Hrvatska - kako sada dalje Kregar, Josip; Flego, Gvozden; Ravlic, Slaven ...
Revija za socijalnu politiku,
01/2009, Letnik:
16, Številka:
2
Book Review
The last decade saw a rise in the use of direct democracy in Croatia. The proliferation of citizens' initiatives and referendums was meant to activate politically passive citizens and to strengthen ...their role as controllers of the executive. Our research, based on the qualitative analysis of the legal framework on citizens' initiatives and referendums in Croatia, as well as post-2010 initiatives, showed that this was not the case. Instead, political and social entrepreneurs, both long established, like trade unions, and newly formed, like conservative civil society organizations, used the tools of direct democracy to promote their particular anti-minority, anti-government or anti-establishment agendas. They succeeded in both constraining the power of the elite through the process of getting to the referendum and wresting control over the agenda-setting process post hoc. The added value of this paper lies in showing that citizens' initiatives can succeed in getting their demands met even when they are not successful in organizing referendums, which is due to weaknesses in the legal framework surrounding referendums and initiatives.
Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo L.) leaves are used in folk medicine for treating inflammation, hypertension, and diabetes. The aims of this study were to evaluate the antimicrobial effects of A. ...unedo leaf extracts on 15 uropathogens and test the extent to which arbutin, as the most abundant bioactive compound in the leaves, is responsible for their antimicrobial activity. Antimicrobial activity of leaf extracts against urinary pathogenic microorganisms was tested by agar well diffusion assay and twofolded microdilution method. Since the polyphenolic content responsible for A. unedo leaves’ antimicrobial activity depends on climate and geolocation, the authors determined the total phenolic, tannin, flavonoid and phenolic acid content using spectrophotometric methods, arbutin and hydroquinone mass fraction using high performance liquid chromatography coupled with a diode array detector (HPLC–DAD) and antioxidative activities by FRAP, ABTS, and DPPH assay. Although methanol was shown to be a more effective solvent for the extraction of polyphenols from leaves, the traditionally used aqueous extract exhibited similar antimicrobial properties. While arbutin did not show direct antimicrobial activity, its metabolite hydroquinone showed strong antimicrobial activity against the tested uropathogens. The strongest antimicrobial activity of leaf extracts was detected for uropathogenic strains of Enterococcus faecalis, which was probably associated with the ability of bacterial β-glucosidase, exerting strong activity in E. faecalis, to convert arbutin to hydroquinone. Our study suggested that the aqueous extract of strawberry tree leaves has the potential for use as a phytotherapeutic in clinical application and should be further investigated.
Antioxidant activity, gastrointestinal solubility of polyphenols and formation of different classes of Maillard reaction products (MRPs) that occurs during thermal processing of carob powder was ...investigated in relation to different roasting time-roasting temperature combinations applied. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to group carob powders with the aim of proposing optimal roasting conditions for obtaining the one with the highest biological activity that can be expected after undergoing the simulation of gastrointestinal digestion. Results showed that antioxidant activity of carob powder can be significantly increased by roasting due to improved polyphenol solubility and formation of the early-stage MRPs. Fluorescent MRPs, HMF and furfural, known for their toxic properties, were the most abundant in samples roasted under more severe time/temperature conditions. Carob powder roasted at 130 °C for 30 min yielded the highest antioxidant activity and the lowest toxic MRP formation.
•Carob powder (CP) antioxidant activity of is strongly affected by roasting conditions.•Polyphenols and early-stage MRPs are the main bearers of antioxidant activity in CP.•HMF and furfural are only formed under prolonged roasting at higher temperatures.•Bioaccessibility of MRPs ranged from 50 to 97% and of polyphenols from 23 to 35%.•Roasting at 130 °C for 30 min yields the highest AO and lowest toxic MRP formation.
A study of types and distribution of trichomes, pollen morphology, chemical composition of essential oil, and the content of macroelements and trace elements was conducted on endemic and previously ...uninvestigated Geranium dalmaticum (Beck) Rech. f. and widely distributed G. macrorrhizum L. growing in Croatia. The essential oil of G. dalmaticum was characterized by a high concentration of monoterpenes (82.2%) and the oil of G. macrorrhizum by mainly sesquiterpenes (76.7%). Among the investigated macroelements, the content of Ca was the highest (19,125.6 mg/kg and 22,439.6 mg/kg in G. dalmaticum and G. macrorrhizum, respectively). The content of trace elements ranged from 0.16 (Cr) to 110.01 mg/kg (Al) in G. dalmaticum, and from 0.01 (Cd) to 101.8 mg/kg (Al) in G. macrorrhizum. Non-glandular trichomes and two (in G. dalmaticum three) types of capitate glandular trichomes (type 1 composed of one basal epidermal cell, and one head cell with subcuticular space; type 2 composed of one basal epidermal cell, one or two stalk cells, and one head cell with subcuticular space; type 3 composed of one basal epidermal cell, 2–6 stalk cells, and one head cell with subcuticular space) were observed on leaves, stems and calyxes.
Objective: The aim of this work was to evaluate the combined effect of physical activity and 1 and 12 months' adherence to Mediterranean diet (MD) on serum total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in obese ...patients, as well as factors contributing to TAC.
Methods: One hundred twenty-four patients were randomly assigned to either MD combined with physical activity or standard hypolypemic diet (SHD) with physical activity. Both groups received counseling and education during the initial week and were invited for the follow-up visits, where data on body weight and blood samples were collected. TAC was determined by Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity and urate was determined using a uricase spectrophotometric method at the initial visit and after 1 and 12 months.
Results: Eighty-four patients finished the 12-month program and were analyzed. The baseline and 1- and 12-month mean (±SD) TAC values in the MD group (n = 40) were 2.38 ± 0.48, 2.51 ± 0.47, and 2.47 ± 0.45 mmol Trolox equivalent (TE)/L, respectively. In the SHD group (n = 44), TAC values were 2.37 ± 0.49, 2.48 ± 0.49, and 2.31 ± 0.51 mmol TE/L, respectively. There was a statistically significant main effect for time (p < 0.001), as well as statistically significant time-diet interaction effect (p = 0.009). There was no statistically significant correlation between TAC and uric acid after 1 month (p = 0.733) or 12 months (p = 0.844) of the intervention. Based on the regression model, which included gender, diet, physical activity level, and percentage body weight change, the type of diet was the only significantly contributing factor to TAC change after the 12-month period, F = 3.867, df = 3, p = 0.012, R = 0.358, R
2
= 0.128.
Conclusion: This randomized controlled trial with diet and physical activity intervention and TAC as a primary outcome demonstrated initial antioxidant improvement in both MD and SHD groups and a long-term beneficial effect of MD. The results imply that diet composition-olive oil, nuts, and fish in particular-combined with physical activity modify antioxidant capacity.
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