Identification of endophytic fungi of grapevine with emphasis on the causal agents of grapevine trunk disease in the vineyards of Zanjan Province in Iran

Trunk disease is a major problem on grapevine in Zanjan province, causing serious decline, despite which its aetiology remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate factors involved in grapevine decline in vineyards of Zanjan province. Samples were collected from twigs and branches of grapevines in the region between October and November 2018. Fungal isolates were identified based on morphological characteristics and ITS-rDNA sequence data for selected isolates. The frequency and diversity of the fungal community recovered from grapevines in Darreh Sejin in Zanjan province were higher than in other regions. A total of 112 fungal isolates comprising 22 species were recovered. Phaeoacremonium minimum, Microsphaeropsis olivacea and Kalmusia variispora were identified as the dominant species in the region examined and could be considered the main trunk pathogens of grapevines in Zanjan region. In inoculation tests, M. olivacea was proved to be pathogenic on grapevine for the first time in this study.     

A New Approach in Comparison and Evaluation of the Overall Accuracy of Six Soil-Water Retention Models Using Statistical Benchmarks and Fuzzy Method

Eurasian Soil Science - In this research, six samples of valid and widely soil-water retention curve (SWRC) estimation models, including van Genuchten, Brooks and Corey, Fredlund and Xing, Durner,...     

An empowered adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system using self-organizing map clustering to predict mass transfer kinetics in deep-fat frying of ostrich meat plates

Deep-fat frying (DFF) is a cooking process, in which water containing foodstuff is immersed into edible oils or fats at temperatures above the boiling point of water. This process is a fast and easy method to prepare tasty foods; therefore, despite the trend to low-fat foods, deep-fried products enjoy increasing popularity. Moisture content (MC) and fat content (FC) are very important quality indicators for fried foods in terms of health concerns and palatability of the products. This paper presents a new approach based on an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and self-organizing map (SOM) clustering for more accurate predicting MC and FC during DFF of ostrich meat plates. First the data set of each mass transfer parameter was categorized into two clusters by SOM method, and at the next stage each cluster was fed into an independent ANFIS models with the ability of rule base extraction and data base tuning. To train the ANFIS prediction system, triangular membership function (MF) was chosen. Results showed that the optimized ANFIS model with clustering improved the prediction ability of ANFIS and truly described mass transfer during the DFF (12.46% improvement with R =  0.96 for MC and 5.46% improvement with R = 0.92 for FC). This methodology can also be applied to optimize the operating conditions.     

Effect of adding ketamine to pethidine on postoperative pain in patients undergoing major abdominal operations: a double blind randomized controlled trial

To determine the effect of adding ketamine to pethidine in reducing post-operative pain in patients undergoing major abdominal operations, in a double blind randomized controlled trial, 100 patients aged 15-60 years who were candidate for elective major abdominal surgery allocated into two groups of pethidine + ketamine group (5 mg pethidine and 0.25 mg kg(-1) ketamine) or pethidine and placebo group (10 mg pethidine and NS) according to the regimen prescribed in postanesthesia care unit. Severity of pain (using visual analogue scale), prescribed dose of pethidine and side effects were recorded until 24 h after operation. Regarding post-operative pain, pethidine + ketamine group showed significant lower scores in all the times except 0 min, 2, 6 and 16 h. Nausea was significantly less frequent amongst pethidine + placebo group at times of 0, 15, 30 and 45 min (p < 0.05). Comparison of two groups did not show significant differences in prescribed pethedine dose in 0, 9, 12, 16, 20 and 24 h (p > 0.05). Yet, the mean dose of administered pethidine as rescue analgesic was significant lower in pethidine + ketamine group compared to pethidine + placebo group (112 +/- 31.5 mg vs. 133.5 +/- 24.5 mg, p < 0.001). In conclusion, our results showed that co-administration of ketamine and pethidine in postanesthesia care unit will improve postoperative pain and reduce narcotic consumption. It may, however, increase rate of postoperative nausea in the first hour after operation.     

Computer vision systems (CVS) for moisture content estimation in dehydrated shrimp

This paper presents a method based on computer vision systems (CVS) to estimate shrimp dehydration level by analyzing color during drying process. Since the most commonly used color space in food industry is L*a*b, transformation of RGB digital images to L*a*b units was carried out using direct two steps model with γ factor. Experimental data obtained from images captured at different drying temperatures (100–130 °C) and several time intervals (15–180 min) were analyzed with a complete randomized block design (CRBD), and the means were compared with Duncan's multi-range test. Multiple linear regression (MLR) and artificial neural networks (ANN) were applied for correlating the color features to moisture content of dried shrimp determined chemically. Results obtained with these two models lead to 0.80 and 0.86 correlation coefficients in MLR and ANN models, respectively. While there is no statistical difference at p < 0.05 between the two modeling approaches, both approaches indicate successful prediction of shrimp dehydration with high correlation to those found by the more expensive and intrusive chemical method. The automated vision based system, therefore, has the advantage over conventional subjective methods and instrumental ones for being objective, fast, non-invasive, inexpensive and precise.     

Effects of dietary nucleotides on the antioxidant status and serum lipids of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

An 8‐week feeding experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary nucleotides (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 g kg^?1) on serum antioxidative biomarkers and lipid contents of rainbow trout fingerlings. The serum triglycerides and low‐density lipoprotein (LDL)‐C levels were significantly decreased in fish fed diets containing 1.5 and 2 g kg^?1, whereas serum high‐density lipoprotein (HDL)‐C was higher in trout receiving diets with those levels of nucleotides. A significant decrease in thiobarbituric acid reactive substances concentration was observed in groups receiving 1.5 or 2 g kg^?1 of dietary nucleotides in comparison with control group (?32% and ?27%, respectively). A significant decrease was observed in catalase and serum glutathione peroxidase activity in trout fed 1.5 and 2 g kg^?1 dietary nucleotides compare with other groups. There were no significant changes in serum superoxide dismutase activity among the experimental groups. In conclusion, these results suggest that dietary nucleotides may reduce lipid peroxidation by increasing the levels of antioxidant lipoprotein, HDL‐C, and decreasing the LDL‐C, the main substrate of lipid peroxidation.     

Application of response surface methodology for evaluating particleboard properties made from cotton stalk particles

High-quality wood resource scarcity as well as population growth and demand of wood have encouraged the use of alternative sources of lignocellulosic materials. In this study, the possibility of producing particleboard from waste cotton stalks is evaluated. The effects of the independent variables included weight ratio of melamine-formaldehyde to urea-formaldehyde, shelling ratio and the percentage of cotton stalks to poplar in the core layer were analyzed in the form of response surface methodology based on second-order multiple linear regression model. The results showed that there was perfect agreement between the estimated values and observed data, as with an increase in the ratio of melamine-formaldehyde resin to urea-formaldehyde, shelling ration and amount of poplar in the core layer of panels, modulus of rupture, modulus of elasticity and internal bonding increase. The optimal point of use of investigated variables included 18.30% melamine-formaldehyde, 30.35% thickness of the surface layers and 10.70% of poplar in the core layer.     

Influence of dietary garlic (Allium sativum) on the antioxidative status of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Oxidative damage by free radicals has been implicated in the pathogenesis of several diseases. In this study, the antioxidative effect of dietary garlic on rainbow trout was examined. Trout fingerlings were fed on diets containing 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 g garlic powder kg^?1 diet. Serum lipid peroxides and activities of antioxidant enzymes were measured. Serum thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) assay showed that garlic consumption that resulted in a significant decrease in lipid peroxidation. The lowest levels of TBARS were observed in fish fed diet supplemented with 30 g kg^?1 garlic. However, higher doses of garlic (40 and 50 g kg^?1 diet) caused no further reduction in serum TBARS. The results showed a significant increase in superoxide dismutase in all of the garlic‐treated groups compared with the control. Ingestion of 10, 20 and 30 g kg^?1 dietary garlic resulted in a significant reduction in the catalase activity compared with all but the 10 g kg^?1 group. There was no significant difference in glutathione peroxidase activity among the different groups. Serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels increased significantly in trout‐fed diets containing 40 and 50 g kg^?1 garlic powder. These results suggest that dietary garlic may improve the antioxidant status of rainbow trout. However, undesirable effects of higher doses of garlic should be considered.     

Development of Optimized Edible Packaging Based on White-cheek Shark (Carcharhinus dussumieri) Skin Gelatin Biopolymer: Mechanical,Water Vapor Permeability,and Structural Properties

White-cheek shark skin gelatin (WSG) edible films were optimized with respect to their barrier, mechanical, and structural properties using response surface methodology (RSM), with the introduction of gelatin concentrations (1–4% w/v based on film forming solution) and glycerol contents (15–35% w/w based on gelatin weight) as the independent variables. WSG films with moderate levels of glycerol had higher tensile strength (TS), elastic modulus (EM), and elongation at break (E@b) depending more significantly on gelatin content. Adding higher levels of glycerol, film roughness was observed to decrease exponentially but water vapor permeability (WVP) increased linearly. Structural analysis using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed more aggregated protein structures at higher gelatin content, which could be strongly related to the notable increase of contact angle. According to the model, the optimum conditions for the WSG film formula were found to be 3.3% WSG and 19.3% glycerol, giving a predicted maximum E@b, TS, EM, roughness, and contact angle of 183%, 4.4 MPa, 92 MPa, 4.93 nm, and 101°, respectively, with a predicted minimum WVP of 11.8 g.mm/day.m².kPa.