Co-products of beef processing enhance non-haem iron absorption in an in vitro digestion/caco-2 cell model

Beef processing produces high volumes of protein rich, low value, ‘waste’ co-products such as offal. Beef improves uptake of low bioavailable non-haem iron (found in vegetables, fortificants, supplements) and this effect is dubbed the ‘meat-factor’, although the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. Here, we investigate whether bovine co-products (kidney, lung, heart) not previously studied share this enhancing potential. This was determined by coupled in vitro digestion of co-products and subsequent caco-2 cell ferritin formation (an intracellular iron storage protein). In this study we show that bovine co-products significantly increase caco-2 cells’ response to non-haem iron from infant rice cereal. The presence of these co-products, (kidney, lung and heart), increased relative uptake (by 207.13%, 171.21%, 265.28%, respectively), to a greater extent than beef (30.23%). Our findings present a novel function for co-products of beef processing that may have potential as food ingredients to improve non-haem iron bioavailability, thus adding value.     

Rapid Aging as a Key to Understand Deactivation of Ni/Al2O3 Catalysts Applied for the CO2 Methanation

Catalysis Letters - We developed a rapid aging method for Ni/Al2O3 methanation catalysts mimicking the real aging in the actual application. The method is based on hydrothermal deactivation of the...     

Catalytic and Electrochemical Properties of Doped Lanthanum Chromites as New Anode Materials for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

Defective perovskites contained in the general formula La(Sr)Cr(Ru,Mn)O_3–δ are successfully synthesized by spray pyrolysis. Powders of high phase purity are obtained after annealing, and they are used to prepare homogeneous films by spray printing. From a catalytic point of view for the methane steam reforming, these powdered perovskites do not generate a carbon deposit. Catalytic results, focused on doped ruthenium perovskites, confirm that the insertion of ruthenium in the structure of the lanthanum chromite presents a real benefit for the methane steam reforming. The electrochemical properties of La(Sr)CrO_3–δ, either pure and doped with manganese, show that the perovskite films can be potential electrodes, depending on their doping, for hydrogen anodic oxidation in solid oxide fuel cells.     

Synergistic effect of organoclay fillers based on fluorinated surfmers for preparation of polystyrene nanocomposites

Novel fluorinated reactive surfactants were used for the organic modification of monmorillonite clays. These organoclays were used for the preparation of polystyrene?clay nanocomposites by in‐situ free radical polymerization. Reference systems based on hydrocarbon homologous surfmer and nonpolymerizable surfactants were also used to deduce the effect of the fluorine moiety and the polymerizable function on the morphology and thermal stability of the prepared nanocomposites. Different structural parameters of the surfactants were investigated and modulated for the clay modification including: the nature of surfactant (surfmer/classical surfactant, fluorinated, or hydrocarbonated), the length of the fluorinated chain as well as the length of the hydrocarbon spacers linking the ammonium head to the fluorine chain or the polymerizable acrylic function. Wide angle‐X‐ray scattering (WAXD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and electronic microcopies (TEM and SEM) were used to establish a structure‐morphology, thermal properties relationships, and to highlight the key parameters governing the exfoliation process. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42347.