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Recently, nanoemulsions have gained significant attention for their improved stability and their wide range of potential uses in the food industry. This study aimed to create a novel type of mayonnaise with 23.6% (w/w) of oil using ultrasound-assisted emulsification for 6 min to incorporate lupin protein (3.4%, w/w) in the nanoemulsion stabilized by a combination of citrus fibre (2.5%, w/w) and psyllium (0.3%, w/w) or modified starch (3.0%, w/w). Nanoemulsions were produced using a cold-water bath and characterised by their stability and structural properties and used for the production of the mayonnaise. Results showed that the use of lupin protein led to stable nanoemulsions for 50 days stored at 4 °C. The smallest mean droplet size for lupin protein was 505.5 ± 43.5 nm and a polydispersity value 0.434 ± 0.045. Then, the selected nanomulsion was used to produce mayonnaise at room temperature. Mayonnaise were characterised in terms of its rheological and morphological properties, and through sensorial evaluation. The texture of the plant-based formulations was very close to one commercial mayonnaise, with similar resistance to deformation. The consistency (k) and flow index (n) were similar between samples and indicate that the samples are viscous due to the considerable value of k. A sensory analysis with a panel of consumers showed that the proposed formulations had a similar organoleptic profile compared to the benchmark sample. However, the tests showed that formulation developed with fibres had a slightly lower overall liking score. Ultrasound seems to be an effective strategy for developing plant-based nanoemulsions, foreseeing their use in the production of mayonnaise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Linguística: Revista de Estudos Linguísticos da Universidade do Porto is the property of Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Letras and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Linguística: Revista de Estudos Linguísticos da Universidade do Porto is the property of Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Letras and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Ensuring food safety is a significant challenge in the processed meat industry. Listeria monocytogenes represents a persistent threat due to its ability to grow in adverse conditions. Nowadays, there's a growing interest in natural preservatives to inhibit its proliferation in foods. Accordingly, the aim of the present study was to preliminarily evaluate the in vitro inhibitory activity of various natural antimicrobial agents against Listeria innocua , used as a surrogate for L. monocytogenes. Thyme essential oil (EO) emerged as the most effective candidate for further in vivo testing in pork minced meat with 40% fat and no additional fat, deliberately contaminated with L. innocua. The samples were stored for 20 days under two different temperature conditions, mimicking common procedures used to produce salami with short ripening periods and high fat content, such as the Italian Ciauscolo PGI salami, either through spontaneous fermentation or with the use of starter cultures. In vivo , the inhibitory effect of thyme EO was minimal or absent, regardless of fat content. Statistically significant decreases in L. innocua counts (<2%) were sporadic and observed solely in samples stored under temperature conditions mimicking the typical procedure for spontaneously fermented salami production. However, this effect was not sustained until the end of the experiment. While thyme EO demonstrated potential as an antilisterial agent in vitro , our findings highlight the complex interaction between antimicrobial agents and food matrices, revealing challenges in practical applications. This underscores the importance of further investigation elucidating the effectiveness of antimicrobial agents in real food systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Linguística: Revista de Estudos Linguísticos da Universidade do Porto is the property of Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Letras and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

• Inga laurina is widely found in Brazilian flora. • Phenolic compounds were identified from I. laurina barks by HPLC(–)-ESI-MS/MS. • These compounds showed good antifungal activity (MIC between 23.4–46.8 μg mL−1). • Five new compounds of the genus Inga were isolated for the first time. • Proanthocyanidins were isolated and described in the literature for the first time. The Inga genus comprises approximately 300 species that can be found from Mexico to northern Argentina. In folk medicine, Inga species are used to treat various diseases. The species Inga laurina is widely found in the Brazilian flora; however, there are few studies about its biological activity and chemical composition. The main purpose of this study was to identify and isolate the chemical constituents of Inga laurina barks and to evaluate the antifungal and cytotoxic activities. The total content of phenolics, proanthocyanidins, and flavonoids from the barks of Inga laurina were performed by spectrophotometric methods and the ethyl acetate (EAF) and n -butanol (BF) fractions showed the best results. Eleven compounds were identified in EAF by HPLC-ESI(−)-MS/MS, which showed good antifungal activity with MIC values of 23.4 and 46.8 μg mL−1, evaluated by broth microdilution method. Five new compounds of the genus Inga were isolated for the first time. Three of these compounds were isolated and reported on the literature for the first time: a proanthocyanidin B-type, gallocatechin-(4α→8)-4'- O -methylgallocatechin (XI) and two proanthocyanidins A-type, gallocatechin-(2→ O →7,4→8)-4'- O -methylgallocatechin (XII) and gallocatechin-3- O -galloyl-(2→ O →7,4→8)-4'- O -methylgallocatechin (XIII). The chemical study of the plant bark showed that this species is rich in phenolic compounds and it has great potential for the discovery of new bioactive compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Linguística: Revista de Estudos Linguísticos da Universidade do Porto is the property of Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Letras and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Linguística: Revista de Estudos Linguísticos da Universidade do Porto is the property of Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Letras and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: To evaluate the potential of neuroimaging, serum biomarkers, stroke etiology, and clinical characteristics as predictors of upper limb functioning 12 weeks after stroke. Methods: This was a prospective, observational study of patients (18-85 years-old) hospitalized due to acute ischemic stroke in the territory of the middle cerebral artery. Patients were hospitalized at a stroke rehabilitation center, where they underwent a standardized rehabilitation program. Clinical, imagiology, laboratory (biomarkers: C-reactive protein, D-dimer, and fibrinogen, and S100 calcium binding protein β [S100β]), and functionality assessments were conducted four different times: within 24 hours, and at 48 hours, 3 weeks, and 12 weeks after acute stroke. Results: Upper limb functioning at 12 weeks was significantly associated with Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score (ASPECTS) score (OR:2.012 [CI:1.349-3.000]; P = 0.001) and S100β protein levels (OR:0.997 [CI:0.994-0.999]; P = 0.007). Advanced age was associated with poor upper limb functioning. S100β protein levels < 140.5 ng/L at 48 hours and ASPECTS scores ≥ 7.5 within 24 hours of admission predicted good hand functioning at 12 weeks. Upper limb functioning and general functioning were significantly correlated (P < 0.001), with strong negative correlations (all correlation coefficients ≤-0.586) for all comparisons. Conclusion: ASPECTS score ≥ 8 within 24 hours and S100β protein < 140.5 ng/L at 48 hours predict better upper limb functioning, while advanced age predicts worse upper limb functioning 12 weeks after stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genome rearrangement problems aim at finding the minimum number of mutational events required to transform a genome into another. Studying such problems from a combinatorial point of view has been proved to be useful for the reconstruction of phylogenetic trees. In this work we focus on the relations between genome rearrangement and graph convexity in the following way. Graph convexity problems deal with input sets of vertices and try to understand properties on the closure of such inputs. In turn, the concept of closure is useful for studies on genome rearrangement by suggesting mechanisms to reduce the genomic search space. Computational complexity studies are widely developed in graph convexity problems, since there are several types of convexities, each capturing a distinct way of defining what is meant by “closure”. In this regard, considering the Hamming distance of strings, we solve the following problems: decide whether a given set is convex; compute the interval and the convex hull of a given set; and determine the convexity number of a given graph. All such problems are solved for the geodesic and monophonic convexities. On the other hand, for the Cayley distance of permutations, we study convexity of sets and interval determination of sets, in the context of the geodesic convexity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Stroke is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. Early prediction of poststroke disability using clinical models is of great interest, especially in the rehabilitation field. Although some biomarkers and neuroimaging techniques have shown potential predictive value, there are still insufficient data to support their clinical utility in predicting poststroke functional recovery. We aimed to assess the value of serum biomarkers (C-reactive protein [CRP], D-dimer, fibrinogen, and S100β protein) in predicting medium-term (12 weeks) functional outcome in patients with acute ischemic stroke.Methods: This is an observational, prospective study in a sample of patients hospitalized for ischemic stroke (N = 131). Peripheral blood levels of biomarkers of interest were determined at admission (CRP, D-dimer, and fibrinogen) or at 48 hours poststroke (S100β protein). Functional status was accessed at 48 hours and 12 weeks poststroke using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS).Results: S100β protein levels measured at 48 hours were significantly associated with mRS scores at 12 weeks (odds ratio = 1.005, 95% confidence interval [CI] [1.005-1.007]; P <.001). This association was not seen for the remaining biomarkers of interest. The S100β cutoff for poor functionality at 12 weeks was 140.5 ng/L or more (sensibility 83.8%; specificity 71.4%; area under the curve = .80, 95% CI [.722, .879]).Conclusions: S100β levels in peripheral blood at 48 hours poststroke reflect acute stroke severity and predict functional outcome at 12 weeks with a cutoff value of 140.5 ng/dL. The value of S100β as predictor of functional recovery after stroke should be emphasized in further clinical research and clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Estudos da Linguagem is the property of Revista de Estudos da Linguagem and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Pesquisa Veterinaria Brasileira is the property of Colegio Brasileiro de Patologia Animal - CBPA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Cardioembolism has tendency to recur and cause lesions in distinct cerebrovascular territories. Using the imaging characteristics of cerebral lesions to determine dissemination in time and space (DTS) is a concept already used in other neurologic conditions; however, it has never been applied as a diagnostic tool in ischemic stroke etiology.Aim: This study aimed to assess DTS as a diagnostic marker of cardioembolism.Methods: We enrolled consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke of various etiologies admitted in a cerebrovascular disease nursery from a university hospital in a retrospective cohort study. We excluded patients with coexisting etiologies, incomplete study, or without an acute vascular lesion on computed tomography scan. Lacunar infarctions were not considered. Cerebrovascular territory was divided into right anterior, left anterior, and posterior. Localization of the acute vascular lesion(s), existence of previous vascular lesions, and their respective areas were analyzed. The presence of dissemination in time, space, or DTS was determined.Results: We included 661 patients (mean age: 74.05 years (SD: 13.01)). Cardioembolism was the etiology with most DTS (30.47% of cardioembolic strokes); DT occurred more frequently within the atherosclerotic subtype (9.88%); DS was more prevalent within the arterial dissection group (3.33%). There was a statistically significant difference in stroke etiology between patients with DTS and patients without dissemination (P < .001). DTS had 81.67% specificity, 30.47% sensitivity, 66.67% positive predictive value, and 49.40% negative predictive value for the identification of cardioembolism.Conclusion: DTS is a specific diagnostic predictor of cardioembolic stroke and may be helpful in guiding etiologic investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of E-Journal of Portuguese History is the property of Brill Academic Publishers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Portugal is the greatest European rice consumer. Thus, incorporating whole rice and rice bran in innovative rice products is challenging. An experimental method based on the creativity association theory was applied. A group of nine students performed simple brainstorming to generate recipe ideas. Following the Design Thinking approach, a group of nine chefs received a stimulus to generate words related to rice recipes, working as a stimulus for a group of 14 students to generate recipe ideas. All ideas from both groups were evaluated by the chefs. The inclusion of stimuli led to more creative ideas from young aspiring chefs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treatment persistence in first-line injectable disease-modifying therapies (DMT) for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) is an important indicator of effectiveness. Identifying predictors of treatment discontinuation is important as there are other therapies currently available and a growing range of emerging drugs. We report a retrospective study of RRMS and clinically isolated syndrome patients followed in a University Hospital during a 13-year period with the objective of identifying predictors of treatment persistence. An evaluation of persistence on the first DMT, rates of DMT discontinuation, and reasons and predictors of discontinuation was performed. A total of 410 patients were included, 69% female, with mean disease duration of 37.8 months, mean age of 34.2 years and mean follow-up time of 6.1 years. The first DMT was glatiramer acetate (GA) in 27.56% of patients, interferon (IFN) β-1a intramuscular in 26.34%, IFNβ-1b in 26.10%, IFNβ-1a22 in 13.66% and IFNβ-1a44 in 6.34%. Treatment was discontinued in 16.34% of patients after 1 year of treatment and in 50.24% of patients in the total follow-up time, with a mean time for discontinuation of 39.80 months. Higher baseline Expanded Disability Status Scale score was an independent predictor of treatment discontinuation (hazard ratio 1.35, p = 0.002). After the first year, treatment persistence was 90.74% for IFNβ-1a-IM, 88.46% for IFNβ-1a44, 83.18% for IFNβ-1b, 83.19% for GA and 69.64% for IFNβ-1a22 (p = 0.014). Lower frequency of administration was associated with higher persistence rates. The most common reason for treatment discontinuation was lack of efficacy in all DMT subgroups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main goal of this paper is to discuss temporal and aspectual features of sentences with clauses introduced by the connectives antes de + Infinitivo ('before' + Infinitive) and depois de + Infinitivo ('after' + Infinitive) combined with situations in the Pretérito Perfeito in European Portuguese. Our discussion is based on the widespread view that these clauses are locating adverbials (cf. Kamp and Reyle (1993)) with temporal information of anteriority, in the case of antes de, and posteriority, in the case of depois de. However, this analysis is not as straightforward as one would expect, because, while before-clauses consistently render the same temporal relation (of anteriority), after-clauses may convey a temporal relation of inclusion, in addition to the standard posteriority relation. We put forward the hypothesis that aspectual characteristics play an important role in these differences, insofar as allowing a temporal reading that at first sight is not predicted from the semantic nature of the connective. In order to maintain a uniform treatment of before and after-clauses with respect to their temporal features, accounting simultaneously for the differences that emerge in their linguistic behaviour, we claim, along with Beaver & Condoravdi (2003) and Condoravdi (2010), that the locating time interval provided by these clauses is bounded to the left, but not to the right, that is, what is focused is the initial frontier of the situation that provides the time interval, leaving the final one undetermined. Furthermore, we show that, although the temporal mechanisms are parallel, the interference of aspectual properties leads to interesting differences in the final interpretation of before and after-sentences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Intracranial atherosclerotic disease is a common cause of stroke; its incidence and prevalence vary widely by ethnicity. The aim of our study was to analyze the recurrence rate of cerebrovascular events in patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic intracranial stenosis (IS). Methods We conducted a historical cohort study including all patients admitted in our hospital for stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) during 2011 and 2012 with information on intracranial circulation (ultrasonography and/or computed tomography angiography). We identified patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic IS and studied the recurrence of cerebrovascular events (TIA or ischemic stroke within the territory of the stenosis) for a minimum follow-up period of 6 months after the diagnosis of IS. For the recurrence rate estimation, patients with other potentially embolic diseases (in cervical arteries or heart) were excluded. We calculated the rate of recurrence of cerebrovascular events and performed Kaplan–Meier survival curves for symptomatic and asymptomatic IS. Results We investigated 1302 patients, mean age was 72.41 years (standard deviation 12.75). We identified 218 IS in 158 patients, 77 were symptomatic and 141 were asymptomatic. The recurrence rate of cerebrovascular events was 12.32 per 100 patient-years, with a mean time to recurrence of 1.73 months for symptomatic intracranial stenosis (SIS) and .88 per 100 patient-years for asymptomatic IS ( P < .001). Conclusions These results indicate a high risk of early recurrence of stroke in the territory of a SIS, highlighting the importance of its early diagnosis and aggressive treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Relações Internacionais is the property of Relacoes Internacionais and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: Polymeric films used in MAP have lower water vapour transmission rates relative to the transpiration rates of fresh produce such as oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus). As a consequence, water condensation may be found inside the package, promoting decay of the product. The use of moisture absorbers to control the relative humidity inside packages is effective in reducing saturation and condensation for fresh produce. However, common moisture absorbers have low absorption capacity or, in opposite, fast rate of absorption which is undesirable for storing high transpiring products. Therefore, this study was undertaken in order to develop a moisture absorber with high moisture holding capacity. The experiment was designed according to a simplex lattice method with three factors (calcium oxide, sorbitol and calcium chloride) and a range of 0.2 – 0.6g of desiccant mass. These three desiccants were mixed in varying proportions and the change in moisture content of each of the mixed desiccants was measured at regular intervals up to 5 days at 10°C. Pareto analysis showed that calcium chloride had the most significant effect on final moisture content of mixed absorber. The optimized desiccant mixture contained 0.5, 0.26 and 0.24 of calcium oxide, calcium chloride and sorbitol respectively yielding moisture holding capacity of 0.813. These results present good perspectives for the application of a moisture absorber for packaging of oyster mushrooms. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Summary: Down syndrome (DS) is the most frequent chromosomal disorder. Commonly, individuals with DS have difficulties with speech and show an unusual quality in the voice. Their phenotypic characteristics include general hypotonia and maxillary hypoplasia with relative macroglossia, and these contribute to particular acoustic alterations. Subjective perceptual and acoustic assessments of the voice (Praat-4.1 software) were performed in 66 children with DS, 36 boys and 30 girls, aged 3 to 8 years. These data were compared with those of an age-matched group of children from the general population. Perceptual evaluations showed significant differences in the group of children with DS. The voice of children with DS presented a lower fundamental frequency (F 0) with elevated dispersion. The conjunction of frequencies for formants (F 1 and F 2) revealed a decreased distinction between the vowels, reflecting the loss of articulatory processing. The DS vocalic anatomical functional ratio represents the main distinctive parameter between the two groups studied, and it may be useful in conducting assessments. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The main goal of this research was to explore and understand Chefs' perceptions regarding sea urchin gonads sensorial features, production and use, with an emphasis on echinoculture. This study used a mixed methodology, where three groups of chefs were interviewed: Michelin star, from Ericeira and from Algarve, these being the two main regions of sea urchin consumption. During the interviews, Chefs exposed that there is some apprehension regarding the consumption of sea urchin mainly due to their appearance. Moreover, this product is yet to be explored in Portugal where it still sits in a niche market, emphasizing the need to advertise benefits and sensory pleasure that this product could provide. Furthermore, the existent preconception and suspicion about aquaculture products and their acceptance should be countered, since the future availability of these gourmet products and other seafood commodities with high-quality will be dependent on their production in sustainable culture systems. The Chefs also performed sensory evaluation through the application of Projective Mapping with Ultra Flash Profiling, showing that sea urchin gonad's sensory properties were mainly influenced by sex. These results emphasize the need for communication and marketing strategies through locals, chefs and gastronomic events, focused on the promotion of consumers awareness about the exclusivity of this product and the importance of aquaculture for the future of the seafood market. [Display omitted] • Michelin star chefs and Chefs from Ericeira and Algarve, all have a positive view on sea urchin. • The culinary applications vary with the type of Chef. • Participants have a prejudice in relation to aquaculture products. • Male sea urchins were pale, bitter, softer, and had a negative appearance. • Female sea urchins were orange, sweet, fresh, and had an appealing appearance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]