Food and Health
Volume:3 Issue: 1, Winter 2020

Carvacrol was found in essential oils of thyme, oregano, wild bergamot, and some other plants. Although, a wide range of bioactivities such as anticancer, antioxidant, and antimicrobial has been identified for carvacrol, however, among all therapeutic properties it possesses a potent antimicrobial activity. The present study investigates the inhibitory effect of carvacrol as an active compound against the growth of Aspergillus flavus, besides its effect on the expression of aflatoxin-related (aflR) gene. Twelve fungal samples of A. flavus were used and the antimicrobial activity of carvacrol was tested against them using the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal fungicidal concentration (MFC) according to the broth microdilution procedure. The expression of the aflatoxin regulatory (aflR) gene was examined by Reverse Transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique. The results of MIC and MFC tests showed that carvacrol at 0.8 μg/ml and 3.5 μg/ml concentrations displayed antimicrobial activities on A. flavus, respectively. The RT-PCR result indicated that the expression level of aflR gene had decreased to 33% in the presence of carvacrol compared to 67% in the absence of the mentioned active compound. Together the results demonstrated that carvacrol not only exhibited antimicrobial activity against A. flavus but also reduced its gene expression level.

Alzheimer's disease is an age-related ailment that affects more and more people every day. It is a type of amnesia with brain dysfunction that gradually degrades the patient's mental abilities. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of endurance training with royal jelly consumption on dopamine in the hippocampus tissue of Alzheimer's rats treated with trimethyltin. In this experimental study, 30 rats underwent intraperitoneal injection of 8 mg/kg trimethyltin (TMT) chloride and after ensuring Alzheimer's disease were divided into groups of 6 subjects: control, training, royal jelly consumption, and training with royal jelly consumption. In order to investigate the effects of Alzheimer's induction on dopamine levels, 6 rats were included in the healthy control group. The training groups ran on the treadmill for eight weeks, five sessions a week, and 60 minutes each session. The royal jelly consumption groups received 100 mg/kg royal jelly per day peritoneally for eight weeks. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov, one-way ANOVA, and Tukey’s mean comparison tests were used to analyze the findings (p≤0.05). Alzheimer's induction with trimethyltin toxin had a significant effect on reducing dopamine gene expression levels (p=0.04); royal jelly, training, and training with royal jelly consumption had a significant effect on increasing dopamine gene expression levels (p=0.001). Also, training and training with royal jelly consumption had a greater effect on increasing dopamine gene expression levels than royal jelly consumption (p=0.001). Although training and royal jelly consumption improve dopamine gene expression levels in the hippocampus tissue of rats with Alzheimer's disease, the effects of training combined with royal jelly consumption appear to be greater than those of royal jelly consumption alone.

Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is a simple, inexpensive, quick, and non-invasive technique for measuring body composition and its analysis is used as an alternative to examine muscle mass and body fat percentage Obesity and depression are two major public health problems among adolescents. Both obesity and depression are very prevalent and associated with numerous health complications, including hypertension, coronary heart disease, diabetes, and increased mortality. The present study was a cross-sectional study on 157 adult females and males from student and staff of Science and Research Branch of Islamic Azad University (SRBIAU) of Tehran that classified in two groups of normal weight and overweight or obese. The proportion of body tissues was determined according to the resistance created. The weight of the subjects was measured and recorded using BIA. Using the DASS-21 Questionnaire for Depression, Anxiety and Stress Based on the present findings, anthropometric indices such as weight, skeletal muscle mass, body mass index, waist to hip ratio, visceral fat level, whole-body water (L), body fat mass (kg), basal metabolic ratio (kcal), degree of obesity (%) ), fat percentage analysis (%), muscle weight analysis (kg), muscle percentage analysis were significantly different between the two groups (P <0.0001) and were higher in obese or overweight groups than the normal one. There were no significant differences in anxiety (p=0.496), stress (p=0.407), and mental health score (p=0.251) in both groups. Whereas, depression was significantly higher in the overweight or obese group (p=0.012). There was no meaningful relationship between BMI and stress (CC=0.04, P=0.612), anxiety (CC=0.052, P=0.519), whereas the positive correlation between BMI and depression (CC=0.932, P=0.035) was significant. There was a direct relationship between obesity and depression, anxiety, and stress. BMI correlates positively with mental health parameters.

Environmental concerns related to using plastics for food packaging and consumers' demand for the extended shelf life of foods conducted the researches to develop new strategies for food packaging. The shelf life of food systems is related to the existence and growth of food pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms during food storage. Also, the environmentally friendly aspects of edible films and coatings make them appropriate substitutes for plastics in food packaging systems. Therefore, edible films and coatings which contain a food preservative introduced as hopeful novel systems for extending shelf life and preserving the quality of foods. The antimicrobial agents could be used in edible films and coating for restriction or stopping the microbial growth for prolonging the shelf life of foods. Due to the weak barrier and mechanical characteristics of most edible films and coatings, natural nanocrystals could be employed to improve the properties of them. In this review, the nanoemulsion encapsulation introduced as a technique for improving antimicrobial properties, while minimizing the antimicrobial agent impacts on the foods' organoleptic properties. Also, using natural nanocrystals proposed as a reinforcing agent for edible packaging material. The shelf life of food systems is related to the existence and growth of food pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms during food storage.

Acid-base status, which can be affected by dietary acid load, has been related to risk factors for metabolic syndrome (MetS). In the current study, we investigated the association between dietary acid load and metabolic syndrome among overweight or obese children. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 339 participants, aged 6-13 years old with WHO body mass index z-score > 1 SD. The dietary intake of participants was assessed using a validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire, and the potential renal acid load (PRAL) and net endogenous acid production (NEAP) scores were calculated. Multiple logistic regression models were used to estimate the risk of metabolic syndrome according to the PRAL and NEAP quartile categories. The mean age of the participants was 9.3 years old. Mean PRAL and NEAP scores were −5.32 and -17.92 mEq/day, respectively. In this study, the potential confounders including age, sex, puberty stage, leisure time activity, total energy, and, body fat percentage were adjusted in the multivariable-adjusted model. By using logistic regression, no significant association was observed between PEAL and NEAP with metabolic syndrome (OR= 0.99, 95% CI: 0.98-1.01, P-value= 0.580 and OR= 0.94, 95% CI: 0.25-3.55, P-value= 0.929, respectively), after adjustment for potential confounders. Longitudinal studies should be conducted to evaluate the association between PRAL and NEAP with metabolic syndrome in children.

Diabetes mellitus and its comorbidities which result in dyslipidemia and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are one of the leading causes of death in the world, and diet plays a major role in those disease incidences, especially through lipid oxidation mechanisms. This, in turn, leads to tissue inflammation and the formation of atheromatous plaques. Our objective was to evaluate the association between the inflammatory potential of the diet and the incidence of dyslipidemia or its subclasses. We included 599 T2DM patients (276 men and 323 women), aged 35 to 65 years from diabetes referral centers, including Gabric Diabetes Association, Iranian Diabetes Society, and other health centers in Tehran. The lipid profiles in serum were measured by the dietary inflammatory index (DII) was computed using a validated 148-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The DII score ranged between - 4.85 and 5.46 and its mean and standard deviation (SD) was (-0.02±1.65). Younger individuals had higher adherence to the inflammatory diet (p≤0.001). Moreover, in the higher quartiles of DII, lower levels of physical activities were seen (p=0.005). There were no significant differences in the distribution of BMI, waist circumference, or lipid profile across DII quartiles. In the overall analysis, no significant association was observed between DII and lipid profile in the crude model, but after adjusting for confounders (age, gender, BMI, physical activity, and energy intake), the DII score was found to be positively associated with total cholesterol (β=3.123, SE=1.478, p=0.035) in all participants. A pro-inflammatory diet, as measured by a higher DII score, was prospectively associated with a higher level of total cholesterol in serum. This result may shed a light on the prevention of incidence dyslipidemia and CVD in diabetic patients by intervention in dietary patterns.

The increasing need for enhanced fresh food shelf life, as well as require of protection against forborne diseases, stimulate the growth of antimicrobial food packaging. Among the most impressive ways, the mixture of organic-inorganic, packaging, i.e. polymer inserted metal nanoparticles demonstrate to be extremely, useful. Silver nanoparticles, particularly, have antimicrobial, anti-fungi, anti-yeasts, and anti-viral activities and can be joined with both non-degradable and edible polymers for fresh packaging. The present application of AgNPs in fresh vegetable packaging is arranged by EU and USA food safety authorities carefully, due to the incapability to make certain bulletin on their toxicity. Hence, their use is figuring out in terms of Ag+ transformation into the packed food. This study was done to determine the effect of plastics embedded silver nanoparticles at concentrations of 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 ppm on some cucumber postharvest traits. In addition, it was examined the evaluation of the efficacy of AgNPs-containing hybrid materials to assure fresh vegetable safety. The results indicated that plastic bags were made successfully and 60 ppm concentration of silver nanoparticles was more effective than all other treatments on postharvest characters. Soluble solids concentration, TSS, Vitamin C, Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mg, and K, is significantly affected by using bags. Cucumbers shelf life is relatively long, lasting 21 days whereas control was 13 days. In addition, the highest level of silver penetration (1.99±0.002 ppb) in exocarp, (0.25±0.006 ppb) in mesocarp, and (0.30±0.006 ppb) in endocarp was associated with the treatment of 60 ppm silver nanoparticles in cucumber. So, these bags could be used for increasing shelf life in cucumber.