Abstract Mexican cuisine is considered as an intangible heritage of humanity. It uses numerous spices which, in addition to enhancing the sensorial characteristics of the traditional food, benefits human health. Spices contain a variety of bioactive compounds, including polyphenolic compounds, which are responsible for their healthful properties. Studies of bioactive compounds found in spices used in the Mexican cuisine are limited. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to investigate the polyphenolic profile of three spices used in typical Mexican cuisine: aniseed (Pimpinella anisum L.) coriander (coriandrum sativum L.) and clove (Syzygium aromaticum). Initially, the most effective extraction method was standardized by varying the solid-solvent ratio and the sonication time. Total soluble polyphenols, flavonoids and antioxidant capacity of each extract were analyzed, as well as the extraction yield. Clove showed the highest content of soluble polyphenols, flavonoids and the highest antioxidant capacity. The extracts having the highest polyphenol content were analyzed by HPLC-MS. The aniseed extract displayed chlorogenic, sinapic an ferulic acids. While quecetin-3-rutinoside and naringenin were detected for coriander; in clove, gallic, chlorogenic and elagic acids were assigned.

Resumen La cocina mexicana, considerada patrimonio inmaterial de la humanidad, es rica en gran variedad de especias que, además de potenciar las características sensoriales de los platillos, poseen propiedades benéficas para la salud. Los responsables de estas características, son la variedad y contenido de ciertos compuestos bioactivos entre los que destacan los compuestos polifenólicos. Los estudios de los compuestos bioactivos en las especias de la cocina mexicana son escasos, por esta razón, el presente estudio pretende realizar un perfil de los compuestos polifenólicos presentes en el anís (Pimpinella anisum L.), cilantro (Coriandrum sativum L.) y clavo (Syzygium aromaticum). Para esto, se estandarizó el método de extracción más efectivo, variando la relación sólido-disolvente y el tiempo de ultra-sonicación, se calculó el rendimiento, se cuantificaron los compuestos polifenólicos y flavonoides solubles totales, así como la capacidad antioxidante de cada extracto. El clavo fue la especia con mayor contenido de polifenoles solubles, flavonoides y con la mayor capacidad antioxidante. Después se realizó un perfil de los extractos que mostraron el mayor contenido de polifenoles por medio de HPLC/MS. Se identificaron tentativamente, el ácido clorogénico, ferúlico y sinápico en el anís; quercetín-3-rutinósido (rutina) y naringenina en el cilantro, mientras que en el clavo se identificaron el ácido gálico, clorogénico y elágico.

Abstract Phosphomolybdic and phosphotungstic acids mixture, known as Folin-Ciocalteu reactive, is one of the main methods for the quantification of polyphenolic compounds in vegetable extracts (FC reactive). However, as other spectrophotometric methods, it can be unspecific and interact with other molecules, such as sugars, present in vegetable extracts, modifying the obtained results. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of glucose, sucrose, fructose, xylose, mannose, rhamnose and arabinose on the quantification of polyphenolic compounds by the FC method. Fructose and xylose showed the highest interaction with FC reactive, while sucrose, mannose, rhamnose and glucose showed the lowest effect. Fructose and mannose reacted differently with both gallic acid solutions and anise, jalapeño hot pepper and traditional Mexican spices (hoja santa and avocado leaves). Fructose increased the response of the method, and consequently overestimated the polyphenolic content, while mannose showed an underestimation. The obtained results showed that sugar content in vegetable extracts may interfere on the estimation of polyphenolic content, especially if high content of fructose is present in the samples.

Resumen La mezcla de ácidos fosfomolíbdico y fosfotúngstico es el reactivo esencial de uno de los principales métodos para la cuantificación de compuestos polifenólicos en extractos vegetales conocido como método de reactivo de Folin-Ciocalteu (FC). Sin embargo, al igual que otros métodos espectrofotométricos puede ser inespecífico e interaccionar con otras moléculas como azúcares, presentes en los extractos vegetales, que pueden alterar los resultados encontrados. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue determinar el efecto de la glucosa, sacarosa, fructosa, xilosa, manosa, ramnosa y arabinosa sobre la cuantificación de compuestos polifenólicos mediante el método de FC. La fructosa y la xilosa fueron los azúcares con la mayor reactividad, mientras que la sacarosa, ramnosa, manosa y glucosa presentaron el menor efecto. La fructosa y la manosa tanto en las muestras de ácido gálico como en extractos de anís y chile jalapeño así como de especias tradicionales de la cocina mexicana (hoja santa y hoja de aguacate), reaccionaron diferente, ya que la fructosa incrementó la respuesta del método y consecuentemente sobreestimó el contenido de los compuestos polifenólicos y la manosa los subestimó. Los resultados obtenidos muestran que el contenido de azúcar en extractos puede interferir en la estimación de los compuestos polifenólicos, sobre todo si la concentración es muy alta o la fructosa está presente.

In order to produce gasoline directly from syngas, HZSM-5 can be added to the Fischer-Tropsch catalyst. However, this catalytic system shows an important deactivation rate. Aiming at describing this phenomenon, Fe-based catalysts and physical mixtures containing these catalysts and HZSM-5 were employed in this reaction. All these systems were characterized using the following techniques: XRD, XPS, TPR and TPD of CO. This work shows that HZSM-5 interacts with the Fe-based Fischer-Tropsch catalyst during the reduction step, decreasing the Fe concentration on the catalytic surface and thus lowering the activity of the catalytic system in the Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis.

High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) has been investigated and industrially applied to extend shelf life of meat-based products. Traditional ham packaged under microaerophilic conditions may sometimes present high lactic acid bacteria population during refrigerated storage, which limits shelf life due to development of unpleasant odor and greenish and sticky appearance. This study aimed at evaluating the shelf life of turkey ham pressurized at 400 MPa for 15 min and stored at 4, 8 and 12 ºC, in comparison to the non pressurized product. The lactic acid bacteria population up to 10(7) CFU/g of product was set as the criteria to determine the limiting shelf life According to such parameter the pressurized sample achieved a commercial viability within 75 days when stored at 4 ºC while the control lasted only 45 days. Predictive microbiology using Gompertz and Baranyi and Roberts models fitted well both for the pressurized and control samples. The results indicated that the high hydrostatic pressure treatment greatly increased the turkey ham commercial viability in comparison to the usual length, by slowing down the growth of microorganisms in the product.

The internal quality of conventional and ω-3 enriched commercial eggs stored at different temperatures was evaluated. Eggs derived from Isa Brown layers fed two different diets. In Group 1, 432 hens were fed throughout their productive life with a diet based on corn and soybean meal (production of conventional eggs). In Group 2, starting at 22 weeks of age, other 432 hens were fed a diet containing 1.5% of marine algae substrate and 1.8% of fish oil (production of ω-3 enriched eggs). The following parameters were evaluated: Haugh unit, yolk index, albumen pH, and yolk pH. There were no significant differences between conventional and enriched with ω-3 eggs as to internal quality parameters. Only the interaction between storage time and temperature was significant, and therefore their effects were evaluated, independent of egg type (conventional eggs and ω-3 enriched eggs). Eggs stored at 25ºC presented lower Haugh units and yolk index, and higher albumen pH and yolk pH as compared to those kept at 5ºC. In addition, internal quality was reduced when eggs were stored for 7, 14, and 21 days, particularly when maintained at 25ºC. It was concluded that conventional and ω-3 enriched eggs have good internal quality; however, to maintain this quality, eggs must be stored under refrigeration.

Pyrolysis gasoline - PYGAS - is an intermediate boiling product of naphtha steam cracking with a high octane number and high aromatic/unsaturated contents. Due to stabilization concerns, PYGAS must be hydrotreated in two stages. The first stage uses a mild trickle-bed conversion for removing extremely reactive species (styrene, dienes and olefins) prior to the more severe second stage where sulfured and remaining olefins are hydrogenated in gas phase. This work addresses the reaction network and two-phase kinetic model for the first stage of PYGAS upgrading. Nonlinear estimation was used for model tuning with kinetic data obtained in bench-scale trickle-bed hydrogenation with a commercial Pd/Al2O3 catalyst. On-line sampling experiments were designed to study the influence of variables - temperature and spatial velocity - on the conversion of styrene, dienes and olefins.

Conjugados de IgG anti-HBs de cabra e peroxidase, preparados por dois métodos diferentes, um usando NaIO4 e o outro SPDP foram comparados. Anticorpos anti-HBs obtidos de cabra, coelho e cobaio foram testados como captura. O ELISA apresentou sensibilidade similar ao RIA e o nível de captação antigênica foi de 4,37 a 8,75 nanogramas/ml quando utilizados captura de coelho ou cobaio combinados tanto com o conjugado pelo NaIO4 como com o conjugado pelo SPDP.

Conjugates of goat anti-HBs IgG and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) prepared by two different methods, one using NaIO4 and the other SPDP, were compared. Anti-HBs antibodies obtained from goat, rabbit and guinea-pig were tested as capture serum. The ELISA showed a sensitivity similar to RIA and a level of antigen captation ranging from 4.37 to 8.75 nanograms/ml was obtained when rabbit or guinea-pig captures were used combined with both NaIO4 or SPDP conjugates.

Pela técnica de cromatografia de afinidade, utilizando-se a resina de Sepharose 4B ligada ao anti-HBs, obteve-se na passagem de plasma de portador assintomático de antígeno HBs, um antígeno parcialmente purificado. Este antígeno foi utilizado para a inoculação em coelhos, num esquema de cinco doses, sendo a primeira dose de 1mg e as quatro subseqüentes de 0,5 mg, com intervalos aproximadamente de quinze dias. Observando-se que os títulos não mais variaram após a quinta inoculação, os animais foram sangrados no 62° dia e os anticorpos anti-HBs obtidos foram padronizados através dos seguintes métodos para detecção de antígeno HBs: a) Hemaglutinação passiva reversa (HAPR) – utilizando-se a gamaglobulina específica obtida de soro imune dos coelhos através de cromatografia de afinidade, alcançando uma concentração ótima de apenas 10µg/ml para a sensibilização de hemácias de carneiro a 5%, fixadas com glutaraldeído. B) Contraimunoeletroforese (CIEF) – utilizando-se o soro imune diluído até 1/20 como reagente para a detecção do antígeno HBs. O soro imune anti-HBs foi também utilizado para a conjugação com uma nova resina de Sepharose 4b tendo uma captação aproximada de 0,5 a 1,0mg antígeno HBs por ml de resina após completa saturação.

By the method of affinity chromatography a partially purified antigen was obtained after passing the plasma of an asymptomatic carrier of HBs Ag through a column of Sepharose 4 B linked to angi-HBs. This antigen was inoculated in rabbits using a schedule of 1.0 mg in the first dose and 4 other doses of 0,5 mg with intervals of approximately 15 days. Observing that blood samples colletcted after the 5th inoculation showed no change in antibody levels, the animals were bled on the 62 th day and these immune ser were standardized with the following tests for the detection of HBsAg: a) reverse passive hemagglutination (R-PHA) – using specific gamma globulin that was obtained from rabbit sera by affinity chromatography and reaching an optimal concentration of 10µg/ml to sensitise SRBC at 5% fixed in glutaraldehyde. b) Counter immuno electrophoresis (CIEP) – using the rabbit immune sera diluted to 1/20 as a reagent for the detection of HBsAg. The immune sera was also used to conjugate new Sepharose 4B for affinity chromatography and was found having a linking capacity of approximately 0,5 to 1,0mg of HbsAg per ml of Sepharose after complete saturation.

Durante a 2ª quinzena de março de 1980, foi notificada a ocorrência de casos de hepatite, no Centro de Pesquisa da Petrobrás localizado na Ilha do Fundão, na cidade do Rio de Janeiro. Nos últimos anos, este Centro apresentou uma média de ocorrência de quatro casos de haepatite por ano, mas no período de 5 de março a 25 de abril foram observados 16 casos. A causa e a possível fonte desta infecção foram investigadas. O diagnóstico sorológico para Hepatite A, dos pacientes, foi feito pela determinação de anticorpos IgM específicos para este vírus. Não foi identificado nenhum caso subclínico entre um grupo de 60 empregados saudáveis. Uma possível fonte de infecção comum foi investigada por meio de um questionário. As análises feitas no sistema de água indicaram uma contaminação recente. As informações obtidas de outros serviços médicos da mesma localidade não mostraram nenhuma ocorrência que sugerisse um surto.

An excess of hepatitis cases, in the research center of Petrobrás located in the Fundaão Island, within the city of Rio de Janeiro, was notified during the second half of March 1980. In recent years this center has had an average of four cases per year, but between March 5th and April 25th, sixteen cases were reported. The cause and possible source of infection were investigated. A serologic diagnosis of hepatitis A was made by showing IgG serum antibodies against this virus in patients. No subclinical cases among a group of 60 healthy employees could be identified. A questionnaire was circulated to investigate a possible commom source of infection. Evaluation of the water supply system indicated that it had recently been contaminated. Information obtained from other medical services in the island failed to reveal that the episode was part of a larger outbreak.