Reduction of Escherichia coli O157 in finishing beef cattle by various doses of Lactobacillus acidophilus in direct-fed microbials

Our objective was to evaluate the effects of three doses of Lactobacillus acidophilus strain NP51 and a combination treatment of strains NP51 and NP45 on prevalence of Escherichia coli O157 in cattle. Three hundred steers were assigned randomly to 60 pens (five steers per pen) and received one of five treatments: (i) control, no added direct-fed microbial; (ii) HNP51, high dose of NP51 at 10(9) CFU per steer daily; (iii) MNP51, NP51 at 10(8) CFU per steer daily; (iv) LNP51, low dose of NP51 at 10(7) CFU per steer daily; and (v) NP51+45, NP51 at 10(9) CFU per steer daily and NP45 at 106 CFU per steer daily. All direct-fed microbial treatments included Propionibacterium freudenreichii at 10(9) CFU per steer. Individual rectal fecal samples were collected on arrival and every 28 days throughout the feeding period. Fecal and hide samples were collected on the day of harvest. Samples were analyzed for presence of E. coli O157 using immunomagnetic separation methods. Cattle receiving HNP51, MNP51, and LNP51 had a lower prevalence (P < 0.01) of E. coli O157 throughout the feeding period compared with the controls, and the dose response for NP51 was a linear decrease in prevalence with increasing dose (P < 0.01). No decrease in prevalence for cattle receiving the combination NP51+45 was detected compared with controls (P = 0.15). E. coli O157 prevalences averaged across collection times were 23.9, 10.5, 9.9, 6.8, and 17.3% for cattle in the control, LNP51, MNP51, HNP51, and NP51 +45 groups, respectively. Least squares mean estimates of fecal prevalence at harvest of E. coli O157 were 31.7, 12.5, 17.4, 8.2, and 41.6% among cattle in the control, LNP51, MNP51, HNP51, and NP51+45 groups, respectively. Least squares mean estimates of the percentage of positive hide samples at harvest were 8.7, 5.9, 4.8, 3.4, and 8.6% among cattle in the control, LNP51, MNP51, HNP51, and NP51+45 groups, respectively. The greatest decrease in E. coli O157 carriage was achieved using NP51 at 10(9) CFU per steer.     

Interactions of arsenic and the dissolved substances derived from turf soils

Monosodium methanearsonate (MSMA) is frequently used as an herbicide for the control of weeds in turf grasses at golf courses in Florida. There are concerns about arsenic (As) contamination of local shallow groundwater from the application of MSMA. The distinction between "free" As and colloid-bound/complexed As in soil solution is important for understanding the mobility and bioavailability of As in the environment. In this study, the equilibrium membrane (500 and 3500 Da) dialysis method was employed to determine the "free" and "bound" As in water extracts of five types of golf-course soils containing coated and uncoated sands in various proportions with peat. All samples were evaluated for arsenic species (arsenite, AsIII and arsenate, AsV), dissolved organic matter, and additional constituents (iron, aluminum, and calcium). The impacts of microbial growth were evaluated by conducting experiments with and without the addition of sodium azide for one particular soil type. Results indicate that (1) the presence of peat in the soils plays a significant role in the distribution of As in the dissolved phase of soil solutions; (2) the majority of As present in the soil extracts from soils containing peat was associated with substances of molecular weight (MW) between 500 and 3500 Da; (3) the association of As and dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the soil solution strongly affected As bioavailability, thus determining As transformations via microorganism-mediated processes; and (4) the presence of peat greatly enhanced the release of iron, aluminum, and calcium from soil. Amendment of sand with peat is a common practice at Florida golf courses. However, the addition of peat will alter the properties of the soils, which in turn could affect As transport and transformation. The results of this study are useful for understanding the factors controlling As trapping and transport within porous soil media and in developing comprehensive plans for managing and remediating As contaminated environments, such as golf courses.     

Bioremediation of Pb-contaminated soil by incubating with Phanerochaete chrysosporium and straw

The bioremediation of the simulated lead (Pb)-contaminated soils by incubating with Phanerochaete chrysosporium and straw was studied at laboratory-scale. The soil pH, Pb concentration, soil microbial biomass, microbial metabolic quotient, microbial quotient and microbial biomass C-to-N ratios were monitored. The above indicators were to study the stress of Pb on soil and the microbial effects during the bioremediation process. It was found that the soils treated with P. chrysosporium and straw showed a much lower concentration of soluble-exchangeable Pb, lower metabolic quotient and biomass C-to-N ratios (0mgkg(-1) dry weight soil, 1.9mg CO(2)-Cmg(-1) biomass carbon and 4.9 on day 60, respectively) and higher microbial biomass and microbial quotient (2258mgkg(-1) dry weight soil and 7.86% on day 60, respectively) compared with the controls. In addition, the kinetic parameters in the model based on logistic equation were calculated by the BIOLOG data. By analyzing those kinetic parameters some information on the metabolic capacity of the microbial community could be obtained. All the results indicated that the bioavailability of Pb in contaminated soil was reduced so that the potential stress of Pb was alleviated, and also showed that the soil microbial effects and the metabolic capacity of microbial community were improved.     

Inhibition of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in ripening dry fermented sausage by ground yellow mustard

Compounds generated by the enzymatic hydrolysis of glucosinolates naturally present in mustard powder are potently bactericidal against Escherichia coli O157:H7. Because E. coli O157:H7 can survive the dry fermented sausage manufacturing process, 2, 4, and 6% (wt/wt) nondeheated (hot) mustard powder or 6% (wt/wt) deheated (cold) mustard powder were added to dry sausage batter inoculated with E. coli O157:H7 at about 7 log CFU/g to evaluate the antimicrobial effectiveness of the powders. Reductions in E. coli O157:H7 populations, changes in pH and water activity (aw), effects on starter culture (Pediococcus pentosaceus and Staphylococcus carnosus) populations, and effects of mustard powder on sausage texture (shear) were monitored during ripening. Nondeheated mustard powder at 2, 4, and 6% in dry sausage (0.90 aw) resulted in significant reductions in E. coli O157:H7 (P < 0.05) of 3.4, 4.4, and 6.9 log CFU/g, respectively, within 30 days of drying. During fermentation and drying, mustard powder did not affect P. pentosaceus and S. carnosus activity in any of the treatments. Extension of drying to 36 and 48 days reduced E. coli O157:H7 by >5 log CFU/g in the 4 and 2% mustard powder treatments, respectively. The 6% deheated mustard powder treatment provided the most rapid reductions of E. coli O157:H7 (yielding <0.20 log CFU/g after 24 days) by an unknown mechanism and was the least detrimental (P < 0.05) to sausage texture.     

Environmental dust exposure as a factor contributing to an increase in Escherichia coli O157 and Salmonella populations on cattle hides in feedyards

A study was conducted to determine the impact of exposure to dust in the cattle load-out area in feedyards on pathogen contamination of cattle hides. A total of 250 cattle hides were sampled during summer and fall months, which are associated with elevated prevalence of Escherichia coli O157 in West Texas. Animals were removed from their home pens and restrained in a chute and sampled prior to exposure to dust generated as a result of a simulated loading exercise. The cattle hides were sampled again after exposure to the loading dust to determine total numbers of pathogens on cattle hides on leaving their home pen (before loading) and on cattle hides after exposure to the dust in the loading area. Air and dirt samples from the home pens and the cattle load-out area were also collected. The presence of E. coli O157 and Salmonella was determined in all the samples, and when a positive sample was identified, the total numbers of these bacteria present were enumerated. The total numbers of pathogens increased after dust exposure; Salmonella counts increased from 1.09 log most probable number (MPN)/cm2 to 1.74 log MPN/cm2 after exposure, and E. coli O157 counts increased from 0.80 to 2.35 log MPN/cm2 after sampling. E. coli O157 and Salmonella were recovered from the air samples during dust generation at 6.66 and 11.1%, respectively. Salmonella and E. coli O157 prevalence was not changed and was not associated with the exposure to the dust. Results indicate airborne dust generated as a result of cattle movement and loading could be an important determining factor in total numbers of pathogens recovered on cattle hides.     

Cytotoxicity of fipronil on mice liver cells

In the present study, mice livers were examined following exposure to different doses of fipronil (15, 25, and 50 mg/kg). Histological and histochemical techniques were used to determine the cytotoxic potential of this compound and to assess the damage it caused to livers. Mice were divided into four groups: control group and groups I, II, and III were exposed to 15, 25, and 50 mg/kg fipronil, respectively. Our findings revealed cytological, morphohistological, and histochemical alterations in liver cells of animals from groups I, II, and III compared to group control animals. These changes included Kupffer-cell proliferation, hepatocyte hypertrophy, accumulation and distribution of proteins, polysaccharides, lipids, and vacuoles in the cytoplasm of hepatocytes, and congestion of blood vessels. These phenotypes mainly characterize the following: (a) autophagic processes, (b) steatosis, and (c) cell death by necrosis, which demonstrate the damage caused by fipronil on nontarget organisms in artificial conditions.     

Statistical properties of the penetration of photons into a semi-infinite turbid medium: a random-walk analysis

Statistical properties of the expected amount of time spent by a photon at different depths of a semi-infinite turbid medium are derived with formalism based on the continuous-time random walk. The formalism is applied to the study of both cw and time-gated experiments. Earlier analytical results relating to cw experiments are reproduced with a single approximation, rather than the more complicated approach used in earlier research based on the discrete-time random walk. The distribution of the occupancy of different depths in a time-gated experiment is found to have a convenient scaling form.     

Changes in the echoes from ultrasonic contrast agents with imaging parameters

Current harmonic imaging scanners transmit a narrowband signal that limits spatial resolution in order to differentiate the echoes from tissue from the echoes from microbubbles. Because spatial resolution is particularly important in applications, including mapping vessel density in tumors, we explore the use of wideband signals in contrast imaging. It is first demonstrated that microspheres can be destroyed using one or two pulses of ultrasound. Thus, temporal signal processing strategies that use the change in the echo over time can be used to differentiate echoes from bubbles and echoes from tissue. Echo parameters, including intensity and spectral shape for narrowband and wideband transmission, are then evaluated. Through these experiments, the echo intensity received from bubbles after wideband transmission is shown to be at least as large as that for narrowband transmission, and can be larger. In each case, the echo intensity increases in a nonlinear fashion in comparison with the transmitted signal intensity. Although the echo intensity at harmonic multiples of the transmitted wave center frequency can be larger for narrowband insonation, echoes received after wideband insonation demonstrate a broadband spectrum with significant amplitude over a very wide range of frequencies.