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The incorporation of l-ascorbic acid into food products is challenging for food industries due to its chemical instability. This study was conducted to develop a nanoemulsion-based effective colloidal system for the incorporation of l-ascorbic acid (LAA) in functional food products. l-ascorbic acid was encapsulated in nanoemulsions prepared through high-pressure homogenization. The physicochemical characteristics of mixed-surfactant-based LAA nanoemulsions were investigated during storage at different temperatures. The droplet size of LAA nanoemulsions after one month of storage varied in the range of 121.36-150.15 and 121.36-138.25 nm at 25 and 4 °C, respectively. These nanoemulsions remained stable against processing conditions such as heat treatments (10-70 °C), different salt concentrations (40-320 mM), change in pH (3-9), and four freeze-thaw cycles. The temperature and storage intervals have a significant (p < 0.05) effect on the retention of LAA in nanoemulsion-based delivery systems. The findings of this research work have important implications in the designing and preparation of an effective encapsulation system for the inclusion of l-ascorbic acid into functional food products.

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Utilization of ß-carotene in functional food products is limited due to chemical instability, lower water-solubility, and higher melting point. The present research was designed to formulate a nanoemulsion system for the effective delivery of ß-carotene. ß-Carotene was successfully incorporated into nanoemulsions using the ultrasonication method. During 60 days of storage, the droplet size of ß-carotene-containing nanoemulsions varied from 112.36 to 133.9 nm at 4 °C and from 112.36 to 147.1 nm at 25 °C. The oxidation stability of olive oil was remarkably increased when incorporated into nanoemulsions. ß-Carotene nanoemulsions remained stable under varying ionic strengths (50-400 mM), pH values (2-8), and freeze-thaw cycles (four). The values of turbidity and total color difference increased over time and at a higher temperature. Degradation of ß-carotene was substantially slower in nanoemulsions, and the addition of antioxidants significantly increased the retention of ß-carotene in nanoemulsions. These findings suggest that the ultrasonic homogenization method has potential for the preparation of ß-carotene nanoemulsions with desirable properties. These nanoemulsions can be effectively used for the incorporation of ß-carotene in the food and beverage industry.

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Chlorpyrifos (CPF) is a broad-spectrum chlorinated organophosphate (OP) pesticide used for the control of a variety of insects and pathogens in crops, fruits, vegetables, as well as households, and various other locations. The toxicity of CPF has been associated with neurological dysfunctions, endocrine disruption, and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). It can also induce developmental and behavioral anomalies, hematological malignancies, genotoxicity, histopathological aberrations, immunotoxicity, and oxidative stress as evidenced by animal modeling. Moreover, eye irritation and dermatological defects are also reported due to CPF toxicity. The mechanism of action of CPF involves blocking the active sites of the enzyme, acetylcholinesterase (AChE), thereby producing adverse nervous system effects. Although CPF has low persistence in the body, its active metabolites, 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (TCP), and chlorpyrifos-oxon (CPO) are comparatively more persistent, albeit equally toxic, and thus produce serious health complications. The present review has been compiled taking into account the work related to CPF toxicity and provides a brief compilation of CPF-induced defects in animals and humans, emphasizing the abnormalities leading to endocrine disruption, neurotoxicity, reproductive carcinogenesis, and disruptive mammary gland functionality. Moreover, the clinical signs and symptoms associated with the CPF exposure along with the possible pharmacological treatment are reported in this treatise. Additionally, the effect of food processing methods in reducing CPF residues from different agricultural commodities and dietary interventions to curtail the toxicity of CPF has also been discussed.

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Fortification of food and beverages with vitamin D is demanding due to its poor water solubility and oxidation, due to exposure to light and high temperature. The purpose of this research work was to formulate an effective food-grade delivery system for the incorporation of vitamin D into food products and beverages. Food-grade vitamin D nanoemulsions were successfully prepared using mixed surfactant (Tween 80 and soya lecithin) and ultrasonic homogenization techniques. Significant effects (p < 0.05) of temperatures (4 and 25 °C) and storage intervals (1 month) were observed on the turbidity and vitamin D retention. At the end of a 2 month storage, the droplet sizes of the nanoemulsion were 140.15 nm at 4 °C and 155.5 nm at 25 °C. p-Anisidine value of canola oil significantly reduced (p < 0.05) after its incorporation into nanoemulsions. The turbidity values of nanoemulsions increased with the increase in storage duration and temperature. These nanoemulsions remain stable against a wide range of temperatures (30-90 °C), pH values (2-8), ionic strengths (50-400 mM), and freeze-thaw cycles (4 cycles). At the end of 30 days of storage, vitamin D retentions were 74.4 ± 1.2 and 55.3 ± 2.1% in nanoemulsions stored at 4 and 25 °C, respectively. These results suggest that mixed-surfactant-based nanoemulsions are an effective delivery system for the incorporation of vitamin D into food and beverages to overcome the worldwide deficiency of vitamin D.

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Vitamin D nanoemulsions were fabricated using ultrasonic homogenization approach. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the preparation conditions for mixed surfactants (Soya lecithin and Tween 80; 2:3) based nanoemulsions. The effects of homogenization time (3.5-6.5 min), surfactant to oil ratio (0.43-0.78) and disperse phase volume (7-9%) on response variables were studied. Response Surface Methodology analysis results depicted that the polynomial model (second-order) can be used to predict response values. The coefficients of determinations were more than 0.90 for each response. The optimum emulsifying conditions for vitamin D nanoemulsions were 4.35 min homogenization time, 0.62 surfactant to oil ratio (S/O) and 7% disperse phase volume (DPV). Whereas, the experimental values for droplet size, droplet growth ratio (DGR) and vitamin D retention were 112.36 ±â€¯3.6 nm, 0.141 ±â€¯0.07 and 76.65 ±â€¯1.7% respectively. This research will be useful for the food and pharmaceutical industry to develop soya lecithin and Tween 80 based vitamin D delivery system for food additives and nutraceutical components.

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Non-selective use of pesticide to increase productivity leaves residues on crops. These pesticides after consumption have a detrimental effect on human health and their intake can lead to various diseases such as kidney damage, neurological disorders, cardiovascular diseases, circulatory and reproductive problems. The recent study was designed to assess the effects of household processing treatments such as acidic solutions (acidic acid and citric acid), alkaline solutions (sodium chloride and sodium carbonate) and biological solutions (radish, ginger, garlic, and lemon extracts) were evaluated for their efficiency for removal of pesticides in spinach by gas chromatography with electron capture detector (GC-ECD). The results showed that pesticide residues were sharply reduced when spinach was exposed to washing treatments. The results showed that the greatest reduction of deltamethrin, cypermethrin, chlorpyrifos and endosulfan with 10% acetic acid was (79.68 ± 0.81%), (89.99 ± 0.12%), (94.21 ± 0.02%) and (70.32 ± 0.25%), respectively of tested washing solutions. The acidic solutions were more effective than alkaline and biological extracts in the removal of pesticide residues. The average reduction in various washing solutions ranged from 10.21 to 79.68%, 22.60 to 89.48%, 22.95 to 94-21% and 11.24-70.32% for the removal of deltamethrin, cypermethrin, chlorpyrifos, and endosulfan, respectively.

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Motorcycles constitute 61% of the total registered vehicles in Pakistan and there has been a 371% growth in motorcycles in the country from year 2005-2015. Motorcycle is an essential and popular mode of transportation in Pakistan, therefore, the present study estimated a random parameters logit model to investigate the factors influencing the motorcycle injury severity using motorcycle crash data of Rawalpindi city collected by the Provincial Emergency Response Service. No injury, minor injury, severe injury and fatal injury are used as four categories of motorcyclist injury severity levels to calibrate the model. Mainly the effects of speed limits, crash-specific factors, rider attributes, roadway characteristics, weather and socio-demographics factors are considered for motorcycle-injury severity analysis. It was revealed that probability of fatal/severe injury increases for crashes: involving middle-aged riders (25-50 years) and riders with no education, occurring on roads with posted speed limit of 70 kms per hour or higher, crashes involving a motorcycle and a heavy vehicle, involving collision of a motorcycle with a fixed object and occurring during dry weather conditions. Also, the probability of minor injury increases for crashes: occurring on divided streets and road segments with a posted speed limit of less than 50 kms per hour, involving Chinese brand motorcycles, involving registered motorcycles, and where at least one motorcycle and auto rickshaw is involved. The research findings suggest that besides measures to control/ reduce the risky motorcyclists behavior there is a need to lower speed limits on roads with a higher motorcycle proportion, separate motorcycles from heavy vehicles and removal of fixed objects from the roadside. Besides data limitations, results are expected to generate more discussion and interest in motorcycle safety in the country and can be used by the enforcement agencies to improve/ enhance the current state of motorcycle safety in the country.

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Highway Work Zones (HWZs) present a major hazard for road users, construction workers and equipment, and significantly contribute to occurrence of road crashes worldwide. The present study focuses on analysing the current state of safety measures at HWZs in Pakistan. A more direct approach is adopted by comparing safety measures at randomly selected HWZs in Pakistan with well-established safety procedures in Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). HWZ safety measures such as traffic signs, markings, safety measures for pedestrians, workers and construction machinery, police enforcement, speed control measures, provision of advance warning area, buffer spaces, transition areas, and tapers for eight different HWZs were studied and compared with MUTCD standards. The results revealed that majority of the HWZs in Pakistan do not conform to any standard layout especially for safety and speed control measures. An enhanced need for special efforts towards improving safety at HWZs in Pakistan is highlighted.

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In the present study, food grade mixed surfactant-based ß-carotene nanoemulsions were prepared without using any co-surfactant. Response surface methodology (RSM) along with central composite design (CCD) was used to investigate the effect of independent variables (surfactant concentration, ultrasonic homogenization time and oil content) on response variables. RSM analysis results revealed that experimental results were best fitted into a quadratic polynomial model with regression coefficient values of more than 0.900 for all responses. Optimized preparation conditions for ß-carotene nanoemulsions were 5.82% surfactant concentration, 4 min ultrasonic homogenization time and 6.50% oil content. The experimental values at optimized preparation conditions were 119.33 nm droplet size, 2.67p-Anisidine value and 85.63% ß-carotene retention. This study will be helpful for the fortification of aqueous products with ß-carotene.

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The present study was conducted to prepare co-surfactant free, olive-oil based alpha tocopherol nanoemulsions, using a food grade non-ionic surfactant. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to determine the effects of independent variables (ultrasonic homogenization time, olive oil concentrations and surfactant contents) on different physico-chemical characteristics of O/W nanoemulsions. This study was carried out using a central composite design. The coefficients of determination were greater than 0.900 for all response variables and there were significant effects of independent variables on all responses. The optimum levels of independent variables for the preparation of nanoemulsions were 3min. ultrasonic homogenization time, 4% olive oil content and 2.08% surfactant concentration. The physico-chemical responses at these levels were 151.68nm particle size, 7.17% p-anisidine and 88.64% antioxidant activity. These results will help in design of nanoemulsions with optimum independent variables.

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Injuries and fatalities from road traffic crashes have emerged a major public health challenge in Pakistan. Reliable estimates of road crash fatalities (RCF) of a country, is a vital element needed for identification and control of key risk factors, road-safety improvement efforts and prioritizing national health. Reliability of current annual RCF estimates for Pakistan becomes highly questionable due to serious underreporting. This study aimed to predict annual RCF for Pakistan using data from World Health Organization and International Road Federation sources. An ordinary least square (OLS) regression model that relates fatality rate with different explanatory variables was developed. RCF were predicted for Pakistan for year 2012 and 2013, and results were compared with national police reported estimates. Study results indicated that there is serious underreporting of RCF in Pakistan and immediate measures are needed to improve the existing road crash recording and reporting system at the national and subnational levels.

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The present study was conducted to investigate the impact of various treatments of xylanase produced by Aspergillus niger applied in bread making processes like during tempering of wheat kernels and dough mixing on the dough quality characteristics i.e. dryness, stiffness, elasticity, extensibility, coherency and bread quality parameters i.e. volume, specific volume, density, moisture retention and sensory attributes. Different doses (200, 400, 600, 800 and 1,000 IU) of purified enzyme were applied to 1 kg of wheat grains during tempering and 1 kg of flour (straight grade flour) during mixing of dough in parallel. The samples of wheat kernels were agitated at different intervals for uniformity in tempering. After milling and dough making of both types of flour (having enzyme treatment during tempering and flour mixing) showed improved dough characteristics but the improvement was more prominent in the samples receiving enzyme treatment during tempering. Moreover, xylanase decreased dryness and stiffness of the dough whereas, resulted in increased elasticity, extensibility and coherency and increase in volume & decrease in bread density. Xylanase treatments also resulted in higher moisture retention and improvement of sensory attributes of bread. From the results, it is concluded that dough characteristics and bread quality improved significantly in response to enzyme treatments during tempering as compared to application during mixing.

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Micronutrient deficiency especially the iron deficiency is the bane of our lives, affecting all strata of society. Unfortunately, the women during pregnancy, adolescence, and children are under this curse particularly in developing countries like Pakistan. It is one of the biggest reasons of complications during pregnancy and malnourished children under five years of age. Maternal death, still-births, and underweight births are most common consequences of iron deficiency and these outbreaks as iron-deficiency anemia in Pakistan. Disastrous nature of iron deficiency requires an urgent call to eradicate it. Hence, the solution should not be frail comparing with the huge economic loss and other incompatibilities. Flour fortification, supplementation, dietary diversification, and especially maternal education are possible solutions for combating this micronutrient deficiency.

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This paper reviews research published in recent years concerning the effects of zinc deficiency, its consequences, and possible solutions. Zinc is an essential trace element necessary for over 300 zinc metalloenzymes and required for normal nucleic acid, protein, and membrane metabolism. Zinc deficiency is one of the ten biggest factors contributing to burden of disease in developing countries. Populations in South Asia, South East Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa are at greatest risk of zinc deficiency. Zinc intakes are inadequate for about a third of the population and stunting affects 40% of preschool children. In Pakistan, zinc deficiency is an emerging health problem as about 20.6% children are found in the levels of zinc, below 60 µg/dL. Signs and symptoms caused by zinc deficiency are poor appetite, weight loss, and poor growth in childhood, delayed healing of wounds, taste abnormalities, and mental lethargy. As body stores of zinc decline, these symptoms worsen and are accompanied by diarrhea, recurrent infection, and dermatitis. Daily zinc requirements for an adult are 12-16 mg/day. Iron, calcium and phytates inhibit the absorption of zinc therefore simultaneous administration should not be prescribed. Zinc deficiency and its effects are well known but the ways it can help in treatment of different diseases is yet to be discovered. Improving zinc intakes through dietary improvements is a complex task that requires considerable time and effort. The use of zinc supplements, dietary modification, and fortifying foods with zinc are the best techniques to combat its deficiency.

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Beans, the variants of Phaseolus vulagris, are nutritionally and economically important food crop in each part of the world. Besides providing nutrients such as multifaceted carbohydrates, elevated proteins, dietary fiber, minerals, and vitamins, these also contain rich variety of polyphenolic compounds with prospective health benefits. This review mainly focuses the important nutritional aspects of beans as well as their contribution in decreasing the risks of chronically degenerative diseases.

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The present review aims to highlight the magnitude of iron status of Pakistani population and possible remedies to address iron deficiency among vulnerable groups. A computer-based search was carried out on "PubMed", "Google Search" and "Sciencedirect.com" to retrieve relevant scientific literature published in the last two decades. The search yielded 193 articles, of which 64 were culled and further screening was performed based on the type of vulnerable population groups, age, sex and pregnancy. A thorough review of current literature reveals that iron deficiency (ID) and iron deficiency anemia (IDA) widely persist in Pakistan and necessitate immediate remedial actions. Females of reproductive age and children under 5 years have been shown to be the most IDA affected population segment. Fortification of wheat flour has been suggested as the most viable approach aptly matching Pakistan's needs for combating IDA. The present review further stresses the need for global involvement to scale up efforts for mitigating ID and IDA to achieve Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that are fundamentally based upon improving nutritional wellbeing of populations in developing economies by 2015.

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The oral intubation of chlorpyrifos, an extensively used organophosphate insecticide, was tested for its capability to induce in vivo genotoxic upshot in blood lymphocytes of 24 male and female Wistar rats using biomarker of genotoxicity. Rats were orally administered with daily doses 3 and 12 mg/kg body weight (BW) of chlorpyrifos (CPF). The blood lymphocytes were harvested after 7 and 14 days of treatment and subjected to bi-nucleus (BN), multi-nucleus (MN) and single cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay) to evaluate the extent of DNA damage. Other than BN and MN assay, damage to DNA was assessed through comet length, height, area, head diameter, head DNA percentage and tail DNA percentage along with tail movement. A significant boost was noticed in the frequency of BN cells formation after 12 mg/kg BW CPF treatment. However, the propensity to produce MN cells was significantly more (P ≤ 0.05) in males than that of females. Likewise, the frequency of comet formation, mean comet length, height and area were more (P ≤ 0.05) in males than females even with 12 mg/kgBW. Comet head DNA % and tail length remained non-significant. Olive movement also revealed a significant increase (P ≤ 0.05) in males than females. The study inferred that the CPF can induce DNA damage in both male and female subjects but more pronounced in the male individuals.

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Protein-enriched cookies were prepared by supplementing gram flour into wheat flour at levels of 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% and analysed for physicochemical properties. The protein quality of the cookies was assessed by feeding gram flour-supplemented cookies to albino rats for 10 days. The supplementation resulted in a significant increase in protein, fat, crude fibre and ash contents of the cookies. The thickness and spread factor of cookies differ significantly while non-significant effect was observed in the width of the cookies. The protein efficiency ratio, net protein utilization, biological value and true digestibility differed significantly among diets containing cookies with gram flour fed to rats. Cookies with 30% substitution of straight grade flour and gram flour produced acceptable cookies as compared to control. The cookies containing 40-50% gram flour were best regarded as protein bioavailability for rats.

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Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) has been recognized as a public-health issue in developing countries. Economic constraints, sociocultural limitations, insufficient dietary intake, and poor absorption leading to depleted vitamin A stores in the body have been regarded as potential determinants of the prevalence of VAD in South Asian developing countries. VAD is exacerbated by lack of education, poor sanitation, absence of new legislation and enforcement of existing food laws, and week monitoring and surveillance system. Several recent estimates confirmed higher morbidly and mortality rate among children and pregnant and non-pregnant women of childbearing age. Xerophthalmia is the leading cause of preventable childhood blindness with its earliest manifestations as night blindness and Bitot's spots, followed by blinding keratomalacia, all of which are the ocular manifestations of VAD. Children need additional vitamin A because they do not consume enough in their normal diet. There are three general ways for improving vitamin A status: supplementation, fortification, and dietary diversification. These approaches have not solved the problem in South Asian countries to the desired extent because of poor governmental support and supervision of vitamin A supplementation twice a year. An extensive review of the extant literature was carried out, and the data under various sections were identified by using a computerized bibliographic search via PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. All abstracts and full-text articles were examined, and the most relevant articles were selected for screening and inclusion in this review. Conclusively, high prevalence of VAD in South Asian developing countries leads to increased morbidity and mortality among infants, children, and pregnant women. Therefore, stem efforts are needed to address this issue of public-health significance at local and international level in lower- and middle-income countries of South Asia.

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Bioavailability of calcium, iron and zinc as calcium carbonate (CaCO3), ferrous sulfate (FeSO4) and zinc sulphate (ZnSO4) @ 1,000, 40 and 20 mg kg(-1) respectively from fortified bread of 72% extraction straight grade flour was assessed. Fortified bread diets were fed to 64 female Sprague-Dawley Albino rats for a period of 28 days. The retention of Ca, Fe and Zn was measured in plasma, femur and liver tissues of rats. The results showed that the feed intake and live body weight of the experimental animals increased significantly with the time period. The Ca levels in plasma and liver did not change significantly while in femur, Ca retention changed significantly with changing type of the fortificants. Similarly, the results for percent apparent absorption (AA) of Ca also remained unchanged (P < 0.05). The Fe and Zn levels were significantly higher in the plasma, liver and femur of rats fed Fe and Zn fortified bread. Interaction of Ca, Fe and Zn resulted in their decreased bioavailability. However Ca, Fe and Zn absorption was higher in the rats fed triple fortified diet compared with those fed unfortified bread diet. This negative interaction did not appear to be great enough to discourage multiple fortification of flour to address minerals malnutrition in the vulnerable groups.