Xesús Feás

Academy of Veterinary Sciences of Galicia

Epidemiology of fatalities in Spain due to hornet, wasp, and bee stings (Cause Code of Death: X23) is described. Over a 20-year period (1999–2018), a total of 78 fatalities were recorded, mostly occurring in males (85.9%), of 65 years and older (52.6%), at “unspecified places” (67.9%), and in the months of July and August (50%). The X23 mortality r...

Fifteen years ago, at least one multimated female yellow-legged Asian hornet (Vespa velutina Lepeletier 1836) arrived in France, which gave rise to a pan-European invasion. In this study, the isolation and characterization of chitin (CHI) that was obtained from Vespa velutina (CHI VV) is described. In addition, an easy procedure is carried out to c...

Fifteen years ago, at least one multimated female yellow-legged Asian hornet (Vespa velutina Lepeletier 1836) arrived in France, giving rise to a pan-European invasion, altering the environment, affecting ecosystem processes, and impacting society. During winter, V. velutina nests (n = 3) were collected in Galicia and data on internal and external...

The use of custom-made polymeric materials with high selectivities as target molecules in solid-phase extraction (SPE), known as molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE), is becoming an increasingly important sample preparation technique. However, the potential risk of leakage of the imprinting molecules during the desorption phase has...

Organic bee pollen (BP, n = 22) harvested from the Douro International Natural Park (DINP, Portugal) was studied. Nine botanical families were found in the mixture of the samples. The water activity and pH ranged 0.21-0.37 and 4.3-5.2, respectively. The BP analyses averaged 67.7% carbohydrates, 21.8% crude protein, 5.2% crude fat and 2.9% ash. The...

The growing interest in Vespa velutina venom stems primarily from its impact on human health due to stings and its potential pharmacological applications. Traditionally, venom extraction methods have relied on capturing individual hornets or removing and euthanizing entire nests, followed by dissection of venom sacs—a labor-intensive and disruptive...

The growing interest in Vespa velutina venom stems primarily from its impact on human health due to stings and its potential pharmacological applications. Traditionally, venom extraction methods have relied on capturing individual hornets or removing and euthanizing entire nests, followed by dissection of venom sacs—a labor-intensive and disruptive...

This study aimed to investigate the venom sac extracts (VSEs) of the European hornet (EH) Vespa crabro (Linnaeus, 1758) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae), focusing on the differences between stinging females, gynes (G), and workers (W), at the protein level. Using a quantitative “Sequential Window Acquisition of all Theoretical Fragment Ion Mass Spectra” (SW...

This study aimed to investigate the venom sac extracts (VSE) of the European hornet (EH) Vespa crabro (Linnaeus, 1758) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae), focusing on the differences between stinging females, gynes (G) and workers (W), at the protein level. Using a quantitative “Sequential Window Acquisition of all Theoretical Fragment Ion Mass Spectra” (SWAT...

Health risks caused by stings from Vespa velutina nigrithorax (VV), also known as the yellow-legged Asian hornet, have become a public concern, but little is known about its venom composition. This study presents the proteome profile of the VV’s venom sac (VS) based on Sequential Window Acquisition of all Theoretical Mass Spectra (SWATH-MS). The st...

Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrixi) was processed by sous-vide method at different temperatures (60, 65, 70, and 75°C). Then, the microbiological quality of the processed samples was monitored during cold storage (4°C) for 21 days. The target microorganisms were Enterobacteriaceae, Lactic Acid bacteria (LAB), Pseudomonas, Psychrotrophs, and...

Research Topic Call for Papers Highly eusocial insects are responsible for a considerable number of invasion cases worldwide. If the invasion is successful, depending on the size of the social colony, hundreds to tens of thousands of individuals can be formed, leading to severe consequences. Within the past two decades, non-native hornet species...

Epidemiology of Hymenopteran-related deaths in Europe, based on official registers from WHO Mortality Database (Cause Code of Death: X23), are presented. Over a 23-year period (1994–2016), a total of 1691 fatalities were recorded, mostly occurring in Western (42.8%) and Eastern (31.9%) Europe. The victims tended to concentrate in: Germany (n = 327;...

Epidemiology of Hymenopteran-related deaths in Europe due to bee, wasp and hornet stings (Cause Code of Death: X23) based on official registers from WHO Mortality Database is described. Over a 23-year period (1994-2016), a total of 1,691 fatalities were officially recorded, mostly occurring in Western (42.8%) and Eastern (31.9%) Europe. The victims...

The yellow-legged Asian hornet (Vespa velutina Lepeletier 1836 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)) is naturally distributed in China, Southeast Asia, and India; however, recently it has been detected outside of its native area, confirmed as being established in South Korea, Europe, and Japan. Health risks and deaths caused by the invasive Vespa velutina sting...

The yellow-legged Asian hornet (Vespa velutina Lepeletier 1836 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)) is naturally distributed in China, Southeast Asia and India; however it has since detected outside of its native area, confirmed as being established in South Korea, Europe and Japan. Health risks and deaths caused by the invasive Vespa velutina stings have beco...

The yellow-legged Asian hornet (AH) (Vespa velutina Lepeletier 1836 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)) is naturally distributed in China, Southeast Asia, and India; however, it has been detected outside of its native area, confirmed as being established in South Korea, Europe, and Japan. Health risks and deaths caused by AH stings have become a public health...

Social insects are well known for their aggressive (stinging) responses to a nest disturbance. Still, colonies are attacked due to the high-protein brood cached in their nests. Social wasps have evolved a variety of defense mechanisms to exclude predators, including nest construction and coordinated stinging response. Which predatory pressures have...

To evaluate and anticipate the microbial changes of silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrixi) during cold storage (0, 5, 10, 15 & 21 day) at different sous vide processing temperatures (60, 65, 70, and 75 o C), changes in microbial load of Enterobacteriaceae, Lactic Acid bacteria (LAB), Pseudomonas, Psychrotrophs, and total viable count (TVC) were...

Epidemiology of fatalities in Spain due to hornet, wasp and bee stings (Cause Code of Death: X23) is described. Over a 20-year period (1999-2018), a total of 78 fatalities were recorded, mostly occurring in males (85.9%), of 65 years and older (52.6%), at “unspecified places” (67.9%) and in the months of July and August (50%). The X23 mortality rat...

The isolation and characterization of chitin (CHI) obtained from Vespa velutina (CHIVV) is described. Moreover, a trapping procedure is presented to selectively catch the invasive species. The chitin contents of dry Vespa velutina was observed to be 11.7 %. The physicochemical properties of CHIVV was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spec...

Sparkling mead is obtained by secondary fermentation of the mead involving the addition of starter yeast culture, sucrose, nutrients and fining agents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of different fining agents (tannins vs combined fining agents) on the volatile composition of sparkling mead. Sparkling mead was produced from a base...

Mead, one of the oldest fermented drinks, is derived from the fermentation of diluted honey by yeasts. In the context of wine production, several procedures are applied to stabilize the beverage and to improve its organoleptic properties. This study aims to evaluate the impact of adding fining agents on the production of mead. In general, the best...

Litsea polyantha Juss. (Lauraceae) also known as Litsea monopetala Roxb. is a small to medium sized evergreen tree distributed chiefly in tropical and subtropical Asia, Australia and the Pacific Islands. The bark of Litsea polyantha Juss. has a long history of medicinal use among the traditional healers of Oraon and Munda community of Jharkhand (In...

Flavonoids and phenolic compounds from plants have been reported to have multiple biological effects. In the present communication, bioactive compounds from Litsea polyantha Juss. bark were studied. The total phenolic content was determined by using the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent and aluminum chloride colorimetric method was used for determination of...

Mead is a traditional alcoholic drink derived from the fermentation of diluted honey in the presence of appropriate yeast. Its modern production, in general terms, involves the addition of nutrients to initial diluted honey, pasteurization, yeast inoculation, fermentation and removal of impurities. Undesirable events along the process have been rep...

The present study aimed to determine the effectiveness of propolis in reducing the microbial load in ready-to-eat (RTE) and fresh whole head (FWH) lettuces (Lactuca sativa L.) type Batavia. Two sanitizing solutions were employed: sodium hypochlorite (SH) and propolis (PS), during 15 and 30 min. Tap water (TW) was used as a control. Regarding the me...

A novel, fast and efficient method for the synthesis of (3E)-3-(1-aminoethylidene)-6-methyl-3,4-dihydro2H- pyran-2,4-dione, a natural antiproliferative and cytotoxic product isolated from Fusarium incarnatum (HKI0504), was developed from dehydroacetic acid and urea under solvent-free microwave irradiation. The analysis of the co-crystal structure r...

Honey as a natural, unprocessed and easily digested food is a valuable nutritive product for children, athletes and convalescents. It has been used in ethno-medicine since the prehistoric times, and recently in the treatment of burns, healing wounds, chronic wounds, gastrointestinal disorders, asthma, skin ulcers, cancer, oncology, and as an antiox...

Ammonium trichloro[1,2-ethanediolato-O,O']-tellurate (AS101) is the most important synthetic Te compound from the standpoint of its biological activity. It is a potent immunomodulator with a variety of potential therapeutic applications and antitumoral action in several preclinical and clinical studies. An experimental design has been used to devel...

The variation of six biogenic amines (BAs) and total viable count (TVC) in common carp (Cyprinus carpio) stored in ice with 0, 4 and 8 h delay before icing was evaluated in a period of 4 days. Delayed icing led to significant (p < 0.05) increases in TVC throughout the period of storage and showed a good correlation with BAs content. The obtained da...

Plant oils are important supplies in world markets due to their widespread use in many branches of industry, cosmetics and nutrition. Control of their composition is a subject of major interest. In particular argan oil (from the kernels of Argania spinosa L.) has been claimed to have beneficial properties from therapeutical and cosmetic fields. Up...

This study aimed to determine the factors (phenolic compounds, flavonoids, sugars or H2O2) that contribute the most to the antimicrobial activity of heather honey samples against four yeasts and four bacteria with medical importance. To discard the effect of H2O2 in the antimicrobial activity, catalase was added. To evaluate the osmotic pressure's...

Virgin oils obtained from seeds of Camellia oleifera (CO), Camellia reticulata (CR) and Camellia sasanqua (CS) were studied for their triacylglyceride composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. Levels of fatty acids determined by 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance analysis were similar to those reported for olive oils (82.30%-84.47%; 5.69%-7...

At the present time, the quality, integrity, sanitation, and nutritional value of honeys receive attention on an international level due to the increasing content of chemicals in the aforementioned matrix. The present study aims to characterize organic honey (n=73) from Northeast Portugal, with respect to floral nectar origin, physicochemical param...

Camellia japonica (CJ) has oil-rich seeds, but the study of these oils has received little attention and has mainly focused only on their health properties. In the present work the relative composition of the fatty acid (FA) components of the triglycerides in cold-pressed oil from CJ is studied by ¹H-NMR. The results obtained were: 75.75%, 6.0%, 0....

In this study the characterization of a total of 60 honey samples with Protected Denomination of Origin (PDO) collected over three harvests (2009-2011, inclusive), from the Northeast of Portugal was carried out based on the presence of pollen, physicochemical and microbiological characteristics. All samples were found to meet the European Legislati...

Since the primordial of humanity, pollen has been considered a good source of nutrients and energy. Its promising healing properties have also been referred to. The present study aimed to characterize, for the first time, eight commercial pollens from Portugal and Spain available on the market studying the legislation on labeling, pollinic origin,...

Changes in the content of biogenic amines (BA; e.g., putrescine, tyramine, and histamine) and the mesophilic and psychrotrophic bacterial counts of tiger-tooth croaker (Otolithes ruber) were monitored during ice storage for 18 days. BA and bacterial loads gradually increased (p < 0.05) with storage time. On the first day of storage, no amines were...

At the present time, the quality, integrity, sanitation and nutritional value of honeys receive attention on an international level due to the increasing content of chemicals in the aforementioned matrix. This work was conducted to evaluate the quality of 75 organic honey samples from the Trás-Os-Montes region (Portugal). Mean values obtained for p...

An evaluation was done on the physicochemical quality of nineteen (n=19) Apis mellifera honeys produced in the Lima Valley, Portugal. The rural landscape of the Lima Valley is valuable in social, environmental and economic terms and its conservation and preservation are essential. The evaluated physicochemical characteristics were: moisture, ash, e...

Bee pollen is one of the richest and purest natural foods, used in the folk medicine, clinical practices, and food and pharmaceutical industries. This work aims to characterise, for the first time in Portugal, the palynological origin, nutritional value and microbiological safety of this beehive product. It identified ten botanical families, and th...

Concerns about traces of numerous toxic substances and authenticity have prompted consumer demand for honey that is certified as organic, based on strict ecological, natural principles and traceability. The present study aims to characterize organic honey samples (n = 73) from Northeast Portugal, with respect to floral nectar origin, physicochemica...

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Monofloral lavender honey samples (n = 30), were analyzed to test antifungal effect against Candida albicans, Candida krusei, and Cryptococcus neoformans. The specific growth rates (μ) showed that all the yeast growths were reduced in the presence of honey. The honey concentration (% w/v) that inhibited 10% of the yeasts growth (X min) ranged from...

The data of fresh semen characteristics, the possible effects of freezing on sperm viability, and seminal variables due to changes in annual cycle were studied in the autochthonous Celta breed (NW Spain). In fresh semen, the following parameters were computed: ejaculate volume (202±26.6 ml), sperm motility (82.1±1.2 %), sperm concentration (401±35....

Monofloral heather (Erica sp.) honey samples (n=89), harvested in Portugal according to European organic beekeeping rules, were analyzed to test their antifungal effect against Candida albicans, Candida krusei, and Cryptococcus neoformans. A synthetic honey solution was also tested to determine antifungal activity attributable to sugars. The specif...

Production of the autochthonous Portuguese sheep breed Bordaleira de Entre Douro e Minho (BEDM) is directly associated with the concept of sustainable agriculture. This concept focuses on the adaptation of animal populations to adverse environmental conditions, high biological efficiency and traditional management. Native BEDM sheep can be divided...

Honey has always been regarded as a food which is advantageous for one's health and as a product which has healing qualities. For this reason, is necessary to protect consumers from the fraudulent mislabeling of inferior honeys. The purpose of this study was to investigate some properties of artisanal honey samples (n=45) collected from the Northwe...

A new and sensitive method based on high performance liquid chromatography with laser-induced fluorescence detection has been developed for the determination of decoquinate in milk. Laser source was obtained with a He–Cd laser using a continuous excitation wavelength at 325nm. Decoquinate exhibits moderate fluorescence, but it is increased using Ca...

Honey legislation has been addressed to establish the minimum marketing level of the product and the need for consumer protection through correct denominations. Research oriented toward assessment of floral origin and physicochemical properties may increase the commercial value of these products. The characteristics of thirty-one honeys produced in...

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary alpha-tocopheryl acetate (vitamin E) and oil sources on fish flesh quality characteristics of Huso huso during frozen storage. Practical-type diets containing 0 or 250 mg vitamin E kg−1 with three lipid sources, fish oil (FO), soybean oil (SO) and canola oil (CO), were fed to H. huso for...

A simple, quick, and accurate new method for the determination of quinine (6′-methoxycinchonan-9-ol) in soft drinks is presented. The analysis is carried out using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), coupled laser induced fluorescence (LIF) that consisted of a 325 nm He-Cd laser and a ZETALIF detector. The chromatographic separation was...

Researchers in the scientific community actively discuss the fact that polymer hydrogels synthesized by crosslinking polly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) with epichlorohydrin (EPI) in the presence of D‐glucose‐6‐phosphate monobarium salt do not show or show imprinting on the molecular level. In the work reported here, a polymer hydrogel was synthe...

BACKGROUND: Honey legislation has been addressed to establish the minimum marketing level of the product and the need for consumer protection through correct denominations. Research oriented toward assessment of floral origin and physico‐chemical properties may increase the commercial value of these products. The characteristics of 23 unifloral hon...

The effect of gamma radiation (0, 1, 3, and 5 kGy) on the shelf life of farmed rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) fillets that were treated with sodium acetate and vacuum packaged and subsequently stored under refrigeration was studied by measuring microbiological, chemical, and organoleptic changes. Radiation affected populations of bacteria, nam...

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatographic-tandem mass spectrometric (LC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the qualitative and quantitative assay of cyproheptadine (CP) in pharmaceutical samples. Diphenylpyraline hydrochloride (DPP) was used as an internal standard (IS). Two multiple reaction-monitoring (MRM) transitions for each anal...