Novel cationic softener containing MCT reactive dyes for cotton: Simultaneous dyeing and functional finishing

The cationic softeners containing MCT (monochloro-s-triazinyl) reactive dyes were employed on the dyeing of cotton fabrics. The substantivity, exhaustion, and fixation of the dyes were investigated. It was found that these functional dyes could be effectively introduced to cotton fibers to achieve simultaneous coloration and functional finishing effects. All the dyed fabrics exhibited softening efficacy. The dyes offered excellent washing fastness on cotton substrate. Light fastnesses of the dyes on the substrate were poor.     

The study of processing parameters on impact behavior of high performance polyethylene fiber cross-ply composites by taguchi method

In this study, the effect of processing parameters such as temperature, pressure, time of compaction process and areal density on high-velocity impact behaviour of high performance polyethylene fibre cross-ply composites were investigated by Taguchi method. Samples were made through high temperature and pressure compacting process and morphology and interlayer adhesive of samples were investigated by scanning electron microscopy “SEM and T-peel test, repectively. Taguchi method was used to plan a minimum number of experiments. Statistical analysis, analysis of variance (ANOVA), was also employed to determine the relationship between experimental conditions and yield levels. ANOVA was applied to calculate sum of square, variance, ratio of factors variance to error variance and contribution percentage of each factors on response. A hemispherical tip type projectile was used for high velocity impact tests and the depth of trauma as the response factor was measured after impacting test. Results showed that when the temperature, pressure, and time of compacting process were 125 °C, 3 MPa, and 30 min for the composite sample with 7.4 kg/m² areal density, the trauma depth was decreased to its lowest value.     

Evaluation of Textural and Structural Properties of Barbari Bread During Storage

This study was performed using three Barbari flours (strong, medium, and weak) with different physical, chemical, and rheological properties. Determination of texture firmness of Barbari breads (A, B, and C, made of strong, medium, and weak flours, respectively) during storage was carried out with a texture analyzer and evaluating the bread crumb properties and changes during storage with a nondestructive ultrasonic technique. The bread microstructure was assessed with scanning electron microscopy, and the general process of starch gelatinization and retrogradation was evaluated with differential scanning calorimetry. The bread sensory properties were evaluated by 10 trained panelists. Barbari A, made from strong flour, had less firmness, lower transition of ultrasonic wave velocity, lower value of elastic modulus, reduced value of enthalpy, lower average temperature, larger pore diameter and area of images, and higher point total in sensory evaluation than Barbari B and Barbari C, particularly the latter, as storage time progressed. Barbari A's desirable quality characterization and longer shelf life were owing to the qualities of the flour, which enabled the production of dough with the appropriate properties. Eventually, the results of device‐based and sensory tests were significantly correlated. Ultrasonic nondestructive testing is recommended over other methods for assessing the texture, cell structure, and elastic properties of bread after baking and during storage, because it is fast, nondestructive, and less expensive than other methods and can be used during production.     

Zinc Uptake by Spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) as Affected by Zn Application Rate,Zeolite, and Vermicompost

Zinc deficiency in calcareous soils is a serious problem, which may be ameliorated by the application of some soil amendments. A completely randomized factorial experiment was done to investigate the effect of zeolite, vermicompost, zeolite + vermicompost, and Zn application to a calcareous soil on Zn availability, dry weight of spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.), and Zn concen-tration in spinach. Results indicated that zeolite had no effect on soil Zn availability, dry weight, and Zn concentration in spinach. Vermicompost significantly increased dry weight (1.33 g pot^?1) and decreased Zn concentration in spinach (16 mg kg^?1). Application of zeolite + vermicompost significantly increased dry weight (by 2.8 times) and Zn uptake in spinach and it also decreased Zn concentration in spinach less than vermicompost. Zinc application increased Zn concentration in spinach (up to 496 mg kg^?1), but did not affect dry weight except in soils treated with zeolite + vermicompost. Generally, application of zeolite + vermicompost is recommended instead of separate zeolite or vermicompost application for improvement of soil Zn fertility and Zn uptake by spinach.     

Preclinical toxicity and safety evaluation of Althaea officinalis L. extract as naturopathic medicine in common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.): Hematological and biochemical study

ABSTRACT

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of marshmallow extract (Althaea officinalis L.) administration on blood cells and biochemical parameters of carp liver. A total of 150 carps (Cyprinus carpio, initial body mass of 37.7 ± 4.4 g) were fed diets containing 0.0 (control diet), 2.5, 5, and 10 g marshmallow extract for 60 days. On days 30 and 60 of the experiment blood samples were collected and hematological parameters and liver enzyme activities—aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine amino transferase (ALT), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP)—were measured. No significant difference was found (p > .05) in red blood cells (RBC); hemoglobin concentration (Hb); hematocrit (Htc); mean corpuscular volume (MCV); mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCH); or the percentage of neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils in fish fed with different concentrations of marshmallow extract on days 30 and 60. However, the white blood cell (WBC) count was increased significantly in the fish fed for 60 days with feed supplemented with 5 g marshmallow extract (p < .05). The MCHC was increased signi?cantly in ?sh fed with diets supplemented with 2.5 g marshmallow extract for 60 days (p < .05). Administration of marshmallow extract (5 g) significantly increased (p < 0.05) lymphocytes on days 30 and 60. However, dietary intake of 10 g marshmallow extract had significantly decreased the monocyte percentage after 60 days. A significant increase was observed in AST, ALT, ALP, and LDH levels in livers of fish fed with extract 10 g, which may be attributed to cytotoxicity. However, marshmallow extract 2.5 and 5 g did not have adverse effects on liver enzymes. These results indicate that preclinical dietary supplementations of 2.5 and 5 g marshmallow extract per kg diet have no side effects on common carp.     

Variation in the Fatty Acid Composition Between and Within Two Mantis Shrimp Species,Harpiosquilla harpax and Miyakea nepa: Impact of Season and Sex

ABSTRACT

Harpiosquilla harpax and Miyakea nepa are two out of 400 marine crustaceans commonly known as mantis shrimp. Mantis shrimp are commercially valuable and can be found in fish markets of some Mediterranean and many Asian countries. This study focused on a comparative analysis of variation throughout the year in regards to proximate and total fatty acid composition in the muscle of male and female H. harpax and M. nepa. The most abundant fatty acids identified in the muscle of both species were C16:0, C18:0, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; C22:6n-3), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; C20:5n-3), and C20:4n-6. Results of this study revealed that the muscle fatty acid profiles of H. harpax and M. nepa were not significantly different (p > 0.05), except for C14:0, C16:0, C22:0, and DHA amounts, and were mostly influenced by sex within each sampling month. Generally, the muscle of H. harpax contained higher (p < 0.05) levels of DHA than the muscle of M. nepa. The male mantis shrimp, within each species and most of the sampling months, appeared to have higher (p < 0.05) DHA, total n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA), and PUFA/saturated fatty acid ratio compared to the females. Both species could be considered as a good source of n-3 PUFA in the human diet.     

Biochemical and histological changes in the liver tissue of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) exposed to sub-lethal concentrations of diazinon

The organophosphate insecticide diazinon is widely used to control pest in Iran. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the antioxidant and histopathological changes in the liver tissue of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) exposed to 0.1 and 0.2 mg/L of a commercial formula of diazinon for a period of 28 days. Antioxidant enzyme activities—catalase, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase—were determined after 7, 14 and 28 days of exposure. Histopathological analyses were performed at the 28th day. All antioxidant enzymes were induced after 7 days of diazinon treatment in both concentrations of diazinon. Catalase and superoxide dismutase maintained elevated activities during all the treatment period. Glutathione peroxidase activity returned to the control values at the 14th day, decreasing to values below control at the 28th day in both diazinon concentrations. Glutathione reductase maintained increased activities at the 14th day in the 0.1 mg/L diazinon, decreasing to control values at the 28th day. In the 0.2 mg/L group, the activity returned to control values at the 14th and decreased below the control at the 28th day. Total antioxidant capacity of hepatocytes significantly decreased in fishes exposed to diazinon during all experimental periods. Hypertrophy of hepatocytes, vacuolization of cell cytoplasm and hepatocyte cloudy swelling were observed in the liver tissue of fish exposed to both concentrations of diazinon. The results showed that diazinon altered the activity of antioxidant enzymes and the cellular total antioxidant capacity inducing oxidative stress and cellular damage in hepatocytes evidenced by histopathological analysis.     

Predicting Cationic Exchange Capacity in Calcareous Soils of East-Azerbaijan Province,Northwest Iran

The aim of this research is to study the efficiency of pedotransfer functions (PTFs) and artificial neural networks (ANNs) for cationic exchange capacity (CEC) prediction using readily available soil properties. Here, 417 soil samples were collected from the calcareous soils located in East-Azerbaijan province, northwest Iran and readily available soil properties, such as particle size distribution (PSD), organic matter (OM) and calcium carbonate equivalent (CCE), were measured. The entire 417 soil samples were divided into two groups, a training data set (83 soil samples) and test data set (334 soil samples). The performances of several published and derived PTFs and developed neural network algorithms using multilayer perceptron were compared, using a test data set. Results showed that, based on statistics of RMSE and R², PTFs and ANNs had a similar performance, and there was no significant difference in the accuracy of the model results. The result of the sensitivity analysis showed that the ANN models were very sensitive to the clay variable (due to the high variability of the clay). Finally, the models tested in this study could account for 85% of the variations in cationic exchange capacity (CEC) of soils in the studied area.

Abbreviations: ANN: arti?cial neural networks; MLP: multilayer perceptron; MLR: multiple linear regression; PTFs: Pedotransfer Functions; RBF: Radial Basis Function; MAE: mean absolute error; MSE: mean square error; CEC: cationic exchange capacity     

Genotype by environment interaction components underlying variations in root,sugar and white sugar yield in sugar beet (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Beta vulgaris</Emphasis> L.)

The success of plant breeding programs depends on the ability to provide farmers with genotypes with guaranteed superior performance in terms of yield across a range of environmental conditions. We evaluated 49 sugar beet genotypes in four different geographical locations in 2 years aiming to identify stable genotypes with respect to root, sugar and white sugar yields, and to determine discriminating ability of environments for genotype selection and introduce representative environments for yield comparison trials. Combinations of year and location were considered as environment. Statistical analyses including additive main effects and multiplicative interactions (AMMI), genotype main effects and genotype?×?environment interaction effects (GGE) models and AMMI stability value (ASV) were used to dissect genotype by environment interactions (GEI). Based on raw data, root, sugar and white sugar yields varied from 0.95 to 104.86, 0.15 to 20.81, and 0.09 to 18.45 t/ha across environments, respectively. Based on F-Gollob validation test, three interaction principal components (IPC) were significant for each trait in the AMMI model whereas according to F ratio (F_R) test two significant IPCs were identified for root yield and sugar yield and three for white sugar yield. For model diagnosis, the actual root mean square predictive differences (RMS PD) were estimated based upon 1000 validations and the AMMI-1 model with the smallest RMS PD was identified as the most accurate model with highest predictive accuracy for the three traits. In the GGE biplot model, the first two IPCs accounted for 60.52, 62.9 and 64.69% of the GEI variation for root yield, sugar yield and white sugar yield, respectively. According to the AMMI-1 model, two mega-environments were delineated for root yield and three for sugar yield and white sugar yield. The mega-environments identified had an evident ecological gradient from long growing season to intermediate or short growing season. Environment-focused scaling GGE biplots indicated that two locations (Ekbatan and Zarghan) were the most representative testing environments with discriminating ability for the three traits tested. Environmentally stable genotypes (i.e. G21, G28 and G29) shared common parental lines in their pedigree having resistance to some sugar beet diseases (i.e. rhizomania and cyst nematodes). The results of the AMMI model were partly in accord with the results of GGE biplot analysis with respect to mega-environment delineation and winner genotypes. The outcome of this study may assist breeders to save time and costs to identify representative and discriminating environments for root and sugar yield test trials and creates a corner stone for an accelerated genotype selection to be used in sweet-based programs.