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Materials (Basel, Switzerland) Aug 2021Several agro-waste materials have been utilized for sustainable engineering and environmental application over the past decades, showing different degrees of... (Review)
Review
Several agro-waste materials have been utilized for sustainable engineering and environmental application over the past decades, showing different degrees of effectiveness. However, information concerning the wider use of palm oil clinker (POC) and its performance is still lacking. Therefore, as a solid waste byproduct produced in one of the oil palm processing stages, generating a huge quantity of waste mostly dumped into the landfill, the waste-to-resource potential of POC should be thoroughly discussed in a review. Thus, this paper provides a systematic review of the current research articles on the several advances made from 2005 to 2021 regarding palm oil clinker physical properties and performances, with a particular emphasis on their commitments to cost savings during environmental and engineering applications. The review begins by identifying the potential of POC application in conventional and geopolymer structural elements such as beams, slabs, and columns made of concrete, mortar, or paste for coarse aggregates, sand, and cement replacement. Aspects such as performance of POC in wastewater treatment processes, fine aggregate and cement replacement in asphaltic and bituminous mixtures during highway construction, a bio-filler in coatings for steel manufacturing processes, and a catalyst during energy generation are also discussed. This review further describes the effectiveness of POC in soil stabilization and the effect of POC pretreatment for performance enhancement. The present review can inspire researchers to find research gaps that will aid the sustainable use of agroindustry wastes. The fundamental knowledge contained in this review can also serve as a wake-up call for researchers that will motivate them to explore the high potential of utilizing POC for greater environmental benefits associated with less cost when compared with conventional materials.
PubMed: 34442978
DOI: 10.3390/ma14164456 -
Environmental Science and Pollution... Oct 2021The interaction and the interplay of climate change with oil palm production in the Southeast Asia region are of serious concern. This particularly applies in Malaysia... (Review)
Review
The interaction and the interplay of climate change with oil palm production in the Southeast Asia region are of serious concern. This particularly applies in Malaysia due to its rank as the second largest palm oil producer in the world. The anthropogenic activities and the agroecological practices in oil palm plantation, including excessive use of fertilisers, bush fire due to land clearing, and cultivation on peatland, have exacerbated the effects of climate change featuring extreme events, drought, flooding, heatwave, as well as infestation of pest and diseases. These adverse impacts on oil palm production highlight the significance of deploying effective adaptation strategies. The study aims to examine the impact of climate change on oil palm production and identify the farmers' adaptation strategies to the impacts of climate change in Malaysia. This study was conducted a comprehensive review of the articles published from 2000 to 2021 in the contexts of climate change and oil palm production in Malaysia. The review shows that climate change has a range of impacts on the oil palm production in Malaysia. As a result, several adaptation options were identified, such as breeding of hybrid varieties that are tolerant and resistant to heat; sustainable management of soil; pit and tranches to enhance water management in plantation areas; minimal use of fertilisers, herbicides, and pesticides; zero burning; and minimum tillage. The reviewed studies recommended the following to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change: sustainable national policy on climate change, conservation of the existing carbon stock, effective management of tropical rainforest biodiversity, afforestation for carbon sequestration, and reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission.
Topics: Climate Change; Malaysia
PubMed: 34402002
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-15890-3 -
Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome 2020High total cholesterol (TC) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) could be major risk factors for cardiovascular disease burden among high risk populations... (Review)
Review Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND AND AIMS
High total cholesterol (TC) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) could be major risk factors for cardiovascular disease burden among high risk populations especially in South Asians. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to quantify the effects of coconut oil compared with other oils and fats on cardio-metabolic parameters.
METHODS
PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science were systematically searched. The main outcomes included are lipid and glycemic parameters. Subgroup analyses were performed to evaluate individual comparisons of vegetable oils and animal fat with coconut oil. Data were pooled using random-effects meta-analysis.
RESULTS
Coconut oil consumption significantly increased TC by 15.42 mg/dL (95% CI, 8.96-21.88, p < 0.001), LDL-C by 10.14 mg/dL (95% CI, 4.44-15.84, p < 0.001) and high density lipoprorein cholesterol (HDL-C) by 2.61 mg/dL (95% CI, 0.95-4.26, p = 0.002), and significantly decreased glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) by 0.39 mg/dL (95% CI, -0.50 to -0.27, p < 0.001) but, it had no effects on triglycerides (TG), (4.25 mg/dL; 95% CI, -0.49-8.99, p = 0.08) when compared with the control group. Sub-group analysis demonstrated that coconut oil significantly increased TC and LDL-C over corn, palm, soybean and safflower oils and not over olive oil. Compared with butter, coconut oil showed a better pattern in cardio-metabolic markers by significantly increasing HDL-C (4.38 mg/dL, 95% CI, 0.40 to 8.36, p = 0.03) and decreasing LDL-C (-14.90 mg/dL, 95% CI, -23.02 to-6.77, p < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that coconut oil consumption results in significantly higher TC, LDL-C and HDL-C than other oils. Consumption of coconut oil can be one of the risk factors for CVDs in South Asians.
Topics: Animals; Cardiovascular Diseases; Coconut Oil; Humans; Risk Factors
PubMed: 33096510
DOI: 10.1016/j.dsx.2020.09.033 -
Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical... 2020Current guidelines recommend reducing intake of diets rich in saturated fats and replacing it with diets rich in unsaturated fats. Palm oil contains a high amount of... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Current guidelines recommend reducing intake of diets rich in saturated fats and replacing it with diets rich in unsaturated fats. Palm oil contains a high amount of saturated fatty acids, but its effect on serum lipid levels is unclear. The study aimed to compare the effects of palm oil consumption with other edible oils rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on serum lipid profiles.
METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN
We searched Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials and CINAHL. Clinical trials were eligible if they compared palm oil-rich diets with diets rich in MUFAs or PUFAs. We pooled results of included studies using a random effects model and assessed the quality of the evidence and certainty of conclusions using the GRADE approach.
RESULTS
Intake of palm oil intake compared to oils rich in MUFA was associated with increased levels of total cholesterol (TC) [mean difference (MD)=0.27 mmol/L; 95% CI 0.08 to 0.45], LDL-C (MD=0.20 mmol/L; 95% CI 0.02 to 0.37) and HDL-C (MD=0.06 mmol/L; 95% CI 0.02 to 0.10). Similarly, for comparison with oils rich in PUFAs, palm oil showed increased in TC (MD=0.38 mmol/L; 95% CI 0.14 to 0.62), LDL-C (MD= 0.44 mmol/L; 95% CI 0.01 to 0.88) and HDL-C (MD=0.08 mmol/L; 95% CI 0.03 to 0.13). For both comparisons, there were no significant effects on triglycerides.
CONCLUSIONS
Even though palm oil increases marginally the level of serum lipids, the evidence is mostly of low to moderate quality.
Topics: Diet; Dietary Fats; Humans; Lipids; Palm Oil
PubMed: 32990612
DOI: 10.6133/apjcn.202009_29(3).0011 -
Frontiers in Veterinary Science 2020Accumulative evidences on the beneficial effects of palm oil are progressively reported; however, there are still several controversies related to their effects on the...
Accumulative evidences on the beneficial effects of palm oil are progressively reported; however, there are still several controversies related to their effects on the risks of cardiovascular disease (CVD). This review explores the effects of palm oil and its liquid fraction namely palm olein, which is commonly used as cooking oil on four lipid parameters; total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), which play an important role as CVD-related biomarkers. A systematic review of the literature was conducted to identify the relevant studies on palm oil and the lipid parameters specifically focusing on the animal model. A comprehensive search was conducted in Medline EBSCOhost, Medline OVID and Scopus. Studies were limited to the English language published between the years of 2000 and 2019. The main inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) Study with animal experiments [the animal should be limited to mammals] (2) Study should have evaluated the effects of palm oil or palm olein on plasma or serum lipid parameter (3) Study should have used palm oil or palm olein in the form of pure or refined oil (4) The treatment of palm oil or palm olein was assessed using the following outcomes: plasma or serum TC, TG, HDL-C, and LDL-C concentration (5) Study should have control group and (6) studies on specific fatty acid, fraction enriched tocotrienol and tocopherol, crude palm oil, kernel oil, red palm oil, thermally oxidized palm oil, hydrogenated palm oil, and palm oil or palm olein based products namely margarine, palm milk, butter and cream were excluded. The quality and the risk of bias on the selected studies were assessed using the ARRIVE Guideline and SYRCLE's Risk of Bias tools, respectively. The literature search successfully identified 17 potentially relevant articles, whereby nine of them met the inclusion criteria. All research articles included in this review were studies comprising seven rats, one hamster and one mice model. Significant positive outcomes were observed in several lipid parameters such as TC and LDL-C. The evidence from this review supported that palm oil and palm olein possess high potential as lipid-lowering agents.
PubMed: 32775343
DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2020.00303 -
Nutrients Feb 2020Several natural products have been reported to elicit beneficial effects against neurodegenerative disorders due to their vitamin E contents. However, the...
BACKGROUND
Several natural products have been reported to elicit beneficial effects against neurodegenerative disorders due to their vitamin E contents. However, the neuroprotective efficacy of palm oil or its tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) from the pre-clinical cell and animal studies have not been systematically reviewed.
METHODS
The protocol for this systematic review was registered in "PROSPERO" (CRD42019150408). This review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. The Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) descriptors of PubMed with Boolean operators were used to construct keywords, including ("Palm Oil"[Mesh]) AND "Nervous System"[Mesh], ("Palm Oil"[Mesh]) AND "Neurodegenerative Diseases"[Mesh], ("Palm Oil"[Mesh]) AND "Brain"[Mesh], and ("Palm Oil"[Mesh]) AND "Cognition"[Mesh], to retrieve the pertinent records from PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and ScienceDirect from 1990 to 2019, while bibliographies, ProQuest and Google Scholar were searched to ensure a comprehensive identification of relevant articles. Two independent investigators were involved at every stage of the systematic review, while discrepancies were resolved through discussion with a third investigator.
RESULTS
All of the 18 included studies in this review (10 animal and eight cell studies) showed that palm oil and TRF enhanced the cognitive performance of healthy animals. In diabetes-induced rats, TRF and α-tocotrienol enhanced cognitive function and exerted antioxidant, anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory activities, while in a transgenic Alzheimer's disease (AD) animal model, TRF enhanced the cognitive function and reduced the deposition of β-amyloid by altering the expression of several genes related to AD and neuroprotection. In cell studies, simultaneous treatment with α-tocotrienols and neurotoxins improved the redox status in neuronal cells better than ϒ- and δ-tocotrienols. Both pre-treatment and post-treatment with α-tocotrienol relative to oxidative insults were able to enhance the survival of neuronal cells via increased antioxidant responses.
CONCLUSIONS
Palm oil and its TRF enhanced the cognitive functions of healthy animals, while TRF and α-tocotrienol enhanced the cognitive performance with attenuation of oxidative stress, neuroinflammation and apoptosis in diabetes-induced or transgenic AD animal models. In cell studies, TRF and α-tocotrienol exerted prophylactic neuroprotective effects, while α-tocotrienol exerted therapeutic neuroprotective effects that were superior to those of ϒ- and δ-tocotrienol isomers.
Topics: Alzheimer Disease; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Animals; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Antioxidants; Cells, Cultured; Chemical Fractionation; Cognition; Disease Models, Animal; Humans; Mice; Neuroprotective Agents; Oxidative Stress; Palm Oil; Phytotherapy; Rats; Tocotrienols
PubMed: 32085610
DOI: 10.3390/nu12020521 -
Nutrients Feb 2020Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide. Squalene (SQ), an intermediate for the cholesterol biosynthesis, has been proposed to act similarly...
INTRODUCTION
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide. Squalene (SQ), an intermediate for the cholesterol biosynthesis, has been proposed to act similarly to statins via inhibition of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase in the liver.
PURPOSE
This paper explores the effects of SQ in CVD.
METHODS
A systematic review of the literature was performed to identify relevant studies about SQ and CVD. A comprehensive search in Medline and Scopus for relevant studies published between the years 1946 and 2019 was performed. The main inclusion criteria were that the study was published in English; that the study reported association or effect of SQ and CVD; and that CVD should be related to lifestyle variables, aging, or experimentally induced conditions.
RESULTS
The literature searches identified 5562 potentially relevant articles, whereby 21 studies met the inclusion criteria. There were three human studies and 18 animal experimental studies included in this paper. Only one human study reported positive outcome of SQ in CVD. The remaining two studies reported inconsistent and/or no effect. For animal studies, 15 studies reported positive effect while the remaining reported negative and/or no effect of SQ on various related parameters.
CONCLUSIONS
This evidence-based review emphasizes the potential of SQ being used for cardiovascular-related diseases. The effect of SQ, especially of plant-based warrants further exploration. Controlled human observational studies should be performed to provide comprehensive evidence.
Topics: Animals; Cardiovascular Diseases; Humans; Hydroxymethylglutaryl CoA Reductases; Liver; Primary Prevention; Risk Factors; Squalene
PubMed: 32033387
DOI: 10.3390/nu12020414 -
The International Journal of... Oct 2019The palm oil industry is the largest contributor to global production of oils and fats. Indonesia and Malaysia are the largest producers of palm oil. More than a million...
BACKGROUND
The palm oil industry is the largest contributor to global production of oils and fats. Indonesia and Malaysia are the largest producers of palm oil. More than a million workers are employed in this industry, yet there is a lack of information on their occupational health and safety.
OBJECTIVE
To identify and summarize occupational hazards among oil palm plantation workers.
METHODS
A search was carried out in June 2018 in PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Ovid. Relevant publications were identified by a systematic search of four databases and relevant journals. Publications were included if they examined occupational hazards in oil palm plantation workers.
RESULTS
941 publications were identified; of these, 25 studies were found eligible to be included in the final review. Of the 25 studies examined, 19 were conducted in Malaysia, 2 in Costa Rica, and one each in Ghana, Indonesia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, and Cameroon. Oil palm plantation workers were found to be at risk of musculoskeletal conditions, injuries, psychosocial disorders, and infectious diseases such as malaria and leptospirosis. In addition, they have potential exposure to paraquat and other pesticides.
CONCLUSION
In light of the potential of palm oil for use as a biofuel, this is an industry with strong growth potential. The workers are exposed to various occupational hazards. Further research and interventions are necessary to improve the working conditions of this already vast and growing workforce.
Topics: Agricultural Workers' Diseases; Cameroon; Comorbidity; Costa Rica; Food Industry; Food Safety; Ghana; Humans; Indonesia; Malaysia; Myanmar; Occupational Exposure; Occupational Health; Palm Oil; Papua New Guinea; Pesticides; Plant Oils
PubMed: 31586381
DOI: 10.15171/ijoem.2019.1576 -
Nature Communications Sep 2019Agriculture has been implicated as a potential driver of human infectious diseases. However, the generality of disease-agriculture relationships has not been... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
Agriculture has been implicated as a potential driver of human infectious diseases. However, the generality of disease-agriculture relationships has not been systematically assessed, hindering efforts to incorporate human health considerations into land-use and development policies. Here we perform a meta-analysis with 34 eligible studies and show that people who live or work in agricultural land in Southeast Asia are on average 1.74 (CI 1.47-2.07) times as likely to be infected with a pathogen than those unexposed. Effect sizes are greatest for exposure to oil palm, rubber, and non-poultry based livestock farming and for hookworm (OR 2.42, CI 1.56-3.75), malaria (OR 2.00, CI 1.46-2.73), scrub typhus (OR 2.37, CI 1.41-3.96) and spotted fever group diseases (OR 3.91, CI 2.61-5.85). In contrast, no change in infection risk is detected for faecal-oral route diseases. Although responses vary by land-use and disease types, results suggest that agricultural land-uses exacerbate many infectious diseases in Southeast Asia.
Topics: Agriculture; Animals; Asia, Southeastern; Communicable Diseases; Databases, Factual; Ecosystem; Humans; Risk Factors
PubMed: 31541099
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12333-z -
Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical... 2019The precise association between palm oil consumption and lipid-related cardiovascular disease risk remains unclear. A systematic review was thus performed to assess... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
The precise association between palm oil consumption and lipid-related cardiovascular disease risk remains unclear. A systematic review was thus performed to assess whether palm oil consumption has a negative effect on plasma lipid-related cardiovascular disease marker levels.
METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN
In June 2018, the electronic bibliographic databases PubMed, EMBASE (Ovid), the Cochrane Library (Ovid) and the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure were searched and a total of 11 eligible dietary intervention articles involving 961 volunteers were selected. Both random and fixed effect models were used to calculate pooled weighted mean differences (WMD).
RESULTS
A total of 11 articles involving 547 participants met the inclusion criteria. The pooled analysis revealed that palm oil increased the concentration of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (WMD: 0.15 mmol/L; p<0.00001). Palm oil consumption had no significant effects on blood total cholesterol (WMD: -0.01 mmol/L; p=0.82) and LDL-c (WMD: -0.05mmol/L; p=0.10) and triglyceride concentrations (WMD: 0.00 mmol/L; p=0.96), relative to the effects of unsaturated fatty acid consumption. Subgroup analyses revealed that palm oil has a beneficial effect on High-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels when more than 30% of total dietary energy was constituted by fat.
CONCLUSIONS
This review revealed that palm oil does not induce increases in cardiovascular disease risk risk-related biomarkers relative to unsaturated fatty acids. Furthermore, larger-scale samples of human dietary intervention trials are required to increase the accuracy of meta-analyses.
Topics: Cardiovascular Diseases; Diet; Lipids; Palm Oil
PubMed: 31464396
DOI: 10.6133/apjcn.201909_28(3).0009