Impact of temperature on lethality of kiwifruit puree pasteurization by thermal and microwave processing

The use of pasteurization units (PU) as a measure of the lethal effect of processes was proposed with the aim of comparing conventional and novel thermal technologies. Kiwifruit puree was subjected to microwave (1000 and 900 W) and conventional (97 C) heating. Processing conditions of the treatments were chosen to simulate a pasteurization treatment. The temperature profiles of the samples during processing were recorded at different positions. The coldest and hottest spots of the product were identified and the associated PU numbers were calculated. A significantly (p < 0.05) higher thermal load was necessary in order to stabilize the kiwifruit puree under conventional (19.27 min) than microwave heating mode (0.003e8 min) at any of the conditions studied. The higher effectiveness of microwave heating could be attributed to non-thermal effects associated with this technology.The authors thank the Ministerio de Educacion y Ciencia for the financial support given through Projects AGL 2010-22176 and AGL 2010-22206-C02-01 and the grant awarded to the author Maria Benlloch.Benlloch Tinoco, M.; Martínez Navarrete, N.; Rodrigo Aliaga, MD. (2014). Impact of temperature on lethality of kiwifruit puree pasteurization by thermal and microwave processing. Food Control. 35(1):22-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2013.06.035S222535

Microwave heating induces changes in the physicochemical properties of baru (Dipteryx alata Vog.) and soybean crude oils

Baru oil is extracted from baru nuts (Dipteryx alata Vog.) by cold mechanical pressing, and is exploited as a source of vitamins, fatty acids and antioxidants in the Brazilian food and pharmaceutical sectors. No information is available on this oil under domestic culinary processes and thermal conditions. So, in the present study we evaluated the response of crude baru oil under microwave heating (0, 1, 3, 5, 10, and 15min), using crude soybean oil as comparison. Physical and chemical parameters were evaluated (free acidity, peroxide value, specific extinction coefficient at 232 and 270nm, ΔK and color by CIELAB method), fatty acid profile, tocopherol composition, antioxidant activity, and oxidative stability. Until 3min (1000W) no significant adverse changes were observed in either oil. However, higher exposition times are more adverse to baru oil than to soybean oil. Tocopherols, oils stability and antioxidant activity drop abruptly. The typical yellow coloration is lost with heating, giving a less appealing appearance to the oils. By a principal component analysis, it was verified that microwave heating differently influenced each oil, and within the same oil, exposure time also caused distinct effect on properties, quality, and composition. Based on the obtained results, we discourage the use of baru oil for culinary process. Practical applications: The use of baru oil for prolonged culinary processes is discouraged due to lower stability and low content in antioxidants. Baru oil is more suitable for seasoning for usage in domestic consumption at RT. Exposure to microwave heating is completely discouraged at an exposure higher than 3min.Thays Borges acknowledges Polytechnic Institute of Bragança for the scholarship support and Mountain Research Centre (CIMO) and University of Porto for the facilities granted during the development of this work. This work has been supported by FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) and FEDER through the COMPETE program under the projects PEst‐OE/AGR/UI0690/2011 and PEst‐C/EQB/LA0006/2011.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The impact of surgical delay on resectability of colorectal cancer: An international prospective cohort study

AIM: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has provided a unique opportunity to explore the impact of surgical delays on cancer resectability. This study aimed to compare resectability for colorectal cancer patients undergoing delayed versus non-delayed surgery. METHODS: This was an international prospective cohort study of consecutive colorectal cancer patients with a decision for curative surgery (January-April 2020). Surgical delay was defined as an operation taking place more than 4 weeks after treatment decision, in a patient who did not receive neoadjuvant therapy. A subgroup analysis explored the effects of delay in elective patients only. The impact of longer delays was explored in a sensitivity analysis. The primary outcome was complete resection, defined as curative resection with an R0 margin. RESULTS: Overall, 5453 patients from 304 hospitals in 47 countries were included, of whom 6.6% (358/5453) did not receive their planned operation. Of the 4304 operated patients without neoadjuvant therapy, 40.5% (1744/4304) were delayed beyond 4 weeks. Delayed patients were more likely to be older, men, more comorbid, have higher body mass index and have rectal cancer and early stage disease. Delayed patients had higher unadjusted rates of complete resection (93.7% vs. 91.9%, P = 0.032) and lower rates of emergency surgery (4.5% vs. 22.5%, P < 0.001). After adjustment, delay was not associated with a lower rate of complete resection (OR 1.18, 95% CI 0.90-1.55, P = 0.224), which was consistent in elective patients only (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.69-1.27, P = 0.672). Longer delays were not associated with poorer outcomes. CONCLUSION: One in 15 colorectal cancer patients did not receive their planned operation during the first wave of COVID-19. Surgical delay did not appear to compromise resectability, raising the hypothesis that any reduction in long-term survival attributable to delays is likely to be due to micro-metastatic disease