Exploring the macrominerals and heavy metals profile of deep-sea fishes: A pioneering study on trawl bycatch and discards in the Arabian Sea

This study assesses macrominerals (Na, K, Ca, Mg, P) and heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Se, Sn, Mn, Co, Fe, and Zn) content of deep-sea fish bycatch in the Arabian Sea, offering insights into their nutritional value, toxicant levels and health implications. Variations in Ca, K, P, Mg, and Na levels across species highlight mineral diversity. Setarches guentheri has the highest Ca (7716 mg/kg ww), K (2030.5 mg/kg ww), and P (13,180 mg/kg ww) concentrations. Dactyloptena orientalis exceeds the Cd limit (0.1284 mg/kg ww). Elevated Se levels in fishes were noted, with Dactyloptena orientalis (0.8607 mg/kg ww), Satyrichthys laticeps (0.7303 mg/kg ww), and Snyderina guentheri (0.6193 mg/kg ww). Fish like Pterygotrigla hemisticta contains high Zn (32 mg/kg ww), meeting Recommended Dietary Allowance limits. Deep-sea fish have safe heavy metal levels, but Cd, Se, and Zn exceed acceptable limits. It has been concluded that the consumption of fish species will not pose a potential health risk to humans.

Principal Component Analysis of Time-Related Changes of Some Essential Mineral Contents of Canned Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) in Different Filling Media

The kinetic reaction for changes in some essential mineral contents (iron, zinc, calcium, sodium, and copper) of silver carp canned in sunflower oil, soybean oil, olive oil, and brine as filling media was assessed after a short- (1 year) and long-term storage (3, 5, and 7 years). The mineral nutrition value of cans was also determined to take into account the changes in estimated daily intake (EDI) of elements during storage and then clustered by principal component analysis (PCA). Results revealed that the reduction of trace elements in brine was higher than in other filling media due to formation of insoluble metal hydroxide. No changes were detected in the mineral content of cans after 1-year storage in comparison to fresh cans, while the content and daily intake of zinc, iron, calcium, copper, and sodium were significantly decreased in all filling media after 3, 5, and 7 years of storage. The first-order reaction model was detected for reduction of mineral contents in filling medium. Post-storage daily intake of iron, sodium, calcium, zinc, and copper was 0.06 up to 0.18, 1.9 up to 9.7, 1.8 up to 9.1, 0.02 up to 0.10, and 0.004 up to 0.02 mg/day/person, respectively. Filling medium had significant effects on estimated daily intake of zinc, sodium, calcium, and copper in long-term sorted cans. PC1 and PC2 explained 93.7% of the total variance of the dataset, contributing 68.7 and 20.5%, respectively.

Effect of genotype and crop year on the nutritional value of walnut virgin oil and defatted flour

The present study analyses the health-promoting compounds of walnut oil and walnut defatted flour obtained using hydraulic pressing. To identify the cultivar effect, nine walnut varieties were harvested in the same plot for two years to control environmental and agricultural management effects on kernel chemical traits. Beyond the variability reported in the products obtained from the different cultivars analysed, the crop year showed a crucial effect in the nutritional value of walnut products. Specifically, the variability caused for the crop year in the concentration of oleic and linoleic acids, phytosterols, polyphenols, tocopherols, proteins and essential minerals (K, Mg, P, S, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni) was greater that the reported for the genotype. These findings suggest that the nutritional value of walnut oil and walnut flour depends on the crop season largely than expected, even when average annual weather conditions are similar. As a result, focus must change in the study of cultivar effect on walnut products to a wider analysis of specific variables related to crop year conditions.

School meals' centesimal and mineral composition and their nutritional value for Brazilian children

The assessment of meals served under the Brazilian National School Meal Program (PNAE) is an important tool to verify its adequacy to the proposed parameters and the nutritional needs of school-aged children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the centesimal and mineral composition of the meals offered by the program and adequacy to the nutritional recommendations in three municipalities of the state of Bahia, Brazil. Centesimal composition of meals was determined according to the reference guidelines and mineral composition was analyzed by atomic absorption spectrometry. Non-parametric analysis of variance was used to test the differences of the medians among the municipalities and Student-t test to compare the means between the two sampling periods. There were inadequacies in the carbohydrate, lipid and protein contents, and none of the municipalities reached the recommendation of 20%. Mineral concentration, especially Fe, Se, Cu and K were much lower than expected. Sodium levels were three-folds higher than the recommended, being worrisome due to higher risk of elevated blood pressure. There were inadequacies with regard to the PNAE guidelines, and there is a need to reevaluate the meals that are being offered to better meet childreńs needs and to form healthy habits from childhood.