Wujie Zhang

Currently, there is no cost-effective drying approach for apricots that effectively preserves color and prevents browning. Using a psychrometric chamber to simulate environmental conditions in Malatya, Turkey, apricots were dried, with freeze-dried samples serving as a control. The samples were analyzed for their water and nutritional contents as well as chemical and structural evaluation. The Agricycle^® passive solar drier was tested for its ability to dry apricots while reducing browning. Freeze-dried samples appeared whiter (bleached), whereas passive solar-dried apricots retained their natural color. The results showed that passive solar drying successfully reduced the water content to below 20% (11.92%) and limited browning, based on visual inspection and colorimetry. Nutritionally, passive solar-dried apricots had comparable total phenolics to freeze-dried samples (2.72 vs. 4.06 GAE/g dry mass), but higher vitamin C (1.86 vs. 1.11 mg/g dry mass) and lower dissolved solids (45.36 vs. 73.02 °Brix). The microstructural analysis revealed notable differences between drying methods. Overall, the Agricycle^® passive solar drier offers a simple, cost-effective solution for fruit drying.

Gold nanoparticles have a wide variety of applications in biomedical fields such as biosensing, cancer treatment, drug delivery, and bioimaging. This research focuses on using American ginseng (Panax quinquefolium), specifically the leaves, as a plant-mediated green synthesis process to produce gold nanoparticles (Au NPs). Various extracts (leaf, stem, and root) were compared for Au NP synthesis. The leaf extract was found to be the most effective; hence, they were used for Au NPs synthesis. Plant extract Au NPs were characterized using UV-vis spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), atomic force microscopy (AFM), attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results showed that the leaves could produce spherical Au NPs that were well dispersed with an average diameter of around 18 nm. The nanoparticles also had a characteristic absorbance peak at ̴ 529 nm. A cytotoxicity study was conducted using HeLa cells, and the cell number decreased as the concentration of the Au NPs increased, although the cell viability remained high (> 99 %). Au NPs produced using the American ginseng leaves show great potential for various applications, such as drug delivery, imaging and diagnostics, and therapy.