Nutritional characterization of gluten free non-traditional pasta

When a food is formulated, its characterization is important from the chemical and biochemical point of view; even more whennon-traditional raw materials are used. Noodles were made with cassava starch and corn flour (4:1), milk, egg, salt and xanthangum. The chemical composition of the pasta was determined and the total and resistant starch content was quantified. Thehydrolysis rate of the starch was measured at different times, from which the hydrolysis index and, subsequently, the predictiveglycemic index was calculated. The chemical composition of the noodles showed its high content of total fibers. From thedigestibility tests, high values were obtained for proteins (93%), and average values for the starch (52%). The results of the starchhydrolysis kinetics showed a higher proportion of slowly digestible starch with a low glycemic index (46%). Analyzed noodles arewithin the dietary guidelines that suggest a diet with high total dietary fiber content and low glycemic index.Fil: Milde, Laura Beatríz. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; ArgentinaFil: Chigal, Paola Soledad. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; ArgentinaFil: Chiola Zayas, Maria Ofelia. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales; Argentin

Der Blick zum Säugling : gestört durch Smartphones?

Bis heute gibt es kaum Studien, die den Einfluss der elterlichen Smartphonenutzung in Bezug auf ihre Säuglinge systematisch untersucht haben. Studien mit älteren Kindern lassen jedoch vermuten, dass die elterliche Nutzung nicht spurlos an den Kindern und der Eltern-Kind-Interaktion vorbeigeht. Hebammen sind hier gefragt, Eltern frühzeitig bzgl. der Nutzung digitaler Medien zu beraten

Gluten-free Bread Based on Tapioca Starch: Texture and Sensory Studies

In the present work, gluten-free formulations for breadmaking, destined to celiac people, were studied. A base blend of tapioca starch and corn flour (80:20) and typical bread ingredients such as yeast, salt, sugar and water were utilised. Ingredients such us vegetable fat, hen egg, and soybean flour were incorporated in different levels by means of an experimental design of three factors. Bread quality was analysed throughout physical (specific volume, weight loss percentage) and textural (firmness, elasticity and firmness recovery) parameters. The optimum bread selected, the bread with highest levels of fat and soybean flour and one egg, presented low values of firmness (≤100 N) and elasticity (>65%) and the lowest variation of these parameters with storage. Overall acceptability of this bread was 84% for habitual consumers of wheat bread and 100% by celiac people. Therefore, tapioca starch-based breads with spongy crumb, high volume and a good sensory acceptance were obtained.Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y ForestalesCentro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimento

Addition of inorganic compounds to increase laccase enzyme activity

Introduction: Fungal laccases have shown great potential in industrial and environmentalapplications. Therefore, further study of the properties of the laccase enzymeand its behavior with the addition of different compounds is essential to addressthe potential applications of this enzyme to specific fields.Objective:Evaluate the ability of different inorganic compounds to increase the activity offungal laccases.Materials and methods:To study the effects of different compounds on the activity of laccaserecombianant, we work with a laccase from Phlebia brevispora heterologouslyexpressed.The effects of Iron chloride, Copper sulphate, Calcium carbonate, Zinc chloride,Potassium chloride and Ammonium sulfate on the activity of laccase weredetermined.Solution of 0.5mmol L-1 of each compound were tested and the residualenzymatic activity were measured and compared with control (withoutcompound). Later, the solution which causes the highest laccase activity, wasused in concentrations from 0,5 mmol L-1to 3 mmoL-1to quantify the residualactivity.Results:In the production of recombinant laccases assayed on flask, Iron sulfate 1 mmolL-1 showed the highest enzymatic activity with an activity peak of 613.00 EU(μmoL min-1 mL-1) at the fourth day of incubation. The other compoundsassayed showed the following activity peaks: Iron chloride 373.02 UL-1, Calciumcarbonate 256.3 UL -1, Zinc chloride 47.10 UL-1, Potassium chloride 87.09 UL-1,Ammonium sulfate 101.03 UL-1.Conclusion:Based on the results of this work, we conclude that the laccase enzymesupplemented with Iron sulfate offers promising results for the application ofwhite-rot fungal resources in environmental remediation, bakery industry,bioremediation, biodegradation and so forth.Fil: Molina, Melina Antonella. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Sgroppo, Sonia Cecilia. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste; ArgentinaFil: Milde, Laura Beatríz. Universidad Nacional de Misiones; ArgentinaFil: Zapata, Pedro Dario. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Fonseca, Maria Isabel. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; ArgentinaI Simpósio de Microbiologia de Rondônia: Saúde, Ambiente e InovaçãoBrasilCoordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superio

Mathematical modeling of gluten-free noodles drying, influence of air velocity

Se modeló matemáticamente la cinética de secado de pastas libres de gluten, y se estudió la influencia de la velocidad del aire sobre datos experimentales. Los fideos espagueti fueron elaborados mezclando fécula de mandioca, harina de maíz, leche en polvo, huevo, margarina y goma xántica, con agregado de agua. Se secaron a 40° C y a tres velocidades de aire: 0,4; 0,8 y 1,5 m/s. Se observó una disminución del tiempo de secado a medida que aumenta la velocidad del aire. Los datos se ajustaron a tres modelos matemáticos semi-empiricos de capa fina, se seleccionó como mejor ajuste la ecuación de Page (R2 = 99%) para las tres velocidades analizadas. El parámetro k de la ecuación de Page presentó dependencia con la velocidad de aire mientras que el parámetro n se consideró constante. Los resultados obtenidos podrían ser utilizados para la predicción del tiempo de secado de las pastas analizadas.The drying kinetics of gluten-free pasta was modeled mathematically, and the influence of air velocity on experimental data was studied. Spaghetti noodles were made by mixing cassava starch, corn flour, milk powder, egg, margarine and xanthan gum, with water added. They were dried at 40° C and three air velocities: 0.4; 0.8 and 1.5 m/s. A decrease in drying times as the air velocity increases was observed. The data were adjusted to three semi-empirical mathematical models of thin layer; for the three velocities analyzed, the Page´s equation was selected as the best fit. The parameter k of Page´s equation presented dependence with the air velocity while the parameter n was considered constant. The results obtained could be used to predict the drying time of the pastas analyzedFil: Chigal, Paola Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Milde, Laura Beatríz. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Brumovsky, Luis Alberto. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales; Argentin

Retinal Angiogenesis Suppression through Small Molecule Activation of p53

Neovascular age-related macular degeneration is a leading cause of irreversible vision loss in the Western world. Cytokine-targeted therapies (such as anti-vascular endothelial growth factor) are effective in treating pathologic ocular angiogenesis, but have not led to a durable effect and often require indefinite treatment. Here, we show that Nutlin-3, a small molecule antagonist of the E3 ubiquitin protein ligase MDM2, inhibited angiogenesis in several model systems. We found that a functional p53 pathway was essential for Nutlin-3-mediated retinal antiangiogenesis and disruption of the p53 transcriptional network abolished the antiangiogenic activity of Nutlin-3. Nutlin-3 did not inhibit established, mature blood vessels in the adult mouse retina, suggesting that only proliferating retinal vessels are sensitive to Nutlin-3. Furthermore, Nutlin-3 inhibited angiogenesis in nonretinal models such as the hind limb ischemia model. Our work demonstrates that Nutlin-3 functions through an antiproliferative pathway with conceivable advantages over existing cytokine-targeted antiangiogenesis therapies

How much synthetic oxytocin is infused during labour? A review and analysis of regimens used in 12 countries.

OBJECTIVE: To compare synthetic oxytocin infusion regimens used during labour, calculate the International Units (IU) escalation rate and total amount of IU infused over eight hours. DESIGN: Observational study. SETTING: Twelve countries, eleven European and South Africa. SAMPLE: National, regional or institutional-level regimens on oxytocin for induction and augmentation labour. METHODS: Data on oxytocin IU dose, infusion fluid amount, start dose, escalation rate and maximum dose were collected. Values for each regimen were converted to IU in 1000ml diluent. One IU corresponded to 1.67μg for doses provided in grams/micrograms. IU hourly dose increase rates were based on escalation frequency. Cumulative doses and total IU amount infused were calculated by adding the dose administered for each previous hour. Main Outcome Measures Oxytocin IU dose infused. RESULTS: Data were obtained on 21 regimens used in 12 countries. Details on the start dose, escalation interval, escalation rate and maximum dose infused were available from 16 regimens. Starting rates varied from 0.06 IU/hour to 0.90 IU/hour, and the maximum dose rate varied from 0.90 IU/hour to 3.60 IU/hour. The total amount of IU oxytocin infused, estimated over eight hours, ranged from 2.38 IU to 27.00 IU, a variation of 24.62 IU and an 11-fold difference. CONCLUSION: Current variations in oxytocin regimens for induction and augmentation of labour are inexplicable. It is crucial that the appropriate minimum infusion regimen is administered because synthetic oxytocin is a potentially harmful medication with serious consequences for women and babies when inappropriately used. Estimating the total amount of oxytocin IU received by labouring women, alongside the institution's mode of birth and neonatal outcomes, may deepen our understanding and be the way forward to identifying the optimal infusion regimen

Drug sensitivity profiling of 3D tumor tissue cultures in the pediatric precision oncology program INFORM

The international precision oncology program INFORM enrolls relapsed/refractory pediatric cancer patients for comprehensive molecular analysis. We report a two-year pilot study implementing ex vivo drug sensitivity profiling (DSP) using a library of 75–78 clinically relevant drugs. We included 132 viable tumor samples from 35 pediatric oncology centers in seven countries. DSP was conducted on multicellular fresh tumor tissue spheroid cultures in 384-well plates with an overall mean processing time of three weeks. In 89 cases (67%), sufficient viable tissue was received; 69 (78%) passed internal quality controls. The DSP results matched the identified molecular targets, including BRAF, ALK, MET, and TP53 status. Drug vulnerabilities were identified in 80% of cases lacking actionable (very) high-evidence molecular events, adding value to the molecular data. Striking parallels between clinical courses and the DSP results were observed in selected patients. Overall, DSP in clinical real-time is feasible in international multicenter precision oncology programs