Prognostic value of high-sensitive troponin T in patients with severe aortic stenosis undergoing valve replacement surgery.

Background: Aortic stenosis (AS) is a well-known cause of mortality. We aimed to assess the prognostic value of high-sensitive troponin T (hs-TnT) in symptomatic patients with severe AS and preserved left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) after surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR). Patients and methods: The study recruited patients with severe symptomatic AS fulfilling the inclusion criteria in the period between April 2020 and February 2022. Comprehensive echocardiography was done. The following parameters were assessed: AS severity, LV mass index (LVMI), left atrium volume index (LAVI), and LVEF. E/e' and LVEF were calculated using the biplane method of Simpsons. Global longitudinal strain (GLS) was assessed by speckle tracking echocardiography. Peripheral blood samples were collected for hs-TnT measurement. All patients underwent surgical AVR. The patients were followed for the following 6 months for major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). MACE was defined as cardiac death, re-admission for congestive heart failure (CHF) and fatal arrhythmia. Results: One hundred and eight patients (mean age = 58.7 ± 7.68 years) with severe AS were recruited. Seventeen patients presented with MACE including 8 cardiac deaths. We divided the patients into two groups based on the normal hs-TnT values. The Kaplan-Meier curve revealed a statistically significant difference in MACE rate among troponin groups (log-rank test = 5.06, p = 0.025). There was significant difference between both groups regarding GLS with smaller GLS in negative hs-TnT group. In multivariate analysis, GLS and hs-TnT were significantly associated with MACE (p = 0.022 and < 0.01 respectively). The cutoff value of hs-TnT of 238.25 had a sensitivity of 70% and a specificity of 81% for predicting future MACE. There was a significant correlation between GLS and troponin (p < 0.001). Conclusions: hs-TnT is associated with bad short-term prognosis after AVR. hs-TnT and GLS could be significant predictors for future MACE in patients with severe symptomatic AS and preserved LVEF who underwent AVR. Elevated hs-TnT and impaired GLS could set an indication of early intervention in asymptomatic severe AS.

Lipase-Catalyzed Synthesis of Structured Fatty Acids Enriched with Medium and Long-Chain n-3 Fatty Acids via Solvent-Free Transesterification of Skipjack Tuna Eyeball Oil and Commercial Butterfat.

Human milk lipids generally have the maximum long-chain fatty acids at the sn-2 position of the glycerol backbone. This positioning makes them more digestible than long-chain fatty acids located at the sn-1, 3 positions. These unique fatty acid distributions are not found elsewhere in nature. When lactation is insufficient, infant formula milk has been used as a substitute. However, the distribution of most fatty acids ininfant formula milk is still different from human milk. Therefore, structured lipids were produced by the redistribution of medium-chain fatty acids from commercial butterfat (CBF) and n-3 and n-6 long-chain fatty acids from skipjack tuna eyeball oil (STEO). Redistribution was carried out via transesterification facilitated by Asian seabass liver lipase (ASL-L). Under the optimum conditions including a CBF/STEO ratio (3:1), transesterification time (60 h), and ASL-L unit (250 U), the newly formed modified-STEO (M-STEO) contained 93.56% triacylglycerol (TAG), 0.31% diacylglycerol (DAG), and 0.02% monoacylglycerol (MAG). The incorporated medium-chain fatty acids accounted for 18.2% of M-STEO, whereas ASL-L could incorporate 40% of n-3 fatty acids and 25-30% palmitic acid in M-STEO. The 1H NMRA and 13CNMR results revealed that the major saturated fatty acid (palmitic acid) and unsaturated fatty acids (DHA and EPA) were distributed at the sn-2 position of the TAGs in M-STEO. Thus, M-STEO enriched with medium-chain fatty acids and n-3 fatty acids positioned at the sn-2 position of TAGs can be a potential substitute for human milk fatty acids in infant formula milk (IFM).

Impacts of Gum Arabic and Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) with Salicylic Acid on Peach Fruit (Prunus persica) Shelf Life.

Peaches are grown in many Egyptian orchards for local and global fresh market sales. The interior fruit tissue breakdown (IFTB), often resulting in decayed peaches, is a severe problem during marketing. Therefore, to minimize FTB of peaches, in this study, gum arabic (GA) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) were mixed with different concentrations of salicylic acid (SA) (0, 1, and 2 mM) and were applied as edible coating to extend the shelf life of peach fruits. Mature peaches were selected and harvested when peaches reached total soluble solid content (SSC: 8.5%) and fruit firmness of about 47 N. Fruits were coated and stored at room temperature (26 ± 1 °C and air humidity 51 ± 1%) for 10 days during two seasons: 2020 and 2021. Fruit coated with GA/PVP-SA 2 mM showed a significant (p < 0.05) inhibition in degrading enzyme activities (CWDEs), such as lipoxygenase (LOX), cellulase (CEL), and pectinase (PT), compared to uncoated and coated fruits during the shelf-life period. Hence, cell wall compartments were maintained. Consequently, there was a reduction in browning symptoms in fruits by inhibiting polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) activities. Thus, the fruit skin browning index showed almost no symptoms. The lipid peroxidation process and ionic permeability declined as well. The result suggests that, by applying GA/PVP-SA 2 mM as an edible coating, fruit tissue breakdown can be minimized, and the shelf life of peach can be extended up to 10 days without symptoms of tissue breakdown.

Enhancement in physicochemical parameters and microbial populations of mushrooms as influenced by nano-coating treatments.

White button mushrooms are greatly high perishable and can deteriorate within a few days after harvesting due to physicomechanical damage, respiration, microbial growth of the delicate epidermal structure. For that reason, the present research work was applied to evaluate the effect of chitosan combination with nano-coating treatments on physicochemical parameters and microbial populations on button mushrooms at chilling storage. Nano coating with the addition of nisin 1% (CHSSN/M) established the minimum value for weight loss 12.18%, maintained firmness 11.55 N, and color index profile. Moreover, O2% rate of (CHSSN/M) mushrooms was the lowest at 1.78%; while the highest rate was reported for CO2 24.88% compared to the untreated samples (Control/M) on day 12. Both pH and total soluble solid concentrations increased during storage. Results reported that the (CHSS/M) mushroom significantly (P < 0.05) reduced polyphenol oxidase activity (24.31 U mg-1 Protein) compared with (Control/M) mushrooms that increased faster than the treated samples. (CHSSN/M) treatment was the most efficient in the reduction of yeast and mold, aerobic plate microorganisms (5.27-5.10 log CFU/g), respectively. The results established that nano-coating film might delay the aging degree and accompany by marked prolongation of postharvest mushroom freshness.