Effect of dietary inclusion of goat milk on the bioavailability of zinc and selenium in rats

The effects of dietary inclusion of freeze-dried goat and cow milk on the utilization of zinc and selenium, and on the metabolic fate of zinc, were studied in transected (control) and resected rats (resection of 50% of the distal small intestine). Intestinal resection reduced the apparent digestibility coefficient and zinc retention in the cow milk diet, whereas these biological indices were similar in transected (control) and resected rats with standard (without milk) and goat milk diets. The apparent digestibility coefficient and retention of selenium were not affected by intestinal resection in the animals fed with the three diets studied. In transected (control) and resected rats, the apparent digestibility coefficient and retention of zinc and selenium were higher for the goat milk diet than for the other two diets. Zinc deposits in the organs, expressed as microg/g dry weight were in order of decreasing concentrations: femur, testes, sternum, liver, kidney, heart, spleen, longissimus dorsi muscle and brain. Deposits were greatest with the goat milk diet, followed by the standard diet and were lowest for the rats given the cow milk diet, both for transected (control) and resected animals. We conclude that consumption of the goat milk diet produces a greater bioavailability of zinc and selenium and a greater deposit of zinc in key organs, for both the transected (control) and the resected rats, with respect to the standard diet and the cow milk diet.     

Engineered Neutral Phosphorous Dendrimers Protect Mouse Cortical Neurons and Brain Organoids from Excitotoxic Death

Nanoparticles are playing an increasing role in biomedical applications. Excitotoxicity plays a significant role in the pathophysiology of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease. Glutamate ionotropic receptors, mainly those activated by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), play a key role in excitotoxic death by increasing intraneuronal calcium levels; triggering mitochondrial potential collapse; increasing free radicals; activating caspases 3, 9, and 12; and inducing endoplasmic reticulum stress. Neutral phosphorous dendrimers, acting intracellularly, have neuroprotective actions by interfering with NMDA-mediated excitotoxic mechanisms in rat cortical neurons. In addition, phosphorous dendrimers can access neurons inside human brain organoids, complex tridimensional structures that replicate a significant number of properties of the human brain, to interfere with NMDA-induced mechanisms of neuronal death. Phosphorous dendrimers are one of the few nanoparticles able to gain access to the inside of neurons, both in primary cultures and in brain organoids, and to exert pharmacological actions by themselves.     

Biochemical characteristics of dry-cured lacón (a Spanish traditional meat product) throughout the manufacture, and sensorial properties of the final product. Effect of some additives

The gross composition, the main physicochemical parameters, the proteolytic changes and the characteristics of the fat throughout the manufacture process, and the sensorial characteristics of the final product, were studied in dry-cured lacón, a traditional dry-salted and ripened meat product made in the north-west of Spain from the fore leg of the pig following a similar technological process to that of dry-cured ham. The effect of the use of additives (glucose, sodium nitrite, sodium nitrate, sodium ascorbate and sodium citrate) was also studied.In comparison with other dry-cured meat products made from whole meat pieces, dry-cured lacón is characterised by the low moisture contents, the high pH values, and the low transformation of the pigments. The proteolytic and lipolytic processes throughout the manufacture of this product were not intense. Except for the total carbohydrate and nitrate contents, and the percentage of transformation of the pigments, which were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in the batches processed with additives, the use of additives did not influence the biochemical modifications that occur throughout the manufacture process of the dry-cured lacón. Regarding the sensorial characteristics, the use of additives seems to improve the colour and the odour of the final product.     

Optimal Monotonicity-Preserving Perturbations of a Given Runge–Kutta Method

We propose a fast algorithm for evaluating the moments of Bingham distribution. The calculation is done by piecewise rational approximation, where interpolation and Gaussian integrals are utilized. Numerical tests show that the algorithm reaches the maximum absolute error less than \(5\times 10^{-8}\) remarkably faster than adaptive numerical quadrature. We apply the algorithm to a model for liquid crystals with the Bingham distribution to examine the defect patterns of rod-like molecules confined in a sphere, and find a different pattern from the Landau-de Gennes theory.     

An advanced certificate validation service and architecture based on XKMS

The appearance of some laws that make the electronic signature (e‐signature) legally equivalent to the handwritten signature (under some circumstances) has favoured its use in different fields, such as e‐commerce and e‐government. In these fields, the e‐signatures associated to some documents have to remain valid over long periods of time. For these kinds of e‐signatures, Advanced Electronic Signature (AdES) forms have appeared. These forms specify the information to include along with the e‐signature so that it remains valid for a long time after its creation. Basically, this information comprises signers' certificates, a set of certificates up to a trust anchor, certificate validation responses, etc. These data can be gathered by using different Public Key Infrastructure‐compliant protocols. However, the support of different protocols is complex for clients. XML Key Management Specification (XKMS) appeared with the aim of simplifying the certificate management, but it only supports a simple validation mechanism that does not provide the information needed for long‐term validation. As a solution to this problem, we have extended XKMS by defining an advanced certificate validation service to support the obtaining of validation data needed for different scenarios, such as the building of AdES forms or validation data registries. This extension also defines the different components needed to support this kind of a service. Furthermore, the defined service has been implemented and incorporated into an e‐government infrastructure. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Artificial neural network onto eight bit microcontroller for Secchi depth calculation

In this paper we present a model to predict Secchi depth in water bodies by means of an artificial neural network application onto eight bit microcontroller. Water turbidity data were collected by both a Secchi disk and a new patented device (named LUZEX) that uses commercial photodiodes with not monochromatic sensitive band as a basis to perform “in situ” measurements for sunlight extinction coefficients. In order to have a wide range of turbidity data three different water bodies were selected to do the measurements. The developed neural network model is able to relate well the data obtained by these methods and the obtained value for regression coefficient (R) is 0.998.Secchi depth measure is a reference method to determine turbidity in continental and coastal water bodies, especially in the Mediterranean Sea region, but sometimes there are particular cases that makes difficult the use of the Secchi disk (e.g. shallow water bodies), the authors propose LUZEX as a substitute for Secchi disk when it is difficult or impossible to use.     

Combining Hexanoic Acid Plant Priming with Bacillus thuringiensis Insecticidal Activity against Colorado Potato Beetle

Interaction between insect herbivores and host plants can be modulated by endogenous and exogenous compounds present in the source of food and might be successfully exploited in Colorado potato beetle (CPB) pest management. Feeding tests with CPB larvae reared on three solanaceous plants (potato, eggplant and tomato) resulted in variable larval growth rates and differential susceptibility to Bacillus thuringiensis Cry3Aa toxin as a function of the host plant. An inverse correlation with toxicity was observed in Cry3Aa proteolytic patterns generated by CPB midgut brush-border membrane vesicles (BBMV) from Solanaceae-fed larvae, being the toxin most extensively proteolyzed on potato, followed by eggplant and tomato. We found that CPB cysteine proteases intestains may interact with Cry3Aa toxin and, in CPB BBMV from larvae fed all three Solanaceae, the toxin was able to compete for the hydrolysis of a papain substrate. In response to treatment with the JA-dependent plant inducer Hexanoic acid (Hx), we showed that eggplant reduced OPDA basal levels and both, potato and eggplant induced JA-Ile. CPB larvae feeding on Hx-induced plants exhibited enhanced Cry3Aa toxicity, which correlated with altered papain activity. Results indicated host-mediated effects on B. thuringiensis efficacy against CPB that can be enhanced in combination with Hx plant induction.