Dune Sand Mortar Effects on Deflections of Repaired Steel Bars-Reinforced Concrete Beams

This paper presents theoretical and experimental investigations to analyze the flexural behavior of reinforced concrete beams repaired with mortars based on dune sands. The beams supposedly damaged were repaired using mortars based on dune sand varying the mortar cover thickness and the reinforcement ratio. After a suitable cure of beam specimens in the laboratory, they submitted to progressive loading until failure. The results obtained show that the repaired dune sand mortar could be used to enhance the flexural capacity and the ductility of damaged reinforced concrete beams, repaired with dune sand mortars. Comparisons between theoretical and experimental results in terms of deflections are also presented

Comparative analysis of specialized metabolites and antioxidant capacity in vitro of different natural populations of Globularia spp.

Total phenolic, flavonoid, condensed tannin and iridoid content, as well as antioxidant capacity in vitro, were determined spectrophotometrically in methanolic extracts of different plant parts of the Mediterranean medicinal plant Globularia alypum L. and three widespread European species of the same genus: G. cordifolia L., G. meridionalis (Podp.) O. Schwarz and G. punctata Lapeyr. In order to consider possible environmental influences on the production of specialized metabolites, each species, except G. alypum, was collected from three different natural populations. Great variations in the amounts of specialized metabolites were observed among different plant parts and species. For example, total phenolic content ranged from 10.13 (G. punctata, flowers) to 44.90 (G. cordifolia, flower stems) mg gallic acid equivalent g–1 dry weight. Moreover, great differences, attributed to location-specific environmental factors, were observed among different populations of the same species. For example, a strong positive correlation was observed among mean monthly temperatures and total phenolic contents in the leaves of studied Globularia spp. (r = 0.75, p = 0.019). However, despite these differences, all species were rich in bioactive substances when compared to G. alypum, especially in their aerial parts. A very good positive correlation was observed between total phenolic content and DPPH radical scavenging capacity (r = 0.86, p < 0.001)/ABTS radical scavenging capacity (r = 0.83, p < 0.001). The results obtained show that G. cordifolia, G. meridionalis and G. punctata are rich in bioactive substances, providing support for their pharmaceutical utilization. Further investigations are needed to verify the possibility of their medicinal use

Chemical Composition and Antioxidant Activity of Lipids from Ficus Carica l. Fruits

Samples of oils from seven types of Ficus carica L. fruits from Algeria were investigated through determinations of their chemical characteristics, quantifying sterols and tocopherols, and analysis of the fatty acids profiles using gas chromatography, and evaluation of antioxidant activity by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method and total antioxidant activity (TAA) using phosphomolybdenum methods. The results show that acid values ranged from 3.14 to 6.95 mg KOH/g indicating on the high amount of free fatty acids in the figs oils. Neutral lipids occupy a very important proportion of the crude figs oils (NL: 60.30–98.40%) compared to glycolipids (GL: 0.58–28.00%) and phospholipids (PL: 0.40-11.70%). Linoleic (11.70–34.74%) and linolenic (1.15–35.27%) were the major unsaturated fatty acids found in lipid fractions, while the main fraction of saturated fatty acid was palmitic. The tocopherols and sterols contents in fig oils ranged from 14.27 to 108.55 mg α-TE/g lipids and from 0.36 to 2.80 mg CE/g lipids respectively. The best inhibition concentration (IC50) of DPPH antioxidant activity was marked by GL (0.23–1.06 g/L) and PL (0.67–1.23 g/L). The strongest TAA was also marked by GL (IC50: 2.84 to 10.08 g/L) and PL (IC50: 3.73–11.30 g/L). This finding demonstrated for the first time that the studied figs oils possessed good antioxidant activity which may be associated with their alleged health benefits

Chemical composition and antioxidant activity of lipids from Ficus carica L. fruits

Samples of oils from seven types of Ficus carica L. fruits from Algeria were investigated through determinations of their chemical characteristics, quantifying sterols and tocopherols, and analysis of the fatty acids profiles using gas chromatography, and evaluation of antioxidant activity by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method and total antioxidant activity (TAA) using phosphomolybdenum methods. The results show that acid values ranged from 3.14 to 6.95 mg KOH/g indicating on the high amount of free fatty acids in the figs oils. Neutral lipids occupy a very important proportion of the crude figs oils (NL: 60.30–98.40%) compared to glycolipids (GL: 0.58–28.00%) and phospholipids (PL: 0.40-11.70%). Linoleic (11.70–34.74%) and linolenic (1.15–35.27%) were the major unsaturated fatty acids found in lipid fractions, while the main fraction of saturated fatty acid was palmitic. The tocopherols and sterols contents in fig oils ranged from 14.27 to 108.55 mg α-TE/g lipids and from 0.36 to 2.80 mg CE/g lipids respectively. The best inhibition concentration (IC50) of DPPH antioxidant activity was marked by GL (0.23–1.06 g/L) and PL (0.67–1.23 g/L). The strongest TAA was also marked by GL (IC50: 2.84 to 10.08 g/L) and PL (IC50: 3.73–11.30 g/L). This finding demonstrated for the first time that the studied figs oils possessed good antioxidant activity which may be associated with their alleged health benefits

Health promoting potential of herbal teas and tinctures from Artemisia campestris subsp maritima: from traditional remedies to prospective products

This work explored the biotechnological potential of the medicinal halophyte Artemisia campestris subsp. maritima (dune wormwood) as a source of health promoting commodities. For that purpose, infusions, decoctions and tinctures were prepared from roots and aerial-organs and evaluated for in vitro antioxidant, anti-diabetic and tyrosinase-inhibitory potential, and also for polyphenolic and mineral contents and toxicity. The dune wormwood extracts had high polyphenolic content and several phenolics were identified by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array-mass-spectrometry (UHPLC-PDA-MS). The main compounds were quinic, chlorogenic and caffeic acids, coumarin sulfates and dicaffeoylquinic acids; several of the identified phytoconstituents are here firstly reported in this A. campestris subspecies. Results obtained with this plant's extracts point to nutritional applications as mineral supplementary source, safe for human consumption, as suggested by the moderate to low toxicity of the extracts towards mammalian cell lines. The dune wormwood extracts had in general high antioxidant activity and also the capacity to inhibit a-glucosidase and tyrosinase. In summary, dune wormwood extracts are a significant source of polyphenolic and mineral constituents, antioxidants and a-glucosidase and tyrosinase inhibitors, and thus, relevant for different commercial segments like the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and/or food industries.FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology [CCMAR/Multi/04326/2013]; Portuguese National Budget; FCT [IF/00049/2012, SFRH/BD/94407/2013]; Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) [12M8315N]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Antioxidant activities and polyphenolics from the shoots of Barringtonia racemosa (L.) Spreng in a polar to a polar medium system.

Solvents of different polarities (water, ethanol, ethyl acetate and hexane) were used for the extraction of antioxidants from the leaves and stems of the shoots of Barringtonia racemosa. The leaf water extracts had the highest polyphenol and ascorbic acid contents. Flavonoids and carotenoids were highest in the leaf ethyl acetate extracts. The leaf water extracts had the highest ferric reducing activities and scavenging activities against ABTS, DPPH and superoxide anion radicals. Antioxidant activities of these extracts were comparable to, if not higher than the antioxidants BHT, ascorbic acid, rutin and gallic acid. UHPLC analyses revealed the presence of gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, ellagic acid, quercetin and kaempferol in the leaves. Overall, the leaves contained more antioxidant compounds and higher antioxidant activities than the stems. This study demonstrates the polar nature of antioxidants in the shoots of B. racemosa. There is great potential for the plant as a natural source of antioxidants

Phytochemicals as antibiotic alternatives to promote growth and enhance host health

There are heightened concerns globally on emerging drug-resistant superbugs and the lack of new antibiotics for treating human and animal diseases. For the agricultural industry, there is an urgent need to develop strategies to replace antibiotics for food-producing animals, especially poultry and livestock. The 2nd International Symposium on Alternatives to Antibiotics was held at the World Organization for Animal Health in Paris, France, December 12-15, 2016 to discuss recent scientific developments on strategic antibiotic-free management plans, to evaluate regional differences in policies regarding the reduction of antibiotics in animal agriculture and to develop antibiotic alternatives to combat the global increase in antibiotic resistance. More than 270 participants from academia, government research institutions, regulatory agencies, and private animal industries from >25 different countries came together to discuss recent research and promising novel technologies that could provide alternatives to antibiotics for use in animal health and production; assess challenges associated with their commercialization; and devise actionable strategies to facilitate the development of alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) without hampering animal production. The 3-day meeting consisted of four scientific sessions including vaccines, microbial products, phytochemicals, immune-related products, and innovative drugs, chemicals and enzymes, followed by the last session on regulation and funding. Each session was followed by an expert panel discussion that included industry representatives and session speakers. The session on phytochemicals included talks describing recent research achievements, with examples of successful agricultural use of various phytochemicals as antibiotic alternatives and their mode of action in major agricultural animals (poultry, swine and ruminants). Scientists from industry and academia and government research institutes shared their experience in developing and applying potential antibiotic-alternative phytochemicals commercially to reduce AGPs and to develop a sustainable animal production system in the absence of antibiotics.Fil: Lillehoj, Hyun. United States Department of Agriculture. Agricultural Research Service; ArgentinaFil: Liu, Yanhong. University of California; Estados UnidosFil: Calsamiglia, Sergio. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; EspañaFil: Fernandez Miyakawa, Mariano Enrique. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Patobiología; ArgentinaFil: Chi, Fang. Amlan International; Estados UnidosFil: Cravens, Ron L.. Amlan International; Estados UnidosFil: Oh, Sungtaek. United States Department of Agriculture. Agricultural Research Service; ArgentinaFil: Gay, Cyril G.. United States Department of Agriculture. Agricultural Research Service; Argentin