No abstract

No abstract

Pereskia aculeata Miller is known in Brazil as ora-pro-nobis (OPN) and has been used commonly in the folklore medicine. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the composition and the effects of OPN flour on the metabolic profile and intestinal motility of Wistar rats. Animals were divided randomly into five groups (n = 10): G1 (control group) and G2 (treated with OPN flour). For the intestinal motility: G3 (control group), G4 (treated with senne), and G5 (treated with OPN flour). After 40 days, G1 and G2 were euthanized and metabolic profiles were analyzed (glycemia, cholesterol, triglycerides, high density lipoprotein [HDL-c], C reactive protein, AST, ALT, Lee Index, weight, and visceral fat). The flour of OPN was effective in reducing percentage of weight gain, visceral fat, levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, low density lipoprotein, very low density lipoprotein, and increased HDL-c. Significance was also found in the distance covered by the activated charcoal from the pylorus to the beginning of the cecum, which was higher in animals treated with OPN. Our results indicate that OPN flour may bring health benefits, as the improvement of the intestinal motility, and it is associated with reduction of visceral fat and lipid profile, as well as the increase of HDL-c levels. With these results, we may suggest that the incorporation of this flour in different industrial products may be a convenient and effective way for the intake of healthier products.

Xylella fastidiosa is the causal agent of citrus variegated chlorosis and Pierce's disease which are the major threat to the citrus and wine industries. The most accepted hypothesis for Xf diseases affirms that it is a vascular occlusion caused by bacterial biofilm, embedded in an extracellular translucent matrix that was deduced to be the exopolysaccharide fastidian. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis demonstrated that virulent cells which form biofilm on glass have low fastidian content similar to the weak virulent ones. This indicates that high amounts of fastidian are not necessary for adhesion. In this paper we propose a kinetic model for X. fastidiosa adhesion, biofilm formation, and virulence based on electrostatic attraction between bacterial surface proteins and xylem walls. Fastidian is involved in final biofilm formation and cation sequestration in dilute sap.

increasing attention has been given, over the past decades, to the production of exopolysaccharides (eps) from rhizobia, due to their various biotechnological applications. overall characterization of biopolymers involves evaluation of their chemical, physical, and biological properties; this evaluation is a key factor in understanding their behavior in different environments, which enables researchers to foresee their potential applications. our focus was to study the eps produced by Mesorhizobium huakuii lMG14107, M. loti lMG6125, M. plurifarium lMG11892, Rhizobium giardini bv. giardini h152 t , R. mongolense lMG19141, and Sinorhizobium (= Ensifer) kostiense lMG19227 in a rdM medium with glycerol as a carbon source. these biopolymers were isolated and characterized by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (rp-hplC), fourier transform infrared (ftir), and nuclear magnetic resonance (nMr) spectroscopies. Maximum exopolysaccharide production was 3.10, 2.72, and 2.50 g l -1 for the strains LMG6125, LMG19227, and LMG19141, respectively. The purified EPS revealed prominent functional reactive groups, such as hydroxyl and carboxylic, which correspond to a typical heteropolysaccharide. the eps are composed primarily of galactose and glucose. Minor components found were rhamnose, glucuronic acid, and galacturonic acid. indeed, from the results of techniques applied in this study, it can be noted that the eps are species-specific heteropolysaccharide polymers composed of common sugars that are substituted by non-carbohydrate moieties. in addition, analysis of these results indicates that rhizobial EPS can be classified into five groups based on ester type, as determined

No abstract

No abstract

Dragon fruit (Hylocereus genus) has the potential for the prevention of diseases associated with inflammatory and oxidative processes. We aimed to comprehensively review dragon fruit health effects, economic importance, and possible use in delivery systems. Pubmed, Embase, and Google Scholar were searched, and PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis) guidelines were followed. Studies have shown that pitaya can exert several benefits in conditions such as diabetes, dyslipidemia, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer due to the presence of bioactive compounds that may include vitamins, potassium, betacyanin, p-coumaric acid, vanillic acid, and gallic acid. Moreover, pitaya has the potential to be used in food and nutraceutical products as functional ingredients, natural colorants, ecologically correct and active packaging, edible films, preparation of photoprotective products, and additives. Besides the importance of dragon fruit as a source of bioactive compounds, the bioavailability is low. The development of delivery systems such as gold nanoparticles with these compounds can be an alternative to reach target tissues.