Lead and cadmium content of Brazilian beers

The elements called heavy metals when ingested are not completely eliminated from animal bodies and are responsible for chronic and acute intoxications. Sixty-three samples of beer, produced in the states of São Paulo, Paraná, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, Minas Gerais, and Pará, were analysed for lead and cadmium content by atomic absorption spectrometry with graphite furnace atomization and Zeeman correction. The concentrations of Pb and Cd of dark differed significantly from light beers, being higher in the former. No significant difference was found between the beers produced in predominantly rural areas and the ones produced in industrialized areas. The concentrations of lead and cadmium in all samples were bellow the maximum accepted by present Brazilian regulations and ranged from not detected to 290mugPb/L and from not detected to 14.3mugCd/L. The average concentrations were 37mugPb/L and 1.6mugCd/L.

Effect of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) germination on the major globulin content and in vitro digestibility

Chickpea seed germination was carried out over a period of 6 days. Little variation in the nitrogen and total globulin content was observed. The major globulin (11 S type) showed higher variation after the 4th day of germination. The elution behaviour and distribution of the isolated major globulin fraction on Sepharose CL-6B chromatography showed little modification at the end of germination. On SDS-PAGE the peak eluted from Sepharose CL-6B showed changes in protein bands between 20 and 30 kDa and above 60 kDa, indicating protein degradation during the period. Proteolytic activity was detected in the albumin fraction of the seeds, which increased up to the fourth and then decreased up to the sixth day, when isolated chickpea total globulin and casein were used as substrates. Chickpea flour, isolated albumin and total globulin fractions did not show an increase for in vitro digestibility; however, the isolated major globulin was more susceptible to hydrolysis after germination.

Digital content and making it viral in social media

Tutkimuksen tavoite on selvittää digitaalisen sisällön ominaisuuksia, jotka vaikuttavat ryhtyvätkö kuluttajat jakamaan, tykkäämään ja kommentoimaan sitä sosiaalisessa mediassa. Tällä pyritään auttamaan yrityksiä ymmärtämään paremmin viraalisuutta, jotta he pystyisivät tuottamaan ja julkaisemaan nettisivuillaan ja sosiaalisessa mediassa parempaa sisältöä, jota kuluttajat jakaisivat enemmän. Tutkimus toteutetaan muodostamalla hypoteeseja mahdollisista ominaisuuksista kirjallisuuden perusteella ja testaamalla niitä regressioanalyyseillä empiirisessä osiossa. Tulokset paljastavat yhdeksän piirrettä, jotka lisäävät viraalisuutta: kiinnostavuus, neutraalisuus, yllättävyys, viihdyttävyys, epäkäytännöllisyys, artikkelin ja Facebook julkaisun pituus, eri sisältö taktiikoiden käyttö (erityisesti blogit ja kuvat lisäävät viraalisuutta) sekä kun mielipidevaikuttaja tai kuuluisuus jakaa sisällön.

Representations of cultural encounters in the global business press – The importance of cross-cultural competence

This qualitative study has started from the interest to examine how the reality of crosscultural encounters is presented in the global business press. The research paper emphasizes different ways to classify culture and cross-cultural competency, both from the point of view of individuals and organizations. The analysis consists of public discourses, where cross-cultural realities are created through different persons, stories and contexts For data collection, a comprehensive database search was performed and 10 articles from the widely known worldwide business magazine The Financial Times were chosen as the data for the study paper. For the functions of addressing the research study questions, Thematic Content Analysis (TCA) and also Discourse Analysis (DA) are utilized, added with the continuous comparison method of grounded theory in the formation of the data.The academic references consist of literary works and articles presenting relevant concepts, creating a cross-cultural framework, and it is designed to assist the reader in the navigation through the topics of culture and cross-cultural competency. The repertoires were formed from the data and following, the first repertoire is contrast difference between home and target culture that the individual was able to discern. As a consequence of the first repertoire, the companies then offer cultural training to their employees to prepare them to situations of increasing levels of cultural variation. The third repertoire is increased awareness of other cultures, which is conveyed as a result of cultural training and contextual work experience. The fourth repertoire is globalization as an international business environment, where the people in the articles perform their job functions. It is stated in the conclusions that the representations emphasize Western values and personal traits in leadership.

Evaluating digital marketing content management strategies in an international company.

The purpose of this thesis is to explore a different kind of digital content management model and to propose a process in order to manage properly the content on an organization’s website. This process also defines briefly the roles and responsibilities of the different actors implicated. In order to create this process, the thesis has been divided into two parts. First, the theoretical analysis helps to find the two main different content management models, content management adaptation and content management localization model. Each of these models, have been analyzed through a SWOT model in order to identify their particularities and which of them is the best option according to particular organizational objectives. In the empirical part, this thesis has measured the organizational website performance comparing two main data. On one hand, the international website is analyzed in order to identify the results of the content management standardization. On the other hand, content management adaptation, also called content management localization model, is analyzed by looking through the key measure of the Dutch page from the same organization. The resulted output is a process model for localization as well as recommendations on how to proceed when creating a digital content management strategy. However, more research is recommended to provide more comprehensive managerial solutions.

Soy and Brazil nut beverage: processing, composition, sensory, and color evaluation

Despite its high nutritional value, soymilk consumption in Western countries is limited mainly due to undesirable flavors developed during the traditional elaboration process. Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) has pleasant flavor and recognized nutritional value. Thus, the aim of this work was to elaborate a soy and Brazil nut beverage exploring the use of two national products of high nutritional quality. The process for manufacturing a soy and Brazil nut beverage consisted of elaboration, formulation, and homogenization of soymilk and Brazil nut milk. The addition of five levels (10, 20, 30, 40, and 50%) of Brazil nut milk to soy beverages was investigated. Although no significant differences in consumer average preference (p > 0.05) were observed among the beverages, analyzing both the consumer preference frequency distribution of the products and the Internal Preference Mapping (IPM), it was possible to conclude that the beverage with 30% of Brazil nut milk reached the most adequate performance demonstrating the sensory benefits Brazil nuts brought to the product. Regarding proximate composition, it did not present a better performance in terms of nutritional value, except for the oil content. The soy and Brazil nut beverage presented visual stability and no phase separation despite the non-stability shown by Brazil nut beverage itself. When Brazil nut milk was added to soy beverage, the final product became whiter than soy beverage, which is appealing to consumers who normally search for a clearer soymilk. The soy and Brazil nut beverage processing can be considered an alternative to increase the use of Brazil nuts in the Brazilian diet.

Comparison of total phenolic content and antiradical capacity of powders and "chocolates" from cocoa and cupuassu

Polyphenolic compounds seem to be related to the health benefits produced by the cocoa due to their antioxidant properties. Cupuassu powder, prepared from Theobroma grandiflorum seeds, is a very promising cocoa powder substitute. In order to assess the potential health benefits of the cupuassu powder, a comparison was performed between cocoa, chocolate, and cupuassu powders in relation to the content of total phenolic compounds, flavonoids and DPPH scavenging capacity of methanolic extracts. Cupuassu "chocolates" (milk, dark, and white) were also analyzed. Mineral, lipid, protein, and moisture determinations were made in cocoa and cupuassu powders and in cupuassu "chocolates". Results showed that the phenolic contents of cocoa and chocolate powders are more than three times higher than those of cupuassu powder; however, flavonoid contents were significantly lower. The DPPH scavenging capacity varied hugely among the different samples, from 0.5 (white cupuassu "chocolate") to 120 (cocoa powder) μg of Trolox equivalent per 100 g (FW), and presented a significant correlation (r = 0.977) with the total phenolic contents but not with the flavonoid contents (r = -0.035).

Colour, phenolic content and antioxidant activity of grape juice

Viticultural practices in the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil, have shown economic growth, with the production of grapes used to produce wines and grape juice. Grapes are rich in phenolic compounds which have drawn attention not only because of their important role in the development of products derived from grapes, but also for their potential beneficial health effects. The objective of this study was to evaluate commercial, organic and homemade grape juices produced in Santa Catarina. Grape juices were analyzed for total phenolic content, colour, and antioxidant activity. The commercial juices had the highest average values for total monomeric anthocyanins and total phenolics. There was a strong positive correlation (R = 0.9566) between the antioxidant activity and total phenolic content for the commercial juice. In addition, the Principle Components Analysis showed a strong positive correlation between the red colour and total monomeric anthocyanins. However, the total monomeric anthocyanis and polymeric anthocyanins showed a negative correlation.

Comparison of phenol content and antioxidant capacity of nuts

Frequent nut intake is associated with protective effects against cardiovascular diseases. In addition to the generally high contents of unsaturated fatty acids, polyphenol compounds seem to be also implicated in health promoting effects of nuts due to their antioxidant properties. In this way, eleven different kinds of nuts, including pinhao seeds (Araucaria angustifolia) and Brazil nuts (Bertholletia excelsa), typical of Brazil, were analyzed for the content of phenol compounds, including the potent anti-mutagenic and anti-cancer ellagic acid, and antioxidant capacity of methanolic extracts. The antioxidant capacity varied a hundred times among the different nuts, from 1.2 to 120 mg of Trolox equivalents.100 g-1 (FW). Total ellagic acid was determined after acid hydrolysis of ellagitannins and ellagic acid glycosides, and it was detected in only 3 of the 11 samples. The content of free and total ellagic acid in nuts varied from 0.37 to 41 and from 149 (chestnuts) to 823 (walnuts) mg.100 g-1 (FW), respectively. Among nuts, samples with the highest contents of ellagic acid (walnuts and pecans) also presented the highest total phenol contents and DPPH radical scavenging capacities. Pinhao seeds and Brazil nuts did not present significant amounts of phenols nor antioxidant capacity.

Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation: lipid content and hepatic histology in healthy Wistar rats

This work aimed to evaluate the effects of the consumption of two commercial conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) mixtures on lipid content and liver histology of healthy rats. The investigation was carried out using thirty rats divided into three groups: C (control), AE (AdvantEdge®CLA), and CO (CLA One®). The concentration of CLA was 2% of feed consumption, and the animals were supplemented daily for 42 days. The total lipid content of the liver was determined, and the histology of the organ was examined by Transmission Electronic Microscopy. The results of total liver lipid contents did not exhibit significant differences between the groups. With regard to hepatic histology, it was observed that although fat globules were visibly present in higher numbers and bigger size in the CLA groups, the organ histology was considered normal since both cytoplasm and organelles showed integrity. It was concluded that even though liver microscopic images indicated the presence of fat globules in the liver, from a statistical point of view, the supplementation for 42 days did not bring about lipid accumulation, nor did it alter hepatic histology.