An Exploratory Study of Particulate PAHs in Low-Polluted Urban and Rural Areas of Southwest Spain: Concentrations, Source Assignment, Seasonal Variation and Correlations with Other Air Pollutants

A set of 72?PM₁₀ samples from low-polluted urban and rural locations belonging to the regional air monitoring network of Extremadura (Spain) were collected in a 1?year sampling period. Sample pre-treatment and analytical determination by gas chromatography?Cion trap mass spectrometry were optimised and validated for the analysis of the priority 16 US Environmental Protection Agency polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The influence of meteorological conditions (temperature, relative humidity and solar radiation) and other atmospheric pollutants (O₃, NO₂, SO₂, PM₁₀) has been covered in detail and Pearson correlation test were used for this purpose. Spatial distribution of particulate PAHs was evaluated and the comparison with other European sites was also established. Possible emission sources were identified and assigned by using molecular diagnostic criteria.     

Adaptation and Validation of Colorimetric Methods in Determining Ammonium and Nitrate on Tropical Soils

Inorganic nitrogen (N) determination in soil extracts is a useful tool in studying soil–N interactions. The main method used worldwide is the steam distillation, but colorimetric methodologies show advantages of being quick, simple, sensitive, and higher yield. However, they are subject to disruption when the extract has interfering organic N, limiting its application in tropical soil. The aim of this study is to evaluate colorimetric methods for the determination of NH₄⁺ (through Berthelot reaction) and NO₃^? + NO₂^? (through Griess-Ilosvay reaction) in saline extracts of tropical soils by addition of activated charcoal during the extraction process. It is recommended to use extraction solution of 2 mol L^?1 potassium chloride (KCl) and reaction time of 30 min. Validation parameters confirmed the best performance of the colorimetric methods, revealing results favorable to the addition of the activated charcoal in the extraction process to increase the accuracy and precision of the colorimetric methods.     

A simplified spectrophotometric method for routine analysis of saccharin in commercial noncaloric sweeteners

A simple, rapid, and sensitive spectrophotometric method for routine analysis of saccharin in commercial noncaloric sweeteners is proposed. This method is based on the reaction of saccharin with tetrachloro-p-benzoquinone (p-chloranil) accelerated by hydrogen peroxide and conducted in an ethanol:acetone (4:1) medium, producing a violet-red compound (lambda(max) = 550 nm). Beer's law is obeyed in a concentration range of 2.05 x 10(-4) to 3.00 x 10(-3) M with an excellent correlation coefficient (r = 0.9998). The detection limit was 1.55 x 10(-5) M, and the effect of interferences on the spectrophotometric measurements was evaluated. The proposed procedure was applied successfully to the determination of saccharin in noncaloric sweeteners. Recoveries were within 99.2-104.3% with standard deviations ranging from to 0.5-1.6%. Results of the proposed method compare very favorably with those given by the high-performance liquid chromatography method recommended by the Food and Drug Administration.     

Copper Biosorption by Biomass of Marine Alga: Study of Equilibrium and Kinetics in Batch System and Adsorption/Desorption Cycles in Fixed Bed Column

Copper biosorption onto chemically modified biomass of marine alga Sargassum filipendula was investigated in a batch reactor and a fixed bed column. Experiments were carried out in the batch reactor to obtain kinetic and equilibrium data and to assess the copper desorption efficiency of different eluent solutions. The pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, and Langmuir kinetic models were used to correlate kinetic data. The experimental data fitted well to the pseudo first order and Langmuir kinetic models. Langmuir and Freundlich models were applied to describe the equilibrium data obtained at a fixed temperature of 30°C and at pH values of 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, and 6.0. The maximum capacities of copper biosorption onto the algal biomass were 1.43, 1.59, 2.40, and 2.36 mequiv./g at pH 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, and 6.0, respectively. The efficiencies of two eluent solutions (calcium chloride and hydrochloric acid) for copper removal from the biomass were evaluated at different concentrations (0.1, 0.2, 0.5, and 1.0 mol/L). The efficiencies of the calcium chloride solutions varied from 1% to 14%, while efficiencies varying from 95% to 99% were obtained when hydrochloric acid solutions were applied. Three adsorption/desorption cycles were carried out in a fixed bed column using 0.1 mol/L hydrochloric acid as eluent solution. The results showed that an increase in the number of cycles led to a reduction in the adsorption capacity of the alga. The desorbed copper fraction presented no significant variation, remaining around 63% in the three adsorption/desorption cycles.     

Optimal Management Practices for Nitrogen Application in Corn Cultivated During Summer and Fall in the Tropics

Optimal management practices for nitrogen (N) fertilization is well defined for corn (Zea mays) cultivated during summer (“summer” corn), but not for corn cultivated during the fall (“fall” corn) in the tropics. Two experiments were carried out to evaluate N rates (50, 100, 200, and 300 kg N ha^?1), N application timing (pre-planting – PP, V2–V3, and V5–V6) and N split application, once (at PP, V3, and V6), two (at V3+ V6) and three times (at PP+ V3+ V6) in corn cultivated during summer (2014/2015) and fall (2015/2016). Data on corn grain yield (CGY), weight of 1000-grains, leaf N content and values of soil-plant analyses development (SPAD) were collected and analyzed using univariate, multivariate (principal component analysis, PCA) and regression analysis. Results showed that corn growth was affected by N rates and splitting. Corn cultivated during summer presented higher CGY and weight-1000 g than corn cultivated during the fall. The highest yields were obtained with higher N rates on “summer” corn (125 kg N ha^?1) than “fall” corn (50 kg N ha^?1). Split N-application at vegetative growth stages, V3+ V6, or PP+ V2+ V6, provided higher yields for “summer” corn, while only PP application was a reliable period of N fertilization for “fall” corn. The finding is that corn cultivated during the fall presented a lower response to N and no obvious advantages to split N fertilization when compared to corn cultivated during summer. These optimal management practices for N fertilization in corn production in the tropics depend on soil water availability.     

Effects of Annealing and Concentration of Calcium Salts on Thermal and Rheological Properties of Maize Starch During an Ecological Nixtamalization Process

The objective of the present work was to study the effect of annealing and concentration of Ca(OH)₂ (lime) and calcium salts on the thermal and rheological properties of maize starch during an ecological nixtamalization process. Thermal and rheological properties of maize starch changed during the ecological nixtamalization process because of three main causes: the annealing phenomenon, type of calcium salt, and calcium salt concentration. In all treatments thermal properties (T_o, T_p, and T_f) of nixtamal starch increased owing to the annealing process, whereas the type of salt or lime increased thermal properties and decreased pasting properties in this order: CaCl₂ > CaSO₄ > Ca(OH)₂ ≈ CaCO₃. This behavior was because of the dissociation of each salt or lime in water. Anions (OH⁻) can penetrate much more easily into the starch granule and start the gelatinization process by rupturing hydrogen bonds. Additionally, amylose‐lipid complexes were formed during the nixtamalization processes, as indicated by an increasing peak at 4.5 Å in X‐ray diffraction patterns.     

Species diversity and habitat fragmentation: frogs in a tropical montane landscape in Mexico

We evaluate the alpha (within patch species richness), beta (spatial turnover among patches) and gamma (landscape) diversity of frogs in a tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF) in central Veracruz, Mexico in order to assess (1) the influence of forest fragmentation on frog assemblages, (2) the importance to diversity of the various elements of the landscape matrix, including the shaded coffee plantations and cattle pastures that surround TMCF and (3) to identify the frog guilds most affected by habitat transformation. We sampled ten sites between May 1998 and November 2000: five TMCF fragments and five anthropogenic habitats. For the entire landscape, we registered 21 species belonging to six families. 100% of these were found in the TMCF fragments and 62% in the surrounding mosaic of anthropogenic habitats. Gamma diversity (γ) is determined to a greater extent by species exchange (β) than by local species richness (α). Elevational variation, the degree of conservation of the vegetation canopy and fragment size appear to determine the species diversity of this landscape. Large species, terrestrial species, those whose eggs develop outside water, and those whose larvae develop in the water seemed to be most affected by habitat transformation. On its own, even the largest and most species-rich cloud forest fragment is not capable of preserving the current anuran diversity. Neither are the shaded coffee plantations that are interspersed among and link the patches of TMCF. However together they form a diverse system of habitats crucial to species conservation in this landscape.     

Genotoxicity of melanoidin fractions derived from a standard glucose/glycine model

Genotoxic compounds can act at various levels in the cell (causing gene, chromosome, or genome mutations), necessitating the use of a range of genotoxicity assays designed to detect these different types of mutations. The production of melanoidins during the processing and cooking of foods is associated with changes in their nutritional character, and the discovery of mutagenic substances in pyrolyzed protein and amino acids has raised concern about the safety of these foods. The aim of this work was to test melanoidin fractions in three different in vitro assays (Ames test, Vitotox test, and micronucleus test). These melanoidin fractions were produced from the condensation of glucose with glycine and their separation was conducted by dialysis. The crude reaction mixture (before dialysis) and both the LMW and HMW fractions obtained by dialysis showed no genotoxicity in these assays, despite being tested at concentrations much higher than those naturally found in food products. The LMW fraction, however, showed toxicity at these high concentrations. The volatile fraction produced in this reaction showed genotoxicity only in the Vitotox test, at high concentrations.     

The impact of feed withdrawal on quality, safety, yield of pocessed chickens

一旦肉鸡达到上市体重并准备送入屠宰厂之时,肉品的加工处理就已经开始了.在这个时候,为了出空肉鸡肠道中的排泄物以防止在切除内脏时所发生的污染而必须采取禁食措施.否则,会影响肉鸡胴体预冷前的质量安全.