In vitro fermentation and prebiotic potential of novel low molecular weight polysaccharides derived from agar and alginate seaweeds

Fermentation properties and prebiotic potential of novel low molecular weight polysaccharides (LMWPs) derived from agar and alginate bearing seaweeds was investigated. Ten LMWPs were supplemented to pH, temperature controlled anaerobic batch cultures inoculated with human feces from three donors, in triplicate. Microbiota changes were monitored using Fluorescent in-situ hybridization and short chain fatty acids, the fermentation end products were analysed using gas chromatography. Of the ten LMWPs tested, Gelidium seaweed CC2253 of molecular weight 64.64 KDa showed a significant increase in bifidobacterial populations from log(10) 8.06 at 0 h to log(10) 8.55 at 24 h (p = 0.018). For total bacterial populations, alginate powder CC2238 produced a significant increase from log(10) 9.01 at 0 h to log(10) 9.58 at 24 h (p = 0.032). No changes were observed in the other bacterial groups tested viz. Bacteroides, Lactobacilli/Enterococci, Eubacterium rectale/Clostridium coccoides and Clostridium histolyticum. The polysaccharides also showed significant increases in total SCFA production, particularly acetic and propionic acids, indicating that they were readily fermented. In conclusion, some LMWPs derived from agar and alginate bearing seaweeds were fermented by gut bacteria and exhibited potential to be used a novel source of prebiotics.

Potential of legume-based grassland-livestock systems in Europe

European grassland-based livestock production systems are challenged to produce more milk and meat to meet increasing world demand and to achieve this by using fewer resources. Legumes offer great potential for coping with such requests. They have numerous features that can act together at different stages in the soil-plant-animal-atmosphere system and these are most effective in mixed swards with a legume abundance of 30-50%. The resulting benefits are a reduced dependency on fossil energy and industrial N fertilizer, lower quantities of harmful emissions to the environment (greenhouse gases and nitrate), lower production costs, higher productivity and increased protein self-sufficiency. Some legume species offer opportunities for improving animal health with less medication due to bioactive secondary metabolites. In addition, legumes may offer an option for adapting to higher atmospheric CO2 concentrations and to climate change. Legumes generate these benefits at the level of the managed land area unit and also at the level of the final product unit. However, legumes suffer from some limitations, and suggestions are made for future research in order to exploit more fully the opportunities that legumes can offer. In conclusion, the development of legume-based grassland-livestock systems undoubtedly constitutes one of the pillars for more sustainable and competitive ruminant production systems, and it can only be expected that legumes will become more important in the future.

Potential of legume-based grassland-livestock systems in Europe

European grassland-based livestock production systems face the challenge of producing more meat and milk to meet increasing world demands and to achieve this using fewer resources. Legumes offer great potential for achieving these objectives. They have numerous features that can act together at different stages in the soil–plant–animal–atmosphere system, and these are most effective in mixed swards with a legume proportion of 30–50%. The resulting benefits include reduced dependence on fossil energy and industrial N-fertilizer, lower quantities of harmful emissions to the environment (greenhouse gases and nitrate), lower production costs, higher productivity and increased protein self-sufficiency. Some legume species offer opportunities for improving animal health with less medication, due to the presence of bioactive secondary metabolites. In addition, legumes may offer an adaptation option to rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations and climate change. Legumes generate these benefits at the level of the managed land-area unit and also at the level of the final product unit. However, legumes suffer from some limitations, and suggestions are made for future research to exploit more fully the opportunities that legumes can offer. In conclusion, the development of legume-based grassland–livestock systems undoubtedly constitutes one of the pillars for more sustainable and competitive ruminant production systems, and it can be expected that forage legumes will become more important in the future.

Potential of novel dextran oligosaccharides as prebiotics for obesity management through in vitro experimentation.

The energy-salvaging capacity of the gut microbiota from dietary ingredients has been proposed as a contributing factor for the development of obesity. This knowledge generated interest in the use of non-digestible dietary ingredients such as prebiotics to manipulate host energy homeostasis. In the present study, the in vitro response of obese human faecal microbiota to novel oligosaccharides was investigated. Dextrans of various molecular weights and degrees of branching were fermented with the faecal microbiota of healthy obese adults in pH-controlled batch cultures. Changes in bacterial populations were monitored using fluorescent in situ hybridisation and SCFA concentrations were analysed by HPLC. The rate of gas production and total volume of gas produced were also determined. In general, the novel dextrans and inulin increased the counts of bifidobacteria. Some of the dextrans were able to alter the composition of the obese human microbiota by increasing the counts of Bacteroides–Prevotella and decreasing those of Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Ruminococcus bromii/R. flavefaciens. Considerable increases in SCFA concentrations were observed in response to all substrates. Gas production rates were similar during the fermentation of all dextrans, but significantly lower than those during the fermentation of inulin. Lower total gas production and shorter time to attain maximal gas production were observed during the fermentation of the linear 1 kDa dextran than during the fermentation of the other dextrans. The efficacy of bifidobacteria to ferment dextrans relied on the molecular weight and not on the degree of branching. In conclusion, there are no differences in the profiles between the obese and lean human faecal fermentations of dextrans.

The distributional and nutritional impacts and mitigation potential of emission-based food taxes in the UK

Agriculture and food production are responsible for a substantial proportion of greenhouse gas emissions. An emission based food tax has been proposed as one option to reduce food related emissions. This study introduces a method to measure the impacts of emission based food taxes at a household level which involves the use of data augmentation to account for the fact that the data record purchases and not consumption. The method is applied to determine the distributional and nutritional impacts of an emission based food tax across socio-economic classes in the UK. We find that a tax of £2.841/tCO2e on all foods would reduce food related emissions by 6.3% and a tax on foods with above average levels of emissions would reduce emissions by 4.3%. The tax burden falls disproportionately on households in the lowest socio-economic class because they tend to spend a larger proportion of their food expenditure on emission intensive foods and because they buy cheaper products and therefore experience relatively larger price increases.

Antimycobacterial activity of Indigofera suffruticosa with activation potential of the innate immune system

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

The Potential of p38 MAPK Inhibitors to Modulate Periodontal Infections

Periodontal disease initiation and progression occurs as a consequence of the host immune inflammatory response to oral pathogens. The innate and acquired immune systems are critical for the proper immune response. LPS, an outer membrane constituent of periodontal pathogenic bacteria, stimulates the production of inflammatory cytokines IL-1 beta TNF alpha IL-6 and RANKL either directly or indirectly. In LPS-stimulated cells, the induction of cytokine expression requires activation of several signaling pathways including the p38 MAPK pathway. This review will discuss the significance of the p38 MAPK pathway in periodontal disease progression and the potential therapeutic consequences of pharmacological antagonism of this pathway in the treatment of periodontal diseases.

Study of the discovery potential of light custodians in a clean decay channel at the LHC

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Potential of municipal solid waste (MSW) as a source of energy in São Paulo: Its impact on CO2 balance

Energy generation is needed in São Paulo and MSW represents a promising alternative, although it is more expensive than hydroelectric power. About 14 900 t/day of MSW is generated, of which 8433 t/day is domestic and commercial MSW. From this amount, 1800 t will be destined to generate 30 MW of power. The eco-balance of CO2 has been considered for incineration and recycling. The recycling program of plastics, metals, paper and glass would represent a significant reduction in energy and CO2 emission. The total CO2 released is 3.34 x 10(5) t/yr without recycling. and is 1.25 x 10(5) t/yr with a recycling program. Most of the CO2 comes from plastics and paper production. Economic aspects could probably favor Incineration with energy production as the best option. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier B.V. Ltd. All rights reserved.

Potential of Brazilian eugenia myrtaceae - As ornamental and as a fruit crop

Brazilian Myrtaceae comprises several genera of trees and shrubs used for ornamental and fruit production. In addition to the well known Guava, Pitanga and Jaboticaba, other species could be used for fruitculture, due the value and quality of their fruits and adaptation to some climate conditions mainly the subtropical one. Nine species of Eugenia were evaluated at Jaboticabal, located at 48° W and 21° S in São Paulo state in a germplasm bank. The average rain by year is 1431 mm and the temperature 22,2° C at an altitude of 575 m. The species are Eugenia klozschiana Berg. (Pero-do-campo), E. stipitata Mc Vaugh (Araça-boi), E. tomentosa Camb. (Cabeludinha), E. dysentherica DC. (Cagaita), E. brasiliensis Berg. (Grumixama), E.pitanga (Pitanga-anã), E. luchsnathiana Berg. (Pitomba), E. uvalha Camb. (Uvaia) and E. involucrata DC. (Cereja-do-rio-grande). The evaluations comprised tree development, fruit quality and leaf and flower morphological studies. The main results are: the trees of Pera-do-campo and Pitanga-anã are small shrubs of 1 to 2 m height, Araça-boi and Cabeludinha are small trees, 3 to 5 m high, and the other species are tall trees, with 5 to 10 m height. The species adapted well to the subtropical conditions, except for Araça-boi, which is native to the Amazonian region and exhibited a severe fungus disease infection. In relation to fruit quality, all the species had edible fruit, some were sweet and juicy, Cabeludinha, Grumixama, Pitomba, Cereja-do-rio grande and Pitanga-anã, while others had high acidity (Araça-boi, Pera-do-campo, Cagaita and Uvaia and were more suitable for processing. Simple, single leaves were characteristic of all species, but with different sizes and shapes., With the addition of color, smell and other characteristics, leaf size and shape were useful for comparative classification. Flower components and structure are described also.

Phytoremediation Potential of Mana-Cubiu (Solanum sessiliflorum Dunal) for the Deleterious Effects of Methylmercury on the Reproductive System of Rats

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Effect of manganese supplementation on the membrane integrity and the mitochondrial potential of the sperm of grazing Nelore bulls

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Modelling the maximum potential of nitrogen deposition and requirements of lysine for broilers

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Osteogenic potential of mesenchymal cells derived from canine umbilical cord matrix co-cultured with platelet-rich plasma and demineralized bone matrix

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Discrimination of production environments of specialty coffees by means of stable isotopes and discriminant model

The south of Minas Gerais, Brazil stands out among various regions through its capacity for production of specialty coffees. Its potential, manifested through being one of the most award-winning Brazilian regions in recent years, has been recognized by the Cup of Excellence (COE). With the evident relationship between product quality and the environment in mind, the need arises for scientific studies to provide a foundation for discrimination of product origin, creating new methods for combating possible fraud. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of carbon and nitrogen isotopes in discrimination of production environments of specialty coffees from the Serra da Mantiqueira of Minas Gerais by means of the discriminant model. Coffee samples were composed of ripe yellow and red fruits collected manually at altitudes below 1,000 m, from 1,000 to 1,200 m and above 1,200 m. The yellow and red fruits were subjected to dry processing and wet processing, with five replications. A total of 119 samples were used for discrimination of specialty coffee production environments by means of stable isotopes and statistical modeling. The model generated had an accuracy rate of 89% in discrimination of environments and was composed of the isotope variables of δ15N, δ13C, %C, %N, δD, δ18O (meteoric water) and sensory analysis scores. In addition, for the first time, discrimination of environments on a local geographic scale, within a single municipality, was proposed and successfully concluded. This shows that isotope analysis is an effective method in verifying geographic origin for specialty coffees.