Granular activated carbons from avocado seeds

Avocado seeds have proven to be an excellent raw material for the production of Granular Activated Carbons (GAC). This residue, generated in large amounts in centralized facilities dedicated to the transformation of avocado fruit, has no commercial value at present. GAC have been produced by partial gasification of ground seeds under mildly oxidizing conditions (steam/nitrogen mixture). Optimum activation conditions were achieved at 1000 ºC and residence times between 120-150 min, resulting in burn off rates between 34-37 wt% and carbon yields between 12.4-13.0 wt%. These GAC exhibited type IV N2 gas adsorption isotherm, characteristic of materials containing a mixture of micro and mesopores. Avocado seed GACs exhibited BET surface areas up to 700 m2 /g, CO2 surface areas up to 900 m 2 /g and micro-pore volumes up to 0.31 cm3 /g. This porous structure provided these GAC with a remarkable aqueous adsorption capacity for methylene blue (Langmuir qm = 153.8 mg/g and Freundlich Kf = 113.0 mg/g), which was greater than that determined for a range of GAC commercialized for the treatment of waste and drinking waters

Physical exercise shapes the mouse brain epigenome

[Objective]: To analyze the genome-wide epigenomic and transcriptomic changes induced by long term resistance or endurance training in the hippocampus of wild-type mice.[Methods]: We performed whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) and RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) of mice hippocampus after 4 weeks of specific training. In addition, we used a novel object recognition test before and after the intervention to determine whether the exercise led to an improvement in cognitive function.[Results]: Although the majority of DNA methylation changes identified in this study were training-model specific, most were associated with hypomethylation and were enriched in similar histone marks, chromatin states, and transcription factor biding sites. It is worth highlighting the significant association found between the loss of DNA methylation in Tet1 binding sites and gene expression changes, indicating the importance of these epigenomic changes in transcriptional regulation. However, endurance and resistance training activate different gene pathways, those being associated with neuroplasticity in the case of endurance exercise, and interferon response pathways in the case of resistance exercise, which also appears to be associated with improved learning and memory functions.[Conclusions]: Our results help both understand the molecular mechanisms by which different exercise models exert beneficial effects for brain health and provide new potential therapeutic targets for future research.This work was supported by the Spanish Association Against Cancer (PROYE18061FERN to M.F.F.), the Asturias Government (PCTI) co-funding 2018-2022/FEDER (IDI/2018/146 to M.F.F.), the Fundación General CSIC (0348_CIE_6_E to M.F.F.), the Health Institute Carlos III (Plan Nacional de I+D+I) co-funding FEDER (PI18/01527 to M.F.F and A.F.F.), the MINECO (DEP2015-69980-P to B.F.G.), and the Fundación Tatiana Pérez de Guzmán el Bueno (“Ayudas a Proyectos de Investigación en Neurociencia-2020” to C.T.Z and E.I.G.). R.G.U. is supported by the Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER). J.R.T. is supported by a Juan de la Cierva fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation MCIN/AEI /10.13039/501100011033 (IJC2018-036825-I). R.F.P. is supported by the Severo Ochoa program (BP17-114). P.P.H. is supported by Ayudas para la realización de Tesis Doctorales. Modalidad A fellowship from the University of Oviedo (PAPI-20-PF-19). We also acknowledge support from the IUOPA-ISPA-FINBA (the IUOPA is supported by the Obra Social Cajastur-Liberbank, Spain).Peer reviewe

Granular activated carbons from avocado seeds

Avocado seeds have proven to be an excellent raw material for the production of Granular Activated Carbons (GAC). This residue, generated in large amounts in centralized facilities dedicated to the transformation of avocado fruit, has no commercial value at present. GAC have been produced by partial gasification of ground seeds under mildly oxidizing conditions (steam/nitrogen mixture). Optimum activation conditions were achieved at 1000 ºC and residence times between 120-150 min, resulting in burn off rates between 34-37 wt% and carbon yields between 12.4-13.0 wt%. These GAC exhibited type IV N2 gas adsorption isotherm, characteristic of materials containing a mixture of micro and mesopores. Avocado seed GACs exhibited BET surface areas up to 700 m2 /g, CO2 surface areas up to 900 m 2 /g and micro-pore volumes up to 0.31 cm3 /g. This porous structure provided these GAC with a remarkable aqueous adsorption capacity for methylene blue (Langmuir qm = 153.8 mg/g and Freundlich Kf = 113.0 mg/g), which was greater than that determined for a range of GAC commercialized for the treatment of waste and drinking waters

Grain sowing aimed at wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus L. enhancement in Mediterranean environments

Although habitat management practices focussed on the enhancement of hunting and protection of threatened species are common, the scientific validation of such practices is scarce. The wild European rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus L.;a hunted and threatened species in its native range, is at the same time a key species for the preservation of threatened Mediterranean predators. Cereal sowing is one of the most common practices to augment the food supply of rabbits, and it is used not only by hunters but also by conservationists. At present, limited scientific information is available regarding the effectiveness of cereal sowing. To evaluate its effectiveness, we analysed data on sowing trials conducted in 125 plots, located in 14 private estates throughout central Spain, most of them with low density populations. Brush was cleared from 44 of these plots prior to sowing. Our results indicated that rabbits preferentially selected sown areas over control (unsown) areas. This selection increased in plots that represented suitable habitats for rabbits, such as pasturelands, as well as when thicket islands and natural or artificial shelters were available within the sown plots. Local enhancement of rabbit populations was also observed. These positive results were also obtained regardless of the initial habitat conditions, not only in the treatment plots but also in the surrounding area. Our recommendations can be broadly applied for managing rabbit-dependent threatened species. © 2014 Elsevier GmbH