Effects of different steam injection conditions on cappuccino's nutritional profile.

The quality parameters of cappuccinos prepared with pasteurized milk or ultra-high-temperature milk steam-injected at different temperatures by a professional coffee machine have been assessed. In particular, the protein profile, the content of vitamins and lactose, the lipid peroxidation process, and the involvement of milk proteins in the foam formation were evaluated. The nutritional quality of milk seems not affected by the steam injection treatment carried out at a temperature of 60-65 °C, but at higher temperatures a decrement of lactoperoxidase, vitamin B6 and folic acid was observed. The milk used in cappuccino preparation is very important: pasteurized milk can form a more consistent and lasting foam with respect to ultra-high-temperature milk because of the presence of ß-lactoglobulin and lactoferrin, both playing an important role in the foam formation and stability. This work would provide additional information to the coffee industry for the preparation of high nutritional and organoleptic quality cappuccinos.

Acetylshikonin isolated from Lithospermum erythrorhizon roots inhibits dihydrofolate reductase and hampers autochthonous mammary carcinogenesis in Δ16HER2 transgenic mice.

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer in women and, among different BC subtypes, triple negative (TN) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive BCs have the worst prognosis. In this study, we investigated the anticancer activity of the root ethanolic and hexane extracts from Lithospermum erythrorhizon, a traditional Chinese herbal medicine known also as tzu ts'ao or tzu-ken, against in vitro and in vivo models of TNBC and HER2-positive BC. Treatment with L. erythrorhizon root extracts resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of BC cell viability and in a significant reduction of the growth of TNBC cells transplanted in syngeneic mice. Acetylshikonin, a naphthoquinone, was identified as the main bioactive component in extracts and was responsible for the observed antitumor activity, being able to decrease BC cell viability and to interfere with autochthonous mammary carcinogenesis in Δ16HER2 transgenic mice. Acetylshikonin anticancer effect depends on its ability to act as a potent inhibitor of dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), to down-regulate key mediators governing cancer growth and progression, such as HER2, Src and STAT3, and to induce apoptosis by caspase-3 activation. The accumulation of acetylshikonin in blood samples as well as in brain, kidney, liver and tumor tissues was also investigated by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) highlighting that L. erythrorhizon treatment is effective in delivering the active compound into the target tissues. These results provide evidence that L. erythrorhizon extract and in particular its main component acetylshikonin are effective against aggressive BC subtypes and reveal new acetylshikonin mechanisms of action.

Stabilization of the cyclodecadiene derivative isofuranodiene by silver (I) coordination. Mechanistic and biological aspects.

The industrial extraction and further applications of isofuranodiene are limited because at room temperature it spontaneously converts to curzerene, a structurally less active isomer. This work definitively identified the structure of isofuranodiene in the solid state, showing the two methyl groups in syn position. In addition, two bioactive metal cations, namely, silver(I) and copper(II) ions, were used in the attempt to obtain the chemical stability of isofuranodiene: in the case of silver(I), a labile adduct was formed, while in the case of copper(II), a more stable 1:1 adduct was achieved. In the former, the presence of silver did not significantly affect the biological activities of isofuranodiene, while in the latter, the copper(II) coordination suppressed them. The biological activities of the isofuranodiene adducts were then evaluated as antiproliferative agents against human tumor cell lines (HCT116, MDA-MB 231, and T98G). In addition, for the first time, isofuranodiene was tested as an inhibitor of DHFR (DiHydroFolateReductase) from Escherichia coli. Anticancer activity was observed in the isofuranodiene with the AgCF3SO3 adduct, in the tested cell lines, with IC50 values ranging from 4.89µM to 13.06µM, while inhibition assays highlighted a Ki of 6.22µM for isofuranodiene and of 0.17µM for the related silver adduct. Docking studies indicated a binding mode score of -6.83Kcal/mol for isofuranodiene, and an energy value of -11.82Kcal/mol for methotrexate (a classic DHFR inhibitor).

Enzymology of Pyrimidine Metabolism and Neurodegeneration.

It is well known that disorders of pyrimidine pathways may lead to neurological, hematological, immunological diseases, renal impairments, and association with malignancies. Nucleotide homeostasis depends on the three stages of pyrimidine metabolism: de novo synthesis, catabolism and recycling of these metabolites. Cytidine and uridine, in addition to be used as substrates for pyrimidine nucleotide salvaging, also act as the precursors of cytidine triphosphate used in the biosynthetic pathway of both brain's phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine via the Kennedy cycle. The synthesis in the brain of phosphatidylcholine and other membrane phosphatides can utilize, in addition to glucose, three compounds present in the blood stream: choline, uridine, and a polyunsaturated fatty acids like docosahexaenoic acid. Some authors, using rat models, found that oral administration of two phospholipid precursors such as uridine and omega-3 fatty acids, along with choline from the diet, can increase the amount of synaptic membrane generated by surviving striatal neurons in rats with induced Parkinson's disease. Other authors found that in hypertensive rat fed with uridine and choline, cognitive deficit resulted improved. Uridine has also been recently considered as a neuroactive molecule, because of its involvement in important neurological functions by improving memory, sleep disorders, anti-epileptic effects, as well as neuronal plasticity. Cytidine and uridine are uptaken by the brain via specific receptors and successively salvaged to the corresponding nucleotides. The present review is devoted to the enzymology of pyrimidine pathways whose importance has attracted the attention of several researchers investigating on the mechanisms underlying the physiopathology of brain.

A comparison of the carcass and meat quality of Martina Franca donkey foals aged 8 or 12 months.

The effects of slaughter age (8 vs 12 months) were investigated on meat and carcass quality obtained from Martina Franca donkey foals. Sixteen male foals were used, eight were slaughtered at 8 months of age with a mean (±s.e.) final body weight of 101±18kg and the remaining 8 foals slaughtered at 12 months of age with a mean final body weight of 122±13kg. Carcass weight and dressing percentage were higher (P<0.05) in older foals. Shear force value was lower (P<0.05) in donkeys slaughtered at 8 months of age (54.03N) compared to the same muscle Longissimus Thoracis et Lumborum (LTL) collected in older animals (62.66N). Muscle glycogen content was higher (P<0.05) in foals slaughtered at 12months of age. Donkey foal meat showed an interesting content of essential amino acids and a notable percentage of unsaturated fatty acids in both groups of animals, giving a high nutritional value to this alternative red meat.

Evaluation of thermosensitive poloxamer 407 gel systems for the sustained release of estradiol in a fish model.

The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate a delivery system comprising a thermosensitive gel for the sustained release of steroidal hormones in fish, over an extended period of time after a single intramuscular (i.m.) injection and for the improved reproductive performance in fish. Controlled delivery systems based on thermosensitive gels are easy to prepare, low cost and high versatility dosage forms, which have been shown to be effective in several animal species for sustained release of hormones. In this work, a thermosensitive gel system based on poloxamer 407 in water:ethanol medium, able to work as a prolonged release carrier for 17ß-estradiol (E2), has been developed. Such a system was able to solubilize the lipophilic E2 and to gel at the required water temperature for fish rearing (20°C). Moreover, the system exhibited the best injection condition at temperatures below 15°C when the system behaved as a low viscosity Newtonian liquid. The thermosensitive gel system was tested in vivo in the fish model, Carassius auratus, and the results compared with a single i.m. injection of E2 dissolved in corn-oil and other relevant control systems not containing E2. The results were particularly interesting, since fish injected with the E2 thermosensitive gel formulation, showed significantly higher levels of the circulating hormone than corn oil-E2 treated animals at 72 and 96h after injection. In addition, the thermogel system was able to sustain the plasma level of E2 for about 11days. The increased plasma levels of E2 were also accompanied by maintained higher values of plasma vitellogenin (VTG), thus suggesting that the thermosensitive polymer based delivery system could prevent rapid hepatic clearance of E2, resulting in prolonged stimulation of estrogen receptor-mediated pathways in goldfish.

Mechanism of inhibition of wt-dihydrofolate reductase from E. coli by tea epigallocatechin-gallate.

Dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) is a ubiquitous enzyme involved in major biological process, including DNA synthesis and cancer inhibition, and its modulation is the object of extensive structural, kinetic, and pharmacological studies. In particular, earlier studies showed that green tea catechins are powerful inhibitors of bovine liver and chicken liver DHFR. In this article, we report the results of inhibition kinetics for the enzyme from another source (DHFR from E. coli) exerted by (-)-epigallocatechingallate (EGCG). Using different analytical techniques, we reported that EGCG acts as a bisubstrate inhibitor on the bacterial DHFR. Moreover, the combined approach of biosensor, kinetic, and molecular modelling analysis disclosed the ability of EGCG to bind to the enzyme both on substrate (DHF) and cofactor (NADPH) site. Collectively, our data have confirmed the selectivity of antifolate compounds with respect to the different source of enzyme (bacterial or mammalian DHFR) and the possible role of tea catechins as chemopreventive agents.