A rapid and sensitive method for the determination of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in honey

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CHANGES IN FATTY ACID COMPOSITION OF DIFFERENT MILK PRODUCTS CAUSED BY DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGY

The fatty acid composition of cow’s milk with fat contents of 3.6%, Dalia cheese with fat contents of 44%, butter with fat contents of 80% and margarine with fat contents of 24% was determined after a heat treatment performed on cooking plate and microwave treatment, respectively of different durations. The biggest difference was obtained for oleic acid and elaidic acid since, with the exception of the margarine, in each case proportion of the cis-configurated oleic acid decreased while that of the trans-configurated elaidic acid increased. For all of the other fatty acids in the foodstuffs examined no such differences were obtained regarding change in fatty acid composition whose differences could influence healthy nutrition to considerable extent. Therefore we can take it as a fact that neither heat treatment performed on a traditional cooking plate nor microwave treatment affects considerably the composition of food fats

EFFECT OF MICROORGANISMS ON FREE AMINO ACID AND FREE D-AMINO ACID CONTENTS OF VARIOUS DAIRY PRODUCTS

Free amino acid and free D-amino acid contents of milk samples with different microorganism numbers and composition of dairy products produced from them were examined. Total microorganism number of milk samples examined varied from 1.25x106 to 2.95x106. It was established that concentration of both free D-amino acids and free L-amino acids increased with an increase in microorganism number. However, increase in D-amino acid contents was higher considering its proportion. There was a particularly significant growth in the microorganism number range from 1.5x106 to 2.9x106. Based on analysis of curds and cheese samples produced using different technologies we have come to the conclusion that for fresh dairy products and for those matured over a short time there was a close relation between total microorganism number and free D-amino acid and free L-amino acid contents. At the same time it was found that the ratio of the enantiomers was not affected by the total microorganism number. For dairy products, however, where amino acid production capability of the microbial cultures considerably exceeds, production of microorganisms originally present in the milk raw material, free amino acid contents of the milk product (both D- and L-enantiomers) seem to be independent of the composition of milk raw material

Interaction of factor XIII subunits

Coagulation factor XIII (FXIII) is a heterotetramer consisting of 2 catalytic A subunits (FXIII-A2) and 2 protective/inhibitory B subunits (FXIII-B2). FXIII-B, a mosaic protein consisting of 10 sushi domains, significantly prolongs the lifespan of catalytic subunits in the circulation and prevents their slow progressive activation in plasmatic conditions. In this study, the biochemistry of the interaction between the 2 FXIII subunits was investigated. Using a surface plasmon resonance technique and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay-type binding assay, the equilibrium dissociation constant (Kd) for the interaction was established in the range of 10(-10) M. Based on the measured Kd, it was calculated that in plasma approximately 1% of FXIII-A2 should be in free form. This value was confirmed experimentally by measuring FXIII-A2 in plasma samples immunodepleted of FXIII-A2B2. Free plasma FXIII-A2 is functionally active, and when activated by thrombin and Ca(2+), it can cross-link fibrin. In cerebrospinal fluid and tears with much lower FXIII subunit concentrations, >80% of FXIII-A2 existed in free form. A monoclonal anti-FXIII-B antibody that prevented the interaction between the 2 subunits reacted with the recombinant combined first and second sushi domains of FXIII-B, and its epitope was localized to the peptide spanning positions 96 to 103 in the second sushi domain

The pH-Dependent Controlled Release of Encapsulated Vitamin B1 from Liposomal Nanocarrier

In this work, we firstly presented a simple encapsulation method to prepare thiamine hydrochloride (vitamin B(1))-loaded asolectin-based liposomes with average hydrodynamic diameter of ca. 225 and 245 nm under physiological and acidic conditions, respectively. In addition to the optimization of the sonication and magnetic stirring times used for size regulation, the effect of the concentrations of both asolectin carrier and initial vitamin B(1) on the entrapment efficiency (EE %) was also investigated. Thermoanalytical measurements clearly demonstrated that after the successful encapsulation, only weak interactions were discovered between the carriers and the drug molecules. Moreover, the dissolution profiles under physiological (pH = 7.40) and gastric conditions (pH = 1.50) were also registered and the release profiles of our liposomal B(1) system were compared with the dissolution profile of the pure drug solution and a manufactured tablet containing thiamin hydrochloride as active ingredient. The release curves were evaluated by nonlinear fitting of six different kinetic models. The best goodness of fit, where the correlation coefficients in the case of all three systems were larger than 0.98, was reached by application of the well-known second-order kinetic model. Based on the evaluation, it was estimated that our liposomal nanocarrier system shows 4.5-fold and 1.5-fold larger drug retention compared to the unpackaged vitamin B(1) under physiological conditions and in artificial gastric juice, respectively

Risk Related to Pre-Diabetes Mellitus and Diabetes Mellitus in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction: Insights From Prospective Comparison of ARNI With ACEI to Determine Impact on Global Mortality and Morbidity in Heart Failure Trial

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of pre-diabetes mellitus and its consequences in patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction are not known. We investigated these in the Prospective Comparison of ARNI With ACEI to Determine Impact on Global Mortality and Morbidity in Heart Failure (PARADIGM-HF) trial. METHODS AND RESULTS: We examined clinical outcomes in 8399 patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction according to history of diabetes mellitus and glycemic status (baseline hemoglobin A1c [HbA1c]: /=6.5% [>/=48 mmol/mol; diabetes mellitus]), in Cox regression models adjusted for known predictors of poor outcome. Patients with a history of diabetes mellitus (n=2907 [35%]) had a higher risk of the primary composite outcome of heart failure hospitalization or cardiovascular mortality compared with those without a history of diabetes mellitus: adjusted hazard ratio, 1.38; 95% confidence interval, 1.25 to 1.52; P6.5%) and known diabetes mellitus compared with those with HbA1c<6.0% was 1.39 (1.17-1.64); P<0.001 and 1.64 (1.43-1.87); P<0.001, respectively. Patients with pre-diabetes mellitus were also at higher risk (hazard ratio, 1.27 [1.10-1.47]; P<0.001) compared with those with HbA1c<6.0%. The benefit of LCZ696 (sacubitril/valsartan) compared with enalapril was consistent across the range of HbA1c in the trial. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction, dysglycemia is common and pre-diabetes mellitus is associated with a higher risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes (compared with patients with no diabetes mellitus and HbA1c <6.0%). LCZ696 was beneficial compared with enalapril, irrespective of glycemic status. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01035255

Angiotensin Receptor Neprilysin Inhibition Compared With Enalapril on the Risk of Clinical Progression in Surviving Patients With Heart Failure

BACKGROUND: -Clinical trials in heart failure have focused on the improvement in symptoms or decreases in the risk of death and other cardiovascular events. Little is known about the effect of drugs on the risk of clinical deterioration in surviving patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: -We compared the angiotensin-neprilysin inhibitor LCZ696 (400 mg daily) with the angiotensinconverting enzyme inhibitor enalapril (20 mg daily) in 8399 patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction in a double-blind trial. The analyses focused on prespecified measures of nonfatal clinical deterioration. In comparison with the enalapril group, fewer LCZ696-treated patients required intensification of medical treatment for heart failure (520 versus 604; hazard ratio, 0.84; 95% confidence interval, 0.74-0.94; P=0.003) or an emergency department visit for worsening heart failure (hazard ratio, 0.66; 95% confidence interval, 0.52-0.85; P=0.001). The patients in the LCZ696 group had 23% fewer hospitalizations for worsening heart failure (851 versus 1079; P<0.001) and were less likely to require intensive care (768 versus 879; 18% rate reduction, P=0.005), to receive intravenous positive inotropic agents (31% risk reduction, P<0.001), and to have implantation of a heart failure device or cardiac transplantation (22% risk reduction, P=0.07). The reduction in heart failure hospitalization with LCZ696 was evident within the first 30 days after randomization. Worsening of symptom scores in surviving patients was consistently more common in the enalapril group. LCZ696 led to an early and sustained reduction in biomarkers of myocardial wall stress and injury (N-terminal pro-Btype natriuretic peptide and troponin) versus enalapril. CONCLUSIONS: -Angiotensin-neprilysin inhibition prevents the clinical progression of surviving patients with heart failure more effectively than angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition. Clinical Trial Registration-URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01035255

Production of high-lysine-content biscuit and examination of the absorption of lysine in humans

In the Medical and Health Centre of the University of Debrecen, we examined the changes in the free amino acid content of the blood serum of control and experimental individuals after consumption of 2,000 mg of lysine-laden biscuits. We baked the biscuits at 130 °C, during which the greater part (70–75%) of the lysine was not converted into Maillard reaction products. After 30–60 minutes of consumption of the biscuits, the free lysine content of the blood serum increased significantly in the experimental and control group with 41–46%, and even after three hours of consumption the level was 20% higher than in the initial concentration. The free arginine content of the blood serum did not change after the consumption of control and lysine biscuits neither in the control nor in the experimental group. Therefore, the free lysine/free arginine ratio of the individuals consuming lysine increased significantly compared to the initial and the control group’s value. The antioxidant level of the blood serum in the control group remained unchanged after the consumption of the control biscuit, while in the case of the experimental individuals who consumed lysine-fortified biscuits it increased by 40–45% compared to the initial level. Summing up: After consumption of the biscuits with 2,000 mg of free lysine, the concentration of free lysine in the blood serum, its free lysine/free arginine ratio and antioxidant level increased significantly. Our researches have clearly demonstrated that the active substances of the biscuit got into the blood serum, so the investigation of the active substance and the evaluation of the physiological effects are definitely recommended in the long run