The transformation of byproducts and wastes generated by agro-food companies is of high importance since only a small portion of plant material is utilized directly for human consumption. Squash pumpkin is greatly used in Portugal and as by-products of its processing are generated tons of shell and seeds. In this study we aim to evaluate the potential of these wastes as sources of beneficial and bioactive compounds (antioxidants and antimicrobials), studying the effect of different extraction solvents and drying methods. The samples (fresh and cooked) were freeze-dried and oven-dried followed by extraction with different solvents that revealed the following decreasing order of efficiency: 70 % ethanol, 70 % methanol, 70 % acetone, ultra-pure water and 100 % dichloromethane. The oven-dried samples showed higher values of antioxidant activity and phenolic content, with exception of the values of phenolics for the seeds material. The shell samples presented higher values (1.47 - 70.96 % inhibition) of antioxidant activity and total phenolic content (2.00 - 10.69 mg GAE/g DW). A positive correlation was found between these two parameters on the shell samples, however the squash seeds revealed a negative correlation between the phenolic content and the antioxidant activity. The results show that these industrial agro-food residues are potentially good sources of bioactive compounds with health benefits.

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The residual biomass of coffee, obtained after the oil extraction from coffee beans, called coffee beans residual press cake, has been attracted interest as a source of compounds with antioxidant capacity. This study investigated the effects of ethanolic and methanol-acetone extracts of green coffee beans (GCB) and its residual press cake (GCC) on the phenolic composition and antioxidant capacity. Antioxidant capacity was assayed through five different methods (total phenolic compounds, •DPPH, ABTS, FRAP and b-carotene bleaching assay), and the phenolic profile of the samples through High Performance Liquid Cromatography. GCB and GCC enclosed chlorogenic (55.16 and 64.96 mg g À1 , respectively) and caffeic (25.07 and 44.37 mg g À1 , respectively) acids as the major components, and the cake presented higher antioxidant capacity than the actual green bean. Antioxidant capacity was higher for GCC extracted with methanol and acetone. This study on the evaluation of the effects of the type of solvent on the bioactive compounds from GCB and GCC showed that this by-product can be a source of new value-added products, such as phenolic antioxidant adjuncts for food or pharmaceutic processing.

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Background: The risk of falling increases with neuromusculoskeletal and cognitive changes resulting from aging. Physical exercise shows beneficial effects on the risk of falling, but the results are unknown when associated with cognitive activity dual-task (DT) Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate the impacts of the Otago Exercise Program (OEP) plus DT cognitive activity on the risk of falling in older adults. Method: 36 older adults (83.5±5.7 years) participated in a quasi-experimental study, distributed in two experimental groups and a control group: 1) OEP (OEPG; n=12), 2) OEP plus DT (OEPDTG; n=12), and a control group (CG; n=12). Older adults were evaluated at pre- and post-12 weeks of intervention-. The thresholds for the risk of falling were considered as multiparameter scores of the 10 Meter Walking Test (10MWT), evocative 10MWT, Timed Up and Go (TUG), Sit to Stand Test (STS), and The Four-Stage Balance Test (Four-Stage), and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), to test the cognitive impairment. Results: At baseline, all groups were homogeneous. Post-intervention, the experimental groups presented significant functional differences, in comparison to the CG, for 10MWT (OEPDTG: p=0.002; OEPG: p=0.002); evocative 10MWT (OEPDTG: p=0.001; OEPG: p=0.001); TUG (OEPDTG: p=0.034); STS (OEPDTG: p<0.001; OEPG: p<0.001) and cognitive for MoCA (OEPDTG: p<0.019). Significant intra-group differences (pre-post) were observed in all intervention groups, but none in CG. The risk of falling (Four-Stage) in experimental groups (OEPDTG: 33.3%; OEPG: 41.7%) was considerably lower than CG (83.3%). Conclusion: Otago Exercise Program alone can reduce the risk of falling due to improved functionality, but adding the dual task also improves cognitive capacity in older adults. The clinical significance of these interventions goes beyond statistics.