Postharvest changes in physicochemical properties and volatile constituents of apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.). Characterization of 28 Cultivars

To investigate the changes in physicochemical properties and volatile constituents in apricot during postharvest ripening, the volatile compounds of 28 apricot cultivars were investigated by means of liquid-liquid microextraction (LLME), GC-FID, and GC-MS. Fruits picked at their optimal harvestable stage of maturity were analyzed at harvest and after ripening at 20 degrees C under controlled conditions. Soluble solids (SS), titratable acidity (TA), levels of sugars (saccharose, fructose, and glucose), and organic acids (citric and malic acids) were also determined. Thirty-three volatile compounds, including 6 esters, 5 C6 compounds, 4 alcohols, 3 carbonyl compounds, 6 terpenic compounds, and 9 lactones, were identified. Changes in the levels of volatiles have been found to increase greatly during post-harvest ripening in comparison to the modifications observed for the other physicochemical characteristics. The discrimination of the 28 apricot cultivars into four distinguishable aroma groups was achieved by statistical treatment of the data including ANOVA, principal component, and cluster analyses.     

Recombination and the nature of bacterial speciation

Genetic surveys reveal the diversity of bacteria and lead to the questioning of species concepts used to categorize bacteria. One difficulty in defining bacterial species arises from the high rates of recombination that results in the transfer of DNA between relatively distantly related bacteria. Barriers to this process, which could be used to define species naturally, are not apparent. Here, we review conceptual models of bacterial speciation and describe our computer simulations of speciation. Our findings suggest that the rate of recombination and its relation to genetic divergence have a strong influence on outcomes. We propose that a distinction be made between clonal divergence and sexual speciation. Hence, to make sense of bacterial diversity, we need data not only from genetic surveys but also from experimental determination of selection pressures and recombination rates and from theoretical models.     

Photosynthesis limitations of grapevine after treatment with the fungicide fludioxonil

The aim of this work was to determine the major limitations to photosynthesis induced by the fungicide fludioxonil (fdx) on nontarget grapevines using cutting as a model. The fdx treatments (1.2, 6, and 30 mM) induced a net photosynthetic rate ( P n) decrease without changes in stomatal conductance, suggesting a nonstomatal limitation. Fdx effects on P n were related neither to photosynthetic capacity alteration in leaves nor to loss in PSII activity. The mechanism underlying photosynthesis reduction differed according to the concentration. Fdx at 6 mM led to an increase of light requirement for photosynthesis while 30 mM fdx induced an increase in the respiration rate in the light. P n decrease after 1.2 mM fdx could rather be related to wetness caused by the spraying than to fungicide toxicity. P n recovered 10 days after treatment, meaning that fdx had little deleterious effect on plant physiology or that grapevine has a great capacity to overcome this temporary stress.     

Study of grain cell wall structures by microscopic analysis with four different staining techniques

Four different grain cell wall staining techniques were compared. Two techniques specifically detected arabinoxylan (AX). The first technique used a xylanase probe, while the other one was based on immunolabeling of AX using monoclonal antibodies. The two other staining techniques, one based on Calcofluor and the other on immunolabeling using monoclonal antibodies, stained mixed-linkage β-glucan. Cell walls of wheat, barley, oat and rye grains, differing both in content and location of AX and β-glucan, were examined. The staining methods were complementary to each other in revealing the location and distribution of the major cereal dietary fiber components AX and β-glucan in the different grains. AX was mostly concentrated in nucellar epidermis and aleurone cells, whereas β-glucan was concentrated more in subaleurone cells. Furthermore, in the case of barley and rye, the endosperm cell walls also contained high amounts of β-glucan. Interestingly, β-glucan in rye and barley endosperm cell walls was located adjacent to the cell contents, suggesting that it is not evenly distributed in the endosperm cell walls. The results give new insight into the structure of the cereal dietary fiber complex. Further development of microscopic techniques will help in elucidating the cereal cell wall structure even in more detail.     

Impact of very low crop residues cover on wind erosion in the Sahel

In the Sahel, with average annual precipitation in the order of 500 mm yr^− 1, wind erosion occurs mainly on cultivated millet fields whose surfaces are only partially covered by crop residues. The impact of these residues on wind erosion was not clearly established. The objective of this study is thus to quantify the actual amount of crop residues in traditional Sahelian fields and to determine their impacts on wind erosion by reference to a bare surface throughout the seasonal cycle over several years.     

Xylanase inhibitors bind to nonstarch polysaccharides

This study is an in-depth investigation of the interaction between polysaccharides and the proteinaceous xylanase inhibitors, Triticum aestivum xylanase inhibitor (TAXI), xylanase inhibitor protein (XIP), and thaumatin-like xylanase inhibitor (TLXI). The binding affinities of all three known types of xylanase inhibitors from wheat are studied by measuring the residual xylanase inhibition activity after incubation of the inhibitors in the presence of different polysaccharides, such as beta-glucans and (arabino)xylans. The binding affinities of all three xylanase inhibitors for (arabino)xylans increased with a decreasing arabinose/xylose ratio (A/X ratio). This phenomenon was observed both with water-extractable and water-unextractable (arabino)xylans. The inhibitors also interacted with different soluble and insoluble beta-glucans. None of the inhibitors tested had the ability to hydrolyze the polysaccharides investigated. The present findings contribute to the unraveling of the function of xylanase inhibitors in nature and to the prediction of the effect of added xylanases in cereal-based biotechnological processes, such as bread making and gluten-starch separation.     

Enrichment of anhydrous milk fat in polyunsaturated fatty acid residues from linseed and rapeseed oils through enzymatic interesterification

Lipozyme TL IM was used in a solvent-free batch and microaqueous system for enzymatic interesterification of anhydrous milkfat (AMF) with linseed oil (LO) in binary blends and with rapeseed oil (RO) in one ternary blend. The aim was to obtain and characterize physicochemically fats enriched with unsaturated C 18 fatty acids (oleic, linoleic, and, especially, linolenic acids) from natural vegetable oils. Binary blends of AMF/LO 100/0, 90/10, 80/20, 70/30, and 60/40 (w/w) were interesterified. The change in triacylglycerol (TAG) profiles showed that quasi-equilibrium conditions were reached after 4-6 h of reaction. Free fatty acid contents <1%. The decrease in solid fat content and in dropping point temperature obtained with increasing content of LO and interesterification resulted in good plastic properties for the products originating from the blends 70/30 and 60/40. This was confirmed by textural measurements. Melting profiles determined by differential scanning calorimetry showed complete disappearance of low-melting TAGs from LO and the formation of intermediary species with a lower melting temperature. Oxidative stability of the interesterified products was diminished with increasing LO content, resulting in low oxidation induction times. A ternary blend composed of AMF/RO/LO 70/20/10 gave satisfactory rheological and oxidative properties, fulfilling the requirements for a marketable spread and, moreover, offering increased potential health benefits due to the enriched content in polyunsaturated fatty acid residues.     

Interactions between temperature and size on the growth,size heterogeneity,mortality and cannibalism in cultured larvae and juveniles of the Asian catfish,Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Sauvage)

Temperature effects vary throughout the ontogeny, but are proportionally more variable during the early life stages than in older fish. The larvae of a few species have been studied but contrasting trajectories were observed, thereby making it difficult to predict how temperature impacts on the growth, survival and size heterogeneity in a particular species. This study examined these interactions in young [0.9 mg–1 g wet mass (WM)] Pangasianodon hypophthalmus, one of the most extensively cultured tropical fish. Fish were raised at five temperatures from 23 to 33 °C in a recirculated water system, fed in excess with a high‐energy feed (Artemia then a formulated feed, >50% protein), and examined at 1‐day (first feeding days) or 4‐day intervals (older fish). The temperature that produced the fastest growth (T°_opt) was 31 °C at the start of exogenous feeding (0.9 mg); it increased to 32.7 °C at 8 mg then decreased by 0.7 °C for each 10‐fold increase of WM. Size heterogeneity was lower and survival was higher (70–85% from 0.9 mg to 1 g) when the temperature was close to T°_opt. Comparisons with other species suggest that the slope of the relationship between T°_opt and fish size has a strong latitudinal component, and may also reflect the fish sensitivity to oxygen.     

Comparison of sarcoplasmic proteomes between two groups of pig muscles selected for shear force of cooked meat

Two-dimensional electrophoresis was used to compare Longissimus sarcoplasmic protein abundance between two groups (tough meat and tender meat), defined on the basis of extreme Warner-Bratzler shear force values measured on cooked pork. Fourteen protein spots differed in quantity (P<0.05) between the two groups and were identified. Adypocyte fatty acid binding protein and acyl-CoA binding protein involved in lipid traffic and in the control of gene expression regulating cell proliferation and differentiation, and Enoyl-CoA hydratase, aldose reductase and triosephosphate isomerase indirectly related to lipid metabolism were overrepresented in the tender group. The tender group was further characterized by increased levels of proteins involved in protein folding and polymerization (initiation factor elf-3beta, chaperonin subunit 2, profilin II). The results suggest that the lower post-cooking shear force could at least in part be related to muscle adipogenetic and/or myogenetic status of which the possible underlying mechanisms are discussed.     

Hemocyte characteristics in families of oysters, Crassostrea gigas, selected for differential survival during summer and reared in three sites

High variability among individuals is often encountered when hemocyte characteristics are measured in bivalves. Such variability is suspected to result partly from genetic factors. In this study, hemocyte characteristics of six families of Crassostrea gigas were compared by flow cytometry at one sampling date in October 2001. These families were obtained from a nested, half-sibling cross design, and reared from July to October 2001 at three sites distributed along the French Atlantic coast from north to south: Baie des Veys (Normandy), Rivière d'Auray (Brittany) and Ronce (Marennes-oléron Basin, Poitou Charentes).

Among the 15 measured hemocyte characteristics, production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) of untreated hemocytes (maintained in filtered sterile seawater) and treated hemocytes (zymosan at 20 particles per hemocyte, and with Vibrio sp. S322 at 50 bacteria per hemocyte) was the most notable differences between families. This supports the existence of a genetic basis, at least partly, for the hemocyte characteristics of oysters, and especially for ROS production.

Among the six families analyzed, three have shown high survival during summer (named as “resistant”, mean mortality 5.2%) and three experienced high mortality during summer (named as “susceptible”, 30.6% mean mortality). Families showing high or low survival to summer mortality had similar hemocyte characteristics, regardless of the environmental conditions or reproductive state. Resistant families were observed to have higher total hemocyte counts and lower production of ROS than susceptible families. Moreover, ROS production of hemocytes from susceptible families was diminished significantly more by pathogenic Vibrio than that of resistant families. However, this study demonstrates also that rearing site strongly affected the hemocyte characteristics of all families of oysters, most notably hemocyte concentration and morphology (size and granularity), production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and susceptibility to the cytotoxic activity of the pathogenic Vibrio sp. S322 (50 bacteria/hemocyte). Food availability and reproductive state are the most probable explanations for the site differences observed. Finally, it appeared difficult to link oyster survival during summer mortality to hemocyte profiles evaluated at one sampling date; other relevant indicators would probably help explaining oyster survival during summer mortality events.