Changes in Aflatoxin Content During the Processing of Vinegar Obtained From Grape

Mycotoxins are known to be one of the most important food contaminants that pose potential health risks to humans. This study aimed to investigate the changes in total aflatoxin (TAF) content during grape vinegar production. Different types of aflatoxins including aflatoxin B1 (AFB1 ), B2 (AFB2 ), G1 (AFG1 ), and G2 (AFG2 ) were spiked into washed grape samples in the level of 5 μg/kg. Then grape samples were converted to vinegar. After different stages of vinegar processing including juicing, alcoholic fermentation, acetic acid fermentation, and pasteurization, sampling was performed and the level of each aflatoxin was measured using high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detector (HPLC-FD). Among different processing steps, the pasteurization operation had the least effect on the removal of aflatoxin. After juicing, the amount of AFB1 , AFB2 , AFG1 and AFG2 decreased by 14%, 11.18%, 13.77%, and 18.56%, respectively. Alcoholic fermentation had the greatest effect on the removal of aflatoxin so that it could reduce the levels of AFB1 , AFB2 , AFG1 and AFG2 by 41.87%, 45.34%, 45.37%, and 46.52%, respectively. Overall, during processing and conversion of grapes to vinegar, the values of AFB1 , AFB2 , AFG1 and AFG2 were reduced by 76.20%, 71.06%, 69.26%, and 75.85%, respectively. Processing grapes to vinegar can have a significant effect on the aflatoxin reduction

Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4% (62.3 (55.1–70.8) million) to 6.4% (58.3 (47.6–70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target of <5% in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2% (30 (22.8–38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0% (55.5 (44.8–67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic

Removal of Ochratoxin A from Grape Juice by Clarification: A Response Surface Methodology Study

This study achieved maximum removal of ochratoxin A (OTA) during the grape juice clarification process with minimal reduction in antioxidant compounds (phenolic acid, flavonoids, and antioxidant capacity by FRAP) by the RSM method. Independent variables included three types of clarifiers&mdash;gelatin, bentonite, and diatomite (diatomaceous earth)&mdash;at a concentration level of 0.25&ndash;0.75% and clarification time of 1&ndash;3 h. OTA was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. Clarifying agent concentration and clarification time affected the reduction amount of OTA and antioxidant compounds in grape juice. There was a direct linear correlation between the reduction amounts of OTA and antioxidant compounds and capacity with the concentration of bentonite, gelatin, and diatomite, and the clarification time. The reduction amount of OTA and antioxidant capacity followed the linear mode. However, the decreased phenolic acid and flavonoid values followed the quadratic model. The study results showed that if the concentrations of bentonite, gelatin, and diatomite and clarification time were 0.45, 0.62, 0.25%, and 1 h, respectively, the maximum amount of OTA reduction (41.67%) occurred. Furthermore, the phenolic acid, flavonoid, and antioxidant activity decrease amounts were at their lowest levels, i.e., 23.86, 7.20, and 17.27%, respectively

A Comparison of Developmental and Maternal Toxicity of Perfluoro Octane Sulfonate (PFOS) In Mouse: Evaluation of Histopathological and Behavioral Changes: Comparison of toxicity of Perfluoro octane sulfonate (PFOS) in Mouse

Perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) is a widely spread environmental contaminant. It accumulates in the brain and has potential neurotoxin effects. Due to chemical properties, PFOS shows persistency in the environment and therefore has potential hazardous effect. The risk of possible intra uterine exposure to PFOS poses a health concern for developmental effects. The goal of this study was survey of histological and behavioral changes made by PFOS in pregnant mice and their fetuses using common behavioral assays and H&amp;E staining. In the present study, doses of PFOS (1, 10, 20 mg/kg) were given orally to pregnant mouse from gestational day (GD) 0 to GD14; then on the day 15, Behavioral experiments including (open field and passive avoidance) were used to assess toxic behavioral changes such as memory impairment and anxiety. After behavioral evaluations, fetuses were dissected on day 15 of gestation and morphological and histological studies on pregnant mouse brain and her fetus were carried out using haematoxylin-eosin staining method. Our findings showed that PFOS could induce neurotoxicity in pregnant mouse especially by induction of abnormalities in dentate gyrus of hippocamps and disruption of neurobehavioral functions .Besides in her fetus; PFOS produced significant changes in brain, liver, and thyroid gland in comparison with untreated control mouse fetus. As a conclusion, PFOS can cause both neurobehavioral and developmental toxicity in pregnant mouse and her fetus

Psycho-social Factors Affecting the use of Masks during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Be\'sat Hospital in Hamadan: A Descriptive Study

Background and Objective: Despite the definite positive effect of wearing masks in preventing diseases, the level of adherence has been reported to be very low in some communities. This study was conducted to determine psycho-social factors affecting the use of masks during the COVID-19 pandemic at Be'sat Hospital in Hamadan, Iran. Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 384 people referring to the Be'sat Medical Research and Training Hospital in Hamadan in 2022. The samples were selected using the availability sampling method. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire that included 51 questions to assess the participants' demographic, economic, social, cultural, and spiritual status and was completed by face-to-face interview method. The data were analyzed in SPSS 26 software using Chi-square, Monte Carlo, Mann-Whitney, and Student's t-tests were used to analyze the data. Results: The mean age of the participants was 36.76±11.71 years. More than half of the participants (54.7%) were men. The frequency of wearing a mask at the time of the interview was 48.4%. According to the findings, the frequency of using a mask was significantly lower in men than in women. A significant relationship was observed between wearing a mask and being single, being more educated, living in the city, and lacking a smoking history (P<0.001). Moreover, higher economic, cultural, and social status showed a significant relationship with using a mask (P<0.001). Conclusion: Economic, social, and cultural factors were identified as the influential factors in mask use; therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to preventive behaviors, social norms, and culturalization during epidemics

MAPPING LOCAL PATTERNS OF CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT AND WASTING IN LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRIES BETWEEN 2000 AND 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4% (62.3 (55.1–70.8) million) to 6.4% (58.3 (47.6–70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target of <5% in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2% (30 (22.8–38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0% (55.5 (44.8–67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic