Prosodic changes with age: a longitudinal study with three public figures in European Portuguese.

Purpose: The analysis of acoustic parameters contributes to the characterisation of human communication development throughout the lifetime. The present paper intends to analyse suprasegmental features of European Portuguese in longitudinal conversational speech samples of three male public figures in uncontrolled environments across different ages, approximately 30 years apart.

Participants And Methods: Twenty prosodic features concerning intonation, intensity, rhythm, and pause measures were extracted semi-automatically from 360 speech intervals (3-4 interviews from each speaker x 30 speech intervals x 3 speakers) lasting between 3 to 6 s.

Extraction of bioactive compounds from purple corn using emerging technologies: A review.

The increase in the use of bioactive compounds from purple corn in the food and pharmaceutical industries has led to the investigation of nonconventional extraction technologies that allow one to obtain more of these compounds. In this context, nonconventional techniques, known as emerging technologies, use more efficient processes that are safe for the environment, in addition to obtaining products with better functional characteristics as compared to those obtained by conventional technologies. This review aims to provide information on different nonconventional techniques used in the extraction of bioactive compounds from purple corn.

Impact of Natural and Artificial Sweeteners Compounds in the Sensory Profile and Preference Drivers Applied to Traditional, Lactose-Free, and Vegan Frozen Desserts of Chocolate Flavor.

The study developed traditional and light chocolate-flavor frozen dessert formulations, aimed at the general public, lactose intolerants, and vegans, and evaluated influences on quantitative sensory profiles and consumer acceptance with the replacement of sucrose by sweeteners in low-calorie versions. Twelve samples with different matrices were studied, sweetened with sucrose, sucralose, and stevia. The ideal concentration of sucrose (9%: dairy samples and 15%: vegan samples) was determined by the JAR scale.

Encapsulation of Beta-carotene in Lipid Microparticles Stabilized with Hydrolyzed Soy Protein Isolate: Production Parameters, Alpha-tocopherol Coencapsulation and Stability Under Stress Conditions.

The objectives of this research were to study the encapsulation of beta-carotene (BC) in solid lipid microparticles (SLM) of palm stearin (PS) and stabilized with hydrolyzed soy protein isolate (HSPI), and also to investigate the effect of alpha-tocopherol (TOC) addition to the systems. Through the characterizations of SLM produced with different formulations, it was verified that systems with 5% (w/v) PS, 1.0% (w/v) HSPI, and 0.

First Record of Larval Secretions of Cochliomyia macellaria (Fabricius, 1775) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) Inhibiting the Growth of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Maggot debridement therapy (MDT) consists on the intentional and controlled application of sterilized larvae of the order Diptera on necrotic skin lesions with the purpose of cleaning necrotic tissue and removing pathogenic bacteria. During MDT, a marked antimicrobial activity has been reported in literature specially associated with antibacterial substances from Lucilia sericata (Meigen); however, regarding Cochliomyia macellaria (Fabricius), little is known. This study aimed to evaluate in vitro inhibition of bacterial growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus in contact with excretions and secretions (ES) from C.

Rheological analysis of sucrose solution at high temperatures using a microwave-heated pressurized capillary rheometer.

Thermal process design, optimization, and deviation require the knowledge of engineering properties of food, such as rheological behavior, which is highly dependent on temperature. If a process is calculated based on the parameters obtained by extrapolation, it might lead to over- or underprocessing. The long time required for the product to reach the desired temperature, which is usual in many rheometers, may induce unexpected changes on the product.

Endurance training stimulates growth and survival pathways and the redox balance in rat pancreatic islets.

Endurance training has been shown to increase pancreatic β-cell function and mass. However, whether exercise modulates β-cell growth and survival pathways signaling is not completely understood. This study investigated the effects of exercise on growth and apoptotic markers levels in rat pancreatic islets.

Calcium lactate effect on the shelf life of osmotically dehydrated guavas.

The effect of calcium lactate on osmodehydrated guavas in sucrose and maltose solutions was monitored during storage under passive modified atmosphere for 24 d at 5 °C. Sample texture and color characteristics, microbial spoilage, sensory acceptance, structural changes, and gas composition inside the packages were periodically evaluated. Calcium lactate inhibited microbial growth on guavas, with yeast and mold counts in the order of 10(2) CFU/g throughout storage.

Casein peptization, functional properties, and sensory acceptance of processed cheese spreads made with different emulsifying salts.

"Requeijão cremoso" is a traditional Brazilian processed cheese spread, showing ample acceptance on the national market. Emulsifying salts (ES) are an important factor influencing the characteristics of processed cheeses, but the literature presents conflicting results about their action on cheese functionality. Requeijão cremoso obtained from anhydrous ingredients allows the study of the influence of each type of ES on the cheese properties, since it can be treated as a model system where the variables are limited and well known.

Inactivation of Aspergillus niger in mango nectar by high-pressure homogenization combined with heat shock.

This research evaluated the inactivation of a heat-resistant Aspergillus niger conidia in mango nectar by high-pressure homogenization (HPH) combined with heat shock. A. niger were inoculated in mango nectar (10(6) conidia mL(-1)) and subjected to HPH (300 to 100 MPa) and heat shock (80 degrees C for 5 to 20 min) before or after HPH.

Effect of pH on microstructure and characteristics of cream cheese.

This study evaluated the effect of pH on the microstructure of cream cheese and compared pH-induced changes in its microstructure with concomitant changes in cheese firmness and meltability. On 4 different days, experimental batches of cultured hot pack cream cheese were manufactured and analyzed for initial chemical composition. The cheeses were then sectioned into samples that were randomly assigned to 7 different treatment groups.

Food safety knowledge of cheese consumers.

The aim of this study was to evaluate habits and practices of cheese consumers toward their level of knowledge of food safety. A total of 1000 people were interviewed in several cities of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Five hundred thirty-eight (53.

On the convergence of an EM-type algorithm for penalized likelihood estimation in emission tomography.

Recently, we proposed an extension of the expectation maximization (EM) algorithm that was able to handle regularization terms in a natural way. Although very general, convergence proofs were not valid for many possibly useful regularizations. We present here a simple convergence result that is valid assuming only continuous differentiability of the penalty term and can be also extended to other methods for penalized likelihood estimation in tomography.

A modified expectation maximization algorithm for penalized likelihood estimation in emission tomography.

The maximum likelihood (ML) expectation maximization (EM) approach in emission tomography has been very popular in medical imaging for several years. In spite of this, no satisfactory convergent modifications have been proposed for the regularized approach. Here, a modification of the EM algorithm is presented.