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World Health (world + health)
Terms modified by World Health Selected AbstractsBIOCHEMICAL AND SENSORY QUALITY OF PHYSALIS (PHYSALIS PUBESCENS L.) JUICEJOURNAL OF FOOD PROCESSING AND PRESERVATION, Issue 3 2010ALY F. EL SHEIKHA ABSTRACT Ground cherry (Physalis pubescens L.) is one of the most promising exotic fruits and some interesting functional products could be developed from these berries. The fresh juice was yellowish or orangey and had a light, sweet taste with acidic nature (pH 3.5). The titratable acidity was 1.43, polyphenols 76.6 mg/100 mL and vitamin C 38.8 mg/100 mL. Physalis juice was rich in carotenoids (70 µg/mL). The juice had a high level in minerals such as phosphorus (578 mg/100 mL), potassium (1,196 mg/100 mL), zinc (2.4 mg/100 mL) and boron (1 mg/100 mL). The essential amino acids in the juice such as isoleucine, valine and tryptophan (42.97, 39.92 and 39.83 mg/100 mL) were higher than those recommended by Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization/United Nations Union (FAO/WHO/UNU). PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS Tropical pulpy juices play an important role in nutrition as an excellent base for low-calorie and dietetic products. Physalis fruit and juice are nutritious, containing particularly high levels of niacin, carotenoids and minerals. There are very little available data in the literature regarding physicochemical and sensory properties. As part of the first steps toward developing Physalis as commercial crop, the present study aimed to evaluate the nutritional and sensorial properties of fresh juice as a new product from Physalis. [source] Advancing Knowledge That Improves World HealthJOURNAL OF NURSING SCHOLARSHIP, Issue 4 2007Article first published online: 14 NOV 200 [source] Breastfeeding promotion in non-UNICEF-certified hospitals and long-term breastfeeding success in GermanyACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 6 2003M Dulon Aim: To assess breastfeeding practices using the World Health Organization/United Nations Children's Fund (WHO/UNICEF) Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding for Baby-Friendly Hospitals in unselected non-UNICEF certified German hospitals and to examine the influences of breastfeeding promotion on long-term breastfeeding success as assessed by WHO criteria. Methods: Information on the fulfilment of the Ten Steps was collected in 177 randomly chosen maternity hospitals by a postal questionnaire. Breastfeeding duration was assessed in 1487 mothers delivering in these hospitals. Multiple logistic regression was used to estimate the association between a low breastfeeding promotion index, defined as fulfilment of fewer than five steps, and the risk of short-term breastfeeding, less than 4 mo. Results: A higher breastfeeding promotion index was not associated with early breastfeeding but was significantly associated with full breastfeeding at 4 and 6 mo. After adjusting for confounding factors, delivering in a hospital with a low breastfeeding promotion index was associated with an increased risk of short-term breastfeeding [odds ratio (OR) 1.24], although associations with maternal demographic variables (young age: OR 3.34), low educational level (OR 2.81) and upbringing in East Germany (OR 2.27) were stronger. Conclusion: In unselected German hospitals even moderate levels of breastfeeding promotion identified by WHO/UNICEF criteria were associated with long-term breastfeeding success. [source] Rising African cassava production, diseases due to high cyanide intake and control measuresJOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 12 2008Dulce Nhassico Abstract Cassava is the staple food of tropical Africa and its production, averaged over 24 countries, has increased more than threefold from 1980 to 2005, and the population has more than doubled over that time compared with a 1.5 times increase worldwide. Agriculturally, cassava performs very well but the roots and leaves contain cyanogenic glucosides that are dangerous to human health. These cyanogens sometimes produce acute intoxication leading to death, they exacerbate goitre and cretinism in iodine-deficient regions, cause konzo and are implicated in the occurrence of tropical ataxic neuropathy and stunting of children. Konzo is an irreversible paralysis of the legs with many thousands of cases, mainly amongst children, in Mozambique, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Central African Republic and probably other tropical African countries. Attempts to alleviate cassava cyanide toxicity have included the development of an information network and distribution in developing countries of picrate kits, which measure total cyanide in cassava and urinary thiocyanate. A simple wetting method that reduces total cyanide in cassava flour three- to sixfold has been successfully field tested and is being introduced in Mozambique. Transgenic technology shows promise in increasing the rate of loss of cyanide from roots during processing. World health and agricultural bodies should pay more attention to emerging health problems associated with toxicity of cyanogens in cassava. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Role of histone and transcription factor acetylation in diabetes pathogenesisDIABETES/METABOLISM: RESEARCH AND REVIEWS, Issue 5 2005Steven G. Gray Abstract Globally, diabetes (and, in particular, type 2 diabetes) represents a major challenge to world health. Currently in the United States, the costs of treating diabetes and its associated complications exceed $100 billion annually, and this figure is expected to soar in the near future. Despite decades of intense research efforts, the genetic basis of the events involved in the pathogenesis of diabetes is still poorly understood. Diabetes is a complex multigenic syndrome primarily due to beta-cell dysfunction associated with a variable degree of insulin resistance. Recent advances have led to exciting new developments with regard to our understanding of the mechanisms that regulate insulin transcription. These include data that implicate chromatin as a critical regulator of this event. The ,Histone Code' is a widely accepted hypothesis, whereby sequential modifications to the histones in chromatin lead to regulated transcription of genes. One of the modifications used in the histone code is acetylation. This is probably the best characterized modification of histones, which is carried out under the control of histone acetyltransferases (HATs) and histone deacetylases (HDACs). These enzymes also regulate the activity of a number of transcription factors through acetylation. Increasing evidence links possible dysregulation of these mechanisms in the pathogenesis of diabetes, with important therapeutic implications. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Stress response pathways in protozoan parasitesCELLULAR MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 12 2008Nathalie Vonlaufen Summary Diseases caused by protozoan parasites have a dramatic impact on world health. Emerging drug resistance and a general lack of experimental understanding has created a void in the medicine cabinet used to treat these widespread infections. A novel therapeutic idea that is receiving more attention is centred on targeting the microbe's response to the multitude of environmental stresses it encounters. Protozoan pathogens have complex life cycles, often having to transition from one host to another, or survive in a cyst form in the environment until a new host arrives. The need to respond to environmental cues and stress, and endure in less than optimal conditions, is paramount to their viability and successful progression through their life cycle. This review summarizes the research on parasitic stress responses for Apicomplexa, kinetoplastids and anaerobic protozoa, with an eye towards how these processes may be exploited therapeutically. [source] | |||||||||||||