Pathogenic bacteria contribute to various globally important diseases, killing millions of people each year. Various fields of medicine currently benefit from or may potentially benefit from the use of nanotechnology applications, in which there is growing interest. Disease-related biomarkers can be rapidly and directly detected by nanostructures, such as nanowires, nanotubes, nanoparticles, cantilevers, microarrays, and nanoarrays, as part of an accurate process characterized by lower sample consumption and considerably higher sensitivity. There is a need for accurate techniques for pathogenic bacteria identification and detection to allow the prevention and management of pathogenic diseases and to assure food safety. The focus of this review is on the current nanoparticle-based techniques for pathogenic bacterial identification and detection using these applications.

Background: Organic agriculture involve plants which are cultivated without using synthetic pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers and promotes biodiversity, biological cycles and improve the product quality. The carotenoids, total polyphenols and the antioxidant activity from skins of some wine and table grapes cultivated in organic and conventional agriculture were studied.Results: The main carotenoids identified using high performance liquid chromatography were lutein and ß-carotene. Muscat Ottonel variety has the highest ß-carotene concentration 504.9 μg/kg for organic and 593.2 μg/kg for conventional grapes. For the organic farming, the total polyphenols content were in the range of 163.23 – 1341.37 mg GAE/kg fresh weight (FW) and 148.47 – 1231.38 mg GAE/kg FW for the conventional grapes. The highest ORAC values were obtained for blue-black variety Napoca in both farming system (43.5 ± 0.95 μmol TE/g organic; 40.4 ± 0.5 μmol TE/g conventional) and lowest for Aromat de Iaşi (16.8 ± 0.6 μmol TE/g organic; 14.7 ± 1.6 μmol TE/g conventional). Napoca variety showed also the highest antioxidant activity measured by DPPH method in both cultivated system.Conclusion: Nine grape varieties cultivated in organic and conventional systems were compared regarding the carotenoids, total polyphenols and antioxidant activity. The white grape varieties have a higher carotenoids content compared with the blue-black cultivars while the blue-black varieties contain higher TPC and exhibit higher antioxidant activity (except for Muscat Hamburg-ORAC).Vitis viniferagrape skins originating from wine or table grape varieties can be used as a potential source of natural antioxidants.

Colostrum has many beneficial effects on newborns due to its main compounds (proteins, fats, lactose, essential fatty acids, amino acids) as well as protective antibodies that confer to the body. The buffaloes are the second important species for milk production in the world after cows. The importance of the species is also conferred by a longer longevity, high dry content of milk and a strong organic resistance when compared with cows. The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes of buffalo colostrum compounds such as fatty acids, cholesterol and physicochemical parameters during the first seven days postpartum and under the impact of the season, summer on pasture and winter on dry diet (hay based).

Nanoparticles have a large number of surface atoms, which translates into a significant increase in the surface energy. Once introduced in a biological environment they tend to interact with proteins and form a protein corona shell. The aim of this study was to develop a novel, silver based, bio-nanocomposite for biological applications. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) molecule was chosen for the passivation of the silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in order to avoid macrophage recognition of the synthesized structures. Monodisperse IgG-folinate functionalized silver nanoparticles were obtained, with sizes around 39 nm. UV–Vis and UATR-FT-IR spectroscopies were employed to confirm the successful functionalization of the silver nanoparticles. Atomic force microscopy and dynamic light scattering measurements gave information about the size and shape of the nanoparticles prior and after the passivation with IgG. Immunoglobulin G formed a monolayer around the nanoparticles with the binding site seemingly in the Fc domain, leaving the two Fab regions available for antigen binding. To our knowledge, this is the first report of an IgG-folinate functionalized AgNP bionanostructure developed for biological applications.

Background and aim. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) offer promising potential as nanocarriers in vaccine development due to their biocompatibility, tunable surface properties and capacity to enhance antigen presentation. This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro cytocompatibility, cellular uptake and antigen processing of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA)-functionalized AuNPs as a nanovaccine candidate. Materials and Methods. AuNPs were synthesized by citrate reduction and subsequently functionalized with CEA through physical adsorption. Nanoparticle size, morphology, and surface charge were characterized using UV–Vis spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Cytocompatibility was assessed via MTT assay on RAW 264.7 murine macrophages. Cellular uptake and antigen processing were evaluated using hyperspectral dark-field microscopy and fluorescence microscopy with proteasomal pathway markers. Results. The synthesized AuNPs displayed a uniform spherical morphology with a mean hydrodynamic diameter of ~50 nm and a stable zeta potential. CEA conjugation slightly altered the surface charge and spectral profile. MTT assays confirmed good cytocompatibility across tested concentrations. Hyperspectral and confocal microscopy revealed the efficient uptake of CEA-AuNPs by RAW 264.7 cells and colocalization with lysosomal compartments, suggesting successful antigen processing. Conclusions. The in vitro data support the safety and biological interaction of CEA-functionalized AuNPs with macrophages. These findings highlight their potential as a nanovaccine delivery platform and warrant further in vivo evaluation to assess immunogenicity and protective efficacy.

Unique properties exhibited by nanoparticles makes them great candidates for applications in physics, chemistry, biology, material science and medicine. The biological applications of water-soluble gold nanoparticles range from contrast agents, delivery vehicles to therapeutics. Notch signaling is a complex network that orchestrates cell fate decisions, which involves proliferation, migration, differentiation and cell death in organisms ranging from insects to humans. Studies have showed that a correct orientation of the Jag-1 signalling protein on the substrates proves to be of great importance when promoting Jagged-1 Notch interactions, also the availability of the ligands, super cedes the importance of their concentration. The aim of the present study was to synthetize a Jag-1 functionalized nanocarrier, which would promote an efficient interaction between the Jag-1 peptide and the Notch receptor. To this end, two routes for gold nanoparticle-peptide assembly were investigated, and the synthetized bio-nanostructures were characterized and compared by means of UV–Vis, FT-IR, DLS and AFM techniques. We have obtained a stable, monodisperse, hetero-functionalized GNP-PEG-JAG-1 bio-nanostructure for Notch pathway activation applications.