scholarly journals Nutritional quality of kermes oak (<i>Quercus coccifera</i> L.) acorns as affected by altitude in a typical Mediterranean area

2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 71-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christos N. Roukos ◽  
Zoi M. Parissi ◽  
Apostolos P. Kyriazopoulos ◽  
Eleni M. Abraham
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Mediterranean Area ◽  
Quercus Coccifera ◽  
Lower Altitude ◽  
Altitudinal Zone ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Kermes Oak

Abstract. The impact of altitudinal zone on the nutritional quality of kermes oak (Quercus coccifera L.) acorns was assessed in Xirovouni Mountain shrublands in northwestern Greece. Whole acorns were collected during autumn 2011 from 15 sites located at three altitudinal zones (i.e. lower, middle, upper). Kermes oak acorn samples were manually separated into kernel and hull and analysed for chemical composition (crude protein, CP; neutral detergent fibre, NDF; acid detergent fibre, ADF; lignin), in vitro dry matter (DM) digestibility (IVDMD), in vitro NDF digestibility (IVNDFD), digestible energy (DE), and minerals (i.e. Ca, P, K, Mg, Mn, Fe, Zn, Cu). Altitude had a negative correlation with CP, IVDMD, and IVNDFD and positively correlated to cell wall contents in both kernel and hull. Acorns growing under higher temperatures (at lower altitude) have more digestible cell wall compared to acorns growing under lower temperatures (at higher altitude) due to increased CP content and decreased cell wall content. It seems that environmental factors affect the nutritional value of acorns. Thus, goat farmers should take this into account when collecting acorns to feed their animals.

scholarly journals Impact of a Series of Educational Talks Taught by Health Professionals to Promote Healthy Snack Choices among Children

Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 203
Author(s):  
Víctor Arufe Giráldez ◽  
Javier Puñal Abelenda ◽  
Rubén Navarro-Patón ◽  
Alberto Sanmiguel-Rodríguez
Keyword(s):  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Overweight And Obesity ◽  
Healthy Habits ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Nutrition And Dietetics ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact

Background: One of the great challenges facing today’s society is the need to combat overweight and obesity in schoolchildren. This study aimed to analyze the impact of a cycle of didactic talks—given to families by a specialist in pediatrics, a specialist in nutrition and dietetics and a specialist in physical exercise—on childrens’ snack choices and nutrition quality. Methods: A longitudinal, quasi-experimental and quantitative investigation was designed, working with a total sample of 50 students divided into control and experimental groups. The nutritional quality of daily snacks was recorded during the month before and the month after the cycle of talks given by health experts. Results: An increase in the nutritional quality of the snacks was observed in the days after the talk—but, after a week, values returned to normal. Conclusions: The giving of educational talks to promote healthy habits may have a positive impact on the nutritional quality of school snacks in the days immediately following the talks. However, some forgetfulness was detected over time, which reduced the nutritional quality of the snacks once more. For future work, it is recommended that researchers measure the impact produced by giving regular talks.

scholarly journals Use of Tannin-Containing Plants as Antimicrobials Influencing the Animal Health

2022 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 33-40
Author(s):  
Mohammed M Dakheel ◽  
Afnan A Al-Mnaser ◽  
Jessica Quijada ◽  
Martin J Woodward ◽  
Caroline Rymer
Keyword(s):  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Condensed Tannins ◽  
Animal Health ◽  
Degree Of Polymerization ◽  
Gram Negative Bacteria ◽  
Animal Feeding ◽  
The Subject

The antimicrobial effects of diverse tannin-containing plants, particularly condensed tannins (CTs) produced from various plants, are the subject of this study. CT components can be determined using CT-specific procedures such the HCl-Butanol Acetone assay, Thiolysis reaction, and HPLC/MS analysis. These methods indicate CT contents, including mean degree of polymerization, the procyanidins and prodelphinidins ratio (PC/PD%), the isomers of trans- and cis-, and CT concentration. Tannin-containing plants possess antibacterial action, which can be attributed to their protein linkage technique, and tannin-type variations, particularly CTs extract and their PC/PD%. The effects of CT components on the development of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria have been documented for their relative PC/PD%; this is regarded to be a key predictor of tannin characteristics in terms of antimicrobials. In conclusion, tannins, more specific CT compositions, have significant impacts on in vivo trials of animal productions and utilization of metabolites and fermentation in vitro experiments. These findings need further investigations to fully understand how CT-types act on animal feeding in terms of enhanced nutritional quality of animal diets, which may have implications for human and animal health.

scholarly journals Modelling the dietary impact of health-related claims on food labels in the UK

2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (OCE2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asha Kaur ◽  
Peter Scarborough ◽  
Mike Rayner
Keyword(s):  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Saturated Fat ◽  
Nutritional Composition ◽  
Health Claims ◽  
Baseline Scenario ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Mathematical Equations ◽  
The Impact

AbstractHealth-related claims (HRCs) are statements found on food packets that convey the nutritional quality of a food (nutrition claims) and/or its impact on a health outcome (health claims). Foods carrying HRCs have a slightly improved nutritional profile than foods without HRCs, however, it's unclear whether this translates into dietary improvements. We conducted a modelling study to measure the effect of HRCs on diet. As HRCs are already present on foods it is assumed that any impact that they have upon diet are already in effect. We modelled the impact on food purchases of removing HRCs, by assuming that the sales boost they receive is neutralised. These results can be inverted to estimate the current dietary impact of HRCs. Using the Living Costs Food (LCF) survey data, we calculate the average purchases and nutrient intake per person, per day. The LCF data is divided into sales of products with HRCs and sales of products without HRCs through solving mathematical equations combining LCF sales data with odds ratios from a meta-analysis examining the impact of HRCs on choices and data from a survey of foods examining the prevalence of HRCs and the nutritional quality of foods that carry them so that the sum of the sales of products with HRCs and without HRCs is equal to the total sales of products. Similarly, mathematical equations are solved that combine nutritional composition data with the sales of foods carrying and not carrying HRCs. In the baseline scenario foods carrying HRCs made-up 37% of the total purchases, and contributed 29% (559kcal) of the total kcals purchased (1907kcal). When HRCs are removed from foods there is an average increase of 18kcal/d (95% Uncertainty Intervals [UI] -15, 52), + 2g/d increase in total fat (95% UI -1, 4) and saturated fat (95% UI 1, 3), smaller changes are seen for protein (+ 0.5g/d, 95% UI -1, 2), total sugar (+ 0.5g/d, 95% UI -4, 7) and carbohydrate (-0.5g/d, 95% UI -5, 7). There is reduction in the amount of fruit (-11g/d, 95% UI -34, 26) but an increase in vegetables (+ 6g/d, 95% UI -6, 19). These results should be interpreted with caution due to the large uncertainty intervals. When HRCs are removed, we see a small deterioration in the quality of the average diet. If we invert these findings we can assume HRCs currently have a positive, albeit small, impact on diet.

scholarly journals The impact of environmental changes on the yield and nutritional quality of fruits, nuts and seeds: a systematic review

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 023002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmelia Alae-Carew ◽  
Salina Nicoleau ◽  
Frances A Bird ◽  
Poppy Hawkins ◽  
Hanna L Tuomisto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals The impact of over-maturation on the sensory and nutritional quality of Gouqi (Chinese wolfberry) wine

2017 ◽  
Vol 124 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Ren ◽  
Shaoyang Wang ◽  
Yan Ning ◽  
Mengze Wang ◽  
Liying Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals Effect of Endometrioma cystectomy on cytokines of follicular fluid and IVF outcomes

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Liang ◽  
Xiaokui Yang ◽  
Yonglian Lan ◽  
Lingling Lei ◽  
Ying Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Growth Factors ◽  
Inflammatory Cytokines ◽  
Follicular Fluid ◽  
Ovarian Function ◽  
Ivf Outcomes ◽  
Surgery Group ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Ivf Et

Abstract Background Endometriosis patients undergoing in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-ET) treatment suffer from lower success rates. The success of IVF-ET is related to the receptivity of the uterus and the quality of embryos, and it is well known a patient’s endometriosis does not impair the receptivity. Whether endometrioma should be removed surgically before IVF remains controversial. Studies have shown that endometrioma removal decreases peritoneal inflammation, but little information is available regarding the alteration in the cytokines of follicular fluid. The objective of this study was to examine the impact of endometrioma cystectomy on the outcome of IVF and the levels of intrafollicular inflammatory cytokines and to investigate correlations between cytokine concentrations and IVF outcomes. Method A total of 41 women with endometriosis-associated infertility undergoing IVF were recruited; 13 patients (surgery group, S group) had surgery to remove the endometrioma before enrollment, and 28 patients (non-surgery group, NS group) were untreated before IVF. The follicular fluid from a dominant follicle was collected during oocyte retrieval, and the concentrations of sixteen soluble cytokines known to be involved in ovarian function were measured. Results Among the soluble molecules examined in this study, chemokines and growth factors and a few are inflammatory cytokines were found in the follicular fluid of patients with endometriosis. In addition, the expression levels of chemokines, growth factors, and most inflammatory cytokines did not differ between the S and NS groups, but interleukin (IL)-18 levels were significantly lower in the NS group. However, the levels of IL-18 in the FF did not correlate with IVF cycle parameters. The implantation and clinical pregnancy rates were similar between the two groups, but the anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) level was lower in the S group than in the NS group. Conclusions These findings suggest that endometrioma surgery may potentially reduce the ovarian reserve and has little impact on the success rate of IVF. Ovarian endometriomas are not associated with cytokine profiles in FF from infertile women, and they are not likely to affect the quality of the oocyte and embryo as a result of an inflammatory mechanism.

effect of treating wheat straw with sodium hydroxide and calcium oxide alone or in combination with hydrogen peroxide on the in Vitro dry matter digestibility

1990 ◽  
Vol 1990 ◽  
pp. 119-119
Author(s):  
A. S. Chaudhry ◽  
E. L. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Hydrogen Peroxide ◽  
Wheat Straw ◽  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Alkaline Hydrogen Peroxide ◽  
Dry Matter Digestibility ◽  
Farm Scale

That alkali treatments can improve the nutritional quality of poor quality roughages has long been established (Sundstol and Owen, 1984). However, their effectiveness is limited by their potential hazards to the animals and mankind. Alkaline hydrogen peroxide (AHP) has recently emerged as a possible substitute (Gould, 1985) but its farm scale application is limited by the need for high amounts of chemicals and water. Lack of any information regarding its effectiveness over NaOH alone is another factor which requires further investigation. The present study was, therefore, planned to assess the effectiveness of pH-regulated (11.5±0.2) H2O2 (AHP) in improving the in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) of wheat straw (WS, Avalon) under different laboratory conditions. The possibility of using CaO on its own or to regulate pH for AHP was also tested.

Putrescine supplementation during in vitro maturation of aged mouse oocytes improves the quality of blastocysts

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 1392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dandan Liu ◽  
Guolong Mo ◽  
Yong Tao ◽  
Hongmei Wang ◽  
X. Johné Liu
Keyword(s):  
Oocyte Maturation ◽  
In Vitro Maturation ◽  
Inner Cell Mass ◽  
Cell Mass ◽  
In Vitro Fertilisation ◽  
Aged Mouse ◽  
Developmental Potential ◽  
The Impact

Mouse ovaries exhibit a peri-ovulatory rise of ornithine decarboxylase and its product putrescine concurrent with oocyte maturation. Older mice exhibit a deficiency of both the enzyme and putrescine. Peri-ovulatory putrescine supplementation in drinking water increases ovarian putrescine levels, reduces embryo resorption and increases live pups in older mice. However, it is unknown if putrescine acts in the ovaries to improve oocyte maturation. This study examined the impact of putrescine supplementation during oocyte in vitro maturation (IVM) on the developmental potential of aged oocytes. Cumulus–oocyte complexes from 9–12-month-old C57BL/6 mice were subjected to IVM with or without 0.5 mM putrescine, followed by in vitro fertilisation and culture to the blastocyst stage. Putrescine supplementation during IVM did not influence the proportion of oocyte maturation, fertilisation or blastocyst formation, but significantly increased blastocyst cell numbers (44.5 ± 1.9, compared with 36.5 ± 1.9 for control; P = 0.003). The putrescine group also had a significantly higher proportion of blastocysts with top-grade morphology (42.9%, compared with 26.1% for control; P = 0.041) and a greater proportion with octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (OCT4)-positive inner cell mass (38.3%, compared with 19.8% for control; P = 0.005). Therefore, putrescine supplementation during IVM improves egg quality of aged mice, providing proof of principle for possible application in human IVM procedures for older infertile women.

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