Aroma precursors of grapes: contribution of variety and vineyard traning system to port wine aroma

In order to evaluate the influence of the vine training system in the composition in terpenes, norisoprenoids and their precursors (carotenoids and glycosidic molecules), these compounds were quantified in grapes and Port wines belonging to two varieties: Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca from Douro Region. The double cordon LYS 2/3 system was compared with the traditional method, the vertical shoot positioning VSP system. Touriga Nacional grapes and wines have higher contents in carotenoids, free and glycosylated fractions of terpenic and norisoprenoids compounds than Touriga Franca. In general, LYS 2/3 training system produced grapes and wines with high content in glycosylated fractions of terpenes and nor-isoprenoids, being more appropriate to the production of Port wines, which are submitted to an aging process

Street food in Eastern Europe: a perspective from an urban environment in Moldova

Street food is popular in Eastern Europe, but its diversity and nutritional value are unknown. This study aimed to characterise the street food environment in Chisinau, Moldova, including the vending sites and vendors, food availability and nutritional composition of foods and beverages. All street food vending sites (single point of sale) located in a 1-km buffer centred on the main public market were systematically selected (n439;n328 participants). Data on vending sites' characteristics (mobility, type of physical set-up and access to electricity), operating periods and food availability were collected. Samples of the most commonly available foods of unknown composition were collected (twenty-eight home-made and twenty-four industrial). Macronutrients, Na and K were quantified through chemical analysis. Fruits, beverages and food other than fruits were available in 2 center dot 5, 74 center dot 3 and 80 center dot 8 % of the vending sites, respectively. Among the latter, 66 center dot 4 % sold only industrial foods (e.g. pretzels, biscuits, wafers, chocolate and ice cream), 21 center dot 5 % only home-made (e.g. savoury and sweet pastries) and 12 center dot 1 % both. Home-made foods presented larger serving sizes and energy/serving (median kJ/serving: 1312 center dot 5v.670 center dot 3,P= 0 center dot 022); industrial foods were more energy-dense (median kJ/100 g: 1797 center dot 0v.1269 center dot 8,P= 0 center dot 002). High SFA,trans-fat and Na contents were found, reaching 10 center dot 9 g/serving, 1 center dot 4 g/serving and 773 center dot 7 mg/serving, respectively. Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages were available in 80 center dot 7 and 42 center dot 0 % of the vending sites selling beverages, respectively. Concluding, industrial snacks and home-made pastries high in Na and unhealthy fat were frequent in Chisinau. Prevention of diet-related diseases in Moldova may benefit from the improvement of the nutritional profile of street food

Macronutrient composition of street food in Central Asia: Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Background: Urban areas in central Asia are currently undergoing nutrition transition. Street food is very popular, but the specific foods available and their nutritional composition are unknown. The aim was to describe the availability and macronutrient composition of street foods in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Results: Trained interviewers collected data on street food vending sites' characteristics and food availability (n = 596). Samples of the most commonly available foods and drinks were collected (n = 80 homemade;n = 40 industrial). Macronutrients were quantified through chemical analysis. Fruit, beverages, and food other than fruit were available in 4.0%, 61.7%, and 81.0% of the vending sites, respectively. Among those selling food other than fruit, 56.5% sold only homemade (e.g., bread, main dishes, snacks, pastries, sandwiches, and cakes), 23.3% both homemade and industrial and 20.2% only industrial foods (e.g., bread, snacks, pastries, cakes, and cookies). Homemade foods presented the highest energy/serving (median kcal/serving: 357 versus 145,p < .001). A high content in saturated and trans-fatty acids was observed in some homemade traditional dishes and snacks, reaching, respectively, 30.2 g/serving and 2.9 g/serving (in homemademanty,a traditional dish). Tea and soft drinks were available in over 50% of the vending sites selling beverages. Conclusion: The high availability of street food in Bishkek highlights its importance for this urban population. Traditional snacks, dishes, and beverages coexist with more westernized products. The variability in energy, macronutrients, and lipid profile of homemade and industrial products reflects heterogeneous culinary practices and ingredients. Policies promoting the availability of healthy foods and ingredients should be implemented

Método dos Elementos Finitos: técnicas de simulação numérica em engenharia

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The Price of Homemade Street Food in Central Asia and Eastern Europe: Is There a Relation with Its Nutritional Value?

The aim was to describe the price of homemade street foods in four cities of Central Asia and Eastern Europe and to analyze its association with energy density, macronutrients, sodium and potassium contents. Cross-sectional evaluations of street food vending sites were conducted in Dushanbe, Tajikistan (n = 562), Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (n = 384), Almaty, Kazakhstan (n = 236) and Chis,inau, Moldova (n = 89) in 2016-2017. Information on the homemade street foods available, including price, was systematically collected; the most commonly available foods (n = 64) were sampled for chemical analysis. Prices were converted to international dollars ($) and expressed as$/serving, $/100 g and$/100 kcal. The median street food price was $1.00/serving,$0.85/100 g and $0.33/100 kcal. Traditional foods were cheaper per 100 g than the westernized ($0.77 vs. $1.00, p = 0.011). For each unit increase in energy density (kcal/g), the homemade street foods were$0.12 cheaper per 100 kcal and $0.11 more expensive per 100 g. The carbohydrate content was negatively associated with price per 100 kcal, while total fat, monounsaturated, saturated and trans-fatty acids content were positively associated with price per 100 g. Energy-dense homemade street foods were the cheapest. Further insight on food preparation might clarify the association between carbohydrates and monounsaturated fatty acids content and street food price

The central nervous system source modulates microglia function and morphology in vitro

The regional heterogeneity of microglia was first described a century ago by Pio del Rio Hortega. Currently, new information on microglia heterogeneity throughout central nervous system (CNS) regions is being revealed by high-throughput techniques. It remains unclear whether these spatial specificities translate into different microglial behaviors in vitro. We cultured microglia isolated from the cortex and spinal cord and analyzed the effect of the CNS spatial source on behavior in vitro by applying the same experimental protocol and culture conditions. We analyzed the microglial cell numbers, function, and morphology and found a distinctive in vitro phenotype. We found that microglia were present in higher numbers in the spinal-cord-derived glial cultures, presenting different expressions of inflammatory genes and a lower phagocytosis rate under basal conditions or after activation with LPS and IFN-γ. Morphologically, the cortical microglial cells were more complex and presented longer ramifications, which were also observed in vivo in CX3CR1+/GFP transgenic reporter mice. Collectively, our data demonstrated that microglial behavior in vitro is defined according to specific spatial characteristics acquired by the tissue. Thus, our study highlights the importance of microglia as a source of CNS for in vitro studies.This work was funded by the Santa Casa Neuroscience Awards—Prize Melo e Castro for Spinal Cord Injury Research (MC-18-2021), and it was partially funded by the Wings for Life Spinal Cord Research Foundation (WFL-ES-03/19). This work was also funded by national funds through the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT)—projects UIDB/50026/2020, UIDP/50026/2020, and EXPL/MED-PAT/0931/2021, and by the project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000039, supported by the Norte Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020) under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). We would like to acknowledge the support given by the Portuguese Foundation of Science and Technology to AGP (2020.07534.BD), AM (UMINHO/BIL-CNCG/2022/16), SM (CEECIND/01902/2017), and NAS (CEECIND/04794/2007)

Spinal cord RNA-seq data after a baclofen treatment in mice with a spinal cord injury

Spinal cord injury (SCI) leads to severe functional deficits. Currently, there are no available pharmacological treatments to promote neurological recovery in SCI patients. Recent work from our group has shown that a baclofen treatment can promote functional recovery after a compression SCI in mice [1]. Here, we provide transcriptomic (RNA-seq) data from adult mouse spinal cords collected 7 days after a compression SCI and baclofen (vs vehicle) administration. The Illumina NovaSeq 6000 platform was used to generate the raw transcriptomic data. In addition, we also present bioinformatic analyses including differential gene expression analysis, enrichment analyses for various functional annotations (gene ontology, KEGG and BioCarta pathways or InterPro domains) and transcription factor targets. The raw RNA-seq data has been uploaded to the NCBI Sequence Read Archive (SRA) database (Bioproject ID PRJNA886048). The data generated from the bioinformatic analyses is contained within the articleThis work was supported by the Wings for Life Spinal Cord Research Foundation (grant reference WFL-ES-03/19), the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) EXPL/MED-FAR/1529/2021 to N. de Sousa and through the Scientific Employment Stimulus to N. Silva and S. Monteiro (CEECIND/04794/2017 and CEECIND/01902/2017) and Grant PID2020-115121GB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 to A. Barreiro-IglesiasS