Fresh-Cut Fruit and Vegetables: Emerging Eco-friendly Techniques for Sanitation and Preserving Safety

The current high demand of minimally processed or fresh-cut fruit and vegetables results from the consumer’s desire for healthy, convenient, fresh, and ready-to-eat plant food-derived commodities. Fresh-cut fruits and vegetables are usually packaged under active- or passive-modified atmosphere packaging, while its shelf life must be under refrigerated conditions. The most important goal to preserve quality and safety focuses on releasing the microbial spoilage flora, since every unit operation involved will influence the final load. Sanitation in the washing step is the only unit operation able to reduce microbial load throughout the production chain. Chlorine is widely used as an efficient sanitation agent, but some disadvantages force to find eco-friendly emerging alternatives. It is necessary to deal with aspects related to sustainability because it could positively contribute to the net carbon balance besides reducing its use. Several innovative techniques seem to reach that target. However, industrial changes for replacing conventional techniques request a fine knowledge of the benefits and restrictions as well as a practical outlook. This chapter reviews the principles of emerging eco-friendly techniques for preserving quality and safety of fresh-cut products in order to meet the expected market’s demand

Quid: observatorio de medios

El informe está estructurado en seis partes. En la primera, “Transparencia y derecho a la información en Jalisco”, se presenta un artículo que sintetiza cómo fue que en diciembre de 2011, el Congreso y el Gobierno del Jalisco se organizaron para aprobar la “Ley de Información Pública de Jalisco y sus Municipios”, como un intercambio de favores entre estos poderes. En la segunda parte, "Medios de comunicación y periodismo en Jalisco", se presentan trabajos sobre los cambios en la prensa local, los medios de comunicación y los juegos panamericanos, las condiciones laborales de los periodistas en Guadalajara, y la prensa roja. En la tercer parte, "Economía política de los medios de comunicación y las industrias culturales en Jalisco" se incluyen trabajos sobre la industria de la música, la propaganda disfrazada de periodismo, y los medios públicos. En la cuarta parte, "Medios de comunicación y telecomunicaciones", se abordan los temas de la lucha por las telecomunicaciones en México, y la televisión abierta como una herramienta política para construir estrategias gubernamentales. En la quinta parte, "Producción de investigación académica del observatorio de medios", se presenta un análisis de contenido de cinco periódicos mexicanos con respecto al tema del medio ambiente. La sexta parte es una semblanza del periodista Víctor Wario Romo.ITESO, A.C

Humans Share More Preferences for Floral Phenotypes With Pollinators Than With Pests.

Studies on the selection of floral traits usually consider pollinators and sometimes herbivores. However, humans also exert selection on floral traits of ornamental plants. We compared the preferences of bumblebees (Bombus terrestris), thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), and humans for flowers of snapdragon. From a cross of two species, Antirrhinum majus and Antirrhinum linkianum, we selected four Recombinant Inbred Lines (RILs). We characterised scent emission from whole flowers and stamens, pollen content and viability, trichome density, floral shape, size and colour of floral parts. We tested the preferences of bumblebees, thrips, and humans for whole flowers, floral scent bouquets, stamen scent, and individual scent compounds. Humans and bumblebees showed preferences for parental species, whereas thrips preferred RILs. Colour and floral scent, in combination with other floral traits, seem relevant phenotypes for all organisms. Remarkably, visual traits override scent cues for bumblebees, although, scent is an important trait when bumblebees cannot see the flowers, and methyl benzoate was identified as a key attractant for them. The evolutionary trajectory of flowers is the result of multiple floral traits interacting with different organisms with different habits and modes of interaction

Agro-Industrial Compost in Soilless Cultivation Modulates the Vitamin C Content and Phytochemical Markers of Plant Stress in Rocket Salad (Diplotaxis tenuifolia (L.) DC.)

Rocket salad is an important vegetable for the ready-to-eat sector, normally cultivated under greenhouse conditions, either in soil or soilless systems. In the latter case, as well as in the nurseries, its cultivation is usually carried out by using peat as a growing medium—a non-renewable substrate—for which it is urgent to find a replacement. Similarly to peat, compost may be used as a growing medium; however, depending on its origin, the chemical and physical characteristics may not bet suitable for plants’ cultivation. In this study, we propose the use of agro-industrial compost as a substitute for peat for rocket salad cultivation. Plants grown in compost, alone or in combination with the second cut of rocket salad, gave better results in several biometric parameters, without negatively affecting yield and dry weight percentage. As a mechanistic approach to further understand how compost can affect plants’ stress, the qualitative profile of phytochemicals (glucosinolates and (poly)phenols)—recognized markers of biotic and abiotic plant stress—were monitored and exhibited a decreasing trend in plants grown using compost relative to those cultivated with peat. The analysis of vitamin C provided information on the achievement of an enhanced concentration by the compost, especially in the second cut. It can be inferred from the results obtained that the compost used as a growing medium may be used as a peat-free substrate for rocket crop cultivation.This research was funded by Grant PID2020-114410RB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/ 501100011033, and Grant AGROALNEX funded by Comunidad Autónoma de la Región de Murcia through Fundación Séneca—Agencia de Ciencia y Tecnología de la Región de Murcia and European Union NextGenerationEU. Angelo Signore was also funded by a grant of the Re-qualification of the Spanish University System, Maria Zambrano modality (Grant UP2021-033 funded by Ministerio de Universidades and by the “European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR”). Víctor Gallegos was also funded by a grant of the Re-qualification of the Spanish University System, Margarita Salas modality, by the University of Almería (Grant UP2021-004 funded by Ministerio de Universidades and by the “European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR”)

Latin American anaphylaxis registry

Background: Recent data about clinical features, triggers and management of anaphylaxis in Latin America is lacking. Objective: To provide updated and extended data on anaphylaxis in this region. Method: An online questionnaire was used, with 67 allergy units involved from 12 Latin-American countries and Spain. Among data recorded, demographic information, clinical features, severity, triggering agents, and treatment were received. Results: Eight hundred and seventeen anaphylactic reactions were recorded. No difference in severity, regardless of pre-existing allergy or asthma history was found. Drug induced anaphylaxis (DIA) was most frequent (40.6%), followed by food induced anaphylaxis (FIA) (32.9%) and venom induced anaphylaxis (VIA) (12%). FIA and VIA were more common in children-adolescents. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and beta-lactam antibiotics (BLA) were the most frequent drugs involved. Milk (61.1% of FIA) and egg (15.4% of FIA) in children, and shellfish (25.5% of FIA), fresh fruits (14.2% of FIA), and fish (11.3% of FIA) in adults were the most common FIA triggers. Fire ants were the most frequent insect triggers, and they induced more severe reactions than triggers of FIA and DIA (p < 0.0001). Epinephrine was used in 43.8% of anaphylaxis episodes. After Emergency Department treatment, epinephrine was prescribed to 13% of patients. Conclusions: Drugs (NSAIDs and BLA), foods (milk and egg in children and shellfish, fruits and fish in adults) and fire ants were the most common inducers of anaphylaxis. Epinephrine was used in less than half of the episodes emphasizing the urgent need to improve dissemination and implementation of anaphylaxis guidelines.Revisión por pare

Tapping into non-English-language science for the conservation of global biodiversity.

The widely held assumption that any important scientific information would be available in English underlies the underuse of non-English-language science across disciplines. However, non-English-language science is expected to bring unique and valuable scientific information, especially in disciplines where the evidence is patchy, and for emergent issues where synthesising available evidence is an urgent challenge. Yet such contribution of non-English-language science to scientific communities and the application of science is rarely quantified. Here, we show that non-English-language studies provide crucial evidence for informing global biodiversity conservation. By screening 419,679 peer-reviewed papers in 16 languages, we identified 1,234 non-English-language studies providing evidence on the effectiveness of biodiversity conservation interventions, compared to 4,412 English-language studies identified with the same criteria. Relevant non-English-language studies are being published at an increasing rate in 6 out of the 12 languages where there were a sufficient number of relevant studies. Incorporating non-English-language studies can expand the geographical coverage (i.e., the number of 2° × 2° grid cells with relevant studies) of English-language evidence by 12% to 25%, especially in biodiverse regions, and taxonomic coverage (i.e., the number of species covered by the relevant studies) by 5% to 32%, although they do tend to be based on less robust study designs. Our results show that synthesising non-English-language studies is key to overcoming the widespread lack of local, context-dependent evidence and facilitating evidence-based conservation globally. We urge wider disciplines to rigorously reassess the untapped potential of non-English-language science in informing decisions to address other global challenges. Please see the Supporting information files for Alternative Language Abstracts

Modelización de las condiciones de transporte y conservación prolongada en frutas y hortalizas

Este documento se generó a partir de la VI Reunión de la Red Temática FRUTURA de CYTED realizada en la ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina del 26 al 30 de Setiembre de 2011. Organizado por el Laboratorio de Calidad y Postcosecha de Frutas y Hortalizas de la E.E.A. Balcarce del INTA, el programa de esta reunión se enmarcó dentro del principal objetivo de la Red, que es el desarrollo de un sistema integral de mejora de la calidad y seguridad de las frutas durante la manipulación, el transporte y la comercialización, mediante nuevas tecnologías de inspección y monitorización

Drug-induced anaphylaxis, elicitors, risk factors, and management in Latin America

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs were the most frequent triggers of drug-induced anaphylaxis in Latín America, whereas antibiotics elicited faster onset and more scvere reactions. An improvement was observed in epinephrinc use and adherence to guidelines in the emergency department treatment of anaphylaxis in Latín America compared with our last report.Facultad de Ciencias Médica

Amelioration Effect of LED Lighting in the Bioactive Compounds Synthesis during Carrot Sprouting

Background: This work investigates the morphological and compositional changes of carrots sprouts during 17 days at 20 °C. Methods: Growing conditions were 7 days in darkness (dD) followed by 3, 7, or 10 days of a 16 h light/8 h darkness photoperiod (dP). Light stimuli used were fluorescent light (Fl), Blue+Red (B+R), Blue+Red+Far-Red (B+R+FR) Light-Emitting Diodes—LEDs- and darkness as control. Results: Results showed that lighting conditions improved the total antioxidant activity and increased the bioactive compounds compared to darkness treatment. However, hypocotyl and sprout length were increased under darkness conditions. Both LEDs treatments (B+R and B+R+FR) increased the phenolic content (phenolic acids and rutin) by 45% and 65% compared to darkness and by 32% regarding Fl. Moreover, a similar trend was observed in the carotenoids content under B+R LEDs, but not when FR was added. Conclusions: Our results suggest that LED lighting during carrot sprouting improved the synthesis of health-promoting compounds