Chemometric Classification of Colombian Cacao Crops: Effects of Different Genotypes and Origins in Different Years of Harvest on Levels of Flavonoid and Methylxanthine Metabolites in Raw Cacao Beans.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the levels of chemical markers in raw cacao beans in two clones (introduced and regional) in Colombia over several years. Multivariate statistical methods were used to analyze the flavanol monomers (epicatechin and catechin), flavanol oligomers (procyanidins) and methylxanthine alkaloids (caffeine and theobromine) of cocoa samples. The results identified genotype as the main factor contributing to cacao chemistry, although significant differences were not observed between universal and regional clones in PCA. The univariate analysis allowed us to establish that EET-96 had the highest contents of both flavanol monomers (13.12 ± 2.30 mg/g) and procyanidins (7.56 ± 4.59 mg/g). In addition, the geographic origin, the harvest conditions of each region and the year of harvest may contribute to major discrepancies between results. Turbo cocoa samples are notable for their higher flavanol monomer content, Chigorodó cocoa samples for the presence of both types of polyphenol (monomer and procyanidin contents) and the Northeast cocoa samples for the higher methylxanthine content. We hope that knowledge of the heterogeneity of the metabolites of interest in each clone will contribute to the generation of added value in the cocoa production chain and its sustainability.

Chemical and Skincare Property Characterization of the Main Cocoa Byproducts: Extraction Optimization by RSM Approach for Development of Sustainable Ingredients.

Methylxanthines and polyphenols from cocoa byproducts should be considered for their application in the development of functional ingredients for food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical formulations. Different cocoa byproducts were analyzed for their chemical contents, and skincare properties were measured by antioxidant assays and anti-skin aging activity. Musty cocoa beans (MC) and second-quality cocoa beans (SQ) extracts showed the highest polyphenol contents and antioxidant capacities. In the collagenase and elastase inhibition study, the highest effect was observed for the SQ extract with 86 inhibition and 36% inhibition, respectively. Among cocoa byproducts, the contents of catechin and epicatechin were higher in the SQ extract, with 18.15 mg/100 g of sample and 229.8 mg/100 g of sample, respectively. Cocoa bean shells (BS) constitute the main byproduct due to their methylxanthine content (1085 mg of theobromine and 267 mg of caffeine/100 g of sample). Using BS, various influencing factors in the extraction process were investigated by response surface methodology (RSM), before scaling up separations. The extraction process developed under optimized conditions allows us to obtain almost 2 g/min and 0.2 g/min of total methylxanthines and epicatechin, respectively. In this way, this work contributes to the sustainability and valorization of the cocoa production chain.

Dermo-epidermal organotypic cultures for in vitro evaluation of skin irritation and corrosion.

In recent years, in-vitro skin models for chemical hazard identification have been developed. Most of them consist only of human keratinocytes, neglecting the contribution of other skin constituents. Cultures containing the dermal and epidermal component provide an attractive system to investigate, in a more realistic model, toxicological responses, which represents a distinct advantage over keratinocytes-based models that do not mimic faithfully the in vivo environment. This study aimed to validate dermo-epidermal organotypic cultures (ORGs) as a platform to perform irritation and corrosion tests. Skin models were constructed by seeding keratinocytes on fibroblast-containing fibrin gels. After 21 days, the ORGs were evaluated histologically, and the irritant and corrosion potential was determined by means of viability measurements (MTT assay) and cytokine release, according to 431 and 439 OECD tests guidelines. Skin models showed similar histological characteristics to native skin and were able to classify different substances with high accuracy, showing their applicability to skin irritation and corrosion tests. Although cytokines release seems to be chemical-dependent, a tendency was observed, leading to the improvement of the prediction capacity. Nevertheless, further studies should be done to reduce variability in order to increase prediction capacity.

Asociación entre patrones alimentarios y factores sociodemográficos en la población adulta de Antioquia, Colombia

Objetivo: identificar los patrones alimentarios de la población adulta Antioqueña y su asociación con variables socioeconómicas. Métodos: estudio transversal con muestra aleatoria de 1.394 adultos de 18 a 59 años, derivados del estudio Perfil alimentario y nutricional de Antioquia 2019. El consumo alimentario fue evaluado con recordatorio de consumo en 24 horas (R24h) y un segundo R24h en día no consecutivo al 25% de la muestra, se cuantificó el consumo de alimentos en gramos, los patrones alimentarios se establecieron mediante análisis factorial por Componentes principales con rotación ortogonal varimax. Para verificar la asociación entre los patrones alimentarios y las variables socioeconómicas se empleó regresión de Poisson por varianza robusta. Resultados: se definieron tres patrones alimentarios que representan el 28,1% de la varianza: "Tradicional" (9,8%), "Regional" (9,7%) y "Prudente" (8,6%). Los dos primeros se asociaron con variables demográficas, como sexo, edad y etnia; mientras que el último se asoció con variables socioeconómicas como escolaridad, ingresos familiares, régimen de seguridad social y clasificación de seguridad alimentaria. Conclusiones: Los hallazgos del presente estudio muestran que la dieta de la población estudiada, sigue unos referentes de tradición alimentaria, reflejados en los patrones Tradicional y Regional, mientras que el patrón Prudente, corresponde a la parte de la población que tiene mejores condiciones socioeconómicas y probablemente lo siguen por recomendación de salud.

Objective: to identify the eating patterns of the adult population from Antioquia, Colombia, and their association with socioeconomic variables. Methods: a cross-sectional study was performed with a random sample of 1,394 adults aged 18 to 59 years, derived from the Antioquia Food and Nutritional Profile 2019 study. Food consumption was evaluated with a 24-hour consumption recall (R24h) and a second R24h on a non-consecutive day at 25% of the sample, food consumption was quantified in grams, and food patterns were established by factorial analysis by Principal Components with varimax orthogonal rotation. To verify the association between eating patterns and socioeconomic variables, Poisson regression was used for robust variance. Results: three eating patterns were defined that represent 28.1% of the variance: "Traditional" (9.8%), "Regional" (9.7%), and "Prudent" (8.6%). The first two were associated with demographic variables, such as gender, age, and ethnicity; while the latter was associated with socioeconomic variables such as schooling, family income, social security system, and food security classification. Conclusions: The findings of this study show that the diet of the population of the study, follows some references to food tradition, reflected in the Traditional and Regional patterns, while the Prudent pattern corresponds to the part of the population that has better socioeconomic conditions, and they probably follow it for health recommendation.

Infección hepática crónica por el virus de la hepatitis B: unarevisión con énfasis en los aspectos terapéuticos / Chronic hepatitis B virus infection: a review with emphasis on therapy

Se calcula que 400 millones de personas en todo el mundo están infectadas crónicamente con el virus de la hepatitis B (VHB). Colombia ha pasado a tener una prevalencia baja con un 2% de la población positiva para el antígeno de superficie de este virus (HBsAg); sin embargo, la prevalencia varía entre las distintas regiones. Los portadores de VHB tienen mayor riesgo de desarrollar hepatitis crónica, cirrosis hepática (CH), falla hepática y carcinoma hepatocelular (CHC). El tratamiento de la infección crónica por el VHB busca frenar por completo la replicación viral e inducir la remisión del daño hepático antes de que se desarrolle CH o CHC. Actualmente la terapia farmacológica se hace, entre otros medicamentos, con interferón pegilado alfa 2a, lamivudina, adefovir y entecavir. Los pacientes con hepatitis aguda no necesitan tratamiento, aquellos con falla hepática fulminante se deben evaluar para trasplante y el tratamiento de la infección crónica se debe elegir según la gravedad y características de la enfermedad. El seguimiento de los pacientes con infección aguda por el VHB se debe hacer cada 1-3 meses para detectar la progresión hacia hepatitis crónica; para ese propósito se miden los niveles de aminotransferasas, bilirrubinas, tiempo de protrombina, albúmina sérica, alfa-fetoproteína y ADN VHB; también se hacen recuento de plaquetas, biopsia hepática, ultrasonido abdominal y endoscopia digestiva superior. A los pacientes en tratamiento con interferón pegilado se les deben medir cada seis meses el antígeno e (HBeAg), su correspondiente anticuerpo (anti-HBe) y el ADN VHB. En quienes reciben lamivudina, adefovir, entecavir u otros antivirales, estas mediciones se hacen cada 3-6 meses. Se están estudiando otros fármacos tales como: emtricitabine, clevudine, tenofovir, telmivudina y beta L nucleósidos. Las estrategias inmunomoduladoras incluyen el uso de citoquinas y la vacunación.

Despite vaccination campaigns around the world and the resolution of the disease in immunocompetent adults, it is estimated that 400 million people worldwide are chronically infected with the hepatitis B virus (HBV). The prevalence rate of this disease in the Colombian population is low, though variable among regions: only 2% are positive in tests for the surface antigen of this virus (HBsAg). Carriers of HBV have a higher risk of developing chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis (HC), liver failure and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The aims of treatment for chronic HBV infection are to completely control viral replication and to induce remission of liver damage before HC or HCC may develop. Nowadays, pharmacological therapy of HBV infection is done, among others, with pegylated interferon alfa 2a, lamivudine, adefovir, and entecavir. Patients with acute hepatitis do not need to be treated, those with acute liver failure should be evaluated for transplantation, and therapy for chronic infection should be chosen according to the degree of severity and the characteristics of their disease. Patients with acute HBV infection should be monitored every 1 to 3 months in order to detect the progression toward chronic hepatitis; for that purpose the levels of aminotransferases, bilirubin, prothrombin time, serum albumin, alfa-fetoprotein and HBV DNA are determined, and platelet count, liver biopsy, abdominal ultrasonography and upper digestive endoscopy are carried out. In patients being treated with alfa 2ª pegylated interferon HBeAg, anti-HBe and HBV DNA must be measured every 6 months. These measurements should be made every 3 to 6 months in patients who use lamivudine, adefovir, entecavir or other antivirals. Other drugs with immunomodulatory or antiviral properties are being studied. The new antiviral agents include: emtricitabine, clevudine, tenofovir, telmivudine and beta L nucleosides. Immunomodulatory strategies include the use of cytokines and vaccination.

Valoración significativa del componente bucal de la salud / Meaningful assessment of the oral component of health

El estudio alrededor de la representación social es una pregunta por lo significativo, por lo que da razones de identidad al individuo, por el valor que se le otorga a unhecho, fenòmeno o situación específica. A partir del esclarecimiento de dicho interrogante se puede dilucidar el alcance que se da en la estructura del pensamiento de la profesión, respecto de las motivaciones que inducen a la comunidad a valorar significativamente o no el componente bucal de su salud y en consecuencia, la orientacion y el desempeño de la profesión odontológica. Un estudio cualitativo como el presente, orientado hacia la comprensión o interpretacion, desde la observación y la entrevista, del valor significativo que un grupo social le da a su salud en la especificidad del componente bucal, permitió identificar grupos categorizables que hablan de dicha valoración significativa, permitiendo la comprensión deseada, que nos posibilita sustentar y recrear nuevas categorías de análisis. La salud integral es valorada desde la salud bucal, partiendo de la funcionalidad, la interdependencia de las experiencias positivas o negativas y la valoración otorgada por los otros. Para el fortalecimiento de la identidad alrededor de la salud bucal hay una asociación del individuo a sus prácticas de autocuidado legadas desde los diferentes espacios institucionales.