BCG vaccination and leprosy protection: review of current evidence and status of BCG in leprosy control.

The bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine, initially developed to provide protection against TB, also protects against leprosy; and the magnitude of this effect varies. Previous meta-analyses did not provide a summary estimate of the efficacy due to the heterogeneity of the results. We conducted a meta-analysis of published data including recently published studies (up to June 2009) to determine the efficacy of BCG protection on leprosy and to investigate whether age at vaccination, clinical form, number of doses, type of study, the latitude of study area and year of publication influence the degree of efficacy and explain the variation. In the light of the results, we argue for more emphasis on the role of BCG vaccination in leprosy control and research

Mycotoxins of Concern in Children and Infant Cereal Food at European Level: Incidence and Bioaccessibility

Cereals are of utmost importance for the nutrition of infants and children, as they provide important nutrients for their growth and development and, in addition, they are easily digestible, being the best choice for the transition from breast milk/infant formula to solid foods. It is well known that children are more susceptible than adults to toxic food contaminants, such as mycotoxins, common contaminants in cereals. Many mycotoxins are already regulated and controlled according to strict quality control standards in Europe and around the world. There are, however, some mycotoxins about which the level of knowledge is lower: the so-called emerging mycotoxins, which are not yet regulated. The current review summarizes the recent information (since 2014) published in the scientific literature on the amounts of mycotoxins in infants' and children's cereal-based food in Europe, as well as their behaviour during digestion (bioaccessibility). Additionally, analytical methods used for mycotoxin determination and in vitro methods used to evaluate bioaccessibility are also reported. Some studies demonstrated the co-occurrence of regulated and emerging mycotoxins in cereal products used in children's food, which highlights the need to adopt guidelines on the simultaneous presence of more than one mycotoxin. Although very little research has been done on the bioaccessibility of mycotoxins in these food products, very interesting results correlating the fiber and lipid contents of such products with a higher or lower bioaccessibility of mycotoxins were reported. LC-MS/MS is the method of choice for the detection and quantification of mycotoxins due to its high sensibility and accuracy. In vitro static digestion models are the preferred ones for bioaccessibility evaluation due to their simplicity and accuracy

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers and metabolites – an analytical review on seafood occurrence

Environmental health is systematically compromised by persistent toxic substances, which may have serious implications in terms of food safety issues and, thus, in general public health. In this context, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and their biologically active metabolites have been increasingly assessed in seafood, the main route of human exposure. As a consequence, a multiplicity of solvent-assisted analytical approaches is now available to accurately determine tiny amounts of these contaminants in complex matrices, like seafood. However, the majority of analytical procedures lead to high organic solvent consumption, thereby also contributing to the deterioration of environmental health. The current review provides up-to-date information and critical discussion regarding the most common methodologies applied in the determination of PBDEs and their metabolites in seafood (2006–2016), from sample preparation to instrumental analysis. The ultimate goals of this comprehensive survey are to sensitize field researchers to work under the principles of green chemistry and to improve the global consciousness on the potential necessity of their regulation in foodstuffs.Rebeca Cruz, Sara C. Cunha and Susana Casal thanks REQUIMTE, FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) and FEDER through the project UID/QUI/50006/2013 e POCI/01/0145/FEDER/007265 with financial support from FCT/MEC through national funds and co-financed by FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020. R. Cruz also thanks to REQUIMTE FCT for the PhD grant e FRH/BD/ 101945/2014. Antonio Marques and Sara C. Cunha acknowledge FCT for the IF2014 and IF/01616/2015 contracts, respectively

Fried potatoes: Impact of prolonged frying in monounsaturated oils

Fresh potatoes were intermittently deep-fried up to recommended limits (175 °C, 8 h/day, 28 h) in extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), peanut oil (PO) and canola oil (CO), and compared for diverse chemical components and sensorial attributes, aiming to quantify the impact of prolonged frying on potatoes nutrients, and the potential alterations resulting from the use of different monounsaturated-rich oils. Independently of oil type, its degradation promotes time-dependent losses of important potato nutrients, as vitamin C. Regarding the monounsaturated-rich oils tested, potatoes fried in CO had more equilibrated fatty acid profiles, but higher amounts of aldehydes derived from PUFA oxidation, while in EVOO were enriched with phenolic compounds. Acrylamide amounts were not affected by oil type or frying hours. Sensory degradation was gradually perceived by the panellists, except in PO. Prolonged frying should not be studied only on the basis of oil degradation because, even if within regulated limits, it induces loss of important food compounds.The authors acknowledge the financial support from PRODER (Contract n° 53988), co-financed by FAEDER, and from project UID/QUI/50006/2013 – POCI/01/0145/FEDER/007265 with financial support from FCT/MEC through national funds, co-financed by FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020 and the PhD Grant—SFRH/BD/82285/2011 attributed to Carla S.P. Santos. Lucía Molina García also acknowledges the financial support from Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario (ceiA3) and University of Jaén, from Spain

Fibre enrichment of cookies to mitigate acrylamide formation and gastrointestinal bioaccessibility

Acrylamide (AA) is a food contaminant with serious health effects. In this work, the addition of dietary fibre was proposed to mitigate AA in cookies and to reduce bioaccesibility in the gastrointestinal trac. The analytical methodology applied for AA quantification was based on solid-liquid extraction (SLE) followed by gas chromatography (GC) coupled to mass spectrometry (MS). Preliminar results with commercial dietary fibres, such as k-carrageenan, arabinogalactan and pectin, indicated that the highest reduction of AA could be obtained with the addition of 5 g of pectin/100 g of flour to cookies recipe. Thus, different sources of pectin were evaluated: commercial pectin (CP) and three apple pomaces (dehydrated apple pomace (DP), sugar removed lyophilized apple pomace (SRL) and sugar removed lyophilized and powdered apple pomace (SRLP)). The highest AA mitigation was obtained with SRL and SRLP (62% and 48% of inhibition). After in vitro digestion, all sources of dietary fibres provided the lowest bioaccessibility results (1346%) compared with control (>63%). (c) 2023 The Author

Comparative Fingerprint Changes of Toxic Volatiles in Low PUFA Vegetable Oils Under Deep-Frying

The volatile fraction of three vegetable oils recommended for deep-frying due to their high MUFA:PUFA ratios, namely extra-virgin olive oil, peanut oil and canola oil, was compared before and after frying potatoes, with a particular focus on toxic volatiles. For the purpose, a headspace solid-phase-micro extraction technique coupled with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry was optimized, with semi-quantification achieved using two internal standards. Significant qualitative and quantitative differences were observed, both before and after frying. From a total of 51 compounds, aldehydes were the main group formed after deep-frying, their nature and abundance being highly associated with the initial fatty acid composition, particularly linoleic acid (r2 = −0.999, p ≤ 0.001). Globally, extra-virgin olive oil revealed fewer formations of unsaturated aldehydes, including toxic ones, and correlated with lower amounts of degradation indicators, as polar compounds (r2 = 0.998, p ≤ 0.001) and p-anisidine value (r2 = 0.991, p ≤ 0.001). Despite the similarities in total unsaturation degree between canola and peanut oils, the former presented lower amount of volatiles, including E,E-2,4-decadienal and acrolein, the more toxic ones. These results highlight for the pertinence of volatile analyses to evaluate and compare oil degradation under thermal and oxidative stress, while complementing other degradation indicators. Additionally, the optimized methodology allows a direct comparison of different oil matrices, supporting further developments into more general methods for volatiles quantification, enabling more efficient comparison of results between research teams.The authors acknowledge the financial support from PRODER (Contract No. 53989), co-financed by FAEDER, and from project UID/QUI/50006/2013-POCI/01/0145/FEDER/007265 with financial support from FCT/MEC through national funds, cofinanced by FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020 and the PhD Grant—SFRH/BD/82285/2011 attributed to CSPS. LMG also acknowledges the financial support from Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario (ceiA3) and University of Jaén, from Spain

Influence of real-world characteristics on outcomes for patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcal skin and soft tissue infections:a multi-country medical chart review in Europe

BACKGROUND: Patient-related (demographic/disease) and treatment-related (drug/clinician/hospital) characteristics were evaluated as potential predictors of healthcare resource use and opportunities for early switch (ES) from intravenous (IV)-to-oral methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-active antibiotic therapy and early hospital discharge (ED). METHODS: This retrospective observational medical chart study analyzed patients (across 12 European countries) with microbiologically confirmed MRSA complicated skin and soft tissue infections (cSSTI), ≥3 days of IV anti-MRSA antibiotics during hospitalization (July 1, 2010-June 30, 2011), and discharged alive by July 31, 2011. Logistic/linear regression models evaluated characteristics potentially associated with actual resource use (length of IV therapy, length of hospital stay [LOS], IV-to-oral antibiotic switch), and ES and ED (using literature-based and expert-verified criteria) outcomes. RESULTS: 1542 patients (mean ± SD age 60.8 ± 16.5 years; 61.5% males) were assessed with 81.0% hospitalized for MRSA cSSTI as the primary reason. Several patient demographic, infection, complication, treatment, and hospital characteristics were predictive of length of IV therapy, LOS, IV-to-oral antibiotic switch, or ES and ED opportunities. Outcomes and ES and ED opportunities varied across countries. Length of IV therapy and LOS (r = 0.66, p < 0.0001) and eligibilities for ES and ED (r = 0.44, p < 0.0001) showed relatively strong correlations. IV-to-oral antibiotic switch patients had significantly shorter length of IV therapy (−5.19 days, p < 0.001) and non-significantly shorter LOS (−1.86 days, p > 0.05). Certain patient and treatment characteristics were associated with increased odds of ES (healthcare-associated/ hospital-acquired infection) and ED (patient living arrangements, healthcare-associated/ hospital-acquired infection, initiating MRSA-active treatment 1–2 days post cSSTI index date, existing ED protocol), while other factors decreased the odds of ES (no documented MRSA culture, ≥4 days from admission to cSSTI index date, IV-to-oral switch, IV line infection) and ED (dementia, no documented MRSA culture, initiating MRSA-active treatment ≥3 days post cSSTI index date, existing ES protocol). CONCLUSIONS: Practice patterns and opportunity for further ES and ED were affected by several infection, treatment, hospital, and geographical characteristics, which should be considered in identifying ES and ED opportunities and designing interventions for MRSA cSSTI to reduce IV days and LOS while maintaining the quality of care. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2334-14-476) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Emiliania huxleyi: bacteria interactions under increasing CO2 concentrations

The interactions established between marine microbes, namely phytoplankton–bacteria, are key to the balance of organic matter export to depth and recycling in the surface ocean. Still, their role in the response of phytoplankton to rising CO2 concentrations is poorly understood. Here, we show that the response of the cosmopolitan Emiliania huxleyi (E. huxleyi) to increasing CO2 is affected by the coexistence with bacteria. Specifically, decreased growth rate of E. huxleyi at enhanced CO2 concentrations was amplified in the bloom phase (potentially also related to nutrient concentrations) and with the coexistence with Idiomarina abyssalis (I. abyssalis) and Brachybacterium sp. In addition, enhanced CO2 concentrations also affected E. huxleyi’s cellular content estimates, increasing organic and decreasing inorganic carbon, in the presence of I. abyssalis, but not Brachybacterium sp. At the same time, the bacterial isolates only survived in coexistence with E. huxleyi, but exclusively I. abyssalis at present CO2 concentrations. Bacterial species or group-specific responses to the projected CO2 rise, together with the concomitant effect on E. huxleyi, might impact the balance between the microbial loop and the export of organic matter, with consequences for atmospheric carbon dioxide