Probiotic cheese attenuates exercise-induced immune suppression in Wistar rats

Intense physical activity results in a substantial volume of stress and hence a significant probability of immunosuppression in athletes, with milk proteins being, perhaps, the most recommended protein supplements. Consumption of a probiotic cheese can attenuate immune suppression induced by exhausting exercise in rats. A popular Brazilian fresh cheese (Minas Frescal cheese) containing Lactobacillus acidophilus LA14 and Bifidobacterium longum BL05 was fed for 2wk to adult Wistar rats, which then were brought to exhaustion on the treadmill. Two hours after exhaustion, the rats were killed and material was collected for the determination of serum uric acid, total and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol fraction, total protein, triacylglycerols, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, creatine kinase, and blood cell (monocyte, lymphocyte, neutrophil, and leukocyte) counts. Exercise was efficient in reducing lymphocyte counts, irrespective of the type of ingested cheese, but the decrease in the group fed the probiotic cheese was 22% compared with 48% in the animals fed regular cheese. Monocyte counts were unaltered in the rats fed probiotic cheese compared with a significant decrease in the rats fed the regular cheese. Most importantly, ingestion of the probiotic cheese resulted in a >100% increase in serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and a 50% decrease in triacylglycerols. We conclude that probiotic Minas Frescal cheese may be a viable alternative to enhance the immune system and could be used to prevent infections, particularly those related to the physical overexertion of athletes.     

Applications of Plasma-Activated Water in Dentistry: A Review

The activation of water by non-thermal plasma creates a liquid with active constituents referred to as plasma-activated water (PAW). Due to its active constituents, PAW may play an important role in different fields, such as agriculture, the food industry and healthcare. Plasma liquid technology has received attention in recent years due to its versatility and good potential, mainly focused on different health care purposes. This interest has extended to dentistry, since the use of a plasma–liquid technology could bring clinical advantages, compared to direct application of non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasmas (NTAPPs). The aim of this paper is to discuss the applicability of PAW in different areas of dentistry, according to the published literature about NTAPPs and plasma–liquid technology. The direct and indirect application of NTAPPs are presented in the introduction. Posteriorly, the main reactors for generating PAW and its active constituents with a role in biomedical applications are specified, followed by a section that discusses, in detail, the use of PAW as a tool for different oral diseases.     

Teratogenic study of Spirulina in mice

The embryotoxic and fetotoxic potential of Spirulina was investigated in mice. The algae was given to pregnant animals at the levels of 0, 10, 20 and 30 g/100 in the diet through days 7-13, 1-13 and 1-19 of gestation. On day 19, the rats were sacrificed, and the uterine horns were examined for live, dead and resorbed fetuses. The live fetuses were weighed and examined for external malformations and either skeletal or visceral abnormalities. With the litter as the unit of analysis and when the total number of fetuses affected was considered, no significant difference was found in the number of resorbed or malformed among groups. These results indicate that the feeding of pregnant mice with algae, up to a dietary level of 30 g/100, did not evoke any signs of embryotoxic effects. The Spirulina levels tested in this study represent exaggeration over any anticipated human consumption.     

Bayesian Model Uncertainty In Smooth Transition Autoregressions

Abstract. In this paper, we propose a fully Bayesian approach to the special class of nonlinear time‐series models called the logistic smooth transition autoregressive (LSTAR) model. Initially, a Gibbs sampler is proposed for the LSTAR where the lag length, k, is kept fixed. Then, uncertainty about k is taken into account and a novel reversible jump Markov Chain Monte Carlo (RJMCMC) algorithm is proposed. We compared our RJMCMC algorithm with well‐known information criteria, such as the Akaikes? information criteria, the Bayesian information criteria (BIC) and the deviance information criteria. Our methodology is extensively studied against simulated and real‐time series.     

Time Fractionation of Minor Lipids from Cold-Pressed Rapeseed Cake Using Supercritical CO<Subscript>2</Subscript>

This work explored the possibility of using supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO₂) to achieve fractionation of pre-pressed rapeseed (Brassica napus) cake oil at 30–50 MPa, at 40 or 80 °C, and increase the concentration of minor lipids (sterols, tocopherols, carotenoids) in the oil. Minor lipids are partially responsible for desirable antioxidant effects that protect against degradation and impart functional value to the oil. The weight and concentration of minor lipids in oil fractions collected during the first 60 min were analyzed. Cumulative oil yield increased with pressure, and with temperature at ≥40 MPa, but was lower at 80 °C than at 40 °C when working at pressure ≤35 MPa. Differences in solubility between the oil and minor lipids explained fractionation effects that were small for tocopherols. Unlike tocopherols, which are more soluble in SC-CO₂ than the oil, sterols and carotenoids are less soluble than the oil, and their concentration increased in the later stages of extraction, particularly at ≥40 MPa, when there was not enough oil to saturate the CO₂ phase. Because of the fractionating effects on rapeseed oil composition, there was an increase in the antioxidant activity of the oil in the second half as compared to the first half of the extraction. Consequently, this study suggests that SC-CO₂ extraction could be used to isolate vegetable oil fractions with increased functional value.     

Flue gas cleaning in power stations by using electron beam technology. Influence on PAH emissions

The electron beam technology (EBT), proven treatment for SO₂ and NO_x removal, is applied to different power stations as hot gas cleaning system. In this paper, an assessment of this technique installed in a Bulgarian power station on organic emissions is analyzed. The Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) content, not only emitted in the gas phase but also trapped in the solid phase, has been carried out before and after the irradiation. The main aim has been to know whether the EBT affects organic emissions, like PAH, as it happens with inorganic pollutants, like SO₂ and NO_x, studying EBT effects from an organic environmental point of view.     

Smith predictor based-sliding mode controller for integrating processes with elevated deadtime

An approach to control integrating processes with elevated deadtime using a Smith predictor sliding mode controller is presented. A PID sliding surface and an integrating first-order plus deadtime model have been used to synthesize the controller. Since the performance of existing controllers with a Smith predictor decrease in the presence of modeling errors, this paper presents a simple approach to combining the Smith predictor with the sliding mode concept, which is a proven, simple, and robust procedure. The proposed scheme has a set of tuning equations as a function of the characteristic parameters of the model. For implementation of our proposed approach, computer based industrial controllers that execute PID algorithms can be used. The performance and robustness of the proposed controller are compared with the Matausek-Mici? scheme for linear systems using simulations.     

A survey on the sanitary condition of commercial foods of plant origin sold in Brazil

The objective of the study was to evaluate the hygienic conditions and practices of commercial foods of plant origin in establishments and street marketed by street vendors in cities in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Forty different sales points were evaluated (establishments that prepared and sold fruit juices and street vendors that commercialized fresh coconut water, sugarcane juice and orange juice) using a questionnaire with 12 items, divided into three blocks (salesmen/handlers, operations, installations). The results indicated that the activities related to the commerce of fruit beverages in the cities of São Gonçalo and Rio de Janeiro required the elaboration of a set of actions by the Sanitary Vigilance Agency in order to improve the hygienic and sanitary level and minimize health risk to consumers. Important requirements in the legislation relevant to this type of food are still not followed; adequate packaging and storage of the raw material, obtaining the raw material from registered suppliers, hygiene of the handlers and adequate management of wastes produced during the activities in question are amongst the main items deserving attention.     

Sirtuin 7 Deficiency Reduces Inflammation and Tubular Damage Induced by an Episode of Acute Kidney Injury

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a public health problem worldwide. Sirtuins are a family of seven NAD+-dependent deacylases, Overexpression of Sirtuin 1, 3, and 5 protect against AKI. However, the role of Sirtuin 7 (Sirt7) in AKI is not known. Here, we analyzed how Sirt7 deficient mice (KO-Sirt7) were affected by AKI. As expected, wild-type and Sirt7 heterozygotes mice that underwent renal ischemia/reperfusion (IR) exhibited the characteristic hallmarks of AKI: renal dysfunction, tubular damage, albuminuria, increased oxidative stress, and renal inflammation. In contrast, the KO-Sirt7+IR mice were protected from AKI, exhibiting lesser albuminuria and reduction in urinary biomarkers of tubular damage, despite similar renal dysfunction. The renoprotection in the Sirt7-KO+IR group was associated with reduced kidney weight, minor expression of inflammatory cytokines and less renal infiltration of inflammatory cells. This anti-inflammatory effect was related to diminished p65 expression and in its active phosphorylation, as well as by a reduction in p65 nuclear translocation. Sirt7 deficient mice are protected from AKI, suggesting that this histone deacetylase promotes tubular damage and renal inflammation. Therefore, our findings indicate that Sirt7 inhibitors may be an attractive therapeutic target to reduce NFκB signaling.     

Heat transport across metal–semiconductor (dielectric) structure under steady state conditions

With continued size reduction in microelectronic devices, the thermal boundary conductance between two materials becomes the main channel on thermal dissipation. In this work, we present a theoretical work on heat transport in two-layered systems consisting in metal and a semiconductor (dielectric) and considering the role of the interface thermal conductivity between them.In a metal because the electrons are preferentially scattered by phonons with phonon momentum smaller than the average electron momentum (electron Fermi momentum), the electron–phonon collisions are more efficient in terms of energy relaxation than the phonon–phonon relaxation frequency and, in this case the phonon system can be described by the same temperature as the electron gas. Therefore the heat diffusion equation in a metal is solved in one temperature approximation with appropriate boundary conditions at the surface and at the interface. On the other hand, in the semiconductor the heat diffusion transport is described by the two-temperature approximation model.