The determination of mycotoxins present in food and knowledge of their intake and toxicity are the basis for assessing the risk associated with the consumption of contaminated food and providing data for the protection of the consumer’s health.
The COAL research group focuses its research on the analysis of mycotoxins in food, study of in vitro and in vivo toxicity, factors that influence intestinal bio-accessibility and decontamination procedures in order to assess risk. The COAL group also develops bioactive ingredients/products of natural origin to reduce the growth of mycotoxin-producing fungi in food for possible application both in the field and during the preservation of different agri-food products.
The COAL research group participates in several competitive research projects, the common points being the development of methodologies based on natural ingredients for the reduction of the growth of fungi in food and feed:
- "Integrated and innovative key actions for mycotoxin management in the food and feed chain (Mycokey) (GA 678781)". European project funded by the H2020 program based on the development of growth reduction methodologies of mycotoxin-producing fungi in maize, barley and wheat stored in silos.
- "Smart and innovative packaging, postharvest rot management and shipping of organic citrus fruit (BiOrangePack)". Project funded by the European program PRIMA-H2020 with the aim of developing an innovative packaging based on cellulose recovered from the waste of the citrus juice production industry (mainly from the albedo) containing a bioactive ingredient fermented by BALs, capable of reducing the growth of the contaminating fungal microflora of fruits throughout transport and storage.
- "Enhancing Research and Innovation Capacity of Tubitak MAM Food Institute on Managment of Mycotoxigenic Fungi and Mycotoxins (MycoTWIN)". Project funded by the H2020 where our research group will organize different activities related to the dissemination of knowledge of the most effective techniques for the control of mycotoxins present in food, including workshops, round-table conferences, info days, training school, etc.
- "Bio-preservation of tin loaf with fermented whey against mycotoxins and toxigenic fungi. Safety of use in the presence of carotenoids. (SAFEBIOBREAD) (PID2019-108070RB-100)'. Project funded by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness is based on the isolation of new strains of lactic acid bacteria (BALs) from the sweet whey of goat's milk liquid, its characterization of the potential antifungal, identification and quantification of the molecules that give rise to the activity object of the study, and its potential application as a bioactive ingredient in the preservation of tin bread. Another aspect of the project will be to study the beneficial effects of bioactive compounds produced by lactic acid bacteria throughout fermentation, both through in vitro tests with cell cultures and animal models.
The COAL group collaborates with different national and international companies on the development of ingredients / products to reduce the growth of mycotoxin-producing fungi both in the field and in storage.
The results of the research activity of the group have attracted a wide interest for the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) and the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) and has resulted in the publication in international journals of high impact index as Food Chemistry, Food Chemical & Toxicology, Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry, Food Control, Food Additives & Contaminants, Journal of Chromatography, Toxicon, Toxicology Letters, etc. It also collaborates with prestigious national and European groups in the scientific and technical field.
The Research Unit integrates into the ICBiBE from the Department of Microbiology and Ecology of the Universitat de València. In order of seniority, José A. Gil-Delgado (1974), Emilio Barba (1995) and Juan S. Monrós (2004) are enrolled in this research unit, although the latter was an FPU intern between 1993 and 1996, and Adjunct Professor between 1997 and 2002.
The lines of research described below began in 1975 when the birds nesting in an area of almost 17 hectares in the orange groves of Sagunto began to be monitored. In addition to monitoring the nesting species by the method used, the nest search, we accumulated extensive information on various phonological aspects related to the birds that breed in these crops. Thus, there is a database on the bird communities over the period of 1975-2004, and on the variations in the populations of the 12-25 species breeding each year on the plot. As a result, aspects related to communities, populations, re-production and interaction with other species are addressed, as the databank is rich in information on the incidence of predation based on live observations of events. As an example, the information collected on one of the nesting species, the Blackbird, where the complete history of 250-350 nests per year is known. All chicks are banded. Other biological aspects have been studied on an ad hoc basis. For example, the diet of chickens. This line of research is the starting point for the research indicated in the following section.
Lines of research:
- Communities, populations and breeding ecology of nesting birds in orange groves.
- Migration and wintering of birds.
- Feeding of birds and reptiles.
- Impacts of human actions on bird populations.
- Habitat selection in birds and reptiles.
- Mammals of the orange groves.
- Conservation and management of vertebrate populations.
Materials science and technology covers a wide range of disciplines, techniques and methods designed for the development of materials in the service of society’s new challenges.
In this context, the INNOMAT group, integrated in the Institute of Material Science of the Universitat de València, focuses its research around two subjects with a clear complementarity. The first deals with the development of innovative protocols for preparing porous, mesoporous or nanostructured materials with characteristics that allow its use in a wide variety of applications: sensors, catalysts, coatings, analysis, restoration and preservation of historical heritage, etc. These materials are specifically designed either to amplify some of the physical or chemical properties of their components, or to devise new ones from an intelligent design. This goal requires the monitoring of many parameters related to the physical, chemical and structural nature of the compounds obtained. Thus the use of the appropriate characterisation techniques is needed, as well as the development of other techniques of innovative nature, distinguished by their specific properties and high added value: high spatial resolution, high sensitivity, versatility or portability. The analysis of the physical and chemical properties of materials and the development of new characterisation techniques is therefore the second main activity of the group. This double purpose on characterisation and development combines the collaborative effort of physics and chemistry researchers, by whom it is integrated. Then, it provides the group with a clear multidiscipliinary nature. More specifically, the group develops the following activities:
- Design and synthesis of innovative materials:
- Oxidic and non-oxific materials: preparation and characterisation of oxidic materials with variable-sized particles.
- Massive and porous nanoparticles with the incorporation of several multifunctional groups for applications in diagnosis and drug delivery.
- Mesoporous nanocomposites containing gold nanoparticles for the catalytic decomposition of CO and VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
- • Silica-polymer nanocomposites for controlled delivery applications, remediation (CO2 capture) and sensors.
- Porous silica modified with inorganic species, organic groups and coordination complexes, as heterogeneous catalysts for green chemistry.
- Hybrid functionalised silica for detecting VOCs.
- Materials for the restoration and conservation of cultural heritage.
- Development of material characterisation innovative techniques
- Adaptation of a spectrometer Ramar to use it on the research of cultural heritage items, allowing measures in situ, without simple taking.
- Adaptation of a portable spectrometer EDXRF to use it on the research of cultural heritage items, allowing measures in situ, without simple taking.
- Adaptation of an atomic force microscope for the optical and electric characterisation of high spatial resolution nanomaterials.
Molecular Electron Density Theory (MEDT) has recently been proposed as a new theory for the study of reactivity in organic chemistry.
Within MEDT, reactivity in organic chemistry is studied through the quantum-mechanical analysis of the changes in electron density along the reaction path, as well as the energies required to reach the transition state structure, in order to understand the experimental results. The studies carried out in the context of MEDT allow the rejection of most of the concepts introduced in the last half century based on the analysis of molecular orbitals, and the introduction of new concepts that allow a modern rationalisation of reactivity in organic chemistry.
In the present line of research, some theoretical models of reactivity such as the frontier molecular orbital theory and the distortion/interaction model, as well as several significant organic reactions such as cycloaddition reactions, are being reviewed and analysed within the context of MEDT, based on the only observable physical entity: the molecular electron density.
Quality and methodology applied to laboratories of routine (ISO 17205 Standard) and research: Development of ad hoc metrological tools, technical protocols, acceptance criteria, validation, quality assurance, control charts, uncertainty, including supporting software. Design of experiments, optimisation, simulation of future results. Research and development of high-throughput (bio)analysis methods (Liquid chromatography, Capillary electrophoresis, Mass spectrometry) for the separation and determination of molecules (including chiral) with analytical and bioanalytical applications. (Bio)sensors. Chemical assays of relevant compounds in environmental samples (water, sludge, soil, etc.).
Added value: In vitro estimation of ecotoxicological parameters. Chemical assays of bioactive molecules (in urine, plasma, saliva, etc.). Added value In vitro estimation of ADME/TOX indicators. Development of molecular biointeraction models. Computational simulation methods (“in silico” via “Molecular Docking”). Pharmacophores. QSAR.
Research area: Photochemistry Design, synthesis and study of the photophysical and photochemical behaviour of molecular and supramolecular materials.
- The group has studied the photophysical and photochemical behaviour of organic chromophores and bichromophores, inter- and intra-molecular energy and electron transfer processes induced by light, as well as the application of chromophores as photocatalysts in transformations of organic compounds. Nanoparticles Design, synthesis and application of photoactive nanosystems
- Since 2008, the group's research has focused mainly on semiconductor and metallic nanoparticles. Thus, nanoparticles dispersible in aqueous and organic media have been prepared, their optical properties and photostability have been studied, as well as the modification of their shape and size in processes induced by light in the presence or absence of a photocatalyst. The nanoparticles initially used were CdSe, CdSe/ZnS semiconductors and gold nanoparticles. These nanoparticles have been and are being used, after their specific functionalisation, as chemical sensors and to prepare fluorescent gels.
- In recent years, the group has synthesised and is synthesising other nanoparticles of interest for biomedical applications. These so-called "up-conversion" nanoparticles are of interest for bioimaging, photodynamic therapy, controlled drug release, etc. Their most outstanding feature is related to their ability to absorb light in the IR (high penetration in tissues) and emit in the visible. In vitro studies with nanoparticles of this type, suitably functionalised for their intended purpose, are being carried out in collaboration with Prof. Verdugo of the University of Valencia.
- In addition, we have recently prepared perovskite nanoparticles that allow us to obtain colloidal solutions of these nanoparticles. These semiconductor materials are of interest, among other applications, for obtaining electroluminescent devices. The application studies for devices are being carried out in collaboration with Dr. Henk Bolink of ICMol, UV.Fields of application: The molecular and nanohybrid materials developed by the group have applications such as photocatalysts, sensors, solar filters, optical devices, drug detection, etc.
GIRHA was set up in 2003 within the area of Ancient History at the Universitat de València as a line of incorporation and innovation of all kinds of resources applied to teaching and documentation.
Its activities since then have been inserted both in the framework of the application, use and experimentation of ICT and in the contribution and configuration of other materials (documentation, manuals, etc.), as well as developing cooperation and dissemination on an interdisciplinary and interdepartmental scale.
Subsequently, the group has extended its line of action to the coordination of research activities in the area of Ancient History, designing joint participation in R&D projects, or any others involving research activities, as well as measures to transfer them to the university community (seminars, conferences, colloquiums, etc.).
The Solar Radiation Group of Valencia (GRSV) is a reference group in the two lines in which it works, atmospheric aerosols and solar UV radiation, and is considered a Group of Excellence of the Valencian Community through the Prometheus 2010 and Prometheus 2014 Projects, granted by the Generalitat Valenciana. The Solar Radiation Group has participated in numerous field campaigns, from Sodankyla (Finland) to Marrakesh (Morocco), including those carried out by the ESA (European Space Agency) in the Barrax area (Albacete), during 1998, 1999 and 2000 (DAISEX I and II, Digital Airbone Imaging Spectrometer EXperiment), 2003 and 2004 (SPARC, SPectra bARrax Campaign) and 2005 (SEN2FLEX, SENtinel-2 and Fluorescence Experiment).
It has coordinated the thematic networks DAMOCLES "Determination of Aerosols by Column Measurements (Lidar), Extinction and Soil" I and II during the years 2004 to 2010, in which more than thirty Spanish Institutions have participated. In recent years the GRSV has participated in the SAVEX (Sunphotometer Airborne Validation Experiment) campaigns which took place in June 2012 in Tenerife and the western region of the Sahara. This campaign consisted of the measurement of aerosol properties during a Saharan intrusion (mineral dust, of great climatic importance). The interest lay in the simultaneous measurement of properties using CIMEL CE318 (whose data were developed by AERONET) and PREDE POM (whose data were developed by ESR-SKYNET) instruments for comparison and validation with vertical profile measurements obtained with instruments installed on board an aircraft.
Different European groups were involved in this campaign, mainly from the UK MetOffice, the University of Reading (UK) and the Consiglio Nazionalle delle Ricerche (Italy). This campaign was carried out in the framework of the DA-SAVEX project, awarded in the pre-competitive programme of the University of La Laguna, and also supported to a large extent by the UK MetOffice, which provided the necessary aerial means and the instrumentation on board the aircraft. It has also participated in the Sunphotometer Airborne Validation Experiment in Dust - SAVEX/D campaign in April 2017 (http://pre-tect.space.noa.gr) and CHemistry and AeRosols Mediterranean EXperiment (ChArMEx; http://charmex.lsce.ipsl.fr), which is a collaborative research programme that introduces international activities to investigate Regional Interactions of Mediterranean Chemistry and Climate. The Solar Radiation group currently participates in the international aerosol measurement network AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET, https://aeronet.gsfc.nasa.gov/).
The AERONET programme is a federation of ground-based aerosol networks established by NASA and PHOTONS (PHOtométrie pour le Traitement Opérationnel de Normalisation Satellitaire; Univ. De Lille 1, CNES and CNRS-INSU) and extended through other networks such as RIMA (Red Ibérica de Medida de Aerosoles), AeroSpan, AEROCAN and CARSNET with national agencies, institutes and universities as partners.
The programme provides a public domain database of optical, microphysical and radiative properties of aerosols for aerosol research and characterisation, satellite validation and synergy with other databases. The Solar Radiation group has two stations (Burjassot and Aras de los Olmos) that are part of this AERONET network and actively collaborate with other Spanish stations of the RIMA Network in its operation. In addition, the GRSV also coordinates the European Skynet Radiometers network (ESR, http://www.euroskyrad.net/) together with the Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate of the Italian National Research Council (CNR). In this network, whose scientific objective is also the characterisation of atmospheric aerosols and their interaction with clouds and solar radiation, as well as the validation of satellite products, several European Universities/Meteorological Services from Italy, Germany, UK, Chile, as well as the NREL in the USA participate.
In addition, the GRSV is an Associated Partner in the ACTRIS2 (Aerosols, Clouds, and Trace gases Research InfraStructure Network) (www.actris.eu), a European research infrastructure (RI) funded under the H2020 programme in the context of Climate Change. The network has been accepted in the ESFRI (The European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructure) roadmap in 2016. This means that the ACTRIS network is set up as a pan-European research infrastructure that will be consolidated and operational over the next ten years. The ACTRIS project involves 28 European organisations and aims to establish a network of stable scientific infrastructures equipped with advanced instrumentation for the measurement of atmospheric aerosols, gases and clouds.
They also participate in the ACTRIS-SPAIN thematic network (CGL2017-90884-REDT) which is developing research on the direct and indirect effects of aerosols and clouds, as well as on the processes associated with atmospheric pollutants that are involved in the deterioration of air quality causing adverse effects on health and ecosystems.
ACTRIS-SPAIN will also contribute to the development of sustainable solutions to environmental challenges and thus fits perfectly into the overall objectives of ACTRIS. In this network, work is being carried out during this final quarter of 2020 to transform the Memorandum of Understanding that exists between the participants in this network and AEMET, which participates in it as an external entity, into a Joint Research Unit (JRU), operational at European level, through an agreement between the entities adapted to Law 40/2015 on the Legal Regime of the Public Sector. ACTRIS-SPAIN members currently participate as beneficiaries, third parties, or associated participants, in the H2020 project of preparatory phase for the implementation of European research infrastructures ACTRIS-PPP (Grant Agreement no. 739530).
Our group also participates in European projects within the framework of the H2020 programme. Specifically, in the EMPIR-Environment call (European Metrology Programme for Innovation and Research co-funded by the H2020 programme) of EURAMET (European Metrology Networks). The project is entitled Metrology of Aerosol Optical Properties (MAPP) and aims to study the traceability of aerosol measurements in the atmospheric column, and the estimation of the uncertainty of the products offered by the different international measurement networks has been accepted and will be developed in the years 2020 - 2023 by a consortium that includes different leading Spanish and European laboratories, such as the Lille Laboratory of Atmospheric Optics (LOA, France), National Research Centre (CNRS, France), Italian National Research Council (CNR, Italy), Spanish Meteorological Agency (AEMET, Spain), University of Reading (URE, UK), University of Valladolid (UVa, Spain). The project is coordinated by the Schweizerisches Forschungsinstitut für Hochgebirgsklima und Medizin (SFI Davos, Switzerland) and in Valencia the PI in charge is Victor Estellés, member of the team requesting the project.
The main lines of research of the GRSV are:
- Atmospheric aerosols and clouds.
- Characterisation of atmospheric aerosols from extinction measurements of solar irradiance and sky radiance.
- Dependence of atmospheric aerosols on the origin of air masses.
- Inversion methods to determine aerosol size distributions.
- Dynamic analysis of aerosol hygroscopic growth.
- Relationship of Angstrom coefficients with aerosol characteristics.
- Remote sensing applications. Atmospheric correction.
- Determination of the atmospheric profile of aerosols using lidar techniques.
- Measurement of cloud radiative properties.
- Study of the radiative forcing of atmospheric aerosols.
- Study of aerosol-cloud interactions and their radiative effects.
- Solar Ultraviolet radiation.
- Effects of UVB radiation on humans.
- UVI (UltraViolet Index) prediction.
- Solar simulators for use in clinical dermatology.
- Spectral and integrated measurement of solar UV radiation.
- Modelling of the direct and diffuse components of solar UV radiation.
- Modelling of solar UV radiation on inclined planes.
- Measurements of solar UVB radiation and prediction of erythemal solar UV radiation under clear and cloudless skies.
