596 research outputs found
NUTRITIONAL VALUES OF PSEUDOCEREALS FLOUR MIXTURES USED IN GLUTEN-FREE SWEET BAKERY PRODUCTS
Coeliac disease is an autoimmune disorder caused by a reaction of the body’s immune system to prolamins found in wheat (gliadin), rye (secalin), barley (hordein) and their crossbreeds. At present, the only effective treatment for coeliac people is a lifelong gluten-free diet, but it is difficult to follow such a diet, due to the many gluten containing products excluded. Starting from these considerations, this study aimed to investigate some nutritional parameters, in order to support the use of pseudocereal gluten-free flour mixtures (amaranth, buckwheat and quinoa, respectively) along with rice flour, for obtaining gluten-free sweet bakery products, with a high nutritional value and acceptability. Thus, each sort of flour was used in various amounts of 10%, 20% and 30%, respectively, along with rice flour, in order to obtain the best gluten-free sweet products (muffins), regarding its nutritional value and acceptability score. Gluten-free sweet products were prepared by the same recipe, in three trials each, in which rice flour and amaranth, buckwheat and quinoa flour, respectively, varied: T1-RF:AF(90:10), T2-RF:AF(80:20), T3-RF:AF(70:30), T4-RF:BWF(90:10), T5-RF:BWF(80:20), T6-RF:BWF(70:30), T7-RF:QF(90:10), T8-RF:QF(80:20), T9-RF:QF(70:30). A blank sample of the sweet gluten-free bakery product was prepared by using rice flour only, as basis
Kinetic Monte Carlo and Cellular Particle Dynamics Simulations of Multicellular Systems
Computer modeling of multicellular systems has been a valuable tool for
interpreting and guiding in vitro experiments relevant to embryonic
morphogenesis, tumor growth, angiogenesis and, lately, structure formation
following the printing of cell aggregates as bioink particles. Computer
simulations based on Metropolis Monte Carlo (MMC) algorithms were successful in
explaining and predicting the resulting stationary structures (corresponding to
the lowest adhesion energy state). Here we present two alternatives to the MMC
approach for modeling cellular motion and self-assembly: (1) a kinetic Monte
Carlo (KMC), and (2) a cellular particle dynamics (CPD) method. Unlike MMC,
both KMC and CPD methods are capable of simulating the dynamics of the cellular
system in real time. In the KMC approach a transition rate is associated with
possible rearrangements of the cellular system, and the corresponding time
evolution is expressed in terms of these rates. In the CPD approach cells are
modeled as interacting cellular particles (CPs) and the time evolution of the
multicellular system is determined by integrating the equations of motion of
all CPs. The KMC and CPD methods are tested and compared by simulating two
experimentally well known phenomena: (1) cell-sorting within an aggregate
formed by two types of cells with different adhesivities, and (2) fusion of two
spherical aggregates of living cells.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures; submitted to Phys Rev
Supramolecular Assembly of Pyrene-DNA Conjugates into Columnar Vesicles
This poster describes the supramolecular assembly of DNA conjugates functionalized with pyrene sticky-ends. After hybridization, the 3’-end modified DNA single strands self-assembled into vesicles with diameters of 50–200 nm. Columnar packed aggregated and multilamellar vesicles were observed by cryo-EM
Determination of methylparaben from cosmetic products by ultra performance liquid chromatography
A new method for the determination of methylparaben by ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) was developed. Methylparaben is often used as preservative, alone or in combination with other parabens, being added to cosmetic products, pharmaceutical products and foods to avoid microbial contamination. Due to its widespread use and potential risk to human health, assessing human exposure to this compound is of interest. A good determination and quantification of methylparaben was developed with a gradient elution using a mixture of methanol and water (60:40, v/v) within 1.455 min. Under optimized conditions, the linear working range extends over two orders of magnitude with relative standard deviations of intra- and inter-day precision below 2.3 %, and a detection limit of 0.02 ng μL-1 for methylparaben. The proposed method was successfully applied to the assay of methylparaben in cosmetic products with minimal sample preparation
On the Relationship Between the Pseudo- and Superconducting Gaps: Effects of Residual Pairing Correlations Below Tc
The existence of a normal state spectral gap in underdoped cuprates raises
important questions about the associated superconducting phase. For example,
how does this pseudogap evolve into its below Tc counterpart? In this paper we
characterize this unusual superconductor by investigating the nature of the
``residual'' pseudogap below Tc and, find that it leads to an important
distinction between the superconducting excitation gap and order parameter. Our
approach is based on a conserving diagrammatic BCS Bose-Einstein crossover
theory which yields the precise BCS result in weak coupling at any T<Tc and
reproduces Leggett's results in the T=0 limit. We explore the resulting
experimental implications.Comment: REVTeX, 4 pages, 1 EPS figure (included
Ecosystem development following deglaciation: A new sedimentary record from Devils Lake, Wisconsin, USA
Design of coupling for synchronization in time-delayed systems
We report a design of delay coupling for targeting desired synchronization in
delay dynamical systems. We target synchronization, antisynchronization, lag-,
antilag- synchronization, amplitude death (or oscillation death) and
generalized synchronization in mismatched oscillators. A scaling of the size of
an attractor is made possible in different synchronization regimes. We realize
a type of mixed synchronization where synchronization, antisynchronization
coexist in different pairs of state variables of the coupled system. We
establish the stability condition of synchronization using the
Krasovskii-Lyapunov function theory and the Hurwitz matrix criterion. We
present numerical examples using the Mackey-Glass system and a delay
R\"{o}ssler system.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures; Chaos 22 (2012
Curcuma longa Extract Exerts a Myorelaxant Effect on the Ileum and Colon in a Mouse Experimental Colitis Model, Independent of the Anti-Inflammatory Effect
Background: Curcuma has long been used as an anti-inflammatory agent in inflammatory bowel disease. Since gastrointestinal motility is impaired in inflammatory states, the aim of this work was to evaluate if Curcuma Longa had any Methods: The biological activity of Curcuma extract was evaluated against Carbachol induced contraction in isolated mice intestine. Acute and chronic colitis were induced in Balb/c mice by Dextran Sulphate Sodium administration (5% and 2.5% respectively) and either Curcuma extract (200 mg/kg/day) or placebo was thereafter administered for 7 and 21 days respectively. Spontaneous contractions and the response to Carbachol and Atropine of ileum and colon were studied after
colitis induction and Curcuma administration. Results: Curcuma extract reduced the spontaneous contractions in the ileum and colon; the maximal response to Carbachol was inhibited in a non-competitive and reversible manner. Similar results were obtained in ileum and colon from Curcuma fed mice. DSS administration decreased the motility, mainly in the colon and Curcuma almost restored both the spontaneous contractions and the response to Carbachol after 14 days assumption, compared to standard diet, but a prolonged assumption of Curcuma decreased the spontaneous and Carbachol-induced contractions.
Conclusions: Curcuma extract has a direct and indirect myorelaxant effect on mouse ileum and colon, independent of the
anti-inflammatory effect. The indirect effect is reversible and non-competitive with the cholinergic agent. These results
suggest the use of curcuma extract as a spasmolytic agent
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