Volatile secondary metabolites from organic apples by HS-SPME in combination with comprehensive two-dimensional GC-MS

Trentino Alto Adige is a small region in northern Italy that produces about 1.5 M of tons of apples per year corresponding to about 15% of total EU production [1]. The high production density brings a burden for soil exploitation. In the last decade efforts have been done to make apple production more eco-sustainable by adopting organic farming practices. Organic farming is a production system which avoids or excludes the use of synthetic preparations – artificial fertilizers, pesticides, growth accelerators and fodder additives [2]. Furthermore, recent works showed a positive willingness to purchase organic apples and consumer preference for apples organically rather than conventionally produced [3-5] providing important information about market opportunities. Despite this, many producers are afraid about lower sensory quality of organic fruits. Instrumental and sensory analyses were applied to investigate the impact of organic farming on apple quality. Fruits from several apple varieties grown, in different parcels of the same field, using organic and integrated production systems were compared. Here we present preliminary data on volatile secondary metabolites obtained by HS-SPME in combination with comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled to a quadrupole MS (HS-SPME GCxGC-MS). Data analysis of the 63 most abundant identified peaks shows statistical significant differences in volatile secondary metabolites emitted by apples grown under organic production compared to the traditional one. Fig 1 shows separation of the 2 theses (bio: Organic farming; trad: integrated production system). For example apples grown under organic practice emit more α-farnesene than conventionally produced fruit

Functional living skills assessment: a standardized measure of high-order activities of daily living in patients with dementia

Aim. Performance measures are tools aimed to directly evaluate social function in older adults. The authors present the standardization of a new direct performance measure for patients with dementia, the functional living skills assessment (FLSA). Methods. FLSA was conceived to detect functional impairment in very mild to moderate patients and to pick up functional modification due to intervention. The patient is asked to perform an activity, and the performance is scored according to completeness and level of assistance required. Eight areas of interest are evaluated (Resources, Consumer Skills, Public Transportation, Time Management, Money management, Leisure, Telephone Skills, Self-Care and Health). Subjects included 54 patients with dementia and 36 normal controls. Results. Total and partial FLSA scores significantly differed for the two groups (P0.9). Correction scores for education were calculated, while age influence was only marginally significant. Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and CDR highly influenced FLSA score (P< 0.0001); FLSA was highly correlated with another performance measure (the Direct Assessment of Functional Status; P=0.821), and with the Instrumental Activity of Daily Living (IADL) scale (P=-0.612), while no significant correlation was present with the Geriatric Depression Scale. Conclusion. FLSA evidences construct, concurrent and discriminative validity. We suggest that this tool could be possibly useful when a high sensibility to different levels of functional impairment is needed, as evaluation of treatment efficacy (both non-pharmacological and pharmacological) identification of relatively intact functional areas to plan cognitive rehabilitation, and confirmation of dementia in the initial phase when there are doubts about functional decline

Efficacy of recreational and occupational activities associated to psychological support in mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease: a multicenter controlled study

We evaluated the efficacy of a stimulation program mainly based on recreational and occupational activities, associated with a brief cycle of support psychotherapy for patients and caregivers, in mild to moderate Alzheimer Disease (AD) associated or not with cerebrovascular lesions. Sixty-seven patients and 31 controls from 2 Italian towns entered the study. The control group was comprised of AD subjects who voluntarily declined to participate in the program for practical reasons. Patients were divided in groups of 4 subjects: treatment was delivered for 6 weeks. Multidimensional efficacy assessment of functional, behavioral, and neuropsychologic aspects was performed. When comparing baseline with posttraining condition, patients displayed a substantial reduction in disruptive behavior, and a tendency to a general reduction of behavioral symptoms compared with controls (Revised Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist--RMBPC--symptoms frequency-total P=0.07; frequency of disruptive behavior P=0.008). This reduction was mirrored by a significant reduction of caregiver reaction to behavioral disturbances (RMBPC caregiver reaction-total P=0.035; reaction to disruptive behavior, P=0.011). At 3 months follow-up, the reduction of caregiver reaction to behavioral symptoms results was confirmed (RMBPC caregiver reaction-total P=0.014, caregiver reaction to disruptive behavior P=0.028). No other significant difference was detected. These results partially confirm findings of previous studies, showing that AD patients treated with similar techniques demonstrated an improvement in behavioral disturbances