Use of sweeteners in osmotic pretreatment before freeze-drying of pear and pineapple

The aim of the study was to analyse the influence of the type of osmotic substance (sucrose, glucose, xylitol, trehalose, and sorbitol) on the physicochemical properties of freeze-dried fruit (pear and pineapple). Controlling the functional properties of freeze-dried fruit after osmotic dehydration with aqueous solutions at water activity of a w=0.90 is presented. Decrease in the water adsorption index (WAI) was recorded for all dehydrated samples. The largest decrease (for pears and pineapples by 25 and 65%, respectively) was observed in osmoactive solutions containing trehalose. Considerable increase in the FAI was recorded in samples of dehydrated pineapple. In osmoactive trehalose solutions that increase hardly reached 46%, whereas in sorbitol and xylitol its value elevated to 39% and 13%, respectively. Regardless of the osmoactive sweetener applied prior to freeze-drying, an increase in specific surface area (SBET) of dried materials was observed. For dehydrated pears, SBET ranged from 96 to 697 m2 g−1, and for pineapple, from 115 to 938 m2 g−1. Osmotic dehydration before lyophilisation of fruit samples weakened rehydration relative to the control. The dehydration carried out with osmoactive sweeteners, that is, sorbitol, xylitol, and trehalose, allows obtaining a product with good functional properties that can be successfully used for supplementation of dietary products, in particular for diabetics

Sensitivity and specificity of faecal tumour M2 pyruvate kinase for detection of colorectal adenomas in a large screening study

The measurement of faecal tumour M2 pyruvate kinase (tumour M2 PK) has been proposed as a novel approach for early detection of colorectal cancer (CRC). However, as regards the potential of the test to detect precursors to CRC, an issue that is highly relevant to estimate its use in reducing CRC incidence and mortality, the available evidence is scant and controversial. The aim of our study was to determine the performance characteristics of the tumour M2 PK test with respect to colorectal adenomas in the target population of screening. Among 1082 participants of screening colonoscopy in Germany, of whom 30% had any adenoma and 10% had an advanced adenoma, the median (interquartile range) tumour M2 PK level in the whole study population was 1.3 U ml−1 (0.3–3.3). At a cutoff value of 4 U ml−1, sensitivity was 22 and 23% for detection of advanced and other adenomas, respectively, whereas specificity was 82%. The area under the receiver-operating characteristics curve (95% confidence interval) was 0.54 (0.51–0.58) and 0.56 (0.52–0.59) for advanced and other adenomas, respectively. In conclusion, the tumour M2 PK test has only very limited potential to distinguish between people bearing precursors to CRC and people with no finding at colonoscopy

Extraction of thermal and electromagnetic properties in 45Ti

The level density and gamma-ray strength function of 45Ti have been determined by use of the Oslo method. The particle-gamma coincidences from the 46Ti(p,d gamma)45Ti pick-up reaction with 32 MeV protons are utilized to obtain gamma-ray spectra as function of excitation energy. The extracted level density and strength function are compared with models, which are found to describe these quantities satisfactorily. The data do not reveal any single-particle energy gaps of the underlying doubly magic 40Ca core, probably due to the strong quadruple deformation

Tumour M2-PK as a stool marker for colorectal cancer: comparative analysis in a large sample of unselected older adults vs colorectal cancer patients

Stool testing based on tumour-derived markers might offer a promising approach for non-invasive colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. The aim of this study was to estimate the potential of a new test for faecal tumour M2-PK to discriminate patients with CRC from a large sample of unselected older adults. Faecal tumour M2-PK concentrations were determined in 65 CRC patients and in a population-based sample of 917 older adults (median age: 65 and 62 years, respectively). Sensitivity and specificity of the test were calculated at different cutoff values, and receiver-operating characteristic curves (ROC) were constructed to visualise the discriminatory power of the test. The median (interquartile range) faecal tumour M2-PK concentration was 8.6 U ml−1 (2.8–18.0) among CRC patients and <2 U ml−1 (<2–3.2; P<0.0001) in the population sample. At a cutoff value of 4 U ml−1, sensitivity (95% confidence interval) was 85% (65–96%) for colon cancer and 56% (41–74%) for rectum cancer. Specificity (95% confidence interval) was estimated to be 79% (76–81%). Given the comparatively high sensitivity of the tumour M2-PK stool test (especially for colon cancer) and its simple analysis, the potential use of the test for early detection of CRC merits further investigation. Possibilities to enhance specificity of the test should be explored

Search for Fingerprints of Tetrahedral Symmetry in 156Gd^{156}Gd

Theoretical predictions suggest the presence of tetrahedral symmetry as an explanation for the vanishing intra-band E2-transitions at the bottom of the odd-spin negative parity band in $^{156}Gd$. The present study reports on experiment performed to address this phenomenon. It allowed to determine the intra-band E2 transitions and branching ratios B(E2)/B(E1) of two of the negative-parity bands in $^{156}Gd$.Comment: presented by Q.T. Doan at XLII Zakopane School of Physics: Breaking Frontiers: Submicron Structures in Physics and Biology, May 2008. 5 pages, minor corrections. To be published in the proceeding

Evidence for a Novel Reaction Mechanism of a Prompt Shock-Induced Fission Following the Fusion of 78Kr and 40Ca Nuclei at E/A =10 MeV

An analysis of experimental data from the inverse-kinematics ISODEC experiment on 78Kr+40Ca reaction at a bombarding energy of 10 AMeV has revealed signatures of a hitherto unknown reaction mechanism, intermediate between the classical damped binary collisions and fusion-fission, but also substantially different from what is being termed in the literature as fast fission or quasi fission. These signatures point to a scenario where the system fuses transiently while virtually equilibrating mass asymmetry and energy and, yet, keeping part of the energy stored in a collective shock-imparted and, possibly, angular momentum bearing form of excitation. Subsequently the system fissions dynamically along the collision or shock axis with the emerging fragments featuring a broad mass spectrum centered around symmetric fission, relative velocities somewhat higher along the fission axis than in transverse direction, and virtually no intrinsic spin. The class of massasymmetric fission events shows a distinct preference for the more massive fragments to proceed along the beam direction, a characteristic reminiscent of that reported earlier for dynamic fragmentation of projectile-like fragments alone and pointing to the memory of the initial mass and velocity distribution.Comment: 5 PAGES, 6 FIGURE

The sudden change phenomenon of quantum discord

Even if the parameters determining a system's state are varied smoothly, the behavior of quantum correlations alike to quantum discord, and of its classical counterparts, can be very peculiar, with the appearance of non-analyticities in its rate of change. Here we review this sudden change phenomenon (SCP) discussing some important points related to it: Its uncovering, interpretations, and experimental verifications, its use in the context of the emergence of the pointer basis in a quantum measurement process, its appearance and universality under Markovian and non-Markovian dynamics, its theoretical and experimental investigation in some other physical scenarios, and the related phenomenon of double sudden change of trace distance discord. Several open questions are identified, and we envisage that in answering them we will gain significant further insight about the relation between the SCP and the symmetry-geometric aspects of the quantum state space.Comment: Lectures on General Quantum Correlations and their Applications, F. F. Fanchini, D. O. Soares Pinto, and G. Adesso (Eds.), Springer (2017), pp 309-33

Zawartość metalicznych i niemetalicznych pierwiastków w homogenatach próbek tkankowych pobranych z amputowanych na poziomie uda z powodu miażdżycy kończyn dolnych. Doniesienie wstępne

Background: Metallic and non-metallic elements have influence on the development the changes within structure and function of arteries in different regions of vascular tree. The content of elements into arterial walls varies according to geographical origin of people. Material and methods: Tissue specimens were taken from the six lower limbs amputated on the level of thigh due to atherosclerosis. The mean age was 69 (57 to 84). Tissue specimens were collected from the limbs from the level of amputation, the popliteal fossa and the dorsal artery of foot. After chemical processing of the tissues homogenates determination of the content of elements using atomic emission spectrometry method with inductively coupled plasma (inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy) was performed. The content of Al, Ba, Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, P, S, Sr and Zn was determined. Results: As a point of reference mean absolute value occurred from six specimens on the level of thigh was assumed as 100%. Content of non-metallic elements such as Ca, P and S rise towards to periphery of amputated limb reaching few times higher values on the level of dorsal artery of foot. Content of some metallic elements such as: Fe, Zn, K and Sr also rise towards to periphery of extremity. The Cu accumulation was the highest on the level of popliteal fossa, while Mn, Al and Mg concentration was the lowest on this same level and the highest in dorsal artery of foot. Conclusions: The influence of individual elements on development the atherosclerosis especially on necrotic changes requires further investigations. Described problem pose a preliminary report only in order to indicate the issue and to check the method of analysis