Search results for: dietary fiber

Authors: Natasha Botha, Gary Corderely, Helen M. Inglis

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With the move to cleaner energy applications the transport industry is working towards on-board hydrogen, or compressed natural gas-fuelled vehicles. A popular method for storage is to use composite overwrapped pressure vessels (COPV) because of their high strength to weight ratios. The proper design of these COPVs are according to international standards; this study aims to provide a preliminary design for a 350 Bar Type IV COPV (i.e. a polymer liner with a composite overwrap). Netting analysis, a popular analytical approach, is used as a first step to generate an initial design concept for the composite winding. This design is further improved upon by following the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel standards, Section X: Fibre-reinforced composite pressure vessels. A design program based on these two approaches is developed using Python. A numerical model of a burst test simulation is developed based on the two approaches and compared. The results indicate that the netting analysis provides a good preliminary design, while the ASME-based design is more robust and accurate as it includes a better approximation of the material behaviour. Netting analysis is an easy method to follow when considering an initial concept design for the composite winding when not all the material characteristics are known. Once these characteristics have been fully defined with experimental testing, an ASME-based design should always be followed to ensure that all designs conform to international standards and practices. Future work entails more detailed numerical testing of the design for improvement, this will include the boss design. Once finalised prototype manufacturing and experimental testing will be conducted, and the results used to improve on the COPV design.

Keywords: composite overwrapped pressure vessel, netting analysis, design, American Society of Mechanical Engineers section x, fiber-reinforced, hydrogen storage

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Authors: Rishana Bilimoria

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Darwin’s insightful anthropological theory on the evolution drove mankind’s understanding of our existence in the natural world. Scientists consider analysis of dental and craniofacial remains to be pivotal in uncovering facts about our evolutionary journey. The resilient mineral content of enamel and dentine allow cranial and dental remains to be preserved for millions of years, making it an excellent resource not only in anthropology but other fields of research including forensic dentistry. This literature review aims to chronologically approach each ancestral species, reviewing Australopithecus, Paranthropus, Homo Habilis, Homo Rudolfensis, Homo Erectus, Homo Neanderthalis, and finally Homo Sapiens. Studies included in the review assess the features of cranio-dental remains that are of evolutionary importance, such as microstructure, microwear, morphology, and jaw biomechanics. The article discusses the plethora of analysis techniques employed to study dental remains including carbon dating, dental topography, confocal imaging, DPI scanning and light microscopy, in addition to microwear study and analysis of features such as coronal and root morphology, mandibular corpus shape, craniofacial anatomy and microstructure. Furthermore, results from these studies provide insight into the diet, lifestyle and consequently, ecological surroundings of each species. We can correlate dental fossil evidence with wider theories on pivotal global events, to help us contextualize each species in space and time. Examples include dietary adaptation during the period of global cooling converting the landscape of Africa from forest to grassland. Global migration ‘out of Africa’ can be demonstrated by enamel thickness variation, cranial vault variation over time demonstrates accommodation to larger brain sizes, and dental wear patterns can place the commencement of lithic technology in history. Conclusions from this literature review show that dental evidence plays a major role in painting a phenotypic and all rounded picture of species of the Homo genus, in particular, analysis of coronal morphology through carbon dating and dental wear analysis. With regards to analysis technique, whilst studies require larger sample sizes, this could be unrealistic since there are limitations in ability to retrieve fossil data. We cannot deny the reliability of carbon dating; however, there is certainly scope for the use of more recent techniques, and further evidence of their success is required.

Keywords: cranio-facial, dental remains, evolution, hominids

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Authors: Ji Un Shin, Wei Mao, Hyuk Sang Yoo

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Electrospinning is a versatile tool for fabricating nano-structured polymeric materials. Gelatin hydrogels are considered to be a good material for cell cultivation because of high water swellability as well as good biocompatibility. Three-dimensional (3-D) cell cultivation is a desirable method of cell cultivation for preparing tissues and organs because cell-to-cell interactions or cell-to-matrix interactions can be much enhanced through this approach. For this reason, hydrogels were widely employed as tissue scaffolds because they can support cultivating cells and tissue in multi-dimensions. Major disadvantages of hydrogel-based cell cultivation include low mechanical properties, lack of topography, which should be enhanced for successful tissue engineering. Herein we surface-immobilized gelatin on the surface of nanofibrous matrix for 3-D cell cultivation in topographical cues added environments. Electrospun nanofibers were electrospun with injection of poly(caprolactone) through a single nozzle syringe. Electrospun meshes were then chopped up with a high speed grinder to fine powders. This was hydrolyzed in optimized concentration of sodium hydroxide solution from 1 to 6 hours and harvested by centrifugation. The freeze-dried powders were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for revealing the morphology and fibrilar shaped with a length of ca. 20um was observed. This was subsequently immersed in gelatin solution for surface-coating of gelatin, where the process repeated up to 10 times for obtaining desirable coating of gelatin on the surface. Gelatin-coated nanofibrils showed high waterswellability in comparison to the unmodified nanofibrils, and this enabled good dispersion properties of the modified nanofibrils in aqueous phase. The degree of water-swellability was increased as the coating numbers of gelatin increased, however, it did not any meaning result after 10 times of gelatin coating process. Thus, by adjusting the gelatin coating times, we could successfully control the degree of hydrophilicity and water-swellability of nanofibrils.

Keywords: nano, fiber, cell, tissue

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Authors: G. N. Simonian, R. F. Basalah, F. T. Abd El Halim, F. F. Abd El Latif, A. M. Adel, A. M. El Shafey.

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Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) is an anionic water soluble polymer that has been introduced in paper coating as a strength agent. One of the main objectives of this research is to investigate the influence of CMC concentration in improving the strength properties of paper fiber. In this work, we coated the paper sheets; Xerox paper sheets by different concentration of carboxymethyl cellulose solution (0.1, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 3%) w/v. The mechanical properties; breaking length and tearing resistance (tear factor) were measured for the treated and untreated paper specimens. The retained polymer in the coated paper samples were also calculated. The more the concentration of the coating material; CMC increases, the more the mechanical properties; breaking length and tear factor increases. It can be concluded that CMC enhance the improvement of the mechanical properties of paper sheets result in increasing paper stability. The aim of the present research was also to study the effects on the vessel element structure and vessel picking tendency of the coated paper sheets. In addition to the improved strength properties of the treated sheet, a significant decrease in the vessel picking tendency was expected whereas refining of the original paper sheets (untreated paper sheets) improved mainly the bonding ability of fibers, CMC effectively enhanced the bonding of vessels as well. Moreover, film structures were formed in the fibrillated areas of the coated paper specimens, and they were concluded to reinforce the bonding within the sheet. Also, fragmentation of vessel elements through CMC modification was found to be important and results in a decreasing picking tendency which reflects in a good printability. Moreover, Scanning – Electron Microscope (SEM) images are represented to specifically explain the improved bonding ability of vessels and fibers after CMC modification. Finally, CMC modification enhance paper mechanical properties and print quality.

Keywords: carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), breaking length, tear factor, vessel picking, printing, concentration

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Authors: Jean Paul Hategekimana, Dukuzumuremyi Yvonne, Mukeshimana Marthe, Alexandre Niyonshima

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Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) is a very important staple food crop in Rwanda due to its high growth and consumption in all parts of the country. The effect of seven different storage conditions on the quality and nutritional composition of the three most grown and consumed varieties of orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP), namely Kabode, Terimbere, and Vita, were studied over a period of six weeks at Postharvest Service and Training Center of University Rwanda, Busogo Campus. The potato stored under the following conditions (zero energy cooling chamber, ground washed sweet potato, ground unwashed sweet potato, perforated washed sweet potato, perforated unwashed sweet potato, non-perforated washed sweet potato, and non-perforated unwashed sweet potato) were assessed in this study. These storage conditions are the modifications of existing methods currently used in Rwanda for suitable local climatic conditions. Hence, 30kgs of freshly harvested OFSP for each variety were bought from farmers of Gakenke and Rulindo districts and then transported to the postharvest training and service center UR-CAVM, Busogo Campus. 2.5kg of each potato sample was selected and stored under the above-mentioned storage conditions after pretreatment. Data were collected for six weeks on percent weight loss, shrinkability and the general appearance at interval of three days. The stored samples were also analyzed for moisture, crude ash, crude fiber, and reduced sugar levels during the entire storage period. Results showed the difference among the various storage conditions. It was shown that ZECC and non-perforated sacs (in the open air) storage techniques had good potential for storage of orange flesh sweet potato for up to six weeks without considerable change in physical and nutritional parameters compared to other considered conditions and, therefore, can be recommended as more useful for OSFP at farm level and during transport and market storage.

Keywords: ZECC, orange fleshed sweet potato, perforated sacs, storage conditions

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Authors: Marie Lesly Fontin, Audalbert Bien-Aimé, Didier Marlier, Yves Beckers

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Fecal digestibility of mature plantain leaves was determined in castrated Creolegoatsin order to better assess them. Five diets made from plantain leaves were used in an in vivo digestibility study on 20 castrated Creole goats over three periods using a completely random design in order to assess their apparent fecal digestibility (Dg). These diets consisted of sun-dried leaves (DL), sun-dried urea treated leaves (DUTL, 5kg of urea per 100kg of raw product ensilaged during 90 days with 60 kg of water), sun-dried leaves + hoopvine (Trichostigma octandrum, L)(DLH, DL: 61.4% + Hoopvine: 38.6%), sun-dried leaves + urea (DLU, DL: 98.2%+ U: 1.8%), and fresh leaves. (FL).0.5% of salt diluted with water was added to diets before distribution to the goats. A mineral lick block was available for each goat in its digestibility cage. During each period, diets were distributed to meet the maintenance needs of the goats for 21 days, including 14 days of adaptation and 7 days of measurement. Offered and refused diets and feces were weighed every day, and samples were taken for laboratory analysis. Results showed that the urea treatment increasedCP (Crude Protein) content of DL by 44% (from 10.4% for DL to 15.0% for DUTL) and decreased their NDF (Neutral Detergent Fiber) content (55.5% to 52.4%). Large amounts of refused feed (around 40%) were observed in goats fed with FL, DLU, and DL diets, for which no significant difference was observed for DM (Dry Matter) intakes (40.3; 36.6 and 35.1g/kg0.75 respectively) (p>0.05). DM intakes of DUTL (59.9 g/kg0.75) were significantly (p<0.05) greater than DLH (50.2 g/kg0.75). DM Dg of DL was very low (29.2%). However, supplementation with hoopvine and urea treatment resulted in a significant increase of DM Dg (40.3% and 42.1%, respectively), but the addition of urea (DLU) had no effect on it. FL showed a DM Dg similar to DHL and DUTL diets (39.0%). OM (Organic Matter)Dg was higher for the DUTL diet (45.1%), followed by DLH (40.9%), then by DLU and FL (32.9% and 40.7% respectively) and finally by DL (29.8%). CP Dg was higher for the FL diet (65.7%) and lower for the DL diet (39.9%). NDF Dg was also increased with urea treatment (54.8% for DUTL) and with the addition of hoopvine (41.4%) compared to the DL diet (31.0% for DLH). In conclusion, urea treatment and complementation with hoopvine of plantain leaves are the best treatments among those tested for increasing the nutritive value of this foragein the castrated Creole goats.

Keywords: apparent fecal digestibility, nitrogen supplements, plantain leaves, urea treatment

Procedia PDF Downloads 186

Authors: Samira Humaira Habib

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Diabetes has profound effects on individuals and their families. If diabetes is not well monitored and managed, then it leads to long-term complications and a large and growing cost to the health care system. Prevalence and socioeconomic burden of diabetes and relative return of investment for the elimination or the reduction of the burden are much more important regarding its cost burden. Various studies regarding the socioeconomic cost burden of diabetes are well explored in developed countries but almost absent in developing countries like Bangladesh. The main objective of the study is to estimate the total socioeconomic burden of diabetes. It is a prospective longitudinal follow up study which is analytical in nature. Primary and secondary data are collected from patients who are undergoing treatment for diabetes at the out-patient department of Bangladesh Institute of Research & Rehabilitation in Diabetes, Endocrine & Metabolic Disorders (BIRDEM). Of the 2115 diabetic subjects, females constitute around 50.35% of the study subject, and the rest are male (49.65%). Among the subjects, 1323 are controlled, and 792 are uncontrolled diabetes. Cost analysis of 2115 diabetic patients shows that the total cost of diabetes management and treatment is US$ 903018 with an average of US$ 426.95 per patient. In direct cost, the investigation and medical treatment at hospital along with investigation constitute most of the cost in diabetes. The average cost of a hospital is US$ 311.79, which indicates an alarming warn for diabetic patients. The indirect cost shows that cost of productivity loss (US$ 51110.1) is higher among the all indirect item. All constitute total indirect cost as US$ 69215.7. The incremental cost of intensive management of uncontrolled diabetes is US$ 101.54 per patient and event-free time gained in this group is 0.55 years and the life years gain is 1.19 years. The incremental cost per event-free year gained is US$ 198.12. The incremental cost of intensive management of the controlled group is US$ 89.54 per patient and event-free time gained is 0.68 years, and the life year gain is 1.12 years. The incremental cost per event-free year gained is US$ 223.34. The EuroQoL difference between the groups is found to be 64.04. The cost-effective ratio is found to be US$ 1.64 cost per effect in case of controlled diabetes and US$ 1.69 cost per effect in case of uncontrolled diabetes. So management of diabetes is much more cost-effective. Cost of young type 1 diabetic patient showed upper socioeconomic class, and with the increase of the duration of diabetes, the cost increased also. The dietary pattern showed macronutrients intake and cost are significantly higher in the uncontrolled group than their counterparts. Proper management and control of diabetes can decrease the cost of care for the long term.

Keywords: cost, cost-effective, chronic diseases, diabetes care, burden, Bangladesh

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Authors: Aldé Belgard Tchicaya Loemba, Baraka Kichonge, Thomas Kivevele, Juma Rajabu Selemani

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Plants used for medicinal purposes are extremely perishable, owing to moisture-enhanced enzymatic and microorganism activity, climate change, and improper handling and storage. Experiments have shown that drying the medicinal plant without affecting the active nutrients and controlling the moisture content as much as possible can extend its shelf life. Different traditional and modern drying techniques for preserving medicinal plants have been developed, with some still being improved in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, many of these methods fail to address the most common issues encountered when drying medicinal plants, such as nutrient loss, long drying times, and a limited capacity to dry during the evening or cloudy hours. Heat pump drying is an alternate drying method that results in no nutritional loss. Furthermore, combining a heat pump dryer with a solar energy storage system appears to be a viable option for all-weather drying without affecting the nutritional values of dried products. In this study, a solar-assisted heat pump dryer integrated with thermal energy storage is developed for drying moringa leaves. The study also discusses the performance analysis of the developed dryer as well as the proximate analysis of the dried moringa leaves. All experiments were conducted from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to assess the dryer's performance in “daytime mode”. Experiment results show that the drying time was significantly reduced, and the dryer demonstrated high performance in preserving all of the nutrients. In 5 hours of the drying process, the moisture content was reduced from 75.7 to 3.3%. The average COP value was 3.36, confirming the dryer's low energy consumption. The findings also revealed that after drying, the content of protein, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, and ash greatly increased.

Keywords: heat pump dryer, efficiency, moringa leaves, proximate analysis

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Authors: Siddhartha Khare, Nitish Kr Boro, Omm Animesh Mishra

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Recent food price hikes may signal the end of an era of predictable global grain crop plenty due to climate change, population expansion, and dietary changes. Food consumption will treble in 20 years, requiring enormous production expenditures. Climate and the atmosphere changed owing to rainfall and seasonal cycles in the past decade. India's tropical agricultural relies on evapotranspiration and monsoons. In places with limited resources, the global environmental change affects agricultural productivity and farmers' capacity to adjust to changing moisture patterns. Motivated by these difficulties, satellite remote sensing might be combined with near-surface imaging data (smartphones, UAVs, and PhenoCams) to enable phenological monitoring and fast evaluations of field-level consequences of extreme weather events on smallholder agriculture output. To accomplish this technique, we must digitally map all communities agricultural boundaries and crop kinds. With the improvement of satellite remote sensing technologies, a geo-referenced database may be created for rural Indian agriculture fields. Using AI, we can design digital agricultural solutions for individual farms. Main objective is to Geo-enable each farm along with their seasonal crop information by combining Artificial Intelligence (AI) with satellite and near-surface data and then prepare long term crop monitoring through in-depth field analysis and scanning of fields with satellite derived vegetation indices. We developed an AI based algorithm to understand the timelapse based growth of vegetation using PhenoCam or Smartphone based images. We developed an android platform where user can collect images of their fields based on the android application. These images will be sent to our local server, and then further AI based processing will be done at our server. We are creating digital boundaries of individual farms and connecting these farms with our smart phone application to collect information about farmers and their crops in each season. We are extracting satellite-based information for each farm from Google earth engine APIs and merging this data with our data of tested crops from our app according to their farm’s locations and create a database which will provide the data of quality of crops from their location.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, satellite remote sensing, crop monitoring, android and web application

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Authors: Farhana Nosheen, Maleeha Fatima

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This study on Afghan refugee women living in Punjab, Pakistan, shows a strong relationship between poor socio-economic status and lower nutritional health status. Pakistan is one of the significant countries accepting refugees from the Afghan war. Universally, refugees are vulnerable to food security and basic life necessities. The in-hand study aimed to investigate food insecurity among afghan refugees who recently migrated to Pakistan. Purposive sampling technique was employed to collect the data from afghan women refugees settled in refugee camp settled in Capital city Islamabad, Pakistan. Data was collected through an interview tool. It revealed from data that the majority of women were underweight, about 74.7% in their reproductive years, which is an alarming situation for the forthcoming children and families. It is also shown that There’s a strong impact of their income level, education, dietary habits and food insecurity on their overall health status. It can also be observed in their Body Mass Index and in their physical appearance; they also show extremely poor levels of hemoglobin which is directly indicated anemic condition, especially iron deficiency anemia among the young Afghan refugee women. The illiteracy rate is about 93.33% among the selected participants as well as a majority of this population has 10-12 family size in comparison with their income level of about 10,000-15,000 Pakistani rupees per month, which can hardly meet their daily food expenditure. Adequate food is rarely accessible to young girls and women due to fewer national and international food aids program available in Pakistan. The majority have pale yellowish skin color (due to low iron content) along with clear white eyes (low hemoglobin level), thin hairs (protein deficiency) and spoon-shaped nails (a direct indicator of low iron level). Data showed a significant relation between appetite and BMI as their appetite is very low, which is directly indicated in their underweight body condition. About 56.67% of the participants had Urinary Tract Infections. The main causes included personal unhygienic conditions and lack of washrooms as well as drinking water facilities in their refugee camps. It is suggested that National and international food aid programs should cater to the nutritional demands of women refugees in the world to protect them from food insecurities as well as future researchers should find out better ways of analysis and treatment plans for such kind of communities who are highly prone to nutritional deficiencies and lack of basic supplies.

Keywords: food insecurity, refugees, women, vulnerable

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Authors: Carmen J. Savelli, Romy Conzade

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Background: Access to sufficient amounts of safe and nutritious food is a basic human necessity, required to sustain life and promote good health. Food safety and food security are therefore inextricably linked, yet the importance of food safety in this relationship is often overlooked. Methodologies: A literature review and desk study were conducted to examine existing frameworks for discussing food security, especially from an international perspective, to determine the entry points for enhancing considerations for food safety in national and international policies. Major Findings: Food security is commonly understood as the state when all people at all times have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. Conceptually, food security is built upon four pillars including food availability, access, utilization and stability. Within this framework, the safety of food is often wrongly assumed as a given. However, in places where food supplies are insufficient, coping mechanisms for food insecurity are primarily focused on access to food without considerations for ensuring safety. Under such conditions, hygiene and nutrition are often ignored as people shift to less nutritious diets and consume more potentially unsafe foods, in which chemical, microbiological, zoonotic and other hazards can pose serious, acute and chronic health risks. While food supplies might be safe and nutritious, if consumed in quantities insufficient to support normal growth, health and activity, the result is hunger and famine. Recent estimates indicate that at least 842 million people, or roughly one in eight, still suffer from chronic hunger. Even if people eat enough food that is safe, they will become malnourished if the food does not provide the proper amounts of micronutrients and/or macronutrients to meet daily nutritional requirements, resulting in under- or over-nutrition. Two billion people suffer from one or more micronutrient deficiencies and over half a billion adults are obese. Access to sufficient amounts of nutritious food is not enough. If food is unsafe, whether arising from poor quality supplies or inadequate treatment and preparation, it increases the risk of foodborne infections such as diarrhoea. 70% of diarrhoea episodes occurring annually in children under five are due to biologically contaminated food. Conclusions: An integrated approach is needed where food safety and nutrition are systematically introduced into mainstream food system policies and interventions worldwide in order to achieve health and development goals. A new framework, “Food for Health” is proposed to guide policy development and requires all three aspects of food security to be addressed in balance: sufficiency, nutrition and safety.

Keywords: food safety, food security, nutrition, policy

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Authors: Waqas Ashraf, Yasir Nawab, Haritham Khan, Habib Awais, Shahbaz Ahmad

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Seersucker is a popular lightweight fabric widely used in men’s and women’s suiting, casual wear, children’s clothing, house robes, bed spreads and for spring and summer wear. The puckered effect generates air spaces between body and the fabric, keeping the wearer cool in hot conditions. The aim of this work was to develop knitted seersucker fabric on single cylinder weft knitting machine using plain jersey structure. Core spun cotton yarn and cotton spun yarn of same linear density were used. Core spun cotton yarn, contains cotton fiber in the sheath and elastase filament in the core. The both yarn were fed at regular interval to feeders on the machine. The loop length and yarn tension were kept constant at each feeder. The samples were then scoured and bleached. After wet processing, the fabric samples were washed and tumble dried. Parameters like loop length, stitch density and areal density were measured after conditioning these samples for 24 hours in Standard atmospheric condition. Produced sample has a regular puckering stripe along the width of the fabric with same height. The stitch density of both the flat and puckered area of relaxed fabric was found to be different .Air permeability and moisture management tests were performed. The results indicated that the knitted seersucker fabric has better wicking and moisture management properties as the flat area contact, whereas puckered area held away from the skin. Seersucker effect in knitted fabric was achieved by the difference of contraction of both sets of courses produced from different types of yarns. The seer sucker fabric produce by knitting technique is less expensive as compared to woven seer sucker fabric as there is no need of yarn preparation. The knitted seersucker fabric is more practicable for summer dresses, skirts, blouses, shirts, trousers and shorts.

Keywords: air permeability, knitted structure, moisture management, seersucker

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Authors: Babarina Maria, Andropova Margarita

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Introduction: Hypoparathyroidism (HypoPT) is a rare endocrine disorder with an estimated prevalence of 0.25 per 1000 individuals. The most common cause of HypoPT is the loss of active parathyroid tissue following thyroid or parathyroid surgery. Sometimes permanent postoperative HypoPT occures, manifested by hypocalcemia in combination with low levels of PTH during 6 months or more after surgery. Cognitive impairments in patients with hypocalcemia due to chronic HypoPT are observed, and this can lead to problems and challenges in everyday living: memory loss and impaired concentration, that may be the cause of poor compliance. Clinical case: Patient K., 66 years old, underwent thyroidectomy in 2013 (at the age of 55) because of papillary thyroid cancer T1NxMx, histopathology findings confirmed the diagnosis. 5 years after the surgery, she was followed up on an outpatient basis, TSH levelsonly were monitored, and the dose of levothyroxine was adjusted. In 2018 due to, increasing complaints include tingling and cramps in the arms and legs, memory loss, sleep disorder, fatigue, anxiety, hair loss, muscle pain, tachycardia, positive Chvostek, and Trousseau signs were diagnosed during examination, also in blood analyses: total Ca 1.86 mmol/l (2.15-2.55), Ca++ 0.96 mmol/l (1.12-1.3), P 1.55 mmol/l (0.74-1.52), Mg 0.79 mmol/l (0.66-1.07) - chronic postoperative HypoPT was diagnosed. Therapy was initiated: alfacalcidol 0.5 mcg per day, calcium carbonate 2000 mg per day, cholecalciferol 1000 IU per day, magnesium orotate 3000 mg per day. During the case follow-up, hypocalcemia, hyperphosphatemia persisted, hypercalciuria15.7 mmol/day (2.5-6.5) was diagnosed. Dietary recommendations were given because of the high content of phosphorus rich foods, and therapy was adjusted: the dose of alfacalcidol was increased to 2.5 mcg per day, and the dose of calcium carbonate was reduced to 1500 mg per day. As part of the screening for complications of hypoPT, data for cataracts, Fahr syndrome, nephrocalcinosis, and kidney stone disease were not obtained. However, HypoPT compensation was not achieved, and therefore hydrochlorothiazide 25 mg was initiated, the dose of alfacalcidol was increased to 3 mcg per day, calcium carbonate to 3000 mg per day, magnesium orotate and cholecalciferol were continued at the same doses. Therapeutic goals were achieved: calcium phosphate product <4.4 mmol2/l2, there were no episodes of hypercalcemia, twenty-four-hour urinary calcium excretion was significantly reduced. Conclusion: Timely prescription, careful explanation of drugs usage rules, and monitoring and maintaining blood and urine parameters within the target contribute to the prevention of HypoPT complications development and life-threatening events.

Keywords: hypoparathyroidism, hypocalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, hypercalciuria

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Authors: Madelyn N. Moawad, Hermine R. Z. Tadros, Mary G. Ghobrial, Ahmad R. Bassiouny, Kamal M. Kandeel, Athar Ata

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Seaweeds are potential renewable resources in marine environment. They provide an excellent source of bioactive substances such as dietary fibers and various functional polysaccharides that could potentially be used as ingredients for both human and animal health applications. The observations suggested that these bioactive compounds have strong antioxidant properties, which have beneficial effects on human health. The present research aimed at finding new chemical products from local marine macroalgae for natural medicinal uses and consumption for their nutritional values. Macroalgae samples were collected manually mainly from the Mediterranean Sea at shallow subtidal zone of Abu Qir Bay, Alexandria, Egypt. The chemical compositions of lyophilized materials of six selected macroalgal species; Colpomenia sinuosa, Sargassum linifolium, Padina pavonia, Pterocladiella capillacea, Laurencia pinnatifidia, and Caulerpa racemosa, were investigated for proteins using bovine serum albumin, and carbohydrates were assayed by phenol-sulfuric acid reaction. The macroalgae lipid was extracted with chloroform, methanol and phosphate buffer. Vitamins were extracted using trichloroacetic acid. Chlorophylls and total carotenoids were determined spectrophotometrically and total phenols were extracted with methanol. In addition, lipid-soluble, and water-soluble antioxidant, and anti α-glucosidase activities were measured spectrophotometrically. The antioxidant activity of hexane extracts was investigated using phosphomolybdenum reagent. The anti-α-glucosidase effect measurement was initiated by mixing α-glucosidase solution with p-nitrophenyl α-D-glucopyranoside. The results showed that the ash contents varied from 11.2 to 35.4 % on dry weight basis for P. capillacea and Laurencia pinnatifidia, respectively. The protein contents ranged from 5.63 % in brown macroalgae C. sinuosa to 8.73 % in P. pavonia. A relative wide range in carbohydrate contents was observed (20.06–46.75 %) for the test algal species. The highest lipid percentage was found in green alga C. racemosa (5.91%) followed by brown algae P. pavonia (3.57%) and C. sinuosa (2.64%). The phenolic contents varied from 1.32 mg GAE/g for C. sinuosa to 4.00 mg GAE/g in P. pavonia. The lipid-soluble compounds exhibited higher antioxidant capacity (73.18-145.95 µM/g) than that of the water-soluble ones ranging from 24.83 µM/g in C. racemosa to 74.07 µM/g in S. linifolium. The most potent anti-α-glucosidase activity was observed for P. pavonia with IC50 of 17.12 μg/ml followed by S. linifolium (IC50 = 71.75 μg/ml), C. racemosa (IC50 = 84.73 μg/ml), P. capillacea (IC50 = 92.16 μg/ml), C. sinuosa (IC50 = 112.44 μg/ml), and L. pinnatifida (IC50 = 115.11 μg/ml).

Keywords: α-glucosidase, lyophilized, macroalgae, spectrophotometrically

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Authors: Theodore Panton

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As cities in the United States experience critical housing shortages, mass timber presents the opportunity to address this crisis in housing supply while taking advantage of the carbon-positive benefits of sustainably forested wood fiber. Mass timber, however, currently has a low level of adoption in residential multifamily structures due to the risk-averse nature of change within the construction financing, Architecture / Engineering / Contracting (AEC) communities, as well as various agency approval challenges. This study demonstrates how mass timber can be used within the cost and feasibility parameters of a typical multistory residential structure and ultimately address the need for dense urban housing. This study will utilize The Garden District, a mixed-use market-rate housing project in Woodinville, Washington, as a case study to illuminate the potential of mass timber in this application. The Garden District is currently in final stages of permit approval and will commence construction in 2023. It will be the tallest dowel-laminated timber (DLT) residential structure in the United States when completed. This case study includes economic, technical, and design reference points to demonstrate the relevance of the use of this system and its ability to deliver “triple bottom line” results. In terms of results, the study establishes scalable and repeatable approaches to project design and delivery of mass timber in multifamily residential uses and includes economic data, technical solutions, and a summary of end-user advantages. This study discusses the third party tested systems for satisfying acoustical requirements within dwelling units, a key to resolving the use of mass timber within multistory residential use. Lastly, the study will also compare the mass timber solution with a comparable cold formed steel (CFS) system with a similar program, which indicates a net carbon savings of over three million tons over the life cycle of the building.

Keywords: DLT, dowell laminated timber, mass timber, market rate multifamily

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Authors: Shivdayal Patel, Suhail Ahmad

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Safety assurance and failure prediction of composite material component of an offshore structure due to low velocity impact is essential for associated risk assessment. It is important to incorporate uncertainties associated with material properties and load due to an impact. Likelihood of this hazard causing a chain of failure events plays an important role in risk assessment. The material properties of composites mostly exhibit a scatter due to their in-homogeneity and anisotropic characteristics, brittleness of the matrix and fiber and manufacturing defects. In fact, the probability of occurrence of such a scenario is due to large uncertainties arising in the system. Probabilistic finite element analysis of composite plates due to low-velocity impact is carried out considering uncertainties of material properties and initial impact velocity. Impact-induced damage of composite plate is a probabilistic phenomenon due to a wide range of uncertainties arising in material and loading behavior. A typical failure crack initiates and propagates further into the interface causing de-lamination between dissimilar plies. Since individual crack in the ply is difficult to track. The progressive damage model is implemented in the FE code by a user-defined material subroutine (VUMAT) to overcome these problems. The limit state function is accordingly established while the stresses in the lamina are such that the limit state function (g(x)>0). The Gaussian process response surface method is presently adopted to determine the probability of failure. A comparative study is also carried out for different combination of impactor masses and velocities. The sensitivity based probabilistic design optimization procedure is investigated to achieve better strength and lighter weight of composite structures. Chain of failure events due to different modes of failure is considered to estimate the consequences of failure scenario. Frequencies of occurrence of specific impact hazards yield the expected risk due to economic loss.

Keywords: composites, damage propagation, low velocity impact, probability of failure, uncertainty modeling

Procedia PDF Downloads 259

Authors: Arosha Rashmi De Silva, Ananda Chandrasekara

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This study seeks to comprehensively examine the influence of fast-food consumption and physical activity levels on the body weight of young employees within the private sector of Sri Lanka. The escalating popularity of fast food has raised concerns about its nutritional content and associated health ramifications. To investigate this phenomenon, a cohort of 100 individuals aged between 25 and 45, employed in Sri Lanka's private sector, participated in this research. These participants provided socio-demographic data through a standardized questionnaire, enabling the characterization of their backgrounds. Additionally, participants disclosed their frequency of fast-food consumption and engagement in physical activities, utilizing validated assessment tools. The collected data was meticulously compiled into an Excel spreadsheet and subjected to rigorous statistical analysis. Descriptive statistics, such as percentages and proportions, were employed to delineate the body weight status of the participants. Employing chi-square tests, our study identified significant associations between fast-food consumption, levels of physical activity, and body weight categories. Furthermore, through binary logistic regression analysis, potential risk factors contributing to overweight and obesity within the young employee cohort were elucidated. Our findings revealed a disconcerting trend, with 6% of participants classified as underweight, 32% within the normal weight range, and a substantial 62% categorized as overweight or obese. These outcomes underscore the alarming prevalence of overweight and obesity among young private-sector employees, particularly within the bustling urban landscape of Colombo, Sri Lanka. The data strongly imply a robust correlation between fast-food consumption, sedentary behaviors, and higher body weight categories, reflective of the evolving lifestyle patterns associated with the nation's economic growth. This study emphasizes the urgent need for effective interventions to counter the detrimental effects of fast-food consumption. The implementation of awareness campaigns elucidating the adverse health consequences of fast food, coupled with comprehensive nutritional education, can empower individuals to make informed dietary choices. Workplace interventions, including the provision of healthier meal alternatives and the facilitation of physical activity opportunities, are essential in fostering a healthier workforce and mitigating the escalating burden of overweight and obesity in Sri Lanka

Keywords: fast food consumption, obese, overweight, physical activity level

Procedia PDF Downloads 22

Authors: Debabrata Adhikari, Mikhail Matveev, Louise Brown, Jan Kočí, Andy Long

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Resin transfer molding (RTM) is increasingly used for manufacturing high-quality composite structures due to its additional advantages over prepregs of low-cost out-of-autoclave processing. However, to retain the advantages, it is critical to reduce the void content during the injection. Reinforcements commonly used in RTM, such as woven fabrics, have dual-scale porosity with mesoscale pores between the yarns and the micro-scale pores within the yarns. Due to the fabric geometry and the nature of the dual-scale flow, the flow front during injection creates a complicated fingering formation which leads to void formation. Analytical modeling of void formation for woven fabrics has been widely studied elsewhere. However, there is scope for improvement to the reduction in void formation in 3D fabrics wherein the in-plane yarn layers are confined by additional through-thickness binder yarns. In the present study, the structural morphology of the tortuous pore spaces in the 3D fabric has been studied and implemented using open-source software TexGen. An analytical model for the void and the fingering formation has been implemented based on an idealized unit cell model of the 3D fabric. Since the pore spaces between the yarns are free domains, the region is treated as flow-through connected channels, whereas intra-yarn flow has been modeled using Darcy’s law with an additional term to account for capillary pressure. Later the void fraction has been characterised using the criterion of void formation by comparing the fill time for inter and intra yarn flow. Moreover, the dual-scale two-phase flow of resin with air has been simulated in the commercial CFD solver OpenFOAM/ANSYS to predict the probable location of voids and validate the analytical model. The use of an idealised unit cell model will give the insight to optimise the mesoscale geometry of the reinforcement and injection parameters to minimise the void content during the LCM process.

Keywords: 3D fiber, void formation, RTM, process modelling

Procedia PDF Downloads 78

Authors: Parimelazhagan Thangaraj

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Natural products serves human kind as a source of all drugs and higher plants provide most of these therapeutic agents. These products are widely recognized in the pharmaceutical industry for their broad structural diversity as well as their wide range of pharmacological activities. Euphorbiaceae is one of the important families with significant pharmacological activities, of which many species has been used traditionally for the treatment of various ailments. Breynia retusa belongs to the family Euphorbiaceae is used to cure ailments like body pain, skin inflammation, hyperglycaemia, diarrhoea, dysentery and toothache. Flowers and young leaves of B. retusa are cooked and eaten, roots are used for meningitis. The juice of the stem is used in conjunctivtis and leaves as poultice to hasten suppuration. Based on the strong evidences of traditional uses of Breynia retusa, the present study was focused on neutraceuticals evaluation of the species with special reference to oxidative stress and diabetes. Both leaves and stem of B. retusa were extracted with different solvents and analyzed for radical scavenging ability wherein ABTS.+ (8396.95±1529.01 µM TEAC/g extract), phosphomolybdenum (17.34±0.08 g AAE/100 g extract) and FRAP (6075.66±414.28 µM Fe (II) E/mg extract) assays showed good radical scavenging activity in stem. Furthermore, leaf extracts showed good radical inhibition in DPPH (2.4 µg/mL), metal ion (27.44±0.09 mg EDTAE/g extract) scavenging methods. The α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitors are currently used for diabetic treatment as oral hypoglycemic agents. The inhibitory effects of the B. retusa leaf and stem ethyl acetate extracts showed good inhibition on α-amylase (96.25% and 95.69 respectively) and α-glucosidase (54.50% and 50.87% respectively) enzymes compared to standard acarbose. The proximate composition analysis of B. retusa leaves contains higher amount of total carbohydrates (14.08 g Glucose equivalents/100 g sample), ash (19.04 %) and crude fibre (0.52 %). The examination of mineral profile explored that the leaves was rich in calcium (1891 ppm), sulphur (1406 ppm), copper (2600 ppm) and magnesium (778 ppm). Leaves sample revealed very minimal amount of anti-nutrient contents like trypsin (14.08±0.03 TIU/mg protein) and tannin (0.011±0.001 mg TAE/g sample). The low anti nutritional factors may not pose any serious nutritional problems when these leaves are consumed. In conclusion, it is very clear that dietary compounds from B. retusa are suitable and promising for the development of safe food products and natural additives. Based on the studies, it may be concluded that nutritional composition, antioxidant and anti-diabetic activities this species can be used as future therapeutic medicine.

Keywords: Breynia retusa, nutraceuticals, antioxidant, anti diabetic

Procedia PDF Downloads 310

Authors: Sobhy A. El-Sohaimy, Mohamed G. Shehata, Ashwani Mathur, Amira G. Darwish, Nourhan M. Abd El-Aziz, Pammi Gauba, Pooja Upadhyay

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Sea buckthorn is a temperate bush plant native to Asian and European countries, explored across the world in traditional medicine to treat various diseases due to the presence of an exceptionally high content of phenolics, flavonoids and antioxidants. In addition to the evaluation of nutrients and active compounds, the focus of the present work was to assess the optimal levels for L. plantarum RM1 growth by applying response surface methodology (RSM), and to determine the impact of juice fermentation on antioxidant, anti-hypertension and anticancer activity, as well as on organoleptic properties. Sea buckthorn berries were shown to contain good fiber content (6.55%, 25 DV%), high quality of protein (3.12%, 6.24 DV%) containing: histidine, valine, threonine, leucine and lysine (with AAS 24.32, 23.66, 23.09, 23.05 and 21.71%, respectively), and 4.45% sugar that pro- vides only 79 calories. Potassium was shown to be the abundant mineral content (793.43%, 22.66 DV), followed by copper and phosphorus (21.81 and 11.07 DV%, respectively). Sea buckthorn juice exhibited a rich phenolic, flavonoid and carotenoid content (283.58, 118.42 and 6.5 mg/g, respec- tively), in addition to a high content of vitamin C (322.33 mg/g). The HPLC profile indicated that benzoic acid is the dominant phenolic compound in sea buckthorn berries (3825.90 mg/kg). Antiox- idant potentials (DPPH and ABTS) of sea buckthorn showed higher inhibition than ascorbic acid. Antimicrobial potentials were most pronounced against Escherichia coli BA12296 (17.46 mm). The probiotic growth was 8.5 log cfu/mL, with juice concentration, inoculum size and temperature as the main contributors to probiotic growth with a 95% confidence level. Fermentation of sea buck- thorn juice with L. plantarum RM1 enhanced the functional phenolic and flavonoid content, as well as antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. The fermentation with L. plantarum RM1 enhanced the anti-hypertension and anticancer properties of the sea buckthorn juice and gained consumers’ sensorial overall acceptance.

Keywords: sea buckthorn juice, L. plantarum RM1, fermentation, antioxidant, antimicrobial, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibition

Procedia PDF Downloads 71

Authors: Otgonjargal Damdinbaljir

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Background: Infant feeding practices have a major role in determining the nutritional status of children and are associated with household socioeconomic and demographic factors. In 2010, Mongolia used WHO 2008 edition of Indicators for assessing infant and young child feeding practices for the first time. Objective: To evaluate the feeding status of infants and young children under 2 years old in Mongolia. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted by cluster random sampling. The data on breastfeeding and complementary food supplement of the 350 infants and young children aged 0-23 months in 21 provinces of the 4 economic regions of the country and capital Ulaanbaatar city were collected through questionnaires. The feeding status was analyzed according to the WHO 2008 edition of Indicators for assessing infant and young child feeding practices. Analysis of data: Survey data was analysed using the PASW statistics 18.0 and EPI INFO 2000 software. For calculation of overall measures for the entire survey sample, analyses were stratified by region. Age-specific feeding patterns were described using frequencies, proportions and survival analysis. Logistic regression was done with feeding practice as dependent and socio demographic factors as independent variables. Simple proportions were calculated for each IYCF indicator. The differences in the feeding practices between sexes and age-groups, if any, were noted using chi-square test. Ethics: The Ethics Committee under the auspices of the Ministry of Health approved the study. Results: A total of 350 children aged 0-23 months were investigated. The rate of ever breastfeeding of children aged 0-23 months reached up to 98.2%, while the percentage of early initiation of breastfeeding was only 85.5%. The rates of exclusive breastfeeding under 6 months, continued breastfeeding for 1 year, and continued breastfeeding for 2 years were 71.3%, 74% and 54.6%, respectively. The median time of giving complementary food was the 6th month and the weaning time was the 9th month. The rate of complementary food supplemented from 6th-8th month in time was 80.3%. The rates of minimum dietary diversity, minimum meal frequency, and consumption of iron-rich or iron-fortified foods among children aged 6-23 months were 52.1%, 80.8% (663/813) and 30.1%, respectively. Conclusions: The main problems revealed from the study were inadequate category and frequency of complementary food, and the low rate of consumption of iron-rich or iron-fortified foods were the main issues to be concerned on infant feeding in Mongolia. Our findings have highlighted the need to encourage mothers to enrich their traditional wheat- based complementary foods add more animal source foods and vegetables.

Keywords: complementary feeding, early initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding, minimum meal frequency

Procedia PDF Downloads 459

Authors: Peter Pomlenyi, Orsolya Semperger, Gergely Hegedus

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The purpose of the project is to develop a complex composite component with visible class ‘A’ surface. It is going to integrate more functions, including continuous fiber reinforcement, foam core, injection molded ribs, and metal inserts. Therefore we are going to produce recyclable structural composite part from thermoplastic polymer in serial production with short cycle time for automotive applications. Our design of the process line is determined by the principles of Industry 4.0. Accordingly, our goal is to map in details the properties of the final product including the mechanical properties in order to replace metal elements used in automotive industry, with special regard to the effect of each manufacturing process step on the afore mentioned properties. Period of the project is 3 years, which lasts from the 1st of December 2016 to the 30th November 2019. There are four consortium members in the R&D project evopro systems engineering Ltd., Department of Polymer Engineering of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Research Centre for Natural Sciences of Hungarian Academy of Sciences and eCon Engineering Ltd. One of the most important result that we can obtain short cycle time (up to 2-3 min) with in-situ polymerization method, which is an innovation in the field of thermoplastic composite production. Because of the mentioned method, our fully automated production line is able to manufacture complex thermoplastic composite parts and satisfies the short cycle time required by the automotive industry. In addition to the innovative technology, we are able to design, analyze complex composite parts with finite element method, and validate our results. We are continuously collecting all the information, knowledge and experience to improve our technology and obtain even more accurate results with respect to the quality and complexity of the composite parts, the cycle time of the production, and the design and analyzing method of the composite parts.

Keywords: T-RTM technology, composite, automotive, class A surface

Procedia PDF Downloads 126

Authors: Josef Novák, Alena Kohoutková, Vladimír Křístek, Jan Vodička

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Numerical analysis software belong to the main tools for simulating the real behavior of various concrete structures and elements. In comparison with experimental tests, they offer an affordable way to study the mechanical behavior of structures under various conditions. The contribution deals with a precast element of an innovative airfield pavement system which is being developed within an ongoing scientific project. The proposed system consists a two-layer surface course of precast concrete panels positioned on a two-layer base of fiber-reinforced concrete with recycled aggregate. As the panels are supposed to be installed directly on the hardened base course, imperfections at the interface between the base course and surface course are expected. Considering such circumstances, three various behavior patterns could be established and considered when designing the precast element. Enormous costs of full-scale experiments force to simulate the behavior of the element in a numerical analysis software using finite element method. The simulation was conducted on a nonlinear model in order to obtain such results which could fully compensate results from the experiments. First, several loading schemes were considered with the aim to observe the critical one which was used for the simulation later on. The main objective of the simulation was to optimize reinforcement of the element subject to quasi-static loading from airplanes. When running the simulation several parameters were considered. Namely, it concerns geometrical imperfections, manufacturing imperfections, stress state in reinforcement, stress state in concrete and crack width. The numerical simulation revealed that the precast element should be heavily reinforced to fulfill all the demands assumed. The main cause of using high amount of reinforcement is the size of the imperfections which could occur at real structure. Improving manufacturing quality, the installation of the precast panels on a fresh base course or using a bedding layer underneath the surface course belong to the main steps how to reduce the size of imperfections and consequently lower the consumption of reinforcement.

Keywords: nonlinear analysis, numerical simulation, precast concrete, pavement

Procedia PDF Downloads 238

Authors: Sara Khan Mohammadi

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The world is facing a major challenge of feeding a growing population while ensuring the sustainability of food systems. The United Nations estimates that the global population will reach 9.7 billion by 2050, which means that food production needs to increase by 70% to meet the demand. However, this increase in food production should not come at the cost of environmental degradation, loss of biodiversity, and climate change. Therefore, there is a need for sustainable food systems that can provide healthy and nutritious food while minimizing their impact on the environment. Nutrition and Food Engineering: Nutrition and food engineering play a crucial role in promoting sustainable food system. Nutrition is concerned with the study of nutrients in foods, their absorption, metabolism, and their effects on health. Food engineering involves the application of engineering principles to design, develop, and optimize food processing operations. Together, nutrition and food engineering can help to create sustainable food systems by: 1. Developing Nutritious Foods: Nutritionists and food engineers can work together to develop foods that are rich in nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein. These foods can be designed to meet the nutritional needs of different populations while minimizing waste. 2. Reducing Food Waste: Food waste is a major problem globally as it contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and wastes resources such as water and land. Nutritionists and food engineers can work together to develop technologies that reduce waste during processing, storage, transportation, and consumption. 3. Improving Food Safety: Unsafe foods can cause illnesses such as diarrhea, cholera, typhoid fever among others which are major public health concerns globally. Nutritionists and food engineers can work together to develop technologies that improve the safety of foods from farm to fork. 4. Enhancing Sustainability: Sustainable agriculture practices such as conservation agriculture can help reduce soil erosion while improving soil fertility. Nutritionists and food engineers can work together to develop technologies that promote sustainable agriculture practices.

Keywords: sustainable food, developing food, reducing food waste, food safety

Procedia PDF Downloads 58

Authors: Zoi Konsoula

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Vegetable oils, which are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, are susceptible to oxidative deterioration. The lipid oxidation of oils results in the production of rancid odors and unpleasant flavors as well as the reduction of their nutritional quality and safety. Traditionally, synthetic antioxidants are employed for their retardation or prevention of oxidative deterioration of oils. However, these compounds are suspected to pose health hazards. Consequently, recently there has been a growing interest in the use of natural antioxidants of plant origin for improving the oxidative stability of vegetable oils. The genus Salvia (sage) is well known for its antioxidant activity. In the Cypriot flora Salvia fruticosa is the most distributed indigenous Salvia species. In the present study, extracts were prepared from S. fruticosa aerial parts using various solvents and their antioxidant activity was evaluated by the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazine (DPPH) radical scavenging and Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) method. Moreover, the antioxidant efficacy of all extracts was assessed using corn oil as the oxidation substrate, which was subjected to accelerated aging (60 °C, 30 days). The progress of lipid oxidation was monitored by the determination of the peroxide, p-aniside, conjugated dienes and trienes value according to the official AOCS methods. Synthetic antioxidants (butylated hydroxytoluene-BHT and butylated hydroxyanisole-BHA) were employed at their legal limit (200 ppm) as reference. Finally, the total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid content (TFC) of the prepared extracts was measured by the Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminum-flavonoid complex method, respectively. The results of the present study revealed that although all sage extracts prepared from S. fruticosa exhibited antioxidant activity, the highest antioxidant capacity was recorded in the methanolic extract, followed by the non-toxic, food grade ethanol. Furthermore, a positive correlation between the antioxidant potency and the TPC of extracts was observed in all cases. Interestingly, sage extracts prevented lipid oxidation in corn oil at all concentrations tested, however, the magnitude of stabilization was dose dependent. More specifically, results from the different oxidation parameters were in agreement with each other and indicated that the protection offered by the various extracts depended on their TPC. Among the extracts, the methanolic extract was more potent in inhibiting oxidative deterioration. Finally, both methanolic and ethanolic sage extracts at a concentration of 1000 ppm exerted a stabilizing effect comparable to that of the reference synthetic antioxidants. Based on the results of the present study, sage extracts could be used for minimizing or preventing lipid oxidation in oils and, thus, prolonging their shelf-life. In particular, given that the use of dietary alcohol, such as ethanol, is preferable than methanol in food applications, the ethanolic extract prepared from S. fruticosa could be used as an alternative natural antioxidant.

Keywords: antioxidant activity, corn oil, oxidative deterioration, sage

Procedia PDF Downloads 173

Authors: P. Tardi, B. Szilagyi, A. Makai, P. Acs, M. Hock, M. Jaromi

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Osteoporosis is becoming a major public health problem, particularly in postmenopausal women, as the incidence of this disease is getting higher. Nowadays, one of the most common chronic musculoskeletal diseases is osteoporosis. Osteoporosis-related knowledge is an important contributor to prevent or to treat osteoporosis. The most important strategies to prevent or treat the disease are increasing the level of physical activity at all ages, cessation of smoking, reduction of alcohol consumption, adequate dietary calcium, and vitamin D intake. The aim of the study was to measure the osteoporosis-related knowledge and physical activity among women age over 50 years. For the measurements, we used the osteoporosis questionnaire (OPQ) to examine the disease-specific knowledge and the global physical activity questionnaire (GPAQ) to measure the quantity and quality of the physical activity. The OPQ is a self-administered 20-item questionnaire with five categories: general information, risk factors, investigations, consequences, and treatment. There are four choices per question (one of them is the 'I do not know'). The filler gets +1 for a good answer, -1 point for a bad answer, and 0 for 'I do not know' answer. We contacted with 326 women (63.08 ± 9.36 year) to fill out the questionnaires. Descriptive analysis was carried out, and we calculated Spearman's correlation coefficient to examine the relationship between the variables. Data were entered into Microsoft Excel, and all statistical analyses were performed using SPSS (Version 24). The participants of the study (n=326) reached 8.76 ± 6.94 points on OPQ. Significant (p < 0.001) differences were found in the results of OPQ according to the highest level of education. It was observed that the score of the participants with osteoporosis (10.07 ± 6.82 points) was significantly (p=0.003) higher than participants without osteoporosis (9.38 ± 6.66 points) and the score of those women (6.49 ± 6.97 points) who did not know that osteoporosis exists in their case. The GPAQ results showed the sample physical activity in the dimensions of vigorous work (479.86 ± 684.02 min/week); moderate work (678.16 ± 804.5 min/week); travel (262.83 ± 380.27 min/week); vigorous recreation (77.71 ± 123.46 min/week); moderate recreation (115.15 ± 154.82 min/week) and total weekly physical activity (1645.99 ± 1432.88 min/week). Significant correlations were found between the osteoporosis-related knowledge and the physical activity in travel (R=0.21; p < 0.001), vigorous recreation (R=0.35; p < 0.001), moderate recreation (R=0.35; p < 0.001), total vigorous minutes/week (R=0.15; p=0.001) and total moderate minutes/week (R=0.13; p=0.04) dimensions. According to the results that were achieved, the highest level of education significantly determines osteoporosis-related knowledge. Physical activity is an important contributor to prevent or to treat osteoporosis, and it showed a significant correlation with osteoporosis-related knowledge. Based on the results, the development of osteoporosis-related knowledge may help to improve the level of physical activity, especially recreation. Acknowledgment: Supported by the ÚNKP-20-1 New National Excellence Program of The Ministry for Innovation and Technology from the Source of the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund.

Keywords: osteoporosis, osteoporosis-related knowledge, physical activity, prevention

Procedia PDF Downloads 90

Authors: Talita Kato, Moises Grespan, Elza I. Ida, Massami Shimokomaki, Adriana L. Soares

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White Striping (WS) is becoming a concern for the poultry industry, as it affects the look of breast broiler chicken meat leading it to rejection by the consumers. It is characterized by the appearance of varying degrees of white striations on the Pectoralis major muscle surface following the direction of the muscle fiber. The etiology of this myopathy is still unknown, however it is suggested to be associated with increased weight gain rate and age of the bird, attributing the phenomenon to the genetically bird’s selection for efficiently higher meat production. The aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of Pectoralis major WS in a commercial plant in southern Brazil and its chemical characterization. The breast meat samples (n=660) from birds of 47 days of age, were classified as: Normal NG (no apparent white striations), Moderate MG (when the fillets present thin lines <1 mm) and Severe SG (white striations present ˃1 mm thick covering a large part of the fillet surface). Thirty samples (n = 10 for each level of severity) were analyzed for pH, color (L*, a*, b*), proximate chemical composition (moisture, protein, ash and lipids contents) and hydroxyproline in order to determine the collagen content. The results revealed the occurrence for NG group was 16.97%, 51.67% for MG group and 31.36% for SG group. Although the total protein content did not differ significantly, the collagen index was 42% higher in favor to SG in relation to NG. Also the lipid fraction was 27% higher for SG group. The NG presented the lowest values of the parameters L* and a* (P ≤ 0.05), as there was no white striations on its surface and highest b* value in SG, because of the maximum lipid contents. These results indicate there was a contribution of the SG muscle cells to oversynthesize connective tissue components on the muscle fascia. In conclusion, this study revealed a high incidence of White Striping on broiler commercial line in Brazil thus, there is a need to identify the causes of this abnormality in order to diminish or to eliminate it.

Keywords: collagen content, commercial line, pectoralis major muscle, proximate composition

Procedia PDF Downloads 236

Authors: Georgia Saxami, Evangelia N. Kerezoudi, Evdokia K. Mitsou, Marigoula Vlassopoulou, Georgios Zervakis, Adamantini Kyriacou

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Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a complex group of developmental disorders of the brain, characterized by social and communication dysfunctions, stereotypes and repetitive behaviors. The potential interaction between gut microbiota (GM) and autism has not been fully elucidated. Children with autism often suffer gastrointestinal dysfunctions, while alterations or dysbiosis of GM have also been observed. Treatment with dietary components has been postulated to regulate GM and improve gastrointestinal symptoms, but there is a lack of evidence for such approaches in autism, especially for prebiotics. This study assessed the effects of Pleurotus eryngii mushroom (candidate prebiotic) and inulin (known prebiotic compound) on gut microbial composition, using faecal samples from autistic children in an in vitro batch culture fermentation system. Selected members of GM were enumerated at baseline (0 h) and after 24 h fermentation by quantitative PCR. After 24 h fermentation, inulin and P. eryngii mushroom induced a significant increase in total bacteria and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii compared to the negative control (gut microbiota of each autistic donor with no carbohydrate source), whereas both treatments induced a significant increase in levels of total bacteria, Bifidobacterium spp. and Prevotella spp. compared to baseline (t=0h) (p for all <0.05). Furthermore, this study evaluated the impact of fermentation supernatants (FSs), derived from P. eryngii mushroom or inulin, on the expression levels of tight junctions’ genes (zonulin-1, occludin and claudin-1) in Caco-2 cells stimulated by bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Pre-incubation of Caco-2 cells with FS from P. eryngii mushroom led to a significant increase in the expression levels of zonulin-1, occludin and claudin-1 genes compared to the untreated cells, the cells that were subjected to LPS and the cells that were challenged with FS from negative control (p for all <0.05). In addition, incubation with FS from P. eryngii mushroom led to the highest mean expression values for zonulin-1 and claudin-1 genes, which differed significantly compared to inulin (p for all <0.05). Overall, this research highlighted the beneficial in vitro effects of P. eryngii mushroom on the composition of GM of autistic children after 24 h of fermentation. Also, our data highlighted the potential preventive effect of P. eryngii FSs against dysregulation of the intestinal barrier, through upregulation of tight junctions’ genes associated with the integrity and function of the intestinal barrier. This research has been financed by "Supporting Researchers with Emphasis on Young Researchers - Round B", Operational Program "Human Resource Development, Education and Lifelong Learning."

Keywords: gut microbiota, intestinal barrier, autism spectrum disorders, Pleurotus Eryngii

Procedia PDF Downloads 145

Authors: M. A. Ashour

Abstract:

As it is known Egypt is one of the countries having oldest sugarcane industry, which goes back to the year 710 AD. Cane plantations are the main agricultural product in five governorates in Upper Egypt (El-Menia, Sohag, Qena, Luxor, and Aswan), producing not less than 16 million tons a year. Eight factories (Abou-korkas, Gena, Nagaa-Hamadi, Deshna, Kous, Armant, Edfuo, and Komombo), located in such upper Egypt governorates generates huge amount of wastes during the manufacturing stage, the so called bagasse which is the fibrous, and cellulosic materials remaining after the era of the sugarcane and the juice extraction, presents about 30% of such wastes. The amount of bagasse generated yearly through the manufacturing stage of the above mentioned 8 factories is approximately about 2.8 million tons, getting red safely of such huge amount, presents a serious environmental problem. Storage of that material openly in the so hot climate in upper Egypt, may cause its self-ignition under air temperature reaches 50 degrees centigrade in summer, due to the remained residual content of sugar. At the same time preparing places for safely storage for such amount is very expensive with respect to the valueless of it. So the best way for getting rid of bagasse is converting it into an added value environmentally friendly material, especially till now the utilization of it is so limited. Since oil pollution became a serious concern, the issue of environmental cleaning arises. With the structure of sugarcane bagasse, which contains fiber and high content of carbon, it can be an adsorbent to adsorb the oil contamination from the water. The present study is a trail to introduce a new material for the purification of water systems to score two goals at once, the first is getting rid of that harmful waste safely, the second is converting it to a commercial valuable material for cleaning, and purifying the water from oil spills, and petroleum pollution. Introduced the new material proved very good performance, and higher efficiency than other similar materials available in the local market, in both closed and open systems. The introduced modified material can absorb 10 times its weight of oil, while don't absorb any water.

Keywords: environment, water resources, agricultural wastes, oil pollution control, sugarcane

Procedia PDF Downloads 170

Authors: Adam Gushgari

Abstract:

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has catalyzed the rapid adoption of wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) methodologies both domestically and internationally. To support the rapid scale-up of pandemic-response wastewater surveillance systems, multiple federal agencies (i.e. US CDC), non-government organizations (i.e. Water Environment Federation), and private charities (i.e. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) have funded over $220 million USD supporting development and expanding equitable access of surveillance methods. Funds were primarily distributed directly to municipalities under the CARES Act (90.6%), followed by academic projects (7.6%), and initiatives developed by private companies (1.8%). In addition to federal funding for wastewater monitoring primarily conducted at wastewater treatment plants, state/local governments and private companies have leveraged wastewater sampling to obtain health and lifestyle data on student, prison inmate, and employee populations. We explore the viable paths for expansion of the WBE m1ethodology across a variety of analytical methods; the development of WBE-specific samplers and real-time wastewater sensors; and their application to various governments and private sector industries. Considerable investment in, and public acceptance of WBE suggests the methodology will be applied to other future notifiable diseases and health risks. Early research suggests that WBE methods can be applied to a host of additional “biological insults” including communicable diseases and pathogens, such as influenza, Cryptosporidium, Giardia, mycotoxin exposure, hepatitis, dengue, West Nile, Zika, and yellow fever. Interest in chemical insults is also likely, providing community health and lifestyle data on narcotics consumption, use of pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCP), PFAS and hazardous chemical exposure, and microplastic exposure. Successful application of WBE to monitor analytes correlated with carcinogen exposure, community stress prevalence, and dietary indicators has also been shown. Additionally, technology developments of in situ wastewater sensors, WBE-specific wastewater samplers, and integration of artificial intelligence will drastically change the landscape of WBE through the development of “smart sewer” networks. The rapid expansion of the WBE field is creating significant business opportunities for professionals across the scientific, engineering, and technology industries ultimately focused on community health improvement.

Keywords: wastewater surveillance, wastewater-based epidemiology, smart cities, public health, pandemic management, substance abuse

Procedia PDF Downloads 81