Ready to use therapeutical beverages: focus on functional beverages containing probiotics, prebiotics and synbiotics

The growing global interest in functional foods containing nutrients capable of adding possible beneficial health effects is rapidly increasing both interest and consumer demand. In particular, functionalized beverages for their potential positive effect on health e.g., decreasing cholesterol level, lowering sugar, high fiber content, ability to enhance the immune system, and help digestion, have recently received special attention. Among the different beverages available on the market, probiotic dairy and non-dairy products have attracted much attention because of their affordable cost and their numerous therapeutic activities. Fermented milk and yogurt are currently worth €46 billion, with 77% of the market reported in Europe, North America, and Asia. Consumption of dairy beverages has some limitations due for example to lactose intolerance and allergy to milk proteins, thereby leading consumers to use non-dairy beverages such as fruit, grains, and vegetable juices to add probiotics to diet as well as driving the manufacturers to food matrices-based beverages containing probiotic cultures. The purpose of this review article is to evaluate the therapeutic performance and properties of dairy and non-dairy beverages in terms of probiotic, prebiotic, and synbiotic activities.This work was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Funding UID/FIS/04650/2020, UID/BIO/04469/2020 and UID/QUI/00686/2020, and projects PTDC/BTM-MAT/28237/2017 and PTDC/EMD-EMD/28159/2017 and Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry—LAQV, financed by national funds from FCT/MCTES (UIDB/50006/2020). The authors also thank the FCT for the SFRH/BPD/121526/2016 (DMC) grant. The authors acknowledge funding by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) through the project MAT2016-76039-C4-3-R (AEI/FEDER, UE) and from the Basque Government Industry and Education Departments under the ELKARTEK, HAZITEK and PIBA (PIBA-2018-06) programs, respectively.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The role of lipids in drug absorption throught the GIT

Os vectores lipídicos apresentam inúmeras vantagens para a administração oral de substâncias farmacológicas, p.ex. são compostos por moléculas lipídicas semelhantes àquelas que figuram nos tecidos humanos, tornando-se biocompatíveis, biotoleráveis e biodegradáveis. São exemplos as tradicionais emulsões O/A, as suspensões de nanopartículas lipídicas (SLNs e NLC s) e, recentemente, as SolEmuls®, que permitem localizar fármacos fracamente solúveis em ambas as fases das emulsões, na camada interfacial de lecitina. Este artigo aborda o papel dos lípidos no aumento da absorção e da biodisponibilidade de fármacos administrados oralmente. Lipid carriers show several advantages for oral delivery of pharmacologically active drugs, e.g. are composed of lipid molecules similar to those in human tissues, becoming therefore biocompatible, biotolerable and biodegradable. Examples include traditional o/w emulsions, suspensions of lipid nanoparticles (SLNs and NLC s) and, recently, the SolEmuls®, which allows localizing poorly soluble drug molecules both in oil and aqueous phases, in the interfacial layer of lecithin. This paper reports on the role of lipids in enhancing both drug absorption and bioavailability when administered orally

The role of lipids in drug absorption throught the GIT

Os vectores lipídicos apresentam inúmeras vantagens para a administração oral de substâncias farmacológicas, p.ex. são compostos por moléculas lipídicas semelhantes àquelas que figuram nos tecidos humanos, tornando-se biocompatíveis, biotoleráveis e biodegradáveis. São exemplos as tradicionais emulsões O/A, as suspensões de nanopartículas lipídicas (SLNs e NLC s) e, recentemente, as SolEmuls®, que permitem localizar fármacos fracamente solúveis em ambas as fases das emulsões, na camada interfacial de lecitina. Este artigo aborda o papel dos lípidos no aumento da absorção e da biodisponibilidade de fármacos administrados oralmente. Lipid carriers show several advantages for oral delivery of pharmacologically active drugs, e.g. are composed of lipid molecules similar to those in human tissues, becoming therefore biocompatible, biotolerable and biodegradable. Examples include traditional o/w emulsions, suspensions of lipid nanoparticles (SLNs and NLC s) and, recently, the SolEmuls®, which allows localizing poorly soluble drug molecules both in oil and aqueous phases, in the interfacial layer of lecithin. This paper reports on the role of lipids in enhancing both drug absorption and bioavailability when administered orally

Characteristics, occurrence, detection and detoxification of aflatoxins in foods and feeds

Mycotoxin contamination continues to be a food safety concern globally, with the most toxic being aflatoxins. On-farm aflatoxins, during food transit or storage, directly or indirectly result in the contamination of foods, which affects the liver, immune system and reproduction after infiltration into human beings and animals. There are numerous reports on aflatoxins focusing on achieving appropriate methods for quantification, precise detection and control in order to ensure consumer safety. In 2012, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, G2, M1 and M2 as group 1 carcinogenic substances, which are a global human health concern. Consequently, this review article addresses aflatoxin chemical properties and biosynthetic processes; aflatoxin contamination in foods and feeds; health effects in human beings and animals due to aflatoxin exposure, as well as aflatoxin detection and detoxification methods.(undefined)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The nutraceutical value of carnitine and its use in dietary supplements

Carnitine can be considered a conditionally essential nutrient for its importance in human physiology. This paper provides an updated picture of the main features of carnitine outlining its interest and possible use. Particular attention has been addressed to its beneficial properties, exploiting carnitine’s properties and possible use by considering the main in vitro, in animal, and human studies. Moreover, the main aspects of carnitine-based dietary supplements have been indicated and defined with reference to their possible beneficial health properties.The authors acknowledge the support of the research project: Nutraceutica come supporto nutrizionale nel paziente oncologico, CUP: B83D18000140007. E. B. Souto acknowledges the sponsorship of the projects M-ERA-NET-0004/2015-PAIRED and UIDB/04469/2020 (strategic fund), A.M.S. the UID/AGR/04033/2019 (CITAB), receiving support from the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation, Ministry of Science and Education (FCT/MEC) through national funds, and co-financed by FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Cannabidiol in neurological and neoplastic diseases: Latest developments on the molecular mechanism of action

As the major nonpsychotropic constituent of Cannabis sativa, cannabidiol (CBD) is regarded as one of the most promising therapeutic agents due to its proven effectiveness in clinical trials for many human diseases. Due to the urgent need for more efficient pharmacological treatments for several chronic diseases, in this review, we discuss the potential beneficial effects of CBD for Alzheimers disease, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and neurological cancers. Due to its wide range of pharmacological activities (e.g., antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective properties), CBD is considered a multimodal drug for the treatment of a range of neurodegenerative disorders, and various cancer types, including neoplasms of the neural system. The different mechanisms of action of CBD are here disclosed, together with recent progress in the use of this cannabis-derived constituent as a new therapeutic approach. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Institute of Human Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences by the internal grant for the implementation of a single scientific activity and by the National Centre for Research and Development by the grant ONKOKAN, INNOMED/I/11/NCBR/2014info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Metrology, agriculture and food: literature quantitative analysis

Great attention has been given in recent years to the relationships between metrology, agriculture, and food. This study aims at providing an analysis of the literature regarding the relationships between metrology, agriculture, and food. The Scopus online database has been used to extract bibliometric data throughout the search string: TITLE-ABS-KEY (Metrology* AND Agriculture* OR Food*), and the VOSviewer bibliometric software was used to visualize results as bubble maps. The novelty character of this perspective paper is to indicate and point out the main research themes/lines addressing the relationships between metrology, agriculture, and food by analyzing: (i) the authors of the published papers; (ii) the type of paper; (iii) the countries and institutions where the research is developed. Bibliometrics allows one to holistically examine entire scientific areas or sub-fields to get new qualitative and quantitative insights. These results represent a useful tool for identifying emerging research directions, collaboration networks, and suggestions for more in-depth literature searches.This research received no external funding.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Genotoxicity assessment of metal-based nanocomposites applied in drug delivery

Nanocomposites as drug delivery systems (e.g., metal nanoparticles) are being exploited for several applications in the biomedical field, from therapeutics to diagnostics. Green nanocomposites stand for nanoparticles of biocompatible, biodegradable and non-toxic profiles. When using metal nanoparticles for drug delivery, the question of how hazardous these virus-sized particles can be is posed, due to their nanometer size range with enhanced reactivity compared to their respective bulk counterparts. These structures exhibit a high risk of being internalized by cells and interacting with the genetic material, with the possibility of inducing DNA damage. The Comet Assay, or Single-Cell Gel Electrophoresis (SCGE), stands out for its capacity to detect DNA strand breaks in eukaryotic cells. It has huge potential in the genotoxicity assessment of nanoparticles and respective cells interactions. In this review, the Comet assay is described, discussing several examples of its application in the genotoxicity evaluation of nanoparticles commonly administered in a set of routes (oral, skin, inhaled, ocular and parenteral administration). In the nanoparticles boom era, where guidelines for their evaluation are still very limited, it is urgent to ensure their safety, alongside their quality and efficacy. Comet assay or SCGE can be considered an essential tool and a reliable source to achieve a better nanotoxicology assessment of metal nanoparticles used in drug delivery.This work was funded by the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation (FCT) from the Ministry of Science and Technology (MCTES), through the projects UIDB/04469/2020 (CEB strategic fund) and UIDB/04033/2020 (CITAB), co-funded by European Funds (PRODER/COMPETE) and FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020. The work was also supported by the National Science Centre within the MINIATURA 4 for single research activity (grant No: 2020/04/X/ST5/00789) and by the START 2021 Program of the Foundation for Polish Science (FNP) granted to Dr. Aleksandra Zielińskainfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio