Thinned stone fruits are a source of polyphenols and antioxidant compounds.

BACKGROUND: Thinned fruits are agricultural by-products that contain large quantities of interesting compounds due to their early maturity stage. In this work, the phenolic profile and the antioxidant activity of six thinned stone fruits (apricot, cherry, flat peach, peach, plum and nectarine) have been investigated, focussing on proanthocyanidins. RESULTS: Thinned nectarine had the highest content of total phenols [67.43 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE) g-1 dry weight (DW)] and total flavonoids (56.97 mg CE g-1 DW) as well as the highest antioxidant activity measured by DPPH scavenging (133.30 mg [Trolox equivalents (TE) g-1 DW] and FRAP assay (30.42 mg TE g-1 DW). Proanthocyanidins were very abundant in these by-products, and the main phenolic group quantified in cherry (10.54 mg g-1 DW), flat peach (33.47 mg g-1 DW) and nectarine (59.89 mg g-1 DW), while hydroxycinnamic acids predominate in apricot, peach and plum (6.67, 22.04 and 23.75 mg g-1 DW, respectively). The low, mean degree of polymerisation of proanthocyanidins suggests that their bioavailability could be very high. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that thinned stone fruit extracts might be used as antioxidants in foods or as a source of compounds with health-related benefits that can be used in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Evaluation of commercial boric acid containing vials for urine culture: low risk of contamination and cost effectiveness considerations.

BACKGROUND: Urine culture is a gold standard in the diagnosis of urinary tract infection. Clean catch midstream urine collection and prompt transportation is essential for appropriate diagnosis. Improper collection and delay in transportation leads to diagnostic dilemma. In developing countries, higher ambient temperatures further complicate the scenario. Here, we have evaluated the role of boric acid as a preservative for urine samples prior to culture in female patients attending outpatient department at our center. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Consecutive 104 urine samples were cultured simultaneously in plain uricol (Control-C) and boric acid containing tubes from Becton Dickinson urine culture kit (Boric acid group-BA). RESULTS: In the real-time evaluation, we found that in almost 57% (59/104) of the urine samples tested, it was more effective in maintaining the number of the organisms as compared to samples in the container without any preservative. Our in vitro study of simulated urine cultures revealed that urine samples could be kept up to 12 h before culture in the preservative without any inhibitory effect of boric acid. Though the use of boric acid kit may marginally increase the initial cost but has indirect effects like preventing delays in treatment and avoidance of false prescription of antibiotics. If the man-hours spent on repeat investigations are also taken into consideration, then the economic cost borne by the laboratory would also decrease manifold with the use of these containers.

[Increased treatment costs through use of nonpreserved antiglaucoma agents?]. / Steigerung der Behandlungskosten durch die Verwendung unkonservierter Antiglaukomatosa?

The cost alterations for the transfer from antiglaucoma agents with preservatives to those without preservatives will be discussed. The resulting cost increases are only moderate.

[Single dose administration in therapy of glaucoma. Comparison of costs with multiple dose]. / Einzeldosisapplikationen in der Glaukomtherapie. Vergleich der Kosten mit Mehrdosis.

Preservatives in antiglaucomatous agents can irritate the conjunctiva and may lead to allergic reactions. Preservative-free single-dose applications of glaucoma medications have increasingly become available. We analysed the therapy costs for single-dose containers per eye and per year and compared them with those for multidose containers. The data were calculated from prices taken from the German pharmacy index, applications per day and number of drops in the container. The drop volume ranged from 34.3 microliters to 48.0 microliters for single-dose containers and from 29.2 microliters to 40.0 microliters for multidose containers. The annual cost of therapy with beta-adrenergic antagonist preparations was DM 42.59-DM 80.78 for multidose containers and DM 162.73-DM 242.42 for single-dose containers. The cost of therapy with philocarpine was DM 21.55 but DM 233.92 for single-dose containers. The cost of combination therapy with beta-adrenergic antagonist preparations and pilocarpine ranged from DM 67.92 to DM 214.33 for multidose containers and from DM 408.15 to DM 428.95 using single-dose containers. Therapy with preparations in single-dose containers is more expensive than with multidose containers (+161 to +1169%). Preparations in single-dose containers without preservatives can have advantages, but the higher costs necessitate careful selection of the patients.