A hyperstable lipase from Thermotoga naphthophila (TnLip) was cloned and overexpressed as a soluble and active monomeric protein in an effectual mesophilic host system. Sequence study revealed that TnLip is a peptidase S9 prolyl oligopeptidase domain (acetyl esterase/lipase-like protein), belongs to alpha/beta (α/β)-hydrolase superfamily containing a well-conserved α/β-hydrolase fold and penta-peptide (GLSAG) motif. Various cultivation and induction strategies were applied to improve the heterologous expression and bacterial biomass, but TnLip intracellular activity was enhanced by 14.25- fold with IPTG-independent auto-induction approach after 16 h (26 °C, 150 rev min-1) incubation. Purified TnLip (35 kDa) showed peak activity at 85 °C in McIlvaine buffer (pH 7.0-8.0), and has great stability over a broad range of pH (5.0-10.0), and temperature (40-85 °C) for 8 h. TnLip exhibited prodigious resistance toward various commercial detergents, chemical additives, and salt. TnLip activity was improved by 170.51 %, 130.67 %, 127.42 %, 126.54 %, 126.61 %, 120.32 %, and 116.31 % with 50 % (v/v) of methanol, ethanol, n-butanol, isopropanol, acetone, glycerol, and acetic acid, respectively. Moreover, with 3.0 M of NaCl, and 10 mM of Ca2+, Mn2+, and Mg2+ TnLip activity was augmented by 210 %, 185.64 %, 152.03 %, and 116.26 %, respectively. TnLip has an affinity with various substrates (p-nitrophenyl ester and natural oils) but maximal hydrolytic activity was perceived with p-nitrophenyl palmitate (pNPP, 3600 U mg-1) and olive oil (1182.05 U mg-1). The values of Km (0.576 mM), Vmax (4216 μmol mg-1 min-1), VmaxKm-1 (7319.44 min-1), kcat (1106.74 s-1), and kcatKm-1 (1921.42 mM-1 s-1) were calculated using pNPP substrate. Additionally, TnLip degraded animals\' fats and removed oil stains within 3 h and 5 min, respectively. All these features make halo-alkali-thermophilic TnLip as an auspicious contender for laundry detergents (cleaning bio-additive), fat degradation, wastewater treatment and endorse eco-friendly stewardship along with various other biotechnological applications.

Studies devised through the fusion of cleaning and environmental sciences can be summarized as follows: new cleaning kinetics applying a probability density function and a surface chemical approach to the aquatic toxicity of surfactants. Cleaning power analysis using the probability density functional method combines conventional cleaning kinetics using a first-order reaction equation with a risk analysis method using a probability density function. It is possible to analyze the cleaning mechanism from the obtained parameter values. It is also possible to determine whether the interaction between two different cleaning elements corresponds to a synergistic, additive, or offsetting effect. Studies on the aquatic toxicity of surfactants have focused on the surface tension at which surfactants exhibit toxicity, changes in toxicity due to water quality, and biodegradation, and the presence of adsorbed substances have been identified.

Detergency determination for single polymeric fibers is of significant importance to screening effective detergents for laundry, but remains challenging. Herein, we demonstrate a novel and effective method to quantify the detergency for single polymeric fibers using a confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM). It was applied to visualize the oil-removing process of single polymeric fibers and thus assess the detergency of various detergents. Four typical surfactants were selected for comparison, and a compounded detergent containing multiple components (e.g., anionic and nonionic surfactants, enzymes) was demonstrated to be the most effective and powerful soil-removing detergent because more than 50% of oil on the cotton fiber could be easily removed. Moreover, the oil removal process of three kinds of fibers (i.e., cotton, viscose, and polyester) was imaged and monitored by confocal microscopy. It was found that the percentage of the detergency of a single polyester fiber exceeded 70%, which is much higher than that of cotton and viscose fibers (~50%), which may be due to its relatively smooth surface. Compared to traditional methods, the CLSM imaging method is more feasible and effective to determine the detergency of detergents for single polymeric fibers.

Cyp2c70 is the liver enzyme in rodents responsible for synthesis of the primary 6-hydroxylated muricholate bile acid (BA) species. Cyp2c70 KO mice are devoid of protective, hydrophilic muricholic acids, leading to a more human-like BA composition and subsequent cholestatic liver injury. Pharmacological inhibition of the ileal BA transporter (IBAT) has been shown to be therapeutic in cholestatic models. Here, we aimed to determine if IBAT inhibition with SC-435 is protective in Cyp2c70 KO mice. As compared to WT mice, we found male and female Cyp2c70 KO mice exhibited increased levels of serum liver injury markers, and our evaluation of liver histology revealed increased hepatic inflammation, macrophage infiltration, and biliary cell proliferation. We demonstrate serum and histologic markers of liver damage were markedly reduced with SC-435 treatment. Additionally, we show hepatic gene expression in pathways related to immune cell activation and inflammation were significantly upregulated in Cyp2c70 KO mice and reduced to levels indistinguishable from WT with IBAT inhibition. In Cyp2c70 KO mice, the liver BA content was significantly increased, enriched in chenodeoxycholic acid, and more hydrophobic, exhibiting a hydrophobicity index value and red blood cell lysis properties similar to human liver BAs. Furthermore, we determined IBAT inhibition reduced the total hepatic BA levels but did not affect overall hydrophobicity of the liver BAs. These findings suggest that there may be a threshold in the liver for pathological accretion of hydrophobic BAs and reducing hepatic BA accumulation can be sufficient to alleviate liver injury, independent of BA pool hydrophobicity.

The detergency of special electrolytic-reduction ion water (S-100) was evaluated in comparison with typical synthetic surfactants. Furthermore, to examine the cleaning mechanism of S-100, various physicochemical characteristics of S-100 were measured and a comprehensive evaluation of cleaning was performed. S-100 (10%) had a detergency comparable to that of various surfactants, such as sodium dodecyl sulfate and sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate, which are generally blended or mixed in residential detergents. In addition, concentrated aqueous solutions of 10% or more of S-100 showed stronger detergency. The cleaning mechanism of S-100 is mainly attributed to the effect of surface tension reduction due to dissolved hydrogen or hydrogen nanobubbles in S-100, and the alkalinity generated by electrolysis charged the surface of the dirt or adherend, resulting in a peeling effect.

Sapindus mukorossi Gaertn is also known as Mu Huanzi, You Huanzi, soap tree, etc. The pericarp of Sapindus mukorossi contains many saponins, which is a type of natural non-ionic surfactant. Its extract has vigorous surface activity and biological activities such as bacteriostasis, oxidation resistance, and free radical scavenging. The Sapindus mukorossi extract is an environmentally friendly washing product that microorganisms can be rapidly decompose in nature without any environmental pollution.This study aims to investigate the effects of E-beam and Co60-γ irradiation on the total saponins content in the crude extract of the S mukorossi. The S mukorossi powder is irradiated with E-beam and Co60-γ ray at doses of 0, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 kGy for E-beam and 0, 50, 100, 150, and 200 Gy, respectively, for Co60-γ ray. The changes in the content of total saponins in the crude extract, total detergency, and the bacteriostatic abilities before and after the irradiation were analyzed. The results showed that the content of total saponins in samples irradiated by E-beam was significantly higher than that in non-irradiated samples. The saponins yield was the highest at a radiation dose of 6 kGy, and the detergency and bacteriostatic ability were also the strongest. After low-dose Co6-γ irradiation, the total saponins in the S mukorossi crude extract, and detergency and bacteriostatic ability had no apparent change. Conclusion: E-beam irradiation at a dose of 6 kGy can effectively improve the content of total saponins in the crude extract of S mukorossi powder. In addition, its effects on detergency and bacteriostatic abilities are relatively significant. The findings provide sufficient reference data for the further development of S mukorossi commodities.

Lipases comprise one of the major enzyme classes in biotechnology with applications within, e.g., baking, brewing, biocatalysis, and the detergent industry. Understanding the mechanisms of lipase function and regulation is therefore important to facilitate the optimization of their function by protein engineering. Advances in single-molecule studies in model systems have provided deep mechanistic insights on lipase function, such as the existence of functional states, their dependence on regulatory cues, and their correlation to activity. However, it is unclear how these observations translate to enzyme behavior in applied settings. Here, single-molecule tracking of individual Thermomyces lanuginosus lipase (TLL) enzymes in a detergency application system allowed real-time direct observation of spatiotemporal localization, and thus diffusional behavior, of TLL enzymes on a lard substrate. Parallelized imaging of thousands of individual enzymes allowed us to observe directly the existence and quantify the abundance and interconversion kinetics between three diffusional states that we recently provided evidence to correlate with function. We observe redistribution of the enzyme\'s diffusional pattern at the lipid-water interface as well as variations in binding efficiency in response to surfactants and calcium, demonstrating that detergency effectors can drive the sampling of lipase functional states. Our single-molecule results combined with ensemble activity assays and enzyme surface binding efficiency readouts allowed us to deconvolute how application conditions can significantly alter protein functional dynamics and/or surface binding, both of which underpin enzyme performance. We anticipate that our results will inspire further efforts to decipher and integrate the dynamic nature of lipases, and other enzymes, in the design of new biotechnological solutions.

The article shows that the type and concentration of inorganic salt can be translated into the structure of the bulk phase and the performance properties of ecological all-purpose cleaners (APC). A base APC formulation was developed. Thereafter, two types of salt (sodium chloride and magnesium chloride) were added at various concentrations to obtain different structures in the bulk phase. The salt addition resulted in the formation of spherical micelles and-upon addition of more electrolyte-of aggregates having a lamellar structure. The formulations had constant viscosities (ab. 500 mPa·s), comparable to those of commercial products. Essential physical-chemical and performance properties of the four formulations varying in salt types and concentrations were evaluated. It was found that the addition of magnesium salt resulted in more favorable characteristics due to the surface activity of the formulations, which translated into adequately high wettability of the investigated hydrophobic surfaces, and their ability to emulsify fat. A decreasing relationship was observed in foaming properties: higher salt concentrations lead to worse foaming properties and foam stability of the solutions. For the magnesium chloride composition, the effect was significantly more pronounced, as compared to the sodium chloride-based formulations. As far as safety of use is concerned, the formulations in which magnesium salt was used caused a much lesser irritation compared with the other investigated formulations. The zein value was observed to decrease with increasing concentrations of the given type of salt in the composition.

Laundry detergency of solid non-particulate soil on polyester and cotton was investigated using a microemulsion-based formulation, consisting of an anionic extended surfactant (C12,13-4PO-SO4Na) and sodium mono-and di-methyl naphthalene sulfonate (SMDNS) as the hydrophilic linker, to provide a Winsor Type III microemulsion with an ultralow interfacial tension (IFT). In this work, methyl palmitate (palmitic acid methyl ester) having a melting point around 30°C, was used as a model solid non-particulate (waxy) soil. A total surfactant concentration of 0.35 wt% of the selected formulation (4:0.65 weight ratio of C12,13-4PO-SO4Na:SMDNS) with 5.3 wt% NaCl was able to form a middle phase microemulsion at a high temperature (40°C),which provided the highest oil removal level with the lowest oil redeposition and the lowest IFT, and was much higher than that with a commercial detergent or de-ionized water. Most of the detached oil, whether in liquid or solid state, was in an unsolubilized form. Hence, the dispersion stability of the detached oil droplets or solidified oil particles that resulted from the surfactant adsorption played an important role in the oil redeposition. For an oily detergency, the lower the system IFT, the higher the oil removal whereas for a waxy (non-particulate) soil detergency, the lower the contact angle, the higher the solidified oil removal. For a liquefied oil, the detergency mechanism was roll up and emulsification with dispersion stability, while that for the waxy soil (solid oil) was the detachment by wettability with dispersion stability.

A method of analyzing the detergency of various soils by assuming normal distributions for the soil adhesion and soil removal forces was developed by considering the relationship between the soil type and the distribution profile of the soil removal force. The effect of the agitation speed on the soil removal was also analyzed by this method. Washing test samples were prepared by soiling fabrics with individual soils such as particulate soils, oily dyes, and water-soluble dyes. Washing tests were conducted using a Terg-O-Tometer and four repetitive washing cycles of 5 min each. The transition of the removal efficiencies was recorded in order to calculate the mean value (μrl) and the standard deviation (σrl) of the removal strength distribution. The level of detergency and the temporal alteration in the detergency can be represented by μrl and σrl, respectively. A smaller σrl indicates a smaller increase in the detergency with time, which also indicates the existence of a certain amount of soil with a strong adhesion force. As a general trend, the values of σrl were the greatest for the oily soils, followed by those of the water-soluble soils and particulate soils in succession. The relationship between the soil removal processes and the soil adhesion force was expressed on the basis of the transition of the distribution of residual soil. Evaluation of the effects of the agitation speed on µrl and ơrl showed that σrl was not affected by the agitation speed; the value of µrl for solid soil and oily soil increased with increasing agitation, and the µrl of water-soluble soil was not specifically affected by the agitation speed. It can be assumed that the parameter ơrl is related to the characteristics of the soil and the adhesion condition, and can be applied to estimating the soil removal mechanism.