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Several international agencies have recently requested more information on plastic migrants in order to implement stricter regulations, as plastics, along with other endocrine disruptors, have become cocktails of toxic substances with multiple adverse health effects to which the global population is exposed daily. Any high-quality data generated across the various strategic sectors where plastic is used, whether occasionally or regularly, will allow for further regulation of its use and the establishment of corrective measures to minimize the harm to consumers. It is clear that the food sector is one of the areas where some information exists, but this needs to be expanded and updated with data on the intake of food products in contact with plastic materials (recycled or not) during processing or distribution. To this end, it is necessary to establish highly selective and sensitive analytical protocols that allow for the reliable determination of migration levels of these substances into food products in contact with them. Miniaturized extraction techniques combined with the use of novel extraction materials offer a very useful alternative for this determination. For this purpose, it is essential to combine them with separation techniques using highly selective detectors, such as mass spectrometry, in order to achieve reliable identification and quantification. In this regard, the use of magnetized extraction materials, such as graphene oxide or ionic liquids, among others, would allow for selective extraction, thus ensuring greater reliability in the determination of these substances in food matrices. Likewise, the development of sensors that allow for the rapid determination of these substances in such complex matrices is also of great interest.
This proposal aims to conduct a comprehensive study, using state-of-the-art analytical tools, of the largest possible number of migrating substances from plastics—some known and others unknown—into commonly consumed foods such as milk, dairy products, and soy beverages, as well as other products in our environment and with high consumption both in Spain and worldwide, such as wines. These new studies, which fall within the field of food safety, will allow for continuous assessments of migrant content in widely consumed food products within complex matrices. This will enable reliable risk assessments for consumers and the establishment of preventative measures to safeguard and mitigate health risks.
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Various international agencies have recently requested more information regarding plastic migrants in order to take more stringent regulatory measures, as they have become, along with other endocrine disrupters to which the population is daily exposed, intoxicating cocktails with multiple adverse effects on health. All reliable information generated in the different strategic sectors where plastic is used, as a material of occasional use or not, will allow to regulate its use (recycled or not) even more as well as to establish corrective measurements in order to minimize the damages to which the consumer is exposed to. It is evident that food analysis is one of the fields in which part of such information is known, but it needs to be increased and updated with data concerning the intake of food products in contact with plastic materials during their processing or during their commercialization. In order to do this, it is necessary to establish highly selective and sensitive analytical protocols that allow the feasible determination of the migration levels of these substances to the food in contact with them. Miniaturized extraction techniques combined with the use of new extraction materials are very useful alternatives for their determination. For this purpose, it is essential to combine them with separation techniques coupled to highly selective detectors such as mass spectrometry, in order to carry out a reliable identification and quantification. In this sense, the use of magnetized extraction materials, either graphene oxide or ionic liquids, among others, would allow a selective extraction of them and a greater security in their determination in food matrices. Likewise, the development of sensors that allow a rapid determination of them in such complex matrices is also of great interest.
This proposal intends to make an exhaustive study using the latest analytical tools of the largest number of plastic migrants possible, some known and others unknown, in foods of daily consumption such as milk, dairy products and soy drinks as well as wine, with is a product with a high consumption in Spain and also in the rest of the world. These new studies within the field of food safety will allow continuous assessments of the content of migrants in high consumption food products with a high complexity to estimate the risks of the consumer and to establish preventive measurements to safeguard and ensure health risks.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_tta_accordion shape=»square» c_icon=»chevron» c_position=»right» active_section=»» no_fill=»true» collapsible_all=»true»][vc_tta_section title=»Resumen» tab_id=»resumen»][vc_column_text] Of the various writing systems developed by Egyptian culture, hieroglyphs and cursive hieroglyphs have received the least attention from researchers interested in paleography. The traditional idea that their form had barely changed over the millennia in which they were used, along with their ease of reading compared to hieratic and demotic, have been factors that have determined the scarcity of studies on the diachronic evolution of their form. Only at the beginning of this millennium have hieroglyphic paleographies analyzing entire monuments begun to be published. Nothing similar has yet been done for cursive hieroglyphs, except for the catalog of the burial chamber of TT 223 presented by two members of this team. Furthermore, the relationship between the two scripts has also been the subject of debate in recent years, as cursive hieroglyphs are now understood to have been a fully developed writing system, not simply an intermediate step between hieroglyphs and hieratic. The primary objective of this project is the paleographic analysis of both scripts during the Late Period. To this end, it will focus on the hieroglyphic script of a single tomb from the early 25th Dynasty (ca. 747-656 BCE), TT 223, and on the cursive hieroglyphic script of a selection of Theban coffins of similar chronology, although some may date back to the 26th Dynasty (656-525 BCE). TT 223 is a unique monument, as it is, to our knowledge, the oldest Late Theban tomb whose decoration was completed. Furthermore, this decoration covers approximately 500 m² of walls, a typical surface area for private tombs in Late Thebes, which are the largest tombs constructed by the Egyptian civilization. In both sets, tomb and coffins, the script plays a fundamental role in their decoration: it is composed primarily of written texts, to the detriment of figurative elements. The common origin of the sources chosen for the project is key to making the comparison meaningful. The project aims to analyze several aspects: the imprecise boundaries between the two scripts and their interrelation, since, at least among the monuments already studied by this team, there is considerable overlap; the specific characteristics of both scripts during the Late Period; the working processes in the workshops involved in the production of the inscribed monuments; and the different categories of participants through, among other things, the identification of specific artists' calligraphies. To achieve these results, a program of actions has been designed that includes: the identification of the texts on the selected coffins (approximately fifty examples from the required origin and chronology have been cataloged, but only about ten can be analyzed in depth); the transliteration, copying, and publication of the texts from the selected cases; the drawing of the hieroglyphic signs of TT 223 and the digital processing of the cursive hieroglyphs of the coffins to create two paleographic catalogs in which the shape of the signs and their orthographic function will be taken into account; and, finally, the combined analysis of signs and texts, as well as the comparison between them to answer the questions that we have presented as the basis of the project.
Among the different writing systems developed by the Egyptian civilization, the hieroglyphic and the cursive hieroglyphic are those that have received less attention from the researchers interested in paleography. The commonly accepted idea that its form had barely varied in the several millennia in which they were used and its better readability versus hieratic and demotic have been factors that have determined the shortage of studies with regard to the diachronic evolution of its form. Only at the beginning of this millennium the publication of hieroglyphic palaeographies that analyzed a complete monument has begun. However, no attempt has been made in this direction regarding to cursive hieroglyphic writing, except for the catalog that two members of this team have presented from the burial chamber of TT 223. On the other hand, the relationship between both writings has also been a subject of debate in recent years, since presently it is understood that the cursive hieroglyphic was a full-text writing, not a simple intermediate step between the hieroglyphs and the hieratic. The main objective of this research project is the analysis of the paleography of both writing systems during the Late Period. The project will focus on the hieroglyphic writing of a single tomb, TT223, early Twenty-fifth Dynasty (ca.747-656 BC), and on the cursive hieroglyphic writing of a selection of Theban coffins of similar chronology – some may reach Twenty-sixth Dynasty (656-525 BC). The TT 223 is an exceptional monument because, on the one hand it is – as far as we know now – the oldest Late Period Theban tomb whose decoration was finished and, on the other hand, its decoration covers around 500 m2 of walls, a common surface in privately decorated tombs in Thebes during the Third Intermediate Period, namely the largest private tombs built by the Egyptian civilization. In both sets, tomb and coffins, the writing has a paramount importance in its decoration: this one is composed basically by texts written at the expenses of figurative elements. The common origin of the sources, ancient Thebes, is fundamental for this project in order to achieve a significant comparison. The project intends to analyze several aspects: the loose limits between both writings and their interrelation, because at least in the studied monuments there are enough interferences between both; the specificities of both scriptures during the Late Period; the forms of work (and the professional nature of people involved in the process) of workshops concerned in the production of written monuments through, among other questions, the identification of specific calligraphy from different artists. To this end, a program of actions has been conceived which involves: identification of the texts from selected coffins (we have listed about fifty from the provenance and chronology – with doubts – that concerns us, but we are able only to study in depth ten of these copies); transliteration, copying and publication of texts in those copies; drawing of the hieroglyphic signs of TT 223 and digital treatment of cursive hieroglyphs of coffins to create individual paleographic catalogs in which not only the form of the signs but also their function in the spelling of words will be taken into account; and, finally, the combined analysis of signs and texts and their comparison to answer the basic questions underlying this project.
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