Effect of osmotic dehydration on the drying kinetics and quality of cashew apple,

The effect of different osmotic pretreatments on cashew apple drying kinetics and product quality were investigated

Utilização da metodologia de superfície de resposta para a análise da desidratação osmótica de batata doce (Ipomoea batatas).

Amostras de batata doce foram desidratadas em soluções de sacarose (44-60% p/p) e NaCl (0-10%p/p) com temperaturas variando de 34 a 50?C por um tempo de imersão de 120 minutos. O aumento na concentração da solução osmótica causou um aumento na perda de água (PA) e o ganho de sólidos (GS). O Cloreto de sódio, devido a sua baixa atividade de água e baixo peso molecular, provocou um aumento na taxa de penetração de soluto no material

An Osmotic Model of the Growing Pollen Tube

Pollen tube growth is central to the sexual reproduction of plants and is a longstanding model for cellular tip growth. For rapid tip growth, cell wall deposition and hardening must balance the rate of osmotic water uptake, and this involves the control of turgor pressure. Pressure contributes directly to both the driving force for water entry and tip expansion causing thinning of wall material. Understanding tip growth requires an analysis of the coordination of these processes and their regulation. Here we develop a quantitative physiological model which includes water entry by osmosis, the incorporation of cell wall material and the spreading of that material as a film at the tip. Parameters of the model have been determined from the literature and from measurements, by light, confocal and electron microscopy, together with results from experiments made on dye entry and plasmolysis in Lilium longiflorum. The model yields values of variables such as osmotic and turgor pressure, growth rates and wall thickness. The model and its predictive capacity were tested by comparing programmed simulations with experimental observations following perturbations of the growth medium. The model explains the role of turgor pressure and its observed constancy during oscillations; the stability of wall thickness under different conditions, without which the cell would burst; and some surprising properties such as the need for restricting osmotic permeability to a constant area near the tip, which was experimentally confirmed. To achieve both constancy of pressure and wall thickness under the range of conditions observed in steady-state growth the model reveals the need for a sensor that detects the driving potential for water entry and controls the deposition rate of wall material at the tip

Osmotic dehydration of cashew apple (Anacardium occidentale L.) in sucrose solutions: influence of process variables.

The objective of this work was the study of osmotic dehydration of cashew apple slices in sucrose solutions as a function of temperature (30-50 0C), solution concentration (40-60% w/w) and immersion time (90-240 m in) by using response surface m ethodology

Influência da desidratação osmótica no conteúdo de carotenoides totais e na atividade de água em cenoura (Daucus carota L.).

O objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar o efeito das variáveis temperatura e concentração de NaCl, na atividade de água (a w) e no conteúdo de carotenóides totais, durante a desidratação osmótica de cenoura, visando propor um processo capaz de aumentar a vida útil e preservar as qualidades nutricionais desta matéria-prima

[Spontaneous rupture of the unscarred uterus during labor. Case report]

International audienceWe report a case of spontaneous uterine rupture in a 19 year-old patient Gravida 1 para 2 with no past history of uterine surgery. The diagnosis of uterine rupture, evoked in the early post-partum in the presence of acute abdominal pain, collapsus and haemoperitoneum on ultrasonography, was confirmed by laparotomy. Treatment consisted in hysterorrhaphy. The etiopathogenesis, clinical and therapeutical aspects of spontaneous unscarred uterine ruptures are discussed throughout a literature review

Determination of thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of papaya (Carica papaya L.) as a function of temperature.

The objective of this paper was to determine the thermal conductivity and the ther mal diffusivity of papaya as a function of temperature using the probe technique. A probe, with a heater wire to apply an electrical current of 3.6A, was used to measure simultaneously the thermal conductivity and the thermal diffusivity

[Operative delivery data in France for 2007: results of a national survey within teaching hospitals]

International audienceAIM: Clinical Practice Guidelines of the French College of Gynecologists and Obstetricians concerning operative deliveries were published in December 2008. That is why a national survey was performed for the year 2007 so as to obtain an inventory of obstetrical practices regarding the geographical distribution of the type of instrument used for operative deliveries following the level of each teaching hospital concerned. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We included in our study 49 teaching hospitals from metropolitan France and the overseas departments and territories. For the year 2007, we noted the number of operative deliveries, the type of instrument used, as well as the level of the maternity concerned with its total number of patients, births, cesarean sections, vaginal deliveries, and episiotomies. RESULTS: We obtained data from all 49 centres. The mean number of deliveries per year was 2203 for level I teaching hospitals, 2060 for level II and 2720 for level III, respectively. The rate of operative delivery was quite different from one centre to the other, ranging from 5.3 to 34.1% of all births. Similarly, for the type of instrument used, there existed clear geographical disparities although the notion of "School's instrument" was not as preeminent as before since most centres used at least two instruments. Moreover, the rate of cesarean varied from 9 to 29.5% (all levels concerned) with a national mean rate of 20.7% for teaching hospitals. Finally, mean rate of episiotomies ranged from 3.6 to 60%. DISCUSSION: This study showed that important differences existed between teaching hospitals in the use of instruments and that obstetrical practices are far from being uniform. However, in 2007, the routine use of more than one instrument in each centre was most usual, as opposed to the situation some decades ago. The use of obstetrical vacuum extractors has been largely disseminated. Each of the three types of instruments has specific indications and mastering at least two instruments seems more secure in the management of the numerous obstetrical situations. It is up to teaching hospitals to make sure that the use of at least two instruments is taught for operative deliveries. The recent publication of Clinical Practice Guidelines would probably help in standardizing operative deliveries in years to come

[Comparing fetal and maternal morbidities between operative deliveries by Teissier's spatulas and Minicup vacuum extractor]

International audienceOBJECTIVE: To compare fetal and maternal morbidities between operative deliveries by long Teissier's spatulas and Minicup vacuum extractor. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted from January 2003 to July 2008 at the maternity ward, Besançon teaching hospital. Operative deliveries in term cephalic singleton pregnancies performed by Teissier's spatulas (case group) were compared to previous deliveries by vacuum extractor Minicup (control group). RESULTS: During the study period, 69 operative deliveries by Teissier's spatulas have been performed. No significant difference was found between the two groups in terms of maternal characteristics. Two third-degree perineal tears occurred following delivery by Teissier's spatulas with no third-degree tear in the vacuum extractor group (p = ns). The episiotomy rate in the Teissier's spatulas group was 15,9% compared to 11.6% in the vacuum extractor group (p = ns). Duration of operative delivery was significantly shorter in the Teissier's spatulas group (3.4 min vs 4.95 min; p = 0.007). Fetal morbidity was identical in the two groups. CONCLUSION: This study found no significant difference in terms of fetal and maternal morbidities between operative deliveries by Teissier's spatulas and vacuum extractor. Moreover, as opposed to Thierry's spatulas, the long Tessier spatulas can be adequately used in accordance with patient's wish and practice guidelines recommending a policy of restrictive episiotomy. However, a larger study is needed to confirm these preliminary results