One main objective of this study was to increase the utilization of the raw material in the rose (Rosa damascena Mill.) essential oil industry by application of membrane technologies. A new ultrafiltration-based process for green recovery of polyphenols from distilled (de-aromatized) rose petals, the primary by-product in essential oil production, was created. The process includes enzyme-assisted extraction and subsequent membrane separation for partial concentration. Following a green membrane technology strategy, the newly developed process proposes an environmentally-friendly alternative to the conventional processing, comprising organic solvent ex-traction and adsorber resin purification. The results showed that the permeate flux decreased with volume reduction ratio’s rise and increased with the transmembrane pressure and feed flow rate rises. At the beginning of the process the highest flux was with UF1-PAN membrane, but at the end of the process with UF10-PAN membrane. Total polyphenols of the retentates in-creased by 27-39% and 26-67% during ultrafiltration with UF1-PAN and UF10-PAN membrane, respectively, with the highest value obtained for UF10-PAN membrane at VRR 6. The highest concentration factor and rejection of total solids, total polyphenols, redox-active antioxidants and radical scavenging antioxidants were obtained at VRR 6 with UF10-PAN membrane. This membrane and concentration level at transmembrane pressure of 0.4 MPa and feed flow rate of 330 dm3/h are recommended to be used for application of ultrafiltration of rose-petals by-product for potential use in the food industry.

Roses are one of the most important floricultural crops, and their essential oils have long been used for cosmetics and aromatherapy. We investigated the volatile compound compositions of 12 flower-color mutant variants and their original cultivars. Twelve rose mutant genotypes were developed by treatment with 70 Gy of 60Co gamma irradiation of six commercial rose cultivars. Essential oils from the flowers of the 18 genotypes were analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Seventy-seven volatile compounds were detected, which were categorized into five classes: hydrocarbons, terpenoids, alcohols, esters, and others. Hydrocarbons, alcohols, and esters were major components in all rose flowers. The mutant genotypes CR-S8 and CR-S9 showed higher contents of hydrocarbons than the original cultivar. In addition, CR-S1, CR-S3, and CR-S4 mutant genotypes showed higher ester contents than their original cultivar. Nonacosane, 2-methylhexacosane, and 2-methyltricosane were major volatile compounds among all genotypes. Hierarchical cluster analysis of the rose genotypes gave four groups according to grouping among the 77 volatile compounds. These findings will be useful for the selection of rose genotypes with improved volatile compounds.

In this paper we present a successful implementation of the Hindmarsh–Rose model within a SC environment. The merits of the proposed approach are design simplicity, due to stochastic computing, and the ease of implementation. Simulation results showed that the approximation achieved is equivalent to introducing a noise source into the original model. A study for the level of noise introduced, according to the number of bits in the stochastic sequence, has been performed. Additionally, we demonstrate that such an approach, even though it is noisy, it reproduces the behaviour of biological systems, which are intrinsically noisy. It is also demonstrated that a speedup of x2 compared to biological systems is easily achievable, with a very small number of gates, thus paving the road for the in silico implementation of large neuron networks.

Rose (Rosa spp.), especially R. hybrida, is one of the most popular ornamental plants in the world and the third largest cut flower crop in Taiwan. Rose mosaic disease (RMD), showing mosaic, line patterns and ringspots on leaves, is a common rose disease caused by complex infection of various viruses. Due to pests and diseases, the rose planting area in Taiwan has been decreasing since 2008; however, no rose virus disease has been reported in the past five decades. In the spring of 2020, rose samples showing RMD-like symptoms were observed at an organic farm in Chiayi, central Taiwan. The virome in the farm was analyzed by RNA-seq. Rose genomic sequences were filtered from the obtained reads. The remaining reads were de novo assembled to generate 294 contigs, 50 of which were annotated as viral sequences corresponding to 10 viruses. Through reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction validation, a total of seven viruses were detected, including six known rose viruses, namely apple mosaic virus, prunus necrotic ringspot virus, rose partitivirus, apple stem grooving virus, rose spring dwarf-associated virus and rose cryptic virus 1, and a novel ilarvirus. After completing the whole genome sequencing and sequence analysis, the unknown ilarvirus was demonstrated as a new species, tentatively named rose ilarvirus 2. This is the first report of the rose viruses in Taiwan.

Background Endometrial cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer in the world. Due to the prevalence and high morbidity, it is of key importance to make a quick and accurate diagnosis and effective therapy. The use of photodynamic therapy (PDT) in the treatment of endometrial cancer is a significant challenge in conducting clinical trials. PDT is non-invasive, with few side effects, damaging only neoplastic tissue, leaving healthy adjacent structures intact. Thanks to numerous experiments (also in vitro), PDT is gaining more and more recognition as a potential tool in endometrium cancer treatment. Objective The aim of the study was to analyze the effectiveness of photodynamic therapy on endometrial cancer tissue samples Methods In the in vitro experiment of PDT, sections of endometrial cancer tissue taken from female patients were subjected to. Rose Bengal was used as a photosensitizer in order to assess the usefulness of the applied PDT and to introduce these solutions into the in vivo test procedure. Results Changes on the cellular substrate, such as: chromatin condensation, disturbed structure and shape of cell nuclei were observed in all tissues subjected to PDT. Conclusions The PDT experiment in vitro offers opportunities and hopes for using the chosen procedure also in vivo. Keywords endometrial cancer; photodynamic therapy; in vitro; treatment; rose bengal

Abstract: Bulgaria is famous for its oil-bearing rose. R. damascena Mill. and R. alba L. are mainly cultivated in the country, but a recent survey of industrial plantations in 2020 revealed that R. centifolia L. and hybrids of R. damascena Mill. x R. gallica L. are also common in the rose valley. Although their essential oil cannot be compared in quality with the classic, they are preferred by farmers with high yields of flowers and resistance to diseases and pests. All these roses are also used to produce rose water and extracts. The aim of this investigation was to compare the yield and chromatographic fingerprints of seven rose oils and hydrosols produced in Bulgaria. The quantitative composition of the main components of the oils was compared with the norms of the world standard. Our study showed that the yield of essential oil from these roses was in the range of 0.015 - 0.048%. The main group in the chemical composition is terpene alcohols, which vary in the range: geraniol (17.60 - 34.02 %), citronellol (8.38 - 28.7 %), and nerol (4.8 - 11.90 %), but with a different ratio. Hydrocarbons are represented by saturated aliphatic homologs with an odd number of carbon atoms, the main ones being: nonadecane (8.10 - 22.67 %), heneicosane (4.37 - 10.21 %), heptadecane (1.07 - 2.98 %) and triclosan (0.81 - 5.90 %). In contrast, the chemical profile of the hydrosols was performed by phenyl ethyl alcohol (27.45 - 69.88 %), geraniol (13.72 - 28.67 %), and citronelol+nerol (4.56 - 17.37 %). The results show that the presence of plantations with a genotype different from that of R. damascena implies differences in the quality of rose oils and hydrosols. This predetermines their properties of use.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a consequence of the ability of microorganisms, especially bacteria, to develop resistance against conventional antibiotics hampering the treatment of common infections, is recognized as one of the most imperative health threats of this century. Antibacterial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) has emerged as a promising alternative strategy, utilizing photo-sensitizers activated by light to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) that kill pathogens without inducing resistance. In this work, we synthesized silica nanoparticles of different sizes (20 nm, 80 nm, and 250 nm) functionalized with the photosensitizer Rose Bengal (RB) and a gluconamide ligand, which targets Gram-negative bacteria, to assess their potential in aPDT. Comprehensive characterization, including dynamic light scattering (DLS) and photophysical analysis, confirmed the stability and effective singlet oxygen production of the functionalized nanoparticles. RB loading was size-dependent, decreasing with increasing nanoparticle diameter. Consequently, the largest nanoparticles (250 nm) displayed insufficient RB surface density for effective aPDT, while the smallest (20 nm) and intermediate (80 nm) particles were more promising. Bacterial assays in E. coli revealed minimal dark toxicity and significant light-activated phototoxicity for the RB-loaded nanoparticles. The addition of gluconamide notably enhanced phototoxic activity, particularly in the smallest nanoparticles (RB-G-20@SiNP), which demonstrated the highest photo-toxicity-to-cytotoxicity ratio. These findings indicate that small, gluconamide-functionalized silica nanoparticles are highly effective for targeted aPDT, offering a robust strategy to combat AMR.

This study explored the effectiveness of natural additives in prolonging the life of cut roses. A Completely Randomized Design (CRD) was used, with four different treatments: distilled water (control), a sucrose solution, moringa leaf extracts, and a combination of sucrose and moringa. The roses were observed over eight days to assess various factors such as leaf drop, stem rotting, bent necks, petal drop, flower condition, and petal color. The results showed that the combined treatment of sucrose and moringa led to the highest number of leaf drops, with 15 leaves dropping by day five. Distilled water resulted in 12 dropped leaves, moringa extract caused four leaves to drop, and sucrose had the least impact with only two leaves dropping. The combination treatment also caused the most significant stem rotting (32.75 mm) and the most bent necks (14 roses). In contrast, roses treated with sucrose or moringa separately had better outcomes, with the least bent necks and minimal leaf drops. For petal drop, the combined treatment again had the worst results, with eight petals dropping, followed by distilled water with six petals. The overall flower condition was poorest with the combined treatment, scoring 1 (completely open/damaged), while roses treated with sucrose or moringa separately had better scores, indicating they remained fresher. Petal color was also most affected by the combined treatment, which resulted in a light brown color, whereas the separate treatments maintained a darker red hue. Hence, while sucrose and moringa are beneficial when used individually, their combination negatively impacts the longevity and appearance of cut roses.

Background: This prospective study assesses the use of Rapid Remote Online Cytological Evaluation analysis for diagnosing endoscopical achieved biopsies. It focuses on its effectiveness in identifying benign and malignant conditions using digital image processing. Methods: The study was conducted between April 2021 and September 2022 and involved a total of 314 Rapid Remote Online Cytological Evaluations (17 brush, 143 fine needle aspirations and 154 imprint cytologies) analyses performed on 239 patients at the LungenClinic Grosshansdorf. During on-site evaluation via telecytology, the time requirement was determined and the findings were compared with the cyto-/histological and final diagnoses. Results: By means of Rapid Remote Online Evaluation, 86 cytological benign and 190 malignant and 38 findings of unclear diagnosis were recorded (Ø assessment time 100 sec., range 11 - 370sec.). In 27 of the 38 cases with unclear diagnosis, the final findings were malignant tumours and only 6 were benign changes. The diagnosis of another five of these 38 cases remained unclear. Excluding these 38 findings, the Rapid Remote online cytology achieved a sensitivity of 78.6% with a specificity of 99.5% and a correct classification rate of 93.1% with regard to the final diagnosis of all cases. As expected, an increase in the sensitivity rate for the cytological detection of malignant tumours (76.1% vs. 92.5%) was found especially in fine-needle aspirations. Conclusions: Rapid remote online analysis allows fast quantitative and qualitative evaluation of clinically obtained cytological specimens. With a correct classification rate of more than 93%, sampling deficiencies can be corrected promptly and diagnostic and therapeutic approaches can be derived.