Genetic and behavioral risk factors for self-reported joint pain among a population-based sample of Swedish twins.

Self-reported joint pain, a typical manifestation of osteoarthritis, was examined using 335 twin pairs from the Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging to estimate relative genetic and environmental influences on self-reported joint pain and to examine the relationship between joint pain, health behavior, and psychological variables. Findings suggest that family resemblance for self-reported joint pain represents similar environments more than genetic similarity. Data from the early 1970s, including exercise, physical activity at work, obesity, and neuroticism, were used to predict joint pain in 1993. For men, moderate amounts of exercise decreased the likelihood of joint pain, but strenuous amounts of physical activity in the workplace had the opposite effect. For women, exercise and physical activity were not significant predictors, but past obesity and higher levels of neuroticism increased the likelihood of reporting joint pain in 1993. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mate (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ilex paraguariensis</Emphasis>) as a source of water extractable antioxidant for use in chicken meat

Aqueous extract of mate, made from dried leaves of Ilex paraguariensis, St. Hilaire, was shown to be effective during chilled storage for up to 10 days in protecting lipids and vitamin E against oxidation in pre-cooked meat balls made from chicken breast added 0.5% salt and packed in atmospheric air. Extracts made with water, methanol, ethanol or 70% aqueous acetone were evaluated by comparing (1) total phenolic content, (2) radical scavenging capacity, (3) effect on lipid oxidation in a food emulsion model, and in liposomes. Based on the three-step evaluation, aqueous mate extract was preferred for food use. Dried leaves were further compared to dried rosemary leaves in chicken meat balls, and mate (0.05 and 0.10%) found to yield equal or better protection than rosemary at the same concentration against formation of secondary lipid oxidation products.     

Aspects of Packaging from NDA <- IND

The strategic decisions regarding package stability in an NDA should be thought out even before the IND stage (hence the inversion of the order of the words NDA and IND in the title). The philosophy of clinical blister packaging is discussed as are the tests necessary to ensure perfection of seal. The principles of molecular and pinhole moisture permeation are discussed. Suggested fractional factorial schemes for package testing are presented     

Load and health monitoring in glass fibre reinforced composites with an electrically conductive nanocomposite epoxy matrix

Fibre reinforced polymers (FRPs) are an important group of materials in lightweight constructions. Most of the parts produced from FRPs, like aircraft wings or wind turbine rotor blades are designed for high load levels and a lifetime of 30 years or more, leading to an extremely high number of load cycles to sustain. Consequently, the fatigue life and the degradation of the mechanical properties are aspects to be considered. Therefore, in the last years condition monitoring of FRP-structures has gained importance and different types of sensors for load and damage sensing have been developed.

In this work a new approach for condition monitoring was investigated, which, unlike other attempts, does not require additional sensors, but instead is performed directly by the measurement of a material property of the FRP. An epoxy resin was modified with two different types of carbon nanotubes and with carbon black, in order to achieve an electrical conductivity. Glass fibre reinforced composites (GFRP) were produced with these modified epoxies by resin transfer moulding (RTM). Specimens were cut from the produced materials and tested by incremental tensile tests and fatigue tests and the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) was measured. During the mechanical tests the electrical conductivity of all specimens was monitored simultaneously, to assess the potential for stress/strain and damage monitoring.

The results presented in this work, show a high potential for both, damage and load detection of FRP structures via electrical conductivity methods, involving a nanocomposite matrix.     

Time counts: Future time perspective, goals, and social relationships.

On the basis of postulates derived from socioemotional selectivity theory, the authors explored the extent to which future time perspective (FTP) is related to social motivation, and to the composition and perceived quality of personal networks. Four hundred eighty German participants with ages ranging from 20 to 90 yrs took part in the study. In 2 card-sort tasks, participants indicated their partner preference and goal priority. Participants also completed questionnaires on personal networks and social satisfaction. Older people, as a group, perceived their future time as more limited than younger people. Individuals who perceived future time as being limited prioritized emotionally meaningful goals, whereas individuals who perceived their futures as open-ended prioritized instrumental or knowledge-related goals. Priority of goal domains was found to be differently associated with the size, composition, and perceived quality of personal networks depending on FTP. Prioritizing emotion-regulatory goals was associated with greater social satisfaction and less perceived strain with others when participants perceived their future as limited. Findings underscore the importance of FTP in the self-regulation of social relationships and the subjective experience associated with them. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The combined effect of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) and modified atmosphere packaging as protection against warmed over flavour in cooked minced pork meat

Rosemary (dried leaves ofRosmarinus officinalis L.) added to cooked meat balls (minced pork) was found to retard the formation of warmed over flavour (WOF) during chill storage. The spice was added to pork meat (Longissimus dorsi) balls in an amount acceptable for the product, as evaluated by a sensory panel (0.05% of total weight). After cooking (water bath, internal temperature 80°C), the meat balls were packed using five atmosphere packaging conditions: (i) air; (ii) 5% O₂/95% N₂; (iii) 3% O₂/97% N₂; (iv) 1% O₂/99% N₂; and (v) 100% N₂. During chill storage (5°C), the sensory quality of the reheated meat balls was evaluated by a trained sensory panel, and lipid oxidation was followed by measurement of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS). The combination of decreased O₂ atmosphere in the packages and addition of rosemary resulted in a significantly (p<0.05) lower amount of TBARS and a significantly (p<0.05) better sensory score.

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Gemeinsamer Effekt von Rosmarin (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) und Verpackung in modifizierter Atmosphäre auf den Aufwärmegeschmack (WOF) von wärmebehandeltem, gehacktem Schweinefleisch

Zusammenfassung Rosmarin (getrocknete Blätter vonRosmarinus officinalis L.), erwärmten Fleischklößen (gehacktes Schweinefleisch) zugesetzt, hinderte die Entwicklung des Aufwärmgeschmacks (warmed over flavour) während der Kühllagerung. Das Gewürz wurde den aus Schweinefleisch (Longissimus dorsi) hergestellten Fleischklößen in einer für das Produkt akzeptablen Menge zugegeben, beurteilt von einem sensorischen Panel (0.05% des Totalgewichtes). Nach der Wärmebehandlung (Wasserbad, Zentrum-Temperatur 80°C) wurden die Fleischklöße in fünf unterschiedlichen und kontrollierten Atmosphären wie folgt verpackt: (i) Luft; (ii) 5% O₂/95% N₂; (iii) 3% O₂/97% N₂; (iv) 1% O₂/99% N₂ und (v) 100% N₂. Während der Kühllagerung (5°C) wurde die sensorische Qualität der wiedererwärmten Fleischklöße von einem geschulten Panel beurteilt und die Lipid-Oxidation durch Messung der Thiobarbitursäure-reaktiven Substanzen (TBARS) beobachtet. Die Kombination von ermäßigtem Sauerstoffgehalt in den Verpackungen mit der Zugabe von Rosmarin ergab eine signifikant (p<0.05) niedrigere Menge TBARS wie auch signifikant (p<0.05) bessere Punkte in der sensorischen Beurteilung.

     

Release and absorption of carotenes from processed carrots (Daucus carota) using in vitro digestion coupled with a Caco-2 cell trans-well culture model

The release and absorption (bioavailability) of carotenoids is a prerequisite for their nutritional impact. This can be strongly affected by the processing conditions used to prepare the food matrix that contains them. To determine the effect of processing on carotenoid bioavailability, homogenized, raw, blanched and cooked carrots were exposed to an in vitro gastric and intestinal digestion model. Final digest samples were placed onto a Caco-2 cell trans-well monolayer culture to mimic intestinal absorption. The results show that the cooked carrot puree consisting of primarily single plant cell particles had the highest release of carotenes, followed by blanched consisting primarily of plant cell clusters and raw carrot puree consisting of larger plant cell clusters. Absorption through the Caco-2 cell layer was the highest from the digesta of cooked carrot puree followed by the digesta of blanched carrot puree. This study demonstrates that thermal processing and/or mechanical homogenization to disrupt plant cell wall matrix enhances the in vitro bioavailability of carotenes from carrots.     

High pressure treatment of dry-cured Iberian ham. Effect on radical formation,lipid oxidation and colour

The effect of high-pressure treatment (200, 400, 600 and 800 MPa) on radical formation in solid samples of dry-cured Iberian ham and in ham slurries was evaluated using the spin-trapping technique and electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. In addition, hexanal was, as a secondary lipid oxidation product, assessed by gas chromatography. The effect of pressure treatments on ESR signals determined in the spin-trapping assay following pressure treatment in solid samples of dry-cured Iberian ham was not statistically significant. However, the lowest level of pressure applied initiated radical formation and promoted lipid peroxidation, whereas intermediate to high levels of pressure seemed to promote further reaction and disappearance of free radicals. Pressure significantly affected hexanal content in the same way as seen for formation of free radicals. Regarding the slurries prepared from dry-cured ham, pressure significantly increased the tendency of radical formation as seen from the ESR signals and significantly increased the hexanal content. The different pattern between solid ham and ham slurries points toward an initiation mechanism associated with the membrane phospholipids for oxidation. In addition, surface colour (L*, a* and b* values and percent reflectance values) of non-pressurized and pressurized (200–800 MPa) dry-cured Iberian ham samples was assessed. Non-pressurized samples showed a higher lightness than pressurized samples, and redness significantly decreased with pressure treatment.     

Influence of Viscoelastic Behavior on Curl of Paper

The influence of viscoelastic stress relaxation on the curlresponse of paper subjected to transient humidity changes wasinvestigated numerically and experimentally. We considered asymmetrictwo-ply paper sheets consisting of low (L) and high (H) anisotropy pliesbonded together. Experiments were conducted at room temperature atvarious constant relative humidities (RH) to obtain the mechanicalproperties, moisture content, moisture expansion coefficients, andstress relation curves of the constituent plies. The time-dependent curlresponse of an unconstrained sheet was analyzed using finite-elementanalysis. Geometrically linear analysis predicted a double curvatureshape of the sheets while geometrically nonlinear analysis predicted acylindrical (single-curvature) shape with the axis in the direction ofthe major stiffness (MD). The analysis revealed that viscoelasticity haslittle influence on curling in dry conditions. With increased humidity,the moisture absorbed softens the material, reduces the relaxation time,and the curvature response becomes highly viscoelastic. Predictedtime-dependent curvature response was in reasonable agreement withexperimental measurements, although it was observed that the analysisunderpredicted the curvature change during the increasing phase of themoisture loading. Such a deviation is attributed to the assumption ofuniform through-thickness distribution of moisture in the analysis.