Qualitative Phytochemical Analysis of Gracilaria verrucosa from North Sulawesi Waters

The research aims to determine the phytochemical content such as phenolics, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, alkaloids, steroids, and triterpenoids found in the seaweed G. verrucosa. Seaweed G. verrucosa taken from the waters of North Sulawesi, Nain Village, North Minahasa, was extracted by maceration for 24 hours at room temperature, repeated 3 times using 96% ethanol solvent. The analysis in this study consisted of seven test parameters such as phenolic compounds, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, steroids, triterpenoids, and alkaloids. The results of the analysis showed that the secondary metabolites of G. verrucosa contained phytochemical compounds such as phenols, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, steroids, and alkaloids, and no triterpenoid compounds were found. It was concluded that G. verrucosa which grows in the waters of North Sulawesi, Nain Village, can function as functional food, and medicine because it has natural bioactive compounds. Keywords: Phytochemical content, Gracilaria verrucosa, secondary metabolites Abstrak Penelitian bertujuan mengetahui kandungan fitokimia seperti fenol, flavanoid, tanin, saponin, alkaloid, steroid, dan triterpenoid yang terdapat pada rumput laut G. verrucosa.  Senyawa metabolit sekunder yang umum terdapat pada tanaman adalah senyawa terpenoid, alkaloid, fenolik, streroid, saponin, tannin. Rumput laut G. verrucosa yang di ambil dari perairan Sulawesi Utara Desa Nain Minahasa Utara di ekstraksi dengan cara maserasi selama 24 jam pada suhu ruang di ulangi sebanyak 3 kali menggunakan pelarut etanol 96 %. Analisis pada penelitian ini terdiri dari tujuh parameter pengujian seperti senyawa fenol, flavonoid, tanin, saponin, steroid, triterpenoid dan alkaloid. Hasil analisis menunjukan bahwa kandungan metabolit sekunder dari G. verrucosa mengandung senyawa fitokimia seperti fenol, flavonoid, tanin, saponin, steroid, alkaloid dan tidak ditemukan adanya senyawa triterpenoid. Hal ini disimpulkan bahwa G. verrucosa yang tumbuh di perairan Sulawesi utara Desa Nain dapat berfungsi sebagai pangan fungsional, obat-obatan karena memiliki senyawa bioaktif alami. Kata kunci: Kandungan fitokimia, Gracilaria verrucosa, metabolit sekunder

Synthesis of Tritium-labelled Dl-Carnitine and Crotonic Betaine

AbstractDe l'acide β‐hydroxy‐γ‐aminobutyrique a été marqué avec du tritium par échange selon la technique de Wilzbach. Le produit tritié a été méthylé et la dl‐carnitine obtenue purifiée par chromatographie et électrophorèse. Les rendements chimique et isotopique de cette opération ont été calculés et sont commentés. La dl‐carnitine tritiée a été déshydratée en bétaïne crotonique tritiée; cette dernière a été purifiée par chromatographie. La localisation du tritium dans ces molécules marquées est discutée

Efek Perendaman Terhadap Kandungan Serat Kasar, pH dan Skor Sensori Rumput Laut Kappaphycus alvarezii

One type of seaweed that is widely used in Indonesia is Kappaphycus alvarezii . This type of seawed is also known as Eucheuma cottonii. The purpose of this study was to compare the value of crude fiber content, pH, and sensory score of Kappaphycus alvarezii after being soaked with 2 different types of water (well water and demineralized water). Soaking process is intended for making seaweed -ice by using dried seaweed as raw material. The parameters tested in this study were crude fiber, pH and sensory using Hedonic scale 1-9. The results indicated that Kappaphycus alvarezii soaked with demineralized water had higher crude fiber content (1.37%) compared to seaweed soaked in well water (1.24%). Likewise, the pH level of seaweed products that are soaked with demineralized water have a higher pH value (6.27) than seaweed products that are soaked in well water (6.19). Furthermore, organoleptic test results show that seaweed products that are soaked with water demineralization was more preferable by panelist in terms of appearance, odor, texture and taste.Salah satu jenis rumput laut yang banyak dimanfaatkan di Indonesia adalah rumput laut Kappaphycus alvarezii . Rumput laut ini juga dikenal dengan nama Eucheuma cottonii. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah membandingkan nilai kadar serat kasar, pH, dan skor sensori rumput laut Kappaphycus alvarezii setelah direndam dengan 2 jenis air berbeda (air sumur dan air demineralisasi). Proses perendaman ditujukan untuk pembuatan es rumput laut dengan menggunakan rumput laut kering. Parameter yang diuji pada penelitian ini adalah serat kasar, pH dan uji sensori menggunakan uji Hedonik skala 1 – 9. Hasil analisa menunjukkan bahwa rumput laut Kappaphycus alvarezii yang direndam dengan air demineralisasi memiliki kandungan serat kasar yang lebih tinggi (1.37%) dibandingkan dengan rumput laut yang direndam dengan air sumur (1.24%). Pada pengujian kadar pH, produk rumput laut yang direndam dengan air demineralisasi memiliki nilai pH yang lebih tinggi (6.27) dari pada produk rumput laut yang direndam dengan air sumur (6.19), Selanjutnya, hasil uji organoleptik menunjukkan bahwa produk rumput laut yang direndam dengan air demineralisasi lebih disukai panelis dari segi kenampakan, bau, tekstur dan rasa

Attribute Controlled Reconstruction and Adaptive Mathematical Morphology

ISBN : 978-3-642-38293-2International audienceIn this paper we present a reconstruction method controlled by the evolution of attributes. The process begins from a marker, propagated over increasing quasi-flat zones. The evolution of several increasing and non-increasing attributes is studied in order to select the appropriate region. Additionally, the combination of attributes can be used in a straightforward way. To demonstrate the performance of our method, three applications are presented. Firstly, our method successfully segments connected objects in range images. Secondly, input-adaptive structuring elements (SE) are defined computing the controlled propagation for each pixel on a pilot image. Finally, input-adaptive SE are used to assess shape features on the image. Our approach is multi-scale and auto-dual. Compared with other methods, it is based on a given attribute but does not require a size parameter in order to determine appropriate regions. It is useful to extract objects of a given shape. Additionally, our reconstruction is a connected operator since quasi-flat zones do not create new contours on the image

Optimised diets for achieving One Health: A pilot study in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolis in Germany

Dietary changes are needed to align the global food systems with the planetary boundaries and contribute to Sustainable Development Goals. We employed a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) framework, extended with indicators on human health and animal welfare, to assess 2020 food consumption data of a pilot sample collected through an online survey in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolis (Germany). Feasible optimisation scenarios representing alternative sustainable choices towards overarching environmental, societal and policy goals were explored. Meat and meat products contributed most to overall environmental impacts (e.g., climate change, terrestrial acidification), and fish and seafood to animal welfare loss (e.g., animal lives lost, animal life years suffered). Sodium intake was the most contributing risk factor for life minutes lost. The combined optimisation scenario reduces 55% of greenhouse gas emissions, improves human health indicators by 25% and reduces animal welfare loss substantially (by 52-97%). This is possible with a shift towards flexitarian and vegetarian dietary scenarios. These optimisations deliver improvements across One Health dimensions with marginal changes in dietary scenarios and align with the sustainability goals of the EU Green Deal. Working with regional data can offer advantages in obtaining more realistic baseline dietary information to promote localised dietary shifts. While this research has limitations regarding sample representativeness, it can serve as a case study to encourage sustainable consumption in the Rhine-Ruhr region

Amoeba Techniques for Shape and Texture Analysis

Morphological amoebas are image-adaptive structuring elements for morphological and other local image filters introduced by Lerallut et al. Their construction is based on combining spatial distance with contrast information into an image-dependent metric. Amoeba filters show interesting parallels to image filtering methods based on partial differential equations (PDEs), which can be confirmed by asymptotic equivalence results. In computing amoebas, graph structures are generated that hold information about local image texture. This paper reviews and summarises the work of the author and his coauthors on morphological amoebas, particularly their relations to PDE filters and texture analysis. It presents some extensions and points out directions for future investigation on the subject.Comment: 38 pages, 19 figures v2: minor corrections and rephrasing, Section 5 (pre-smoothing) extende

Omega-3 supplementation from pregnancy to postpartum to prevent depressive symptoms: a randomized placebo-controlled trial

Background: Low n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) has been linked to depression, but the preventive effect of n-3PUFAs supplementation on maternal depression needs further investigation. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a daily dose of n-3 PUFAs supplementation (fish oil) on the prevention of postpartum depression (PPD). Methods: A randomized, placebo-controlled, double blind trial was designed and nested into a cohort study conducted in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Sixty pregnant women identified as being at risk for PPD were invited and randomly assigned to receive fish oil capsules [1.8 g (1.08 g of Eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and 0.72 g of Docosapentaenoic (DHA) acids)] or placebo (control). The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) was scored at 5–13 (T0, baseline), 22–24 (T1), 30–32 weeks of gestation (T2) and 4–6 weeks’ postpartum (T3). Supplementation started at week 22–24 of gestation (T1) and lasted for 16 weeks. Serum fatty acids were assayed to evaluate compliance. Prevalence of EPDS ≥11 was the primary outcome, and mean and changes in EPDS score, length of gestation, and birth weight the secondary outcomes. Linear mixed-effect (LME) and random-intercept logistic regression models were performed to test the effect of fish oil supplementation on prevalence of EPDS ≥11 and EPDS scores variation. Results: In intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis, at 30–32 weeks’ gestation women in the fish oil presented higher serum concentration of EPA, DHA and lower n-6/n-3 ratio comparing to the control group. There were no differences between intervention and control groups in the prevalence of EPDS ≥11, EPDS scores over time, or in changes in EPDS scores from pregnancy to postpartum in either the ITT or per-protocol analyses. Women in the fish oil group with previous history of depression presented a higher reduction on the EPDS score from the second to the third trimester in the fish oil comparing to the control group in the ITT analyses [−1.0 (−3.0–0.0) vs. -0.0 (−1.0–3.0), P = 0.038). These results were confirmed on the LME model (β = −3.441; 95%CI: -6.532– -0.350, P = 0.029). Conclusion: Daily supplementation of 1.8 g of n-3 PUFAs during 16 weeks did not prevent maternal depressive symptoms in a sample of Brazilian women

The Base Excision Repair System of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium Counteracts DNA Damage by Host Nitric Oxide

Intracellular pathogens must withstand nitric oxide (NO·) generated by host phagocytes. Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium interferes with intracellular trafficking of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and possesses multiple systems to detoxify NO·. Consequently, the level of NO· stress encountered by S. Typhimurium during infection in vivo has been unknown. The Base Excision Repair (BER) system recognizes and repairs damaged DNA bases including cytosine and guanine residues modified by reactive nitrogen species. Apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) sites generated by BER glycosylases require subsequent processing by AP endonucleases. S. Typhimurium xth nfo mutants lacking AP endonuclease activity exhibit increased NO· sensitivity resulting from chromosomal fragmentation at unprocessed AP sites. BER mutant strains were thus used to probe the nature and extent of nitrosative damage sustained by intracellular bacteria during infection. Here we show that an xth nfo S. Typhimurium mutant is attenuated for virulence in C3H/HeN mice, and virulence can be completely restored by the iNOS inhibitor L-NIL. Inactivation of the ung or fpg glycosylase genes partially restores virulence to xth nfo mutant S. Typhimurium, demonstrating that NO· fluxes in vivo are sufficient to modify cytosine and guanine bases, respectively. Mutants lacking ung or fpg exhibit NO·–dependent hypermutability during infection, underscoring the importance of BER in protecting Salmonella from the genotoxic effects of host NO·. These observations demonstrate that host-derived NO· damages Salmonella DNA in vivo, and the BER system is required to maintain bacterial genomic integrity