Bacillus subtilis SK01 and its application in plastic degradation. Bacillus subtilis SK01 collected by China Center for Type Culture Collection (CCTCC), CCTCC NO: M2020812 is used to prepare a degradable plastic that can protect Bacillus subtilis SK01 from the damage of high temperature and reduce the difference with polyene plastics in specific gravity. The plastic may be stored for more than 1 year to ensure that the microbial enzymes produced by Bacillus subtilis SK01 can achieve 49.11% of total degradation of organic solids after 153 days in an environment for composting or soil burial, and can be slowly degraded by sunlight (photodegradation) or immersion in water. Under an environment other than that mentioned above, the finished products of polyene plastics added with Bacillus subtilis SK01 are consistent with the non-degradable plastics in shelf life, satisfying the demand of a variety of polyene plastics.

A hydrogel of which the degradation is accurately controlled can be provided by a photodegradable hydrogel production method, the method comprising the steps of: reacting α-glucan having a weight average molecular weight of 2000 to 200,000 with a compound represented by formula I to introduce a group represented by formula II into the α-glucan; oxidizing the α-glucan having, introduced therein, the group represented by formula II with periodic acid or a periodate salt to introduce an aldehyde group into the α-glucan; and adding aminated carrageenan gel beads having polydopamine particles embedded therein to a gelling agent which has been prepared by introducing a group represented by formula II and an aldehyde group into α-glucan, and then causing the crosslinking reaction of the resultant product with a polythiol-type reducing agent to form the hydrogel.

Embodiments herein described provide devices for identifying and collecting rare cells or cells which occur at low frequency in the body of a subject, such as, antigen-specific cells or disease-specific cells. More specifically, the devices are useful for trapping immune cells and the devices contain a physiologically-compatible porous polymer scaffold, a plurality of antigens, and an immune cell-recruiting agent, wherein the plurality of antigens and the immune cell recruiting agent attract and trap the immune cell in the device. Also provided are pharmaceutical compositions, kits, and packages containing such devices. Additional embodiments relate to methods for making the devices, compositions, and kits/packages. Further embodiments relate to methods for using the devices, compositions, and/or kits in the diagnosis or therapy of diseases such as autoimmune diseases or cancers.

A protein/polysaccharide/essential oil nano-edible film. The essential oil nano-edible film includes the following raw materials in parts by weight: 1-8 parts of a quinoa protein—Atrina pectinata polysaccharide nanocomposite, 2-11 parts of an Atrina pectinata polysaccharide-essential oil nanocomposite, 1-12 parts of a quinoa protein, 2-16 parts of Atrina pectinata polysaccharide, and 5-53 parts of water. The present invention helps to solve the problem, in a conventional protein film, of the loss of flavor and even toxic side effects caused by the adding of a plasticizer and a crosslinking agent to improve the mechanical strength, the use of a lipid substance that has the capability to easily form a dense molecular network structure to improve the water and gas barrier properties, and the migration of an additive, the plasticizer, or a polymer degradation by-product thereof generated in reaction, and a solvent remaining in the polymerization reaction from the film to food.

The present invention belongs to the technical field of composite materials, and disclosed are a xylan-based double network nanocomposite hydrogel and the preparation and application thereof. The method includes: (1) adding a graphite oxide powder into deionized water, and ultrasonically dispersing to obtain a GO water dispersion; (2) adding xylan into deionized water, heating and stiffing to obtain a xylan solution; (3) adding a water-soluble calcium salt, a reaction monomer and the xylan solution into the GO water dispersion, stiffing and dispersing uniformly under an ice-bath condition, adding an initiator, a cross-linking agent and an accelerator, and stiffing to mix well so as to obtain a mixed solution; (4) subjecting the mixed solution of step (3) to a drying reaction, to obtain the xylan based double network nanocomposite hydrogel. The composite hydrogel obtained in the present invention has high mechanical properties, is biodegradable and has good biocompatibility. The present invention is applicable in the field of biomedicine, such as tissue engineering, drug sustained-release, cell culture scaffold and cartilage tissue, etc.

There is provided inter alia a process for drying an isolated polysaccharide comprising the step of spray drying a liquid composition comprising the isolated polysaccharide.

The present invention includes a hydrogel and a method of making a porous hydrogel by preparing an aqueous mixture of an uncrosslinked polymer and a crystallizable molecule; casting the mixture into a vessel; allowing the cast mixture to dry to form an amorphous hydrogel film; seeding the cast mixture with a seed crystal of the crystallizable molecule; growing the crystallizable molecule into a crystal structure within the uncrosslinked polymer; crosslinking the polymer around the crystal structure under conditions in which the crystal structure within the crosslinked polymer is maintained; and dissolving the crystals within the crosslinked polymer to form the porous hydrogel.

The present invention relates to a novel stable colloidal polysaccharide suspension containing α(1.fwdarw.3)-glucan, a cost-effective method for its preparation, and possible uses of these polysaccharide suspensions.

Compositions are disclosed herein comprising a graft copolymer that comprises: (i) a backbone comprising dextran that has been modified with about 1%-25% alpha-1,2 branches, and (ii) one or more alpha-1,3-glucan side chains comprising at least about 50% alpha-1,3 glycosidic linkages. Further disclosed are reactions for producing such graft copolymers, as well as their use in derivatives, films and various other applications.

Provided are superabsorbent materials composed of one or more water-soluble polysaccharides, such as gelling polysaccharides and gelling-compatible polysaccharides, and one or more insoluble fibers. The disclosed superabsorbent materials have a porous network structure and highly stable gelling properties as well as high absorption ratio and volume expansion capacity upon hydration or rehydration. Also provided are methods for preparing such superabsorbent materials and uses thereof.