Fibre concentrate from artichoke (Cynara scolymus L.) stem by-products: Characterization and application as a bakery product ingredient.

The potential of fibre concentrate from artichoke stem by-product in bakery application was investigated. The elaboration of fibre concentrate was characterized by an extraction yield of 48.5%. The chemical composition showed high total dietary fibre (85 g/100 g d.m) and low lipid contents (0.5 g/100 g d.m). The fibre concentrate showed good water holding capacity (8.17 g/g) and high oil holding capacity (16.17 g/g). The effect of fibre concentrate incorporation to wheat dough, at level of 2%, on the rheological properties and physical characteristics of bread was also evaluated. The results showed that the addition of fibre concentrate in wheat flour significantly improved (P < 0.05) dough properties inducing an increase of water absorption, stability and tenacity, and a reduction of extensibility and softening in comparison to the dough without fibre. The colour values of the crust and crumb were significantly (P < 0.05) altered by the addition of fibre concentrate. It was also found that incorporation of fibre concentrate to bread produced a comparable specific volume and enhanced the shelf life, as textural studies revealed.

Effect of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS) on human intestinal Caco-2 cells at non cytotoxic concentrations.

Linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS) is a cytotoxic synthetic anionic surfactant widely present in the environment due to its large-scale production and intensive use in the detergency field. In this study, we investigated the effect of LAS (CAS No. 25155-30-0) at non cytotoxic concentrations on human intestinal Caco-2 cells using different in vitro bioassays. As results, LAS increased Caco-2 cell proliferation at concentrations ranging from 1 to 15 ppm, more significantly for shorter exposure time (24 h), confirmed using flow cytometry and trypan blue exclusion methods. Moreover, proteomics analysis revealed that this effect was associated with an over-expression of elongation factor 2 and dipeptidyl peptidase 3, and a down-regulation of 14-3-3 protein theta, confirmed at mRNA level using real-time PCR. These findings suggest that LAS at non cytotoxic concentrations, similar to those observed at wastewater treatment plants outlets, increases the growth rate of colon cancer cells, raising thereby its tumor promotion effect potential.