Gloeothece sp. as a nutraceutical source-an improved method of extraction of carotenoids and fatty acids

The nutraceutical potential of microalgae boomed with the exploitation of new species and sustainable extraction systems of bioactive compounds. Thus, a laboratory-made continuous pressurized solvent extraction system (CPSE) was built to optimize the extraction of antioxidant compounds, such as carotenoids and PUFA, from a scarcely studied prokaryotic microalga, Gloeothece sp. Following "green chemical principles" and using a GRAS solvent (ethanol), biomass amount, solvent flow-rate/pressure, temperature and solvent volume-including solvent recirculation-were sequentially optimized, with the carotenoids and PUFA content and antioxidant capacity being the objective functions. Gloeothece sp. bioactive compounds were best extracted at 60?C and 180 bar. Recirculation of solvent in several cycles (C) led to an 11-fold extraction increase of ß-carotene (3C) and 7.4-fold extraction of C18:2 n6 t (5C) when compared to operation in open systems. To fully validate results CPSE, this system was compared to a conventional extraction method, ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE). CPSE proved superior in extraction yield, increasing total carotenoids extraction up 3-fold and total PUFA extraction by ca. 1.5-fold, with particular extraction increase of 18:3 n3 by 9.6-fold. Thus, CPSE proved to be an efficient and greener extraction method to obtain bioactive extract from Gloeothece sp. for nutraceutical purposes-with low levels of resources spent, while lowering costs of production and environmental impacts. © 2018 by the authors.Funding: This work was financially co-supported by: ZEBRALGRE (PTDC/CVT-WEL/5207/2014), founded by national funds through FCT supported by COMPETE 2020: Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI)-01-0145-FEDER-016797; by the Structured Program of R&D&I INNOVMAR—Innovation and Sustainability in the Management and Exploitation of Marine Resources, reference NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000035, namely within the Research Line NOVELMAR—Novel marine products with biotechnological applications, within the R&D Institution CIIMAR (Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research), supported by the Northern Regional Operational Programme (NORTE2020), through the ERDF; and by DINOSSAUR—PTDC/BBB-EBB/1374/2014-POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016640, funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE2020—POCI and by national funds through FCT—Fundacão para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P

Glucose Modifies the Effect of Endovascular Thrombectomy in Patients With Acute Stroke A Pooled-Data Meta-Analysis

Background and Purpose-Hyperglycemia is a negative prognostic factor after acute ischemic stroke but is not known whether glucose is associated with the effects of endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) in patients with large-vessel stroke. In a pooled-data meta-analysis, we analyzed whether serum glucose is a treatment modifier of the efficacy of EVT in acute stroke.Methods-Seven randomized trials compared EVT with standard care between 2010 and 2017 (HERMES Collaboration [highly effective reperfusion using multiple endovascular devices]). One thousand seven hundred and sixty-four patients with large-vessel stroke were allocated to EVT (n=871) or standard care (n=893). Measurements included blood glucose on admission and functional outcome (modified Rankin Scale range, 0-6; lower scores indicating less disability) at 3 months. The primary analysis evaluated whether glucose modified the effect of EVT over standard care on functional outcome, using ordinal logistic regression to test the interaction between treatment and glucose level.Results-Median (interquartile range) serum glucose on admission was 120 (104-140) mg/dL (6.6 mmol/L [5.7-7.7] mmol/L). EVT was better than standard care in the overall pooled-data analysis adjusted common odds ratio (acOR), 2.00 (95% CI, 1.69-2.38); however, lower glucose levels were associated with greater effects of EVT over standard care. The interaction was nonlinear such that significant interactions were found in subgroups of patients split at glucose 90 mg/dL (5.0 mmol/L; P=0.019 for interaction; acOR, 3.81; 95% CI, 1.73-8.41 for patients 90 mg/dL), and glucose 100 mg/dL (5.5 mmol/L; P=0.004 for interaction; acOR, 3.17; 95% CI, 2.04-4.93 versus acOR, 1.72; 95% CI, 1.42-2.08) but not between subgroups above these levels of glucose.Conclusions-EVT improved stroke outcomes compared with standard treatment regardless of glucose levels, but the treatment effects were larger at lower glucose levels, with significant interaction effects persisting up to 90 to 100 mg/dL (5.0-5.5 mmol/L). Whether tight control of glucose improves the efficacy of EVT after large-vessel stroke warrants appropriate testing. (Stroke. 2019;50:690-696. DOI: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.118.023769.