The effects of various pulsed electric field (PEF) parameters on the extraction of polyacetylenes from carrot slices were investigated. Optimised conditions with regard to electric field strength (1-4 kV/cm), number of pulses (100-1500), pulse frequency (10-200 Hz) and pulse width (10-30 μs) were identified using response surface methodology (RSM) to maximise the extraction of falcarinol (FaOH)...

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most prevalent liver diseases associated with an altered lifestyle, besides genetic factors. The control and management of NAFLD mostly depend on lifestyle modifications, due to the lack of a specific therapeutic approach. In this context, we assessed the effect of carrot juice on the development of high fructose-induced hepatic steatosis....

The low content of iodine (I) and selenium (Se) forms available to plants in soil is one of the main causes of their insufficient transfer in the soil-plant-consumer system. Their deficiency occurs in food in the majority of human and farm animal populations around the world. Both elements are classified as beneficial elements. However, plant response to simultaneous fertilization with I and Se...

Antioxidant activities of ethanolic extracts of Ardisia japonica Blume., Ageartum conyzoides Linn., and Cocculus hirsutus Linn Diels. leaves was determined qualitatively and quantitatively in this research. 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical solution was used to investigate free radical scavenging activity of these leaves extracts. Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) was used as the stand...

Companies often provide incentives for employees to maintain healthy lifestyles. These incentives can take the form of either discounted premiums for healthy-weight employees ("carrot" policies) or increased premiums for overweight employees ("stick" policies). In the three studies reported here, we demonstrated that even when stick and carrot policies are formally equivalent, they do not neces...

Fibre-mediated physiological effects of raw and processed carrots were investigated in twenty-four young women under strict dietary control in two randomized crossover studies. For 3 weeks between 405 and 688 g of either raw frozen, blanched or canned carrots (first study), or raw or raw frozen carrots (second study) were consumed in addition to a low-fibre basal diet. Carrots provided 15 g die...

Turnip (Brassica rapa var. rapa L.), beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.) and carrot (Daucus carota L.) are common vegetables in South Africa. The allelopathic potential of aqueous leaf and root extracts of Aloe ferox Mill.a highly valued medicinal plantwas evaluated against seed germination and seedling growth of the three vegetables in Petri dish experiments. The extracts were tested at concentrations...

Oxamyl was coated on carrot (Daucus carota L. cv. Spartan Fancy-80) and tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. cv. Glamour) seeds with a polymer sticker for the control of Meloidogyne hapla. The sticker diluted in water 1:1 delayed carrot seedling emergence. Oxamyl at 40 mg/ml in a 1:5 dilution of sticker lowered the rate of carrot seedling emergence until day 13 and plant growth until day 28. O...

Stress-adaptive cell plasticity in target tissues and cells for plant biomass growth is important for yield stability. In vitro systems with reproducible cell plasticity can help to identify relevant metabolic and molecular events during early cell reprogramming. In carrot, regulation of the central root meristem is a critical target for yield-determining secondary growth. Calorespirometry, a t...

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is one of the chronic lymphoproliferative disorders (lymphoid neoplasms). It is characterized by a progressive accumulation of functionally incompetent lymphocytes. Patients with leukemia often seek unconventional treatments not prescribed by hematologist in order to improve their cancer treatment outcome or to manage symptoms. In the present report, a 76-year...