OBJECTIVE We have developed an ultrapurified low endotoxin alginate (UPLE alginate), which can drastically reduce endotoxin levels. Our purposes were to examine the effects of UPLE alginate administration on osteoarthritis (OA) progression and to determine the adequate molecular weight of the UPLE alginate for therapeutic effects. DESIGN To induce knee OA, 35 Japanese White rabbits underwent ...

High molecular weight alginate beads with 59% mannuronic acid content or 68% guluronic acid were prepared using a droplet generator and crosslinked in calcium chloride. The alginate beads were compared to current embolisation microspheres for compressibility and monitored over 12 weeks for size and weight change at 37 degrees C in low volumes of ringers solutions. A sheep uterine model was used...

Recent advances in diagnostic technologies have revealed that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can cause serious mucosal injury in the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract (including the small intestine). A drug to treat NSAID-induced small-intestinal injury (SII) is lacking. Sodium alginate is a soluble dietary fiber extracted from brown seaweed and its solution has been used as...

Objective The goal of this study was to prepare and characterize alginate microspheres as an antigen delivery system and adjuvant for immunization against leishmaniasis. Materials and Methods Microspheres were prepared by an emulsification technique and characterized for size, encapsulation efficiency, and release profile of encapsulates. Selection of appropriate parameters (viscosity of al...

A bacterium, Sphingomonas sp. strain A1, can incorporate alginate into cells through a novel ABC (ATP-binding cassette) transporter system specific to the macromolecule. The transported alginate is depolymerized to di- and trisaccharides by three kinds of cytoplasmic alginate lyases (A1-I [66 kDa], A1-II [25 kDa], and A1-III [40 kDa]) generated from a single precursor through posttranslational ...

A photochemical reaction has been developed for the partial de-polymerization of sodium alginate, a polysaccharide utilized in medicine, pharmacy, basic sciences and foods. An aqueous solution of sodium alginate was photochemically depolymerized to approximately 40% of its average molecular weight using ultraviolet light in the presence of titanium dioxide catalyst at pH 7 over a period of 3h. ...

More than 3000 MT of Sargassum illicifolium ,annually washed-up from the Oman Sea (Sistan and Baluchestan province). , According to the estimates of the Iranian Fisheries Sciences Researchinstitiute.The brown seaweed biomass has been considered as one of the best free sources for production of sodium alginate. A key objective of this study was to determine the biochemical composition of Sargass...

Hydrogels are an especially appealing class of biomaterials for gene delivery vehicles as they can be introduced into the body with minimally invasive procedures and are often applied in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine strategies. In this study, we show for the first time the use of an injectable alginate hydrogel for controlled delivery of lentivectors in the skeletal muscle of mu...

A semiempirical model that describes and predicts the evolution of alginate mean molecular weight (MMW) produced by Azotobacter vinelandii, from cultures carried out under oscillating dissolved oxygen tension (DOT), was developed. Data from the literature of cultures carried out at constant DOT was used. The model is able to explain that the main effect on the MMW of alginate is linked with the...

Several aspects of alginate and PHB synthesis in Azotobacter vinelandii at a molecular level have been elucidated in articles published during the last ten years. It is now clear that alginate and PHB synthesis are under a very complex genetic control. Genetic modification of A. vinelandii has produced a number of very interesting mutants which have particular traits for alginate production. On...