Effects of irrigation strategies and soils on field grown potatoes: Yield and water productivity

Yield and water productivity of potatoes grown in 4.32 m² lysimeters were measured in coarse sand, loamy sand, and sandy loam and imposed to full (FI), deficit (DI), and partial root-zone drying (PRD) irrigation strategies. PRD and DI as water-saving irrigation treatments received 65% of FI after tuber bulking and lasted for 6 weeks until final harvest. Analysis across the soil textures showed that fresh yields were not significant between the irrigation treatments. However, the same analysis across the irrigation treatments revealed that the effect of soil texture was significant on the fresh yield and loamy sand produced significantly higher fresh yield than the other two soils, probably because of higher leaf area index, higher photosynthesis rates, and “stay-green” effect late in the growing season. More analysis showed that there was a significant interaction between the irrigation treatments and soil textures that the highest fresh yield was obtained under FI in loamy sand. Furthermore, analysis across the soil textures showed that water productivities, WP (kg ha⁻¹ fresh tuber yield mm⁻¹ ET) were not significantly different between the irrigation treatments. However, across the irrigation treatments, the soil textures were significantly different. This showed that the interaction between irrigation treatments and soil textures was significant that the highest significant WP was obtained under DI in sandy loam. While PRD and DI treatments increased WP by, respectively, 11 and 5% in coarse sand and 28 and 36% in sandy loam relative to FI, they decreased WP in loamy sand by 15 and 13%. The reduced WP in loamy sand was due to nearly 28% fresh tuber yield loss in PRD and DI relative to FI even though ET was reduced by 9 and 11% in these irrigation treatments. This study showed that different soils will affect water-saving irrigation strategies that are worth knowing for suitable agricultural water management. So, under non-limited water resources conditions, loamy sand produces the highest yield under full irrigation but water-saving irrigations (PRD and DI) are not recommended due to considerable loss (28%) in yield. However, under restricted water resources, it is recommended to apply water-saving irrigations in sandy loam and coarse sand to achieve the highest water productivity.     

Effect of apple peel extract as natural antioxidant on lipid and protein oxidation of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) mince

International Aquatic Research - The aim of this study was to use apple peel extract (APE) as antioxidant for inhibition of lipid and protein oxidation in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) mince...     

Non‐specific immune responses and intestinal immunity of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) fed Jujube (Ziziphus jujube) fruit extract

This study investigated the effects of Jujube (Ziziphus jujube) fruit extract (JFE) as an excellent source of nutrients and phytochemicals on the innate immune responses and expression of genes involved in intestinal immunity of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) fingerlings. Three hundred healthy carps (10.78 ± 0.05 g) fingerlings were randomly allocated to 12 fibre glass tanks (300L; 15 fish per tank) and fed for 8 weeks with experimental diets which contained different levels of JFE (0%, 0.25%, 0.5%, or 1%). Thereafter, serum non‐specific immune parameters [total immunoglobulin (Ig) as well as alternative complement (ACH50) and lysozyme activity (SL)] and expression of genes involved in intestinal immunity (lyz, tnf‐alpha, il1b, il8, il10, and tgfb) were measured. The results revealed a significant elevation of Ig level in the JFE‐fed fish (p < 0.05) over the control fish. However, there was no significant difference among treated groups in case of serum total Ig. The highest levels of SL and ACH50 were observed in fish fed 1% of JFE. Nonetheless, no significant difference was noticed regarding SL and ACH50 of control and other supplemented groups (0.25% and 0.5% JFE). Also, expression of lyz, tnf‐alpha, and il1b genes increased significantly (p < 0.05) in JFE‐fed fish, in a dose‐dependent manner. On the other hand, significant (p < 0.05) down‐regulation of il110 and tgfb were noticed in treated groups. The present findings suggested that extraction of Jujube, Z. jujube fruit, possesses beneficial effects on immune responses of common carp.     

Preparation of Polyurethane Silicon Oxide Nanomaterials as a Binder in Leather Finishing

Leather finishing processes using toxic organic solvent based produce volatile organic compounds (VOC), chronic exposure to this chemicals effect on workers' health causing many diseases especially lung cancer. So, polyurethane waterbased was synthesized for application in leather finishing instead of organic solvent based because it’s economic and safety for industry and workers. Preparation of water-based polyurethane (PU) depends on the reaction of polyethylene glycol (PEG, 300) with isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) and the reaction of IPDI-1,4-butanediol (BDO) together with dimethylolpropionic acid (DMPA), was synthesized by poly-addition polymerization reaction. PU was then modified with different amounts of silicon dioxide nanoparticles (1-5 % SiO₂), used as a binder in leather finishing. Leather coated was characterized physically, chemically and thermally by FTIR, GPC, DLS, TEM, SEM and TGA. The results revel that, water vapor permeability (WVP) of leather coated with PU modified with SiO₂ showed improvement due to the existence of SiO₂ particles which increases the interspaces of the polyurethane coating. SEM showed that when the amount of SiO₂ nanoparticles increases, there is uniform nanoparticles accumulated can be observed. EDX prove the presence of Si and O₂ elements and the formation of SiO₂ nanoparticles. Mechanical properties discussed that tensile strength; tear strength and elongation at break % increase with increase SiO₂ concentration until 3 % SiO₂ nanoparticles. TGA showed an improvement of thermal stability of coated leather modified with SiO₂. Therefore, this study succeeded in preparation of safe, ecofriendly of water-based polyurethane binders which modified with SiO₂ for using in leather finishing.     

Utilization of Site-Specific Recombination in Biopharmaceutical Production

Mammalian expression systems, due to their capacity in post-translational modification, are preferred systems for biopharmaceutical protein production. Several recombinant protein systems have been introduced to the market, most of which are under clinical development. In spite of significant improvements such as cell line engineering, introducing novel expression methods, gene silencing and process development, expression level is unpredictable and unstable because of the random location of integration in the genome. Site-specific recombination techniques are capable of producing stable and high producer clonal cells; therefore, they are gaining more importance in the biopharmaceutical production. Site-specific recombination methods increase the recombinant protein production by specifically inserting a vector at a locus with specific expression trait. The present review focused on the latest developments in site-specific recombination techniques, their specific features and comparisons.     

High-EPA Biomass from Nannochloropsis salina Cultivated in a Flat-Panel Photo-Bioreactor on a Process Water-Enriched Growth Medium

Nannochloropsis salina was grown on a mixture of standard growth media and pre-gasified industrial process water representing effluent from a local biogas plant. The study aimed to investigate the effects of enriched growth media and cultivation time on nutritional composition of Nannochloropsis salina biomass, with a focus on eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). Variations in fatty acid composition, lipids, protein, amino acids, tocopherols and pigments were studied and results compared to algae cultivated on F/2 media as reference. Mixed growth media and process water enhanced the nutritional quality of Nannochloropsis salina in laboratory scale when compared to algae cultivated in standard F/2 medium. Data from laboratory scale translated to the large scale using a 4000 L flat panel photo-bioreactor system. The algae growth rate in winter conditions in Denmark was slow, but results revealed that large-scale cultivation of Nannochloropsis salina at these conditions could improve the nutritional properties such as EPA, tocopherol, protein and carotenoids compared to laboratory-scale cultivated microalgae. EPA reached 44.2% ± 2.30% of total fatty acids, and α-tocopherol reached 431 ± 28 µg/g of biomass dry weight after 21 days of cultivation. Variations in chemical compositions of Nannochloropsis salina were studied during the course of cultivation. Nannochloropsis salina can be presented as a good candidate for winter time cultivation in Denmark. The resulting biomass is a rich source of EPA and also a good source of protein (amino acids), tocopherols and carotenoids for potential use in aquaculture feed industry.     

High performance fibers production process using Taguchi experimental design

In this research, results of an experimental interaction effect of operating parameters on tensile strength carbon fibers from a commercial PAN-based precursor are investigated. Ten parameters at two and four levels (L₃₂=2¹×4⁹) were investigated: stabilization temperature at first stage (STFIS), stabilization duration time at first stage (SDTFIS), stabilization temperature at second stage (STSS), stabilization duration time at second stage (SDTSS), stabilization temperature at third stage (STTS), stabilization duration time at third stage (SDTTS), stabilization temperature at fourth stage (STFOS), stabilization duration time at fourth stage (SDTFOS), carbonization temperature (CT), and carbonization duration time (CDT). In this study, Taguchi method was used initially 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 factor variance to error variance and contribution percentage of each factor on response. The results show that increasing all of parameters improves tensile strength performance. The optimum levels of influential factors, determined for tensile strength are STFIS 200 °C, SDTFIS 120 min, STSS 225 °C, SDTSS 120 min, STTS 240 °C, SDTTS 120 min, STFOS 260 °C, SDTFOS 60 min, CT 1400 °C and CDT 10 min. The results showed that CT and ODTFIS are the most and the less effective factors on response, respectively.     

Effects of the dietary protein levels and the protein to energy ratio in sub‐yearling Persian sturgeon,Acipenser persicus (Borodin)

A 3 × 4 factorial design was used to evaluate the dietary protein requirement and to determine the optimum dietary protein to energy (P/DE) ratio in sub‐yearling Persian sturgeon, Acipenser persicus, reared in the indoor system. Twelve experimental diets (₄₀P₁₆, ₄₀P₁₇, ₄₀P₁₈, ₄₀P₁₉, ₄₅P₁₉, ₄₅P₁₇, ₄₅P₁₈, ₄₅P₁₉, ₅₀P₁₆, ₅₀P₁₇, ₅₀P₁₈ and ₅₀P₁₉) were formulated and prepared to contain three protein levels (40%, 45% and 50%) and four digestible energy levels (16, 17, 18 and 19 kJ g^?1 diet) at each protein level. Fish averaging 103.3 ± 3.5 (mean ± SD) were fed one of the experimental diets for 14 weeks. At the end of the experimental period, there were significant energy effects (P < 0.05) on weight gain (WG) and specific growth rate (SGR). Weight gain and SGR tended to decrease, although non‐significantly, with increase in dietary protein levels. Furthermore, there were significant protein and energy interaction effects on WG, SGR, hepatosomatic index and protein efficiency ratio. However, there were no significant dietary protein, energy or their interaction effects on feed efficiency for fish fed all diets. Weight gain and SGR of fish fed ₄₀P₁₉ were significantly higher than those of fish fed ₄₀P₁₆, ₄₅P₁₆, ₄₅P₁₇, ₅₀P₁₆ and ₅₀P₁₇ diets (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in WG and SGR among fish fed ₄₀P₁₇, ₄₀P₁₈, ₄₀P₁₉, ₄₅P₁₈, ₄₅P₁₉, ₅₀P₁₈ and ₅₀P₁₉ diets. These results may indicate that the optimum dietary protein requirement and the P/DE ratio could be 40% protein and 22.0 mg protein kJ^?1 (₄₀P₁₈), respectively, in Persian sturgeon, based on growth performance and feed utilization.     

Determination of Mass Transfer Parameters During Deep Fat Frying of Rice Crackers

The accuracy of the knowledge of mass transfer parameters(effective moisture diffusivity,mass transfer Biot number and mass transfer coefficient) in the case of frying food,is essential and important for designing,modeling and process optimization.This study is undertaken to develop an approach for determining mass transfer parameters during frying of spherical rice cracker in sunflower oil at 150,170 and 190 ℃.These parameters were evaluated from the plots of dimensionless concentration ratios against time of frying.Effective moisture diffusivity,mass transfer Biot number and mass transfer coefficient ranged between 1.24×10-8 to 2.36×10-8 m2/s,1.96 to 2.34 and 5.51×10-6 to 9.70×10-6 m/s,respectively.Effective moisture diffusivity and mass transfer coefficient were found to increase with an increasing frying temperature,whereas mass transfer Biot number decreased.An Arrhenius-type relationship was found between effective diffusivity coefficient and frying temperature.