Reducing the potential for processing contaminant formation in cereal products

Processing contaminants may be defined as substances that are produced in a food when it is cooked or processed, are not present or are present at much lower concentrations in the raw, unprocessed food, and are undesirable either because they have an adverse effect on product quality or because they are potentially harmful. The presence of very low levels of processing contaminants in common foods is becoming an increasingly important issue for the food industry, as developments in analytical techniques and equipment bring foods under closer and closer scrutiny. This review considers the formation of lipid oxidation products, hydrogenation of polyunsaturated fatty acids to prevent lipid oxidation and the associated risk of trans fatty acid formation. The formation of acrylamide in the Maillard reaction is described, as well as the genetic and agronomic approaches being taken to reduce the acrylamide-forming potential of cereal grain. The multiple routes for the formation of furan and associated chemicals, including hydroxymethylfurfuryl, are also described. The evolving regulatory and public perception situations for these processing contaminants and their implications for the cereal supply chain are discussed, emphasising the need for cereal breeders to engage with the contaminants issue.     

Plant growth and survival of five introduced and two native/naturalized perennial grass genotypes exposed to two defoliation managements in arid Argentina

The field performance of the native Pappophorum vaginatum, the naturalized Eragrostis curvula and various cultivars of the introduced Achnatherum hymenoides and Leymus cinereus was evaluated as potential forage resources in rangelands of arid Argentina during the warm seasons of 2007/2008 and 2008/2009. Plants of these grass species, obtained from seeds, were transplanted to the field in 2006, when they were 1 year old. During the study years, there were two defoliation managements: plants of all study genotypes either remained undefoliated (controls) or were defoliated twice a year during spring at 5 cm stubble height. Despite tiller number being lower (P < 0·05) on defoliated than on undefoliated plants, and total leaf length per unit basal area being similar (P > 0·05) between defoliation managements by mid‐spring, there were no differences (P > 0·05) in dry weight production between defoliated and undefoliated plants in all genotypes at the end of the second growing season. Plants of one or more of the introduced genotypes showed a similar (P > 0·05) or greater (P < 0·05), but not lower, tiller number per plant and per square centimetre, daughter tiller production, total leaf length and dry weight production per unit basal area than the native species at the end of the first and/or second growing seasons. These morphological variables were similar (P > 0·05) or greater (P < 0·05) in the native than in the naturalized genotype. Plant survival, however, was lower (P < 0·05, overall mean = 20%) in the introduced than in the native (>70%) or naturalized (>39%) genotypes at the end of the first or second growing seasons.     

Fabrication of electromagnetic shielding polyester fabrics with carboxymethyl chitosan-palladium complexes activation

Electromagnetic shielding polyester fabrics were prepared using carboxymethyl chitosan-palladium (CMCS-Pd) complexes as activation solution, followed by electroless nickel plating. CMCS-Pd complexes were prepared by the complexing adsorption between CMCS and Pd²⁺. The effects of reaction time and pH value on the adsorption of Pd²⁺ by CMCS were discussed. The maximum adsorption capacity was calculated as 4.27 mmol/g. CMCS-Pd complexes were characterized by ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometer and Fourier transform-infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The induction time of electroless plating decreased gradually with the increase of Pd²⁺ concentration. The lowest surface resistance 125 mΩ/sq of the treated polyester fabric was obtained when Pd²⁺ concentration in CMCS-Pd complex was 1.5 g/l. The prepared polyester fabrics had excellent electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (SE) of 40–60 dB. The treated polyester fabrics were also characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results showed that CMCS-Pd was effective to form an active catalyzed layer on polyester substrate and the 1.5 g/l Pd²⁺ was sufficient to initiate electroless nickel plating reaction. The CMCS-Pd complex activation and electroless nickel plating treatment caused small changes in the polyester fabrics’ tensile strength and air permeability.     

Composition of Typical Soil Minerals and Quantitative Analysis for Influence of Iron and Manganese Forms on Purple Soil Color in Northeastern Sichuan,China

Eurasian Soil Science - Eight soil samples from the Jurassic Shaximiao Formation (J2s) in the Sichuan Basin, China, were taken as the research object to explore the correlation and quantitative...     

Prevalence and different characteristics of two serotypes of Streptococcus parauberis isolated from the farmed olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus (Temminck and Schlegel), in Korea

The prevalence of two serotypes of Streptococcus parauberis isolated from the olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus, was evaluated in a total of 29 isolates between 2003 and 2010 in Korea. Streptococcus parauberis isolates were divided into two serologically distinct types (serotype 1 and serotype 2), except for one strain (S1091), using an agglutination assay with rabbit antiserum, and serotype 1 was identified as the dominant type (24 of 29 isolates) in this study. To identify the characteristics of the two serotypes of S. parauberis, we conducted a biochemical test using the API 20 Strep kit, a transmission electron microscopy (TEM) assay, sequence analysis of 16S‐23S rRNA intergenic spacer region (ISR) and a pathogenicity test. In TEM, both serotypes possessed polysaccharide capsule layers around the cell surface when bacterial cells were treated with a homologous serotype of rabbit antiserum. However, we were unable to discriminate serotype‐specific biochemical characteristics and genetic characteristics of 16S‐23S rRNA ISR between the two serotypes. In the pathogenicity test, the serotype 1 strains induced significantly higher mortality than the serotype 2 strains in olive flounder when experimentally inoculated via the intraperitoneal route.     

Dietary magnesium requirement and physiological responses of marine shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei reared in low salinity water

An 8‐week feeding experiment was conducted to determine the dietary magnesium (Mg) requirement and physiological responses of Litopenaeus vannamei in low salinity water of 2 g L^?1. Casein–gelatin‐based diets supplemented with seven levels of Mg (0, 0.4, 0.8, 1.6, 3.2, 6.4 and 8.0 g kg^?1) were fed to juvenile shrimp. Prior to the experiment, the postlarvae were gradually acclimated to the low salinity media and fed with a basal diet (0.5 g Mg kg^?1) for 2 weeks. After 8 weeks of feeding, survival ranged from 80.11% to 85.65% with no significant difference among the treatments. Hepatopancreas Mg²⁺‐ATPase and Na⁺/K⁺‐ATPase activities and muscle content of lipid and protein were not significantly affected by graded levels of Mg. The weight gain and mineral (calcium, potassium, sodium and total phosphorus) content of different tissues were significantly affected by dietary Mg levels, while there were no significant differences in ash and zinc content in tissues. The Mg content in tissues except hepatopancreas was maintained relatively constant regardless of dietary treatments. The dietary Mg requirement for optimal growth was 2.60–3.46 g Mg kg^?1 by using the polynomial regression analysis based on growth.     

基于神经网络预测的无线传感器网络田间射频信号路径损耗

为解决应用无线传感器网络技术监测农田信息时无法快速预测射频信号路径损耗的问题,基于神经网络理论研究了田间路径损耗与其影响因素间的关系。试验中选取915和2 470 MHz 2个载波频率,在冬小麦的不同生长阶段测量射频信号在田间各影响因素作用下的路径损耗,建立和验证基于神经网络的射频信号田间路径损耗预测模型。所建立模型模拟值与实测值的相关系数为0.92,应用建立的神经网络预测田间射频信号路径损耗并与实测值对比,最大预测误差绝对值为4.186 dB,最大预测标准差为2.759 dB,预测准确度为94.2%。所建立的BP网络可以对田间射频信号路径损耗进行预测。     

Toxicological effects of TiO2 and ZnO nanoparticles in soil on earthworm Eisenia fetida

Nanoparticles (NPs) of TiO₂ and ZnO are receiving increasing attention due to their widespread applications. To evaluate their toxicities to the earthworm Eisenia fetida (Savigny, 1826) in soil, artificial soil systems containing distilled water, 0.1, 0.5, 1.0 or 5.0 g kg⁻¹ of NPs were prepared and earthworms were exposed for 7 days. Contents of Zn and Ti in earthworm, activities of antioxidant enzymes, DNA damage to earthworm, activity of cellulase and damage to mitochondria of gut cells were investigated after acute toxicity test. The results from response of the antioxidant system combined with DNA damage endpoint (comet assay) indicated that TiO₂ and ZnO NPs could induce significant damage to earthworms when doses were greater than 1.0 g kg⁻¹. We found that Ti and Zn, especially Zn, were bioaccumulated, and that mitochondria were damaged at the highest dose in soil (5.0 g kg⁻¹). The activity of cellulase was significantly inhibited when organisms were exposed to 5.0 g kg⁻¹ of ZnO NPs. Our study demonstrates that both TiO₂ and ZnO NPs exert harmful effects to E. fetida when their levels are higher than 1.0 g kg⁻¹ in soil and that toxicity of ZnO NPs was higher than TiO₂.     

Fate of prions in soil: Degradation of recombinant prion in aqueous extracts from soil and casts of two earthworm species

Prions represent the active agent in transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) diseases and can remain infective to mammals even after prolonged periods in soil. The influence of mesofauna on prion dispersal and degradation in soil, however, remains unknown. In this study the effect of earthworms on the retention/dissemination of TSEs in soil was evaluated using a model recombinant prion protein (recPrP) and aqueous extracts from soil and fresh casts of two earthworm species, Lumbricus terrestris and Aporrectodea caliginosa. Our results showed that earthworm gut-derived enzymes did not enhance the degradation of recPrP in comparison to soil, even though non-prion related proteolytic activity was higher in fresh worm excrements than in soil samples. Complete degradation of recPrP occurred in the aqueous extracts from all samples within up to 6 days at +15 °C. The proteolytic enzymes responsible for degrading recPrP were inhibited by aprotinin and leupeptin and studies in pure cultures suggested these were most probably of soil microbial origin.     

Lethal Effects of Pulsed High-Voltage Discharge on Marine Plankton and Escherichia coli

Ballast seawater is considered globally as a major vector for invasions of non-indigenous organisms. Several technologies have been tested for their ability to remove organisms from ballast water. In the present study, we constructed a novel pulsed high-voltage discharge (PHVD) system that could operate in either high current mode with several hundred amperes or shockwave generating mode with relatively lower current in seawater. In laboratory-scale experiments, the PHVD system with shockwave-generating mode was found to be more effective in killing zooplankton (1.9- to 4.0-fold) and phytoplankton (3.3-fold) than high current mode at discharge with 300–500 pulses at 7.1 kV. Further experiments were carried out at different voltages and pulse-numbers to examine effects of the shockwave-generating PHVD system on viabilities of one zooplankton larva, two phytoplankton species, and an indicator bacterium suspended in seawater in a static chamber. For zooplankton, live cells were not detected at discharge with 400 pulses at 13 kV. For phytoplankton, the initial live cells of a dinoflagellate was decreased by 77?±?0.5%, and the initial chl a concentration of a diatom was decreased by 76?±?6% at discharge with 700 pulses at 13 kV. For an indicator bacterium Escherichia coli, live cells were not detected at discharges with 200 or 700 pulses at 13 kV. Measurements of ATP content of organisms showed congruent results with those obtained by the above methods, suggesting it may be a rapid method for evaluating treatment efficiency. Though further scale-up studies are necessary, these results suggest that the PHVD system have a high potential for applying to ballast seawater treatment.