast cell growth dynamics

The rheological model is developed to elucidate the mechanism of Ca-alginate microbead deformation in the course of cell growth within. It is a complex process influenced by relaxation of the expanded polymer network inside a bead, and forces generated by cell growth inside the bead and interactions between solvent, network parts and cells as well. The resulting effects are measured experimentally by estimating isotropic volumetric deformations of beads with yeast cells as function of time and cell concentration per bead. The mathematical model of the process is developed based on a modified general Zener model with fractional derivatives. It is particularly suitable for incorporating effects of different nature also during different stages of such complex process development. The results of theoretical analyses using the model developed and comparison with experimental values obtained, indicate a high impact of partial decomposition, i.e. plastic response of polymer network inside a bead due to cell growth, on bead deformation. For comparison, corresponding deformation measurements and modelling were performed on the same network system exposed to swelling in the solvent, but without the cells. In this case elastic forces are dominant, indicating different mechanism of relaxation without the influence of cells, in agreement with previous conclusions.

Influence of chemically modified short hemp fiber structure on biosorption process of Zn2+ ions from waste water

Short hemp fibers, acquired as a waste from textile industry, were used as an efficient biosorbent for removal of zinc ions from polluted water. In order to obtain the material with better sorption properties, short hemp fibers were subjected to oxidative and alkali treatment. The following factors that may influence the sorption properties of short hemp fibers were examined: fiber structure and morphology were characterized by iodine sorption, water retention and scanning electron microscopy, while specific surface area was determined by BET method. Additionally, the amount of carboxyl groups was determined by calcium-acetate method, and the point of zero charge of the short hemp fibers samples was determined by the solid addition method. Biosorption of zinc ions was evaluated through the total uptake capacity, equilibrium and kinetic data. Obtained data were analyzed by nonlinear Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms, as well as pseudo-first and pseudo-second order kinetic models, and the best fitting model was chosen using Akaike information criterion. Chemical modification, used in this work, leads to structural and morphological changes of short hemp fibers, and improvement of their sorption properties. It was found that sorption properties of short hemp fibers are predominantly influenced by surface acidity and the amount of functional groups, while fiber structure and specific surface area have a secondary role in the biosorption of zinc ions. Akakike information criterion values showed that biosorption of zinc ions on all tested hemp fiber samples obey the pseudo-second order adsorption kinetics, while experimental isotherm data fit better with Langmuir model. Biosorption of zinc ions on the hemp fibers is a predominantly chemical process, which mainly follows the mechanism of ion exchange on acidic functional groups, and occurs through the fast surface adsorption, intraparticle diffusion and final equilibrium stage.

Modeling analysis of the lipid bilayer-cytoskeleton coupling in erythrocyte membrane.

Studies of thermal fluctuations in discocytes, echinocytes, and spherocytes suggest that the coupling between lipid bilayer and cytoskeleton can affect viscoelastic behavior of single erythrocyte membranes. To test this hypothesis, we developed a 3D constitutive model describing viscoelastic behavior of erythrocyte membranes, at long relaxation times

Development of low calorie jams with increased content of natural dietary fibre made from tomato pomace

t \in [0.20\,\mathrm {s}, 1.05\,\mathrm {s}]

Role of band 3 in the erythrocyte membrane structural changes under thermal fluctuations –multi scale modeling considerations

t∈[0.20s,1.05s] and short relaxation times

Influence of microenvironment on cell adhesion, polarization, and migration

t \in [0.03\,\mathrm {s}, 0.20\,\mathrm {s}]