Search results for "Cactaceae"

Plant invasions on small Mediterranean islands. An overview

2016

Biological invasions have become one of the main drivers of habitat degradation and a leading cause of biodiversity loss in island ecosystems worldwide. The spread of invasive species poses a particular environmental threat on the islands of the Mediterranean Basin, which are hot spots of biodiversity and contain rare habitats and endemic species, especially on small islands, which are highly vulnerable to biodiversity loss. Following a recent survey, in this paper we aim to provide an overview of the present-day non-native vascular flora of small Mediterranean islands based on a sample of 37 islands located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of Italy. By comparing the cu…

Distribution of betalain pigments in red blood cells after consumption of cactus pear fruits and increased resistance of the cells to ex vivo induced…

2005

Betalain pigments are bioavailable phytochemicals recently acknowledged as natural radical scavengers. This work, which extends previous research on the postabsorbitive fate of dietary betalains, investigated the distribution of betanin and indicaxanthin in red blood cells (RBCs) isolated from healthy volunteers (n = 8), before and during the 1-8 h interval after a cactus pear fruit meal, and the potential antioxidative activity of the pigments in these cells. A peak concentration of indicaxanthin (1.03 +/- 0.2 microM) was observed in RBCs isolated at 3 h after fruit feeding, whereas the concentration at 5 h was about half, and even smaller amounts were measured at 8 h. Indicaxanthin was no…

Absorption, excretion, and distribution of dietary antioxidant betalains in LDLs: potential health effects of betalains in humans

2004

Background: Betalains were recently identified as natural antioxidants. However, little is known about their bioavailability from dietary sources. Objective: The objective was to evaluate the bioavailability of betalains from dietary sources. Design: The plasma kinetics and urinary excretion of betalains were studied in healthy volunteers (n 8) after a single ingestion of 500 g cactus pear fruit pulp, which provided 28 and 16 mg indicaxanthin and betanin, respectively. The incorporation of betalains in LDL and the resistance of the particles to ex vivo–induced oxidation was also researched. Results: Betanin and indicaxanthin reached their maximum plasma concentrations 3 h after the fruit me…

Medicinal cactaceae of Arequipa Province, Peru.

2008

From cacti to carnivores: Improved phylotranscriptomic sampling and hierarchical homology inference provide further insight into the evolution of Car…

2017

Premise of the study The Caryophyllales contain ~12,500 species and are known for their cosmopolitan distribution, convergence of trait evolution, and extreme adaptations. Some relationships within the Caryophyllales, like those of many large plant clades, remain unclear, and phylogenetic studies often recover alternative hypotheses. We explore the utility of broad and dense transcriptome sampling across the order for resolving evolutionary relationships in Caryophyllales. Methods We generated 84 transcriptomes and combined these with 224 publicly available transcriptomes to perform a phylogenomic analysis of Caryophyllales. To overcome the computational challenge of ortholog detection in s…

The flesh ethanolic extract of Hylocereus polyrhizus exerts anti-inflammatory effects and prevents murine colitis

2015

IBD is a chronic disorder of the gastrointestinal tract characterized by mucosal inflammation and epithelial damage. Biologic therapy has significantly improved the course of the disease but there are still a high percentage of patients that do not respond to current therapies. We aim to determine the effects of the flesh ethanolic extract of Hylocereus polyrhizus (EH) in a mice model of colitis induced by TNBS.Balb/c mice received TNBS (175 mg/kg, 100 μl, i.r.) and six and thirty hours later were administered with EH (1 g/kg, i.p.). Mice were weighted daily and after sacrificing (2 and 4 days after TNBS) we analyzed mucosal histology, myeloperoxidase activity (MPO), the expression of pro-i…

우리말 번역: 국립생물자원관 (Cites and Cacti: a user's guide)

2018

이 책자는 CITES에 대한 슬라이드와 상세 설명으로 이루어져 있다. 다섯 개의 소주제(서론, 부속서 I 등재 선인 장류, 부속서 II 등재 선인장류, CITES의 적용을 받지 않는 선인장류, 선인장 거래와 CITES 이행)를 다루어 관심 분야와필요에따라내용을쉽게찾고이용할수있다.또한본책자가장기간사용될수있도록최대한일반적인 용어를 사용하였다. 매 슬라이드마다 2012년 7월 기준으로 적용되고 있는 상세한 설명을 수록하였다(역자 주 2018년 12월 현재 적용되 는 주요 변경 사항은 역자 주로 추가 설명하였다.). 저자들은 이 책자의 독자들이 본 슬라이드의 내용을 적정하게 편집, 이용하여 필요에 맞게 활용할 수 있기를 기대한다. 예를 들어 독자들이 본 책자의 슬라이드에 자신의 경험이 나 이미지를 추가하여 고유의 슬라이드를 만들어 자신의 발표에 사용할 수 있으며, 참고 자료로 청중들에게 배포 할 수 있을 것이다. 이를 위하여 슬라이드가 담긴 파워포인트 프레젠테이션과 슬라이드와 설명이 모두 담긴 pdf 파 일을 동봉된 USB에 담아 제공하였다.

Bacteria Associated with Copestylum (Diptera, Syrphidae) Larvae and Their Cactus Host Isolatocereus dumortieri

2011

We describe the gut bacterial diversity inhabiting two saprophagous syrphids and their breeding substrate (decayed tissues of the columnar cactus Isolatocereus dumortieri). We analyzed the gut microbiota of Copestylum latum (scooping larvae that feed on decayed cactus tissues) and Copestylum limbipenne (whose larvae can also feed on semiliquid tissues) using molecular techniques. DNA was extracted from larval guts and cactus tissues. The V1-V3 region of the 16S rRNA genes was amplified and sequenced. A total of 31079 sequences were obtained. The main findings are: C. limbipenne is dominated by several Enterobacteriaceae, including putative nitrogen-fixing genera and pectinolitic species and…

Optimizing the use of spineless cactus in the finishing diet of lambs: physicochemical properties and sensory characteristics of meat.

2019

BACKGROUND The use of spineless cactus in finishing diets for lambs improves the carcass quality. However, data about its influence on meat traits is very scarce. The effects of spineless cactus inclusion in the finishing diet of lambs at four levels (0, 150, 300 and 450 g kg-1 of dry matter, DM) in replacement of Tifton hay on the physicochemical and sensory properties of meat were studied. RESULTS The spineless cactus modified the chemical composition increasing the protein (P < 0.001) and the fat (P < 0.01) contents of meat, presenting the greatest values in lambs fed diets with 150 and 300 g kg-1 (DM) replacing levels, respectively. However, the spineless cactus did not influence the gr…

Hand-made paper obtained by green procedure of cladode waste of Opuntia ficus indica (L.) Mill. from Sicily

2019

Cellulosic fibres have been obtained by green procedures from the cladodes of Opuntia ficus indica (L.) Mill., constituting a large agro industrial waste in our territory. The materials have been analysed for its relative composition, applying, IR and TG methodologies and it was characterised by the absence of lignin. The fibrous material allowed the manufacture of a handmade paper obtaining an ecological material suitable for packaging purposes. The authors evidenced that the simple protocol based on hot water treatment was able to decrease the amount of hemicellulose in the final material.