Solar Decolorization of Methylene Blue by Magnetic MgFe<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript>-MWCNT/Ag<Subscript>3</Subscript>VO<Subscript>4</Subscript> Visible Active Photocatalyst

MgFe₂O₄-MWCNT/Ag₃VO₄ photocatalyst was prepared for benefiting the visible region of solar spectrum. Prepared catalyst was characterized by using scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Photocatalytic activity was measured by methylene blue (MB) decolorization under visible light obtained from a 105-W tungsten light bulb. Dye decolorization and its kinetics were followed up by means of a UV-vis spectrophotometer. Kinetic model of decolorization was found to be compatible with first-order kinetics. The effects of pH and concentration of MB solution on the decolorization efficiency were determined. Low and high pH conditions were found to be more effective in increasing the MB decolorization yield and rate. On the other hand, due to the low transparency of concentrated MB solutions, an increase on decolorization time and a lowering in decolorization yield were encountered. Thanks to the magnetic MgFe₂O₃ nanoparticles, 96% of the catalyst could be recovered by a simple magnetic bar. It was observed that simulated wastewater containing MB was also successfully decolorized showing that visible region-sensitive MgFe₂O₄-MWCNT/Ag₃VO₄ photocatalyst can be benefited as a potential, efficient, and reusable material for the removal organic pollutants in aquatic environment.     

Investigation on air permeability of finished stretch plain knitted fabrics. I. Predicting air permeability using artificial neural networks

Air permeability is one of the most important utility properties of textile materials as it influences air flow through textile material. Air permeability plays a significant role in well-being due to its influence on physiological comfort. The air permeability of textile materials depends on their porosity. There are a lot of structural properties of textile materials also operating parameters (knitting+finishing) influencing air permeability and there are also statistically significant interactions between the main factors influencing the air permeability of knitted fabrics made from pure yarn cotton (cellulose) and viscose (regenerated cellulose) fibers and plated knitted with elasthane (Lycra) fibers. Two types of artificial neural networks (ANNs) model have been set up before modeling procedure by utilizing multilayer feed forward neural networks, which take into account the generality and the specificity of the product families respectively. A virtual leave one out approach dealing with over fitting phenomenon and allowing the selection of the optimal neural network architecture was used. Moreover this study exhibited that air permeability could be predicted with high accuracy for stretch plain knitted fabrics treated with different finishing processes. Within the framework of the work presented, ANNs were applied to help industry to adjust the operating parameter before the actual manufacturing to reach the desired air permeability and satisfy their consumers.     

Influence of dietary phospholipids on early ontogenesis of fish

The aim of this paper is to provide explanations of how dietary phospholipid (PL) globally improves fish larval development, including growth and survival, digestive functions and skeletal development, and to propose optimal PL levels and sources in fish larval diets. Dietary incorporation of 8–12% PL related to dry matter (d.m.) promotes growth and enhanced survival in various species. Marine source PL, incorporating highly unsaturated fatty acids, was most efficient than soybean lecithin. This beneficial effect was explained by an enhancement in digestive functions, assessed by digestive enzyme activities and histomorphology. Nevertheless, 1.5–2.5% highly unsaturated fatty acids related to diet d.m. supplied by PL improved growth, survival and skeletal development, while 5% induced different skeletal deformities. The high incidence of deformities was associated with the down-regulation of genes involved in development, such as RXRα, RARα, RARβ and BMP-4, observed in the early stages in larvae fed a high highly unsaturated fatty acids level.     

Effect of feeding frequency on growth,feed efficiency and nutrient utilization of juvenile flounder (Platichthys flesus luscus)

An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of optimal feeding frequency on growth performance, feed efficiency, nutrient utilization and body composition in juvenile flounder. Four feeding frequencies of one (F1), two (F2), three (F3) and four (F4) times a day were evaluated as treatments in triplicate for a period of 60 days. Forty-seven hatchery produced juveniles (2.5 ± 0.7 g) were stocked into 160-L rectangular fiberglass tanks and fed with a commercial diet containing 54 % protein to satiation. At the end of the experiment, the final weight of F1, F2, F3 and F4 were 5.06 ± 0.29, 5.91 ± 0.42, 6.24 ± 0.42 and 6.16 ± 0.46 g, respectively. Growth rates and feed consumption were highest in F3 and lowest in F1. Feed conversion ratios ranged between 0.83 ± 0.04 and 0.90 ± 0.03. There were no significant differences in either moisture or ash content of the fish groups. Protein content decreased with increasing feeding frequency, while lipid content partly increased with increasing feeding frequency. Nitrogen intake and lipid intake were significantly higher in fish fed under F3 and F4 treatment, whereas the nitrogen gain decreased and lipid gain increased with increasing feeding frequency. It is concluded that the flounder juveniles can achieve maximum growth performance and better nutrient utilization when they are fed a given ration two times a day. The findings have practical significance toward establishing an appropriate flounder nursery rearing and will directly benefit the nursery operations.     

Fatty Acid Composition and Oxidative Stability of Fish Oil Products in Turkish Retail Market

The fatty acid composition and oxidative stability of fish oil and syrups available in the Turkish retail market were examined in this study. The major saturated fatty acids in capsules and syrups were palmitic acid (16:0) and stearic acid (18:0). The monounsaturated fatty acid contents of fish oil products have very different results (10.71–50.46%). The results show that the label claims for total omega-3, eicosapentaenoic acid, and docosahexaenoic acid presented a reasonable accuracy for the examined products, but it was noted that some of the results showed a considerable difference with the labels.

The free fatty acid level in fish oil products was generally low (0.13–1.95% of oleic acid). Peroxide value of all examined products was below the limit of 10 meq kg^?1 oils for edible oil as indicated in Codex (1999). It was detected that the p-Anisidine value of fish oil capsules (5.36–8.90) was considerably lower than for fish oil syrups (21.86–26.74). According to our results, the totox value of fish oil capsules evaluated in this study (7.08–17.35) was within acceptable limits. However, fish oil syrups (34.72–38.06) highly exceeded the upper tolerable limit (26).     

Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) activation in chicken heterophils stimulated with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), Formyl-methionylleucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)

The signaling pathways leading to the activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), formyl-methionylleucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in chicken heterophils were examined. To determine the mechanism of ERK's activation and its relation with the influx of calcium ions, heterophils were stimulated by PMA, fMLP and LPS. ERK was not activated by fMLP. LPS- and PMA-stimulated activation of ERK, based on Western blotting with antibodies against the phosphorylated form of ERK, was attenuated by the pretreatment of cells with the intracellular calcium chelator BAPTA/AM (1,2-bis (o-aminophenoxy) ethane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid) but not with the extracellular calcium chelator EGTA (glycol-bis(2-aminoethylether)-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid). Exposure of cells to the protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor GF109203X inhibited the LPS- and PMA-stimulated phosphorylation of ERK in a concentration-dependent manner. The LPS-stimulated phosphorylation was inhibited by pretreatment with the phospholipase C (PLC) inhibitor U73122 but not the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI₃K) inhibitor LY294002. These results indicate that the LPS-induced phosphorylation of ERK in the chicken heterophils is mediated by PLC, PKC and intracellular calcium, and the PMA-stimulated phosphorylation is dependent on intracellular calcium ion and PKC.     

Reduced incidence of insect-bite hypersensitivity in Icelandic horses is associated with a down-regulation of interleukin-4 by interleukin-10 and transforming growth factor-beta1

Insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) is an allergic dermatitis of horses caused by IgE-mediated reactions to bites of insects of the genus Culicoides. IBH does not occur in Iceland due to the absence of Culicoides. However, Icelandic horses exported to mainland Europe as adults (1st generation) have a > or =50% incidence of developing IBH. In contrast, their progeny (2nd generation) has a <10% incidence of IBH. Here we show that peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from Icelandic horses born in mainland Europe and belonging either to the IBH or healthy subgroup produce less interleukin (IL)-4 after polyclonal or allergen-specific stimulation when compared with counterparts from horses born in Iceland. We examined a role of IL-10 and transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1 in down-regulation of IL-4 in healthy 2nd generation Icelandic horses. Supernatants of PBMC from 2nd generation healthy horses down-regulated the proportion of IL-4-producing cells and IL-4 production in stimulated cultures of PBMC from 1st generation IBH. This inhibition was mimicked by a combination of IL-10 and TGF-beta1 but not by the single cytokines. Cultures of stimulated PBMC of healthy 2nd generation horses produced a low level of IL-4, but IL-4 production was increased by anti-equine IL-10 and anti-human TGF-beta1. This shows for the first time that in horses, IL-10 and TGF-beta1 combined regulate IL-4 production in vitro. It is suggested that in this naturally occurring IgE-mediated allergy, IL-10 and TGF-beta1 have a role in the down-regulation of IL-4-induced allergen-specific Th2 cells, thereby reducing the incidence of IBH.