The Effect of Various Film Packaging, Wax Coating and Storage Conditions on the Shelf Life and Quality of Pomegranate Fruits

In this study, ‘Rabbab’ pomegranates (Punica granatum L.) were subjected before storage to single-layered wax coating (SLW), double-layered wax coating (DLW), individual-seal film packaging (ISP), tray wrap film packaging (TWP), and combined treatments of SLW + ISP or SLW + TWP. Treated fruits were then stored at ambient temperature (15–20 °C; 45–50% relative humidity – RH) or in cold conditions (5 °C ± 0.5; 85% RH) for 18 weeks. TWP, ISP, DLW, and SLW extended the shelf life of pomegranates for 18, 18, 12, and 11 weeks at cold (5 °C) condition, and also for 6, 5, 3, and 3 weeks at ambient condition, respectively, whereas the shelf life of control fruits were 10 and 2 weeks at cold and ambient conditions, respectively. After 18 weeks of storage, the weight loss in ISP and TWP fruits was 0.6 and 0.4% at cold condition and 12.4 and 5.4% at ambient condition, respectively. In general, film packaging maintained vitamin C, total titratable acidity, and sensory analysis scores for color, freshness, juiciness, and taste of pomegranates more effectively than wax coating and control. However, the combination of SLW and ISP or TWP did not improve the efficiency of pomegranates packaged as either ISP or TWP

Heat transfer reduction using self shading strategy in energy commission building in Malaysia

Most office buildings have been constructed without enough strategies for appropriate use of solar energy, especially in tropical regions. Different forms of buildings and strategies were recommended. Whereas conventional building envelops receive more solar radiation, self-shading strategy was suggested as a form of building to eliminate direct solar radiation; as a result, it causes less energy for cooling office spaces. Energy commission diamond building in Malaysia is an actual model of self-shading building. In this study, the objective is to investigate the amount of Overall Thermal Transfer Value (OTTV) reduction in energy commission diamond building. To this end, the effectiveness of self-shading strategy on OTTV is investigated through experimental and analytical approaches. Findings of this research demonstrate that the significant reduction occurs in using self-shading strategy. This strategy can be applied for forthcoming design of office buildings to reduce energy consumption as well as to meet the purpose of sustainable architecture

Influence of foliar application of volk oil, dormex, gibberellic acid and potassium nitrate on vegetative growth and reproductive characteristics of strawberry cv. ‘Merak’

Application of chemicals for strawberry forcing or production in subtropical regions in autumn or winter months, inside or outside of greenhouse has been reported as a successful method. Present study was carried out to evaluate the effects of Volk oil (2.5, 5%), Dormex (0.5, 1%), GA3 (50, 100 mg. L-1) and KNO3 on vegetative and reproductive growth of strawberry cv. ‘Merak’ in subtropic conditions of Darab city in Fars province of Iran. Dormant young rooted daughter plants were potted in 3L plastic pots and after 2 weeks of establishment period the treatments were applied and then plants were grown for 3.5 months in outside conditions. Results indicated that KNO3 caused augmentation of leaf surface area, roots length, number of flowers and inflorescences. Also Dormex at 1% concentration increased flowering period and decreased number of runners. Volk oil at both concentrations improved roots length and number of achenes in primary and secondary fruits. Conclusion showed that the mentioned materials could have impact on vegetative and reproductive growth of strawberry generally. In this study KNO3 resulted in best and maximum effects on plant growth

Nutritional Status and Its Associated Factors in Elderly With Diabetes, 2015

Objectives Malnutrition is a clinical disorder and a common risk factor in older patients with diabetes that may impact their health. This study aimed to assess nutritional status and associated factors in elderly with diabetes in Kerman City, Iran. Methods & Materials This was a cross-sectional study conducted in Kerman in which 190 older patients with diabetes were included. Their nutritional habit was measured using the MNA. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics and correlation among variables, analyzed by the Chi Square, T-test, and One Way ANOVA. Results The findings showed that 5.3% of elderly patients were suffering from malnutrition, and in 51.6% nutritional status was normal. Also, there was a statistically significant association between nutritional status and gender (P=0.036). There was a significant negative relationship between duration of diabetes and nutritional status in the elderly (r=0.192, P=0.008). Conclusion It is necessary to maintain and improve the status of elderly diabetic patients with malnutrition by administering normal nutritional status and special attentio

Estimation of basic reproductive number of flu-like syndrome in a primary school in Iran

Introduction: Iran, similar to other countries, had faced H1N1 flu outbreak in 2009. In order to assess its transmission dynamic, we estimated its force of infection (β) and basic reproductive number (R 0 ). Methods: Within a middle size primary school in Iran, we actively followed students and detected flu-like syndrome among students and their families in the first three months of academic year; October through December 2009. We estimated the probability of disease transmission within families (β) fitting random effects Poisson regression model. Moreover, R 0 within the school was computed based on the number of detected cases. Results: In 452 students, 204 influenza-like syndromes were detected. The estimated β within families was 0.10; increasing one infectious member within each family was associated with 30% increase in this number. The estimated R 0 for the first month was 1.21 (95% C.I.: 0.99, 1.47); corresponding numbers for the first two and first three months were 1.28 (95% C.I.: 1.05, 1.54) and 1.32 (95% C.I.: 1.11, 1.59), respectively. Conclusion: It seems that the dynamic transmission of H1N1 virus was more or less comparable with that in other seasonal species. Our findings showed that the virus mainly circulated among students within schools. In addition, it seems that the transmission rate within families was relatively high

The ameliorative effects of spermidine and calcium chloride on chilling injury in pomegranate fruits after long-term storage

Introduction. Pomegranate fruits (Punica granatum L.) are chilling-sensitive crops. Materials and methods. Pomegranate fruits were treated with calcium chloride and spermidine, alone or in combination, by normal dip and vacuum infiltration methods. The treated fruits were stored at 2 °C for 4 months. At the end of the storage period, samples were held for 3 days at 20 °C, then the qualitative constituents were evaluated. Results and discussion. Treated fruits exhibited less weight loss and higher juice content than control fruits. Non-treated fruits developed chilling injury manifested as an increase in K+ leakage and polyphenol oxidase activity. Calcium chloride and spermidine treatments resulted in lower soluble solid content, but some fruits showed higher titratable acidity. All treatments significantly increased ascorbic acid content. The pH of aril juice in treated fruits was lower than that of non-treated fruits, probably due to higher titratable acidity. Total antioxidant activity and total phenolic content increased in treated fruits. In our study, a correlation was observed between total phenolic content and total antioxidant activity. Conclusion. The treatments applied in our experiments maintained overall quality of pomegranate fruits during long-term storage. Postharvest application of calcium and spermidine either alone or in combination could ameliorate adverse effects of low temperature on pomegranate fruit quality during cold storage. Vacuum infiltration was as effective as the normal dip method. However, normal dip is a simpler and faster treatment method

The expression changes of PD-L1 and immune response mediators are related to the severity of primary bone tumors

Abstract The expression pattern, diagnostic value, and association of PD-L1, IFN-γ and TGF-β with bone tumor type, severity, and relapse are determined in this study. 300 human samples from patients with osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, and GCT were enrolled. The PD-L1 gene and protein expression were assessed by qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry, respectively. ELISA and flow cytometry was used to detect cytokines and CD4/CD8 T cell percentages, respectively. A considerable increase in PD-L1 level was detected in bone tumor tissues at both gene and protein levels that was considerable in osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma. A positive correlation was detected regarding the PD-L1 and tumor metastasis and recurrence in osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma. The increased IFN-γ level was detected in patients with metastatic, and recurrent osteosarcoma tumors that were in accordance with the level of TGF-β in these samples. The simultaneous elevation of IFN-γ and TGF-β was detected in Ewing sarcoma and GCT, also the CD4 + /CD8 + ratio was decreased significantly in patients with osteosarcoma compared to GCT tumors. The elevated levels of PD-L1, TGF- β, and IFN-γ were associated with bone tumor severity that can provide insights into the possible role of this axis in promoting immune system escape, suppression, and tumor invasion