BACKGROUND Contrary to other Tephritidae, female but also male olive flies, Bactrocera oleae release pheromones during their sexual communication. Alpha-pinene, a common plant volatile found in high amounts in unripe olive fruit and leaves has been detected as one of the major components of the female pheromone. However, possible effects of α-pinene and that of other host volatiles on the matin...

BACKGROUND The olive tree (Olea europaea L.) is a diploid (2n = 2x = 46) outcrossing species mainly grown in the Mediterranean area, where it is the most important oil-producing crop. Because of its economic, cultural and ecological importance, various DNA markers have been used in the olive to characterize and elucidate homonyms, synonyms and unknown accessions. However, a comprehensive charac...

The Mediterranean diet, in which olive oil is the primary source of fat, is associated with a low mortality for cardiovascular disease. Data concerning olive oil consumption and primary end points for cardiovascular disease are scarce. However, a large body of knowledge exists providing evidence of the benefits of olive oil consumption on secondary end points for the disease. Besides the classi...

BACKGROUND Olive oil is a major component of the Mediterranean diet suggested to be beneficial to counteract Alzheimer's disease. AIM OF THE STUDY Our objective was to examine the association between olive oil use, cognitive deficit and cognitive decline in a large elderly population. METHODS We followed 6,947 subjects with a brief baseline food frequency questionnaire and repeated cognitiv...

The Olive tree (Olea europaea L.), a native of the Mediterranean basin and parts of Asia, is now widely cultivated in many other parts of the world for production of olive oil and table olives. Olive is a rich source of valuable nutrients and bioactives of medicinal and therapeutic interest. Olive fruit contains appreciable concentration, 1-3% of fresh pulp weight, of hydrophilic (phenolic acid...

BACKGROUND Congenital malformations in sea turtles have been considered sporadical. Research carried out in the Mexican Pacific revealed high levels of congenital malformations in the olive ridley, but little or no information is available for other species. We present results from analyses of external congenital malformations in olive ridley, green, and hawskbill sea turtles from Mexican rooke...

The evolution of the main phenolic secoiridoid compounds throughout the different stages of the virgin olive oil making process-crushing, malaxation and liquid-solid separation-is studied here, with the goal of making possible the prediction of the partition and transformation that take place in the different steps of the process. The concentration of hydroxytyrosol secoiridoids produced under ...

Lycopene is the main carotenoid in tomatoes and it has been hypothesised to be responsible for reducing the risk of some cancers and heart disease. The cooking of tomatoes with olive oil is a characteristic combination in the Southern Mediterranean diet. Previous studies have shown that the absorption of lycopene is greater from processed tomatoes than fresh tomatoes, since the processing break...

The inferior olive is the sole source of the climbing fiber system; one of the two major afferent systems of the cerebellum, however, its exact role remains unknown. A longstanding hypothesis is that the inferior olive with its unique intrinsic rhythmic firing properties mediates motor timing. However, direct evidence linking the inferior olive to timing behavior has been difficult to demonstra...

The performance of olive oil during intermittent frying of potato slices and cod fillets was compared to those of selected vegetable oils (corn, oliveresidue and 50/50 mixture of olive and corn oils) using conditions resembling those used in home food preparations. The main scope of this study was to decide what is the best substitute for olive oil in home frying applications. Free fatty acid c...