Reflectance of macerals from bright brown coal,Pernik basin

Reflectance of macerals from Palaeogene brown coal from the Pernik basin in Bulgaria was determined using an ‘Opton’ microscope-photometer. Depending on the nature of the original plant material and on the degree of biochemical alteration, the maceral reflectance increases from the group of liptinite (R_O (%) = 0.06–0.28) towards the group of huminite (R_O (%) = 0.29–0.52) and the group of inertinite (R_O (%) = 0.84–3.05). The action of geochemical factors did not result in obliteration of the differences in the reflectance of macerals from the huminite group.     

Calcium lactate effect on the shelf life of osmotically dehydrated guavas

The effect of calcium lactate on osmodehydrated guavas in sucrose and maltose solutions was monitored during storage under passive modified atmosphere for 24 d at 5 °C. Sample texture and color characteristics, microbial spoilage, sensory acceptance, structural changes, and gas composition inside the packages were periodically evaluated. Calcium lactate inhibited microbial growth on guavas, with yeast and mold counts in the order of 10(2) CFU/g throughout storage. The calcium salt reduced respiration rate of guava products, showing O(2) and CO(2) concentrations around 18% and 3% inside the packages. A firming effect on fruit texture, with up to 5 and 2 times higher stress and strain at failure values and tissue structure preservation could also be attributed to calcium lactate use. However, fruits treated with calcium lactate, osmodehydrated in maltose and sucrose solutions, showed sensory acceptance scores below the acceptability limit (4.5) after 13 and 17 d of storage, respectively.     

Soy protein containing isoflavones favorably influences macrophage lipoprotein metabolism but not the development of atherosclerosis in CETP transgenic mice

The possibility that soy protein containing isoflavones influences the development of experimental atherosclerosis has been investigated in ovariectomized mice heterozygous for the human CETP transgene and for the LDL-receptor null allele (LDLr^+/− CETP^+/−). After ovariectomy at 8 wk of age they were fed a fat/cholesterol-rich diet for 19 wk and divided into three experimental groups: dietary unmodified soy protein containing isoflavones (mg/g of diet), either at low-dose (Iso Low, 0.272, n=25), or at high-dose (Iso High, 0.535, n=28); and the atherogenic diet containing an isoflavone-depleted alcohol-washed soy protein as a control group (n=28). Aortic root lipid-stained lesion area (mean μm²×10³±SD) did not differ among Iso Low (12.3±9.9), Iso High (7.4±6.4), and controls (10.7±12.8). Autoantibody titers against plasma oxidized LDL did not differ among the experimental groups. Using the control mice as the reference value (100%), in vitro mouse peritoneal macrophage uptake of labeled acetylated LDL-cholesterol was lower in the Iso High (68%) than in the Iso Low (85%) group. The in vitro percent removal by exogenous HDL of labeled unesterified cholesterol from macrophages previously enriched with human [4-¹⁴C]-cholesteryl oleate acetylated LDL was enhanced in the Iso High group (50%). In spite of these in vitro potentially antiatherogenic actions, soy protein containing isoflavones did not modify the average size of lipid-stained area in the aortic root.     

Fabrication of a Macroporous Microwell Array for Surface‐Enhanced Raman Scattering

Here, a colloidal templating procedure for generating high‐density arrays of gold macroporous microwells, which act as discrete sites for surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), is reported. Development of such a novel array with discrete macroporous sites requires multiple fabrication steps. First, selective wet‐chemical etching of the distal face of a coherent optical fiber bundle produces a microwell array. The microwells are then selectively filled with a macroporous structure by electroless template synthesis using self‐assembled nanospheres. The fabricated arrays are structured at both the micrometer and nanometer scale on etched imaging bundles. Confocal Raman microscopy is used to detect a benzenethiol monolayer adsorbed on the macroporous gold and to map the spatial distribution of the SERS signal. The Raman enhancement factor of the modified wells is investigated and an average enhancement factor of 4 × 10⁴ is measured. This demonstrates that such nanostructured wells can enhance the local electromagnetic field and lead to a platform of ordered SERS‐active micrometer‐sized spots defined by the initial shape of the etched optical fibers. Since the fabrication steps keep the initial architecture of the optical fiber bundle, such ordered SERS‐active platforms fabricated onto an imaging waveguide open new applications in remote SERS imaging, plasmonic devices, and integrated electro‐optical sensor arrays.     

Fundamental spectra of optical functions of ferroelectric sodium nitrite

Spectra of optical fundamental functions of ferroelectric sodium nitrite were determined in the range 4–24 eV at 77 K for the three polarizations: E ∥ a, E ∥ b, and E ∥ c. The calculations were based on the experimental R(E) reflection spectra and integral Kramers-Kronig relations. Using the method of Argand diagrams, the permittivity and bulk characteristic electron loss spectra were decomposed into the elementary transverse and longitudinal components. Their main parameters were determined. The obtained data were compared with the theoretical calculations of the permittivity spectra performed using the FPLAPW method. The main features of the permittivity spectra, the parameters of the transitions, and their theoretical nature were established.     

Validation of the performance of a GMO multiplex screening assay based on microarray detection

A new screening method for the detection and identification of GMO, based on the use of multiplex PCR followed by microarray, has been developed and is presented. The technology is based on the identification of quite ubiquitous GMO genetic target elements first amplified by PCR, followed by direct hybridisation of the amplicons on a predefined microarray (DualChip^® GMO, Eppendorf, Germany). The validation was performed within the framework of a European project (Co-Extra, contract no 007158) and in collaboration with 12 laboratories specialised in GMO detection. The present study reports the strategy and the results of an ISO complying validation of the method carried out through an inter-laboratory study. Sets of blind samples were provided consisting of DNA reference materials covering all the elements detectable by specific probes present on the array. The GMO concentrations varied from 1% down to 0.045%. In addition, a mixture of two GMO events (0.1% RRS diluted in 100% TOPAS19/2) was incorporated in the study to test the robustness of the assay in extreme conditions. Data were processed according to ISO 5725 standard. The method was evaluated with predefined performance criteria with respect to the EC CRL method acceptance criteria. The overall method performance met the acceptance criteria; in particular, the results showed that the method is suitable for the detection of the different target elements at 0.1% concentration of GMO with a 95% accuracy rate. This collaborative trial showed that the method can be considered as fit for the purpose of screening with respect to its intra- and inter-laboratory accuracy. The results demonstrated the validity of combining multiplex PCR with array detection as provided by the DualChip^® GMO (Eppendorf, Germany) for the screening of GMO. The results showed that the technology is robust, practical and suitable as a screening tool.     

Gender difference in color preference across cultures: An archetypal pattern modulated by a female cultural stereotype

A gender difference in color preference among British participants has been repeatedly reported, in which both males and females show a preference for blue‐green colors, while females express an additional preference for pink‐purple colors. To investigate the robustness of gender difference in color preference in a different culture, we tested 81 young adult Indians from a school of design and compared them to 80 young British students in Psychology. The 35‐item International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) and Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) questionnaires were also administered to explore possible links between personality traits, gender schemata, and color preferences. Results confirmed a gender difference in both cultures; participants collectively expressed a preference for cool over warm colors, while in addition females showed a preference for pink colors, with a warm bias for Indian females and a cool bias for British females. While these results extend gender difference to Indian culture and support the universality of an underlying pattern they also reveal a culture‐specific contribution essentially observed in females. In British participants, color preference was correlated exclusively with BSRI scores in females and overwhelmingly with IPIP scores in males; this gender‐specific pattern of correlation was not replicated in the Indian sample. Results point to an archetypal pattern of gender difference in color preference with a remarkable cross‐cultural similarity in men and a subtle but significant cultural difference in women whose origin is yet to be explained.     

Separation of Samarium,Europium, and Gadolinium by Extraction with Organophosphorus Acids

Theoretical Foundations of Chemical Engineering - The features of distribution are studied and a complex technology for the separation of samarium, europium, and gadolinium is proposed. This...