137 research outputs found
Recipe Optimization to Produce Functional Food Based on Meat and Fish
Functional foods were produced from the combination of minced meat or fish with extra virgin olive oil and
vegetable flour. Proper concentrations of oil and vegetable flours were selected to improve the nutritional properties
of processed meat and fish burgers. Sensory evaluations were also carried out in different sessions by trained
panel and generic consumers to assess product acceptability. The results of the work demonstrated that the two
ingredients, selected for their well-known healthy benefits, enhance not only the nutritional value but also the sensory
properties of food. In particular, the best formulation for meat patties contained 10% oil and 10% red pepper flour,
whereas, 15% oil and 5% yellow pepper flour and 17.5% oil and 7.5% zucchini flour were the optimized ingredients
for fish burgers. These recipes did not score significantly different from other CCD options but were preferred by
consumers, when asked to compare these new products to traditional burgers. Moreover, analytical investigations
carried out before and after cooking assessed the preservation of the health-giving compounds deriving from the
pepper flour
Inverse seesaw and dark matter in models with exotic lepton triplets
We show that models with exotic leptons transforming as E ~ (1,3,-1) under
the standard model gauge symmetry are well suited for generating neutrino mass
via a radiative inverse seesaw. This approach realizes natural neutrino masses
and allows multiple new states to appear at the TeV scale. The exotic leptons
are therefore good candidates for new physics that can be probed at the LHC.
Furthermore, remnant low-energy symmetries ensure a stable dark matter
candidate, providing a link between dark matter and the origins of neutrino
mass.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures (revtex4.1, two-columns
Anthropic solution to the magnetic muon anomaly: the charged see-saw
We present models of new physics that can explain the muon g-2 anomaly in
accord with with the assumption that the only scalar existing at the weak scale
is the Higgs, as suggested by anthropic selection. Such models are dubbed
"charged see-saw" because the muon mass term is mediated by heavy leptons. The
electroweak contribution to the g-2 gets modified by order one factors, giving
an anomaly of the same order as the observed hint, which is strongly correlated
with a modification of the Higgs coupling to the muon.Comment: 21 pages, many equations despite the first word in the title. v3:
loop function G_WN corrected, conclusions unchange
Asymmetric Inelastic Inert Doublet Dark Matter from Triplet Scalar Leptogenesis
The nature of dark matter (DM) particles and the mechanism that provides
their measured relic abundance are currently unknown. In this paper we
investigate inert scalar and vector like fermion doublet DM candidates with a
charge asymmetry in the dark sector, which is generated by the same mechanism
that provides the baryon asymmetry, namely baryogenesis-via-leptogenesis
induced by decays of scalar triplets. At the same time the model gives rise to
neutrino masses in the ballpark of oscillation experiments via type II seesaw.
We discuss possible sources of depletion of asymmetry in the DM and visible
sectors and solve the relevant Boltzmann equations for quasi-equilibrium decay
of triplet scalars. A Monte-Carlo-Markov-Chain analysis is performed for the
whole parameter space. The survival of the asymmetry in the dark sector leads
to inelastic scattering off nuclei. We then apply bayesian statistic to infer
the model parameters favoured by the current experimental data, in particular
the DAMA annual modulation and Xenon100 exclusion limit. The latter strongly
disfavours asymmetric scalar doublet DM of mass \mathcal{O}(\TeV) as required
by DM- oscillations, while an asymmetric vector like fermion
doublet DM with mass around 100 GeV is a good candidate for DAMA annual
modulation yet satisfying the constraints from Xenon100 data.Comment: 35 pages and 15 figures, references adde
Color & Weak triplet scalars, the dimuon asymmetry in decay, the top forward-backward asymmetry, and the CDF dijet excess
The new physics required to explain the anomalies recently reported by the D0
and CDF collaborations, namely the top forward-backward asymmetry (FBA), the
like-sign dimuon charge asymmetry in semileptonic b decay, and the CDF dijet
excess, has to feature an amount of flavor symmetry in order to satisfy the
severe constrains arising from flavor violation. In this paper we show that,
once baryon number conservation is imposed, color & weak triplet scalars with
hypercharge can feature the required flavor structure as a consequence
of standard model gauge invariance. The color & weak triplet model can
simultaneously explain the top FBA and the dimuon charge asymmetry or the
dimuon charge asymmetry and the CDF dijet excess. However, the CDF dijet excess
appears to be incompatible with the top FBA in the minimal framework. Our model
for the dimuon asymmetry predicts the observed pattern in the
region of parameter space required to explain the top FBA, whereas our model
for the CDF dijet anomaly is characterized by the absence of beyond the SM
b-quark jets in the excess region. Compatibility of the color & weak triplet
with the electroweak constraints is also discussed. We show that a Higgs boson
mass exceeding the LEP bound is typically favored in this scenario, and that
both Higgs production and decay can be significantly altered by the triplet.
The most promising collider signature is found if the splitting among the
components of the triplet is of weak scale magnitude.Comment: references added, published versio
Colored Resonant Signals at the LHC: Largest Rate and Simplest Topology
We study the colored resonance production at the LHC in a most general
approach. We classify the possible colored resonances based on group theory
decomposition, and construct their effective interactions with light partons.
The production cross section from annihilation of valence quarks or gluons may
be on the order of 400 - 1000 pb at LHC energies for a mass of 1 TeV with
nominal couplings, leading to the largest production rates for new physics at
the TeV scale, and simplest event topology with dijet final states. We apply
the new dijet data from the LHC experiments to put bounds on various possible
colored resonant states. The current bounds range from 0.9 to 2.7 TeV. The
formulation is readily applicable for future searches including other decay
modes.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures. References updated and additional K-factors
include
The Fungal Cell Wall : Structure, Biosynthesis, and Function
N.G. is funded by the Wellcome Trust via a senior investigator award and a strategic award and by the MRC Centre for Medical Mycology. C.M. acknowledges the support of the Wellcome Trust and the MRC. N.G. and C.M. are part of the MRC Centre for Medical Mycology. J.P.L. acknowledges support from ANR, Aviesan, and FRM.Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Perspectives on utilization of edible coatings and nano-laminate coatings for extension of postharvest storage of fruits and vegetables
It is known that in developing countries, a large quantity of fruit and vegetable losses results at postharvest and processing stages due to poor or scarce storage technology and mishandling during harvest. The use of new and innovative technologies for reducing postharvest losses is a requirement that has not been fully covered. The use of edible coatings (mainly based on biopolymers) as a postharvest technique for agricultural commodities has offered biodegradable alternatives in order to solve problems (e.g., microbiological growth) during produce storage. However, biopolymer-based coatings can present some disadvantages such as: poor mechanical properties (e.g., lipids) or poor water vapor barrier properties (e.g., polysaccharides), thus requiring the development of new alternatives to solve these drawbacks. Recently, nanotechnology has emerged as a promising tool in the food processing industry, providing new insights about postharvest technologies on produce storage. Nanotechnological approaches can contribute through the design of functional packing materials with lower amounts of bioactive ingredients, better gas and mechanical properties and with reduced impact on the sensorial qualities of the fruits and vegetables. This work reviews some of the main factors involved in postharvest losses and new technologies for extension of postharvest storage of fruits and vegetables, focused on perspective uses of edible coatings and nano-laminate coatings.MarĂa L. Flores-LĂłpez thanks Mexican Science and Technology Council (CONACYT, Mexico) for PhD fellowship support (CONACYT Grant Number: 215499/310847). Miguel A. Cerqueira (SFRH/BPD/72753/2010) is recipient of a fellowship from the Fundação para a CiĂȘncia e Tecnologia (FCT, POPH-QREN and FSE Portugal). The authors also thank the FCT Strategic Project of UID/ BIO/04469/2013 unit, the project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462) and the project ââBioInd Biotechnology and Bioengineering for improved Industrial and AgroFood processes,ââ REF. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000028 Co-funded by the Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2 â O Novo Norte), QREN, FEDER. Fundação Cearense de Apoio ao Desenvolvimento CientĂïŹco e TecnolĂłgico â FUNCAP, CE Brazil (CI10080-00055.01.00/13)
Spin-independent interferences and spin-dependent interactions with scalar dark matter
Innate Sensing of HIV-Infected Cells
Cell-free HIV-1 virions are poor stimulators of type I interferon (IFN) production. We examined here how HIV-infected cells are recognized by plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and by other cells. We show that infected lymphocytes are more potent inducers of IFN than virions. There are target cell-type differences in the recognition of infected lymphocytes. In primary pDCs and pDC-like cells, recognition occurs in large part through TLR7, as demonstrated by the use of inhibitors and by TLR7 silencing. Donor cells expressing replication-defective viruses, carrying mutated reverse transcriptase, integrase or nucleocapsid proteins induced IFN production by target cells as potently as wild-type virus. In contrast, Env-deleted or fusion defective HIV-1 mutants were less efficient, suggesting that in addition to TLR7, cytoplasmic cellular sensors may also mediate sensing of infected cells. Furthermore, in a model of TLR7-negative cells, we demonstrate that the IRF3 pathway, through a process requiring access of incoming viral material to the cytoplasm, allows sensing of HIV-infected lymphocytes. Therefore, detection of HIV-infected lymphocytes occurs through both endosomal and cytoplasmic pathways. Characterization of the mechanisms of innate recognition of HIV-infected cells allows a better understanding of the pathogenic and exacerbated immunologic events associated with HIV infection
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