A method for identifying water foraging bees by refractometer analysis: a spotlight on daily and seasonal water collecting activities of Apis mellifera L.

The current discussion about the relevance of guttation as a water source for honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) draws attention to the activity of water foraging bees. However, due to the wide foraging range, field observations of water foraging bees are difficult to carry out. Therefore, samples of returning bees were collected in front of the entrance early in the morning as well as during the day in summer and autumn 2010. In the laboratory, honey sacs of bees without pollen or propolis were examined. Honey sac samples with a weight of ≥0.005?g were classified as successful foragers. For the determination of water or nectar foragers, the honey sac contents of successful foragers were analyzed with a refractometer. Due to the dilution and the precision of the refractometer, an accuracy of 5?% was possible. Based on the known range of sugar concentrations in nectars, the analyzed samples were divided into nectar foragers (25–65?% sugar) and water foragers (0–15?% sugar). The study reveals that nectar and water foraging bees can be discriminated by analyzing the honey sac extracts with a refractometer. In autumn, the water demand of honey bee colonies is almost exclusively covered by water collection, whereas during summer nectar is mainly used as a substitute for water. In general, water collection is not restricted to certain times of the day.     

Diversity and frequencies of methoxypyrazines in hemolymph of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Harmonia axyridis</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Coccinella septempunctata</Emphasis> and their influence on the taste of wine

The study focuses on the odor-active intensity and occurrence of three methoxypyrazines in ladybird beetles, Harmonia axyridis, invasive in Europe and the USA, and Coccinella septempunctata, native in Europe, but invasive in the USA. It is known from previous studies that H. axyridis has negatively influenced the taste of wine in the USA because of releasing their hemolymph in must during harvesting. In relation to C. septempunctata, H. axyridis had more nitrogen containing compounds in its hemolymph and 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (IPMP) and mainly 2-sec-buthyl-3-methoxypyrazine (SBMP) in higher amounts. The compound IPMP was detected as the main odor-active compound in both ladybird beetle species. Wines infested with hemolymph of C. septempunctata were more readily detected as altered wine with a ‘ladybird taint’ than wines infested with H. axyridis. 2-isobuthyl-3-methoxypyrazine (IBMP) could be identified as second intensive odor-active compound of C. septempunctata, which occurred in a much lower frequency in H. axyridis. SBMP, the second highest measured N-compound of H. axyridis, had a lower olfactory active threshold in gas chromatography–olfactometry test. C. septempunctata contained less SBMP in its hemolymph than H. axyridis. This study objected that besides H. axyridis also C. septempunctata can influence the taste of wine in a detectable way.     

Lone‐Pair‐Induced Covalency as the Cause of Temperature‐ and Field‐Induced Instabilities in Bismuth Sodium Titanate

Bismuth sodium titanate (BNT)‐derived materials have seen a flurry of research interest in recent years because of the existence of extended strain under applied electric fields, surpassing that of lead zirconate titanate (PZT), the most commonly used piezoelectric. The underlying physical and chemical mechanisms responsible for such extraordinary strain levels in BNT are still poorly understood, as is the nature of the successive phase transitions. A comprehensive explanation is proposed here, combining the short‐range chemical and structural sensitivity of in situ Raman spectroscopy (under an applied electric field and temperature) with macroscopic electrical measurements. The results presented clarify the causes for the extended strain, as well as the peculiar temperature‐dependent properties encountered in this system. The underlying cause is determined to be mediated by the complex‐like bonding of the octahedra at the center of the perovskite: a loss of hybridization of the 6s² bismuth lone pair interacting with the oxygen p‐orbitals occurs, which triggers both the field‐induced phase transition and the loss of macroscopic ferroelectric order at the depolarization temperature.     

Apple quality,storage, and washing treatments affect patulin levels in apple cider

Patulin is a mycotoxin produced primarily by Penicillium expansum, a mold responsible for rot in apples and other fruits. The growth of this fungus and the production of patulin are common in fruit that has been damaged. However, patulin can be detected in visibly sound fruit. The purpose of this project was to determine how apple quality, storage, and washing treatments affect patulin levels in apple cider. Patulin was not detected in cider pressed from fresh tree-picked apples (seven cultivars) but was found at levels of 40.2 to 374 microg/liter in cider pressed from four cultivars of fresh ground-harvested (dropped) apples. Patulin was not detected in cider pressed from culled tree-picked apples stored for 4 to 6 weeks at 0 to 2 degrees C but was found at levels of 0.97 to 64.0 microg/liter in cider pressed from unculled fruit stored under the same conditions. Cider from controlled-atmosphere-stored apples that were culled before pressing contained 0 to 15.1 microg of patulin per liter, while cider made from unculled fruit contained 59.9 to 120.5 microg of patulin per liter. The washing of ground-harvested apples before pressing reduced patulin levels in cider by 10 to 100%, depending on the initial patulin levels and the type of wash solution used. These results indicate that patulin is a good indicator of the quality of the apples used to manufacture cider. The avoidance of ground-harvested apples and the careful culling of apples before pressing are good methods for reducing patulin levels in cider.     

Gamma irradiation of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp) flours and pastes: Effects on functional,thermal and molecular properties of isolated proteins

In a previous study irradiation of cowpea flours and pastes at medium (10 kGy) and high (50 kGy) doses resulted in significant changes in protein-related functional properties. To understand some of the effects of gamma irradiation on cowpea proteins in particular, we isolated proteins from cowpea flours (FPC) and pastes (PPC) treated with gamma irradiation at 2, 10, and 50 kGy and analyzed their functional, thermal and molecular properties. Nitrogen solubility index of both FPC and PPC decreased, whereas oil absorption and emulsion capacities increased significantly with increasing irradiation dose. Differential scanning calorimetry showed decreases in transition temperatures (T_d) and enthalpies (ΔH), indicating a progressive denaturation of cowpea proteins with increasing irradiation. Size exclusion HPLC revealed increases in protein molecular weights, probably due to protein–protein cross-linking with irradiation in a dose-dependent manner. Reducing SDS-PAGE of FPC and PPC samples seems to suggest that the contribution of disulphide bonds to irradiation-induced cowpea protein–protein cross-linking is small.     

Important drug-micronutrient interactions: A selection for clinical practice

Abstract

Interactions between drugs and micronutrients have received only little or no attention in the medical and pharmaceutical world in the past. Since more and more pharmaceutics are used for the treatment of patients, this topic is increasingly relevant. As such interactions – depending on the duration of treatment and the status of micronutrients – impact the health of the patient and the action of the drugs, physicians and pharmacists should pay more attention to such interactions in the future. This review aims to sensitize physicians and pharmacists on drug micronutrient interactions with selected examples of widely pescribed drugs that can precipitate micronutrient deficiencies. In this context, the pharmacist, as a drug expert, assumes a particular role. Like no other professional in the health care sector, he is particularly predestined and called up to respond to this task. The following article intends to point out the relevance of mutual interactions between micronutrients and various examples of widely used drugs, without claiming to be exhaustive.     

Arctic vegetation damage by winter-generated coal mining pollution released upon thawing

Acid mine drainage (known as AMD) is a well-known environmental problem resulting from the oxidation of sulfidic mine waste. In cold regions, AMD is often considered limited by low temperatures most of the year and observed environmental impact is related to pollution generated during the warm summer period. Here we show that heat generation within an oxidizing, sulfidic, coal-mining waste-rock pile in Svalbard (78 degrees N) is high enough to keep the pile warm (roughly 5 degrees C throughout the year) despite mean annual air temperatures below -5 degrees C. Consequently, weathering processes continue year-round within the waste-rock pile. During the winter, weathering products accumulate within the pile because of a frozen outer layer on the pile and are released as a flush within 2 weeks of soil thawing in the spring. Consequently, spring runoff water contains elevated concentrations of metals. Several of these metals are taken up and accumulated in plants where they reach phytotoxic levels, including aluminum and manganese. Laboratory experiments document that uptake of Al and Mn in native plant species is highly correlated with dissolved concentrations. Therefore, future remedial actions to control the adverse environmental impacts of cold region coal-mining need to pay more attention to winter processes including AMD generation and accumulation of weathering products.     

Correction to: Effect of size and shape of specimens on the mass loss caused by Coniophora puteana in wood durability tests

European Journal of Wood and Wood Products -     

Wheat bran-based biorefinery 1: Composition of wheat bran and strategies of functionalization

Wheat, together with maize and rice, accounts to about 90% of the world's cereal production. During the milling process, wheat bran, besides other valuable compounds such as wheat germ and parts of the endosperm, remains as major by-product. Wheat bran is composed of various histological cell layers, called the pericarp, testa, hyaline and aleurone layer and its weight ratio to milled wheat is about 25%. Annually, over 650 million tons of wheat are produced in the world, of which more than 69% are used for food. The thereby accruing biomass of wheat bran can be estimated as 150 million tons, which are basically used in the feed industry. Even if numerous studies have investigated potential health benefits of consuming more whole grain foods, the addition of bran to existing food systems may confer difficulties in terms of processing, nutrition or sensory acceptance by consumers. This review will summarize state-of-the-art technological approaches such as mechanical, thermal or enzymatic treatment used to modify the functional properties of wheat bran and coincidently describe the impact on the food system.