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Abstract The lack of representative in vitro models recapitulating human tendon (patho)physiology is among the major factors hindering consistent progress in the knowledge‐based development of adequate therapies for tendinopathy.Here, an organotypic 3D tendon‐on‐chip model is designed that allows studying the spatiotemporal dynamics of its cellular and molecular mechanisms.Combining the synergistic effects of a bioactive hydrogel matrix with the biophysical cues of magnetic microfibers directly aligned on the microfluidic chip, it is possible to recreate the anisotropic architecture, cell patterns, and phenotype of tendon intrinsic (core) compartment. When incorporated with vascular‐like vessels emulating the interface between its intrinsic‐extrinsic compartments, crosstalk with endothelial cells are found to drive stromal tenocytes toward a reparative profile. This platform is further used to study adaptive immune cell responses at the onset of tissue inflammation, focusing on interactions between tendon compartment tenocytes and circulating T cells.The proinflammatory signature resulting from this intra/inter‐cellular communication induces the recruitment of T cells into the inflamed core compartment and confirms the involvement of this cellular crosstalk in positive feedback loops leading to the amplification of tendon inflammation.Overall, the developed 3D tendon‐on‐chip provides a powerful new tool enabling mechanistic studies on the pathogenesis of tendinopathy as well as for assessing new therapies.

Objective: To describe the relationship between bilateral electrical activity in the biceps femoris and the variation of triaxial acceleration in three 50 m sprints. Methods: Biceps femoris muscle activation and acceleration in the anterior–posterior, mediolateral, and superior–inferior axes were measured in three 50 m sprints in nine national-level sprinters. Results: There was significant asymmetry between both legs, and the variations between axes were significant between the anterior–posterior with respect to the lateral and superior–inferior, and between the lateral and superior–inferior (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Increased biceps femoris activation during running increases speed regardless of asymmetry in force application. In the maintenance of horizontal velocity, acceleration of the anterior–posterior axis is the most relevant and depends on the flexion-extension muscle actions contained in the lateral axis.

Introduction Adverse healthcare-related events (AE) entail reduced patient safety. Estimating their frequency, characteristics, avoidability and impact is a means to identify targets for improvement in the quality of care.Methods This was a descriptive observational study conducted within the Patient Safety Incident Study in Hospitals in the Community of Madrid (ESHMAD). The study was conducted in a high-complexity hospital in May 2019 through a two-phase electronic medical record review: (1) AE screening and epidemiological and clinical data collection and (2) AE review and classification and analysis of their impact, avoidability, and associated costs.Results A total of 636 patients were studied. The prevalence of AE was 12.4%. Death during the stay was associated with the presence of AE (OR [CI95%]: 2.15 [1.07 to 4.52]) versus absence and emergency admission (OR [CI95%]: 17.11[6.63 to 46.26]) versus scheduled. A total of 70.2% of the AEs were avoidable. Avoidable AEs were associated with the presence of pressure ulcers (OR [CI95%]: 2.77 [1.39 to 5.51]), central venous catheter (OR [CI95%]: 2.58 [1.33 to 5.00]) and impaired mobility (OR [CI95%]: 2.24[1.35 to 3.71]), versus absences. They were associated too with the stays in the intensive care unit (OR [CI95%]: 2.75 [1.07 to 7.06]) versus medical service. AEs were responsible for additional costs of €909,716.8 for extra days of stay and €12,461.9 per patient with AE.Conclusions The prevalence of AEs was similar to that found in other studies. AEs led to worse patient outcomes and were associated with the patient’s death. Although avoidable AEs were less severe, their higher frequency produced a greater impact on the patient and healthcare system.Key messagesAdverse events are one of the main problems in healthcare delivery and patients who suffer from at least one AE are double as likely to die during hospitalization.Avoidable adverse events are the most frequent in health care and they are a good target where achieve improvement areas that allow getting optimal patient safety and quality of care levels.Patients hospitalized in the ICU, with the previous presence of pressure ulcers, central venous catheter, or impaired mobility were associated with the development of avoidable AE, so optimal management of these patients would reduce the impact of AE.

Abstract The EuroQol 5-dimensions 5-levels (EQ-5D-5L) is a generic patient-reported outcome measures (PROM) used for evaluating health-related quality of life (HRQoL). No data on its psychometric properties in COVID-19 survivors is available. We aimed to describe internal consistency, test–retest reliability, and construct validity of the EQ-5D-5L in people with long-COVID. Ninety-three (n = 93) individuals previously hospitalized due to COVID-19 with post-COVID symptoms completed the EQ-5D-5L questionnaire twice one year after hospital discharge in a three-week interval. Internal consistency (Cronbach alpha and Omega value), test–retest reliability (kappa and ICC2,1) and construct validity (factor analysis), and floor/ceiling effects were calculated. No ceiling effect was observed in any dimension whereas the floor effect ranged from 53.76 to 94.62%. The overall Cronbach’s α value was 0.75 (95%CI 0.64–0.83) and the Omega ω value was 0.77 (95%CI 0.66–0.84), showing good internal consistency of the questionnaire. Further, Cronbach’s alpha values the of each dimension ranged from 0.63 to 0.77 whereas those for Omega values ranged from 0.70 to 0.79. The test–retest reliability of the total score was excellent (ICC2,1 0.86, 95%CI 0.798–0.911). The agreement percentage ranged from 85.13 to 96.77%; but kappa coefficients ranged from fair (κ: 0.37) to good (κ: 0.61). The factor analysis showed factor loadings from 0.585 to 0.813 supporting good construct validity. The EQ-5D-5L has good psychometric properties to be used as a PROM to assess HRQoL in hospitalized COVID-19 survivors with long-COVID.

Esta investigación buscó caracterizar el saber docente sobre niños y niñas (menores de 6 años) de maestras de jardines infantiles y colegios públicos de Bogotá. El estudio fue de corte constructivo-cualitativo, el análisis de contenido inductivo, y las categorías emergieron de la lectura de los investigadores. El análisis muestra cómo las perspectivas de las maestras tienen estructuras particulares e idiosincráticas pero comparables. Las categorías construidas fueron las siguientes: desde dónde hablan las maestras de los niños y de qué hablan cuando describen a los niños. Los hallazgos y conclusiones muestran la relación entre categorías a partir de los discursos de las maestras, que se estructuran en referencias contextuales, la visión de ser maestra y de ser niño, el reconocimiento de la singularidad de cada niño, la presencia de contenidos, la manera en que ellas cualifican y significan sus descripciones y apreciaciones sobre el ser infantil y cómo proyectan y dan cuenta de vivencias compartidas con los niños.

Summary: Hybrid hydrogels composed of chitosan (CS) and hyaluronic acid (HA) and collagen (Coll) were prepared by polyelectrolyte complex self-assembly. These scaffolds displayed a good intermingling of the polymeric chains, with porosities above 80% and good interconnected structures with pore sizes lying between 30–115 μm. The ionic interactions between CS and HA make the scaffolds have larger storage modulus and longer LVR regions than their pure counterparts. Both quantities progressively decrease as the HA and Coll concentrations in the formulation rise. These hybrid hydrogels showed good swelling extents from ca. 420 to ca. 690% and suitable resistance to enzymatic degradation, which was slightly lower for scaffolds containing CS to larger extents or Coll in the formulation. All scaffolds were largely cytocompatible and allowed the proliferation of both mouse fibroblast and human keratinocytes with their infiltration inside, thus becoming optimal matrices for intended tissue engineering applications as well as transdermal drug delivery depots.

Abstract Background Literature addressing the mechanical properties of kinesiology tape is quite scarce. There are no studies which focus on the mechanical characteristics of kinesiology tape, its mechanical properties, nor its adherence following the ISO international standard test methods for tape elongation. Methods This study quantified the mechanical characteristics of 380 samples of kinesiology tape from 19 different brands and in 4 different colors using a dynamometer. Mechanical testing was controlled by UNE EN ISO 13934-1. Results Significant differences were found between tape brands in terms of grammage, maximum force tenacity, work, pre-elongation and percentage elongation (P

Atherosclerosis is an underlying risk factor in cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). The combination of drugs with microRNAs (miRNA) inside a single nanocarrier has emerged as a promising anti-atherosclerosis strategy to achieve the exploitation of their complementary mechanisms of action to achieve synergistic therapeutic effects while avoiding some of the drawbacks associated with current systemic statin therapies. We report the development of nanometer-sized polymeric PLGA nanoparticles (NPs) capable of simultaneously encapsulating and delivering miRNA-124a and the statin atorvastatin (ATOR). The polymeric NPs were functionalized with an antibody able to bind to the vascular adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM1) overexpressed in the inflamed arterial endothelium. The dual-loaded NPs were non-toxic to cells in a large range of concentrations, successfully attached overexpressed VCAM receptors and released the cargoes in a sustainable manner inside cells. The combination of both ATOR and miRNA drastically reduced the levels of proinflammatory cytokines such as IL-6 and TNF-α and of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in LPS-activated macrophages and vessel endothelial cells. In addition, dual-loaded NPs precluded the accumulation of low-density lipoproteins (LdL) inside macrophages as well as morphology changes to a greater extent than in single-loaded NPs. The reported findings validate the present NPs as suitable delivery vectors capable of simultaneously targeting inflamed cells in atherosclerosis and providing an efficient approach to combination nanomedicines.

Las relaciones sociales son de vital importancia para el correcto desarrollo de los seres humanos, y junto con la actividad física, la obesidad y la autoestima forman un conjunto de factores que pueden ser capaces de retroalimentarse entre sí, pero que hasta donde los autores saben, solo se han analizado por separado. Por tanto, el principal objetivo de estudio será realizar un análisis multifactorial que incluya todas las variables anteriormente mencionadas. Un total de 60 niños de edades comprendidas entre los 7 y los 13 años formaron la muestra de este estudio. Los instrumentos utilizados para las mediciones de las diferentes variables de estudio fueron el PAQ-C, la escala de autoestima de Rosenberg y una adaptación del Bull-S Test. Una vez recogidos todos los datos se realizó un análisis con Self-Organizing Maps mediante el software Matlab R2008a y la SOM toolbox para Matlab. Los resultados obtenidos en este trabajo muestran la repercusión del Índice de Masa Corporal sobre los niveles de autoestima y las relaciones sociales, y la posible retroalimentación mutua entre estos dos últimos factores. Abstract. Social relationships are vital for the proper development of humans, and along with physical activity, obesity, and self-esteem, they form a set of factors that may be able to feed each other; however, as far as the authors know, they have only been analyzed separately. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to carry out a multifactorial analysis that includes all the aforementioned variables. A total of 60 children between 7 and 13 years of age formed the sample of this study. The instruments used for the measurements of the different study variables were the PAQ-C, the Rosenberg self-esteem scale, and an adaptation of the Bull-S Test. Once all the data was collected, an analysis with Self-Organizing Maps was made, using the Matlab R2008a software and the SOM toolbox for Matlab. The results obtained in this work show the repercussion of Body Mass Index on the levels of self-esteem and social relations, and the possible mutual feedback between the last two factors.

In the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, hydrogels are used as biomaterials to support cell attachment and promote tissue regeneration due to their unique biomimetic characteristics. The use of natural-origin materials significantly influenced the origin and progress of the field due to their ability to mimic the native tissues’ extracellular matrix and biocompatibility. However, the majority of these natural materials failed to provide satisfactory cues to guide cell differentiation toward the formation of new tissues. In addition, the integration of technological advances, such as 3D printing, microfluidics and nanotechnology, in tissue engineering has obsoleted the first generation of natural-origin hydrogels. During the last decade, a new generation of hydrogels has emerged to meet the specific tissue necessities, to be used with state-of-the-art techniques and to capitalize the intrinsic characteristics of natural-based materials. In this review, we briefly examine important hydrogel crosslinking mechanisms. Then, the latest developments in engineering natural-based hydrogels are investigated and major applications in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine are highlighted. Finally, the current limitations, future challenges and opportunities in this field are discussed to encourage realistic developments for the clinical translation of tissue engineering strategies.

Scientific production has increased exponentially in recent years. It is necessary to find methodological strategies for understanding holistic or macro views of the major research trends developed in specific fields. Data mining is a useful technique to address this task. In particular, our study presents a global analysis of the information generated during last decades in the Sport Sciences Category (SSC) included in the Web of Science database. An analysis of the frequency of appearance and the dynamics of the Author Keywords (AKs) has been made for the last thirty years. Likewise, the network of co-occurrences established between words and the survival time of new words that have appeared since 2001 has also been analysed. One of the main findings of our research is the identification of six large thematic clusters in the SSC. There are also two major terms that coexist ('REHABILITATION' and 'EXERCISE') and show a high frequency of appearance, as well as a key behaviour in the calculated co-occurrence networks. Another significant finding is that AKs are mostly accepted in the SSC since there has been high percentage of new terms during 2001-2006, although they have a low survival period. These results support a multidisciplinary perspective within the Sport Sciences field of study and a colonization of the field by rehabilitation according to our AK analysis.

La realización de un Proyecto de Investigación sobre la Educación Ambiental en Iberoamérica exige un análisis previo de la situación actual de la Educación Ambiental en estos países, centrada en el nivel medio de enseñanza, aunque en determinados momentos aflore la presencia de la Educación Ambiental en otros niveles y en la Educación no formal. El estado general de la cuestión se analiza a través de las encuestas enviadas a los respectivos Ministerios de Educación; como complemento a las respuestas obtenidas se ha contado con informes nacionales remitidos desde los distintos países que se han incorporado a los anexos de este trabajo.

Introduction: cancer and its treatments have been associated with poor nutritional status in children and adolescents. Objective: to establish the nutritional risk of pediatric patients and the degree of food and nutritional insecurity in the homes of children and adolescents with cancer who have been hospitalized in a high complexity pediatric oncology center. Methods: a prospective observational study conducted at the Fundación Hospital Pediátrico la Misericordia - HOMI. It included a sample of 41 children and adolescents aged 0 to 17 years and 11 months with a diagnosis of childhood cancer during the study period. The participants recruited during hospitalization had the application of the SCAN nutritional screening tool for childhood cancer, Spanish version, validated in HOMI and the Latin American and Caribbean Scale of Food and Nutritional Security - ELCSA, adapted and validated in Colombia. Results: 76 % (n = 31) of the patients were classified as "At risk of malnutrition" using the SCAN-SP nutritional screening tool. It was observed that 56 % of all households had a proportion of food insecurity, of which the classification of food insecurity was mild in 29 %, moderate in 20 % and severe in 7 % of households with children under 18 years of age. Conclusion: in the framework of the nutritional care process, it is important to take into account factors that include a complete nutritional risk assessment and evaluation that includes the measurement of food security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even though comprehension of human physiology is crucial in the clinical setting, students frequently learn part of this subject using rote memory and then are unable to transfer knowledge to other contexts or to solve clinical problems. This study evaluated the impact of articulating the concept map strategy with the mediated learning experience on meaningful learning during the cardiovascular module of a medical physiology course at Universidad Autonoma de Bucaramanga. This research was based on the ideas of David Ausubel (meaningful learning), Joseph Novak (concept maps), and Reuven Feuerstein (mediated learning experience). Students were randomly allocated to either an intervention group (mediated learning experience articulated with concept mapping) or a control group (traditional methodology). The intervention group constructed concept maps related to cardiovascular physiology and used them to solve problems related to this subject. The control group attended traditional discussion sessions and problem-solving sessions. All students were evaluated with two types of exams: problem-solving and multiple-choice exams. The intervention group performed significantly better on the problem-solving exams, but the difference was not significant in the multiple-choice exam. It was concluded that intervention promoted meaningful learning that allowed the students to transfer this knowledge to solve problems. The implemented strategy had a greater impact on the students who came into the study with the lowest cognitive competence, possibly because they were empowered by the intervention. (Contains 3 figures and 3 tables.)

Halophytes, such as Salicornia species, are promising new foods and are consumed for their pleasant salty taste and nutritional value. Since Salicornia is perishable, modified atmospheric packaging (MAP) can be a useful tool, in combination with proper temperature, to halt further quality degradation in this type of product. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of MAP, with or without refrigeration, to extend the shelf life of glasswort (Salicornia europaea L.) grown hydroponically (floating raft system) in a greenhouse with a nutrient solution containing 0 g/L (C) or 12.5 g/L of NaCl (T). The dry matter content, weight loss, respiration rate, biochemical composition, color, antioxidant capacity, and sensorial attributes were determined in shoots after harvest and during storage in plastic bags filled with technical air or with MAP at 4 or 20 °C for 120 h. At harvest, plants supplied with salt-enriched solution (T) showed a significant improvement in nutritional value and sensory profile. Storage in air at room temperature (20 °C) accelerated weight loss and diminished color stability, particularly in non-salinity samples (C), while MAP extended the shelf life of all the samples regardless of the storage temperature adopted. Optimal storage conditions were observed when MAP was combined with refrigeration, which allowed to effectively preserve shoots sensory acceptability for a period of about seven days. Future research could further explore the long-term effects on the nutritional value and sensory quality of S. europaea under various combinations of MAP and different storage temperatures ranging between 4 °C and 20 °C.

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Halophytes are salt-tolerant plants growing in saline ecosystems and are spread throughout the Mediterranean area. Recently, there has been a renewed interest in agricultural exploitation of halophytes, but poor attention has been given to pest and disease management of these species. The objective of this review is to assess the extent and distribution of pathogenic fungal and fungal-like (Oomycota) organisms on major Mediterranean halophytes. We retrieved 92 references spanning over 100 years, with more than half published since 2000. Ascomycota is the best-represented phylum, and the order Pleosporales has the highest species diversity. The order Pucciniales prevails in Basidiomycota, whereas Peronosporales is the richest order within Oomycota. Most of the pathogenic species have been isolated from aboveground organs, especially from leaves. Portulaca oleracea is the species with the most associated pathogens (16) and records (28). Leveillula powdery mildew, caused by Leveillula taurica, is the most common disease among the selected species. Cakile maritima was found to be vulnerable to different mycotoxigenic Alternaria species. Strengthening the research on diseases of halophytes is essential to successfully grow these species and to evaluate the risks related to the presence of mycotoxigenic species, which is crucial for the effective exploitation of halophytes as crops.

Among halophyte plants, Salicornia species (also known as glasswort or sea asparagus) are increasingly grown in open fields and greenhouses for edible or non-edible purposes. Their salinity tolerance makes it possible to irrigate Salicornia plants with saline waters and even seawater, which cannot be used by other crop species. In this work, S. europaea (L.) was cultivated in pots under the typical climatic conditions of the fall season in the Mediterranean region and irrigated with non-saline standard nutrient solution (SNS) or saline wastewater discharged from a greenhouse semi-closed hydroponic (substrate) culture of tomato or a saltwater recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) with Gilthead sea bream (Spaurus aurata L., which was used as such or after dilution (50:50) with SNS. Plant growth was not significantly affected by the composition of irrigation water, while higher antioxidant capacity (measured using the DPPH assay) and concentration of photosynthetic pigments, phenols, flavonoids, and ascorbic acid were found in the shoots of SNS plants than in those of plants irrigated with wastewater. The level of lipid peroxidation and H2O2 production significantly increased in the SNS plants, which also showed higher activity of superoxide dismutase and lower activity of catalase. These results suggest that S. europaea can be cultivated using wastewater with moderate to high salinity discharged from greenhouse hydroponic crops or RASs, and that salt is not strictly required for the growth of this species. Using non-saline nutrient solution can result in moderate oxidative stress that improves the shoot quality of S. europaea.

The human intake of selenium (Se), which is an essential element in animals and humans, can be increased through the consumption of vegetables that have been biofortified during cultivation. There is increasing interest in wild edible plants (WEPs) due to their positive effects on health. In fact, many WEPs are rich in microelements, vitamins, dietary fibers, and several antioxidant compounds. Among WEPs, sea beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima) is the wild ancestor of Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris var. cicla). The present study investigated the potential of fortifying Swiss chard and sea beet with Se. The two subspecies were cultivated in a floating system with a nutrient solution enriched with four concentrations of Se (0, 1, 3, and 5 mg L−1), and the production and quality of the baby leaves were evaluated. The addition of Se to the nutrient solution resulted in a higher leaf concentration of this microelement in both subspecies, with a positive effect on the yield (+20%) and leaf chlorophyll concentration (+25%) at the Se concentration of 1 mg L−1. The leaf concentration of nitrates was reduced by the Se treatment in sea beet regardless of the Se concentration (−24%, on average). Selenium biofortification was more effective in sea beet plants than in Swiss chard due to the higher ability of the wild species to acquire readily available minerals from the hydroponic nutrient solution. In conclusion, both subspecies accumulated a significant amount of Se without negative effects on yield or leaf quality, thus proving them to be suitable for the production of Se-enriched baby leaves.

Heavy metals are environmental pollutants that cause toxicity in plants and represent a risk for human health, linked to bioaccumulation through the food chain. However, excess accumulation may not occur in young plants in the early stages of exposure to the toxic element. In the present work, rocket (Eruca sativa L.) plants grown in hydroponics were exposed for three weeks to excess concentrations (25, 50, or 100 µM) of Cu or Zn in the nutrient solution and were more sensitive to Cu than Zn toxicity. However, a significant decrease in the leaf biomass production as compared with the control was observed only after two or three weeks, and only minor signals of metal-induced adverse effects were evidenced concerning photosynthesis, oxidative stress indicators, antioxidant metabolites, and macronutrients. After two or three weeks, the leaf level of Cu occasionally approached the upper value associated with the recommended limits of dietary intake for human adults. However, as rocket leaves are commercialized when they achieve a 10–15 cm length, after one week of cultivation in perlite, the plants had an adequate size without metal contamination and could be considered suitable for the food market, even after exposure to Cu or Zn concentrations up to 100 µM.

Lettuce is widely used for its healthy properties, and it is of interest to increase them with minimal environmental impact. The purpose of this work was to evaluate the effect of the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF) Funneliformis mosseae in lettuce plants (Lactuca sativa L. cv. Salinas) cultivated in a soilless system with sub-optimal phosphorus (P) compared with non-inoculated controls at two different P concentrations. Results show that lettuce inoculation with the selected AMF can improve the growth and the nutritional quality of lettuce even at sub-optimal P. Leaf content of chlorophylls, carotenoids, and phenols, known as important bioactive compounds for human health, was higher in mycorrhizal lettuce plants compared with non-mycorrhizal plants. The antioxidant capacity in AMF plants showed higher values compared with control plants grown at optimal P nutrition level. Moreover, leaf gas exchanges were higher in inoculated plants than in non-inoculated ones. Nitrogen, P, and magnesium leaf content was significantly higher in mycorrhizal plants compared with non-mycorrhizal plants grown with the same P level. These findings suggest that F. mosseae can stimulate plants growth, improving the nutritional quality of lettuce leaves even when grown with sub-optimal P concentration.

Saltwater aquaponics is a sustainable alternative system for food production. The success of this system largely depends on the selection of both fish and plant species, for which several features and criteria must be considered. This paper aims to identify the most suitable plant species for saltwater aquaponics by using a multi-criteria decision-making method also based on current literature. One simple model that contained one root criterion, four aggregated criteria, and four sub-criteria was created using DEXi software. The same model was evaluated considering two different salinity levels in the recirculating water: 10 (brackish water) and 35 (sea water) g L−1. The relevance of the model structure was evaluated by the sensitivity analysis, through the ‘plus/minus-1′ analysis. Our results suggest that Salicornia europaea L. and Portulaca oleracea L. were suitable species for saltwater aquaponics at 35 g L−1. Moreover, at 10 g L−1, the suitable candidates were: Salicornia bigelovii Torr, S. europaea L., Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima (L.) Arcang, Atriplex hortensis L., and P. oleracea L. The DEXi analysis resulted in being an easy and effective tool to select proper species in similar contexts. DEXi can help to identify the hotspots of production processes, according to our results. Since the selected species are wild edible species or minor crops, the availability of their seeds is one of the main constraints of their cultivation in saltwater aquaponics.

Cardoon (C. cardunculus var. altilis DC) is commonly cultivated in the Mediterranean area to produce stalks that are consumed once cooked. Before cooking, stalks are usually subjected to blanching, which means they are exposed to darkness for a few weeks. The present work analyzed the effect of field blanching carried out for 40 days in different ways (burying the stalks under soil or covering them with plastic sheet) on the total phenolic content (TPC), phenolic profile, cynaropicrin content (a bitter compound), and antioxidant activity (AA) of two cardoon cultivars. The nutraceutical quality of blanched cardoons was also investigated following boiling. The phenolic profile revealed a higher number of compounds in blanched stalks than in raw ones. The cynaropicrin content decreased in both cultivars after blanching, indicating a sensitivity to dark conditions and the effectiveness of blanching method in reducing its bitterness. The data presented contribute to improving the knowledge about the effect of blanching and boiling on the quality of cardoon stalks.

There is an increasing interest in the use of seawater in horticulture. The objective of this study was to evaluate Beta vulgaris var. cicla (Swiss chard) and its wild ancestor B. vulgaris spp. maritima (sea beet) as potential crop species for seawater hydroponics or aquaponics. Both species were grown in a floating system for leaf production with recurrent harvests. The nutrient solutions contained different concentrations of nitrate (1 and 10 mM) and a synthetic sea salt (0 and 10 g L−1), in a factorial design, where the saline solution with a low nitrate level intended to mimic the typical nutritional conditions of saltwater aquaponics. In both species, increasing the salinity or reducing the N level in the nutrient solution reduced the crop yield and total dry biomass. In both Swiss chard and sea beet, the use of saline water resulted in a lower leaf concentration of K, Ca, Cu, and Mn, and a greater content of Na and Cl. In Swiss chard, an increase in Na and Cl and a decrease in K leaf content were found in successive harvests. On average, sea beet showed a higher leaf production and accumulation of nitrate than Swiss chard.

The aim of this research was to develop an effective protocol for the application of nonthermal plasma (NTP) technology to the hydroponic nutrient solution, and to investigate its effects on the growth and quality of baby leaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. acephala Alef.) grown in a hydroponic growing system (HGS) specifically designed for indoor home cultivation. Four HGSs were placed in separate growth chambers with temperature of 24 ± 1 °C and relative humidity of 70 ± 5%). Lettuce plants were grown for nine days in nutrient solutions treated with NTP for 0 (control) to 120 s every hour. Results of the first experiments showed that the optimal operating time of NTP was 120 s h−1. Fresh leaf biomass was increased by the 60 and 120 s NTP treatments compared to the control. Treating the nutrient solution with NTP also resulted in greater leaf content of total chlorophylls, carotenoids, total phenols, and total antioxidant capacity. NTP also positively influenced chlorophyll a fluorescence in Photosystem I (PSI) and photosynthetic electron transport. These results revealed that the NTP treatment of the nutrient solution could improve the production and quality of hydroponically grown baby leaf lettuce.

The interest for wild edible plants as functional food is increasing among consumers in the Mediterranean countries because of their high content of antioxidants. However, a critical point is the seasonality of wild edible species due to their spontaneity and the cultivation results necessary to satisfy market requests. Moreover, cooking may be necessary for most wild edible species to enhance their palatability. In the present experiment, the crop yield, total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activity (AA) of leaves were determined in three wild edible species (Borago officinalis L., Malva sylvestris L. and Plantago coronopus L.), which were hydroponically cultivated in winter and in spring. Plants were recurrently harvested three times and the leaves were analyzed raw or after boiling in water for different times based on their palatability as evaluated by a hedonic test (2 min for B. officinalis, 2.5 min for M. sylvestris and 8 min for P. coronopus). The total crop yield was promising, especially for P. coronopus, with small differences between winter and spring (9.3 and 13.8 kg m−2, respectively). The boiling treatment caused a loss of TPC and, in some cases, of the AA in B. officinalis and M. sylvestris due to the solubilization of phenolic and other antioxidant compounds in boiling water. Conversely, in P. coronopus, TPC and AA were higher in boiled leaves than in fresh leaves, likely due to the strong binding of phenolic compounds to the cell wall. This binding might lead to the inefficient extraction of these compounds through the boiling treatment.

Salinity is one of the oldest and most serious environmental problems in the world. The increasingly widespread salinization of soils and water resources represents a growing threat to agriculture around the world. A strategy to cope with this problem is to cultivate salt-tolerant crops and, therefore, it is necessary to identify plant species that are naturally adapted to high-salinity conditions. In this review, we focus our attention on some plant species that can be considered among the most representative halophytes of the Mediterranean region; they can be potential resources, such as new or relatively new vegetable crops, to produce raw or minimally processed (or ready-to-eat) products, considering their nutritional properties and nutraceuticals. The main biological and agronomic characteristics of these species and the potential health risks due to mycotoxigenic fungi have been analyzed and summarized in a dedicated section. The objective of this review is to illustrate the main biological and agronomical characteristics of the most common halophytic species in the Mediterranean area, which could expand the range of leafy vegetables on the market.

The recent growing interest towards the nutraceutical and antioxidant value of fruit and vegetables has arisen from their content of phytochemicals, which provide desirable health benefits, beyond basic nutrition, to reduce the risk of major chronic diseases [...]

Even though comprehension of human physiology is crucial in the clinical setting, students frequently learn part of this subject using rote memory and then are unable to transfer knowledge to other contexts or to solve clinical problems. This study evaluated the impact of articulating the concept map strategy with the mediated learning experience on meaningful learning during the cardiovascular module of a medical physiology course at Universidad Autónoma de Bucaramanga. This research was based on the ideas of David Ausubel (meaningful learning), Joseph Novak (concept maps), and Reuven Feuerstein (mediated learning experience). Students were randomly allocated to either an intervention group (mediated learning experience articulated with concept mapping) or a control group (traditional methodology). The intervention group constructed concept maps related to cardiovascular physiology and used them to solve problems related to this subject. The control group attended traditional discussion sessions and problem-solving sessions. All students were evaluated with two types of exams: problem-solving and multiple-choice exams. The intervention group performed significantly better on the problem-solving exams, but the difference was not significant in the multiple-choice exam. It was concluded that intervention promoted meaningful learning that allowed the students to transfer this knowledge to solve problems. The implemented strategy had a greater impact on the students who came into the study with the lowest cognitive competence, possibly because they were empowered by the intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wild edible plant species are often more tolerant to salinity than many crop plants. Considering the salinization of irrigation water that is progressively affecting the Mediterranean region and the market demand for new plant foods, the cultivation of wild edible species could represent a valid alternative to conventional vegetable crops. In this study, Reichardia picroides (L.) Roth, a widespread spontaneous herb of ethnobotanical tradition, was grown for four or six weeks under a greenhouse in a floating system for the production of baby leaves. In order to improve the nutraceutical quality of the tissues, the plants were exposed to the following NaCl concentrations in the nutrient solution: 1.7 (control), 25, 50, and 100 mM. The results showed that a 4-week growing period in a floating system with 50 mM NaCl in the nutrient solution increased the content of bioactive molecules without affecting the fresh yield. After six weeks of cultivation, despite a decrease in biomass production as compared with the control, the leaves of salt-treated plants contained higher levels of bioactive molecules along with lower amounts of nitrate ion.

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Iodine deficiency is a serious world-wide public health problem, as it is responsible for mental retardation and other diseases. The use of iodine-biofortified vegetables represents a strategic alternative to iodine enriched salt for people with a low sodium diet. However, at high concentrations iodine can be toxic to plants. Therefore, research on plant iodine toxicity is fundamental for the development of appropriate biofortification protocols. In this work, we compared two cultivars of sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) with different iodine tolerance: “Tigullio,” less tolerant, with green leaves, and “Red Rubin,” more tolerant and with purple leaves. Four greenhouse hydroponic experiments were conducted in spring and in summer with different concentrations of iodine in the nutrient solution (0.1, 10, 50, 100, and 200 μM), supplied as potassium iodide (KI) or potassium iodate (KIO3). Plant growth was not affected either by 10 μM KI or by 100 μM KIO3, while KI concentrations higher than 50 μM significantly reduced leaf area, total plant dry matter and plant height. The severity of symptoms increased with time depending on the cultivar and the form of iodine applied. Growth inhibition by toxic iodine concentrations was more severe in “Tigullio” than in “Red Rubin,” and KI was much more phytotoxic than KIO3. Leaf iodine concentration increased with the iodine concentration in the nutrient solution in both varieties, while the total antioxidant power was generally higher in the purple variety. In both basil cultivars, a strong negative correlation was found between the photosynthesis and the leaf iodine content, with significant differences between the regression lines for “Tigullio” and “Red Rubin.” In conclusion, the greater tolerance to iodine of the “Red Rubin” variety was associated with the ability to withstand higher concentrations of iodine in leaf tissues, rather than to a reduced accumulation of this element in the leaves. The high phenolic content of “Red Rubin” could contribute to the iodine tolerance of this purple cultivar.