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Background: With the growing human awareness of the environmental and animal stress caused by the meat industry, the consumption of plant-based products has expanded. Plant proteins have gained market prominence due to their sustainable origin, economic value and health benefits. Well-established plant proteins in the market, such as those of soy and pea, have various applications as ingredients in the food industry. However, given the wide variety of protein sources, it is necessary to conduct studies on the chemical and techno-functional characterization of other raw materials to further diversify their properties. In this context, the present study introduces jack bean protein concentrate (JBPC) as a potential alternative to proteins already established in the market. Techno-functional properties such as surface hydrophobicity, solubility, zeta potential, water- and oil-holding capacity, foam capacity and stability, emulsion stability and gel formation and rheology were analyzed., Results: The protein content obtained from the extraction of the JBPC was 73 g (100 g) -1 on a dry weight basis, with an extraction yield of approximately 10% (w/w). Least gelation concentration for JBPC was 20%. JBPC exhibited a predominantly hydrophobic nature, with good oil retention capacity and emulsion and foam stabilization properties. The structure of JBPC was more linear, stable and rigid, which primarily influenced gel stiffness., Conclusion: Based on the study of techno-functional properties, JBPC proved to be an excellent alternative to soy protein isolate and pea protein concentrate in various applications, with potential for becoming an innovative ingredient in the food industry. © 2025 Society of Chemical Industry., (© 2025 Society of Chemical Industry.)

Babassu oil (BO) was used in the production of oil in water (O/W) nanoemulsions in order to evaluate the potential application of an alternative source of vegetable oil in the composition of colloidal systems. The proportion of oil phase (10, 20 and 30 % w/w) and guar gum (GG) concentrations (0, 0.10, 0.15 and 0.20 % w/w) were evaluated for 30 days of storage at 5 °C. Physical (pH, viscosity, zeta potential, average diameter, microstructure, and creaming index) and the oxidative stability were measured to evaluate the feasibility of BO in the production of O/W nanoemulsions. The nanoemulsions presented a zeta potential higher than 19.17 mV in absolute value. All systems presented a polydispersity index (PDI) below 0.031 and unimodal size distributions, with the mean droplet diameter size below 246.17 nm. The addition of GG increased the viscosity of the emulsions and the average droplet diameter size. For all samples, creaming index did not vary significantly after 30 days of storage at 5 °C, contributing to the stability of the system. In general, the samples containing a higher oil concentration (30 %) were less stable in terms of oxidation, possibly due to the increased amount of oil. BO can be a promising alternative source of oil to produce nanoemulsions, as the emulsions containing up to 20 % w/w oil and 0.15 % w/w GG presented promising results regarding the physical and oxidative stability. Nanoemulsions with increased stability containing alternative sources of oil may be an interesting approach for cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and food industries., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Cocoa beans contain a variety of nutritional compounds and are rich in biologically active substances. The aim of this study was to utilize cocoa nibs (roasted and unroasted) as the main ingredient in the development of an attractive and convenient product. The produced nibs were analyzed for total phenolics, flavonoids, and antioxidant capacity using DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP methods. The primary phenolic compounds and methylxanthines were analyzed by LC/MS. Subsequently, cereal bars were developed, including a control sample (without nibs) and five formulations containing 41% nibs, using various proportions of roasted and unroasted nibs. The influence of the origin of the beans on the product characteristics was also evaluated. The results showed that the roasting process led to a reduction in epicatechin, caffeine, and caffeic acid. Furthermore, the reduction in total phenolics, flavonoids, and antioxidant capacity after roasting was more pronounced in beans from Bahia compared to those from Espírito Santo. Regarding the cereal bars, the results demonstrated that using cocoa from Bahia, the formulation with a higher proportion of unroasted nibs (F80) significantly increased the total phenolic content (1968.85 mg of gallic acid/100 g) and total flavonoids (39.26 mg of quercetin/100 g). This initial study suggests that the use of cocoa nibs as a functional ingredient in cereal bars may be a viable and advantageous option for creating a product with greater antioxidant potential.

Legumes are abundant sources of proteins, and white common bean proteins play an important role in air-water interface properties. This study aims to investigate the technical-functional properties of white common bean protein isolate (BPI) as a function of pH, protein concentration, and guar gum (GG) presence. BPI physicochemical properties were analyzed in terms of solubility, zeta potential, and mean particle diameter at pH ranging from 2 to 9, in addition to water-holding capacity (WHC), oil-holding capacity (OHC), and thermogravimetric analysis. Protein dispersions were evaluated in terms of dynamic, interfacial, and foam-forming properties. BPI showed higher solubility (>80 %) at pH 2 and above 7. Zeta potential and mean diameter ranged from 15.43 to -34.08 mV and from 129.55 to 139.90 nm, respectively. BPI exhibited WHC and OHC of 1.37 and 4.97 g/g, respectively. Thermograms indicated decomposition temperature (295.81 °C) and mass loss (64.73 %). Flow curves indicated pseudoplastic behavior, with higher η 100 values observed in treatments containing guar gum. The behavior was predominantly viscous (tg δ > 1) at lower frequencies, at all pH levels, shifting to predominantly elastic at higher frequencies. Equilibrium surface tension (γ eq ) ranged from 43.87 to 41.95 mN.m -1 and did not decrease with increasing protein concentration under all pH conditions. All treatments exhibited ϕ < 15°, indicating predominantly elastic surface films. Foaming properties were influenced by higher protein concentration and guar gum addition, and the potential formation of protein-polysaccharide complexes favored the kinetic stability of the system., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study focuses on optimizing the ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) of bioactive compounds from purple-fleshed sweet potatoes (PFSP) for potential use as natural colorants. Factors such as time, temperature, and solid-to-liquid ratio were varied using a Box-Behnken Design. The optimal conditions were determined as 75 min, 70 °C, and a 1:15 m/v solid-to-liquid ratio, resulting in 18.372 mg/100 g total anthocyanin (TA) and 151.160 mg GAE/100 g total phenolic content (TPC). The validation yielded 18.822 mg/100 g for total anthocyanin and 162.174 mg GAE/100 g for total phenolic content, showing a 7% difference from predictions. UAE significantly increased TA extraction by 81% and TPC by 93% compared with the conventional method, with a notable reduction in process time from 24 h to 75 min. Additionally, three kinetic models were tested to compare extraction mechanisms, confirming the efficiency of UAE for PFSP bioactive compound recovery. This study proposes the UAE technique as a highly effective means of extracting bioactive compounds from PFSP, offering promising applications across multiple industries.

Sorghum 3-deoxyanthocyanins (3-DXAs) have greater stability when compared to other anthocyanins. However, the efficiency in extracting these phenolic compounds from cereals, using conventional methods, is low, because most of them are bound to the cell wall. Thus, the aim of this study was to optimize the ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) of anthocyanins and total phenolics from sorghum flour, and evaluate the stability of the 3-DXAs. Two frequencies (25 and 45 kHz) were applied in a Central Composite Rotational design to investigate the effect of the variables time (5-75 min) and temperature (30-65°C) using the UAE, with amplitude of the ultrasonic power set at 400 W. In addition, the stability of the 3-DXAs present in the extracts was evaluated. It was possible to successfully optimize the extraction of total anthocyanins (both frequencies) and phenolics (at 45 kHz), and then to obtain equations, to predict their concentrations, with high R 2 . The efficiency of UAE was observed, increasing the yield of total anthocyanins, phenolics, and antioxidant capacity at the frequencies of 25 and 45 kHz by 30% and 27%, 10% and 5%, and 30% and 15%, respectively. The apigeninidin was the major 3-DXA found in the extracts, and the luteolinidin was the most stable over storage time. Overall, there was no difference in the 3-DXAs stability obtained by the UAE compared to the conventional method. Thus, ultrasound is an alternative to obtaining sorghum extracts rich in 3-DXAs and other phenolic compounds. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The health benefits of sorghum 3-deoxyanthocyanins coupled with the growing interest of the food industry in producing healthier food products have motivated this study, because it is important to find ways to optimize 3-deoxyanthocyanins extraction. We have demonstrated that ultrasound-assisted extraction was efficient in extracting high amounts of 3-deoxyanthocyanins and other phenolics from sorghum flour. Moreover, some 3-deoxyanthocyanins have shown to be more stable than others after extraction. Thus, the ultrasound has great potential to produce sorghum phenolic extracts rich in 3-deoxyanthocyanins, which can be used as natural colorants and functional ingredients in foods., (© 2023 Institute of Food Technologists.)

The oil extracted from baru (Dipteryx alata Vog.) seeds is in bioactive compounds and it presents potential to be used in food and cosmetic industries. Therefore, this study aims to provide insights into the stability of baru oil-in-water (O/W) nanoemulsions. For this purpose, the effects of the ionic strength (0, 100 and 200 mM), pH (6, 7 and 8), and storage time (28 days) on the kinetic stability of these colloidal dispersions were evaluated. The nanoemulsions were characterized in terms of interfacial properties, rheology, zeta potential (ζ), average droplet diameter, polydispersity index (PDI), microstructure, and creaming index. In general, for samples, the equilibrium interfacial tension ranged from 1.21 to 3.4 mN.m -1 , and the interfacial layer presented an elastic behavior with low dilatational viscoelasticity. Results show that the nanoemulsions present a Newtonian flow behavior, with a viscosity ranging from 1.99 to 2.39 mPa.s. The nanoemulsions presented an average diameter of 237-315 nm with a low polydispersity index (<0.39), and a ζ-potential ranging from 39.4 to 50.3 mV after 28 days of storage at 25 °C. The results obtained for the ζ-potential suggest strong electrostatic repulsions between the droplets, which is an indicative of relative kinetic stability. In fact, macroscopically, all the nanoemulsions were relatively stable after 28 days of storage, except the nanoemulsions added with NaCl. Nanoemulsions produced with baru oil present a great potential to be used in the food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

The Covid-19 pandemic has strongly impacted people's lives and the food industry. In this sense, food products claiming nutritional and health-promoting benefits due to the presence of bioactive peptides and probiotics, such as Greek-style yogurt, have been in demand. The objective of this work was to investigate, through word association, the perception of the consumers regarding the seven concepts related to Greek-style yogurt (traditional, ultra-creamy, zero fat, high content proteins, zero lactose, light and with no added sugars), in the context of social isolation due to Covid-19. In this online survey, 346 participants completed a questionnaire. The participants were divided according to health concerns (increased, not changed, or decreased) and eating habits (improved, not changed, or worsened) during the Covid-19 pandemic. Chi-square and prototypical analysis were used as statistical tests. During the Covid-19 pandemic, based on self-report, around 66% of the participants had their eating habits and their concerns about health changed. The general associations were related to the categories pleasure, health, creamy, pleasant texture, food restriction, and loss of sensory quality. 'Health' and 'pleasure' were negatively associated with the conceptualization of Greek-style yogurt. For the zero-fat, light, and sugar-free Greek-style yogurts, the terms creamy and ultra-creamy are sensory appealing to the consumers. In general, the price and concerns about health are factors that strongly influence the purchase intention of Greek-style yogurts. The yogurts were associated with sensory and non-sensory characteristics, which can be useful for marketing strategies for of different product concepts., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Red beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.) is a great source of betalains. The main betalains are the betacyanins, responsible for the purple color, and betaxanthins, which present a brownish color. These pigments can present antioxidant activity and are very unstable under certain conditions, such as temperature, extreme ranges of pH, and exposure to light. The aim of this work was to obtain beetroot extract (BE) via ultrasound and transform it into nanoparticles by using polyethylene glycol (PBE) and polyethylene glycol with low molecular weight chitosan (PCBE) as dispersants. The stability of the main betalains in the nanodispersions and the effects of the nanodispersions on the color and rheological properties of commercial Greek yogurt were evaluated. Compared to pristine BE, PCBE nanoparticles presented increased stability for the main betalains in acidic conditions (pH 3.0 and 5.0) of 56% and 22%, respectively. Both PBE and PCBE showed enhanced relative thermal stability compared to pristine BE. Furthermore, PCBE improved commercial Greek yogurt's rheological properties and color parameters. PCBE nanodispersions can be successfully applied as a color additive to commercial Greek yogurt., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Despite some thermodynamics studies about β-lactoglobulin (βLG) and resveratrol (RES) interactions, there is a gap regarding kinetics data about βLG-RES complex formation. Here, we determined the kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of βLG-RES interactions by using surface plasmon resonance (SPR). The kinetic association parameters were dependent on the 3D water structure present on the solvation shell of both interacting molecules. At lower temperature (285.15 K), all activation energies were positive (E acta ‡ = 82.86 kJ.mol -1 ,TΔS a ‡ = 32.26 kJ.mol -1 , and ΔC pa ‡ = 4.15 kJ.mol -1 K -1 ) due to the higher water structuration on the RES and βLG solvation shell. All these energetic barriers become mainly from the energetic cost for the desolvation process of RES and βLG. At higher temperature (301.15 K), the solvation water structure decreases and all the above activation energies become negative (E acta ‡ =-121.58 kJ.mol -1 ,TΔS a ‡ =-173.59 kJ.mol -1 , and ΔC pa ‡ =-29.92 kJ.mol -1 K -1 ) because the direct interaction between desolvated RES and βLG molecules released more energy than it is absorbed by desolvation process. However, kinetic dissociation parameters were not dependent on the hydrogen bond density of the water solvation shell as showed by the temperature independence of dissociation energetic parameters. This non-dependence of the dissociation process from the desolvation step probably is because the water molecules interacting with the βLG-RES complex is not concentrated around/inside the protein site of interaction. The association of free molecules was 1.5 times faster than the dissociation of the thermodynamically stable complex (ΔG (a) ‡  ≅ 48.15 kJ.mol -1 , ΔG (d) ‡  ≅ 73.10 kJ.mol -1 ). The lower free energy barrier observed for the association came from an isokinetic process where entropic and enthalpic parameters compensated for each other. The ΔG° values indicate that the thermodynamically stable complex predominates over free molecules. At low temperature (285.15 K), the hydrophobic interaction (ΔH° = 73.06 kJ.mol -1 ; TΔS° = 99.60 kJ.mol -1 ) drove the βLG-RES complex formation while at high temperature (301.15 K), hydrophilic interactions became dominant (ΔH° = -142.50 kJ.mol -1 ; TΔS° = -118.18 kJ.mol -1 )., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The development of products with buffalo milk has increased due to its peculiar characteristics, such as taste and high content of total solids, which has attracted consumers and the food industry.In this context, the objective was to develop and evaluate the microstructural properties of chocolates with different concentrations of buffalo milk powder (0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%) through polymorphism, microscopy and rheological studies. For the polymorphism, the X-ray diffraction technique (XRD) was performed, while the crystal morphology was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The addition of levels of more than 10% buffalo milk caused notable changes in XRD diffractograms, demonstrating the appearance of different polymorphic forms. Microscopy analysis revealed changes in the structure of the matrix with an increase in the concentration of buffalo milk, presenting more continuous surfaces, associated with milk proteins, which have emulsifying capacity. The Herschel-Bulkley model adequately described the flow behavior of the formulations. There was an increase in all rheological properties (yield stress, viscosity, thixotropy and loss tangent (tang δ)) in chocolates with higher concentrations of milk. For that, the composition of the milk influences the degree of structuring of the chocolate. Considering this technological information, it is important to highlight that the production of buffalo milk chocolates shows potential for technological innovation., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) 2021.)

This study focused on the extraction, purification, and physicochemical characterization of γ-conglutin, a protein present in lupin seeds with properties of reducing blood glucose levels. Total protein was extracted with an alkaline-saline solvent, followed by isoelectric precipitation. Chromatographic purification of the precipitated fraction was performed using a cation exchange supermacroporous cryogel column. Electrophoresis of the eluted fraction from chromatography presented a single band of ∼48 kDa under non-reducing conditions (two bands of ∼30 and ∼17 kDa, under reducing conditions) confirming the success of the purification protocol. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis confirmed the identity of the protein as γ-conglutin. The purified γ-conglutin had an isoelectric point of 7.51, β-sheets prevailing as a secondary structure, and denaturation temperature close to 68°C. The outcome of this work showed that γ-conglutin was obtained with a high degree of purity. The proposed purification protocol is simple and can be easily scaled up., (© 2021 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

This article presents a study of the interfacial properties of oil-in-water emulsions containing sugar esters and polysaccharides. Sucrose fatty acid esters were synthesized using immobilized Candida antarctica lipase B. A yield of 53.4% was obtained using 2-methyl-2-butanol and 1:3 M ratio of sucrose:stearic acid. Equilibrium surface tension was 45 mN/m and low critical micellar concentration (CMC) value was obtained (ca. 10 mg/mL), characteristic of non-ionic surfactant. The interfacial properties of mixtures of sucrose esters and polysaccharides, at the oil-water interface were determined using a pendant drop tensiometer. Addition of polysaccharides increased the interfacial tension. Studies of interfacial viscoelasticity showed that the films were predominantly elastic. The presence of polysaccharides in emulsions resulted in flocculated droplets. All the emulsions presented great stability along 28 days with no creaming formation., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Naringenin (NG) is a flavonoid with many bioactive properties, however, its bitterness limits its use in foods. It is known that complex formation with proteins can mask this undesirable sensory property. Therefore, a trained panel evaluated the effect of bovine lactoferrin (LF) on NG bitterness using time-intensity analysis. LF reduced the maximum bitterness intensity and overall bitterness perception for NG by 27% and 33%, respectively. Isothermal titration nanocalorimetry (ITC), molecular docking (DC), and molecular dynamics (MD) were used to characterize NG-LF binding. These techniques provided similar values of ΔG ° for binding ( [Formula: see text]  = -33.42 kJ mol -1 ; [Formula: see text]  = -32.22 kJ mol -1 ; [Formula: see text]  = -31.84 kJ mol -1 ). ITC showed that the complex formation is primarily entropy driven and DC suggested that NG binds at a hydrophobic site in LF. Here are presented strategic tools for promoting NG incorporation in food and health products., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Emojis can be used to explore food-evoked emotions in order to provide information that can support the product development and marketing decisions. This study aimed to evaluate consumers' acceptance, purchase intent and emotional responses to milk beverages, with and without kefir added, before and after these consumers were informed about the products' composition (0%, 15%, 30% and 50% m/v) and health claims toward kefir (blind and informed tests, respectively). Emotional responses were assessed by emoji use within a RATA questionnaire in order quantify the perceived significance of the emojis chosen. In the informed test, the consumers' perception of the sensory attributes of the milk beverages, such as their perception of an acid taste in added kefir beverages was shown to have changed. Overall, participants attributed significantly higher acceptance and purchase intent scores to added kefir beverages after they had been informed on its health benefits. In addition, expressions of positive emotion increased when participants were exposed to stimuli related to health benefits of kefir (15%, 30% and 50% m/v), while negative expressions of emotion decreased. The provided information of kefir modified valence and arousal in subjects, and it can be said that to 30% of kefir can be added to yogurt without compromising its sensory acceptability. Thus, health benefits alone cannot improve product acceptance, since participants found a 50% addition of kefir to be unpleasant when tasted during a blind test. Mixed beverages may present a probiotic beverage alternative for consumers who dislike kefir milk, but want to include it in their diets. The implications of liking and purchase intent and how they are linked to emotions are discussed in this paper as well., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declared no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Protein conformation and the 3D water structure play important roles in the ability of bovine serum albumin (BSA) to form stable nanostructures with bioactive molecules. We studied the influence of BSA unfolding and those of two Hofmeister salts, sodium chloride (NaCl) as kosmotrope and sodium thiocyanate (NaSCN) as chaotrope, on BSA/lutein binding at pH 7.4 using fluorescence spectroscopy. The BSA/lutein complex formation was entropically driven and lutein was preferentially bound to site III of BSA. The binding constant (10 4  L mol -1 ), complex stoichiometry (1:1), and thermodynamic potential for BSA/lutein binding were independent of protein conformation and Hofmeister salts. However, the enthalpic and entropic components of BSA/lutein binding in the presence of NaSCN decreased as the temperature increased. The opposite was observed for BSA/lutein binding in the presence of NaCl and for denatured BSA/lutein binding. Therefore, the BSA conformation and 3D water structure directly affected the BSA/lutein binding thermodynamics., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The objective of this study was to assess the microstructural characteristics of goat's milk chocolates formulated with different concentrations of cocoa mass by rheological measurements and microscopy. For rheological characterization, rotational and oscillatory tests were performed, while crystal morphology was observed by means of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and 3D optical profilometer. It was verified that the chocolates presented pseudoplastic and thixotropic behavior. The Herschel-Bulkley model adequately described the flow behavior of the formulations. In the oscillatory tests, it was found that the tangent δ (loss) decreased from 0.33 to 0.17 as a function of the increase in cocoa mass concentration. The creep recovery tests were consistent with the other rheological tests. The analysis of AFM and profilometer indicated that there are different microscopic pores on the surface of the chocolates, and that with the increase in the concentration of cocoa mass, it has a structure with greater interactions., (© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

The surface properties and foaming of ovalbumin and guar gum aqueous solutions was investigated in the presence of sucrose or sorbitol. All solutions had a broad particle size distribution (395.60 at 1137.50 nm). Higher ovalbumin concentrations had lower equilibrium surface tension and higher absolute values of the zeta potential, regardless the presence of sucrose or sorbitol. Mixtures containing ovalbumin and guar gum resulted in a predominantly elastic character of the air-water interface probably due to the formation of a complex (hydrogen bonding and/or hydrophobic interactions) between ovalbumin and guar gum. Besides, the increase in guar gum concentration enhanced the elasticity of the surface film. Higher concentrations of both polymers were required to provide higher kinetic stability to the system, although the increase in guar gum concentration reduced foam capacity due to the increase in the apparent viscosity. Foams formed in the presence of sucrose or sorbitol showed similar half-lives., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Colorimetric nanosensors formed of polydiacetylene (PDA), triblock copolymer (L64 or F68), and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), so-called nanoblends, were developed to detect enrofloxacin (ENRO) in aqueous media. The nanosensors show hydrodynamic diameter ranging from 234.2 ± 3.5 to 801.6 ± 17.8 nm for SDS concentrations of 13.0-21.0 mM, respectively. The lowest limit of detection was 0.054 µM, which is five times smaller than the maximum limit allowed by the European Union. The response surfaces showed that both the SDS and ENRO concentrations influenced the colorimetric response (p < 0.05), and kinetic rate of colorimetric transition (R CT ). SDS concentration between 11.0 and 14.0 mM in the nanoblend yielded the most sensitive nanosensors for detecting ENRO. When L64 was replaced by F68, the colorimetric response of the nanoblends was similar, but PDA/F68/SDS showed a slower R CT than PDA/L64/SDS. The developed nanosensor is a sensitive and simple device for the fast detection of ENRO., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)