Antifungal activity of total and fractionated phenolic extracts from two wild edible herbs

The chemical characterization of phenolic extracts of salad burnet (Sanguisorba minor Scop. s.l.) and broomrape (Orobanche crenata Forsk.) was performed. Active fractions were separated and characterized and, in the case of O. crenata, two phenolic compounds, verbascoside and is overbascoside, were quantitatively extracted, purified and characterized. These compounds proved to be effective in reducing the growth of some important fungi responsible for the decay of fresh fruit and vegetables in postharvest. Verbascoside showed significant activity against Penicillium italicum, fairly inhibited Monilinia laxa, P. expansum, and Aspergillus carbonarius, and showed little activity against Botrytis cinerea, M. fructicola and P. digitatum. Isoverbascoside completely inhibited B. cinerea, P. digitatum, P. italicum, and P. expansum;it fairly inhibited M. laxa and A. carbonarius;while it showed to be less effective against M. fructicola. The obtained results support the possible use of some wild edible plants as a source of phenolic substances for the postharvest biological control of fresh fruit and vegetable rots.

Exercise sustains the hallmarks of health

Exercise has long been known for its active role in improving physical fitness and sustaining health.Regular moderate-intensity exercise improves all aspects of human health and is widely accepted as a preventative and therapeutic strategy for various diseases.It is well-documented that exercise maintains and restores homeostasis at the organismal,tissue,cellular,and molecular levels to stimulate positive physiological adaptations that consequently protect against various pathological conditions.Here we mainly summarize how moderate-intensity exercise affects the major hallmarks of health,including the integrity of barriers,containment of local perturbations,recycling and turnover,integration of circuitries,rhythmic oscillations,homeostatic resilience,hormetic regulation,as well as repair and regeneration.Furthermore,we summarize the current understanding of the mechanisms responsible for beneficial adaptations in response to exercise.This review aimed at providing a comprehensive summary of the vital biological mechanisms through which moderate-intensity exercise maintains health and opens a window for its application in other health interventions.We hope that continuing investigation in this field will further increase our understanding of the processes involved in the positive role of moderate-intensity exercise and thus get us closer to the identification of new therapeutics that improve quality of life.

Impact of Seasonal Low on Sea Level Rise

Every region around the globe has its unique climatic conditions which are set based on different orographic constant and atmospheric dynamic features. These features posses’ variability on different time scales. Determining the local sea level change based on terrestrial non-tidal, short-term variability is complicated. Some internal mechanisms of ocean are also taking place along with the external physical ones. We show that variability at Sindh-Baluchistan coastal belt can be greatly explained via dimensional indices of the position and intensity of the atmospheric center of action (COAs). This technique has already proved its usefulness at number of location especially in Northern Atlantic. It takes into account the changes in the atmospheric pressure which is exerted on the sea surface influencing the variability in sea level on seasonal scale and on inter-annual basis. As warming causes thermal expansion of water it also causes changes in atmospheric circulation. Both of these processes affect the sea level variability on their respective time scales. Atmospheric being the quicker one of the two to pass on the effect is also more influential to explain the variability in local sea level. In this attempt the COA approach is used to assess the impact of low pressure on local sea levels.

Characterization of volatile organic compounds in grafted tomato plants upon potyvirus necrotic infection

A headspace solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(HS-SPME/GC-MS)method was used to study the volatile organic compounds(VOCs)associated with the differential immune response of tomato plants infected with the recombinant strain of potato virus Y(PVY^(C)-to),necrogenic to tomato.Analysis was carried out in UC82(UC),a virus susceptible tomato variety,comparing the same UC plants grafted or not onto a virus tolerant tomato ecotype,Manduria(Ma);the three types of samples used for the GC-MS analysis were mock-inoculated UC/Ma plants,UC/Ma+PVY^(C)-to and UC+PVY^(C)-to plants;the VOCs obtained were 111.Results from symptomatic PVY^(C)-to-infected UC plants showed a VOCs composition enriched in alcohols,fatty acid derivates,benzenoids,and salicylic acid derivatives,while in mock-inoculated UC/Ma plants VOCs were mainly characterized by methyl ester compounds.The VOC profile was in line with RNAseq data analyses,denoting that PVY^(C)-to viral RNA accumulation and disease symptoms induce the specific transcriptional activation of genes involved in VOCs biosynthesis.Furthermore,principal component analysis highlighted that VOCs of PVY^(C)-to-infected and mock-inoculated grafted plants were much closer each other than that of symptomatic PVY^(C)-to-infected non-grafted UC plants.These results suggest that VOCs profiles of tomato plants are related to the viral RNA accumulation,disease intensity and graft-derived tolerance to PVY^(C)-to infection.

Is physical performance(in mice)increased by Veillonella atypica or decreased by Lactobacillus bulgaricus?

1.Introduction Regular exercise induces changes in the overall diversity and in the relative abundance of certain gut microbiota phyla and families in humans1,2 and in animal models.3,4 This relationship has attracted a great deal of interest because it is one of the mechanisms involved in the health benefits of regular exercise3 that could also influence performance.5 A recent publication by Scheiman et al.

Sexual function in women after delivery:Does episiotomy matter?

Objective: Despite the fact that a restrictive use of episiotomy has proven to be beneficial, it continues to be widely used in vaginal births. Our aim was to compare women with episiotomy, to women with an intact perineum, 3 months after delivery, regarding several sexual variables, namely: sexual desire, arousal, orgasm, pain, sexual satisfaction and sexual function. Methods: An exploratory, descriptive and quantitative study using a non-probabilistic, convenience sample of 147 Portuguese women, of which 54 belonged to a control group, was performed. The groups were not significantly different regarding socio-demographic aspects. Three instruments were used: the Female Sexual Function Index, a Socio-demographic and Clinical Questionnaire and the Female Sexual Function Questionnaire. Results: Most women mentioned a moderate level of sexual interest. Women with episiotomy present higher pain intensity, less sexual satisfaction, greater changes regarding the orgasm’s duration and intensity, lower levels of sexual arousal and total sexual function, than women with intact perineum. Discussion: We found no significant differences between women with episiotomy and women with an intact perineum in most variables. However, women with episiotomy presented higher levels of pain and a lower sexual satisfaction, being these significant differences.

Student’s Academic Efficacy or Inefficacy?An Example on How to Evaluate the Psychometric Properties of a Measuring Instrument and Evaluate the Effects of Item Wording

This study evaluated the effect of item inversion on the construct validity and reliability of psychometric scales and proposed a theoretical framework for the evaluation of the psychometric properties of data gathered with psychometric instruments. To this propose, we used the Maslach Burnout Inventory, which is the most used psychometric inventory to measure burnout in different professional context (Students, Teachers, Police, Doctors, Nurses, etc…). The version of the MBI used was the MBI-Student Survey (MBI-SS). This inventory is composed of three key dimensions: Exhaustion, Cynicism and Professional Efficacy. The two first dimensions—which have positive formulated items—are moderate to strong positive correlated, and show moderate to strong negative correlations with the 3rd dimension—which has negative formulated items. We tested the hypothesis that, in college students, formulating the 3rd dimension of burnout as Inefficacy (reverting the negatively worded items in the Efficacy dimension) improves the correlation of the 3rd dimension with the other two dimensions, improves its internal consistency, and the overall MBI-SS’ construct validity and reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis results, estimated by Maximum Likelihood, revealed adequate factorial fit for both forms of the MBI-SS (with Efficacy) vs. the MBI-SSi (with Inefficacy). Also both forms showed adequate convergent and discriminant related validity. However, reliability and convergent validity were higher for the MBI-SSi. There were also stronger (positive) correlations between the 3 factors in MBI-SSi than the ones observed in MBI-SS. Results show that positively rewording of the 3rd dimension of the MBI-SS improves its validity and reliability. We therefore propose that the 3rd dimension of the MBI-SS should be named Professional Inefficacy and its items should be positively worded.

Role of sex on psychological distress,quality of life,and coping of patients with advanced colorectal and non-colorectal cancer

BACKGROUNDPatients with advanced gastrointestinal cancer must cope with the negative effects of cancer and complications.AIM To evaluate psychological distress,quality of life,and coping strategies in patients with advanced colorectal cancer compared to non-colorectal cancer based on sex.METHODS A prospective,transversal,multicenter study was conducted in 203 patients;101(50%)had a colorectal and 102(50%)had digestive,non-colorectal advanced cancer.Participants completed questionnaires evaluating psychological distress(Brief Symptom Inventory-18),quality of life(EORTC QLQ-C30),and coping strategies(Mini-Mental Adjustment to Cancer)before starting systemic cancer treatment.RESULTS The study included 42.4%women.Women exhibited more depressive symptoms,anxiety,functional limitations,and anxious preoccupation than men.Patients with non-colorectal digestive cancer and women showed more somatization and physical symptoms than subjects with colorectal cancer and men.Men with colorectal cancer reported the best health status.CONCLUSION The degree of disease acceptance in gastrointestinal malignancies may depend on sex and location of the primary digestive neoplasm.Future interventions should specifically address sex and tumor site differences in individuals with advanced digestive cancer.

Multidimensional Pain Inventory(MPI):Adaptation to Orthodontic Patients and Its Psychometric Properties

Background: Pain perception may result from orthodontic treatment and should be considered in clinical management. Its assessment should not be limited to the intensity of perceived pain but should also consider the psychosocial and behavioral aspects involved. Objective: The aims of this study were to adapt and validate the Multidimensional Pain Inventory (MPI) for orthodontic patients, and present a proposal to calculate an overall score of the pain-related aspects and compare these scores with the usual methodology used. Methods: Face validity of the MPI was estimated and orthodontic version (MPI-Orthodontic) was developed. Factorial validity was evaluated by confirmatory analysis. Convergent and discriminant validity and reliability were estimated. The fit of Second-Order Hierarchical Models was estimated. Concurrent validity of MPI-Orthodontic was evaluated against the Visual Analogue Scale. Invariance of the factorial models was evaluated for independent samples and according to sex and age. Overall score was calculated using the matrix of regression weights and compared to simple arithmetic mean. Results: 507 individuals (63.3% women;age: 26.32 (SD = 11.70) years) participated. For the fit of Part I (psychosocial aspects) of the MPI-Orthodontic, it added correlation between two items and excluded one item;for Part II (behavioral aspects) two items were excluded. The models presented adequate fit to the sample. Reliability was adequate. MPI-Orthodontic presented invariance for independent samples and adequate concurrent and divergent validity. Score obtained with the simple arithmetic mean was overestimated for Part I and underestimated for Part II. Conclusion: MPI-Orthodontic was valid, reliable and invariant for the evaluation of the orthodontic pain. It is recommended to calculate overall weighted scores for pain assessment.

Pigmented cereals and legume grains as healthier alternatives for brewing beers

Pioneering studies were carried out on red-to-black pigmented grains for brewing beers.Together with pigmented cereals,the use of pulses was also proposed for making low-alcohol,gluten-free beers with improved contents of health-promoting compounds.So far,a new concept of beer is emerging among scientists,brewers,and consumers by expanding the assortment of conventional beer’s ingredients.Coloured(red,purple,blue,black)cereal grains and legume grains are an untapped resource of functional compounds.each denoting different and complementary beneficial effects on human health.Among others,polyphenols contribute to protect against non-communicable diseases such as hypertension,heart diseases,cancers,diabetes and obesity.In this review,we summarized the improvement in terms of phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity of beers obtained by using pigmented cereal grains and pulses as raw ingredients versus traditional beers.We examined the influence of these alternative materials on the qualitative properties of the beers.Moreover,we reviewed the contribution of traditional and non-conventional yeasts on the flavour and quality of these new functional beers.Finally,we discussed the use of different and complementary chemical methods for monitoring the composition,organoleptic profile,safety,and authentication issues with the aim to highlight the most promising to protect and promote novel beer products.

Application of microbial cross-over for the production of Italian grape ale (IGA), a fruit beer obtained by grape must addition

In the last years,the production of grape ale beer has become a trendy choice among brewers in Italy,resulting in a new beer type known as Italian Grape Ale(IGA),a sort of bridge beverage between beer and wine.In this study,three autochthonous Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains(CHE-3,P4 and TA4-10),previously isolated from different food types,were tested in comparison with the commercial strain US-05.Fermentations were conducted at a laboratory scale on malt extracts with 15%and 25%grape must adjuncts,and on malt wort(control).After fermentation,the CHE-3,P4 and TA4-10 strains showed significantly higher CO_(2) production than US-05.The main analytical parameters(organic acids,real and apparent attenuation,ethanol content,glycerol level and carbohydrate profile)and the volatile compounds related to the organoleptic quality of the experimental beers were strongly influenced both by the grape must addition to the fermentation medium and the used strains.The addition of grape must enhanced the CO_(2) production,especially when 25%of grape must was added to the wort.By comparing the tested strains,the highest aromatic expression was observed with 15%grape must adjunct.The present results confirm the importance of media composition and microbial biodiversity to gain more different beers especially in the craft beers sector.Moreover,the outcome data show the significance of microbial cross-over,a novel approach based on the exploitation of microorganisms traditionally used in other agro-food chains also for brewing novel beer types.

Climatic niche shift of an invasive shrub (Ulex europaeus): a global scale comparison in native and introduced regions

Aims Invasive species,which recently expanded,may help understand how climatic niche can shift at the time scale of the current global change.Here,we address the climatic niche shift of an invasive shrub(common gorse,Ulex europaeus)at the world and regional scales to assess how it could contribute to increasing invasibility.Methods Based on a 28187 occurrences database,we used a combination of 9 species distribution models(SDM)to assess regional climatic niche from both the native range(Western Europe)and the introduced range in different parts of the world(North-West America,South America,North Europe,Australia and New Zealand).Important Findings Despite being restricted to annual mean temperature between 4℃ and 22℃,as well as annual precipitation higher than 300 mm/year,the range of bioclimatic conditions suitable for gorse was very large.Based on a native versus introduced SDM comparison,we highlighted a niche expansion in North-West America,South America and to a lesser degree in Australia,while a niche displacement was assessed in North Europe.These niche changes induced an increase in potential occupied areas by gorse by 49,111,202 and 283%in Australia,North Europe,North-West America and South America,respectively.On the contrary,we found no evidence of niche change in New Zealand,which presents similar climatic condition to the native environment(Western Europe).This study highlights how niche expansion and displacement of gorse might increase invasibility at regional scale.The change in gorse niche toward new climatic conditions may result from adaptive plasticity or genetic evolution and may explain why it has such a high level of invasibility.Taking into account the possibility of a niche shift is crucial to improve invasive plants management and control.

普通金雀花种群在高温下的本土和入侵幼苗抗旱性

入侵物种的气候生长需求在其本土和非本土环境之间保持一致的假设是评估入侵风险的关键生态学问题。本研究通过生长箱实验,比较水分和温度对普通金雀花幼苗(Ulex europaeus L.)本土种群和入侵种群生长和死亡率的影响。从本土(法国大陆和西班牙)和非本土(新西兰、加那利群岛和留尼旺岛)的5个地区的20个种群中采集了种子样本。幼苗在两种温度处理(环境温度和高温)和两种水处理(灌溉和干旱)中生长超过36天。温度升高被定义为在不同国家的生态位边缘观察到的最高温度。虽然温度升高增加了幼苗的生长,但干旱处理增加了死亡率并限制了幼苗的生长。在高温和干旱条件下,本土种群的死亡率(53%)高于入侵种群(16%)。在这些受限的气候条件下,入侵幼苗的地上和地下发育也好于本土幼苗。虽然表型可塑性在本土种群和入侵种群之间没有差异,但种群之间总干物质生物量的差异可能与起源气候(尤其是降水)的差异有关。评估入侵物种种群之间表型变化的重要性对于确定其气候分布范围的边缘以及对突出应集中管理以限制其传播的区域都至关重要。

Fisher's perceptions about a marine protected area over time

The perceptions of fishers towards the Arrábida Marine Park,a marine protected area(MPA)in the west coast of Portugal,were studied through face-to-face interviews in two different moments of the MPA life cycle.Fishers'perceptions about the MPA and the impact it had on the fishing activity over time were identified just before the full implementation of the zoning and regulations of the management plan and 10 years later.This study aimed to investigate fishers'knowledge,acceptance and perceptions about the MPA changed with time,if support for the MPA was linked to the impact of the MPA on the fishing activity,and if fishers'perceptions about the impact of the MPA on the fishing activity match with local landings trends.Results show that although knowledge about the marine park significantly improved over time,fishers'acceptance did not.A decrease on fishers'support was not substantial but occurred.Issues such as the disagreement with regulations reinforced concerns raised during the implementation of the marine park,particularly in relation to the top-down decision-making,which commonly confers minor participation,recognition and legitimacy to fishers.Apparently,fisheries benefits were still not perceived by local fishers,though they are central for fishers'support.Further,the perceived negative impacts of the park seemed to be more related to social aspects and individual interests than to impacts on catches.Addressing adequate management,enforcement and participation of local fishers is still possible and are advocated here as to contribute to the expected socioecological outcomes and respective support,leading to the future successful performance of the Arrábida Marine Park.Assessing fishers’perceptions towards an MPA over time is central and should be included on periodical socioecological monitoring and inform an effective adaptive management.

全球禽蛋生产格局及贸易演变的区位分析

在1970和2005之间，全球禽蛋产量从1950万吨增加到5920万吨，即增加了203％。

Annual Maps of Forests in Australia from Analyses of Microwave and Optical Images with FAO Forest Definition

The Australian governmental agencies reported a total of 149 million ha forest in the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations(FAO)in 2010,ranking sixth in the world,which is based on a forest definition with tree height>2 meters.Here,we report a new forest cover data product that used the FAO forest definition(tree cover>10%and tree height>5 meters at observation time or mature)and was derived from microwave(Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar,PALSAR)and optical(Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer,MODIS)images and validated with very high spatial resolution images,Light Detection and Ranging(LiDAR)data from the Ice,Cloud,and land Elevation Satellite(ICESat),and in situ field survey sites.The new PALSAR/MODIS forest map estimates 32 million ha of forest in 2010 over Australia.PALSAR/MODIS forest map has an overall accuracy of~95%based on the reference data derived from visual interpretation of very high spatial resolution images for forest and nonforest cover types.Compared with the canopy height and canopy coverage data derived from ICESat LiDAR strips,PALSAR/MODIS forest map has 73%of forest pixels meeting the FAO forest definition,much higher than the other four widely used forest maps(ranging from 36%to 52%).PALSAR/MODIS forest map also has a reasonable spatial consistency with the forest map from the National Vegetation Information System.This new annual map of forests in Australia could support cross-country comparison when using data from the FAO Forest Resource Assessment Reports.

Estimating Aboveground Carbon Dynamic of China Using Optical and Microwave Remote-Sensing Datasets from 2013 to 2019

Over the past 2 to 3 decades,Chinese forests are estimated to act as a large carbon sink,yet the magnitude and spatial patterns of this sink differ considerably among studies.Using 3 microwave(L-and X-band vegetation optical depth[VOD])and 3 optical(normalized difference vegetation index,leaf area index,and tree cover)remote-sensing vegetation products,this study compared the estimated live woody aboveground biomass carbon(AGC)dynamics over China between 2013 and 2019.Our results showed that tree cover has the highest spatial consistency with 3 published AGC maps(mean correlation value R=0.84),followed by L-VOD(R=0.83),which outperform the other VODs.An AGC estimation model was proposed to combine all indices to estimate the annual AGC dynamics in China during 2013 to 2019.The performance of the AGC estimation model was good(root mean square error=0.05 Pg C and R^(2)=0.90 with a mean relative uncertainty of 9.8% at pixel scale[0.25°]).Results of the AGC estimation model showed that carbon uptake by the forests in China was about+0.17 Pg C year^(-1) from 2013 to 2019.At the regional level,provinces in southwest China including Guizhou(+22.35 Tg C year^(-1)),Sichuan(+14.49 Tg C year^(-1)),and Hunan(+11.42 Tg C year^(-1))provinces had the highest carbon sink rates during 2013 to 2019.Most of the carbon-sink regions have been afforested recently,implying that afforestation and ecological engineering projects have been effective means for carbon sequestration in these regions.