Search results for: Complementary food

Authors: Hui-Qin Xu, Xing Lv, Yu-Han Tao

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The depth study aimed on the mechanism of morroniside in protecting diabetic nephropathy. The diabetic mice models with blood glucose above 15mmol/L were divided into model, aminoguanidine, metformin, captopril, morroniside low-dose, and morroniside high-dose groups. And normal group was set simultaneously. All groups were fed with high AGEs food except normal group. Each group was intragastric administration of the corresponding medicine except model and normal groups. After 12 weeks, all the indictors were measured. It showed that the morroniside could reduce blood glucose significantly, urinary protein, serum urea nitrogen, creatine, pathological changes, AGEs levels, renal cortex RAGE mRNA and RAGE protein expression levels; increase food consumption, water intake, urine volume, insulin secretion. As a conclusion, morroniside from cornus officinalis can protect renal in diabetic mice, its mechanism may be related to the proliferation of islet cells, rectify glycometabolism, reduce serum and kidney AGEs content, and descend renal RAGEmRNA and RAGE protein expression levels.

Keywords: cornus officinalis, diabetic nephropathy, morroniside, RAGE protein

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Authors: Lubica Hikkerova, Jean-Michel Sahut

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This article aims to better understand how a natural park, with a touristic vocation, can benefit from its sustainable development approach to enhance the customer experience. For this aim, we analyze, on the one hand, the interactions between the different stakeholders in this sustainable tourism offer, their ways of cooperating to build this offer and, on the other hand, the perceptions of customers. To serve this purpose, two complementary qualitative methodologies have been conducted. As part of a systemic approach, a first study, through group discussions, was conducted with three categories of participants: (I) customers, (II) representatives of the park, communities, tourism offices and associations and 3-service providers in the park. For the second study, semi-directive interviews were realized with park managers and customers. Two levels of contributions have been found. First, we have demonstrated the value of a systemic approach to understanding sustainable tourism. Then, we developed, in the empirical part, a model of causal loops that allowed us to identify the various factors of the offer that decided potential tourists to visit the park and their impact on customer experience. The complementarity of this approach with semi-directive interviews with all the stakeholders enabled us to issue recommendations to improve the customer experience.

Keywords: sustainable tourism, systematic approach, price, park

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Authors: Chen Wang, Chun Liang

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Microsatellite instability (MSI) is characterized by high degree of polymorphism in microsatellite (MS) length due to a deficiency in mismatch repair (MMR) system. MSI is associated with several tumor types and its status can be considered as an important indicator for tumor prognostic. Conventional clinical diagnosis of MSI examines PCR products of a panel of MS markers using electrophoresis (MSI-PCR) which is laborious, time consuming, and less reliable. MSIpred, a python 2 package for automatic classification of MSI was released by this study. It computes important somatic mutation features from files in mutation annotation format (MAF) generated from paired tumor-normal exome sequencing data, subsequently using these to predict tumor MSI status with a support vector machine (SVM) classifier trained by MAF files of 1074 tumors belonging to four types. Evaluation of MSIpred on an independent 358-tumor test set achieved overall accuracy of over 98% and area under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 0.967. These results indicated that MSIpred is a robust pan-cancer MSI classification tool and can serve as a complementary diagnostic to MSI-PCR in MSI diagnosis.

Keywords: microsatellite instability, pan-cancer classification, somatic mutation, support vector machine

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Authors: Marina Gold, Yves Jackson, David Parrat

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The high predominance of Latin American migrants in Geneva from countries where Chagas disease is endemic (Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia) is increasing the incidence of chronic Chagas-related problems, especially cardiovascular complications. The precarious migratory status of what are mostly undocumented migrants complicates access to health and affects patients’ and doctors’ health perceptions regarding screening, treatment and monitoring of Chagas-related health concerns. This project results from a 3 year collaboration between the Geneva University Hospital and the NGO Mundo Sano to understand the following questions: 1) how do Latin American migrants perceive their health? 2) What do they understand from Chagas disease? 3) Are patients’ and doctors’ health perceptions similar or do they have competing agendas? This paper aims to present the results of a long-term study that interrogates health perceptions among Latin American migrants in Geneva. The first phase consisted in completing surveys at three community screening events (2016, 2017. 2018), and the results of these surveys reveal the subordination of the importance of health to that of having met economic family obligation. That is, health is important only when it becomes an impediment to economic gain. The contradictory result emerged that people are aware of the importance of health prevention in order to ensure long-term health, but they do not always have agency over their life-style habits (healthy food, regular exercise, emotional stability). The second phase of the research collected open-ended interviews with selected participants, in order to explore in more detail how Latin American migrants deal with Chagas in a different socio-political and economic context to that of endemic countries. These interviews (5 in total) reveal mixed methods of managing health: social networks, access to health care transnationally (in Geneva, Spain and back in their home country), and different valuations of health problems in each situation. The third phase consisted in observations of doctor-patient consultations and further extended interviews with patients to determine doctor/patient health perceptions around Chagas disease. This phase is ongoing, but it has yielded preliminarily observations regarding the expectations that patients’ have of doctors, and the understanding of doctors’ to patients’ complex situations. Positive and complementary health perceptions include patients’ feeling that doctors in Geneva are more understanding, more knowledgeable and less racist than those in their home country, who do not provide detailed information about Chagas or its treatment and discriminate against them for being indigenous or from poor rural areas, enabling a better communication between doctors and patients. Possible conflicting health perceptions include patients addressing their health concerns more holistically and encountering the specialist’s limitations to only treating one health concern, given time limitations and lack of competition with their colleagues (the general practitioner that referred the patient, for example). The implications of this study extend the case of Chagas disease in Geneva and is relevant for all chronic concerns and migratory contexts of precarity.

Keywords: chagas disease, health perceptions, Latin American Migrants, non-endemic countries

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Authors: Nazmin Akter, Tariqul Islam, Abu Sayed

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Food loss and waste have become critical global issues, with approximately one-third of the world's food production being wasted. Among the various food products, horticultural fruits and vegetables are especially susceptible to loss due to their relatively short shelf lives. Litchi (Litchi chinensis) is one of Bangladesh's most important horticultural fruits. But the problem with this fruit is its short shelf life by losing weight faster after harvest. The experiment was carried out at Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur-5200 Bangladesh during 2020-2021. The objective of this experiment was to see the impact of nutrients viz., urea (1%), calcium chloride (1%), borax (1%), and their combinations on fruit quality and shelf life of litchi cv. Bombai. The experiment was laid out in a randomized block design with 7 treatments and 3 replications. Two sprays of each treatment were applied from the last week of May to June (at 20-day intervals). The results indicated that all the treatments significantly improved the quality parameters of litchi fruits as compared to the control. In terms of physicochemical characteristics fruit weight (20.30g), fruit volume (20m ml), and pulp percent (17.14) were found maximum with minimum stone percent (11.09) with the application of urea 1% + borax 1%+ calcium chloride 1%. Maximum TSS (19.62oBrix), TSS/acidity ratio (24.57), maximum ascorbic acid (45.19 mg/100 g pulp), and minimum acidity (0.80%) were reported with the application of T6 (Urea 1% + borax 1%+ calcium chloride 1%) treatments whereas fruits treated with urea 1% + borax 1% gave maximum total sugars (26.64%) and reducing sugars (19.19%) as compared to control. In the case of storage characters, application of Urea 1% + borax 1%+ calcium chloride 1% resulted in a minimum physiological loss in weight (6.11%), (8.41%), and (10.65%) for 2 days, 4 days, and 6 days respectively. In conclusion, to obtain better quality and increased storage period of litchi fruits, two sprays of urea, borax, and calcium chloride (1%) could be used during the fruit growth and development period at fortnightly intervals.

Keywords: litchi chinensis, preharvest, quality, shelf life, postharvest

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Authors: Chanya Inprasit, Yi-Wen Lin

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Motion sickness (MS) is an acute disorder that occurs in healthy persons without considering gender, age or ethnicity worldwide. All signs and symptoms of MS are the results of confliction and mismatch among neural signal inputs. It is known that no singular remedy works for everybody, and electroacupuncture (EA) is one of the popular alternative therapies used for MS. Our study utilized a mouse model in order to exclude any psychological factors of MS and EA. Mice lack an emetic reflex. Therefore pica behavior, which is a normal consumption of non-nutritive substances, was found to measure the response of MS in mice. In the laboratory, Kaolin was used as a non-nutrient food substance instead of natural substances lacking nutritional value such as wood, cloth, charcoal, soil or grass. It was hypothesized that EA treatment could reduce the symptoms of MS through the TRPV1 pathways. The results of pica behavior showed a significantly increased intake of kaolin in the MS group throughout the experiment period. Moreover, the Kaolin intake of the EA group decreased to the average baseline of the control group. There was no recorded difference in the food and water intake of each group. The results indicated an increase of the TRPV1, pERK, pJNK and pmTOR protein levels in the thalamus after MS stimulation, and a significant decrease in the EA group compared with that of the control group. These findings suggest that TRPV1 pathways are associated in MS mechanisms and can be reduced by EA.

Keywords: electroacupuncture, motion sickness, Thalamus, TRPV1

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Authors: Pierre Kancir, Jean-Philippe Diguet, Marc Sevaux

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One of the main difficulties in developing multi-robot systems (MRS) is related to the simulation and testing tools available. Indeed, if the differences between simulations and real robots are too significant, the transition from the simulation to the robot won’t be possible without another long development phase and won’t permit to validate the simulation. Moreover, the testing of different algorithmic solutions or modifications of robots requires a strong knowledge of current tools and a significant development time. Therefore, the availability of tools for MRS, mainly with flying drones, is crucial to enable the industrial emergence of these systems. This research aims to present the most commonly used tools for MRS simulations and their main shortcomings and presents complementary tools to improve the productivity of designers in the development of multi-vehicle solutions focused on a fast learning curve and rapid transition from simulations to real usage. The proposed contributions are based on existing open source tools as Gazebo simulator combined with ROS (Robot Operating System) and the open-source multi-platform autopilot ArduPilot to bring them to a broad audience.

Keywords: ROS, ArduPilot, MRS, simulation, drones, Gazebo

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Authors: Onuoha Ogbonnaya Gideon, Ishaq Hafsah Yusuf

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Introduction: Meat is a perishable food of good nutrition. Meat ranks among the most significant, nutritious, and favored food items available to most locals. It is a good source of protein (17-19%), depending on sources, and contains appreciable amounts of fat and moisture. However, it has a very short shelf life due mainly to its high moisture, fat, and other nutrient contents. Meat spoilage can result from microbial proliferation as well as inherent enzymes in the meat tissues. Bacteria contamination and permeability to both oxygen and water vapor are major concerns associated with spoilage of meat and its storage. Packaging is fundamental in the preservation and presentation of food. Red clay is a very common substance; hydrous aluminum phyllosilicate, sometimes with varying amounts of iron, magnesium, alkali metals, alkaline earth, and cation formed from sedimentary rocks. Furthermore, red clay is an extremely absorbent material and develops plasticity when wet due to the molecular film of water surrounding the clay particles but can become hard, impervious, brittle, and non-brittle and non-plastic when dry. In developing countries, the high cost of refrigeration technologies and most other methods of preserving meat are exorbitant and thus can be substituted with the less expensive and readily available red clay for the preservation of meat. Methodology: 1000g of lean meat was diced into cubes of 10g each. The sample was then divided into four groups labelled raw meat (RMC); raw in 10% brine solution (RMB), boiled meat (BMC), and fried meat (FMC). It was then encapsulated with 2mm thick red clay and then heated in a muffle furnace at a temperature of 600OC for 30min. The samples were kept on a bench top for 30 days, and a storage study was carried out. Results: Our findings showed a decrease in value during storage for the physiochemical properties of all the sample; pH values decreased [RMC (7.05-7.6), RMB (8.46-7.0), BMC (6.0-5.0), FMC (4.08-3.9)]; free fatty acid content decreased with storage time [RMC (32.6%-31%), RMB (30.2%-28.6%), BMC (30.5%-27.4%), FMC (25.6%-23.8%)]; total soluble solid value decreased [RMC16.20-15.07, RMB (17.22-16.04), BMC (17.05-15.54), FMC (15.3-14.9)]. Conclusion: This result shows that encapsulation with red clay reduced all the values analyzed and thus has the potential to extend the shelf life of stored meat.

Keywords: red clay, encapsulating, shelf life, physicochemical properties, lean meat

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Authors: Y. Fekir, K. Mederbal, M. A. Hamadouche, D. Anteur

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The soil erosion by water has become one of the biggest problems of the environment in the world, threatening the majority of countries. There are several models to evaluate erosion. These models are still a simplified representation of reality. They permit the analysis of complex systems, measurements are complementary to allow an extrapolation in time and space and may combine different factors. The empirical model of soil loss proposed by Wischmeier and Smith (Universal Soil Loss Equation), is widely used in many countries. He considers that erosion is a multiplicative function of five factors: rainfall erosivity (the R factor) the soil erodibility factor (K), topography (LS), the erosion control practices (P) and vegetation cover and agricultural practices (C). In this work, we tried to develop a tool based on Web GIS functionality to evaluate soil losses caused by erosion taking into account five factors. This tool allows the user to integrate all the data needed for the evaluation (DEM, Land use, rainfall ...) in the form of digital layers to calculate the five factors taken into account in the USLE equation (R, K, C, P, LS). Accordingly, and after treatment of the integrated data set, a map of the soil losses will be achieved as a result. We tested the proposed tool on a watershed basin located in the weste of Algeria where a dataset was collected and prepared.

Keywords: USLE, erosion, web gis, Algeria

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Authors: Helena Bolini, Erick Esmerino, Adriano Cruz, Juliana Paixao

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The currently concern for health has increased demand for low-calorie ingredients and functional foods as probiotics. Understand the reasons that infer on food choice, besides a challenging task, it is important step for development and/or reformulation of existing food products. The use of appropriate multivariate statistical techniques, such as External Preference Map (PrefMap), associated with regression by Partial Least Squares (PLS) can help in determining those factors. Thus, this study aimed to determine, through PLS regression analysis, the sensory attributes considered drivers of liking in probiotic petit suisse cheeses, strawberry flavor, sweetened with different sweeteners. Five samples in same equivalent sweetness: PROB1 (Sucralose 0.0243%), PROB2 (Stevia 0.1520%), PROB3 (Aspartame 0.0877%), PROB4 (Neotame 0.0025%) and PROB5 (Sucrose 15.2%) determined by just-about-right and magnitude estimation methods, and three commercial samples COM1, COM2 and COM3, were studied. Analysis was done over data coming from QDA, performed by 12 expert (highly trained assessors) on 20 descriptor terms, correlated with data from assessment of overall liking in acceptance test, carried out by 125 consumers, on all samples. Sequentially, results were submitted to PLS regression using XLSTAT software from Byossistemes. As shown in results, it was possible determine, that three sensory descriptor terms might be considered drivers of liking of probiotic petit suisse cheese samples added with sweeteners (p<0.05). The milk flavor was noticed as a sensory characteristic with positive impact on acceptance, while descriptors bitter taste and sweet aftertaste were perceived as descriptor terms with negative impact on acceptance of petit suisse probiotic cheeses. It was possible conclude that PLS regression analysis is a practical and useful tool in determining drivers of liking of probiotic petit suisse cheeses sweetened with artificial and natural sweeteners, allowing food industry to understand and improve their formulations maximizing the acceptability of their products.

Keywords: acceptance, consumer, quantitative descriptive analysis, sweetener

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Authors: Ayesha Mushtaq

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Asthma is a pulmonary disease in which blockade of the airway takes place due to inflammation as a response to certain allergens. Breathing troubles, cough, and dyspnea are one of the few symptoms. Several studies have indicated a significant effect on asthma due to changes in dietary routines. Certain food items, such as oily foods and other materials, are known to cause an increase in the symptoms of asthma. Low dietary intake of fruits and vegetables may be important in relation to asthma prevalence. The objective of this study is to assess and compare the nutritional status of asthmatic and non-asthmatic patients. The significance of this study lies in the factor that it will help nutritionists to arrange a feasible dietary routine for asthmatic patients. This research was conducted at the Pulmonology Department of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Science Islamabad. About thirty hundred thirty-four million people are affected by asthma worldwide. Pakistan is on the verge of being an uplifted urban population and asthma cases are increasingly high these days. Several studies suggest an increase in the Asthmatic patient population due to improper diet. Other studies conducted at different institutions have conducted research on similar topics. These studies have suggested that there is a substantial alteration in the nutritional status of asthmatic and non-Asthmatic patients. This is a cross-sectional study aimed at assessing the nutritious standing of Asthmatic and non-asthmatic patients. This research took place at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad, Pakistan. The research included asthmatic and non-asthmatic patients coming to the pulmonology department clinic at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS). These patients were aged between 20-60 years. A questionnaire was developed for these patients to estimate their dietary plans in these patients. The methodology included four sections. The first section was the Socio-Demographic profile, which included age, gender, monthly income and occupation. The next section was anthropometric measurements which included the weight, height and body mass index (BMI) of the individual. The next section, section three, was about the biochemical attributes, such as for biochemical profiling, pulmonary function testing (PFT) was performed. In the next section, Dietary habits, which were assessed by using a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) through food habits and consumption pattern, was assessed. The next section life style data, in which the person's level of physical activity, sleep and smoking habits were assessed. The next section was statistical analysis. All the data obtained from the study were statistically analyzed and assessed. Most of the asthma Patients were females, with weight more than normal or even obese. Body Mass Index (BMI) was higher in asthma Patients than those in non-Asthmatic ones. When the nutritional Values were assessed, we came to know that these patients were low on certain nutrients and their diet included more junk and oily food than healthy vegetables and fruits. Beverages intake was also included in the same assessment. It is evident from this study that nutritional status has a contributory effect on asthma. So, patients on the verge of developing asthma or those who have developed asthma should focus on their diet, maintain good eating habits and take healthy diets, including fruits and vegetables rather than oily foods. Proper sleep may also contribute to the control of asthma.

Keywords: NUTRI, BMI, asthma, food

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Authors: G. Sevilla, S. Zapata, F. Giraldo, E. Torres, C. Collazos

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This work describes a framework for teaching of global software engineering (GSE) in university undergraduate programs. This framework proposes a method of teaching that incorporates adequate techniques of software requirements elicitation and validated tools of communication, critical aspects to global software development scenarios. The use of proposed framework allows teachers to simulate small software development companies formed by Latin American students, which build information systems. Students from three Latin American universities played the roles of engineers by applying an iterative development of a requirements specification in a global software project. The proposed framework involves the use of a specific purpose Wiki for asynchronous communication between the participants of the process. It is also a practice to improve the quality of software requirements that are formulated by the students. The additional motivation of students to participate in these practices, in conjunction with peers from other countries, is a significant additional factor that positively contributes to the learning process. The framework promotes skills for communication, negotiation, and other complementary competencies that are useful for working on GSE scenarios.

Keywords: requirements analysis, distributed requirements engineering, practical experiences, collaborative support

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Authors: Murni Sianturi, Andreas Au Hurit

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The low level of Indigenous Papuan students’ literacy and numeracy in Merauke Regency-Indonesia needs to be considered. The development of a learnable storybook with pictures related to their lives might raise their curiosity to read. This study aimed to design a storybook as a complementary resource for the third graders using Indigenous Malind cultural approaches by employing research and development methods. The product developed was a thematic-integrative picture storybook using funds of knowledge from Indigenous students. All the book contents depicted Indigenous students’ lives and were in line with the national curriculum syllabus, specifically representing one sub-theme−multiplication topic. Multiplication material of grade 3 was modified in the form of a story, and at the end of the reading, students were given several multiplication exercises. Based on the results of the evaluation from the expert team, it was found that the average score was in the excellent category. The students’ and teacher’s responses to the storybook were very positive. Students were thrilled when reading this book and also effortlessly understood the concept of multiplication. Therefore, this book might be used as a companion book to the main book and serve as introductory reading material for students prior to discussing multiplication material.

Keywords: a picture storybook, funds of knowledge, Indigenous elementary students, literacy, numeracy

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Authors: Yeanchon H. Dulanlebit, Nikmans Hattu, Gloria Bora

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Seaweed is a type of macro algae which are good source of iodine and have been widely used as food and nutrition supplement. One of iodine species that found in ocean plant is iodate. Analysis of iodate in seaweed (Eucheuma cottonii) from coastal area of Maluku has been done. The determination is done by using spectrophotometric method. Iodate in sample is reduced in excess of potassium iodide in the presence of acid solution, and then is reacted with starch to form blue complex. The study found out that the highest wavelength on determination of iodate species using spectrophotometer analysis method is 570 nm. Optimum value to yield maximum absorption is used in this research. Contents of iodate in seawater from coastal area of Ambon Island, Western Seram and Southeast Maluku are 0.2655, 0.2719 and 0.1760 mg/L, respectively. While in seaweeds from Ambon Island, Western Seram, Southeast Maluku-Taar, Ohoidertawun and Wab are 6.3122, 6.3293, 6.2333, 3.7406 and 4.4207 mg/kg in dry weight. Bioconcentration (enrichment) factor of iodate in seaweed (Eucheuma cottonii) from the three samples (cluster) is different; in Coastal area of Ambon Island, Western Seram and Southeast Maluku respectively are 23.78, 23.28 and 27.26.

Keywords: bioconcentration, eucheuma cottonii, iodate, iodine, seaweed

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Authors: Mahdi Rahaie

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MicroRNAs are a novel class of small RNAs which regulate gene expression by translational repression or degradation of messenger RNAs. To produce sensitive, simple and cost-effective assays for microRNAs, detection is in urgent demand due to important role of these biomolecules in progression of human disease such as Alzheimer’s, Multiple sclerosis, and some other neurodegenerative diseases. Herein, we report several novel, sensitive and specific microRNA nanobiosensors which were designed based on colorimetric and fluorescence detection of nanoparticles and hybridization chain reaction amplification as an enzyme-free amplification. These new strategies eliminate the need for enzymatic reactions, chemical changes, separation processes and sophisticated equipment whereas less limit of detection with most specify are acceptable. The important features of these methods are high sensitivity and specificity to differentiate between perfectly matched, mismatched and non-complementary target microRNAs and also decent response in the real sample analysis with blood plasma. These nanobiosensors can clinically be used not only for the early detection of neuro diseases but also for every sickness related to miRNAs by direct detection of the plasma microRNAs in real clinical samples, without a need for sample preparation, RNA extraction and/or amplification.

Keywords: hybridization chain reaction, microRNA, nanobiosensor, neurodegenerative diseases

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Authors: Napasri Suwanajote

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The purposes of this research were to analyze and evaluate successful factors in OTOP production process for the developing of learning center on OTOP production process based on Sufficiency Economic Philosophy for sustainable life quality. The research has been designed as a qualitative study to gather information from 30 OTOP producers in Bangkontee District, Samudsongkram Province. They were all interviewed on 3 main parts. Part 1 was about the production process including 1) production, 2) product development, 3) the community strength, 4) marketing possibility, and 5) product quality. Part 2 evaluated appropriate successful factors including 1) the analysis of the successful factors, 2) evaluate the strategy based on Sufficiency Economic Philosophy, and 3) the model of learning center on OTOP production process based on Sufficiency Economic Philosophy for sustainable life quality. The results showed that the production did not affect the environment with potential in continuing standard quality production. They used the raw materials in the country. On the aspect of product and community strength in the past 1 year, it was found that there was no appropriate packaging showing product identity according to global market standard. They needed the training on packaging especially for food and drink products. On the aspect of product quality and product specification, it was found that the products were certified by the local OTOP standard. There should be a responsible organization to help the uncertified producers pass the standard. However, there was a problem on food contamination which was hazardous to the consumers. The producers should cooperate with the government sector or educational institutes involving with food processing to reach FDA standard. The results from small group discussion showed that the community expected high education and better standard living. Some problems reported by the community included informal debt and drugs in the community. There were 8 steps in developing the model of learning center on OTOP production process based on Sufficiency Economic Philosophy for sustainable life quality.

Keywords: production process, OTOP, sufficiency economic philosophy, language choice

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Authors: José Maria, Vânia Laranjo, Luís Abrunhosa, António Inês

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The occurrence of mycotoxigenic moulds such as Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium in food and feed has an important impact on public health, by the appearance of acute and chronic mycotoxicoses in humans and animals, which is more severe in the developing countries due to lack of food security, poverty and malnutrition. This mould contamination also constitutes a major economic problem due the lost of crop production. A great variety of filamentous fungi is able to produce highly toxic secondary metabolites known as mycotoxins. Most of the mycotoxins are carcinogenic, mutagenic, neurotoxic and immunosuppressive, being ochratoxin A (OTA) one of the most important. OTA is toxic to animals and humans, mainly due to its nephrotoxic properties. Several approaches have been developed for decontamination of mycotoxins in foods, such as, prevention of contamination, biodegradation of mycotoxins-containing food and feed with microorganisms or enzymes and inhibition or absorption of mycotoxin content of consumed food into the digestive tract. Some group of Gram-positive bacteria named lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are able to release some molecules that can influence the mould growth, improving the shelf life of many fermented products and reducing health risks due to exposure to mycotoxins. Some LAB are capable of mycotoxin detoxification. Recently our group was the first to describe the ability of LAB strains to biodegrade OTA, more specifically, Pediococcus parvulus strains isolated from Douro wines. The pathway of this biodegradation was identified previously in other microorganisms. OTA can be degraded through the hydrolysis of the amide bond that links the L-β-phenylalanine molecule to the ochratoxin alpha (OTα) a non toxic compound. It is known that some peptidases from different origins can mediate the hydrolysis reaction like, carboxypeptidase A an enzyme from the bovine pancreas, a commercial lipase and several commercial proteases. So, we wanted to have a better understanding of this OTA degradation process when LAB are involved and identify which molecules where present in this process. For achieving our aim we used some bioinformatics tools (BLAST, CLUSTALX2, CLC Sequence Viewer 7, Finch TV). We also designed specific primers and realized gene specific PCR. The template DNA used came from LAB strains samples of our previous work, and other DNA LAB strains isolated from elderberry fruit, silage, milk and sausages. Through the employment of bioinformatics tools it was possible to identify several proteins belonging to the carboxypeptidase family that participate in the process of OTA degradation, such as serine type D-Ala-D-Ala carboxypeptidase and membrane carboxypeptidase. In conclusions, this work has identified carboxypeptidase proteins being one of the molecules present in the OTA degradation process when LAB are involved.

Keywords: carboxypeptidase, lactic acid bacteria, mycotoxins, ochratoxin a.

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Authors: Derick Shi-Chen Ou, Liang-Yu Chen

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Background: Acupuncture, a potential alternative, and complementary therapy revealed insufficient evidence in depression treatment. The efficacy of acupuncture treatment was still uncertainty. To evaluate the effect of acupuncture in treating depression, the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were examined. Methods: RCTs of the acupuncture therapy in treating major depression were searched from MEDLINE from 2007 to 2017. Keywords used for searching strategy included acupuncture, acupoint, and major depressive disorder. Results: Among the nine RCTs, four studies demonstrated great improvement in acupuncture treatment and five studies revealed the effectiveness of acupuncture intervention in medication. General trends suggest that acupuncture treatment is as effective as antidepressants with minimal side effects. Conclusion: Despite the promising results from the RCTs, there are still a variety of limitations, including small sample size, imprecise enrollment criteria, difficulties with blinding, randomization, short duration of study and lack of longitudinal follow-up. Therefore, the evidence that acupuncture as an alternative therapy for depression is inconclusive. More rigorously designed RCTs should be conducted in the future.

Keywords: acupuncture, major depressive disorders, randomized clinical trials, antidepressants

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Authors: E. Ewemoje Oluseyi, T. A. Ewemoje, A. A. Adedeji

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Biodegradable solid waste disposal and management has been a major problem in Nigeria and indiscriminate dumping of this waste either into watercourses or drains has led to environmental hazards affecting public health. The study investigated the nutrients level of pit composting and vermicomposting. Wooden bins 60 cm × 30 cm × 30 cm³ in size were constructed and bedding materials (sawdust, egg shell, paper and grasses) and red worms (Eisenia fetida) introduced to facilitate the free movement and protection of the worms against harsh weather. A pit of 100 cm × 100 cm × 100 cm³ was dug and worms were introduced into the pit, which was turned every two weeks. Food waste was fed to the red worms in the bin and pit, respectively. The composts were harvested after 100 days and analysed. The analyses gave: nitrogen has average value 0.87 % and 1.29 %; phosphorus 0.66 % and 1.78 %; potassium 4.35 % and 6.27 % for the pit and vermicomposting, respectively. Higher nutrient status of vermicomposting over pit composting may be attributed to the secretions in the intestinal tracts of worms which are more readily available for plant growth. However, iron and aluminium were more in the pit compost than the vermin compost and this may be attributed to the iron and aluminium already present in the soil before the composting took place. Other nutrients in ppm concentrations were aluminium 4,999.50 and 3,989.33; iron 2,131.83 and 633.40 for the pit and vermicomposting, respectively. These nutrients are only needed by plants in small quantities. Hence, vermicomposting has the higher concentration of essential nutrients necessary for healthy plant growth.

Keywords: food wastes, pit composting, plant nutrient status, tropical environment, vermicomposting

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Authors: Ahsan Abdullah, Ahmed A. S. Bakshwain

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Livestock is one of the fastest-growing sectors in agriculture. If carefully managed, have potential opportunities for economic growth, food sovereignty and food security. In this study we mainly analyse and compare long-term i.e. for year 2030 climate variability impact on predicted productivity of meat i.e. beef, mutton and poultry for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia w.r.t three factors i.e. i) climatic-change vulnerability ii) CO2 fertilization and iii) water scarcity and compare the results with two countries of the region i.e. Iraq and Yemen. We do the analysis using data from diverse sources, which was extracted, transformed and integrated before usage. The collective impact of the three factors had an overall negative effect on the production of meat for all the three countries, with adverse impact on Iraq. High similarity was found between CO2 fertilization (effecting animal fodder) and water scarcity i.e. higher than that between production of beef and mutton for the three countries considered. Overall, the three factors do not seem to be favorable for the three Middle-East countries considered. This points to possibility of a vegetarian year 2030 based on dependency on indigenous live-stock population.

Keywords: prediction, animal-source foods, pastures, CO2 fertilization, climatic-change vulnerability, water scarcity

Procedia PDF Downloads 321

Authors: Myagmarsuren Soronzonjav, N. Togtokhbayar, L. Davaahuu, B. Minjigdorj, Seong Gu Hwang

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The number of natural or organic product consumers is increased in recent years and this healthy demand pushes to increase usage of healthy meat. At the same time, consumers pay more attention on the healthy fat, especially on unsaturated fatty acids. These long chain carbohydrates reduce heart diseases, improve memory and eye sight and activate the immune system. One of the important issues to be solved for our Mongolia’s food security is to provide healthy, fresh, widely available and cheap meat for the population. Thus, an importance of the Selenge breed meat production is increasing in order to supply the quality meat food security since the Selenge breed cattle are rapidly multiplied, beneficial in term of income, the same quality as Mongolian breed, and well digested for human body. We researched the lipid, unsaturated and saturated fatty acid contents of meat of Selenge breed younger cattle by their muscle types. Result of our research reveals that 11 saturated fatty acids are detected. For the content of palmitic acid among saturated fatty acids, 23.61% was in the sirloin meat, 24.01% was in the round and chuck meat, and 24.83% was in the short loin meat.

Keywords: chromatogram, gas chromatography, organic resolving, saturated and unsaturated fatty acids

Procedia PDF Downloads 268

Authors: Mohsen Rezaei Aghdam

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Recombinant DNA technology has meaningfully augmented the conventional crop improvement and has a great possibility to contribution plant breeders to encounter the augmented food request foretold for the 21st century. Predictable changes in weather and its erraticism, chiefly extreme fevers and vicissitudes in rainfall are expected to brand crop upgrading even more vital for food manufacture. Tissue attitude has been downtrodden to create genetic erraticism from which harvest plants can be better, to improve the state of health of the recognized physical and to upsurge the number of wanted germplasms obtainable to the plant breeder. This appraisal delivers an impression of the chances obtainable by the integration of vegetable biotechnology into plant development efforts and increases some of the social subjects that need to be considered in their application. Public-private companies offer chances to catalyze new approaches and investment while accelerating integrated research and development and commercial supply chain-based solutions. Novel varieties derivative by encouraged mutatgenesis are used commonly: rice in Thailand. These paper combinations obtainable data about the influence of change breeding-derived crop changes around the world, traveler magnetism the possibility of mutation upbringing as a flexible and feasible approach appropriate to any crop if that suitable objectives and selection approaches are used.

Keywords: crop, improve, genetic, agricultural

Procedia PDF Downloads 167

Authors: Adilla Anggraeni

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The purpose of the paper is to investigate the effects of religiosity and subjective knowledge towards initial trust that a consumer has towards a product manufacturer. Since globalization enters the point of no return, it should be acknowledged that further exploration of country of origin image, its influences and possible limiting factors is imperative. This model aims to broaden COO-related research, especially related to different product categories based on the perception of consumers in emerging markets. The study employs quantitative method, aiming to involve 200 Indonesian respondents to evaluate different product categories (food/apparel). Relationships between variables are evaluated using structural equation modeling. It is expected that subjective knowledge will have significant influence towards initial trust that an individual possesses towards food products. A major contribution of this study will be the inclusion of religiosity and subjective knowledge in the country of origin study’s body of knowledge. Companies are also expected to benefit from the study as the acceleration of globalization may again repose the question of whether companies should market their product using similar strategies across different countries or different ones. Religiosity dimension is expected to add values to international marketing literature concerning emerging economies in particular, as many companies view the emerging economies as promising markets.

Keywords: country of origin, subjective knowledge, initial trust, emerging economy, Indonesia

Procedia PDF Downloads 290

Authors: Rajeshwar S. Matche, Subhash V. Pawde, Suraj P, Sachin R. Chaudhari

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Time Temperature Indicator’s (TTI) are trending approach in a food packaging that will be insightful to have safe and hygienic food products. Currently, available TTI in the market are mostly a product specific and sometime even difficult to handle especially in supply chain as these are pre-activated and require specific storage conditions. In the present study, research focus is on the development of a cost-effective lactic acid based TTI that can work over a wide range of temperature and can be activated at time of packaging or on demand. The correlation between activation energies of colour change of the developed indicator and packed pasteurized milk spoilage with respect to time and temperature was established. Developed lactic acid based TTI strips have range of activation energy from 10.13 to 24.20 KJ/mol. We found that the developed TTI strip’s with activation energy 12.42, and 14.41KJ/mol can be correlated with spoilage activation energy of packed pasteurized milk which was 25.71 KJ/mol with factor of 2 at storage temperature 4°C. The implementation of these TTI on packed pasteurized milk allow us see visual colour change during the storage and can be fruitful to monitoring quality of the milk and understand its freshness especially in a cold supply chain, viz distributor and road vendor etc.

Keywords: pasteurised packed milk, time temperature indicator, spoilage, freshness

Procedia PDF Downloads 110

Authors: D. Mokatsanyane, J. Jansen Van Rensburg

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This paper analyses the influence and impact of COVID-19 on major agricultural commodity prices in South Africa. According to a World Bank report, the agricultural sector in South Africa has been unable to reduce the domestic food crisis that has been occurring over the past years, hence the increased rate of poverty, which is currently at 55.5 percent as of April 2020. Despite the significance of this sector, empirical findings concluded that the agricultural sector now accounts for 1.88 percent of South Africa's gross domestic product (GDP). Suggesting that the agricultural sector's contribution to the economy has diminished. Despite the low contribution to GDP, this primary sector continues to play an essential role in the economy. Over the past years, multiple factors have contributed to the soaring commodities prices, namely, climate shocks, biofuel demand, demand and supply shocks, the exchange rate, speculation in commodity derivative markets, trade restrictions, and economic growth. The COVID-19 outbursts have currently disturbed the supply and demand of staple crops. To address the disruption, the government has exempted the agricultural sector from closure and restrictions on movement. The spread of COVID-19 has caused turmoil all around the world, but mostly in developing countries. According to Statistic South Africa, South Africa's economy decreased by seven percent in 2020. Consequently, this has arguably made the agricultural sector the most affected sector since slumped economic growth negatively impacts food security, trade, farm livelihood, and greenhouse gas emissions. South Africa is sensitive to the fruitfulness of global food chains. Restrictions in trade, reinforced sanitary control systems, and border controls have influenced food availability and prices internationally. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the behavior of agricultural commodity prices pre-and during-COVID to determine the impact of volatility drivers on these crops. Historical secondary data of spot prices for the top five major commodities, namely white maize, yellow maize, wheat, soybeans, and sunflower seeds, are analysed from 01 January 2017 to 1 September 2021. The timeframe was chosen to capture price fluctuations between pre-COVID-19 (01 January 2017 to 23 March 2020) and during-COVID-19 (24 March 2020 to 01 September 2021). The Generalised Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity (GARCH) statistical model will be used to measure the influence of price fluctuations. The results reveal that the commodity market has been experiencing volatility at different points. Extremely high volatility is represented during the first quarter of 2020. During this period, there was high uncertainty, and grain prices were very volatile. Despite the influence of COVID-19 on agricultural prices, the demand for these commodities is still existing and decent. During COVID-19, analysis indicates that prices were low and less volatile during the pandemic. The prices and returns of these commodities were low during COVID-19 because of the government's actions to respond to the virus's spread, which collapsed the market demand for food commodities.

Keywords: commodities market, commodity prices, generalised autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity (GARCH), Price volatility, SAFEX

Procedia PDF Downloads 174

Authors: D. A. S. Gamage, B. F. A Basnayake, W. A. J. M. de Costa

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Rice is one of the world’s most important cereals. Increasing food production both to meet in-country requirements and to help overcome food crises is one of the major issues facing Sri Lanka today. However, productive land is limited and has mostly been utilized either for food crop production or other uses. Agriculture plays an important and strategic role in the performance of Sri Lankan national economy. A variety of modern agricultural inputs have been introduced, namely ploughs and harvesters, pesticides, fertilizers and lime. Besides, there are several agricultural institutions developing and updating the management of agricultural sector. Modern agricultural inputs cooperate as a catalyst in raising the productivity. However, in the eagerness of gaining profits from the efficient and productive techniques, this modern agricultural input has affected the environment and living things especially those which have been blended from various chemical substance. The increased pressure to maintain a high level of rice output for consumption has resulted in increased use of pesticides and inorganic fertilizer on rice fields in Sri Lanka. The application of inorganic fertilizer has become a burdened to the country in many ways. The excessive reuse of the ground water resources with a considerable application of organic and chemical fertilizers will lead to a deterioration of the quality and quantity of water. Biochar is a form of charcoal produced through the heating of natural organic materials. It has received significant attention recently for its potential as a soil conditioner, a fertilizer and as a means of storing carbon in a sustainable manner. It is the best solution for managing the agricultural wastes while providing a useful product for increasing agricultural productivity and protecting the environment. The objective of this study was to evaluate rice husk charcoal coated urea as a slow releasing fertilizer and compare the total N, P, K, organic matter in soil and yield of rice production.

Keywords: biochar, paddy husk, soil conditioner, rice straw compost

Procedia PDF Downloads 351

Authors: Fariba Tadayon, Elmira Hassanlou, Hasan Bagheri, Mostafa Jafarian

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Heavy metals are released into water, plants, soil, and food by natural and human activities. Lead has toxic roles in the human body and may cause serious problems even in low concentrations, since it may have several adverse effects on human. Therefore, determination of lead in different samples is an important procedure in the studies of environmental pollution. In this work, an ultrasonic assisted-ionic liquid based-liquid-liquid microextraction (UA-IL-DLLME) procedure for the determination of lead in zucchini, pomegranate, and lettuce has been established and developed by using flame atomic absorption spectrometer (FAAS). For UA-IL-DLLME procedure, 10 mL of the sample solution containing Pb2+ was adjusted to pH=5 in a glass test tube with a conical bottom; then, 120 μL of 1-Hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluoro phosphate (CMIM)(PF6) was rapidly injected into the sample solution with a microsyringe. After that, the resulting cloudy mixture was treated by ultrasonic for 5 min, then the separation of two phases was obtained by centrifugation for 5 min at 3000 rpm and IL-phase diluted with 1 cc ethanol, and the analytes were determined by FAAS. The effect of different experimental parameters in the extraction step including: ionic liquid volume, sonication time and pH was studied and optimized simultaneously by using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) employing a central composite design (CCD). The optimal conditions were determined to be an ionic liquid volume of 120 μL, sonication time of 5 min, and pH=5. The linear ranges of the calibration curve for the determination by FAAS of lead were 0.1-4 ppm with R2=0.992. Under optimized conditions, the limit of detection (LOD) for lead was 0.062 μg.mL-1, the enrichment factor (EF) was 93, and the relative standard deviation (RSD) for lead was calculated as 2.29%. The levels of lead for pomegranate, zucchini, and lettuce were calculated as 2.88 μg.g-1, 1.54 μg.g-1, 2.18 μg.g-1, respectively. Therefore, this method has been successfully applied for the analysis of the content of lead in different food samples by FAAS.

Keywords: Dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction, Central composite design, Food samples, Flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

Procedia PDF Downloads 283

Authors: Bjorn-Ole Meyer, Dominik Marti, Peter E. Andersen

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A multimodal imaging system, combining spectrally resolved multiphoton microscopy (MPM) and optical coherence microscopy (OCM) is demonstrated. MPM and OCM are commonly integrated into multimodal imaging platforms to combine functional and morphological information. The MPM signals, such as two-photon fluorescence emission (TPFE) and signals created by second harmonic generation (SHG) are biomarkers which exhibit information on functional biological features such as the ratio of pyridine nucleotide (NAD(P)H) and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) in the classification of cancerous tissue. While the spectrally resolved imaging allows for the study of biomarkers, using a spectrometer as a detector limits the imaging speed of the system significantly. To overcome those limitations, an OCM setup was added to the system, which allows for fast acquisition of structural information. Thus, after rapid imaging of larger specimens, navigation within the sample is possible. Subsequently, distinct features can be selected for further investigation using MPM. Additionally, by probing a different contrast, complementary information is obtained, and different biomarkers can be investigated. OCM images of tissue and cell samples are obtained, and distinctive features are evaluated using MPM to illustrate the benefits of the system.

Keywords: optical coherence microscopy, multiphoton microscopy, multimodal imaging, two-photon fluorescence emission

Procedia PDF Downloads 511

Authors: E. Chiam, E. Koh, W. Teh, M. Prabhakaran

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Fruits and vegetables (F&V) are widely eaten for their nutritional value and associated health benefits being an immense source of bioactive compounds. However, F&V peels are often discarded, and it accounts for a higher proportion of food waste. Incorporation of F&V peels as functional ingredients can add more value to food due to the higher amounts of phytochemicals present in them. In this research, methanolic extracts of different F&V peels, namely apple, orange, kiwi, grapefruit, dragon fruit, pomelo, and pumpkin are investigated for their total phenolic content (TPC) by Folin-Ciocalteau (FC) assay and the antioxidant capacity was evaluated by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and phosphomolybdenum assay using UV-Vis spectroscopy. Evaluation of the α-glucosidase inhibitory assay was carried out during this study to determine the antidiabetic potential of F&V peels. Results of our study showed that grapefruit peels contained the highest total phenolic content of 477.81 ± 0.01 mg gallic acid equivalent per gram dry weight of the sample, and kiwi peel had the highest antioxidant capacity (90.51 ± 0.10 % inhibition of DPPH radical) among the different F&V peels studied. Fruit peels exhibited high α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. Comparing fruit peels with vegetable peels, it was found that fruit peels had high total phenolic content, antioxidant capacity and anti-diabetic potential compared to vegetable peels.

Keywords: polyphenolics, fruit peels, antioxidant, antidiabetic

Procedia PDF Downloads 140

Authors: Patikineti Sreenivasulu, K. srinivasa Rao, A. Vinaya Babu

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The demand for portability, performance and high functional integration density of digital devices leads to the scaling of complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) devices inevitable. The increase in power consumption, coupled with the increasing demand for portable/hand-held electronics, has made power consumption a dominant concern in the design of VLSI circuits today. MTCMOS technology provides low leakage and high performance operation by utilizing high speed, low Vt (LVT) transistors for logic cells and low leakage, high Vt (HVT) devices as sleep transistors. Sleep transistors disconnect logic cells from the supply and/or ground to reduce the leakage in the sleep mode. In this technology, energy consumption while doing the mode transition and minimum time required to turn ON the circuit upon receiving the wake up signal are issues to be considered because these can adversely impact the performance of VLSI circuit. In this paper we are introducing an enhancing method of MTCMOS technology to optimize the power in MTCMOS sequential circuits.

Keywords: power consumption, ultra-low power, leakage, sub threshold, MTCMOS

Procedia PDF Downloads 406