Cocoa Phytochemicals: Recent Advances in Molecular Mechanisms on Health

Recent reports on cocoa are appealing in that a food commonly consumed for pure pleasure might also bring tangible benefits for human health. Cocoa consumption is correlated with reduced health risks of cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, atherosclerosis, and cancer, and the health-promoting effects of cocoa are mediated by cocoa-driven phytochemicals. Cocoa is rich in procyanidins, theobromine, (?)-epicatechin, catechins, and caffeine. Among the phytochemicals present in consumed cocoa, theobromine is most available in human plasma, followed by caffeine, (?)-epicatechin, catechin, and procyanidins. It has been reported that cocoa phytochemicals specifically modulate or interact with specific molecular targets linked to the pathogenesis of chronic human diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, obesity, diabetes, and skin aging. This review summarizes comprehensive recent findings on the beneficial actions of cocoa-driven phytochemicals in molecular mechanisms of human health.     

The influence of protein–flavonoid interactions on protein digestibility in vitro and the antioxidant quality of breads enriched with onion skin

Different types of breads enriched with onion skin were studied. The objectives were twofold: to show and examine protein–phenolic interactions and to discuss results concerning phenolic content, antioxidant activity and protein digestibility in the light of in vitro bioaccessibility. Phenolic contents and antiradical abilities were linked with the level of onion skin supplement however, the amounts determined were significantly lower than expected. Fortification influenced protein digestibility (a reduction from 78.4% for control breads to 55% for breads with a 4% supplement). Electrophoretic and chromatographic studies showed the presence of indigestible protein–flavonoid complexes – with molecular weights about 25 kDa and 14.5 kDa; however, the reduction of free amino group levels and the increase in chromatogram areas suggest that flavonoids also bind to other bread proteins. The interaction of phenolics with proteins affects antioxidant efficacy and protein digestibility; thus, they have multiple effects on food quality and pro-health properties.     

Dermal uptake of phthalates from clothing: Comparison of model to human participant results

In this research, we extend a model of transdermal uptake of phthalates to include a layer of clothing. When compared with experimental results, this model better estimates dermal uptake of diethylphthalate and di‐n‐butylphthalate (DnBP) than a previous model. The model predictions are consistent with the observation that previously exposed clothing can increase dermal uptake over that observed in bare‐skin participants for the same exposure air concentrations. The model predicts that dermal uptake from clothing of DnBP is a substantial fraction of total uptake from all sources of exposure. For compounds that have high dermal permeability coefficients, dermal uptake is increased for (i) thinner clothing, (ii) a narrower gap between clothing and skin, and (iii) longer time intervals between laundering and wearing. Enhanced dermal uptake is most pronounced for compounds with clothing–air partition coefficients between 10⁴ and 10⁷. In the absence of direct measurements of cotton cloth–air partition coefficients, dermal exposure may be predicted using equilibrium data for compounds in equilibrium with cellulose and water, in combination with computational methods of predicting partition coefficients.     

橙皮素胶束溶液的制备及透明质酸对其稳定性和经皮渗透作用的影响

制备橙皮素胶束溶液,并以Zeta电位和经皮渗透速率为指标,考察透明质酸对胶束溶液稳定性和经皮渗透活性的影响。结果表明,透明质酸可显著提高橙皮素胶束溶液的稳定性和经皮渗透活性,当其质量分数为0.5%时,胶束溶液透明稳定、无不良气味,室温下pH平均值为5.4±0.1,Zeta电位平均值为-32.62 m V,橙皮素经豚鼠皮肤的稳态渗透速率常数Js达7.475 8μg/(cm~2·h),为对照组的1.5倍。橙皮素胶束溶液耐寒和耐热实验均表现出良好的稳定性。     

新型内循环双层呼吸式幕墙的应用

本文主要说明了内循环双层呼吸式幕墙的技术及原理,并详细介绍了华为新科研中心内循环双层呼吸式幕墙的节点构造、自然通风及节能与热工性能指标的计算等。     

Process design for multi-stage stretch forming of aluminium alloy aircraft skin

A process design approach for multi-stage stretch forming was proposed by combining the strain distribution method and finite element method (FEM) to determine the minimum stage number and deformation amount of each stage. The strain distribution method was used to calculate the deformation amount of each stage and evaluate the formability through a safety criterion. FE simulation was taken as an analysis tool to reveal the deformation behaviour, to predict the strain contour and to determine the process parameters at each stage. To evaluate the effect of heat treatment after pre-strain on occurrence of deformation defects during the subsequent deformation, a multi-stage uniaxial tension test for 2B06 aluminium alloy sheet was carried out. A case study demonstrates that the approach has high reliability and good practicability.     

冷轧平整机组延伸率自动控制系统

通过对平整机组延伸率控制系统的分析,对延伸率设定值的给定、延伸率的控制模式进行了探讨。     

Effect of skin hydration on the dynamics of fingertip gripping contact

The dynamics of fingertip contact manifest themselves in the complex skin movements observed during the transition from a stuck state to a fully developed slip. While investigating this transition, we found that it depended on skin hydration. To quantify this dependency, we asked subjects to slide their index fingertip on a glass surface while keeping the normal component of the interaction force constant with the help of visual feedback. Skin deformation inside the contact region was imaged with an optical apparatus that allowed us to quantify the relative sizes of the slipping and sticking regions. The ratio of the stuck skin area to the total contact area decreased linearly from 1 to 0 when the tangential force component increased from 0 to a maximum. The slope of this relationship was inversely correlated to the normal force component. The skin hydration level dramatically affected the dynamics of the contact encapsulated in the course of evolution from sticking to slipping. The specific effect was to reduce the tendency of a contact to slip, regardless of the variations of the coefficient of friction. Since grips were more unstable under dry skin conditions, our results suggest that the nervous system responds to dry skin by exaggerated grip forces that cannot be simply explained by a change in the coefficient of friction.     

Visual contrast modulates maturation of camouflage body patterning in cuttlefish (Sepia pharaonis).

Camouflage is the primary defense behavior in cephalopods. It is known that cuttlefish immediately after hatching are capable of showing various body patterns for concealing themselves, however recent studies suggest that maturation of camouflage body patterns is faster for cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) reared in enriched environments than those reared in impoverished environments. Since camouflage patterning in cephalopods is predominately visually driven, this study specifically investigates effects of the rearing background contrast on the maturation of body patterns in cuttlefish (Sepia pharaonis). Newly hatched animals were separated into two cohorts, one reared in a uniform-gray background (low-contrast, or L group) and the other raised in a black/white checkerboard background (high-contrast, or H group). At Weeks 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12, cuttlefish were placed individually either on uniform or checkerboard substrates to examine their body patterns. Animals from both L and H groups appear to show moderate disruptive patterns on the checkerboard and less disruptive on the uniform background at Week 2. Throughout development, however, cuttlefish from the H group showed stronger disruptive patterns than that of the L group on the checkerboard background at Weeks 10 and 12. In interesting findings, cuttlefish from both L and H groups showed similar strength but different disruptive components on the uniform background in later postembryonic stages. These results suggest that the maturation of camouflage body patterns in S. pharaonis is at least in part affected by visual contrast of their rearing backgrounds, although environmental complexity or social interaction is also likely to be involved in this process. This also implies that early visual experience could exert its effect on the seemingly preprogrammed behaviors such as camouflage body patterning in cephalopods. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

竖琴海豹皮组织结构的研究

本文从提高毛皮产品质量的角度出发，通过组织切片，光学显微镜观察和ｏｐｔｏｎ显微摄影仪观察并摄影，对海豹皮的生皮组织结构进行了初步的研究，研究结果表明：海豹皮真皮层的乳头层较厚，皮板中脂肪含量较大，胶原纤维编织细密，弹性纤维含量丰富。因此，在海豹皮的加工制造过程中，必须加强脱脂，注重破坏弹性纤维。