Fatty acid, vitamina E and sterols composition of seed oils from nine different pomegranate (Punica granatum L) cultivars grown in Spain

[EN] The present study was conducted to determine the major bioactive lipid components of the seed oils of nine pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) cultivars grown in Spain, namely fatty acids, vitamin E and sterol compositions. The seeds yielded oil contents ranging from 4.44% to 13.70% of dry matter and showed high contents of polyunsaturated fatty acids (86.7.2–90.3%). The predominant fatty acid was 9,11, 13-octadeca-trienoic acid (punicic acid), a conjugated linolenic acid characteristic from pomegranate seeds, with contents between 3523 and 10,586 mg/100 g of seeds. Total tocopherol contents ranged from 135 to 525 mg/100 g of oil, with g-tocopherol as the main component, and with different compositional ratios between varieties. Concerning sterols in the oil, total amounts ranged from 364 to 553 mg/100 g, with a predominance of b-sitosterol. After performing principal component analysis, intercultivar differences were found, a potential tool for cultivar authenticity purposes. Moreover, the ingestion of pomegranate arils, with their seeds, increases their beneficial health properties.Authors are grateful to POCTEP - Programa de Cooperacao Transfronteiriga Espanha - Portugal for financial support (Project "RED/AGROTEC-Experimentation network and transfer for development of agricultural and agro industrial sectors between Spain and Portugal) as well as to the European Union (FEDER funds through COMPETE) and National Funds (FCT, Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia) through project Pest-C/EQB/LA0006/2013.Fernandes, L.; Pereira, JA.; López Cortés, I.; Salazar Hernández, DM.; Ramalhosa, E.; Casal, S. (2015). Fatty acid, vitamina E and sterols composition of seed oils from nine different pomegranate (Punica granatum L) cultivars grown in Spain. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis. 39:13-22. doi:10.1016/j.jfca.2014.11.006S13223

The Role of Reaction Parameter on Leaching of SiO2 Doped Nafion Membrane for Use in High Temperature PEM Fuel Cells

The Nafion 117 membrane was doped with SiO2 particles by sol-gel reaction. The reaction conditions to minimize leaching were investigated by using full factorial design of experiment. The results from the full factorial analysis indicated that the lowest amount of leaching takes place at 60oC without addition of acid and swelling of membranes prior to the reaction. The membranes, prepared at optimum reaction conditions, were characterized using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and for water uptake, ion exchange capacity, and cell performance. The water uptake of Nafion/SiO2 membrane with 7% of doping level increased up to 44% that is 26% higher than that of the pure Nafion membrane. The same trend was obtained for proton exchange capacity. DSC Measurements for modified samples showed an increase in Tg as compared to unmodified sample. Fuel cell test was carried out at 70 oC and 110 oC. At 110 oC the modified membrane with 7 wt% of SiO2 showed improved fuel cell performance compared to the pure Nafion. For instance, at 200 mA/cm2 the voltage gained by composite membrane was twice higher than that of the pure Nafion

MODELING OF SUBCRITICAL WATER EXTRACTION PROCESS OF MEDICINAL PLANTS

In this study, the extraction of Zataria multiflora Boiss essential oil with subcritical water was investigated. The most and the most important part of Z. multiflora essential oil was thymol. One two-phase mathematical model was employed for simulating of extraction yield at different operating conditions in packed bed. Three important mass transfer steps consist of diffusion of solutes through particles, convection of solutes through a layer of stagnant fluid outside particles and elution of solute by the flowing bulk of fluid were considered. The unsteady state mass balance of the solute in solid and subcritical water phases led to two partial differential equations that were solved numerically using a linear equilibrium relationship. This model consists of three parameters mass transfer coefficient, axial dispersion coefficient and effective diffusivity. The last parameter was selected to be the model tuning parameter and the others were estimated by existed experimental correlations. The effective diffusivity and mean relative error of data for flow rates 1, 2 and 4 ml/min were 5Ã10-12 m2/s, 0.073, 0.180 and 0.294 respectively

Development of ternary nanoadsorbent composites of graphene oxide, activated carbon, and zero‐valent iron nanoparticles for food applications

In this study, a ternary nanocomposite comprising graphene oxide and carbon loaded with zero‐valent iron nanoparticles was developed as a promising nanoadsorbent, especially for polyphenols available in food industry by‐products. The fabricated nanoadsorbents were characterized in terms of structural, morphological, and chemical attributes. Zero‐valent iron nanoparticles (nZVI) were produced by a modified method leading to the formation of nanoparticles below 50 nm. Also, active carbon was transformed to a needle‐like shape instead of its native shape so that the active surface area was drastically increased which favors the higher adsorption process. Moreover, the space between graphene oxide sheets was enhanced by ultrasonication so that more active carbon and nZVIs could be oriented between these sheets. Finally, the FTIR and Raman data demonstrated the formation of O‐H stretching groups and a D/G value of 0.85 corresponding to the maintenance of a desired structure of the graphene oxide sheets, respectively. To summarize, the developed nanocomposites can be employed as a promising tool for the adsorbance of food and beverage industry by‐products, especially polyphenols

Diagnosing periprosthetic joint infection: a validation study of blood cell ratio combinations

Aims: The diagnosis of periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) can be challenging as the symptoms are similar to other conditions, and the markers used for diagnosis have limited sensitivity and specificity. Recent research has suggested using blood cell ratios, such as platelet-to-volume ratio (PVR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), to improve diagnostic accuracy. The aim of the study was to further validate the effectiveness of PVR and PLR in diagnosing PJI. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted to assess the accuracy of different marker combinations for diagnosing chronic PJI. A total of 573 patients were included in the study, of which 124 knees and 122 hips had a diagnosis of chronic PJI. Complete blood count and synovial fluid analysis were collected. Recently published blood cell ratio cut-off points were applied to receiver operating characteristic curves for all markers and combinations. The area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values were calculated. Results: The results of the analysis showed that the combination of ESR, CRP, synovial white blood cell count (Syn. WBC), and polymorphonuclear neutrophil percentage (PMN%) with PVR had the highest AUC of 0.99 for knees, with sensitivity of 97.73% and specificity of 100%. Similarly, for hips, this combination had an AUC of 0.98, sensitivity of 96.15%, and specificity of 100.00%. Conclusion: This study supports the use of PVR calculated from readily available complete blood counts, combined with established markers, to improve the accuracy in diagnosing chronic PJI in both total hip and knee arthroplasties. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2023;4(11):881–888

Clinical course and significance of nontuberculous mycobacteria and its subtypes in cystic fibrosis

Abstract Background Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) infections in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) is increasing globally. However, the related epidemiology, comorbidities, and clinical impact of NTM infection remains unclear in the progress of CF lung disease and patient survival. Methods We performed a retrospective, case-control, cohort study (10 years), comparing NTM culture-positive CF patients (N = 28) to matched controls (N = 26). NTM positive patients were divided in to two groups of slow-growing (N = 17) and rapid- growing NTM (N = 8). Three patients were positive for both slow and rapid NTM. For independent group comparisons, a non-parametric Mann-Whitney test (Kruskal-Wallis test for more than two groups) was used to compare the continuous variables, and a Fisher’s exact test was used for the categorical variables. Paired comparisons were performed using a Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results The prevalence of NTM isolation was 8%. The age at CF diagnosis was significantly lower in the slow-growing NTM group compared to the rapidly growing NTM group (P = 0.04). The median percent predicted forced expiratory flow of 25% − 75% (FEF25–75) was significantly higher before NTM acquisition in slow-growing (P = 0.013) and rapidly growing NTM group (P = 0.028). The slow-growing NTM group received significantly more penicillin/beta lactamase (P = 0.010) and rifampin (P = 0.042) following isolation. Macrolide use was significantly higher after isolation in both the slow-growing NTM (P = 0.018) and rapidly growing NTM groups (P = 0.042). Conclusions An earlier CF diagnosis was associated with a higher isolation of slow-growing NTM and greater antimicrobial use after infection. NTM acquisition is associated with a worsening of FEF25–75. Thus, both the early diagnosis and treatment of an NTM infection in patients with CF may positively impact lung function

Effectiveness of Adenoidectomy on Tympanostomy Tubes Retention Duration

Background: The children with middle ear effusion need repeated re-tympanostomies. Adenoidectomy is an effective surgical intervention in the management of chronic otitis media with effusion in conjunction with in-sertion of tympanostomy tubes (TTs). To find out whether TTs in different positions decrease the rate of re-tympanostomies study was done. Methods: The present study retrospectively evaluated the effectiveness of adenoidectomy on retention of Shepard TTs in antero-inferior quadrant (AIQ) and postero-inferior quadrant (PIQ) with chronic, persistent or recurrent otitis media. Eighty-five children (one-hundred and seventy ears) underwent bilateral myringotomy and TTs placement with and without adenoidectomy with informed consent. Results: According to the TTs retention duration rate, there was a significant difference between adenoidec-tomy and non-adenoidectomy groups in AIQ. Conclusion: It was concluded that TTs placement in the AIQ in conjunction with adenoidectomy showed better improvement and prolonged ventilation. This study suggests that adenoidectomy is an effective surgical intervention in the management of otitis media especially when it is performed in conjunction with insertion of TTs. This significantly decreases tube extrusion rate especially in an AIQ, which might be due to improving eustachian tube function that consequently reduces repeated otitis media