The objective of this study was to evaluate the chemical composition of two chickpea varieties, ‘Costa 2004’ and ‘El Patrón’, and to characterize their proteins to determine their technological potential for the food industry. For this purpose, chickpea samples of both varieties from the 2019 harvest region of Guanajuato, Mexico, were obtained and chemically characterized to determine the protein fractions using electrophoretic and amino acid profiling. The chickpea variety ‘Costa 2004’ contained 3% less protein and 7% less dietary fiber content than the variety ‘El Patrón’; whereas, the carbohydrate content of ‘Costa 2004’ was 4% greater. Additionally, the chickpeas demonstrated an antioxidant capacity ranging from 319 to 387 µMET/g and total phenol levels exceeding 500 mg/g. Among the protein fractions, globulins represented the highest proportion in both varieties of chickpea, at approximately 8.73 g/100 g (‘Costa 2004’) and 10.42 g/100 g (‘El Patrón’), followed by albumin, at approximately 1.24 g/100 g and 1.47 g/100 g, respectively. The chickpea proteins ranged in molecular weight between 100 and 25 kDa, with particularly strong signals in the albumin and globulin bands. Regarding the amino acid profile, histidine was predominant in both varieties. In conclusion, both varieties of chickpea have high nutritional value and broad potential for technological use in the food industry.

The growth and development of green lettuce plants can be modulated by the prevailing light conditions around them. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of ambient light enrichment with different LED light spectra on agronomic characteristics, polyphenol concentration and relative gene expression of enzymes associated with polyphenol formation in ‘Levistro’ lettuce grown hydroponically in a Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) system for 28 days in a greenhouse. The spectra (blue:green:red:far-red) and red:blue (R:B) ratios obtained by enriching ambient light with Blue (B), White (W), Blue-Red (BR) and Red (R) LED light were B: 47:22:21:10, 0.5:1; W: 30:38:23:9, 0.8:1; BR: 33:15:44:8, 1.3:1 and R: 16:16:60:8, 3.8:1, respectively, and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) under the different treatments, measured at midday, ranged from 328 to 336 µmoles m⁻² s⁻¹. The resulting daily light integral (DLI) was between 9.1 and 9.6 mol m⁻² day⁻¹. The photoperiod for all enrichment treatments was 12 h of light. The control was ambient greenhouse light (25:30:30:15; R:B = 1.2:1; PAR = 702 µmoles m⁻² s⁻¹; DLI = 16.9 mol m⁻² day⁻¹; photoperiod = 14.2 h of light). Fresh weight (FW) and dried weight percentage (DWP) were similar among the enrichment treatments and the control. The leaf number increased significantly under BR and R compared to B lights. The relative index of chlorophyll concentration (RIC) increased as plants grew and was similar among the enrichment treatments and the control. On the other hand, the concentration of chlorogenic acid and chicoric acid increased under BR and B lights, which was consistent with the higher relative expression of the coumarate 3-hydroxylase enzyme gene. In view of the results, it is inferred that half of the PAR or DLI is sufficient to achieve normal growth and development of ‘Levistro’ lettuce plants, suggesting a more efficient use of light energy under the light enrichment treatments. On the other hand, the blue and combined blue-red lights promoted the accumulation of phenolic compounds in the leaves of ‘Levistro’ lettuce plants.

A capillary electrophoretic method for the chiral separation of the 3-chiral-1,4-benzodiazepines was developed. Enantiomeric resolution of oxazepam, lorazepam, temazepam, and lormetazepam was achieved using sulfated cyclodextrins (CD's) as chiral selectors. A 3-levels, 4-factors fractional factorial (34-2) design was applied to test 3 different CD's: heptakis-6-sulfato--cyclodextrin (HSCD), heptakis-(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)--cyclodextrin (HDASCD), and heptakis-(2,3-dimethyl-6-sulfato)--cyclodextrin (HDMSCD). The CD type, its concentration, the pH of the electrolyte, and % organic modifier were tested as the factors in the experimental design. The highest resolution values were obtained using a 20 mM borate buffer, pH 9.0 with the addition of 5 % HSCD and 15 % methanol as an organic modifier. At these separation conditions, the equilibrium constants of the benzodiazepine-HSCD complex formation were calculated. A theoretical study of the interaction benzodiazepine-HSCD complex using semiempirical calculations is postulated.

Pasteurization is a treatment used to reduce the microbial load in beverages; however, it can affect some nutrients. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of using thermosonication as an alternative to pasteurization on a chickpea-based beverage. The beverage was developed with the chickpea variety ‘El Patrón’ and inoculated with a strain of Salmonella typhi at a concentration of 1.47 × 10 ⁷ CFU/ mL. The following treatment involved the application of ultrasound waves at different durations (15, 30, and 45 min) and amplitudes (50, 75, and 100%) at temperatures of 25 and 50 °C, while a control group was pasteurized. The effects of the treatments on the colour, protein digestibility, and viscosity of the product were evaluated. The effectiveness of the ultrasound treatment was greater when performed at 50 °C; the optimal thermosonication treatment is at 75% amplitude and 40 min. Additionally, higher viscosity was observed in the chickpea beverage treated with thermosonication (3500 mPa·s), while protein digestibility was increased by 5%. This ultrasound method is a viable alternative to thermal pasteurization in the preparation of chickpea-based beverages.