Browsing by Author "Combarros-Fuertes, Patricia"
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- Sugar profile of honey by ion chromatographyPublication . Resende, Mafalda; García-Rogado, M. Rosa; Matías-Martínez, Yago; Combarros-Fuertes, Patricia; Valencia-Barrera, Rosa M.; Fresno, José M.; Anjos, O.; Estevinho, Letícia M.Honey is a sweet food product mainly composed of carbohydrates (60-80 %), lower amounts of water and a great number of minor components. Fructose and glucose are the main sugars in honey. Furthermore, it is possible to find more than 20 different oligosaccharides. The aim of this work is to evaluate the possibility of distinguishing three types of honey by their sugar profiles. The sugar content and profile (trehalose, arabinose, glucose, fructose, sucrose, maltulose, melezitose, maltose, turanose and erlose) were evaluated of three groups of honey samples commercially classified as Castanea sativa honey (10 samples), honeydew honey (6 samples) and Rubus honey (3 samples) from Spain. Pollen analysis was carried out using the method recommended by the International Commission of Bee Botany (ICBB).' Qualitative analysis was conducted by examining each of the preparations under the optical microscope (Nikon Eclipse 80 i) at 400 and 1000 magnification. An average of 650 pollen grains in each honey sample were identified using various keys and literature'’'’ and the pollen data base of Department of Biodiversity and Environmental Management of the University of León. The honey’s sugar content was analysed in Dionex“ ICS3000 ion chromatograph. 5 Separation was performed in a column “CarboPacTM PA20 3x150mm” with a precolumn “CarboPacTM PA20 3x30mm”. Electrochemical detector in lntegrated Pulsed Amperometric Detection (IPAD) mode was used. The elution was performed with a gradient with two NaOH solutions (15 and 200 mM). Standard solutions were used to identify and quantify the individual sugar components. All analyses were carried out in duplicate. Concerning the principal component analysis made with different sugar content and the percentage of the pollen (higher than 10%) the Rubus honey samples are very well separated from the other samples and are characterized by higher content in maltose and the absence of melezitose. Comparing the Castanea sativa monofloral honey and honeydew honey, the more relevant differences are observed in the contents of melezitose, maltulose and trehalose. Overall the melezitose is almost null for Castanea sativa monofloral honey, whereas for honeydew honey maltulose is 32% lower and trehalose is 21% higher than in the floral honey.
- Validation of the scale knowledge and perceptions about edible insects through structural equation modellingPublication . Guiné, Raquel P.F.; Duarte, João; Chuck-Hernández, Cristina; Boustani, Nada M.; Djekic, Ilija; Bartkiene, Elena; Sarić, Marijana Matec; Papageorgiou, Maria; Korzeniowska, Malgorzata; Combarros-Fuertes, Patricia; Černelič-Bizjak, Maša; Martin-Hadmas, Roxana; Straumite, Evita; Damarli, Emel; Florença, Sofia G.; Ferreira, Manuela; Costa, Cristina A.; Correia, Paula M.R.; Cardoso, Ana Paula; Campos, Sofia; Anjos, O.Edible insects have been suggested as a more sustainable source of protein, but their consumption varies according to geographical and sociocultural influences. Focusing on the different aspects that can influence people’s attitudes towards edible insects (EI), this work aimed to carry out the statistical validation of an instrument aimed at assessing different dimensions of this field: the KPEI (knowledge and perceptions about EI) scale. The instrument consists of 64 questions distributed by the following dimensions: Culture and Tradition, Gastronomic Innovation and Gourmet Kitchen, Environment and Sustainability, Economic and Social Aspects, Commercialization and Marketing, Nutritional Characteristics, and Health Effects. The data were collected in 13 countries (Croatia, Greece, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, and Turkey). The validation of the KPEI scale was made through Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results revealed two acceptable models, both retaining 37 of the 64 initial items, distrusted by the seven dimensions as: Culture and Tradition (5 items), Gastronomic Innovation and Gourmet Kitchen (5 items), Environment and Sustainability (8 items), Economic and Social Aspects (5 items), Commercialisation and Marketing (4 items), Nutritional Aspects (6 items), Health Effects (4 items). Both multifactorial models resulting from the CFA/SEM analyses showed approximately equal goodness of statistical fit indices with values of Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA), Root Mean Square Residual (RMR), and Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR) partially zero and values of Goodness of Fit Index (GFI) and Comparative Fit Index (CFI) approximately one, i.e., very close to a perfect fit. For the first-order model, the ratio between chi-square and degrees of freedom is χ 2/df = 13.734, GFI = 0.932, CFI = 0.930, RMSEA = 0.043, RMR = 0.042, SRMR = 0.042; and for the second-order model χ 2/df = 14.697, GFI = 0.926, CFI = 0.923, RMSEA = 0.045, RMR = 0.047, SRMR = 0.046). The values of composite reliability (CR = 0.967) and mean extracted variance (MEV = 0.448) are indicative of a good fit. Finally, the reliability analysis indicated a very good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.941). These results confirm the successful validation of the KPEI scale, making it a valuable instrument for future application at the international level.