Stingless bee honey (SBH) is gaining attention due to its nutritional, sensorial, and medicinal characteristics. This study focuses on the combination of physicochemical properties, antioxidant ...capacity, mineral profile, and mass spectrometry-based fingerprints, using a chemometric approach to differentiate SBH (
= 18) from three different Brazilian biogeographical zones (Caatinga, Cerrado, and Atlantic Forest). The physicochemical properties of SBH varied, resulting in a wide range of water activity, moisture, total soluble solids, pH, and total and free acidity. The Caatinga honey showed the highest and the lowest contents of phenolics and flavonoids, respectively. The antioxidant free-radical scavenging assays demonstrated that the Brazilian SBH has a high antioxidant potential. The mineral profile of honey samples from the Atlantic Forest revealed higher contents of Ca and Fe while the Cerrado and Caatinga honey showed the highest P contents. Partial Least-Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) analysis separated the samples into three groups based on the biogeographical zones of harvest. The main separation factors between groups were the
/
326 ion and the Fe content. Univariate analysis confirmed that Fe content is important for SBH discrimination. The present results indicate that the origin of SBH can be determined on the basis of mineral profile, especially Fe content.
This work reports the nutritional potential and the antiradical activity of the cladodes of the Brazilian
Opuntia monacantha Haw. (Cactaceae), as well the isolation of kaempferol and isorhamnetin ...through activity-guided fractionation from its active MeOH extract. TLC, HPLC-DAD and NMR techniques were used to detect and identify the compounds. The water (91.1%), ash, protein, fibre and lipid contents (15.0, 5.4, 18.5 and 1.4
g/100
g, respectively) were shown to be quite similar to the mean values of other
Opuntia spp., some widely used as food and forage. The antioxidant activity of their MeOH extract and of its
n-hexane, EtOAc and
n-BuOH fractions was assessed by measuring the ability of the fractions to scavenge DPPH radical, showing an activity enhancement for the fractions in comparison to the crude MeOH extract. The well-known free-radical scavenging activity of the isolated flavonoids reinforces the contribution of these compounds to the presented activity of the
O. monacantha cladodes.
Banana inflorescences are popularly known as 'navels,' and they are used in Brazil as nutritional complements. However, the nutritional value of banana inflorescences (male flowers and bracts) has ...never been studied. Therefore, plant material of Musa acuminata, cultivar "ouro", was collected in Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, and then submitted to chemical procedures to determine its nutritional composition. The experiment was arranged a completely randomized design and performed in triplicate. The sample composition analysis showed percentual average value for moisture, protein, fat and ash as 8.21, 14.50, 4.04 and 14.43, respectively. The dehydrated inflorescences were found to contain a significant nutritive complement based on their high content of potassium (5008.26 mg / 100 g) and fiber 49.83% (lignin, cellulose and hemicelluloses) revealing important functional and nutritional properties. In a parallel evaluation, the anatomical study revealed key elements for the recognition of Musa acuminata when reduced to fragments.
The objective of the study was to evaluate the hygienic conditions and practices of commercial foods of plant origin in establishments and street marketed by street vendors in cities in the State of ...Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Forty different sales points were evaluated (establishments that prepared and sold fruit juices and street vendors that commercialized fresh coconut water, sugarcane juice and orange juice) using a questionnaire with 12 items, divided into three blocks (salesmen/handlers, operations, installations). The results indicated that the activities related to the commerce of fruit beverages in the cities of São Gonçalo and Rio de Janeiro required the elaboration of a set of actions by the Sanitary Vigilance Agency in order to improve the hygienic and sanitary level and minimize health risk to consumers. Important requirements in the legislation relevant to this type of food are still not followed; adequate packaging and storage of the raw material, obtaining the raw material from registered suppliers, hygiene of the handlers and adequate management of wastes produced during the activities in question are amongst the main items deserving attention.
Thirty samples of fresh minas-type cheese from 10 commercial brands, all registered in the Brazilian Food Sanitary Inspection, were submitted to microscopic analyses carried out in triplicate for ...each brand. 100.0% of the samples presented foreign matter and filth, including, in greater amounts, burnt matter (32.4%) and synthetic (5.5%) and vegetable (2.6%) material fragments and, in smaller amounts, sand grains, macroscopic fragment of synthetic origin and human hair (<1.0%). 2 (20.0%) commercial brands being presented rodent hairs, being classified as unsuitable for human consumption, due to its the association of these with foodborne diseases. The results showed the need for the adoption of quality assurance systems such as Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and Standard Sanitary Operational Procedures (SSOP) in order to offer safe products to the consumers, apart from reinforcing official inspection visits to the production units. They also reinforced the importance of using food microscopy as a quality control tool in food processing.
This study summarizes the first effort to search for bioindicator tree species and respective potential biomarkers for future assessment of potential mixed pollution effects on the highly diverse ...Atlantic Forest in SE-Brazil. Leaves of the three most abundant species inventoried in a phytosociological survey (Croton floribundus, Piptadenia gonoacantha and Astronium graveolens) were collected in four forest remnants during winter and summer (2012). Their potential bioindicator attributes were highlighted using a screening of morphological, chemical and biochemical markers. The leaf surface structure and/or epicuticular wax composition pointed the accumulator properties of C. floribundus and P. gonoacantha. C. floribundus is a candidate for assessing potential accumulation of Cu, Cd, Mn, Ni, S and Zn. P. gonoacantha is a candidate to monitor polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Increased levels of secondary metabolites and decreased antioxidant capacity in leaves of A. graveolens may support its value as a bioindicator for oxidative pollutants by visible dark stipplings.
•We searched for tree species from Atlantic Forest for future air pollution monitoring in Brazil.•Croton floribundus, Astronium graveolens and Piptadenia gonoacantha were possible bioindicators.•P. gonoachanta was a potential bioindicator of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.•C. floribundus was a potential bioindicator of heavy metals and sulfur.•A. graveolens may be used for monitoring oxidative pollutants, due to its biochemical leaf traits.
Inherent characteristics of the most abundant native tree species were potential biomarkers for assessing pollution effects on the highly diverse Atlantic Forest in SE-Brazil.
Biochemical and pharmacological characterization of novel bradykinin-related peptides (BRP) named Cd-146, Thr6-BK, fulvonin and cyphokinin isolated from the venom of the solitary wasp Cyphononyx ...fulvognathus is described.
Bradykinin (BK) and its related peptides are widely distributed in venomous animals, including wasps. In fact, we have previously purified a novel BK-related peptide (BRP) named Cd-146 and the threonine6-bradykinin (Thr6-BK) from the venom of the solitary wasp Cyphononyx fulvognathus. Further survey of this same wasp venom extract allowed the structural characterization of two other novel BRPs, named here as fulvonin and cyphokinin. Biochemical characterization performed here showed that although the high primary structure similarity observed with BK, these wasp peptides are not good substrates for angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) acting more likely as inhibitors of this enzyme. In pharmacological assays, only those more structurally similar to BK, namely cyphokinin and Thr6-BK, were able to promote the contraction of guinea-pig ileum smooth muscle preparations, which was completely blocked by the B2 receptors antagonist HOE-140 in the same way as observed for BK. Only fulvonin was shown to potentiate BK-elicited smooth muscle contraction. Moreover, the 2 new wasp BRPs, namely fulvonin and cyphokinin, as well as Cd-146 and Thr6-BK, showed hyperalgesic effect in the rat paw pressure test after intraplantar injection. This effect was shown here to be due to the action of these peptides on BK receptors, since the hyperalgesia induced by both Cd-146 and fulvonin was blocked by B1 receptor antagonist, while the effect of both cyphokinin and Thr6-BK was reversed by B2 antagonist. This data give support to a better understanding of the function and targets of the kinin-related peptides widely found in several insect venoms.
A liquid chromatographic/atmospheric pressure chemical ionization tandem mass spectrometric method (LC-APCI-MS-MS) for the determination of glybenclamide in human plasma is described. Glypizide, an ...analogue of glybenclamide, was used as internal standard. The analyte was extracted from plasma with diethyl ether/dichloromethane (70:30 v/v). The chromatography uses C18 and 0.01 mol L(-1) acetic acid/acetonitrile (20:80 v/v) as stationary and mobile phase, respectively. Quantitation was preformed by using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) of the precursor ion (m/z 494.2-->368.8) and the related product ion (m/z 446.0-->347.3) using the internal standard method. The analytical curve was linear in the range 1-300 ng mL(-1), and for a 400-microL sample of human plasma, the limit of determination of the method was 1 ng mL(-1). The coefficients of variation of the method for intra-assay (within-run precision) and inter-assay (between-run precision) were less than 10%. The method was shown to be suitable for pharmacokinetic studies.
Connaraceae is a plant family usually used in traditional medicine. Recently, we have reported the chemical composition and biological activity of 39 species around the world. This work highlights ...the application of these species to diabetes control, which has been reported at least to half of this family. In this line, there are several species of the Connaraceae without scientific evidence of traditional use, among these the four species study here. Thus, this work aims the chemical composition prospection of Connarus blanchetii, Connarus regnellii, Connarus suberosus and Rourea glazioui, as well as the identification of possible bioactivity. The leaves of these four species were collected, prepared and submitted to different extractive methods (aqueous decoction and infusion and ethanolic maceration), these being tested in a preliminary phytochemical investigation and subjected to antioxidant assay with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and ferric reducing antioxidant power. Then, we selected the maceration extract to continue for fractions, with the ethyl acetate and n-butanol presenting the best results with antioxidant and anti-advanced glycation end products (AGEs) activity potential. Finally, the chemical composition was determinate by high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) in combination with Global Natural Products Service (GNPS) data bank. As a result, this study indicated the presence of 29 phenolics compounds with reported activity as antioxidant and with potential of protein glycation, supported the diabetes activity of this plants. The n-butanolic fraction of R. glazioui showed compounds such as apigenin, kaempferol, quercetin, myricetin and chlorogenic acid, which have generated a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 36.5 µg mL-1 for oxidative glycation inhibition, being highlighted as the most active.
Supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) from solids has proven to be technically feasible for almost any system; nonetheless, its economical viability has been proven for a restricted number of systems. ...A common practice is to compare the cost of manufacturing of vegetable extracts by a variety of techniques without deeply considering the huge differences in composition and functional properties among the various types of extracts obtained; under this circumstance, the cost of manufacturing do not favor SFE. Additionally, the influence of external parameters such as the agronomic conditions and the SFE system geometry are not considered. In the present work, these factors were studied for the system fennel seeds
+
CO
2. The effects of the harvesting season and the degree of maturation on the global yields for the system fennel seeds
+
CO
2 were analyzed at 300
bar and 40
°C. The effects of the pressure on the global yields were determined for the temperatures of 30 and 40
°C. Kinetics experiments were done for various ratios of bed height to bed diameter. Fennel extracts were also obtained by hydrodistillation and low-pressure solvent extraction. The chemical composition of the fennel extracts were determined by gas chromatography. The SFE maximum global yield (12.5%, dry basis) was obtained with dry harvested fennel seeds. Anethole and fenchone were the major constituents of the extract; the following fat acids palmitic (C
16H
32O
2), palmitoleic (C
16H
30O
2), stearic (C
18H
36O
2), oleic (C
18H
34O
2), linoleic (C
18H
32O
2) and linolenic (C
18H
30O
2) were also detected in the extracts. A relation between amounts of feed and solvent, bed height and diameter, and solvent flow rate was proposed. The models of Sovová, Goto et al. and Tan and Liou were capable of describing the mass transfer kinetics.
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