Supercritical CO2 Extraction of Narcissus poeticus L. Flowers for the Isolation of Volatile Fragrance Compounds

The flowers of Narcissus poeticus are used for the isolation of valuable fragrance substances. So far, as the majority of these substances consist of volatile and sensitive to heat compounds, there is a need of developing effective methods for their recovery. In this study, freeze-dried N. poeticus inflorescences were extracted with pure supercritical CO2 (SFE-CO2) and its mixture with 5% co-solvent ethanol (EtOH) at 40 °C. Extract yields varied from 1.63% (12 MPa) to 3.12% (48 MPa, 5% EtOH). In total, 116 volatile compounds were identified by GC-TOF/MS in the extracts, which were divided into 20 different groups. Benzyl benzoate (9.44–10.22%), benzyl linoleate (1.72–2.17%) and benzyl alcohol (0.18–1.00%) were the major volatiles among aromatic compounds. The amount of the recovered benzyl benzoate in N. poeticus SFE-CO2 extracts varied from 58.98 ± 2.61 (24 MPa) to 91.52 ± 1.36 (48 MPa) mg/kg plant dry weight (pdw). α-Terpineol dominated among oxygenated monoterpenes (1.08–3.42%); its yield was from 9.25 ± 0.63 (12 MPa) to 29.88 ± 1.25 (48 MPa/EtOH) mg/kg pdw. Limonene was the major monoterpene hydrocarbon; (3E)-hexenol and heneicosanol dominated among alcohols and phenols; dihydroactinidiolide and 4,8,12,16-tetramethyl heptadecan-4-olide were the most abundant lactones; heptanal, nonanal, (2E,4E)-decadienal and octadecanal were the most abundant aldehydes. The most important prenol lipids were triterpenoid squalene, from 0.86 ± 0.10 (24 MPa) to 7.73 ± 0.18 (48 MPa/EtOH) mg/kg pdw and D-α-tocopherol, from 1.20 ± 0.04 (12 MPa) to 15.39 ± 0.31 (48 MPa/EtOH) mg/kg pdw. Aliphatic hydrocarbons (waxes) constituted the main part (41.47 to 54.93%) in the extracts; while in case of a 5% EtOH the percentage of alkanes was the lowest. The fraction of waxes may be removed for the separation of higher value fragrance materials. In general, the results obtained are promising for a wider application of SFE-CO2 for the recovery of fragrance substances from N. poeticus flowers.

Scabies in Koranic schools in Dakar, Senegal: Comparison of two therapeutic modalities

Background: In 2017, WHO recognized scabies as a neglected tropical disease. The optimal treatment is not well defined in some communities.Objective: This study aimed to compare ivermectin and benzyl benzoate in the treatment of scabies in Koranic schools (or "daara") in Dakar (region).Methods: This was a prospective randomized trial conducted from January to October 2018 in Senegal. Any resident living in the selected "daara" and diagnosed with scabies was included. The administered treatments were benzyl benzoate (BB) or ivermectin. At the outset, if one case of scabies was diagnosed, all residents received treatment. Ivermectin was given at the dose of 200 mg/kg. The same treatment was repeated on day 7 for each group, the endpoint was at D14, and the data were analyzed with STATA 14.Results: Fifteen "daara" were included. Of the 959 residents, 70 were diagnosed with scabies: prevalence of 7.29%. All patients except one were male; the mean age was 9.98 years (4-17). At D14, in the BB arm, cure rate was 42.85% (n = 15) while in the ivermectin arm, this rate was 5.71% (n = 2) with a significant difference (p = 0.01). On D28, the cure rate was still higher in the BB group 57.14 (n=20) versus ivermectin 21.42 (n = 6) with a significant difference (p = 0.004). On D42, all patients except eight were cured. At D14, we found a link between the cure rate, the number of people in the room (p = 0.01), and the number of showers per week (p = 0.01) but no link with the number of people per "daara" (p = 0.163). At D28, we found a link between the cure rate, the number of people sleeping in the room (p = 0.03), and the number of showers per week (p = 0.01) but not with the number of people per "daara" (p = 0.07).Conclusion: In Koranic schools, the cure rate is higher with benzyl benzoate compared to ivermectin.

Clearing-induced tisssue shrinkage: A novel observation of a thickness size effect

The use of clearing agents has provided new insights in various fields of medical research (developmental biology, neurology) by enabling examination of tissue architecture in 3D. One of the challenges is that clearing agents induce tissue shrinkage and the shrinkage rates reported in the literature are incoherent. Here, we report that for a classical clearing agent, benzyl-alcohol benzyl-benzoate (BABB), the shrinkage decreases significantly with increasing sample size, and present an analytical formula describing this.

Novozym® 435 and Lipozyme® RM IM as Biocatalysts for Benzyl Benzoate Synthesis

With the ever-increasing demand for clean technology in the industrial sector, natural methods, such as enzyme-catalyzed, represent a sustainable alternative to industrial chemical processes. In this context, the synthesis of benzyl benzoate ester using commercial immobilized lipases was evaluated. For this, a kinetic study was carried out to determine the reaction time (24 h) and enzyme concentration (10 wt%). Then, a 22 full factorial design was proposed to evaluate the effect of molar ratio (benzyl alcohol to benzoic anhydride) and temperature on conversion of benzyl benzoate in the presence of tert-butanol as solvent. For the Novozym® 435, maximum conversion (32%) was achieved at 60 ºC, using a molar ratio of 1:5 (alcohol to anhydride). A maximum conversion of 51% was obtained for Lipozyme® RM IM at 40 ºC and the molar ratio of 1:5. The benzyl benzoate showed moderate antimicrobial action against S. aureus (MIC = 0.05 mg μL-1). With the results, the conclusion was that the methodology of design of experiments was adequate for the proposed system and allowed the optimization of the production of benzyl benzoate.

Efek Aplikasi Balsamum Peruvianum terhadap Persembuhan Luka Kastrasi Metode Terbuka Satu dan Dua Sayatan pada Anak Babi

Tahapan pascaoperasi merupakan bagian penting dalam tindakan operasi. Persembuhan luka merupakan proses usaha untuk memperbaiki kerusakan yang terjadi pada kulit. Balsamum peruvianum merupakan resin dari pohon Myroxylon balsamum dengan kandungan asam sinamat yang dapat merangsang proses persembuhan luka, sekaligus memiliki kandungan benzyl benzoate yang berfungsi sebagai antiseptik alami. Penelitian ini bertujuan mengevaluasi efek aplikasi Balsamum peruvianum dalam persembuhan luka kastrasi dengan metode terbuka, satu dan dua sayatan pada anak babi. Hewan coba yang digunakan adalah anak babi yang telah dikastrasi berusia satu bulan dan terbagi menjadi dua kelompok, yaitu kastrasi satu sayatan dan dua sayatan masing-masing tiga ekor sampel. Anak babi masing-masing dibersihkan lukanya dua kali sehari selama dua minggu pascaoperasi dengan menggunakan kapas dan rivanol kemudian dioleskan Balsamum peruvianum menggunakan cotton bud. Pengamatan dilakukan secara makroskopis dan metode dinilai dengan skala 1 untuk sembuh sempurna dan 5 untuk luka basah. Data yang didapat kemudian diolah menggunakan Aplikasi SPSS V.20 dan diuji menggunakan Independent Sample T Test dengan selang kepercayaan 95 %. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa tidak ada perbedaan waktu persembuhan yang nyata antara dua kelompok. Kelompok babi satu sayatan memiliki waktu persembuhan rata-rata lebih singkat.