Antioxidant capacity evaluation by means of electrolysis at controlled potential

The characterization of antioxidant (AO) has been studied due to their potential action against oxidative stress and many works are dedicated to establish correlations between AO in food and health maintenance, other focused on the antioxidant status in physiological fluids and the beginning of diseases and others in preventing oxidative degradation of food, such as in the case of wines white. (...

Aquatic pollutants: risks, consequences, possible solutions and novel testing approaches

It is undeniable that there is a wide variety of pollutants in the various water bodies around the planet, including organic and inorganic compounds, pathogenic microorganisms, and microplastics. The existence of these aquatic pollutants has a direct impact on the survival and well-being of all species that are present in these habitats and poses, directly or indirectly, a risk to human health. Although the origin of these pollutants has already been identified in most situations, the study of their effects, in the short and long term, as well as the best solutions to prevent or avoid the adverse consequences of pollution, remains a challenge for researchers. Human activity, both at the agricultural and livestock production level and at the industrial level, has a profound impact on water pollution [1]. In addition, the use of detergents, pharmaceuticals and other health products and substances in our daily lives also contributes to the increased concentration of various pollutants that affect aquatic life. Currently, many effluents discharged into the aquatic environment are still not subject to appropriate prior treatment that ensures the removal of all these potentially toxic substances. Although much progress has already been made in the treatment of various types of effluent, many compounds are still identified that resist the process and continue to be discharged into the water [1,2].info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The Versatile Sago (Metroxylon sagu Rottb.) and Its Green Potential for Mindanao

Sago palm can be found wild in marshy areas in the southern part of the Philippines. This palm, which is indigenous to Southeast Asia, is much valued because of its capacity to protect the environment and survive even in peat swamps and flooded areas without the need for pesticides and fertilizers. Sago is also resistant to forest fires. This hardy plant can yield as much as 15 to 25 tons of starch per hectare, one of the highest in terms of calorific yield among starch crops, by accumulating large amounts of starch in the trunk. It thrives in waterlogged, acidic soils where few other plants survive without the need to replant because there are suckers closely growing beside the mother plant when the latter gets to be harvested. Some important economic uses of sago starch besides being a staple food are presented.  Sago starch, like any other, can be used as food ingredient, as edible films and food packaging, as food extenders, and when “modified” they acquire more stability and gel strength for diverse uses. It is also converted into such products in the food and beverage industry as glucose, high fructose corn syrup, monosodium glutamate, maltodextrins, and cyclodextrins. More recently, appropriate biotechnologies are being studied for conversion of sago starch into high value products, specifically ethanol for fuel, and acetic and lactic acids, which are highly priced raw materials for the biopolymer industry.  Besides its use for food and industrial processing, the sago palm trunk and leaves are also widely known for their use as construction material or as raw material in the forest products industry

Helping Academic Struggling Elementary School Students Succeed

There is a push to focus on academics for struggling elementary school students to be successful. Research has shown that teachers and tutors who use various teaching methods have helped students to be successful in their academic performance. This senior capstone project explores how struggling students can achieve success in school and at the same time can catch up with their classmates. Through a literature review, interviews and surveys conducted with two elementary school teachers, a coordinator and students in Monterey County, the results reveal how beneficial it is for students to have extra help from teachers and tutors. In particular when they receive one-on-one assistance. The results from interviews and surveys also reveal how teachers in the Monterey County can help struggling students to succeed in their academics. In addition, extra help from tutors can also be very beneficial as it provides additional academic assistance for struggling students

Duplicated membrane estrogen receptors in the European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax): Phylogeny, expression and regulation throughout the reproductive cycle

The numerous estrogen functions reported across vertebrates have been classically explained by their binding to specific transcription factors, the nuclear estrogen receptors (ERs). Rapid non-genomic estrogenic responses have also been recently identified in vertebrates including fish, which can be mediated by membrane receptors such as the G protein-coupled estrogen receptor (Gper). In this study, two genes for Gper, namely gpera and gperb, were identified in the genome of a teleost fish, the European sea bass. Phylogenetic analysis indicated they were most likely retained after the 3R teleost-specific whole genome duplication and raises questions about their function in male and female sea bass. Gpera expression was mainly restricted to brain and pituitary in both sexes while gperb had a widespread tissue distribution with higher expression levels in gill filaments, kidney and head kidney. Both receptors were detected in the hypothalamus and pituitary of both sexes and significant changes in gpers expression were observed throughout the annual reproductive season. In female pituitaries, gpera showed an overall increase in expression throughout the reproductive season while gperb levels remained constant. In the hypothalamus, gpera had a higher expression during vitellogenesis and decreased in fish entering the ovary maturation and ovulation stage, while gperb expression increased at the final atresia stage. In males, gpers expression was constant in the hypothalamus and pituitary throughout the reproductive cycle apart from the mid- to late testicular development stage transition when a significant up-regulation of gpera occurred in the pituitary. The differential sex, seasonal and subtype-specific expression patterns detected for the two novel gper genes in sea bass suggests they may have acquired different and/or complementary roles in mediating estrogens actions in fish, namely on the neuroendocrine control of reproduction.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio