The Effects of Nut Consumption on Vascular Function.

Vascular stiffness can be measured using numerous techniques including assessments of central haemodynamics, aortic arterial stiffness, and indices of aortic wave reflection and endothelial dilatation. Impaired vascular function is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Epidemiological studies indicate that regular nut consumption reduces CVD risk, with one of the proposed mechanisms being via […]

Comparison of amygdalin and benzaldehyde levels in California almond (Prunus dulcis) varietals.

Almonds (Prunus dulcis), are characterized into three flavor phenotypes: bitter, semi-bitter and sweet. Amygdalin is a cyanogenic diglucoside responsible for bitterness in almonds. Studies have shown that amygdalin can hydrolyze to release benzaldehyde, which is the key component of almond aroma. In this study, the amygdalin and benzaldehyde content of fourteen sweet cultivars of almonds […]

Identification of almond (Prunus dulcis) vicilin as a food allergen.

Almond is one of the tree nuts listed by US FDA as a food allergen source. A food allergen identified with patient sera has been debated to be the 2S albumin or the 7S vicilin. However, neither of these proteins has been defined as a food allergen. The purpose of this study was to clone, […]

Effect of nut consumption on semen quality and functionality in healthy men consuming a Western-style diet: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Human semen quality has declined in industrialized countries. Pollution, smoking, and the consumption of a Western-style diet are all hypothesized as potential causes. OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the effect of chronic consumption of nuts on changes in conventional semen parameters and the potential mechanisms implicated. DESIGN: The FERTINUTS study was a 14-wk randomized, controlled, parallel […]

Heat and Pressure Treatments on Almond Protein Stability and Change in Immunoreactivity after Simulated Human Digestion.

Almond is consumed worldwide and renowned as a valuable healthy food. Despite this, it is also a potent source of allergenic proteins that can trigger several mild to life-threatening immunoreactions. Food processing proved to alter biochemical characteristics of proteins, thus affecting the respective allergenicity. In this paper, we investigated the effect of autoclaving, preceded or […]

Multistage treatment of almonds waste biomass: Characterization and assessment of the potential applications of raw material and products.

Almond shells are waste biomass generated in agro-industrial activities, which represent a resource that can be further valorized upon treatment. The purpose of this work was to assess new value-added products obtained through a novel multi-stage delignification process of almond shells. A comprehensive chemical characterization of the raw materials and products involved in each stage […]