Whole wheat and refined wheat differ substantially for dietary fibre and polyphenol contents, however, the exact relationship between the in vitro contents and in vivo functions have not been well established. Two groups of growing rats were fed for 6 weeks with diets containing 53% of whole durum and refined durum wheat flours. In plasma and in mesenteric lymphocytes parameters of redox status and in lymphocytes the rate of cell proliferation and the type of immune response were measured. Plasma antioxidant activity showed that whole wheat was able to increase antioxidative status with respect to refined wheat and to reduce the carbonyl content. The diets rich in whole wheat can improve proliferative responses with respect to refined wheat. The results indicated that a constant intake of whole wheat may have important implications for health, by acting as modulator of immune function and redox status.

Bovine colostrum contains factors that may regulate the activity of the immune system in newborns, but this regulatory effect has not been studied in normal or immunodepressed human adult subjects....

A durum wheat cultivar, Simeto, was grown in experimental fields and samples were collected at various stages of development (from 9 to 45 days after flowering) to assess changes in chemical composition during maturation. Fructans, in particular low molecular weight fructo-oligosaccharides, accumulated in the first 2–3 weeks after anthesis. The cultivar was then grown in an open field and collected at 15 days after anthesis and at maturity 45 days after anthesis. Experimental diets containing 53% wholemeal from immature or mature wheat, were fed for 6 and 12 weeks to two groups of growing rats. Glutathione, vitamins C and E and total hydrophilic or lipophilic antioxidant concentrations were determined in mature and immature wholemeal. The effects of feeding immature and mature wheat diets for the two experimental periods on the immune system, antioxidant status and plasma lipids were studied. Feeding immature wheat increased the proliferation rates of lymphocytes, indicating a stimulating effect on the immune response, decreased the plasma triglycerides and cholesterol levels, indicating a positive effect on lipid profiles. Antioxidant concentrations in blood and lymphocytes did not change significantly.

The traction control increases stability, safety, efficiency and range of EVs preventing slippage in acceleration and permitting to use high-efficiency low drag tires. The performance of the presented approach is comparable with that obtained by the welt-recognized techniques while this approach is simpler. This paper considers the longitudinal control of each driven wheel of the vehicle, and it bases the control on an adherence observer and a fuzzy controller of the adherence derivative. Numerical simulations as well as experimental verifications support the work. The experimental work was conducted by means of a test facility including the real time computation and actuation of the vehicle dynamic and of the adherence. The controller evidenced good tracking of the quasi-optimal set point in a very wide operating range without a priori knowledge of road conditions. Moreover, the experimental tests evidenced that the control has a good response to sudden changes in the adherence curve of the road.

The gut immune system has to be able to protect the mucosa against pathogens but also must avoid hypersensitivity reactions to food proteins, normal bacterial flora and other environmental macromolecules. Oral tolerance is a specific suppression of cellular and humoral cell-mediated immune responses to orally administered antigen upon subsequent immunization with the same antigen to prevent immune reactions to dietary antigens. Breakdown of oral tolerance may lead to the development of adverse reactions to food, mucosal immunopathologies directed against environmental antigens or autoantigens and thus to autoimmune disease. Recently it has been suggested that probiotics may favorably alter the indigenous flora, to generate beneficial mucosal immunomodulatory effects and to modulate oral tolerance. We have investigated whether feeding with Bifidobacterium animalis or Lactobacillus casei GG influenced oral tolerance induction and maintenance in rats orally fed with ovalbumin (OVA) or immunized with the same antigen. We have assayed splenic and mesenteric lymphocytes proliferation after in vitro stimulaton with OVA or with a polyclonal mitogen: Concanavalin A (ConA). We have also analized the expression of cytokine involved in oral tolerance induction. Our results indicate that proliferation of mesenteric lymphocytes of immunized rats after in vitro stimolation with OVA was lower in probiotics fed animals than in unfed rats. Probiotic treatment induced an increase of interleukin (IL)-10 only in mesenteric lymphnodes compared to untreated rats. These results indicated that the immune response to probiotics may be different at intestinal or pheripheral site, and that the achievement of oral tolerance may be influenced by probiotics.

Abstract: Polyunsaturated fatty acids have been indicated to induce anti‐proliferative and/or apoptotic effects in various tumor cells. We showed that, at a 200‐μM concentration, both alpha‐linoleic (18:2 n‐6; LA) or docosahexaenoic (22:6 n‐3; DHA) acid inhibited cell growth, while only DHA induced apoptosis in the human Paca‐44 pancreatic cancer cell line. Investigating the mechanism underlying DHA‐induced apoptosis, we showed that DHA induced a rapid and dramatic (>60%) intracellular depletion of reduced glutathione (GSH), without affecting oxidized glutathione (GSSG). Moreover, using two specific inhibitors of carrier‐mediated GSH extrusion, cystathionine or methionine, we observed that GSH depletion occurred via an active GSH extrusion, and that inhibition of GSH efflux completely reversed apoptosis. These results provide the first evidence for a possible causative role of GSH depletion in DHA‐induced apoptosis.

The effects of phenolic compounds in condition of hypercholesterolemia and their relationships with the immune system have not been completely understood. In this study, the effects of caffeic acid and quercetin on the lymphocytes proliferation and on glutathione (GSH) concentration in rabbits fed with a cholesterol-rich diet were studied. The animals were fed a standard diet supplemented with 0.5% cholesterol for 3 months. The isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were treated with different concentrations of the two compounds and cell proliferation and reduced glutathione concentration were determined in the mitogen-activated cells. Caffeic acid and quercetin decrease lymphocytes proliferation and the level of reduced glutathione in the experimental conditions adopted. A protective role for quercetin and caffeic acid in the atherogenetic process induced by hypercholesterolemia through the antiinflammatory mechanism can be postulated. Des lapins sont nourris avec un regime alimentaire enrichi en cholesterol pendant 3 mois. Puis les les monocucleaires sanguins sont isoles et traites avec les 2 substances phenoliques, l'acide caffeique et la quercetine, a differentes concentrations. Il y a diminution de la multiplication cellulaire et d u glutathion dans les conditions experimentales. Un role protecteur, par un mecanisme antiinflammatoire, peut donc etre attribue a ces substances vegetales au niveau de l'atherogenese induite par l'hypercholesterolemie.

The role of dietary cholesterol in the modulation of both cell-mediated immunity and oxidative status is still not completely understood. In this study the effect of high levels of dietary cholesterol on cell-mediated immunity and on antioxidant levels was investigated in rabbits. For 3 months two groups of five animals each were fed a standard diet that was either supplemented with 0.5% cholesterol or not supplemented. Vitamin E and glutathione concentrations were measured on plasma and on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Proliferative response through [3H]-thymidine incorporation was measured on PBMC. The cholesterol rich diet increased the activation of immune cells and the levels of vitamin E and glutathione in both PBMC and plasma. The possible involvements of these two antioxidative components in regulating cholesterol-induced atherosclerosis and immune function are discussed.

In the food industry, the control and improvement of quality and safety of food products before their entrance in the market is mandatory. This process involves the necessity of monitoring different compounds, among which factors of plant and animal diseases, analysis of food contamination for toxins, pesticides and drug residues, natural toxicants, allergenes, pathogenic microorganisms. Therefore is Very important to set-up methodologies and techniques able to give qualitative and quantitative answers in a short time.Immunodiagnostic tests, based on antibodies properties, are optimal candidates for this task, because their are economic, rapid, easy to perform, very sensitive and reliable, and because they can be carried out directly on the field.In this review, examples of application of immunological tests to food production are reported, such as those for the presence of bacteria, Virus and molds in food crops and in animal production, and those for the presence of microbial toxins, algal toxins, pathogenic microorganisms, and pesticides or drug residues.The development of tests based on the employment of specific antibodies, such as immunobiosensors, remains a promising area of research for the application to the food industry.

In the food industry, the control and improvement of quality and safety of food products before their entrance in the market is mandatory. This process involves the necessity of monitoring different compounds, among which factors of plant and animal diseases, analysis of food contamination for toxins, pesticides and drug residues, natural toxicants, allergenes, pathogenic microorganisms. Therefore is very important to set-up methodologies and techniques able to give qualitative and quantitative answers in a short time. Immunodiagnostic tests, based on antibodies properties, are optimal candidates for this task, because their are economic, rapid, easy to perform, very sensitive and reliable, and because they can be carried out directly on the field. In this review, examples of application of immunological tests to food production are reported, such as those for the presence of bacteria, virus and molds in food crops and in animal production and those for the presence of microbial toxins, algal toxins, pathogenic microorganisms, and pesticides or drug residues. The development of tests based on the employment of specific antibodies, such as immunobiosensors, remains a promising area of research for the application to the food industry.

Background. Increases in blood lipids have been observed in humans when coffee is brewed by the boiling method. The purpose of this study was to evaluate if giving up Italian coffee might reduce blood cholesterol levels.Methods. Eighty-four normolipidaemic young adult males, after a 3-week baseline (BL), were randomly assigned to three different regimens of coffee consumption: espresso (E), mocha (M), and no coffee, but tea (T). The average coffee consumption during intervention (I) was 3.1 +/- 1.2 and 2.8 +/- 1.1 cups per day for espresso and mocha group respectively (espresso: 25-35 ml/cup; mocha: 40-50 ml/cup). Total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides were measured eight times during the study. Dietary pattern, alcohol consumption, smoking habits, drug use, and anthropometric data were also recorded.Results. The changes observed in serum cholesterol concentration between baseline and intervention were not statistically different in all groups. The changes were 0.0 mmol/l (T), +0.10 mmol/l (E) and +0.05 mmol/l IM) for total serum cholesterol; 0 mmol/l (T), -0.02 mmol/l IE) and -0.03 mmol/l (M) for HDL-C; -0.13 mmol/l (T), +0.02 mmol/l (E) and -0.05 mmol/l (M) for LDL-C. Serum triglycerides showed a significant increase during intervention (P < 0.01 by ANOVA) in all groups with a change of 0.18 mmol/l, 0.18 mmol/l and 0.22 mmol/l, for tea, espresso and mocha group respectively.Conclusion. The results indicate that coffee brewed in the Italian way does not alter blood levels of total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol, since no significant differences were observed in these blood parameters after a 6-week break from coffee consumption.

The antioxidant activity of the major phenols derived from hydroxycinnamic acid (caffeic, ferulic, and p-coumaric acids) on in vitro LDL oxidation was screened, using Cu2+ as catalyst. The presence of the second phenolic hydroxy group enhanced the inhibitory effect of these compounds. In fact, at 5 microM concentration, only caffeic acid completely protected LDL from modification as measured as conjugated dienes formation and apo B-100 fragmentation, also preserving alpha-tocopherol. The effect of caffeic acid in inhibiting LDL oxidative modification induced by three different oxidant systems was tested. Using both Cu2+ and 2,2'-azobis (2-amidinopropane)-hydrochloride (AAPH), the inhibitory effect of caffeic acid was dose-dependent. Yet, the better protection was achieved in the metal-ion dependent system. Also the murine macrophages-mediated LDL oxidation was efficiently inhibited by 5 microM caffeic acid. UV-VIS spectra of caffeic acid incubated with cupric ions show the formation of a caffeic acid:copper complex, responsible for a transient chelating activity. This mechanism, coupled with its free radical scavenging property, accounts for the higher inhibitory activity exhibited by caffeic in Cu(2+)-catalyzed reaction.

Intensively reared rabbits are particularly sensitive to heat stress. For this reason if is useful to identify reliable stress indicators to evaluate peculiar stress conditions of the breeding environment.In order to recognize which changes in biochemical and functional measurements can be utilized as stress indicators, three groups of eight New Zealand White rabbits, of 2.8 kg body weight and 11 weeks of age, were kept in individual cages and submitted to different environmental conditions. Group 1 was located in a climatic chamber at 33.5 (s.e. 0.5)degrees C and relative humidity 0.62 (s.d. 0.05) and groups 2 and 3 (control) at 18.0 (s.d. 0.5)degrees C.Group 1 was given ad libitum a commercially pelleted diet, group 2 was pair-fed with group 1, and group 3 was given food ad libitum. For all the groups, at days 0, 1, 6, 12 and 24, the following measurements were made: body weight, rectal temperature, food consumption and plasma glucose, cholesterol, urea, triglycerides, uric acid, and glutamate oxalacetate transaminase, glutamate pyruvate transaminase, thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances, vitamin A and vitamin E, SH-groups and total (peroxil) radical-frapping antioxidant parameter (TRAP).Food consumption of animals exposed to 33.5 degrees C was strongly reduced in the 1st day (13.6 v. 161.6 g/day); a gradual increase until the end of the trial was then observed (98.8 v. 177.3 g/day). Rectal temperature rapidly increased and remained stable and higher than in the control groups all through the trial (P < 0.01). The major changes in the measurements of the heat stressed animals were a significant increase of the plasma level of vitamin E at days 6, 12, 24 (P < 0.05), and a significant reduction of the plasma concentration of SH-groups and TRAP (P < 0.05).The results suggest all impairment or overload of antioxidant systems after thermal stress, indicating a reduced resistance to biological and environmental stress factors. The results also indicate that some parameters of antioxidant systems can be used to select a significant stress indicator.

Incorporation of long-chain polyunsaturared fatty acids (PUFA) in low density lipoprotein (LDL) might induce a decrease in its resistance against oxidative modification because of their high degree of unsaturation. To investigate the in vivo and in vitro influence of dietary omega-3 fatty acids on plasma and LDL susceptibility to oxidative modification, a diet containing 15% wt/wt fish oil was fed to rats together with diets containing 15% wt/wt soybean oil or coconut oil for 6 weeks. The plasma lipid concentration was significantly lower after fish oil feeding compared with the two control diets. Fish oil fed rats exhibited significantly lower total (peroxyl) radical-trapping antioxidant activity (TRAP) than both soybean oil and coconut oil fed animals (P < 0.01). The levels of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance in the native LDL were 0,66 nmol/mg, 0.51 nmol/mg, and undetectable, respectively, in fish oil, soybean oil, and coconut oil rats. Metal-catalyzed oxidative modification of LDL was monitored following the time course of conjugated dienes and lipid hydroperoxides formation and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance activity. The effect of the two unsaturated diets on the extent of LDL modification was similar, but the lag phase was shorter in fish oil LDL than in soybean oil LDL, despite the same concentration of vitamin E. Also the oxidative modification of native apoB-100, measured by the emission fluorescence spectra at 430 nm (excitation 360 nm), was markedly higher in LDL of fish oil fed rats than in the other two groups. The results indicate that dietary omega-3 fatty acids induce a decrease in the plasma antioxidant potential and an increase in the ex vivo susceptibility of LDL to oxidative modification.

The surface stoichiometry of SiOxNy thin films has been studied by means of x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The modified Auger parameter, applied on the Si 2p core level and Si KL2,3L2,3 Auger signal, has been used to calculate the surface composition of SiOxNy thin films prepared using different methods. The results have been compared with those obtained calculating the area under the XPS peaks and the Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy. The good agreement between these data indicates the validity of the modified Auger parameter as an easy and fast method, available in all electron spectroscopy laboratory, to study the surface stoichiometry of Si-based compounds.

The effect of varying unsaturation degree of dietary lipid on the oxidative response of rat liver microsomes was studied. Three groups of growing male rats were maintained for 6 weeks on 15% fat diets containing either soybean oil, olive oil, or coconut oil, with the same level of vitamin E. After 6 weeks, microsomal malondialdehyde, vitamin E, and fatty acid composition were measured in liver microsomes. The relative abundance of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids in the microsomes reflected the composition of the dietary lipid. When dietary requirement for vitamin E was satisfied, the increased polyunsaturated fatty acid intake from vegetable oils did not enhance lipid peroxidation in physiological conditions, as demonstrated by similar malondialdehyde concentrations found in the three groups. However, the somewhat lower vitamin E content measured in soybean oil-fed rats confirms an enhanced requirement for dietary antioxidant caused by the increased intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids. The susceptibility of liver microsomes to lipid peroxidation stimulated by the ADP/iron/ascorbate system was also studied. Membranes of soybean oil-fed rats exhibited the highest peroxidation rate, as shown by oxygen consumption and malondialdehyde and 4-hydroxy-2,3-trans-neonenal production, because of the lower concentration of vitamin E and of the higher content of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Microsomes of olive oil- and coconut oil-fed rats showed highest protection against lipid peroxidation.

The effects of dietary oils on the fatty acid composition and lipid peroxidation of myelin and synaptosomes isolated from rat brain were studied. The animals were fed diets rich (15% wt/wt) in either long chain n-3 fatty acids (fish oil), n-6 fatty acids (soybean oil), or saturated fatty acids (coconut oil) for 6 weeks. Fish oil led to a significant increase in the n-3 fatty acid percentage in both membranes with a concomitant decrease in n-6 fatty acids percentage in myelin but not in synaptosomes. Soybean and coconut oils influenced less strictly the brain membranes' fatty acid composition. A higher peroxidation rate and a lower concentration of vitamin E was observed in brain membranes of the fish oil group compared with the coconut group, with intermediate values in the soybean oil group. However, no differences among the experimental animals were observed in thiobarbituric acid reacting substances (TBARS) of brain membranes, although in serum TBARS concentrations increased in proportion to dietary PUFA content, suggesting that the brain is more protected in vivo by oxidative challenge. The data also indicate that dietary oils may differently affect the fatty acid composition of isolated brain membranes, with synaptosomes being more susceptible to oxidative stress than myelin membranes.