Effect of a New Natural Seasoning on the Formation of Pyrazines in Barbecued Beef Patties

The formation of pyrazines in food cooking is required to obtain satisfactory “roasted” flavor.The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of a new red wine pomace seasoning (RWPS) on the formation of pyrazines in barbecued beef patties. Five pyrazines were successfully identified, 2,5-dimethylpyrazine being the most abundant. Although 2-ethyl-5-methylpyrazine was in lower levels, it presented the highest odor units, due to its low threshold. RWPS enhanced the formation of the five identified pyrazines (2.1 times), without relevant changes in the proportion between them.The highest increase was observed for 2-ethyl-6-methylpyrazine (3 times higher than in control). These results were corroborated by electronic nose analysis, presenting RWPS beef patties higher odor intensities. Mechanisms to explain these effects are also proposed in the present work, and the high content of polyphenols seems to be the major cause of the observed results.The use of RWPS could improve the flavor characteristics of meat products or enable using less intense cooking conditions with no changes in the flavor.Autonomous Government of Castilla y Le´on through the research Projects BU282U1

Performance evaluation of a point of care cartridge of the new GEM Premier ChemSTAT analyzer

Acute kidney injury; Creatinine; Point-of-careLesión renal aguda; Creatinina; Punto de atenciónLesió renal aguda; Creatinina; Punt d'atencióBackground and aims GEM Premier ChemSTAT is a new point-of-care system providing rapid creatinine, BUN and tCO2 measurements together with electrolytes, metabolites, hematocrit, pH and pCO2 from a single whole blood specimen in acute care settings such as emergency departments and intensive care units. Accurate measurements of whole blood creatinine can aid in the diagnosis and treatment of renal diseases. Materials and methods Heparinized whole blood samples from different clinical locations were evaluated on the GEM Premier ChemSTAT and results compared to plasma from the same samples on the Beckman AU5800 or whole blood on the GEM Premier 4000. Precision studies were conducted with whole blood and quality control material. Results ChemSTAT correlated well with plasma samples on the AU5800 (regression slopes (S): 0.957–1.159, correlation coefficients (r)≥0.952) and with whole blood specimens on the GEM Premier 4000 (S: 0.9646–1.124, r ≥ 0.974). The repeatability was 0.1%–3.1% and QC precision were within lab and manufacturers’ specifications. Conclusion ChemSTAT demonstrated strong correlation to the comparative methods and excellent precision. Combining with its continuous quality management, ChemSTAT is suitable for acute care settings to provide rapid, reliable results, which could minimize time-to-treatment and improve patient outcome

Wine pomace product ameliorates hypertensive and diabetic aorta vascular remodeling through antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions

Vascular remodeling in hypertension and diabetes is characterized by a low-grade inflammation of the arterial wall and enhanced oxidative stress. Wine pomace products attenuate hyperglycemia and hypertension through reduction of oxidative stress and inflammation by their polyphenol composition. The aim of the study was to assess the influence of the wine pomace product (WP) on morphometric parameters of the arterial wall in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and streptozotocin-diabetic rats (STZ). Oxidative stress was also evaluated by determination of radical oxygen species (ROS) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activation in thoracic aortas. Wine pomace reduces wall aortic thickness, cross sectional area and wall/lumen ratio, and decreases ROS and increases eNOS activation. In summary, the supplementation of hypertensive or diabetic rats with the wine pomace product exhibits a protective role against the endothelial dysfunction and vascular remodeling.Autonomous Government of Castilla y León (Research project BU282U1

Workers with mental health problems. General guidelines for detection, intervention and prevention

Actualizaciones y revisiones[ES] Numerosos estudios han demostrado las relaciones entre condiciones psicosociales del trabajo y la salud mental de los empleados, y especialmente cómo la combinación de bajo control percibido y altas demandas laborales predicen determinados problemas de salud mental. Trastornos mentales tales como los de ansiedad y depresión tienen un efecto muy negativo sobre la calidad de vida y la capacidad funcional en el trabajo. Además, la salud mental del trabajador puede afectar a la percepción de las características del trabajo. Como consecuencia, es fundamental diseñar trabajos saludables, programas de reducción de estrés para los empleados y para la reincorporación laboral de empleados con trastornos mentales. El objetivo del presente artículo es revisar las principales líneas de prevención, detección e intervención en las organizaciones, que pueden promover políticas saludables para la atención e integración de los trabajadores con trastorno mental. [EN] Numerous studies have demonstrated the relationship between psychosocial work conditions and the mental health of employees, and especially the combination of low perceived control and high labor demands predicts mental health problems. Mental health disorders such us anxiety or depression have a big detrimental effect on the individual’s quality of life and the ability to function in the workplace. Mental health may also affect the perception of work characteristics. As a consequence, it is essential to design healthy jobs, stress reduction programs and return to work programs for employees with mental disorders. The aim of this paper is to review the main lines of prevention, detection and intervention in organizations that can promote healthy policies for the care and integration of workers with mental disorder.N

Plasmonic-assisted thermocyclizations in living cells using metal−organic framework based nanoreactors

We describe a microporous plasmonic nanoreactor to carry out designed near-infrared (NIR)-driven photothermal cyclizations inside living cells. As a proof of concept, we chose an intramolecular cyclization that is based on the nucleophilic attack of a pyridine onto an electrophilic carbon, a process that requires high activation energies and is typically achieved in bulk solution by heating at ∼90 °C. The core–shell nanoreactor (NR) has been designed to include a gold nanostar core, which is embedded within a metal–organic framework (MOF) based on a polymer-stabilized zeolitic imidazole framework-8 (ZIF-8). Once accumulated inside living cells, the MOF-based cloak of NRs allows an efficient diffusion of reactants into the plasmonic chamber, where they undergo the transformation upon near-IR illumination. The photothermal-driven reaction enables the intracellular generation of cyclic fluorescent products that can be tracked using fluorescence microscopy. The strategy may find different type of applications, such as for the spatio-temporal activation of prodrugsThe authors thank the financial support of the MCIN/AEI (PID2020-119206RB-I00, PID2019-108624RB-I00, CTQ2017-84767-P, RYC-2017-23457, RYC-2019-028238-I, RTI2018-093813-J-I00), the Xunta de Galicia (ED431F 2017/02, 2021-CP054, ED431C-2021/25, Centro Singular de Investigación de Galicia Accreditation 2019−2022, and ED431G 2019/03), the European Union (European Regional Development Fund − ERDF; H2020-MSCA-IF grant agreement no. 749667; H2020-MSCA-ITN grant agreement no. 860942; H2020-FET-Open grant agreement No. 899612; and INTERREG V-A Spain−Portugal, project 0624_2IQBIONEURO_6_E), and the European Research Council (starting grant no. 950421, advanced grant no. 340055). The support of the orfeo-cinqa network (CTQ2016-81797-REDC) is also kindly acknowledgedS

Core-Shell Palladium/MOF Platforms as Diffusion-Controlled Nanoreactors in Living Cells and Tissue Models

Translating the potential of transition metal catalysis to biological and living environments promises to have a profound impact in chemical biology and biomedicine. A major challenge in the field is the creation of metal-based catalysts that remain active over time. Here, we demonstrate that embedding a reactive metallic core within a microporous metal-organic framework-based cloak preserves the catalytic site from passivation and deactivation, while allowing a suitable diffusion of the reactants. Specifically, we report the fabrication of nanoreactors composed of a palladium nanocube core and a nanometric imidazolate framework, which behave as robust, long-lasting nanoreactors capable of removing propargylic groups from phenol-derived pro-fluorophores in biological milieu and inside living cells. These heterogeneous catalysts can be reused within the same cells, promoting the chemical transformation of recurrent batches of reactants. We also report the assembly of tissue-like 3D spheroids containing the nanoreactors and demonstrate that they can perform the reactions in a repeated mannerThe authors thank the financial support of the MINECO ( CTQ2017-89588-R , SAF2016-76689-R , CTQ2017-84767-P , RYC-2014-16962 , and RYC-2017-23457 ), the Xunta de Galicia ( ED431F 2017/02 , 2015-CP082 , ED431C 2017/19 , and Centro singular de investigación de Galicia accreditation 2019-2022, ED431G 2019/03 ), the European Union (European Regional Development Fund [ERDF]; H2020-MSCA-IF-2016 grant agreement no. 749667 ; and INTERREG V-A Spain-Portugal [POCTEP] 2014-2020, project 0624_2IQBIONEURO_6_E ), and the European Research Council (advanced grant no. 340055 ). Support of the orfeo-cinqa network ( CTQ2016-81797-REDC ) is also kindly acknowledgedS

Aqueous Stable Gold Nanostar/ZIF‐8 Nanocomposites for Light‐Triggered Release of Active Cargo Inside Living Cells

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: C. Carrillo-Carrión, R. Martínez, M. F. Navarro Poupard, B. Pelaz, E. Polo, A. Arenas-Vivo, A. Olgiati, P. Taboada, M. G. Soliman, Ú. Catalán, S. Fernández-Castillejo, R. Solà, W. J. Parak, P. Horcajada, R. A. Alvarez-Puebla, P. del Pino, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2019, 58, 7078, which has been published in final form at https:// doi.org/10.1002/anie.201902817. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived VersionsA plasmonic core–shell gold nanostar/zeolitic‐imidazolate‐framework‐8 (ZIF‐8) nanocomposite was developed for the thermoplasmonic‐driven release of encapsulated active molecules inside living cells. The nanocomposites were loaded, as a proof of concept, with bisbenzimide molecules as functional cargo and wrapped with an amphiphilic polymer that prevents ZIF‐8 degradation and bisbenzimide leaking in aqueous media or inside living cells. The demonstrated molecule‐release mechanism relies on the use of near‐IR light coupled to the plasmonic absorption of the core gold nanostars, which creates local temperature gradients and thus, bisbenzimide thermodiffusion. Confocal microscopy and surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) were used to demonstrate bisbenzimide loading/leaking and near‐IR‐triggered cargo release inside cells, thereby leading to DNA stainingThis work has received financial support from the MINECO‐Spain (MAT2016‐80266‐R, MAT2015‐74381‐JIN, CTQ2017‐88648R, ENE2016‐79608‐C2‐1‐R, CTQ2017‐89588‐R, RYC‐2014‐15039, RYC‐2014‐16962), the Xunta de Galicia, Centro singular de investigación de Galicia accreditation 2016–2019 (ED431G/09), the Agrupación Estratégica de Materiales Action (ED431E 2018/08), the Generalitat de Cataluña (2017SGR522, 2017SGR883, SLT002/16/00239), the URV (2017PFR‐URV‐B2‐02), the German Research Society (DFG PA 794‐21‐1), and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund—ERDF, H2020‐MSCA‐IF‐2016, project 749667). M.F.N.P acknowledges the CONACYT PhD fellowship programS

Research Group on Earth Observation, Geological Risks and Climate Change (OBTIER)

[EN] Within the framework of the IGME-CSIC Department of Geological Hazards and Climate Change, the OBTIER research group was created in July 2021 and currently has 22 members, including scientific and technical staff, as well as young people with contracts linked to competitive national and international research projects. The main objective of the group is to provide society with scientific information, methods, tools and solutions to mitigate the impact of geohazards and the effects of Climate Change. OBTIER is currently leading 6 competitive projects (4 European and 2 national), as well as several projects in agreement with other national and international administrations. It is an active member of the EuroGeoSurveys Earth Observation Expert Group and the ASGMI Geological Hazards Group. OBTIER offers society a wide range of capabilities on: earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, land subsidence, volcanic eruptions, droughts and floods. In 2021, the group published an article in Science entitled: Mapping the global threat of land subsidence with significant media coverage around the world.Peer reviewe

Adaptation and Validation of QUick, Easy, New, CHEap, and Reproducible (QUENCHER) Antioxidant Capacity Assays in Model Products Obtained from Residual Wine Pomace

Evaluation of the total antioxidant capacity of solid matrices without extraction steps is a very interesting alternative for food researchers and also for food industries. These methodologies have been denominated QUENCHER from QUick, Easy, New, CHEap, and Reproducible assays. To demonstrate and highlight the validity of QUENCHER (Q) methods, values of Q-method validation were showed for the first time, and they were tested with products of well-known different chemical properties. Furthermore, new QUENCHER assays to measure scavenging capacity against superoxide, hydroxyl, and lipid peroxyl radicals were developed. Calibration models showed good linearity (R2 > 0.995), proportionality and precision (CV < 6.5%), and acceptable detection limits (<20.4 nmol Trolox equiv). The presence of ethanol in the reaction medium gave antioxidant capacity values significantly different from those obtained with water. The dilution of samples with powdered cellulose was discouraged because possible interferences with some of the matrices analyzed may take place.The autonomous government of Castilla y León (Project BU268A11-2