Recently isolated microalgae
Tetraselmis
sp. IMP3,
Tetraselmis
sp. CTP4, and
Skeletonema
sp. were studied. The three novel strains contained relatively high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids ...(PUFA) and n3 PUFA. However, highly unsaturated n3 FA contents were relatively low (5.7–13.0% of the total FA). In general, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5 n3) contents were low (< 6.4% of the total FA). However, in
Skeletonema
biomass, EPA levels were higher than 10% of the total FA. α-Linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3 n3) and 16:3 n4 were the main PUFA in
Tetraselmis
strains and
Skeletonema
, respectively. High contents of myristic (14:0) and palmitoleic (16:1 n7) acids were found in
Skeletonema
(exceeding 20% of the total FA in both cases), whereas the
Tetraselmis
strains were rich in palmitic (16:0), 15–27% of the total FA, and oleic (18:1 n9) acids, 12–19% of the total FA. Linoleic acid (18:2 n6) content was low in
Skeletonema
(< 1% of the total FA). This microalga had the highest total polyphenol content, reaching 300–400 mg/100 g dw. Gentisic acid was the main phenolic compound in the aqueous and ethanolic extracts of this microalga. The highest antioxidant activity was displayed by
Skeletonema
. The ferric ion reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) methods showed higher antioxidant power for
Skeletonema
sp. extracts, reaching an ABTS reduction of more than 80%. Concerning anti-inflammatory activity, ethanolic extracts of
Skeletonema
sp. exhibited the highest inhibitory capacity of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), 82 ± 2%, which compares to 36 ± 9% in
Tetraselmis
sp. CTP4 and 45 ± 5% in
Tetraselmis
sp. IMP3. Aqueous extracts had always a lower anti-inflammatory capacity, 6–30%. Therefore, these microalgae have potential for multiple applications, ranging from bioactive feedstocks to aquaculture and nutraceutical uses.
Aim: To evaluate the ability of SC indexes in discriminating acute responses to different heel prick procedures. Methods: Observational cohort study of a systematic, convenience sample of neonates ...with clinical indication of capillary blood sampling by heel prick, either for glycaemia or for blood gas analysis. The Neonatal Infant Pain Scale (NIPS) was used to confirm the painful nature of the stimuli. NIPS assessment and SC measurement (Med-Storm Pain Monitor™) were simultaneously performed by two independent observers before, during and after blood sampling. Results: Sixty-eight heel prick procedures (46 for glycaemia and 22 for blood gas analysis) were applied to 16 infants. Both NIPS scores and SC peaks/s index were significantly higher during blood sampling than before or thereafter (Wilcoxon Signed Ranks, p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in NIPS score and SC peaks/s between the different heel prick procedures. Significantly higher SC area under low peaks index (Mann-Whitney, p = 0.001) and lower SC average rise time index (Mann-Whitney, p = 0.037) were registered when blood was drawn for blood gas analysis than for glycaemia, related to a sustained acute nociceptive response to a more prolonged stimulus. Conclusion: Using the conjunction of available SC indices, SC seems able to differentiate the nociceptive response to acute pain of different durations.
In July 2012, as the four ground-based gamma-ray telescopes of the H.E.S.S. (High Energy Stereoscopic System) array reached their tenth year of operation in Khomas Highlands, Namibia, a fifth ...telescope took its first data as part of the system. This new Cherenkov detector, comprising a 614.5m2 reflector with a highly pixelized camera in its focal plane, improves the sensitivity of the current array by a factor two and extends its energy domain down to a few tens of GeV.
The present part I of the paper gives a detailed description of the fifth H.E.S.S. telescope׳s camera, presenting the details of both the hardware and the software, emphasizing the main improvements as compared to previous H.E.S.S. camera technology.
Erratum Martins, Ana Pimenta; Correia, Daniela; Carvalho, Catarina ...
Acta portuguesa de nutrição,
06/2023, Letnik:
33
Journal Article
Recenzirano
In the originally published version of the article "Analysis of the supply of micronutrient-fortified foods in Portugal", the authors initially reported no presence of zinc-fortified foods in their ...results. However, upon further analysis of data from the National Food, Nutrition, and Physical Activity Survey of the Portuguese general population (IAN-AF 2015-2016), it was possible to identify 68 zinc-fortified food items. Consequently, the authors updated Figure 1 to reflect the revised findings, illustrating the frequency of foods fortified with each identified micronutrient and the micronutrient fortification profiles within the analysed sample of fortified foods. Below is the updated Figure 1. Also, on page 12, in the Results section, second paragraph, consider the following revision: Where it reads “Regarding minerals, Fe (45%), calcium (Ca; 37%) and, to a lesser extent, magnesium (Mg; 8%) are the most common minerals used in FF. A small number of M-FF (≤ 2%) with the addition of phosphorus (P), iodine (I), selenium (Se), copper (Cu) and potassium (K) was observed. Foods fortified with zinc, manganese, chromium, molybdenum, fluoride and boron were not found”, Should be read: “Regarding minerals, Fe (45%), calcium (Ca; 37%), magnesium (Mg; 8%) and zinc (Zn; 8%) are the most common minerals used in FF. A small number of M-FF (≤ 2%) with the addition of phosphorus (P), iodine (I), selenium (Se), copper (Cu) and potassium (K) was observed. Foods fortified with manganese, chromium, molybdenum, fluoride and boron were not found”.
The production of cytokines (MIG, IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-4, IL-5, and IL-10) was studied in 39 individuals, including 28 with chagasic esophagopathy and 11 nonchagasic patients with gastroesophageal reflux ...disease. A sandwich enzyme immunoassay employing monoclonal antibody pairs specific for each cytokine was used. IFN-γ and MIG production was significantly higher in patients with megaesophagus compared to control. Furthermore, in the absence of stimulation TNF-α levels were lower in the chagasic group than in the control group. In addition, significantly lower TNF-α levels were observed for the advanced form of the disease compared to the nonadvanced form. These results support the hypothesis that, although patients with advanced phase of megaesophagus present low number of CD4+ T lymphocytes, PBMC from this patients are able to respond up specific antigen stimulation.
The STEREO Experiment Allemandou, N; Almazán, H; del Amo Sanchez, P ...
arXiv.org,
08/2018
Paper, Journal Article
Odprti dostop
The STEREO experiment is a very short baseline reactor antineutrino experiment aiming at testing the hypothesis of light sterile neutrinos as an explanation of the deficit of the observed neutrino ...interaction rate with respect to the predicted rate, known as the Reactor Antineutrino Anomaly. The detector center is located 10 m away from the compact, highly \(^{235}\)U enriched core of the research nuclear reactor of the Institut Laue Langevin in Grenoble, France. This paper describes the STEREO site, the detector components and associated shielding designed to suppress the external sources of background which were characterized on site. It reports the performances in terms of detector response and energy reconstruction.
Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are an important cause of death worldwide. Anthocyanins are a subgroup of flavonoids found in berries, flowers, fruits and leaves. In epidemiological and clinical ...studies, these polyphenols have been associated with improved cardiovascular risk profiles as well as decreased comorbidities. Human intervention studies using berries, vegetables, parts of plants and cereals (either fresh or as juice) or purified anthocyanin-rich extracts have demonstrated significant improvements in low density lipoproteins oxidation, lipid peroxidation, total plasma antioxidant capacity, and dyslipidemia as well as reduced levels of CVD molecular biomarkers. This review discusses the use of anthocyanins in animal models and their applications in human medicine, as dietary supplements or as new potent drugs against cardiovascular disease.
Aims
Brazil ranks high in the number of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID‐19) cases and the COVID‐19 mortality rate. In this context, autopsies are important to confirm the disease, determine associated ...conditions, and study the pathophysiology of this novel disease. The aim of this study was to assess the systemic involvement of COVID‐19. In order to follow biosafety recommendations, we used ultrasound‐guided minimally invasive autopsy (MIA‐US), and we present the results of 10 initial autopsies.
Methods and results
We used MIA‐US for tissue sampling of the lungs, liver, heart, kidneys, spleen, brain, skin, skeletal muscle and testis for histology, and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction to detect severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 RNA. All patients showed exudative/proliferative diffuse alveolar damage. There were intense pleomorphic cytopathic effects on the respiratory epithelium, including airway and alveolar cells. Fibrinous thrombi in alveolar arterioles were present in eight patients, and all patients showed a high density of alveolar megakaryocytes. Small thrombi were less frequently observed in the glomeruli, spleen, heart, dermis, testis, and liver sinusoids. The main systemic findings were associated with comorbidities, age, and sepsis, in addition to possible tissue damage due to the viral infection, such as myositis, dermatitis, myocarditis, and orchitis.
Conclusions
MIA‐US is safe and effective for the study of severe COVID‐19. Our findings show that COVID‐19 is a systemic disease causing major events in the lungs and with involvement of various organs and tissues. Pulmonary changes result from severe epithelial injury and microthrombotic vascular phenomena. These findings indicate that both epithelial and vascular injury should be addressed in therapeutic approaches.
In this study, we aimed at analyzing the associations between transmission of and deaths caused by SARS-CoV-2 and meteorological variables, such as average temperature, minimum temperature, maximum ...temperature, and precipitation. Two outcome measures were considered, with the first aiming to study SARS-CoV-2 infections and the second aiming to study COVID-19 mortality. Daily data as well as data on SARS-CoV-2 infections and COVID-19 mortality obtained between December 1, 2019 and March 28, 2020 were collected from weather stations around the world. The country's population density and time of exposure to the disease were used as control variables. Finally, a month dummy variable was added. Daily data by country were analyzed using the panel data model. An increase in the average daily temperature by one degree Fahrenheit reduced the number of cases by approximately 6.4 cases/day. There was a negative correlation between the average temperature per country and the number of cases of SARS-CoV-2 infections. This association remained strong even with the incorporation of additional variables and controls (maximum temperature, average temperature, minimum temperature, and precipitation) and fixed country effects. There was a positive correlation between precipitation and SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Countries with higher rainfall measurements showed an increase in disease transmission. For each average inch/day, there was an increase of 56.01 cases/day. COVID-19 mortality showed no significant association with temperature.
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•First study covering all countries affected by COVID-19 verifying the association with climate variables.•Negative association between country average temperature and COVID-19 infections.•Positive associations between country precipitation and COVID-19 infections.•No association between deaths and country temperature or precipitation.
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