No abstract

No abstract

Reports of amber predating the Lower Cretaceous are unusual and scarce; they mostly refer to amber pieces of millimetric dimension. In the present study, we report the discovery of 10 new outcrops of Jurassic amber in Lebanon. Some of these had large centimetric‐sized pieces of amber. The new localities are described, amber is characterized, and its infrared spectra given. Although the new Jurassic amber yielded to date no more than fungal inclusions, this material is significant and promising. The discovery of several Jurassic outcrops provides crucial information on the prevailing paleoenvironment of that time.

No abstract

Hummus, an iron-containing plant-based dish mainly made from chickpea purée, tahini, lemon juice and garlic, could be a valuable source of iron when bioavailable. Since the processing and formulation of food influence iron bioavailability, the present study investigated for the first time, their effects on hummus. Firstly, iron bioaccessibility was assessed on eight samples (prepared according to the screening Hadamard matrix) by in vitro digestion preceding iron dialysis. Then, iron bioavailability of four selected samples was estimated by the in vitro digestion/Caco-2 cell model. Total and dialyzable iron were determined by the atomic absorption spectrometry and ferritin formation was determined using an ELISA kit. Only autoclaving, among other processes, had a significant effect on iron bioaccessibility (+9.5, p < 0.05). Lemon juice had the highest positive effect (+15.9, p < 0.05). Consequently, the effect of its acidic components were investigated based on a full factorial 23 experimental design; no significant difference was detected. Garlic’s effect was not significant, but tahini’s effect was negative (−8.9, p < 0.05). Despite the latter, hummus had a higher iron bioavailability than only cooked chickpeas (30.4 and 7.23 ng ferritin/mg protein, respectively). In conclusion, hummus may be a promising source of iron; further in vivo studies are needed for confirmation.