Protease Inhibitors from Plants as Therapeutic Agents- A Review.

Plant-based diets are a great source of protease inhibitors (PIs). Two of the most well-known families of PIs are Bowman-Birk inhibitors (BBI) and Kunitz-type inhibitors (KTI). The first group acts mainly on trypsin, chymotrypsin, and elastase; the second is on serine, cysteine, and aspartic proteases. PIs can retard or inhibit the catalytic action of enzymes; therefore, they are considered non-nutritional compounds; nevertheless, animal studies and cell line experiments showed promising results of PIs in treating human illnesses such as obesity, cardiovascular diseases, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory processes, and different types of cancer (gastric, colorectal, breast, and lung cancer). Anticarcinogenic activity's proposed mechanisms of action comprise several inhibitory effects at different molecular levels, i.e., transcription, post-transcription, translation, post-translation, and secretion of cancer cells. This work reviews the potential therapeutic applications of PIs as anticarcinogenic and anti-inflammatory agents in human diseases and the mechanisms by which they exert these effects.

Effect of thermal treatment on the extraction efficiency, physicochemical quality of Jatropha curcas oil, and biological quality of its proteins.

Jatropha curcas seeds are an important source of oil (5-60%), used to obtain biodiesel. The generated residual paste has a high concentration of proteins (50-55%); however, the seeds contain non-nutritional factors that limit their use. The objective of this work was to analyze the effect on the physicochemical properties of the oil obtained from J. curcas seeds subjected to different thermal treatments and to evaluate the biological quality of the proteins contained in the residual cake. The best extraction of oil (95%) was obtained after 10 h from roasted or boiled seeds. In the oil from roasted samples, the acid index increased significantly (p ≤ 0.05) with respect to the untreated sample, whereas the iodine index increased significantly (p ≤ 0.05) in the oil extracted from the boiled samples. With respect to the proximal chemical composition of the flour, roasting and boiling treatments allowed for greater oil extraction (97 and 92%), achieving, in turn, a higher content of proteins (59.56 and 58.5 g/100 g) and fiber (6.67 and 6.67 g/100 g), and lower activity of trypsin inhibitors (45 and 38%) and phytates (63 and 72%), respectively. According to the in vivo biological quality test, conducted on Wistar rats, the thermal treatments applied to the seeds improved digestibility (> 70%) and the protein efficiency index (PER). The thermal treatment allowed extracting more efficiently the oil and improved the quality of the proteins present in the residual paste.

Los costes del ictus en España según su etiología. El protocolo del estudio CONOCES / The costs of stroke in Spain by aetiology: the CONOCES study protocol

Introducción: Los pacientes con ictus asociado a fibrilación auricular no valvular (FANV) constituyen un grupo específico con gran repercusión social y económica. El objetivo principal del estudio CONOCES, cuyo protocolo se presenta en ese trabajo, es comparar los costes del infarto cerebral en los pacientes con FANV frente a los pacientes sin FANV en el ámbito sanitario español ingresados en unidades de ictus, utilizando la perspectiva de la sociedad. Materiales y métodos: CONOCES es un estudio epidemiológico, observacional, naturalístico, prospectivo y multicéntrico de los costes de la enfermedad, en una muestra de pacientes que ha sufrido un ictus establecido e ingresado en una unidad de ictus, en el ámbito sanitario español. El periodo de seguimiento será de 12 meses. Se recogerán variables sociodemográficas, clínicas, la escala de ictus del NIH, el nivel de discapacidad, el grado de dependencia funcional mediante la escala de Rankin modificada y el consumo de recursos sanitarios (hospitalización en el primer episodio, reingresos, rehabilitación ambulatoria, material ortoprotésico, medicación para la prevención secundaria, consultas médicas, atención de enfermería, servicios sociales de atención formal). También se registrará la renta mensual estimada, la pérdida de productividad laboral y la calidad de vida relacionada con la salud con el cuestionario genérico EQ-5D. Por último se entrevistará directamente al cuidador para conocer la pérdida de productividad, los cuidados informales prestados y la sobrecarga del cuidador. Resultados y conclusiones: La aportación del estudio CONOCES permitirá profundizar en las diferencias del impacto tanto económico como clínico del ictus en función de su asociación con la FANV (AU)

Introduction: Patients with stroke associated with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) are a specific group, and their disease has a considerable social and economic impact. The primary objective of the CONOCES study, the protocol of which is presented here, is to compare the costs of stroke in NVAF patients to those of patients without NVAF in Spanish stroke units from a societal perspective. Materials and methods: CONOCES is an epidemiological, observational, naturalistic, prospective, multicentre study of the cost of the illness in a sample of patients who have suffered a stroke and were admitted to a Spanish stroke unit. During a 12-month follow-up period, we record sociodemographic and clinical variables, score on the NIH stroke scale, level of disability, degree of functional dependency according to the modified Rankin scale, and use of healthcare resources (hospitalisation at the time of the first episode, readmissions, outpatient rehabilitation, orthotic and/or prosthetic material, medication for secondary prevention, medical check-ups, nursing care and formal social care services). Estimated monthly income, lost work productivity and health-related quality of life measured with the generic EQ-5D questionnaire are also recorded. We also administer a direct interview to the caregiver to determine loss of productivity, informal care, and caregiver burden. Results and conclusions: The CONOCES study will provide more in-depth information about the economic and clinical impact of stroke according to whether or not it is associated with NVAF (AU)

The costs of stroke in Spain by aetiology: the CONOCES study protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Patients with stroke associated with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) are a specific group, and their disease has a considerable social and economic impact. The primary objective of the CONOCES study, the protocol of which is presented here, is to compare the costs of stroke in NVAF patients to those of patients without NVAF in Spanish stroke units from a societal perspective. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CONOCES is an epidemiological, observational, naturalistic, prospective, multicentre study of the cost of the illness in a sample of patients who have suffered a stroke and were admitted to a Spanish stroke unit. During a 12-month follow-up period, we record sociodemographic and clinical variables, score on the NIH stroke scale, level of disability, degree of functional dependency according to the modified Rankin scale, and use of healthcare resources (hospitalisation at the time of the first episode, readmissions, outpatient rehabilitation, orthotic and/or prosthetic material, medication for secondary prevention, medical check-ups, nursing care and formal social care services). Estimated monthly income, lost work productivity and health-related quality of life measured with the generic EQ-5D questionnaire are also recorded. We also administer a direct interview to the caregiver to determine loss of productivity, informal care, and caregiver burden. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The CONOCES study will provide more in-depth information about the economic and clinical impact of stroke according to whether or not it is associated with NVAF.

Salmonella in free living terrestrial and aquatic turtles.

Detection of Salmonella in pet turtles has been the focus of extensive research, but its incidence in free living turtles is not well known. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence of Salmonella in terrestrial and aquatic species of chelonians inhabiting a National Park in southwestern Spain. Individuals of the terrestrial tortoise Testudo graeca (n = 16) and the aquatic turtles Emys orbicularis (n = 26) and Mauremys leprosa (n = 50) were investigated. Maximum incidence of Salmonella was recorded in the terrestrial species (100%). In contrast, the incidence of infected animals was low in the aquatic species, 12% in M. leprosa and 15.4% in E. orbicularis. Five serotypes of Salmonella belonging to subspecies enterica (I) and salamae (II) were identified. All serotypes were found in the terrestrial species, and three in the aquatic ones, suggesting that wild terrestrial chelonians are important reservoirs of Salmonella in our study area. Cloacal transmission during mating is the most probable mode of transmission among individuals.