Marina Cano-Lamadrid

Total and Inorganic Arsenic in Iranian Rice

It is well known that arsenic (As) exposure, particularly to inorganic species (i-As), has adverse effects on humans. Nowadays, the European Union (EU) has still not regulated the maximum residue limit of As in commercial samples of rice and rice-based products, although it is actively working on the topic. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is collecting data on total arsenic (t-As) and i-As from different rice-producing regions not only from EU countries but also from other parts of the world to finally set up this maximum threshold. As Iran is a rice-producing country, the aim of this work was to evaluate the contents of t-As and i-As in 15 samples of Iranian white, nonorganic, and aromatic rice collected from the most important rice-producing regions of the country. The means of t-As and i-As were 120 and 82 μg/kg, respectively. The experimental i-As mean in Iranian rice was below the Chinese standard for the i-As in rice, 150 μg/kg, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) limit, 200 μg/kg. Therefore, Iranian rice seems to have reasonable low i-As content and it is safe to be marketed in any market, including China and the EU.

Influence of deficit irrigation and crop load on the yield and fruit quality in Wonderful and Mollar de Elche pomegranates

BACKGROUND The working hypothesis of the present study was that, by proper simultaneous control of irrigation (hydroSOStainable products) and crop load (thinning), it is possible to promote the accumulation of bioactive compounds and improve fruit appearance (size and weight). The effects of (i) irrigation status [T0, 120% ETc (estimated crop evapotranspiration); T1, 60% ETc during fruit growth and ripening] and (ii) crop load (A0, no thinning; A1, thinning) on yield and fruit quality were evaluated in two pomegranate cultivars (Wonderful, Wond and Mollar de Elche, ME). RESULTS Thinning was effective in increasing the size and weight of fruits. Unfortunately, neither punicalagin, nor total polyphenolic content were positively affected by irrigation and thinning. T1A1 Wond fruits were characterized by high sugar content (glucose and fructose), together with high fruit size and weight. Furthermore, T1A1 ME fruits were characterized by high contents of alcohols and monoterpenoids (providing vegetal and citric flavor notes) and key sensory attributes (color, fruity and fresh pomegranate). CONCLUSION The final recommendation was to use the treatment T1A1 [simultaneous combination of deficit irrigation during fruit growth and ripening (T1) and thinning (A1)], although the positive results were cultivar-dependent.

Quality Parameters, Volatile Composition, and Sensory Profiles of Highly Endangered Spanish Citrus Fruits

There is very little information available on the chemical composition and the quality attributes of the citrus species studied which are truly endangered in Spain. None of the fruits studied is available for commercial purposes, which is the main interest and novelty of this study. The aim of this work was to fully describe the morphology, volatile composition, and sensory profile of traditional citrus fruits: sour lime (SoLi), sweet lime (SwLi), and sweet lemon (SwLe), to have the information to convince farmers and growers to cultivate these fruits again. The predominant sugar was fructose while citric acid prevails in SoLi and SwLe. Regarding volatiles compounds, monoterpenes, monoterpenoids, and esters predominated in the juices, and these three families plus sesquiterpenes in the peels. The juice of SoLi presented the highest content of esters (14.8%), SwLi juice presented similar values of both monoterpenes and monoterpenoids (46.1 and 46.0%, resp.), and SwLe juice had the highest content of monoterpenes (72.2%). The results demonstrated the high potential of these citrus materials for the agrofood industry. Therefore, it will be possible to recover these vegetal materials at risk of disappearing for potential uses by the food industry and simultaneously help maintaining the biodiversity.

Inorganic and Total Arsenic Contents in Rice and Rice‐Based Foods Consumed by a Potential Risk Subpopulation: Sportspeople

One of the main routes of exposure to inorganic arsenic (i-As) in humans is food, especially rice and rice-based products. There are certain groups of consumers that could be highly exposed to i-As. Maximum levels of i-As have been issued for infants and young children by the European Union, but perhaps other groups are also at risk. Sportspeople could be one of those groups, due to their specific nutritional requirements, especially its high consumption of cereals, such as rice. Because of the well-known relationship between rice and i-As, the intake of i-As by sportspeople deserved especial attention and was estimated in Spain. This study demonstrated that rice-based products reached a maximum i-As content of 178 μg/kg, with a mean for all studied products of 56 μg/kg; the maximum contents were found in rice cakes (149 μg/kg) and brown rice (111 μg/kg). The estimated daily intake of i-As were 0.16 and 0.18 μg/kg bw (body weight)/d, in sportsmen and sportswomen, respectively. These values were below the BMDL01 , 0.3 to 8.0 μg/kg bw/d; thus, it can be concluded that the sportspeople group is not at a significant risk regarding the intake of i-As. However, further studies are needed to evaluate their whole diet and not only rice-based products. Finally, it is important to claim that companies producing rice products include as much information as possible about the rice used in their products, including rice percentage and geographical origin.

Arsenic in your food: potential health hazards from arsenic found in rice

License. The full terms of the License are available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. Permissions beyond the scope of the License are administered by Dove Medical Press Limited. Information on how to request permission may be found at: http://www.dovepress.com/permissions.php Nutrition and Dietary Supplements 2015:7 1–10 Nutrition and Dietary Supplements Dovepress