Effect of osmotic dehydration on Actinidia deliciosa kiwifruit: A combined NMR and ultrastructural study

The effects of individual osmotic dehydration processes (OD) on kiwifruit outer pericarp tissue were studied as reliant on treatment temperature (25, 35 and 45 °C) and extent (0–300 min). Macro (Low Frequency Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, LF-NMR), micro (Light Microscopy, LM) and ultrastructural (Transmission Electron Microscopy, TEM) measurements were performed to evaluate modifications of three cellular compartments, namely vacuole, cytoplasm – extracellular space and cell wall.     

Cellulosic materials: Structure and enzymatic hydrolysis relationships

Structural and morphological features of four different cellulosic materials have been deeped by X-ray, CP–MAS NMR, water retention, and specific surface area analysis. Hydrolysis time courses of two of these celluloses were followed by employing an enzymatic system consisting of a cellulase from Trichoderma viride and a cellobiase from Aspergillus niger. Experimental results were rationalized on the basis of a methematical model previously verified on the other two substrates. All the celluloses presented the same mechanistic framework involving product inhibitions. The most efficient pretreatment was found to be the dissolution of cellulosic material in the dimethyl sulfoxide–paraformaldehyde system and regeneration with ammonia. This treatment cancelled the memory of the initial structural order.     

Animal Welfare Labelling and the Approach of the European Union: An Overview on the Current Situation

There is a growing appreciation of the insistence of consumers that animals used in food production should be well treated. High welfare standards could have both a direct and indirect impact on food safety and quality; regulatory and support systems in agriculture must adapt accordingly. Retailers and producers are increasingly recognising animal welfare as a fundamental aspect of product image and quality which create a need for reliable systems for on farm monitoring of animal welfare status and providing some warranty on appropriate production conditions. The article shows an overview of the European strategies for implementing the animal welfare labelling. Received: July 2, 2008; accepted: July 8, 2008     

Functional properties of Lactobacillus plantarum strains: A multivariate screening study

Thirty-two Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from different sources were genetically characterized at subspecies level with recA gene based multiplex PCR and pulsed-field electrophoresis.     

Antioxidant properties and phenolic content of sulla (Hedysarum spp.) honeys from Southern Italy

The geographical origin greatly influences the qualitative and nutraceutical characteristics of honey. In this study, a total of twenty‐four sulla honeys from eight different geographical areas of Southern Italy have been examined for total phenolic content (Folin–Ciocalteu method), antioxidant activity (FRAP and DPPH assays), colour intensity (ABS₄₅₀), and identification and quantification of phenolic acids (RP‐HPLC/UV‐VIS method). The total phenolic content ranged from 47.9 (Potentino honeys) to 248.3 mg GAE per kg honey (Penisola Sorrentina honeys). The antioxidant activity ranged from 47.06% (Basso Pollino honeys) to 88.25% (Penisola Sorrentina honeys), and from 98.26 μM Fe (II) (Potentino honeys) to 786.53 μm Fe (II) (Tarantino honeys) for DPPH and FRAP assays, respectively. Major phenolic acids identified in analysed samples were gallic, caffeic and ferulic acids. Correlations between the parameters analysed were statistically significant (P < 0.05). The results of the study showed that the parameters studied are greatly affected by the peculiarities of their production area.     

Print base decorative paper with high-dimensional stability by chemical fiber modification: An experimental and analytical approach

The main structural component of wood fibers is cellulose, which, being highly hydrophilic, interacts with water. Cellulose-based paper has, therefore, the same affinity with water. However, for most products such as decorative paper, this is more of a disadvantage, where water uptake both as liquid and from humid air not only weakens the paper by breaking hydrogen bonds but also alters its dimension and stability over time. The dimensional stability (ability of the paper to retain the size as its moisture content changes) is a critical parameter when the paper is submitted to printing, copying, and converting operations. Humidity can cause sheet wrinkling or warping, thus compromising the processability and the results achievable. The modification of fibers with chemical additives can be a way to improve the performance of paper against water and water vapor uptake. For this reason, several tests of horizontal diffusion of solvents were carried out to evaluate the change in uptake of as-is paper and of papers modified by several different chemical treatments. Solvent uptake tests were performed to assess the interaction of chemically treated and untreated papers with water, dichloromethane, and ethanol. Diffusion mechanisms of the solvents flow within the fiber networks and their movement through the porous solids were analyzed. The chemical treatments of the fiber with silane, siloxane, and polyelectrolyte multilayer were found to considerably influence both solvent contact angles and absorption times of the papers, thus affecting the rate of solvent (more interestingly, of the water) diffusion into the fiber wall. By comparing all the treated and untreated samples, the contact angles with the solvents decreased by performing siloxane, oligo-siloxane, and silane treatments. More specifically, the diffusivity rates of water decreased because of the disappearance of a fraction of the hydrophilic sites and the onset of higher crystallinity regions on the paper sheets.     

Inflammatory Bowel Disease: New Insights into the Interplay between Environmental Factors and PPARγ

The pathophysiological processes of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), i.e., Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), are still not completely understood. The exact etiology remains unknown, but it is well established that the pathogenesis of the inflammatory lesions is due to a dysregulation of the gut immune system resulting in over-production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Increasing evidence underlines the involvement of both environmental and genetic factors. Regarding the environment, the microbiota seems to play a crucial role. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are nuclear receptors that exert pleiotropic effects on glucose homeostasis, lipid metabolism, inflammatory/immune processes, cell proliferation, and fibrosis. Furthermore, PPARs modulate interactions with several environmental factors, including microbiota. A significantly impaired PPARγ expression was observed in UC patients’ colonic epithelial cells, suggesting that the disruption of PPARγ signaling may represent a critical step of the IBD pathogenesis. This paper will focus on the role of PPARγ in the interaction between environmental factors and IBD, and it will analyze the most suitable in vitro and in vivo models available to better study these relationships.