The scale development process is critical to building knowledge in human and social sciences. The present paper aimed (a) to provide a systematic review of the published literature regarding current ...practices of the scale development process, (b) to assess the main limitations reported by the authors in these processes, and (c) to provide a set of recommendations for best practices in future scale development research. Papers were selected in September 2015, with the search terms “scale development” and “limitations” from three databases: Scopus, PsycINFO, and Web of Science, with no time restriction. We evaluated 105 studies published between 1976 and 2015. The analysis considered the three basic steps in scale development: item generation, theoretical analysis, and psychometric analysis. The study identified ten main types of limitation in these practices reported in the literature: sample characteristic limitations, methodological limitations, psychometric limitations, qualitative research limitations, missing data, social desirability bias, item limitations, brevity of the scale, difficulty controlling all variables, and lack of manual instructions. Considering these results, various studies analyzed in this review clearly identified methodological weaknesses in the scale development process (e.g., smaller sample sizes in psychometric analysis), but only a few researchers recognized and recorded these limitations. We hope that a systematic knowledge of the difficulties usually reported in scale development will help future researchers to recognize their own limitations and especially to make the most appropriate choices among different conceptions and methodological strategies.
The Lamiaceae family, which includes several well-known aromatic plants, is scientifically relevant due to its essential oils (EOs). In this work, four EOs from Mediterranean species, namely Origanum ...vulgare L., Rosmarinus officinalis L., Salvia officinalis L., and Thymus vulgaris L., were evaluated for their volatile profiles and the biological activity in vitro to assess their potential use in the food and cosmetic sector. GC/MS analysis revealed dominant compounds, such as carvacrol, thymol, and eucalyptol. Regarding biological action, the samples exhibited antioxidant, cytotoxic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antifungal activities, with O. vulgare and T. officinalis standing out. T. vulgaris showed the lowest EC50 in the reducing power assay, and O. vulgare had the lowest EC50 in the DPPH assay. Most EOs also displayed excellent anti-inflammatory responses and antifungal properties, with O. vulgare and T. vulgaris also demonstrating antibacterial activity. All EOs from Mediterranean species showed cytotoxicity against tumoral cell lines. Overall, the selected EOs stood out for their interesting bioactivities, with the obtained results underscoring their potential as natural preservatives and bioactive agents in various industrial applications, including food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics.
L.,
L. and
L. are Mediterranean arboreal and shrub species that possess essential oils (EO) in their leaves and branches. This study aimed at characterizing the EOs obtained by steam distillation ...from the three species collected in different locations from Spain (Almazán, Andévalo, Barriomartín, Cerezal, Ermitas and Huéscar). For this purpose, volatiles composition was determined by GC-MS, and different bioactivities were evaluated. The highest content in terpenes was observed in
(Huéscar origin) followed by
(Almazán origin), corresponding to 92% and 91.9% of total compounds, respectively. With exception of
from Cerezal that presented viridiflorol as the most abundant compound, all the three species presented in common the α-pinene as the major compound. The EOs from
showed high antibacterial potential, presenting MIC values from 0.3 to 1.25 mg/mL. Concerning other bioactivities,
EO revealed an oxidation inhibition of 83%, while
showed cytotoxicity in the MCF-7 cell line, and
and
EOs exhibited the highest potential on NCI-H460 cell lines. Nevertheless, some EOs revealed toxicity against non-tumoral cells but generally presented a GI
value higher than that of the tumor cell lines.
Consumers' demand for healthier foods with functional properties has had a clear influence on the food industry and in this sense, they have been attaching natural sources of bioactive ingredients ...into food products. Vaccinium myrtillus L. (bilberry) is known to be a functional food, presenting its fruits in the form of a small dark blueberry. This coloration is due to its high content in anthocyanin, being also associated with bilberries' beneficial health effects. In the bilberry industry, there is a very high annual loss of this fruit due to the less aesthetic shape or appearance, in which they cannot be considered suitable for sale and are therefore disposed of as biological waste. Therefore, it is of great importance to valorize this fruit and this review aimed to completely characterize the fruits of V. myrtillus in order to comprehend the relationship between their consumption and the beneficial effects regarding consumer's health. Thus, this review provides a description of the nutritional and bioactive compounds present in bilberry fruits, followed by their beneficial health effects. An overview of the natural pigments present in these fruits was also explored, focusing particularly in the anthocyanins composition, which represents the most widely studied class of bioactive compounds of V. myrtillus fruits. Finally, industrial applications of these fruits and by-products, as an efficient approach to the production of value-added products with economical and environmental impact, were also discussed. In general, V. myrtillus is a rich source of micronutrients and phytochemical compounds, such as organic acids, sugars, vitamins, fibers and phenolic compounds (anthocyanin and non-anthocyanin compounds), with nutritional and functional properties, that justify the growing interest in these berries, not only for food applications, but also in the pharmaceutical industry.
para‐Quinone methides (p‐QMs) are naturally occurring molecules that have been finding increasing synthetic applications in the last few years. The presence of two electronically different exocyclic ...conjugate substituents in their structure, carbonyl and methylidene, leads to a pronounced reactivity owing to the polarization of the molecule. In this sense, those are prone to undergo the attack of nucleophiles in the terminal carbon exocyclic double bond, behaving as vinylogous electrophiles and generating 1,6‐addition products. In this context, in the last few years the development of catalytic approaches for 1,6‐nucleophilic addition reactions involving p‐QMs has attracted considerable attention. Considering the extensive applications that such molecules have found in the last decades in 1,6‐addition reactions, in this review we comprehensively discuss the historical development of this field, starting with early approaches on natural product synthesis, going through seminal non‐stereoselective processes and progressing to cutting‐edge asymmetric‐catalyzed approaches.
para‐Quinone methides (p‐QMs) are naturally occurring molecules with two electronically different exocyclic conjugate substituents in their structure, carbonyl and methylidene, which gives them a pronounced reactivity owing to the polarization of the molecule. By attack of nucleophiles in the terminal carbon exocyclic double bond, they generate 1,6‐addition products.
Algae have been consumed for millennia in several parts of the world as food, food supplements, and additives, due to their unique organoleptic properties and nutritional and health benefits. Algae ...are sustainable sources of proteins, minerals, and fiber, with well-balanced essential amino acids, pigments, and fatty acids, among other relevant metabolites for human nutrition. This review covers the historical consumption of algae in Europe, developments in the current European market, challenges when introducing new species to the market, bottlenecks in production technology, consumer acceptance, and legislation. The current algae species that are consumed and commercialized in Europe were investigated, according to their status under the European Union (EU) Novel Food legislation, along with the market perspectives in terms of the current research and development initiatives, while evaluating the interest and potential in the European market. The regular consumption of more than 150 algae species was identified, of which only 20% are approved under the EU Novel Food legislation, which demonstrates that the current legislation is not broad enough and requires an urgent update. Finally, the potential of the European algae market growth was indicated by the analysis of the trends in research, technological advances, and market initiatives to promote algae commercialization and consumption.
•Edible petals can be included in a daily diet as nutrients source.•Edible petals can be also used in infusions providing soluble sugars and organic acids.•Rose petals gave the highest content of ...organic acids and sugars.•Calendula petals presented the highest content in tocopherols.
Edible flowers provide new colours, textures and vibrancy to any dish, and apart from the “glam” factor, they can constitute new sources of bioactive compounds. In the present work, the edible petals and infusions of dahlia, rose, calendula and centaurea, were characterized regarding their nutritional value and composition in terms of hydrophilic and lipophilic compounds. Carbohydrates were the most abundant macronutrients, followed by proteins and ash. Fructose, glucose and sucrose were identified in all the petals and infusions. Rose petals and calendula infusions gave the highest content of organic acids, mainly due to the presence of malic and quinic acids, respectively. Polyunsaturated fatty acids predominated over saturated fatty acids, mainly due to the contribution of linoleic acid. Calendula presented the highest content in tocopherols, with α-tocopherol as the most abundant. These results highlight the interest of edible petals “as” and “in” new food products, representing rich sources of bioactive nutrients.
Oxidative stress in malaria Percário, Sandro; Moreira, Danilo R; Gomes, Bruno A Q ...
International Journal of Molecular Sciences,
12/2012, Letnik:
13, Številka:
12
Journal Article, Book Review
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Malaria is a significant public health problem in more than 100 countries and causes an estimated 200 million new infections every year. Despite the significant effort to eradicate this dangerous ...disease, lack of complete knowledge of its physiopathology compromises the success in this enterprise. In this paper we review oxidative stress mechanisms involved in the disease and discuss the potential benefits of antioxidant supplementation as an adjuvant antimalarial strategy.
STING (stimulator of interferon genes) is a cytosolic sensor for cyclic dinucleotides and also an adaptor molecule for intracellular DNA receptors. Although STING has important functions in the host ...defense against pathogens and in autoimmune diseases, its physiological relevance in intestinal homeostasis is largely unknown. In this study, we show that STING
mice presented defective protective mechanisms of intestinal mucosa, including decreased number of goblet cells, diminished mucus production, and lower levels of secretory IgA, when compared with wild-type (WT) mice. Fecal content and microbiota DNA could activate STING, indicating a role of this molecule in gut. Microbiota composition was altered in STING
mice toward a more inflammatory profile, evidencing a reduction in the Allobacolum and Bifidobacterium groups along with increase in Disulfovibrio bacteria. Absence of STING lead to decrease in induced intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL) and to increase in group 1 innate lymphoid cell (ILC1) as well as ILC3 frequencies and decrease in ILC2 in the colon. Development and function of Foxp3+ and LAP+ regulatory T cells were also compromised in STING
mice. Moreover, these mice were highly susceptible to dextran sodium sulfate-induced colitis, T-cell-induced colitis, and enteric Salmonella typhimurium infection when compared with WT animals. Therefore, our results identify an important role of STING in maintaining gut homeostasis and also a protective effect in controlling gut inflammation.
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