Can immune parameters be used as predictors to distinguish between pulmonary multidrug-resistant and drug-sensitive tuberculosis?

Introduction: Despite the development and wide implementation of Directly Observed Therapy Strategies (DOTS), multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) remains a serious global health threat. In this study, the role of host immune response in patients with MDR-TB is investigated and compared with that of patients with smear-positive drug-sensitive tuberculosis (SP-TB

Nano-Liquid Chromatography with a New Monolithic Column for the Analysis of Coenzyme Q10 in Pistachio Samples

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is a vital substance found throughout body. It helps convert food into energy and is eaten small amounts in foods. CoQ10 has gained great interest in recent years as a potential candidate for the treatment of various diseases. The content of CoQ10 in food samples is a crucial quality index for foods. Therefore, the development of sensitive separation and quantification method for determining the amount of CoQ10 in various samples, especially in foods, is an important issue, especially for food nutrition. In this study, a new, miniaturized monolithic column was developed and applied for the determination of CoQ10 in pistachio samples by nano-liquid chromatography (nano-LC). The monolithic column with a 50 µm i.d. was prepared by in situ polymerization using laurylmethacrylate (LMA) as the main monomer and ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) as the crosslinker. Methanol (MeOH) and polyethyleneglycol (PEG) were used as porogenic solvents. The final monolithic column was characterized by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and chromatographic analyses. The monolithic column with a 50 µm i.d. was applied to the analysis of CoQ10 in pistachio samples in nano-LC. This analytical method was validated by means of sensitivity, linearity, precision, recovery, and repeatability. The LOD and LOQ values were 0.05 and 0.48 µg/kg, respectively. The developed method using the monolithic column was optimized to achieve very sensitive analyses of CoQ10 content in the food samples. The applicability of the method was successfully demonstrated by the analysis of CoQ10 in pistachio samples

Nano-Liquid Chromatography with a New Monolithic Column for the Analysis of Coenzyme Q10 in Pistachio Samples

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is a vital substance found throughout body. It helps convert food into energy and is eaten small amounts in foods. CoQ10 has gained great interest in recent years as a potential candidate for the treatment of various diseases. The content of CoQ10 in food samples is a crucial quality index for foods. Therefore, the development of sensitive separation and quantification method for determining the amount of CoQ10 in various samples, especially in foods, is an important issue, especially for food nutrition. In this study, a new, miniaturized monolithic column was developed and applied for the determination of CoQ10 in pistachio samples by nano-liquid chromatography (nano-LC). The monolithic column with a 50 µm i.d. was prepared by in situ polymerization using laurylmethacrylate (LMA) as the main monomer and ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) as the crosslinker. Methanol (MeOH) and polyethyleneglycol (PEG) were used as porogenic solvents. The final monolithic column was characterized by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and chromatographic analyses. The monolithic column with a 50 µm i.d. was applied to the analysis of CoQ10 in pistachio samples in nano-LC. This analytical method was validated by means of sensitivity, linearity, precision, recovery, and repeatability. The LOD and LOQ values were 0.05 and 0.48 µg/kg, respectively. The developed method using the monolithic column was optimized to achieve very sensitive analyses of CoQ10 content in the food samples. The applicability of the method was successfully demonstrated by the analysis of CoQ10 in pistachio samples

Levels of tumour necrosis factor-alpha and IL-1a in newly diagnosed and multidrug resistant tuberculosis

Background: The pro-inflammatory cytokines tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and IL-1 alpha play key roles in host defence against tuberculosis (TB) but there is little knowledge of their levels in multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB). The aim of the present study was to investigate the levels of TNF-alpha and IL-1 alpha and their relationship with the levels of T helper (CD4'), T suppressor (CD8') and total lymphocytes (CD45(+)) in newly diagnosed TB (N-TB) and MDR-TB

Utilization of the barberry extract in the confectionery products

In this study, the use of barberry fruit (Berberis crataegina DC.) extract was investigated as a natural red colorant in chewing gum, jelly, and marshmallow samples at different percentages (1%, 5%, and 10%). The color stability (Delta E) values were determined for all sample groups and it was observed that the barberry extract had higher color stability than beet juice concentrate, which was used in the control chewing gum samples as a natural red colorant. The water activity values were within the specified limits for all sample groups except the jelly samples and 10% colorant added chewing gum. The antioxidant and anti-radical properties of all the samples were significantly improved by the addition of the barberry extract. According to the results of the texture profile, the hardness values of all chewing gum and marshmallow samples decreased with the addition of barberry extract, and this decrease became even more important as the concentration increased

Investigating the addition of enzymes in gluten-free flours - the effect on pasting and textural properties

A wide range of enzymes (fungal amylase, esterase, hemicellulase, glucose oxidase and transglutaminase) were added to gluten-free flours (buckwheat, corn and rice) at different concentrations (0, 1, 3, 5,10 g/100 kg flour) to investigate the effects on pasting properties of flour and texture profiles of the flour gels. Concerning the pasting properties, fungal amylase enzyme consistently affected the flour properties. Breakdown of complex starch molecules into simpler sugars due to the enzyme activity decreased the overall viscosity parameters (at least trough viscosity by 50%, breakdown viscosity by 80%, final viscosity by 60% and setback viscosity by 67%) during the application of heating, shearing and cooling cycle. Increasing enzyme concentration decreased these values further due to increase in the rate of hydrolysis. Texture profiles of the flour gels showed good relation with pasting properties. Decreasing viscosity of gluten-free gels by enzymes caused reduction in the firmness of the gels. The hardest gel was found as corn flour at the highest amylase enzyme concentration (10 g/100 kg flour). However, the highest springiness, resilience, cohesiveness and adhesiveness value was observed for buckwheat starch gel. (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier Ltd