Whey as a raw material for the production of functional beverages

One of the least utilized by-products of food industry, despite the great potential that is described, is the whey, which is obtained as a by-product of the technological process production of cheese and casein. The excess whey, which occurs in this process in very high yields, with failure to processing is becoming a very big polluter, what is completely at odds with the potential that such materials possess. On the other hand, the modern tempo and way of life, and increasingly polluted environmental also, impose the need to produce food products that would help the human body in the fight against harmful agents which are exposed to daily. One of the more effective solution is the production of fermented functional beverages based on whey, which achieved this intention in the most natural and most comfortable way. Considering the rather untapped potential of whey as a raw material and growing food shortages in the world market, the aim of this study was to analyze the possibilities of production of functional beverages based on whey, with satisfactory sensory characteristics, in order to demonstrate the attractiveness of whey as raw material in the food industry. This paper presents an overview of the wide possibilities for the use of whey with a special emphasis on its attractiveness and the necessity of its utilizing.Surutka koja nastaje u procesima proizvodnje sira i kazeina, predstavlja jedan od nedovoljno iskorišćenih sporednih proizvoda prehrambene industrije u Srbiji. Usled neiskorišćavanja, surutka postaje veoma veliki zagađivač, što je u potpunosti u neskladu sa potencijalima koje kao sirovina poseduje. Sa druge strane, savremeni tempo i način života, kao i sve zagađenije životno okruženje nameću potrebu proizvodnje prehrambenih proizvoda koji bi pomogli ljudskom organizmu u borbi protiv štetnih agenasa kojima je svakodnevno izložen. Jedno od efikasnijih rešenja je proizvodnja fermentisanih funkcionalnih napitaka na bazi surutke, koji ovaj cilj ostvaruju na prirodan i jednostavan način. Uzimajući u obzir prilično neiskorišćen potencijal surutke kao sirovine i sve izraženiju nestašicu hrane na svetskom tržištu, ovo istraživanje usmereno je na analizu mogućnosti proizvodnje funkcionalnih napitaka na bazi surutke zadovoljavajućih senzornih svojstava sa ciljem da se ukaže na atraktivnost suruke kao sirovine u prehrambenoj industriji

Targeting RAGE prevents muscle wasting and prolongs survival in cancer cachexia

Abstract Background Cachexia, a multifactorial syndrome affecting more than 50% of patients with advanced cancer and responsible for ~20% of cancer‐associated deaths, is still a poorly understood process without a standard cure available. Skeletal muscle atrophy caused by systemic inflammation is a major clinical feature of cachexia, leading to weight loss, dampening patients' quality of life, and reducing patients' response to anticancer therapy. RAGE (receptor for advanced glycation end‐products) is a multiligand receptor of the immunoglobulin superfamily and a mediator of muscle regeneration, inflammation, and cancer. Methods By using murine models consisting in the injection of colon 26 murine adenocarcinoma (C26‐ADK) or Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) cells in BALB/c and C57BL/6 or Ager−/− (RAGE‐null) mice, respectively, we investigated the involvement of RAGE signalling in the main features of cancer cachexia, including the inflammatory state. In vitro experiments were performed using myotubes derived from C2C12 myoblasts or primary myoblasts isolated from C57BL/6 wild type and Ager−/− mice treated with the RAGE ligand, S100B (S100 calcium‐binding protein B), TNF (tumor necrosis factor)α±IFN (interferon) γ, and tumour cell‐ or masses‐conditioned media to analyse hallmarks of muscle atrophy. Finally, muscles of wild type and Ager−/− mice were injected with TNFα/IFNγ or S100B in a tumour‐free environment. Results We demonstrate that RAGE is determinant to activate signalling pathways leading to muscle protein degradation in the presence of proinflammatory cytokines and/or tumour‐derived cachexia‐inducing factors. We identify the RAGE ligand, S100B, as a novel factor able to induce muscle atrophy per se via a p38 MAPK (p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase)/myogenin axis and STAT3 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 3)‐dependent MyoD (myoblast determination protein 1) degradation. Lastly, we found that in cancer conditions, an increase in serum levels of tumour‐derived S100B and HMGB1 (high mobility group box 1) occurs leading to chronic activation/overexpression of RAGE, which induces hallmarks of cancer cachexia (i.e. muscle wasting, systemic inflammation, and release of tumour‐derived pro‐cachectic factors). Absence of RAGE in mice translates into reduced serum levels of cachexia‐inducing factors, delayed loss of muscle mass and strength, reduced tumour progression, and increased survival. Conclusions RAGE is a molecular determinant in inducing the hallmarks of cancer cachexia, and molecular targeting of RAGE might represent a therapeutic strategy to prevent or counteract the cachectic syndrome

Transorbital hybrid approach for endovascular occlusion of indirect carotid-cavernous fistulas–Case report and systematic literature review

ABSTRACT: Carotid-cavernous fistulas (CCF) are vascular malformations characterized by an aberrant shunt between one or more sources of arterial inflow and the cavernous sinus (CS). They are subdivided into direct and indirect fistulas. This last one, called dural CCF involve dural fistulous connections between branches of the internal carotid artery or the external carotid artery. When conventional routes are not eligible, surgical exposure of the vein is the only access to the fistula. We present the case of a patient successfully treated for right sided dural CCF, by a hybrid approach. Furthermore, through a literature review, we analyze the possible risks and benefits associated with this approach

“Stent-within-a-Stent” technique for the endovascular treatment of giant aneurysm of basilar artery bifurcation: A case report

Stents have become very important devices in the treatment of intracranial aneurysms. Flow diverters as high metal coverage stents are developed for hemodynamic treatment of challenging intracranial aneurysms. High level of metal coverage can also be achieved by implementing regular stents telescopically one in another. We present the case of a patient successfully treated for giant aneurysm of basilar artery bifurcation by a “Stent-within-a-Stent” technique. After stent implantation, coil embolization was performed using multiple-sized platinum helical coils. Control angiography performed at the end of the procedure revealed aneurysm occlusion. After 3 years, the patient is fully neurologically recovered, without pyramidal deficit, independently active and able to work