Benchmarking Mentoring Practices for Effective Teaching of Mathematics and Science

Pre-service mathematics and science teachers’ perceptions of their mentoring experiences were investigated using the five factor model of mentoring practices as a lens through which mentoring practices can be benchmarked for improvement. The Mentoring for Effective Teaching instrument was used to collect data from 68 preservice mathematics and science teachers on school placements in two Local Education Authorities (LEAs) in the South East region of England. The results of the data analysis indicate that mentors in the two LEAs overwhelmingly exhibit personal attributes for effective mentoring, provide adequate mentoring in pedagogical knowledge development, model effective teaching and professional practices and provide effective feedback to pre-service teachers. Yet, the results also indicate mentors did not provide adequate mentoring on systems requirements in relation to the national curriculum and school policies

Phenolic Compounds in Hibiscus mutabilis Seeds and Their Effects on the Oxidative Stability of DHA-Enriched Goat Milk Emulsion

Food emulsions undergo oxidative deterioration during production and storage, which is usually initiated from the unsaturated fatty acids. Synthetic antioxidants are frequently used to retard lipid oxidation in food emulsions. Most plants and their seeds are rich sources of natural antioxidants such as the carotenoids and polyphenols. The most abundant fatty acids found in the oil from the seeds of Hibiscus mutabilis (HM) are oleic acid (C18:1n-9, 16.3%), linoleic acid, (C18:2n-6, 64.7%), and palmitic acid (C16:0, 18.8%). The total tocopherols in HM seed oil were at an average concentration of 187.0 μg/g, which included α-tocopherol (21.4%), γ-tocopherol (78.2%), and δ-tocopherol (0.4%). The HM seed oil can be incorporated into food emulsions such as in DHA-enriched goat milk emulsion to stabilize added oil from oxidation. The HM seed oil was mixed with algae oil, a rich source of omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; C22:6n-3), before emulsification and storage of goat milk. The addition of HM seed oil containing phenolics to algae oil at 1:1 ratio prior to goat milk emulsification significantly (p < 0.05) protected the goat milk emulsions against oxidative deterioration. In goat milk emulsions, the addition of ascorbyl palmitate retarded oxidation as was determined by the peroxide values and anisidine values

Lutein-Enriched Emulsion-Based Delivery System: Impact of Casein-Phospholipid Emulsifiers on Chemical Stability

The health benefits of carotenoids in terms of their role in decreasing the risk of diseases, particularly certain cancers and eye disease, are limited by their chemical degradation. Emulsion delivery systems with water dispersions of a carotenoid enhance chemical stability and bioavailability to the host. An emulsified carotenoid delivery system can be based on carotenoid dissolution in lipid media and its stabilization by a surfactant mixture of milk proteins (the caseins) and phospholipids. The inclusion of lutein into an emulsified delivery system comprised of bovine casein or caprine casein in combination with phospholipids (soybean lecithin) enhanced the chemical stability of lutein during storage for 7 days at pH 7.0 at incubation temperatures of 5 and 15°C. The chemical stability of lutein in the corn oil-in-water emulsions stabilized by bovine and caprine caseins in combination with soybean lecithin was in the following order: caprine αs1-II-casein/lecithin > caprine αs1-I-casein/lecithin > bovine casein/lecithin. The results suggest that the chemical stability of lutein in oil-in-water emulsions can be enhanced by altering the thickness of the interfacial layer. Caprine casein/lecithin has the potential for use as an emulsifier in beverage emulsions

Hydration and activity studies of bovine skeletal muscle proteins and wheat gliadins by nuclear magnetic resonance

\sp1H and \sp{17}O NMR studies of water and ion binding to bovine skeletal muscle proteins in solutions and suspensions were carried out as a function of concentration, pH/pD, and salt. Numerical analysis of the data was performed by nonlinear regression on an Apple-MacIntosh II microcomputer, using a thermodynamic linkage approach. The second virial coefficient, B\sb{\rm o}, of myosin $A$ and $B$ was obtained from the protein concentration dependence of the relaxation rates at high ionic strength (with 0.5 M NaCl). Myosin self-association in the form of tail-to-tail dimers was inferred from the NMR data in the absence of salt. At higher salt concentrations than 0.6 M NaCl, heptamer formation was inferred for myofibrillar proteins, whereas in the presence of 0.5 M NaCl, myosin was found to be fully dispersed as monomers. The "binding" of water to myosin $A$ appears to involve primarily carboxyl groups at high pH and imidazolium or ammonium groups at low pH, with hydration being minimal at the isoelectric point (5.5). The molecular dynamics of hydration water and ions bound to myosin occurred on a time scale of tens of picoseconds. The analysis of \sp{23}Na NMR studies of Na\sp+ binding to myofibrillar proteins reveals the presence of two types of binding sites on these proteins.Binding of Mn\sp{2+} ions to wheat gliadins was studied by observing the paramagnetic relaxation enhancement of the "bound" water protons at 10 and 20 MHz; from such studies the number of charged carboxyl groups was found to be n = 7 $\pm$ 1 at pH 3.4 and 25\sp\circC, with a binding constant for Mn\sp{2+}, K\sb{\rm f} = 12.9 M\sp{-1}. \sp\tau\sb{\rm c} of water "bound" to Mn\sp{2+} attached to wheat gliadins in solutions was determined to be 18 ns.U of I OnlyETDs are only available to UIUC Users without author permissio

Antioxidant compositions and methods of use thereof

An antioxidant composition having enhanced oxidative stability, emulsion stability, and health benefits. The composition may include individual ingredients or a synergistic blend of non-reducing sugars, sugar polyols, medium-chain triglycerides, polysaccharides, polyphenols, phospholipids, chitosan, and alpha-casein, beta-casein, kappa-casein or protein fragments, glycopeptides, phosphopeptides. The composition may optionally be further utilized for the prevention of hypercholesterolemia or bone mineral loss.U

κ-Carrageenan interaction with bovine and caprine caseins as shown by sedimentation and NMR spectroscopic techniques implication of surface charge by a homologous three-dimensional model for α S2-casein: κ-carrageenan-casein interaction

The solubility and hydration characteristics of κ-carrageenan-casein systems from bovine and caprine milk with incorporated salt (NaCl) were determined by means of sedimentation and 17O nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments. Relative salt interaction parameters both for caseins alone and in mixtures with κ-carrageenan were assessed by nonlinear regression analysis from the characteristics of solubilization of the systems. The κ-carrageenan-casein interactions appear to depend largely on the ratios of κ- to α S1-casein and possibly α S2-casein. Second virial coefficients (B o values) and hydration products derived from 17O NMR data suggest that while soluble at high salt, the caprine casein mixtures exhibit strong interactions, whereas the bovine counterparts do not. At lower salt concentrations the solubility data and the 17O NMR data are in agreement. Thus, a structural dependence upon protein components in salt containing κ-carrageenan-casein solutions from bovine and caprine milk has been demonstrated. The evidence suggested a role for α-casein in the interactions observed. A homologous three dimensional model for α S2-casein was developed to test this hypothesis. The model was produced by the use of a template model derived from a crystal structure of a human chloride intracellular channel (CLIC)-I and demonstrates a large positively charged surface potential for interactions with the negatively charged the negatively charged κ-carregeenan. © 2006 American Chemical Society

Nanoemulsion compositions and methods of use thereof

A nanoemulsion composition having enhanced oxidative stability, emulsion stability, and health benefits. The composition may include individual ingredients or a synergistic blend of non-reducing sugars, sugar polyols, medium-chain triglycerides, polysaccharides, polyphenols, phospholipids, chitosan, and alpha-casein, beta-casein, kappa-casein or protein fragments, glycopeptides, phosphopeptides. The composition may optionally be further utilized for the prevention of hypercholesterolemia or bone (and teeth) mineral loss.U

Bioactive complexes compositions and methods of use thereof

A bioactive complex composition having enhanced oxidative stability, emulsion stability, mineral rich transparent beverages and a wide range of functional health benefits. The composition may include as a base composition individual ingredients or a synergistic blend of mineral salts, Omega-3 rich oils, phospholipids, chitosan, and alpha-casein, beta-casein, kappa-casein or protein fragments, glycopeptides, phosphopeptides. The composition may optionally be further utilized for the prevention of hypercholesterolemia, bone (and teeth) mineral loss, treatment of mental health diseases, heart health, additional nutritional supplementation, and treatment of additional medical conditions.U

Nanoemulsion compositions and methods of use thereof

A nanoemulsion composition having enhanced oxidative stability, emulsion stability, and health benefits. The composition may include individual ingredients or a synergistic blend of non-reducing sugars, sugar polyols, medium-chain triglycerides, polysaccharides, polyphenols, phospholipids, chitosan, and alpha-casein, beta-casein, kappa-casein or protein fragments, glycopeptides, phosphopeptides. The composition may optionally be further utilized for the prevention of hypercholesterolemia or bone (and teeth) mineral loss.U

Carbon-13 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Studies of Chemically Modified Waxy Maize Starch, Corn Syrups, and Maltodextrins. Comparisons with Potato Starch and Potato Maltodextrins

Comparative studies of corn syrups, maltodextrins, chemically modified waxy maize starch, and corn starch were carried out by carbon-13 NMR techniques. Spectral assignments were made for all materials studied and were checked against independent assignments by proton-carbon correlation spectroscopy. Degrees of branching and polymerization were estimated for maltodextrins from corn starch and were compared with those of potato maltodextrins in relation to the observed difference in the gelling behavior and functionality of corn and potato maltodextrins, respectively. Chemical shifts were found to be similar among maltodextrins from corn and potato, as well as wheat amylopectin and amylopectin B. A comparison of solid-state 13C NMR spectra of corn, wheat, and potato starches reveals their polymorphism, in terms of the number of glucose rings in the “unit cell” of the amylopectin crystalline regions of starch granules. Gelatinization causes changes in the symmetry of the crystalline regions of amylopectins inside waxy maize starch granules and/or increased mobility of branches in such regions. A broad band in the anomeric region of the solid-state 13C NMR spectra of waxy maize starch is assigned to the disordered regions of amylopectin in the starch granule structure. Carbon-13 NMR is shown to be a valuable, noninvasive tool for comparative, structural studies of corn starches and products derived from starch. Structural details were obtained that are relevant to gelatinization and gelling mechanisms. For corn maltodextrins structural details were obtained concerning the degrees of branching and polymerization, as well as the anomers; such details were compared between corn and potato starch maltodextrins and found to be significantly different. © 1991, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved