Texture and sensory changes of a fresh ewe's cheese packed under different modified atmospheres

Shelf-life extension of fresh ewe's milk cheese packaged with three different MAP conditions was studied. Fresh cheeses were stored in barrier trays, hermetically sealed with a barrier to gas and water film. The gas mixtures used were: 20%CO2/80%N2, 30%CO2/70%N2 and 50%CO2/50%N2. Trays were stored at 4°C and inspected at 0,7, 14 and 21 days. Physical-chernical and rnicrobiological analyses (pH, colour, dry matter, aw, mesophilic micro-organisms, psychrotrops, total coliforrns, Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Staphilococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes), gas composition inside the packaging (CO2, O2 and N2), texture analysis (puncture test and Texture Pro file Analysis-TPA) and sensory evaluation (acceptability test by scoring for colour, flavour, taste and texture) were carried out. Samples packaged with 30%CO2/70% N2 and 50%CO2/50% N2 had a shelf life of 21 days. Pathogens were not found during all the storage. Cheese stored with 30%CO2/70%N2 reached the best acceptability score to the sensory evaluation

CO2 reactivity with Mg2NiH4 synthesized by: In situ monitoring of mechanical milling

CO2 capture and conversion are a key research field for the transition towards an economy only based on renewable energy sources. In this regard, hydride materials are a potential option for CO2 methanation since they can provide hydrogen and act as a catalytic species. In this work, Mg2NiH4 complex hydride is synthesized by in situ monitoring of mechanical milling under a hydrogen atmosphere from a 2MgH2:Ni stoichiometric mixture. Temperature and pressure evolution is monitored, and the material is characterized, during milling in situ, thus providing a good insight into the synthesis process. The cubic polymorph of Mg2NiH4 (S.G. Fm3m) starts to be formed in the early beginning of the mechanical treatment due to the mechanical stress induced by the milling process. Then, after 25 hours of milling, Mg2NiH4 with a monoclinic (S.G. C12/c1) structure appears. The formation of the monoclinic polymorph is most likely related to the stress release that follows the continuous refinement of the material's microstructure. At the end of the milling process, after 60 hours, the as-milled material is composed of 90.8 wt% cubic Mg2NiH4, 5.7 wt% monoclinic Mg2NiH4, and 3.5 wt% remnant Ni. The as-milled Mg2NiH4 shows high reactivity for CO2 conversion into CH4. Under static conditions at 400 °C for 5 hours, the interactions between as-milled Mg2NiH4 and CO2 result in total CO2 consumption and in the formation of the catalytic system Ni-MgNi2-Mg2Ni/MgO. Experimental evidence and thermodynamic equilibrium calculations suggest that the global methanation mechanism takes place through the adsorption of C and the direct solid gasification towards CH4 formation.Fil: Grasso, María Laura. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Gerencia de Área de Aplicaciones de la Tecnología Nuclear. Gerencia de Investigación Aplicada CAB. Departamento Fisicoquímica de Materiales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; ArgentinaFil: Puszkiel, Julián Atilio. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Gerencia de Área de Aplicaciones de la Tecnología Nuclear. Gerencia de Investigación Aplicada CAB. Departamento Fisicoquímica de Materiales; Argentina. Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht GmbH; Alemania. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; ArgentinaFil: Gennari, Fabiana Cristina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Gerencia de Área de Aplicaciones de la Tecnología Nuclear. Gerencia de Investigación Aplicada CAB. Departamento Fisicoquímica de Materiales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; ArgentinaFil: Santoru, Antonio. Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht GmbH; AlemaniaFil: Dornheim, Martin. Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht GmbH; AlemaniaFil: Pistidda, Claudio. Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht GmbH; Alemani

Kinetics and hydrogen storage performance of Li-Mg-N-H systems doped with Al and AlCl3

Recent investigations showed the formation of new amide-chloride phases between LiNH2 and AlCl3 after milling and/or heating under hydrogen pressure. These phases exhibited a key role in the improvement of the hydrogen storage properties of the LiNH2-LiH composite. In the present work, we studied the effects of Al and AlCl3 additives on the hydrogen storage behavior of the Li-Mg-N-H system. The dehydrogenation kinetics and the reaction pathway of Al and AlCl3 modified LiNH2-MgH2 composite were investigated through a combination of kinetic measurements and structural analyses. During the first cycle, the addition of Al catalytically accelerates the hydrogen release at 200 °C. In the subsequent cycles, the formation of a new phase of unknown nature is probably responsible for both increased equilibrium hydrogen pressure and decreased dehydrogenation rate. In contrast, AlCl3 additive reacts with LiNH2-MgH2 through the milling and continues during heating under hydrogen pressure. Addition of AlCl3 leads to the formation of two cubic structures identified in the Li-Al-N-H-Cl system, which improves dehydrogenation rate by modifying the thermodynamic stability of the material. This study evidences positive effect of cation and/or anion substitution on hydrogen storage properties of the Li-Mg-N-H system.This study has been partially supported by bilateral collaboration Project MINCyT-MA

KNH2 - KH: a metal amide - hydride solid solution

We report for the first time the formation of a metal amide-hydride solid solution. The dissolution of KH into KNH2 leads to an anionic substitution, which decreases the interaction among NH2 - ions. The rotational properties of the high temperature polymorphs of KNH2 are thereby retained down to room temperature.Fil: Santoru, Antonio. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; Alemania. Università di Torino; ItaliaFil: Pistidda, Claudio. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Sørby, Magnus H.. Institute for Energy Technology. Physics Department; NoruegaFil: Chierotti, Michele R.. Università di Torino; ItaliaFil: Garroni, Sebastian. University of Sassari; ItaliaFil: Pinatel, Eugenio. Università di Torino; ItaliaFil: Karimi, Fahim. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Cao, Hujun. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Bergemann, Nils. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Le, Thi T.. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Puszkiel, Julián Atilio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Gerencia del Área de Energía Nuclear. Instituto Balseiro; ArgentinaFil: Gobetto, Roberto. Università di Torino; ItaliaFil: Baricco, Marcello. Università di Torino; ItaliaFil: Hauback, Bjorn C.. Institute for Energy Technology. Physics Department; NoruegaFil: Klassen, Thomas. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Dornheim, Martín. Helmholtz-zentrum Geesthacht; Alemani

Enhancement effect of bimetallic amide K2Mn(NH2)4 and in-situ formed KH and Mn4N on the dehydrogenation/hydrogenation properties of Li–Mg–N–H system

In this work, we investigated the influence of the K2Mn(NH2)4 additive on the hydrogen sorption properties of the Mg(NH2)2 + 2LiH (Li–Mg–N–H) system. The addition of 5 mol% of K2Mn(NH2)4 to the Li–Mg–N–H system leads to a decrease of the dehydrogenation peak temperature from 200 ◦C to 172 ◦C compared to the pristine sample. This sample exhibits a constant hydrogen storage capacity of 4.2 wt.% over 25 dehydrogenation/rehydrogenation cycles. Besides that, the in-situ synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction analysis performed on the as prepared Mg(NH2)2 + 2LiH containing K2Mn(NH2)4 indicates the presence of Mn4N. However, no crystalline K-containing phases were detected. Upon dehydrogenation, the formation of KH is observed. The presence of KH and Mn4N positively influences the hydrogen sorption properties of this system, especially at the later stage of rehydrogenation. Under the applied conditions, hydrogenation of the last 1 wt.% takes place in only 2 min. This feature is preserved in the following three cycles.Fil: Gizer, Gökhan. Helmholtz zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Cao, Hujun. Helmholtz zentrum Geesthacht; Alemania. Chinese Academy of Sciences; República de ChinaFil: Puszkiel, Julián Atilio. Helmholtz zentrum Geesthacht; Alemania. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; ArgentinaFil: Pistidda, Claudio. Helmholtz zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Santoru, Antonio. Helmholtz zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Zhang, Weijin. Chinese Academy of Sciences; República de ChinaFil: He, Teng. Chinese Academy of Sciences; República de ChinaFil: Chen, Ping. Chinese Academy of Sciences; República de ChinaFil: Klassen, Thomas. Helmholtz zentrum Geesthacht; Alemania. Helmut Schmidt Universität; ArgentinaFil: Dornheim, Martin. Helmholtz zentrum Geesthacht; Alemani

Metabolic profile of patients with severe endometriosis: a prospective experimental study

Endometriosis is a common disease affecting women in reproductive age. There are several hypotheses on the pathogenesis of this disease. Often, its lesions and symptoms overlap with those of many other medical and surgical conditions, causing a delay in diagnosis. Metabolomics represents a useful diagnostic tool for the study of metabolic changes during a different physiological or pathological status. We used 1H-NMR to explore metabolic alteration in a cohort of patients with endometriosis in order to contribute to a better understanding of the pathophysiology of the disease and to suggest new useful biomarkers. Thirty-seven patients were recruited for the metabolomic analysis: 22 patients affected by symptomatic endometriosis and 15 not affected by it. Their serum samples were collected and analyzed with 1H-NMR. Multivariate statistical analysis was conducted, followed by univariate and pathway analyses. Partial Least Square Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) was performed to determine the presence of any differences between the non-endometriosis and endometriosis samples (R2X = 0.596, R2Y = 0.713, Q2 = 0.635, and p < 0.0001). β-hydroxybutyric acid and glutamine were significantly increased, whereas tryptophan was significantly decreased in the endometriosis patients. ROC curves were built to test the diagnostic power of the metabolites (β-hydroxybutyric acid: AUC = 0.85 CI = 0.71–0.99; glutamine: AUC = 0.83 CI = 0.68–0.98; tryptophan: AUC = 0.75 CI = 0.54–0.95; β-hydroxybutyric acid + glutamine + tryptophan AUC = 0.92 CI = 0.81–1). The metabolomic approach enabled the identification of several metabolic alterations occurring in women with endometriosis. These findings may provide new bases for a better understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of the disease and for the discovery of new biomarkers. Trial registration number NCT0233781

Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS) Metabolites Analysis in Endometriosis Patients: A Prospective Observational Translational Study

Background: Endometriosis affects women of reproductive age, and its pathogenesis is still unclear. Typically, it overlaps other similar medical and surgical conditions, determining a delay in early diagnosis. Metabolomics allows studying metabolic changes in different physiological or pathological states to discover new potential biomarkers. We used the gas chromatography–mass spectrometer (GC–MS) to explore metabolic alterations in endometriosis to better understand its pathophysiology and find new biomarkers. Methods: Twenty-two serum samples of patients with symptomatic endometriosis and ten without it were collected and subjected to GC–MS analysis. Multivariate and univariate statistical analyses were performed, followed by pathway analysis. Results: Partial least squares discriminant analysis was performed to determine the differences between the two groups (p = 0.003). Threonic acid, 3-hydroxybutyric acid, and proline increased significantly in endometriosis patients, while alanine and valine decreased. ROC curves were built to test the diagnostic power of metabolites. The pathway analysis identified the synthesis and degradation of ketone bodies and the biosynthesis of phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan as the most altered pathways. Conclusions: The metabolomic approach identifies metabolic alterations in women with endometriosis. These findings may improve our understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of disease and the discovery of new biomarkers

Design of a Nanometric AlTi Additive for MgB2-Based Reactive Hydride Composites with Superior Kinetic Properties

Solid-state hydride compounds are a promising option for efficient and safe hydrogen-storage systems. Lithium reactive hydride composite system 2LiBH4 + MgH2/2LiH + MgB2 (Li-RHC) has been widely investigated owing to its high theoretical hydrogen-storage capacity and low calculated reaction enthalpy (11.5 wt % H2 and 45.9 kJ/mol H2). In this paper, a thorough investigation into the effect of the formation of nano-TiAl alloys on the hydrogen-storage properties of Li-RHC is presented. The additive 3TiCl3·AlCl3 is used as the nanoparticle precursor. For the investigated temperatures and hydrogen pressures, the addition of ∼5 wt % 3TiCl3·AlCl3 leads to hydrogenation/dehydrogenation times of only 30 min and a reversible hydrogen-storage capacity of 9.5 wt %. The material containing 3TiCl3·AlCl3 possesses superior hydrogen-storage properties in terms of rates and a stable hydrogen capacity during several hydrogenation/dehydrogenation cycles. These enhancements are attributed to an in situ nanostructure and a hexagonal AlTi3 phase observed by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. This phase acts in a 2-fold manner, first promoting the nucleation of MgB2 upon dehydrogenation and second suppressing the formation of Li2B12H12 upon hydrogenation/dehydrogenation cycling.Fil: Le, Thi-Thu. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Pistidda, Claudio. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Puszkiel, Julián Atilio. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; Alemania. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Bariloche; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; ArgentinaFil: Castro Riglos, Maria Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; Argentina. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; Alemania. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Bariloche; ArgentinaFil: Karimi, Fahim. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Skibsted, Jørgen. University Aarhus; DinamarcaFil: Gharibdoust, Seyedhosein Payandeh. University Aarhus; DinamarcaFil: Richter, Bo. University Aarhus; DinamarcaFil: Emmler, Thomas. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Milanese, Chiara. Università di Pavia; ItaliaFil: Santoru, Antonio. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; AlemaniaFil: Hoell, Armin. Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie; AlemaniaFil: Krumrey, Michael. Physikalisch Technische Bundesanstalt; AlemaniaFil: Gericke, Eike. Universität zu Berlin; AlemaniaFil: Akiba, Etsuo. Kyushu University; JapónFil: Jensen, Torben R.. University Aarhus; DinamarcaFil: Klassen, Thomas. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; Alemania. Helmut Schmidt University; AlemaniaFil: Dornheim, Martin. Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht; Alemani

Metabolic Alteration in Plasma and Biopsies From Patients With IBD

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are chronic inflammatory disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, with periods of latency alternating with phases of exacerbation, and include 2 forms: Crohn disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Although the etiology of IBD is still unclear, the identification and understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms underlying IBD could reveal newly targeted intestinal alterations and determine therapeutic approaches.METHODS: In this study, by using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, we characterized plasma and biopsies from the metabolomics profiles of patients with IBD compared with those of a control group.RESULTS: The results showed a different metabolomics profile between patients with CD (n = 50) and patients with UC (n = 82) compared with the control group (n = 51). Multivariate statistical analysis of the identified metabolites in CD and UC showed changes in energetic metabolism, and lactic acid and ornithine in particular were altered in both plasma and colon biopsies. Moreover, metabolic changes were evidenced between the normal ileum and colon tissues. These differences disappeared when we compared the inflamed ileum and colon tissues, suggesting a common metabolism.CONCLUSIONS: This study showed how the metabolomics profile could be a potential tool to identify intestinal alterations associated with IBD and may have application in precision medicine and for better defining the pathogenesis of the disease