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The study was conducted to evaluate the effect of Moringa olifera on the growth and gut health of Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). The feed having 30% crude protein was prepared as an experimental diet with 4%, 8% and 10% M. olifera leaf supplementation, respectively. The control diet was devoid of M. olifera leaves. The 10 weeks feeding trial was carried out on 60 fish in aquaria. Fish was fed @ 3% of body weight twice a day. Diet with the high level of inclusion of M. olifera leaves significantly increased the growth rate, Survival Rate (SR), Specific Growth Rate (SGR) and Feed Conversion Efficiency (FCE) in all treatment groups compared to the control group. Similarly, Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) gradually decreased and found highly-significant. To check the gut health of the Tilapia, random samples were selected and dissected. Nutrient agar was used as culture media to check the growth of bacteria. Pour Plate Method was used for viable colonies count by colony counter. Through staining method, the different bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Shigella and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were identify abundantly in the intestine of control diet fish but less number present in treatment diets groups. These results showed that M. olifera leaves up to 10% of dietary protein can be used for Nile tilapia for significant growth and healthy gut microbiota of fish. Resumo O estudo foi conduzido para avaliar o efeito da Moringa olifera no crescimento e saúde intestinal da tilápia (Oreochromis niloticus). A ração com 30% de proteína bruta foi preparada como dieta experimental com 4%, 8% e 10% de suplementação de folhas de M. olifera, respectivamente. A dieta controle foi desprovida de folhas de M. olifera. O ensaio de alimentação de 10 semanas foi realizado em 60 peixes em aquários. O peixe pesava 3% do peso corporal duas vezes ao dia. A dieta com alto nível de inclusão de folhas de M. olifera aumentou significativamente a taxa de crescimento, taxa de sobrevivência (SR), taxa de crescimento de sobrevivência (SGR) e eficiência de conversão alimentar (FCE) em todos os grupos de tratamento em comparação com o grupo de controle. Da mesma forma, a taxa de conversão de alimentação (FCR) diminuiu gradualmente e foi considerada altamente significativa. Para verificar a saúde intestinal da tilápia, amostras aleatórias foram selecionadas e dissecadas. O ágar nutriente foi usado como meio de cultura para verificar o crescimento das bactérias. O método da placa de Verter foi usado para a contagem de colônias viáveis por contador de colônias. Através do método de coloração, diferentes como Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Shigella e Pseudomonas aeruginosa foram identificados abundantemente no intestino de peixes da dieta controle, mas em menor número nos grupos de dieta de tratamento. Esses resultados mostraram que M. olifera deixa até 10% da proteína dietética e pode ser usado para tilápia do Nilo para um crescimento significativo e microbiota intestinal saudável de peixes.

The goal of this study was to see how much genetic and environmental interaction affects essential oil yield and patchouli alcohol content and find superior genotypes over the years of patchouli's unique aroma in India. The tests were carried out for one year in 2013–2014 (initial evaluation trial) and then for three years in 2015–2016, 2016–2017, and 2017–2018 (major yield assessment trials). The fourteen patchouli genotypes and one commercial variety (CIM- Samarth) were studied in an RBD design with three replications. A pooled analysis of variance was performed across the environments/years for the eleven economic attributes. The results showed that most of the attributes had significant differences. In all three environments/years, genetic correlations between economic traits played a critical role in genetic improvement, for example, the traits X3-vs-X4, X3-vs-X5, and X4-vs-X5. As a result, according to correlations throughout the selective environments/years, picking these features will be favorable. Furthermore, the heritability in a broad sense (h2BS) was expressed as a percentage. The scores for all ten attributes ranged from 87.13 to 99.25%. The genetic advance over mean (GAM) percent, which ranged from 13.42 to 162.83%, was equally fascinating. The four winning genotypes for essential oil yield, G/PATC-11, G/PATC-1, G/PATC-2, and G/PATC-5, and the lines G/PATC-1, G/PATC-4, G/PATC-9, and G/PATC-11 for patchouli alcohol percent), were explained by biplot analysis as stable and higher-yielding genotypes. The percentage of ar-curcumene in stable genotypes with a distinct fragrance ranged from 8.60 to 8.71% in G/PATC 4, G/PATC 11, G/PATC 14, and G/PATC 1. Ar-curcumene has been found for the first time in the patchouli (Pogostemon cablin (Blanco) Benth) species. As a result, it may be prudent to cultivate these stable genotypes on a big scale in India.

Nutrient databases are a critical component of nutrition science and the basis of exciting new research in precision nutrition (PN). To identify the most critical components needed for improvement of nutrient databases, food composition data were analyzed for quality, with completeness being the most important measure, and for FAIRness, how well the data conformed with the data science criteria of findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR). Databases were judged complete if they provided data for all 15 nutrition fact panel (NFP) nutrient measures and all 40 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) essential nutrient measures for each food listed. Using the gold standard the USDA standard reference (SR) Legacy database as surrogate, it was found that SR Legacy data were not complete for either NFP or NASEM nutrient measures. In addition, phytonutrient measures in the 4 USDA Special Interest Databases were incomplete. To evaluate data FAIRness, a set of 175 food and nutrient data sources were collected from worldwide. Many opportunities were identified for improving data FAIRness, including creating persistent URLs, prioritizing usable data storage formats, providing Globally Unique Identifiers for all foods and nutrients, and implementing citation standards. This review demonstrates that despite important contributions from the USDA and others, food and nutrient databases in their current forms do not yet provide truly comprehensive food composition data. We propose that to enhance the quality and usage of food and nutrient composition data for research scientists and those fashioning various PN tools, the field of nutrition science must step out of its historical comfort zone and improve the foundational nutrient databases used in research by incorporating data science principles, the most central being data quality and data FAIRness.

Epiboly, the coordinated spreading of the enveloping layer (EVL), the yolk syncytial layer (YSL) and the deep cells (DCs) toward the vegetal pole, is required for gastrulation. Interference with the EVL leads to early developmental failure. However, the genetic factors underlying EVL differentiation are so far unknown. By in-depth analyzing of single-cell sequencing data from 4 h post fertilization zebrafish embryos, we identified 105 genes (FDR

This survey was conducted to document the distribution, market potential, medicinal properties, and conservation status of wild food plants (WFPs) which are consumed by local communities of poor socioeconomic background, residing near the Pakistan-Afghan border. Data were collected via semi-structured during 2017–2020 and a total of 288 informers were interviewed in a different locality. In this survey, a total of 95 WFPs species of 39 families and 58 genera were documented. Among these WFPS, 70% of species are ethno-medicinally known. August was the peak month for the accessibility of WFPs (i.e., 17%). The most consumed parts were leaves (37%) and fruit (36%). Plant species of 36 families out of 39 were marketable and reported for the first time, which was further interrelated with taste, ethnobotanical, ethnomedicinal value, FC, and relative frequency of citation (RFC). Rhamnaceae and Rosaceae were the dominant families with the highest number of frequencies of citation (FC) and number of species. The highest FC (77) and RFC (0.267) were calculated for Ziziphus jujuba. This study presents the market potential and distribution of the WFPs for the first time in a war-affected zone. These findings would facilitate local people along the Pakistan-Afghan border and researchers to utilize WFPs to fulfill food requirements. We suggest that further pharmacological and biological assessments of these plants can contribute to economic prosperity, and increase the dietary diversity of this region.

Background Medicinal plants occupy an important place in the lives of people around the world. This study covers an area where medicinal plants are widely used for various health-related problems due to easily available sources. Objective: The current study aimed to document the quantities of data about the most commonly used medicinal plants in the district Bannu and two common species' biological activities. Methods Ethno-pharmacological data were collected from different locations of district Bannu in the period from 2018 to 2019.The information about biological activities was concentrated on two species: Withania coagulans (Stocks) Dunal and Mentha viridis L. The data was compiled randomly by semi-structured interviews from having different groups, ages consist of both genders, male and female. Results The ethno-pharmacological data were collected from 115 native people, including 14 traditional healers. The most frequently cited families were: Solanaceae and Moraceae with 5 species (5.88%) followed by Apiaceae, Cucurbitaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae with 4 species each (4.7%). The highest use-value was reported for Withania coagulans (0.47), followed by M. viridis (0.44), Tamarix aphylla (0.43), Curcuma longa (0.42), Plantago ovata (0.41), Linum usitatissimum (0.40). Least use value was reported for Ziziphus nummularia (0.04).The highest RFC value was reported for W. coagulans (47.82), followed by M. viridis (44.34), and T. aphylla (43.47). Conclusion The study will result in further pharmacological and clinical research to discover new medicines to improve the health system. It is the first step in unraveling natural products' potential and requires careful study and investigation to enrich the system worldwide. The study will also contribute to the conservation of medicinal plants in the area of Bannu.

E.coli cells were succesfully attached to both gelatin coated surfaces andpolylactic acid honeycomb patterned mica surfaces as determined by in situatomic force microscopy. The gelatin coated surfaces provided a softer supportonto which the E.coli cells were capable of slightly submerging leading to abetter adhesion compared to the harder surfaces consisting of polylactic acidpolymer surfaces. After continuous scanning in liquid media, the E.coli cellsremained rod shaped and smooth. Indolicidin, a 13-AA linear antimicrobialpeptide, was injected in order to visualize the peptide-membrane interac-tions in real time. Instantly after the injection of the peptides, the bacterialmembranes were observed to be distorted and seemed to melt proceeding as afunction of time. In conclusion, these experiments proved that the E.coli cellswere not ruptured as could be expected due to pore formation and disruptionof the osmotic pressure. This indicates a possible intracellular target killingmechanism of indolicidin interacting with E.coli cells.

An 8-week feeding trial investigated the optimum dietary vitamin K3 requirements of largemouth bass. A total of 600 healthy fish (12.96 ± 0.07 g) were fed diets containing varying levels of vitamin K3 at 0.78 (K0), 5.80 (K5), 10.82 (K10), 15.84 (K15), and 20.85 (K20) mg/kg with four replicates per level. Results showed that dietary vitamin K3 enhanced growth, with weight gain rate and specific growth rate in K15 trials significantly higher than K0 trials (P 0.05). However, the supplementation of vitamin K3 significantly contributed to calcium accumulation in muscle tissues and vertebrae (P 0.05). The antioxidant capacity was improved with the addition of vitamin K3, which was inconsistent with the changes in malondialdehyde and MK-4 (a form of menaquinone) within liver and serum, suggesting that the toxicity of excessive artificial vitamin K3 may account for this difference. Using regression analysis, the appropriate dietary vitamin K3 levels within a largemouth bass diet was determined to be in the range of 9.93–15.22 mg/kg, which will provide a reference for the preparation of vitamin premix and artificial diet for largemouth bass.

This study was carried out to examine the effect of combining factors for immersion technique on masculinization of red tilapia (Oreochromis spp.). Three selected doses (1000, 1,500, and 2000 μg/L) of 17α-methyltestosterone (17 MT) immersion, 2 exposure times (3 and 6 h) once or twice a week, and interaction of these factors were tested. A total of 12 treatment combinations under 3 × 2 × 2 factorial experiments in randomized complete block design were conducted to compare with the negative control group (no 17 MT-treated) and positive control group (17 MT-treated feed administration). One hundred red tilapia larvae (14 days post-hatch) were randomly allocated in each treatment and were operated in a 10-L glass jar for 21 days. At the end of the treatment regime, the survival rate was determined. Then, fish were raised in a 150-L glass tank using normal commercial feed for 2 months and sex ratios were determined via the gonad squash technique. None of the immersion treatments tested resulted in a statistically significant (p > 0.05) decrease in survival rate. All 17 MT-treated groups produced progenies with a significantly higher (p

Anaerobic digestion is considered an environmentally benign process for the recycling of food waste into biogas. However, unscientific disposal of ammonium-rich food waste digestate (FWD), a by-product of anaerobic digestion induces environmental issues such as odor nuisances, water pollution, phytotoxicity and pathogen transformations in soil, etc. In the present study, FWD produced from anaerobic digestion of source-separated food waste from markets and industries was used for converting FWD into biofertilizer using 20-L bench scale composters. The issues of nitrogen loss, NH

This study aimed to control lesser grain borer Rhizopertha dominica via using of Zingier officinale (ginger) and Helianthus annuus (sunflower) oils as protectant of Tritium spp. The inhibition rates were 38.00, 28.98, 22.67 and 4.60% respectively when the wheat treated by 0.5, 1, 1.5and 2% of sunflower oil while the inhibition rates were 35.50, 28.00, 7.25 and 3.25% respectively when the wheat treated by the same concentrations of Z. officinale oil. The damage assessments were decreased while increasing the concentration of the oils, the H. annuus oil is more protectant than Z . officinale oil in 2%. Approximately the two plant oils caused same damage percentage when the wheat treated by 1% during storage. To sum up, the results strengthen the possibility of using the plant oils for the management this insect. http://dx.doi.org/10.25130/tjps.23.2018.026

Urbanization influences the food availability and quality for birds in many ways. Although a great amount of food for birds is provided incidentally or intentionally in urban areas, the quantity of insect-based food can be reduced in cities. We studied the role of one artificial food source, insects smashed on the front panels of cars, in Finland, and more specifically in the city of Rovaniemi, by conducting questionnaire research, searching for data from databases and performing a field study. Our results indicated that a total of seven bird species have been detected using insects on the front panels of cars in Finland. However, this behavior is not yet common since about 60% of responders to the questionnaire stated that this behavior is currently either rare or very rare. Most of the observations identified House Sparrows, followed by the White Wagtail or the Eurasian Jackdaw. Only a few observations identified the Eurasian Tree Sparrow, the Hooded Crow, the Great Tit and the Eurasian Magpie. The phenomenon was distributed quite widely across Finland, except in the case of the Eurasian Jackdaws, for which observations were restricted only to the southern part of the country. The first observation was made about the House Sparrow in 1971, followed by the White Wagtail (1975), Hooded Crow (1997), Eurasian Jackdaw (2006), Eurasian Tree Sparrow (2011), Eurasian Magpie (2019) and Great Tit (2022). The species using this food source are mainly sedentary urban exploiters, such as corvids and sparrows, that have been previously reported to have several different types of innovative behaviors. Most of the observations were conducted in urban parking sites of hypermarkets, and no observations were made in residential areas. Most of the foraging observations were made during the end phase of the breeding season, partly supporting the extra need for high-quality insect-based food for nestlings and fledglings. Our observations indicate that this behavior is not yet common and widespread among species.

Yemek, bireylerin içinde bulundukları topluma ya da zamana bağlı olmaksızın her zaman önemli bir gereklilik olmuştur. Günümüzde artık biliniyor ki, bireyler ve toplumlar için yemeğin, fizyolojik ihtiyaçların ötesinde bir anlamı vardır. Toplumlardaki beslenme süreçlerinin dikkate alınması, sadece birincil olan karın doyurma işlevi açısından değil; sosyal dönüşüm, toplumsal örgütlenme, sınıf, cinsiyet, eşitsizlik gibi birçok sosyolojik konuyla temas etmesi açısından da önemlidir. Bu çalışmada yemek sosyolojisinin nasıl ortaya çıktığına ve yemeğin nasıl sosyolojik bir araştırma nesnesi haline geldiğine ve yemeğin toplumsal anlamına yer verilmektedir. Sosyolojide yemek ve toplumsal anlamına yönelik pek çok çalışma yapılabilir. Kültür, kimlik, toplumsal cinsiyet, sınıf gibi pek çok kategori yemeğin toplumsal anlamını çözümlemek üzere incelenebilir. Bu çalışmada yemeğin toplumsal anlamı seçilen iki kategori aracılığıyla örneklendirilecektir. Bunlardan ilki sınıf diğeri ise kimlik kategorisidir., Food has always been an important necessity, regardless of the society or time of individuals. Today, it is known that food has a meaning beyond physiological needs for individuals and societies. Considering the nutritional processes in societies is important not only in terms of the primary function of filling the stomach but also in terms of many sociological issues such as social transformation, social organization, class, gender, and inequality. In this study, how the sociology of food emerged, how food became a sociological research object, and the social meaning of food are included. Many studies can be done on food and its social meaning in sociology. Many categories, such as culture, identity, gender, and class, can be examined to analyze the social meaning of food. In this study, the social meaning of food will be exemplified through two selected categories. The first of these is the class, and the other is the identity category

UNLABELLED: Very little is known about the feeding of naupliar and juvenile life stages of omnivorous fairy shrimps (Crustacea: Anostraca). Here, we aim to reveal whether the fairy shrimp Branchinecta orientalis is an ontogenetic omnivore and at which age and ontogenetic stage they gain the ability to feed on zooplankton. We assess how food uptake rates change with age until reaching maturity by providing algae (pico- and nanoplanktonic unicellular algae) and zooplankton (rotifers and copepod nauplii) as food in individual experiments. We found that the fairy shrimp B. orientalis started to feed on both types of algal prey immediately after hatching. Nanoplanktonic algae likely represented the most important food source until reaching maturity. Moreover, fairy shrimps started to feed on zooplankton already when they were 7 days old. Slow-moving rotifers gradually gained importance in the fairy shrimp diet with time. Our results reveal an ontogenetic change in the prey spectrum of fairy shrimp. The systematic shift towards omnivory likely affects both phyto- and zooplankton community composition, possibly contributing to temporal changes in food web dynamics in fairy shrimp habitats, and temporary ponds, which may warrant more detailed investigations in future studies. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10750-022-05132-z. ispartof: HYDROBIOLOGIA vol:850 issue:4 pages:901-909 ispartof: location:Netherlands status: published

The objective of this work to review about interaction of different food additives with Haemoglobin (Hb) and Myoglobin (Mb) proteins. Food additives are the important components which are added in food to preserve its flavour, color, appearance along with its taste. Mb and Hb interacts with numerous food dyes at varying conditions. In this study we will use various spectroscopic techniques like fluorescence spectroscopy, UV–Visible spectroscopy, Rayleigh light scattering (RLS), fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), circular dichroism (CD)alongwithtransmissionelectronmicroscopy (TEM)andmoleculardockingtocharacterize the binding consequences of Mb and Hb. Proteinaggregationisthedistinctivepropertyrelatedtohumanbody. Deformationofprotein along with its aggregation leads to vast conformational change in human body and leads to several blood related (anemia, leukemia) andneurodegenerativediseaseslikeParkinson’sandAlzheimer’s. Foodadditivesaretoxictohumansaswellastoenvironment. Sothe aim of this study to find out the methods for detection of such diseases along with its cure as well as methods to release these toxic dyes via interaction of additives with Hb & Mb.

India is an agricultural country. Nearly 70% of the populations thrive in rural areas, engaged in agriculture making the backbone of our economy. The Trichoderma genus is widely distributed and provides an alternative to chemical pesticides in crops and plants growth. Trichoderma species are free living and commonly found in soil and root ecosystems. Root colonization by Trichoderma also regularly promotes growth and development of plants. They also perform beneficial and significant role in enhancing crop productivity, fight against pathogens, resistant to abiotic stress and increase of nutrients uptake from soil. The present study was undertaken to investigate quantitative and qualitative estimation of phosphate solubilizer by using nineteen isolates of Trichoderma grown on Pikovskaya’s Agar and NBRIP media. It was found that all isolates were capable of differentially utilizing 5 g/L TCP in NBRIP broth. This was indicated by the soluble phosphate concentrations and increase in acidity of growth medium. Out of 19 isolates, all isolates were capable in phosphate solubilization. However, the P- solubilizing efficiency was found higher in case of the isolate number-59 and 89. While isolate number-102 was the strongest and isolate number-23 was the weakest P-solubilizer. Minimum Phosphate solubilization concentration was observed in 3rd day (0%) that simultaneously increased on 7th day (52.63%) followed by 9th day (100%) and remaining all days 13th, 17th and 21st days also observed 100% efficiency.

This study investigated the effects of replacing fishmeal with Clostridium autoethanogenum protein (CAP) on growth, feed utilization and intestinal histology of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides). The control diet contained 350 g/kg fishmeal, and then dietary fishmeal was decreased to 300 g/kg, 250 g/kg, 200 g/kg, 150 g/kg and 100 g/kg by CAP inclusion, respectively (FM-30, FM-25, FM-20, FM-15, FM-10). The largemouth bass (110.0 ± 1.0 g) were fed one of the six diets for 8 weeks. The groups of FM-30, FM-25 and FM-20 showed the similar weight gain (WG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) to the control (P > 0.05), while the WG of FM-10 group was decreased by 15.9%, and FCR increased by 0.12 when compared to the control (P 0.05). In conclusion, CAP could replace 150 g/kg fishmeal in diet (350 g/kg fishmeal) without adverse effects on growth, feed utilization and intestinal histology of largemouth bass.

Light is an essential natural factor of fish growth and development. A light regime in indoor aquaculture is critical for sustainable fish production. This research aimed to investigate the effect of light intensity and photoperiod on the growth performance and stress response of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), which is an important commercial species, in a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS). Fingerlings with an average weight of 5 ± 0.9 g were randomly assigned to nine 1.5 m3 tanks with 145 fish in each tank, cultured under different light intensities (1000, 2000, and 3000 lx) and photoperiods (12L:12D, 18L:6D, 24L:0D), and fed to apparent satiation twice a day for 160 days. The growth of tilapia subjected to 2000 lx was significantly better than that exposed to 1000 and 3000 lx (P 0.05). Light intensity and photoperiod manipulation did not cause a significant chronic stress response in tilapia. This study demonstrated that light intensity, especially at 2000 lx, and photoperiod manipulation could stimulate the growth of tilapia in the RAS and significantly affect economic profitability. This study also served as an important reference for tilapia indoor aquaculture.

This chapter is concerned with the materiality of food in a global, ethnically “mixed” city – food’s sensory qualities, not only in regard to sight and sound but also its embodied, visceral expressions in taste, touch, and smell; its “entanglements” in “webs of culture, economics and politics” (Law 2005: 235), especially in relation to contemporary meanings of “home,” “belonging,” and “cosmopolitanism”; its capacity for place-making and, more specifically, for producing stories of what people do with food in what places – how we “create a world of practice” (Miller 1998: 19). The underlying assumption throughout is that things (including food items, the markets and shops in which they are sold, and the places in which these items are cooked and eaten) matter in tracing relationships of people to cultural and material worlds (Tilley 2006: 6).

This work demonstrated the promise of using industrial-grade sugar syrups derived from corn and wood, i.e., high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), glucose corn syrup (GCS) and wood-based sugar (TMP-Bio Sugar), as cheaper and competitive feedstocks for 5-HMF production using niobium phosphate as a heterogeneous solid acid catalyst in a biphasic continuous-flow tubular reactor. 5-HMF yield as high as 53.1% with 100% sugar (glucose and fructose) conversion was obtained from catalytic dehydration of HFCS-90 (containing 90 wt% fructose) at 150 °C, with feed concentration of 200 mg/ml (glucose and fructose) and aqueous to organic phase ratio of 1:5 (v/v). Catalyst stability with time was tested over 20 h of continuous-time on stream, and the reusability of the catalyst was studied after in-situ regeneration of the used catalyst by calcination in the air for removing the deposited humins and coke on the surface of the catalyst particles. The regenerated catalyst showed good activity with almost constant selectivity, although at lower glucose conversion and reduced 5-HMF yield compared to the fresh catalyst, indicating that the in-situ regeneration process could recover a part of the acid sites on the catalyst surface. The produced humins during the reaction were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and elemental analysis (CHNS). The results showed high aromaticity and the presence of a high degree of unsaturated compounds in the structure of humins.

Cryptococcus neoformans is a capsule containing yeast pathogen, commonly found in urban environments that causes Cryptococcosis which is a worldwide fungal disease. The current study. This study was aimed to compare the ability of some culture media to detect melanin production by C. neoformans isolates. A total of 202 clinical samples obtained from patients suffering from meningitis, during the period from September 2020 through April 2021. The isolation and identification results revealed that 179 (88.61%) samples were positive for yeast growth. 29 (14.35%). Twenty-nine from 202 of samples were C. neoformans according to the morphological characteristics and the biochemical tests, and 150 (74.25%) samples for Candida spp. All C. neoformans isolates produced blue dry colonies on cryptococcus differential agar. Several differential media were used for the purpose of testing the ability of C. neoformans to produce melanin pigment, these includes: Niger seed agar medium (Staib’s Agar), and the colonies of C. neoformans appeared on this medium in a brown color after 2–5 days of incubation, Tobacco agar where those colonies gave a dark brown color after 48–72 h, and Methyldopa agar which was the best medium for the detection of melanin production because the results were faster from the other media, interestingly the colonies can produce the pigment and can growth very fast within 24hr.

Increasing fuel prices and depletion of conventional sources of energy has promoted research in non-conventional sources like biodiesel from non-edible seeds and industrial wastes. The present work focuses on the elicitation of biodiesel from the seeds of capparis spinosa L. The crude bio-oil extracted from the seeds of capparis spinosa L transesterified into biodiesel using calcium oxide as a heterogeneous catalyst derived from oyster shells. The oyster shell powder is characterized before and after calcination using XRD and the calcinated oyster shell is observed through SEM to analyze the size of the particle and morphology. The produced biodiesel was characterized by GC analysis and the fuel properties of biodiesel such as density, flash point, cloud point, pour point and kinematic viscosity, ash content, carbon residue was analyzed and compared with commercial diesel.

Nigeria has formulated and implemented numerous national development plans with the aim of achieving long-term development. However, these plans have not adequately addressed the need for a comprehensive development strategy that takes into account the impact of diverse development plans and policies on global sustainable development goals. This research endeavour aimed to establish a framework for evaluating the interlinkages among various goals and targets, specifically focusing on the Water-Energy-Food Nexus within the context of Nigeria's development framework and policies. Employing content analysis as the chosen methodology, the study scrutinized the Nigerian Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) 2017-2020 and the National Policy on Food and Nutrition (NPFN) to identify possible synergies and trade-offs with respect to SDGs 1, 2, 6, and 7.This research contributes to the knowledge base by offering policymakers in various sectors a broader understanding of the connections between different national policies and the SDGs.

The paper analyzes the food security with the four dimensions physical availability, economic and physical access, food use/utilization and stability, the economy and ecology of food production (plants, meat, fish), the risk factors for food security and the geopolitical activities. The food production increased almost 2.2 times in the past 50 years and was able to compensate the population growth, but the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that the food production must increase from 2015 to 2050 by 60%. The growth was achieved by a combination of increased irrigation, fertilizers, pesticides, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to protect plants from harmful insects and pesticides and a general trend to larger farms and monocultures. Issues are nitrate overload, pesticide contamination, reduction of insects, pollination and birds, loss of biodiversity and land loss and degradation. Smart or precision farming based on the Internet of Things, 5 G networks, drones and Artificial Intelligence may lead to a more effective and ecologic resource use. Over the past 50 years, meat production has more than tripled. Meat production requires land for pastures and animal feed production. Meat replacements and alternatives like mock food, meat from cell cultures and insects have a small, but growing market. Another issue are livestock emissions like carbon dioxide and methane. In the past 50 years, fish production has increased by almost 4 times. Approximately one-third of the fish resources are overfished and some species are in a critical condition. The USA were the largest exporter of food in 2020 while Asia was the largest net importer. Europe was a net importer of food for many decades, but became a net exporter since 2013. While Africa’s imports and exports were balanced until the mid 1970ies, the gap between imports and exports is widening. The global food market is increasingly dominated by a few multinational companies from seeds to supermarkets. The most critical risk factors for food security are climate change with soil loss and water scarcity due to higher temperatures, extreme weather with storms, droughts (and floods with continued soil loss due to wind and water erosion. Water waste and low water prices are drivers of water scarcity, e.g., by overuse of groundwater resources like aquifers. A new threat to freshwater is the global contamination with microplastic. After the food price crisis from 2007/2008, food was recognized as strategic resource leading to land lease and buying, also known as Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) or more critically as ‘land grabbing’ to prevent bottlenecks in the long term. The Black Sea Grain Initiative demonstrates the vulnerability of global food supply chains and the possibility to weaponize food. Two international water conflicts are ongoing with the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam GERD in East Africa and the India-China Transboundary Water Dispute. In summary, the food, meat, and fish production could be successfully increased to compensate the population growth and the increasing meat consumption, but hunger and undernourishment still exist. Main risk factors for future food security are climate change, land loss and water scarcity. In response, food is seen as strategic resource resulting in geopolitical activities and food and water conflicts.

O artigo analisa as transformações históricas e as dinâmicas recentes do abastecimento alimentar de Belo Horizonte e associa tais dinâmicas a diferentes configurações de sistemas alimentares (moderno, misto e tradicional). O estudo mobiliza diferentes técnicas de pesquisa e fontes de dados, prevalecendo pesquisa documental, revisão bibliográfica, levantamento e análise de dados secundários. Os resultados mostram grandes transformações nas dinâmicas de abastecimento alimentar do município ao longo do século XX, ganhando relevância os alimentos e os elementos associados aos sistemas alimentares modernos. Com efeito, atualmente destaca-se a presença do comércio varejista, seguido pelas empresas especializadas em alimentos e comércio atacadista, os quais vinculam-se fundamentalmente aos sistemas alimentares mistos e modernos. Permeando tais dinâmicas, em menor expressividade numérica, também se encontram políticas públicas de comercialização e acesso aos alimentos, as quais vinculam-se fundamentalmente aos sistemas alimentares mistos e tradicionais. A análise mostra a existência de uma variedade de sistemas e ambientes alimentares em Belo Horizonte, os quais colocam diferentes desafios para a construção de dinâmicas alimentares mais saudáveis, inclusivas e sustentáveis. This paper analyzes the historical transformations and recent dynamics of food supply in Belo Horizonte and associates these dynamics with different configurations of food systems (modern, mixed and traditional). The study mobilizes different research techniques and data sources, prevailing documentary research, literature review, and secondary data survey. The results show major transformations in the dynamics of food supply in the municipality throughout the 20th century, with food and elements associated with modern food systems gaining relevance. In fact, nowadays the presence of retail trade stands out, followed by specialized food companies and wholesale trade, which are fundamentally linked to mixed and modern food systems. These dynamics are permeated, to a lesser extent, by public policies for commercialization and access to food, which are fundamentally linked to mixed and traditional food systems. The analysis shows the existence of a variety of food systems and environments in Belo Horizonte, which pose different challenges for building healthier, more inclusive and sustainable food dynamics. L’article analyse les transformations historiques et les dynamiques récentes de l’approvisionnement alimentaire à Belo Horizonte et associe ces dynamiques à différentes configurations des systèmes alimentaires (modernes, mixtes et traditionnels). L’étude mobilise différentes techniques de recherche et source de donnés, comme la recherche documentaire, revue bibliographique et analyse des données secondaires. Les résultats montrent grandes transformations dans les dynamiques de l’approvisionnement alimentaire dans la ville pendant le siècle XX, en gagnant relevance les aliments et les éléments associés aux systèmes alimentaires modernes. En effet, actuellement, la présence du commerce de détail se démarque, suivi par les entreprises spécialisées en aliments et commerce de gros, qui sont fondamentalement liées aux systèmes alimentaires mixtes et modernes. Imprégnant ces dynamiques, avec moins expressivité numérique, il y a aussi les politiques publiques de commercialisation et d’accès aux aliments, qui sont fondamentalement liées aux systèmes alimentaires mixtes et traditionnels. L’analyse montre l’existence d’une variété des systèmes alimentaires à Belo Horizonte, qui posent différents défis pour la construction de dynamiques alimentaires plus saines, inclusives et durables.

BACKGROUND: In South Africa, overweight and obesity affect 17% of children aged 15-18. School food environments play a vital role in children's health, influencing dietary behaviours and resulting in high obesity rates. Interventions targeting schools can contribute to obesity prevention if evidence-based and context-specific. Evidence suggests that current government strategies are inadequate to ensure healthy school food environments. The aim of this study was to identify priority interventions to improve school food environments in urban South Africa using the Behaviour Change Wheel model. METHODS: A three-phased iterative study design was implemented. First, we identified contextual drivers of unhealthy school food environments through a secondary framework analysis of 26 interviews with primary school staff. Transcripts were deductively coded in MAXQDA software using the Behaviour Change Wheel and the Theoretical Domains Framework. Second, to identify evidence-based interventions, we utilised the NOURISHING framework and matched interventions to identified drivers. Third, interventions were prioritised using a Delphi survey administered to stakeholders (n = 38). Consensus for priority interventions was defined as an intervention identified as being 'somewhat' or 'very' important and feasible with a high level of agreement (quartile deviation ≤ 0.5). RESULTS: We identified 31 unique contextual drivers that school staff perceived to limit or facilitate a healthy school food environment. Intervention mapping yielded 21 interventions to improve school food environments; seven were considered important and feasible. Of these, the top priority interventions were to: 1) "regulate what kinds of foods can be sold at schools", 2) "train school staff through workshops and discussions to improve school food environment", and affix 3) "compulsory, child-friendly warning labels on unhealthy foods". CONCLUSION: Prioritising evidence-based, feasible and important interventions underpinned by behaviour change theories is an important step towards enhanced policy making and resource allocation to tackle South Africa's childhood obesity epidemic effectively.

When facing uncertainty, humans often build mental models of alternative outcomes. Considering diverging scenarios allows agents to respond adaptively to different actual worlds by developing contingency plans (covering one's bases). In a pre-registered experiment, we tested whether chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) prepare for two mutually exclusive possibilities. Chimpanzees could access two pieces of food, but only if they successfully protected them from a human competitor. In one condition, chimpanzees could be certain about which piece of food the human experimenter would attempt to steal. In a second condition, either one of the food rewards was a potential target of the competitor. We found that chimpanzees were significantly more likely to protect both pieces of food in the second relative to the first condition, raising the possibility that chimpanzees represent and prepare effectively for different possible worlds. Postprint

Urbanization and fisheries affected a rapid increase in seagull populations in western Mediterranean populations of the yellow-legged gull. The main reason is the increased food resources such as fisheries, big ports, and dumps. In this study, we aimed to understand and to compare the breeding biology of the yellow-legged gull in eastern Mediterranean. We studied on the small island in southwestern Türkiye between 2013 and 2015. All nesting sites were determined, marked, and monitored once a week. The breeding season has started in late February, nesting and laying eggs have started at the beginning of March, and they left the island in the second half of June after fledging. The incubation period is 29.17±2.85 days, only one clutch in a season and 2 or 3 eggs were laid in the nests. There was a slight increase in the number of pairs and nests between years but there is no significant difference in all parameters such as laying date, clutch size, hatching and fledging success in Pırasalı Island population and the rate of both hatching and fledging success are lower than western Mediterranean populations. While predation is the weakest factor for lower breeding success, intraspecific predation may be the factor but the main effect is the lower food abundance for the hatchlings., Kentleşme ve balıkçılık Gümüş martı populasyonlarının Batı Akdeniz’de hızla artmasında etkili olmuştur. Balıkçılık, büyük limanlar ve çöplükler gibi artan gıda kaynakları bu artışın ana sebepleridir. Bu çalışmada, Doğu Akdeniz’de kuluçkaya yatan Gümüş martı üreme biyolojisini belirlemek ve karşılaştırma yapmak amaçlanmıştır. Türkiye’nin güneybatısında yer alan küçük bir ada popülasyonu 2013-2015 yıllarında çalışılmıştır. Tüm yuva alanları tespit edilmiş, işaretlenmiş ve haftada bir gün izlenmiştir. Üreme dönemi Şubat ayı sonlarında başlamış, yuva yapımı ve yumurta bırakma mart ayı başlarında gerçekleşmiş ve yavruların uçmasıyla birlikte tüm popülasyon Haziran ayının ikinci yarısında adadan ayrılmıştır. Kuluçka süresi 29.17±2.85 gün, üreme döneminde sadece bir kuluçka gerçekleştirilmiş ve yuvalara 2 veya 3 yumurta bırakılmıştır. Pırasalı Adası popülasyonunda yıllar arasında çift sayıları ve yuva sayıları açısından küçük bir artış olmasına rağmen, yumurta bırakma tarihi, kuluçka sayısı, yumurtadan çıkan yavru başarısı ve yuvadan uçan yavru başarısı parametrelerinde istatistiksel anlamda bir farklılık bulunmamıştır. Yumurtadan çıkan yavru başarısı ve yuvadan uçan yavru başarısı oranları Batı Akdeniz popülasyonlarından daha düşüktür. Predasyon düşük üreme başarısı için düşük bir faktörken, tür içi predasyon belki etkili olabilir, ancak yumurtadan çıkan yavrular için düşük besin bolluğu temel etkidir.

With the development of technology both in the food and non-food industries. This service activity uses a survey data collection method that focuses on the level of public awareness about food preservatives and the conditions for their use through webinar activities. Data analysis was carried out by taking into account the number of respondents from each question so that the results were in the form of a description and also presented in the form of a pie chart. Based on the results of the service, it can be concluded that as many as 88.5% of respondents already know the types of preservatives. public knowledge about the requirements for the use of preservatives has a percentage of 86.4% for people who answered they already know, this figure is sufficient to say that the community already knows enough about the requirements for the use of preservatives, and 7.3% for those who answered maybe know

Goal and theoretical commentary A number of recent life cycle assessment (LCA) studies have concluded that animal-sourced foods should be restricted—or even avoided—within the human diet due to their relatively high environmental impacts (particularly those from ruminants) compared with other protein-rich foods (mainly protein-rich plant foods). From a nutritional point of view, however, issues such as broad nutrient bioavailability, amino acid balances, digestibility and even non-protein nutrient density (e.g., micronutrients) need to be accounted for before making such recommendations to the global population. This is especially important given the contribution of animal sourced foods to nutrient adequacy in the global South and vulnerable populations of high-income countries (e.g., children, women of reproductive age and elderly). Often, however, LCAs simplify this reality by using ‘protein’ as a functional unit in their models and basing their analyses on generic nutritional requirements. Even if a ‘nutritional functional unit’ (nFU) is utilised, it is unlikely to consider the complexities of amino acid composition and subsequent protein accretion. The discussion herein focuses on nutritional LCA (nLCA), particularly on the usefulness of nFUs such as ‘protein,’ and whether protein quality should be considered when adopting the nutrient as an (n)FU. Further, a novel and informative case study is provided to demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of protein-quality adjustment. Case study methods To complement current discussions, we present an exploratory virtual experiment to determine how Digestible Indispensable Amino Acid Scores (DIAAS) might play a role in nLCA development by correcting for amino acid quality and digestibility. DIAAS is a scoring mechanism which considers the limiting indispensable amino acids (IAAs) within an IAA balance of a given food (or meal) and provides a percentage contribution relative to recommended daily intakes for IAA and subsequent protein anabolism; for clarity, we focus only on single food items (4 × animal-based products and 4 × plant-based products) in the current case exemplar. Further, we take beef as a sensitivity analysis example (which we particularly recommend when considering IAA complementarity at the meal-level) to elucidate how various cuts of the same intermediary product could affect the interpretation of nLCA results of the end-product(s). Recommendations First, we provide a list of suggestions which are intended to (a) assist with deciding whether protein-quality correction is necessary for a specific research question and (b) acknowledge additional uncertainties by providing mitigating opportunities to avoid misinterpretation (or worse, dis-interpretation) of protein-focused nLCA studies. We conclude that as relevant (primary) data availability from supply chain ‘gatekeepers’ (e.g., international agri-food distributors and processors) becomes more prevalent, detailed consideration of IAA provision of contrasting protein sources needs to be acknowledged—ideally quantitatively with DIAAS being one example—in nLCA studies utilising protein as a nFU. We also contend that future nLCA studies should discuss the complementarity of amino acid balances at the meal-level, as a minimum, rather than the product level when assessing protein metabolic responses of consumers. Additionally, a broader set of nutrients should ideally be included when evaluating “protein-rich foods” which provide nutrients that extend beyond amino acids, which is of particular importance when exploring dietary-level nLCA.

Many studies have been conducted on the harmful effect of mycotoxins on human and animal health. However, other chemicals can also contribute to the toxicity of ingested foods, directly or indirectly (via animal products). Many synthetic chemicals that are used for field treatments of cereals, or applied during storage time to prolong the storage time and to insure the absence of fungal contamination, are proven to be harmful to human and animal health. In order to reduce the usage of such chemicals and to improve the already deteriorated ecosystems, scholars are dedicated to optimizing and commercializing a “greener” option not only for agronomic applications, but also for the food industry. Recent advances in the effectiveness of green preservatives aiming at the food industry will be described in this paper. The intention is to preserve not only the health-related aspects of food by applying green preservatives, but also to maintain the ecological aspect regarding the environment as much as possible.

We assessed the effectiveness of food vouchers as a social protection strategy to enhance the adherence to tuberculosis treatment in health-care facilities in Brazil between 2014 and 2017. A cluster-randomized controlled trial was performed in four Brazilian capital cities. A total of 774 adults with newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis were included in this study. Eligible participants initiated standard tuberculosis treatment per National Tuberculosis Program guidelines. Health clinics were assigned randomly to intervention groups (food voucher or standard treatment). The food voucher was provided by researchers, which could be used by subjects only for buying food. Most people with tuberculosis were poor, did receive benefits of the Bolsa Familia Program, and were unemployed. By Poisson regression analysis, with the total number of subjects included in the study, we found that individuals with tuberculosis who received food vouchers had a 1.13 greater risk of cure (95% CI, 1.03–1.21) compared with those who did not receive food vouchers. The provision of food vouchers improved outcomes of tuberculosis treatment and it should be enhanced even further as social protection for people with tuberculosis.

RESUMEN Los consumidores a menudo informan dificultades para interpretar la información cuantitativa contenida en las etiquetas nutricionales de los alimentos. El objetivo fue estudiar los principales conocimientos sobre etiquetado de alimentos que la población adulta del Paraguay tiene incorporado en el periodo de agosto de 2021. Este es un estudio descriptivo observacional de corte trasversal en el cual se evaluaron a adultos de ambos sexos de 18 a 60 años consumidores de alimentos con etiquetado nutricional. Se recabarón datos sociodemográficos y de conocimientos sobre etiquetado nutricional de alimentos a través de una encuesta tipo on-line con la herramienta de Google forms. El 73% fueron del sexo femenino, la edad promedio fue de 36,9 años, 57,1% residía en Gran Asunción, 49,1% tenía nivel educativo universitario y 37,5%eran profesionales de la salud. Los aspectos generales sobre etiquetado nutricional revelaron que 88,3% sabía su concepto, 55,3% refirió que lo lee casi siempre, 84% sabía que es obligatorio y 44% se fijaba más en las calorías. Al evaluar los conocimientos generales, 91% sabía la diferencia entre caducidad y consumo preferente, 71,4% conocía el concepto de cantidades orientativas, 62,5% supo cuáles son las grasas menos saludables, y 71,4% respondió correctamente el concepto de alimento light. Los encuestados tuvieron un conocimiento general adecuado sobre etiquetado nutricional, no obstante, hubo un porcentaje considerable de individuos que no supieron los conceptos básicos, por lo que se debe realizar intervenciones de educación nutricional enfocadas al consumidor. ABSTRACT Consumers often report difficulties in interpreting the quantitative information contained in the nutritional labels of foods. The objective was to study the main knowledge about food labeling that the adult population of Paraguay has incorporated in the period of August 2021. This is a cross-sectional descriptive observational study in which male and female adults between 18 and 60 years old consumers of foods with nutrition labelling were evaluated. Sociodemographic data and knowledge about nutritional labeling of food was collected through an online survey with the Google forms tool. Seventy three percent was female, the average age was 36.9 years, 57.1% lived in Greater Asunción, 49.1% had a university education level, and 37.5% were health professionals. The general aspects about nutritional labeling revealed that 88.3% knew the concept, 55.3% said that they read it almost always, 84% knew that it was mandatory and 44% paid more attention to calories. When evaluating general knowledge, 91% knew the difference between expiration and preferential consumption, 71.4% knew the concept of indicative quantities, 62.5% knew which are the less healthy fats, and 71.4% correctly answered the concept of light food. The survey respondents had an adequate general knowledge about nutrition labeling, however, there was a considerable percentage of individuals who did not know the basic concepts, for which consumer-focused nutrition education interventions should be carried out.

Healthy eating is shaped by the context. To understand how healthy eating is modeled in popular media, this systematic analysis quantified which contextual factors, character behaviors, and character demographics were associated with food healthiness in popular movies.Two researchers content-coded the contextual factors, character behaviors, and character demographics depicted across 9,093 foods in 244 top-grossing Hollywood movies released from 1994-2018. Food healthiness was calculated using the Nutrient Profile Index (0 =Confirming six preregistered hypotheses (allTop-grossing Hollywood movies depict different contexts and different character behaviors for healthier versus less healthy foods. Research is needed to understand whether depicting healthy foods in different contexts impacts viewers' beliefs and behavior. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Introduction The incidence of infections caused by aerobic actinomycetes is increasing. Recent changes in taxonomy and the variability in susceptibility patterns among species make necessary a proper identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing. Material and methods Fifty-three strains of aerobic actinomycetes were identified by MALDI-TOF MS using the VITEK MS Mycobacterium/Nocardia kit (bioMerieux, France) in a tertiary hospital in Spain during a six-year period. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing of the isolates was performed using the Sensititre Rapmycoi microdilution panel (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Massachusetts, USA). Results Forty strains of Nocardia spp. were identified in the study, being N. farcinica and N. cyriacigeorgica the most prevalent ones. All isolates were susceptible to linezolid and the resistance to amikacin was only observed in one isolate of Gordonia sputi. Resistance to cotrimoxazole was only found in five isolates. Conclusions Routine identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing of aerobic actinomycetes is advisable for an efficient identification of species and effective treatment.

This study examined the association between household food insufficiency and flourishing among young children (6 months-5 years) in the U.S. and assessed whether sleep adequacy modifies this association.We used data from the 2018-2020 National Surveys of Children's Health. Adjusted prevalence differences and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association between household food insufficiency and flourishing were modeled using average marginal predictions from logistic regression models. Sleep adequacy was assessed as an effect measure modifier on the additive scale.Evidence supports additive scale effect measure modification of the food insufficiency-flourishing association by sleep adequacy (Likelihood Ratio Test statistic = 12.4, degrees of freedom = 2, P.05). Adjusted for potential confounders, the prevalence of flourishing was 13.2 percentage points lower (95% CI: -22.6, -3.7) for children in households with insufficient food and inadequate sleep compared to those with sufficient food and adequate sleep.Our findings suggest that having enough food and enough sleep are associated with greater wellbeing. These modifiable factors should be targeted by public health interventions to facilitate flourishing among young children in the U.S.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the marketing techniques food and beverage brands use on Instagram, as part of their sport sponsorship strategy. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative content analysis of 31 Instagram accounts during the 2021 Australian Open tennis tournament. Branded food and beverage posts with tennis-linked content were coded based on an initial screening and previously published frameworks. RESULTS: Of the 152 included posts, 92% were made by food and beverage companies that were official 'partners' of the Australian Open. Products in posts were mostly discretionary foods and alcohol. The most frequently used strategies were 'Engagement' (89%) and 'Branding' (80%) and nearly half (45%) of alcohol posts invited direct consumption of their product. CONCLUSIONS: The powerful combination of sport and social media are utilised by brands to interact and build relationship with consumers while promoting the consumption of alcohol and discretionary foods - products which impede rather than promote health. The indirect marketing techniques favoured by brands make this form of advertising difficult to identify and control. IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH: These results highlight the need for counter-marketing, policy and regulatory actions to remove unhealthy food and alcohol from sport and reorient sponsorship of sporting events towards products that promote health.

Teucrium polium has been used in traditional medicine around the world for centuries in treatment of various conditions and diseases. Many studies have confirmed pharmacological effects of its extracts, although the immunomodulatory effect has not been investigated. Therefore, the aim of our study was to examine the immunomodulatory effect of methanolic extract of T. polium (TPE) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) derived from healthy donors and patients with hepatitis C virus HCV infection. We analyzed the effect of the extract on PBMCs viability using the MTT test. The cell death type was determined using Annexin V-FITC/7-AAD staining. Immunophenotyping using anti-CD8 FITC, anti-CD4 PE, anti-CD3 ECD, anti-CD20 PC5, anti-CD14 FITC and anti-CD25 PC7 was performed by flow cytometry. Results of the MTT test indicate that TPE stimulates proliferation of healthy PBMCs, while the HCV PBMCs viability was slightly reduced. The percentage of apoptotic HCV PBMCs was higher after TPE treatment compared to the control. The proportion of CD25-expressing cells was higher among the untreated HCV PBMCs than in the untreated healthy PBMCs. TPE treatment significantly and gradually increased CD25 expression in healthy PBMCs, whereas CD25 expression on HCV PBMCs increased only at the highest TPE concentration. The upregulation of double-positive CD3+CD25+, CD20+CD25+ and CD14+CD25+ cells was significant in TPE treated healthy PBMCs, while only the highest concentration was effective on HCV PBMCs. In summary, TPE exerts a strong immunomodulatory effect on healthy PBMCs and, only at the highest concentration, on HCV PBMNCs.

To identify the abnormal characteristics of the oplegnathus punctatus is great importance to the detection of iridovirus disease in the breeding environment. In this paper, an advanced neural network model to identify the characteristics of the oplegnathus punctatus and predict its different periods of suffering from iridovirus disease is proposed based on the establishment of a data set. First of all, a standard format data set of oplegnathus punctatus and an abnormal format date set are established in order to verify the effectiveness of the method in this paper. And then, the feature extraction fusion method is used for preprocessing in terms of the abnormal format data set, which combines the edge features extracted by the improved multi-template Sobel operator and the color features extracted by the HSV model. Finally, an improved VGG-GoogleNet network recognition model comes into being through the fusion and improvement of the VGG and GoogleNet neural network structure. The experiments results show that the prediction accuracy rate for oplegnathus punctatus suffering from iridovirus disease in the the abnormal format data set and the standard format data set are improved, which reach 98.55% and 69.18%.

INTRODUCTION: The relationships between healthcare use and social needs are not fully understood. In 2015, International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision coding introduced voluntary Z codes for social needs–related healthcare encounters. This study evaluated early national patterns of Z codes in privately insured adults. METHODS: In 2021, the authors conducted a case-control analysis of national commercial health payer claims from 2016 to 2019. Among adults with ≥6 months of continuous enrollment and ≥1 medical claims, patients with any assigned Z codes were defined as cases. Controls were selected through stratified random sampling. Z codes were organized under 3 categories: socioeconomic, community/social, and environmental. RESULTS: Of 29.5 million adults, 521,334 patients (1.8%) had any assigned Z codes. Among all the Z codes, 53.5% identified community/social issues, 30.3% identified environmental issues, and 16.2% identified socioeconomic issues. Among socioeconomic Z codes, housing needs were frequently identified, but needs for food, utility bills, and transportation were very rarely identified. In multivariable regression analysis, females had higher odds of Z code assignment than males. Depression and chronic pulmonary disease were the 2 common comorbidities (≥5% prevalence in cases and controls) that were highly associated with Z code assignment. Less common comorbidities strongly associated with Z code assignment were drug abuse, alcohol abuse, psychoses, and AIDS/HIV. CONCLUSIONS: In this national study of privately insured patients, many Z codes identified healthcare encounters caused by social stressors, whereas few identified food- or transportation-related causes. Depression and chronic pulmonary disease were highly associated with Z code assignment.

Canola meal is a low-value agricultural residue obtained after oil extraction from canola, the utilization of which requires further attention. On the other hand, plastic waste disposal is also another leading issue that creates severe environmental challenges. Supercritical water gasification is considered an environmentally friendly technology to produce hydrogen from plastic residues and organic wastes. This study deals with hydrothermal co-gasification of canola meal and plastic wastes (i.e., low-density polyethylene) while exploring the influence of temperature (375–525°C), residence time (15–60 min) and plastic-to-biomass ratio (0:100, 20:80, 50:50, 80:20 and 100:0) on hydrogen yield. Maximum hydrogen yield (8.1 mmol/g) and total gas yield (17.9 mmol/g) were obtained at optimal temperature and residence time of 525°C and 60 min, respectively. A change in the gas yield with variable plastic-to-biomass ratio showed synergistic effects between both feedstocks. The trend of catalytic performance towards improving hydrogen yield was in the following order: WO3–TiO2 (18.5 mmol/g) > KOH (16.9 mmol/g) > TiO2 (9.5 mmol/g) > ZrO2 (7.8 mmol/g) > WO3–ZrO2 (7.4 mmol/g).

Clove basil (Ocimum gratissimum L.) is an aromatic, perennial herb belonging to the family Lamiaceae. The plant is indigenous to tropical areas especially India and West Africa. In Nigeria, it is found in the Savannah and coastal areas. The whole herbs of the plant contain essential oils and it is cultivated for various purposes. The plant is a rich source of eugenol in its essential oil. It is also used in the preparation of tea and infusions. It is also used in the treatment of fungal infections, fever, cold, and cough. Eugenol (4-allyl-2-methoxy phenol) is a phenolic compound from the class of phenylpropanoids. It is used in the food industry as a preservative, mainly due to its antioxidant property, and flavoring agent. The fresh herb × winter season/environment produced the highest essential oil 2.07 mL/plot with essential oil content 0.41% followed by fresh herb × summer season/environment (M1S2) = 1.68 mL. For the eugenol content, the autumn season/environment was found highly favorable = 74.52% (leaves = 69.024, stem = 74.531, and in inflorescence = 80.012) followed winter season/environment 72.30% (leaves = 71.841, stem 69.389, inflorescence 76.042, mean = 72.42%). These seasons are recommended for harvesting to obtain the optimum benefit for the quality essential oil yield.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) originated in the Mediterranean region, but, due to its adaptive nature, can be readily grown across the world. It contains many bioactive phytochemical moieties, especially polyphenols. Rosemary is used as a flavoring agent, spice condiment, and preservative. Recent studies have shown that rosemary natural extracts have bioactive properties such as antifungal, antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory. Rosemary can withstand dry spells, warm conditions and thrive across many soil textures. Carnosic acid is now a well-known compound that is the main component of rosemary. The key components that were extracted from rosemary consisted of cirsimaritin, diosmin, and genkwanin. Rosmarinic acid in the form of carnosol and carnosic acid possesses significant antioxidant properties. Oil analysis revealed the presence of six monodominant and six intermediate chemotypes. Monoterpenes were dominant in rosemary oil composition across all seasons. Bioclimatic factors, including the temperature of the habitat, were found to be a biogenetic factors leading to differentiation in populations. The phenolic contents are reported to vary depending upon processing and agronomical properties. The major active ingredients are lipophilic compounds (carnosic acid and carnosol). Rosemary extracts are also reported to have volatile compounds that confer a unique flavor, color and aroma. Oleanolic acid is endowed with antiviral, antioxidative, and antiproliferative properties vis-a-vis protection against oxidative apoptosis. Ursolic acid helps to prevent cancer. This review provides a comprehensive overview of rosemary species cultivation, bioactive compounds, health benefits, and applications in the food industry. Rosemary was reported to enhance the levels of antioxidant enzymes. Although the current demand in the food industry is to reduce or eliminate the use of synthetic food additives, rosemary oil and extracts can help to meet that demand. This review provides a comprehensive overview of rosemary species cultivation, bioactive compounds, health benefits, and applications in the food industry.

Rice-based products exported from China to Europe have repeatedly encountered technical trade barriers. Using panel data from 24 states of the European Union during 2001-2017, this study builds a theoretical model to investigate the impact of implementation, intensity and structure of the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) on China-EU rice-based product trade. The study found that RASFF has a serious inhibitory effect on the trade of traditional rice-based products because of detecting GM ingredients, showing an obvious lag effect, diffusion effect and structure effect. The negative effect occurs in entry process, and the inhibitory effect of border rejection and information notifications results in time lag, but the marginal effect of alerts for market links is insignificant. Moreover, the positive information disclosure effect of technical barriers implemented by individual members is much smaller than the negative diffusion effect. Finally, countermeasures and suggestions are proposed, including the source supervision of the test, the supervision of GM variety approval and GM seed production, the establishment of an early-warning and rapid-response mechanism to technical barriers of agricultural products, and food enterprise information.

Renewable, low-carbon biofuels offer the potential opportunity to decarbonize marine transportation. This paper presents a comparative techno-economic analysis and process sustainability assessment of four conversion pathways: (1) hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of wet wastes such as sewage sludge and manure; (2) fast pyrolysis of woody biomass; (3) landfill gas Fischer-Tropsch synthesis; and (4) lignin-ethanol oil from the lignocellulosic ethanol biorefinery utilizing reductive catalytic fractionation. These alternative marine biofuels have a modeled minimum fuel selling price between $1.68 and $3.98 per heavy fuel oil gallon equivalent in 2016 U.S. dollars based on a mature plant assessment. The selected pathways also exhibit good process sustainability performance in terms of water intensity compared to the petroleum refineries. Further, the O and S contents of the biofuels vary widely. While the non-HTL biofuels exhibit negligible S content, the raw biocrudes

Acetic acid bacteria (AAB) are microorganisms widely distributed in nature. Although this group is involved in the spoilage of some foods, AAB are of great industrial interest, and their functionality is still poorly understood. AAB convert ethanol, sugars and polyols into various organic acids, aldehydes and ketones via oxidative fermentation. These metabolites are produced during a succession of biochemical reactions in various fermented foods and beverages, such as vinegar, kombucha, water kefir, lambic and cocoa. Furthermore, important products such as gluconic acid and ascorbic acid precursors can be produced industrially from their metabolism. The development of new AAB-fermented fruit drinks with healthy and functional properties is an interesting niche for research and the food industry to explore, as it can meet the needs of a wide range of consumers. Exopolysaccharides such as levan and bacterial cellulose have unique properties, but they need to be produced on a larger scale to expand their applications in this area. This work emphasizes the importance and applications of AAB during the fermentation of various foods, their role in the development of new beverages as well as numerous applications of levan and bacterial cellulose., Bakterije octenog vrenja su široko rasprostranjeni mikroorganizmi u prirodi. Iako uzrokuju kvarenje hrane, od velikog su industrijskog značaja, no njihova funkcionalnost još uvijek nije dovoljno istražena. U procesu octeno-kiselog vrenja pretvaraju etanol, šećere i poliole u različite organske kiseline, aldehide i ketone. Ti metaboliti nastaju nakon niza biokemijskih reakcija u različitim fermentiranim proizvodima i pićima, kao što su ocat, kombucha, vodeni kefir, lambic pivo i kakao. Osim toga, metabolizam bakterija octenog vrenja može se iskoristiti za dobivanje proizvoda od industrijskog značaja, kao što su prekursori glukonske i askorbinske kiseline. Razvoj novih voćnih napitaka sa zdravim i funkcionalnim svojstvima dobivenih octeno-kiselim vrenjem predstavlja zanimljiv segment razvoja prehrambene industrije, jer takvi proizvodi mogu zadovoljiti potrebe velikog broja potrošača. Egzopolisaharidi koje proizvode bakterije octenog vrenja, poput levana i bakterijske celuloze, imaju jedinstvena svojstva, ali potrebno ih je proizvesti u većoj mjeri da bi se mogla proširiti njihova primjena u proizvodnji hrane i pića. U ovom revijalnom prikazu su istaknuti značaj i primjena bakterija octenog vrenja u proizvodnji raznovrsne hrane, njihova uloga u razvoju novih napitaka, te mogućnosti primjene levana i bakterijske celuloze.

The state of food comminution caused by chewing is an important factor triggering the swallowing reflex. However, the impact of retronasal aroma released from comminuted food to the nose upon swallowing during food intake is poorly understood.The present study investigated the relationship between aroma concentration and swallowing threshold while chewing a standardised test food.Twenty healthy participants took part in this study. Concentration of retronasal aroma was measured over time through the nostrils using an odour sensor. The aroma concentration was measured while chewing an orange-flavoured gummy jelly until swallowing, and the number of chewing strokes was measured to determine the swallowing threshold. Next, the aroma concentration was measured while chewing the gummy jelly for 30 strokes, and 100% and 200% of swallowing threshold without swallowing. The surface area increase in the expectorated gummy jelly pieces was calculated using image analysis and defined as masticatory performance at 30 strokes.The average number of chewing strokes until the swallowing threshold was 45.1 ± 14.2. Higher masticatory performance was associated with a smaller number of chewing strokes at swallowing threshold, and a greater increase in surface area at the swallowing threshold. The number of chewing strokes and the aroma concentration were similar between the swallowing threshold and at the maximum aroma concentration while chewing at 200% of the swallowing threshold.The findings suggested that the swallowing threshold might be influenced by retronasal aroma concentration as well as the state of food comminution.