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Enzyme-induced calcite precipitation (EICP) emerges as a highly effective and well-established technique within bio-cementation approaches, offering notable advantages over traditional methods. Conversely, lime, known for its accessibility, cost-effectiveness, and efficacy, serves as a valuable material in enhancing the engineering properties of problematic soils. This study explores the application of EICP and lime treatments separately on two distinct soils (low-plastic and high-plastic soil) exhibiting different mineralogical and plasticity characteristics to assess their impact on strength and swell characteristics. Various combinations of treatments, including jack bean (JICP), soya bean (SICP), and bio-enhancer (BICP), were employed for EICP treatment. Bio-enhancer, rich in natural urea and urease enzyme, was particularly remarkable due to its compatibility with urea supplementation. Similarly, jack bean and soya bean exhibited high efficacy in natural urease enzyme content. The study has revealed that the unconfined compression strength (UCS) of red soil increased significantly by six times at the end of 21 days of the curing period with JICP treatment, while lime treatment was more effective for the black soil. Specifically, the UCS of black cotton soil increased by 11 and 17 times when treated with Enzyme-Induced Calcite Precipitation (EICP) and lime, respectively. Moreover, EICP with J2 solution (jack bean solution with 1M urea and 4 g/L non-fat milk powder) reduced swell pressure by 60% and 67.5% in low-plastic and high-plastic soil, respectively. Lime treatment, on the other hand, led to a swell pressure reduction of 47% and 70% in low-plastic and high-plastic soil, respectively. As a result, EICP proved efficient in mitigating swell pressure for red soil, whereas lime treatment performed exceptionally well for black soil, highlighting the soil-specific effectiveness of each method. Furthermore, a life cycle assessment revealed substantial carbon footprint emission savings with EICP treatment strategy. In brief, this paper contributes to understanding the phenomena and significance of these two treatment techniques on distinct mineralogical soils.

Bean sprouts are potential plant proteins that produce DPP-IV inhibitory peptides. These peptides must be stable and active in the brush border membrane of the small intestine to inhibit DPP-IV. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the DPP-IV inhibitory activity of jack bean sprouts using pepsin-pancreatin during simulated digestion, as well as the absorption of these peptides through the everted gut sac method. The results showed that after 180 min of digestion simulation, the Mw < 1 kDa peptide fraction of jack bean hydrolysate, which germinated for 60 h (HG60), had the highest inhibitory activity. The duodenum absorbs most of the peptides with inhibitory activity of 61.77%, which is slightly lower than activity after digestion (62.19%). These outcomes suggest that the DPP-IV inhibitory activity of HG60 can be maintained after digestion and absorption. Two novel peptides KAVGDPI and QGVVLRP identified after absorption contain crucial amino acids confirming as DPP-IV inhibitor.

Research background. High blood pressure is the most significant cause of mortality globally. Some fermented foods include ACE-inhibitory peptides that help fight this disease. The ability of fermented jack bean (tempeh) to inhibit ACE during consumption has not been demonstrated yet. This study identified and characterised ACE-inhibitory peptides from jack bean tempeh produced by small intestine absorption using the everted intestinal sac model. Experimental approach. Sequentially, the protein extract of jack bean tempeh and unfermented jack bean was hydrolysed using pepsin-pancreatin for 240 min. The hydrolysed samples were then evaluated for the peptide absorption using three-segmented everted intestinal sacs (duodenum, jejunum and ileum). The peptides absorbed from all intestinal segments were mixed in the small intestine. Results and conclusions. The data showed that both jack bean tempeh and unfermented jack bean had the same peptide absorption pattern, with the highest percentage of peptide absorption in the jejunum, followed by the duodenum and ileum. The absorbed peptides of jack bean tempeh exhibited equally strong activity of ACE inhibition in all intestinal segments, while the unfermented jack bean showed strong activity only in the jejunum. The mixture of the peptides from jack bean tempeh absorbed in the small intestine had higher ACE-inhibitory activity (81.09 %) than the unfermented jack bean (72.22 %). The peptides produced from jack bean tempeh were identified as pro-drug ACE inhibitors and had the mixed inhibition pattern. The mixture of peptides consisted of seven types of peptides with a molecular mass of 826.86–978.20 Da (DLGKAPIN, GKGRFVYG, PFMRWR, DKDHAEI, LAHLYEPS, KIKHPEVK, and LLRDTCK). Novelty and scientific contribution. This study discovered that consuming jack bean tempeh generated more potent ACE-inhibitory peptides during small intestine absorption than cooked jack beans. Absorbed tempeh peptides have high ACE-inhibitory activity.

Quantum dots (QDs) with distinctive optical properties have been extensively researched and developed for usage in solar cells, imaging, drug delivery, cellular targeting, etc. But the inevitable production of QDs can lead to their unavoidable release and increased environmental concentration. Depending on morphological and surface properties, QDs at the nano-bio interface considerably impact the activity and structure of bio-molecules. The present study investigates the interaction of metalloenzyme jack bean urease (JBU) and bi-sized CdSe QDs (2.43 nm and 3.63 nm), surface-functionalized to mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) (–COOH), l -cysteine (CYS), l -glutathione (GSH), N-acetyl l -cysteine (NAC) (–COOH, –NH 2 ), and cysteamine hydrochloride (CYST) (–NH 2 ) to assess any alterations in JBU’s binding, microenvironment, structure, exciton lifetime, and activity. JBU catalyzes the hydrolysis of urea to produce ammonia and carbon dioxide; any changes in its properties could threaten the survival of several microbes and plants. Spectroscopy techniques such as UV–Vis, fluorescence, circular dichroism, synchronous, time-resolved fluorescence, atomic force microscopy, and JBU activity assay were studied. Results suggested highly spontaneous and energy-favored interactions, which involved static quenching and hydrophobic forces of varied magnitude, dependent on QDs properties. The size, surface modifications, and dosage of QDs significantly impacted the secondary structure and activity of JBUs. Even though the larger sizes of the relevant modifications demonstrated stronger binding, the smaller sizes had the greatest impact on α-helicity and activity. CYST-capped QDs with an average number of the binding site ( n ) = 1, reduced α-helicity by 16% and activity by 22–30% at 7 nM concentration. In contrast, MPA-capped QDs with n  < 1 had the least effect on α-helical structure and activity. The smaller GSH-capped QDs increased the activity by 9%, via partially restoring JBU’s α-helical content. The study thus thoroughly analyzed the impact of varied-size and surface-functionalized QDs on the structure and function of JBU, which can be exploited further for several biomedical applications. Graphical Abstract

Soaking is an important step in making tempeh. Tempeh fermentation normally involves the natural presence of proteolytic bacteria capable of producing protease enzymes to break down peptide bonds in protein molecules. This study evaluated the protein and amino acid content of Jack bean tempeh (Canavalia ensiformis) soaked in distilled water during natural fermentation for 12, 24, 36, and 48 h. In this study, the crude proteins were determined using the Kjeldahl technique, amino acids were determined from protein hydrolysis, and proteolytic bacteria were enumerated for Total Plate Counts and further identified using Vitek 2.0 Compact System. The results showed that soaked Jack beans have higher protein and amino acid content, with sixteen essential and non-essential amino acids required for human bodies. The protein content of soaked Jack beans varied from 35% at 12 h to 32% at 24 and 36 h and 33% at 48 h. Soaking for 12 h yielded the highest amino acid concentration of 38,000 mg/kg L-glutamate, and the lowest of 14,000 mg/kg L-proline. Seven isolated bacteria showed proteolytic activity on Skim Milk Agar with a clear zone of 3.00 mm to 10.65 mm surrounding the colony. The bacteria identified were Pediococcus pentosaceus, Stenorophomonas maltophilia, Cronobacter sakazakii, and Klebsiella pneumonia ssp. In summary, Lactobacillaceae and Enterobacteriaceae were the predominant bacteria during tempeh fermentation, indicating the synergistic interaction between these microflorae during soaking conditions as part of their survival in this hostile environment.

Nowadays, there are many lifestyle diseases which cause public health problems worldwide. These diseases include cardiovascular problems, as well as their major factors such as hypertension. Hypertension is one of noncommunicable disease in the world implies the importance of further study of antihypertensive peptides as one of alternative means for hypertension management. On the other hand, the antioxidant is an important compound that also very important to contribute to human health. Jack bean is one of underutilized legume in Indonesia, although it contains high protein. Jack bean tempeh and fried jack bean are two common products using jack bean as a raw material in Indonesia. The protein in jack beans especially globular proteins such as concanavalin A, concanavalin B, and canavalin can be hydrolyzed into several bioactive peptides that can be beneficial for human health. Several functional properties of bioactive peptides are correlated to reduce the potency of hypertension and also as antioxidant. So far, there is a limited investigation using in silico approach for evaluating several potential proteins in jack bean as precursors of bioactive peptides. The purpose of this research is to evaluate several proteins in jack bean as precursors of Angiotensin I-Converting Enzyme (ACE) inhibitory and antioxidant bioactive peptides using in silico approach, and thus to establish the rationale for choosing the appropriate substrates proteins in preparing ACE inhibitory and antioxidant peptides. Based on our pre-preliminary results, we can conclude that specific protein from jack bean, e.g., canavalin has potency as precursors of ACE Inhibitory and antioxidant bioactive peptides using in silico analysis.

Legumes are a cost-effective source of proteins and abundant starch, a biodegradable substance, providing human nutrition and serving various food sectors globally. Some of the neglected (underutilised) legumes can also be used as the cheapest source of starch. Therefore, the present study was conducted to determine the physicochemical characteristics of jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis) starch - a legume not widely known so underutilised. The starch was isolated from the bean by standard method to study its various properties. One-way analysis of variance was employed to verify a significant difference at the 5% significance level. The jack bean yielded 30.98% of starch. The starch’s moisture, ash, fat, protein, fiber, and carbohydrate content were 9.67%, 0.19%, 0.27%, 0.56%, 0.27%, and 89.28% respectively. The physicochemical properties were also determined. The apparent and total amylose contents were 43.82% and 47.78%, respectively, with 7.66% of amylose leaching at 95°C. The water and oil absorption capacities were 2.31 and 2.56 g/g, respectively, while emulsion capacity and stability were 62.30 and 71.38 %, respectively. The solubility and swelling power of jack bean starch increased with temperature from 55 to 95°C. The effect of starch concentrations (6, 8, and 10%) on freeze-thaw stability revealed that water expelled decreased as starch content increased. Nevertheless, a comprehensive investigation has not been conducted into the distinct functional characteristics and other attributes of jack bean starch. This study could provide new opportunities for conventional starch industries that rely on starch from sources like cereals, tubers, and rhizomes.  

Jack bean as a source of vegetable protein had not been popular. Seed germination had been known to improve its nutritional quality, especially protein and amino acid profile. This study determined the effect of germination on the color, beany flavor, protein content, functional properties, and amino acid profile of jack bean flour. A complete randomized design was used for this experiment. Germination was carried out for 0, 24, 48, and 72 hours. The seed (control) and germinated jack bean flours were analyzed for oil absorption, water absorption, emulsifying and foaming capacities, as well as the soluble protein content to determine the best germination time. Furthermore, the amino acid profile of the jack bean flour produced from the best germination time was analyzed. The results of this study indicated that the total and soluble protein of the seed and germinated jack bean seeds for 0, 24, 48, 60, and 72 hours were 23.30 and 5.95; 22.61 and 7.61; 21.18 and 10.68; 23.26 and 10.22; 23.98 and 10.81%, respectively. Germination of jack bean improved the functional properties. A germination time of 72 hours increased the oil capacity, water absorption capacity, foaming capacity and decreased the emulsion capacity significantly. The hydrophilic and hydrophobic amino acids of the germinated jack bean flour increased to 3.21 and 2.12% of the seed flour, respectively. The increase of the foaming capacity was related to the increase in hydrophobic amino acids of germinated jack bean flour compared to seed flours, that were glycine 1.23 and 1.01; alanine 1.29 and 1.01; valine 1.16 and 1.00; leucine 1.84 and 1.09%, respectively. Germination of jack bean for 72 hours increased significantly the essential amino acids, namely: leucine, lysine, and valine.

The use of high biomass production plants in studies of metal phytoremediation is an established practice. This strategy aims to identify plants that tolerate unusual amounts of metals such as nickel (Ni). When comparing the biomass production capacity of a Ni hyperaccumulator, such as plants from the Alyssum genus, a production ranging from 0.5 to 4 t ha−1 per crop cycle is observed ; on the other hand, species with a high biomass production capacity, for example Canavalia ensiformis, can produce 20 t ha−1 to 25 t ha−1 of green phytomass, 5 t ha−1 to 8 t ha−1 of dry phytomass and 1000 kg ha−1 to 1800 kg ha−1 of seeds. In this context, we planned an experiment to verify the tolerance and Ni accumulation capacity in Canavalia ensiformis. Our hypothesis was that increasing Ni concentration in the soil would not hinder the plant’s biomass production. We conducted a completely randomized experiment with five concentrations of Ni added to the soil and five replicates in a greenhouse during the vegetative stage. We evaluated the plant’s development, biomass production, and Ni accumulation in its organs. Our results demonstrated high tolerance to the metal, maintaining a biomass accumulation capacity of 68% of the dry mass in the soil with 277.8 mg kg−1 of Ni at the highest concentration tested, compared to plants in the control soil. Considering that under these conditions the plants obtained a biomass of 10 g of leaves and 15 g of roots, and a nickel accumulation capacity of 75.05 mg kg−1 in leaves and 102 mg kg−1 in roots, the total Ni accumulation in the plants reached 2.37 mg Ni/plant in the soil with 277.8 mg kg−1 of Ni. This soil Ni concentration would be lethal for most plants, and the metal concentration in the tissue exceeds the established limits for non-tolerant crops. With these results, this study aims to provide a foundation for improving the use of Canavalia ensiformis in phytoremediation.

Among carbohydrate-processing enzymes, Jack bean α-mannosidase (JBα-man) is the glycosidase with the best responsiveness to the multivalent presentation of iminosugar inhitopes. We report, in this work, the preparation of water dispersible gold nanoparticles simultaneously coated with the iminosugar deoxynojirimycin (DNJ) inhitope and simple monosaccharides (β-d-gluco- or α-d-mannosides). The display of DNJ at the gold surface has been modulated (i) by using an amphiphilic linker longer than the aliphatic chain used for the monosaccharides and (ii) by presenting the inhitope, not only in monomeric form, but also in a trimeric fashion through combination of a dendron approach with glyconanotechnology. The latter strategy resulted in a strong enhancement of the inhibitory activity towards JBα-man, with a Ki in the nanomolar range (Ki = 84 nM), i.e., more than three orders of magnitude higher than the monovalent reference compound.