Nutritive and Antinutritive Values of Ready-to-use Foods Based on Local Ingredients for the Recovery of Moderate Acute Malnourished Children in Cote d Ivoire

Moderate acute malnutrition is one of the most common nutritional disorders among young children in Côte d'Ivoire. For treating this condition, ready-to-use foods have been found to be the most effective. However, their high cost and the recurrent stock breaks lead to national unavailability whose local production can fill and ensure sustainable care. This study has been set to assess the nutritional and anti-nutrient value of ready-to-use foods formulated with locally available ingredients. For doing this, four formulae meeting the recommended nutritive needs for moderately acutely malnourished children aged 6 to 59 months have been produced using traditional methods and household equipment. The cocoa (LF-1 and LF-3) and cashew (LF-2 and LF-4) formulae contained rice, soy, sugar, oil, and egg. The latter has been added to FL-3 and FL-4. All formulae presented biochemical compositions (proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and energy except fiber and ash) close to Plumpy’Sup®.

Nuclear and cytoplasmic huntingtin inclusions exhibit distinct biochemical composition, interactome and ultrastructural properties

Despite the strong evidence linking the aggregation of the Huntingtin protein (Htt) to the pathogenesis of Huntington’s disease (HD), the mechanisms underlying Htt aggregation and neurodegeneration remain poorly understood. Herein, we investigated the ultrastructural properties and protein composition of Htt cytoplasmic and nuclear inclusions in mammalian cells and primary neurons overexpressing mutant exon1 of the Htt protein. Our findings provide unique insight into the ultrastructural properties of cytoplasmic and nuclear Htt inclusions and their mechanisms of formation. We show that Htt inclusion formation and maturation are complex processes that, although initially driven by polyQ-dependent Htt aggregation, also involve the polyQ and PRD domain-dependent sequestration of lipids and cytoplasmic and cytoskeletal proteins related to HD dysregulated pathways; the recruitment and accumulation of remodeled or dysfunctional membranous organelles, and the impairment of the protein quality control and degradation machinery. We also show that nuclear and cytoplasmic Htt inclusions exhibit distinct biochemical compositions and ultrastructural properties, suggesting different mechanisms of aggregation and toxicity.

A Study on Some Biological Parameters of Crayfish (Astacus leptodactylus Eschscholtz, 1823) in Ulugöl, Samsun, Turkey

The study aimed to investigate some morphometric traits, length-weight relationship, meat yield, fecundity and some biochemical compositions of Astacus leptodactylus, in one of the Bafra Fish Lakes named Ulugöl, Samsun, Turkey. A total of 378 A. leptodactylus (198 female and 180 male) were examined. The average carapace length was 50.96±0.46 mm for females, 51.31±0.66 mm for males and 51.13±0.40 mm for all sampled crayfish. Abdomen length was 52.36±0.49 mm for females, 49.26±0.62 mm for males and 50.87±0.40 mm for all sampled crayfish. Live weight was between 14.38 g and 105.03 g with an average of 38.26±0.73 g. The average weight of females was less than that of males. There was a strong relationship between length and weight. The weight of crayfish with pleopodal eggs ranged from 28.24 g, to 59.50 g with an average of 41.73±1.09g. The average number of eggs per individuals was 192.90±9.94 with an average number of 4.62±0.21 per unit of live weight. The average total egg weight was 3.35±0.19 g while the average egg diameter was 2.17±0.03 mm. Abdomen meat was lower for males comparing with females. Average moisture, crude ash, crude oil and crude protein of abdomen meat were 81.27%, 1.47%, 0.81% and 16.45%, respectively.

Genetic diversity of Coffea canephora Pierre ex A. Froehner in Temanggung District, Indonesia based on molecular marker RAPD

Authors. 2021. Genetic diversity of Coffea canephora Pierre ex A. Froehner in Temanggung District, Indonesia based on molecular marker RAPD. Biodiversitas 22: 4775-4783. Temanggung District in Central Java Province, Indonesia is one of robusta coffee production centers. The condition of coffee plantations in Temanggung shows variations in some morphological traits. Variations in coffee phenotypes are considered less profitable for farmers because they produce yields of undesirable quality in the global market. This study aimed to evaluate the genetic diversity of robusta coffee in Temanggung. The coffee plants were derived from six villages located at two levels of altitude. The morphological traits were observed from canopy width, trunk diameter, plant height, cherry volume, and bean volume, while the biochemical compositions were determined by caffeine content and brew’s pH value. The molecular assays were performed using PCR-RAPD with ten primers and species identification was based on the ITS rDNA. Our finding showed a variation in all morphological characters and biochemical compositions based on the LSD test 5%. The molecular marker RAPD revealed the genetic diversity by showing the DNA polymorphism levels of 95%, with the genetic similarity coefficient ranged from 0.35 to 0.86. The species identification also demonstrated that our robusta coffee was 97.11-99.70% similar to robusta coffee MK615737.1 from Philippines and robusta coffee DQ153593.1 from Cameroon. Thus, genetic diversity on six populations of robusta coffee was found, along with its variations on phenotypes which might lead the coffee yield quality to become uneven.

The influence of temperature and nutrient concentrations on growth rate, biomass, Chlorophyll-a, and biochemical compositions of Tetraselmis suecica (Chlorophyta)

Microalgae have been got high attention due to its potentiality in aquaculture as live feed, and in industries as ingredients for pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and biofuel industries. The objective of this study was to know the optimum culture condition for profuse growth and biochemical composition of Tetraselmis suecica under two parameters: temperature (20°C, 25°C, and 30°C) and modified F/2 medium nutrients concentrations. Culture of group “A” 20°C was categorized as A1 (F/2 stock solution-A; 0.50 ml. L-1 and F/2 stock solution-B; 0.20 ml. L-1), A2 (F/2 stock solution-A; 1. 00 ml L-1 and F/2 stock solution-B; 0.40 ml. L-1) and A3 (F/2 stock solution-A;1.50 ml. L-1 and F/2 stock solution-B; 0.60 ml. L-1). Cultures in 25°C and 30°C were also categorized as groups “B” 25° C (B1, B2, and B3) and “C” 30°C (C1, C2, and C3), respectively. The culture was done for 2 weeks with L:D cycle of 12:12 by using fluorescent light. The highest biomass production was 0.80, 0.64, and 0.45 gL-1 in C2, B3, and A3, respectively. Biochemical analysis showed that protein; 21.92, 20.83, and 18.68 %, lipid; 10.76, 9.42, and 11.71 %, carbohydrate; 38.51, 37.78, and 41.49 %, ash; 15.89, 15.61, and 13.7 %, and moisture; 14.26, 15.02, and 14.42 % in biomass grown of “A”, “B” and “C” culture group, respectively. From the study, it could be said that T. suecic is a eurythermal and mesotrophic habitant microalga which produce high protein and high carbohydrate in low and high temperature, respectively.

Spatial Patterns of Macromolecular Composition of Phytoplankton in the Arctic Ocean

The macromolecular concentrations and compositions of phytoplankton are crucial for the growth or nutritional structure of higher trophic levels through the food web in the ecosystem. To understand variations in macromolecular contents of phytoplankton, we investigated the macromolecular components of phytoplankton and analyzed their spatial pattern on the Chukchi Shelf and the Canada Basin. The carbohydrate (CHO) concentrations on the Chukchi Shelf and the Canada Basin were 50.4–480.8 μg L−1 and 35.2–90.1 μg L−1, whereas the lipids (LIP) concentrations were 23.7–330.5 μg L−1 and 11.7–65.6 μg L−1, respectively. The protein (PRT) concentrations were 25.3–258.5 μg L−1 on the Chukchi Shelf and 2.4–35.1 μg L−1 in the Canada Basin. CHO were the predominant macromolecules, accounting for 42.6% on the Chukchi Shelf and 60.5% in the Canada Basin. LIP and PRT contributed to 29.7% and 27.7% of total macromolecular composition on the Chukchi Shelf and 30.8% and 8.7% in the Canada Basin, respectively. Low PRT concentration and composition in the Canada Basin might be a result from the severe nutrient-deficient conditions during phytoplankton growth. The calculated food material concentrations were 307.8 and 98.9 μg L−1, and the average calorie contents of phytoplankton were 1.9 and 0.6 kcal m−3 for the Chukchi Shelf and the Canada Basin, respectively, which indicates the phytoplankton on the Chukchi Shelf could provide the large quantity of food material and high calories to the higher trophic levels. Overall, our results highlight that the biochemical compositions of phytoplankton are considerably different in the regions of the Arctic Ocean. More studies on the changes in the biochemical compositions of phytoplankton are still required under future environmental changes.

A Comparative Study on Thermochemical Valorization Routes for Spent Coffee Grounds

Extracting oil from spent coffee grounds (SCG) for biodiesel production has recently attracted much research interest. Large amounts of organic solvents are involved for oil extraction and biodiesel synthesis. Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is an emerging thermochemical technology with great potential for biocrude production from a broad range of feedstocks. This study attempted to compare two SCG valorization options: route 1, oil extraction for biodiesel production followed by HTL of defatted SCG; and route 2, direct HTL of raw SCG. The microwave-assisted extraction conditions were optimized to effectively remove oil from SCG using response surface methodology. Under optimal conditions, an SCG oil yield of 8.4 wt.% could be achieved. HTL of defatted SCG generated less biocrude (18.9 wt.%) than that of raw SCG (28.1 wt.%). The biochemical compositions of resultant biocrudes were largely different from each other. The life cycle assessment was conducted on each of the SCG valorization routes and showed that the greenhouse gas emissions from direct HTL of raw SCG were only 35% of the other valorization route, suggesting that direct HTL is a favorable valorization route for SCG within this study’s scope.

Biochemical compositions, antioxidant activity, and in vitro antibacterial activity of extract from wild bitter melon (Momordica charantia var. abbreviata Ser.)

Wild bitter melon (Momordica charantia var. abbreviata Ser.) is a type of vine that grows wildly in the mountains and plains in Vietnam. The main use parts of the tree are fruit, stem, and leaf that can be eaten as vegetables. This study aims to (1) identify several bioactive chemical compounds in the stems and leaves of bitter melon trees in the forests in the district of Mang Yang, Gia Lai province; (2) evaluate the nutrient composition, antioxidant activity, and antimicrobial ability of fresh juice and extract with ethanol 70°. The results indicated that fresh juice and ethanol 70° extract currently inhibited the growth of experimental strains of microorganisms, in which ethanol 70o extract gives the highest antimicrobial effect. The qualitative results determined that the chemical components of wide bitter melon consist of flavonoids, saponins, tannins, free reducing sugar, organic acids, starch, and fatty acids as the basis for the standardization of exploitation of medicinal resources this material.