Development of an index based on fish,macroinvertebrates, phytoplankton,and physicochemical properties to assess urban aquatic ecosystems in Jinan,China

Because of the rapid growth in urbanization over recent decades, urban aquatic ecosystems have been subjected to unprecedented threats and challenges. In this study, we visited 48 sites, of which 14 were reservoir sites, in water bodies in Jinan, China, on six occasions in May, August, and October of 2014 and 2015. We sampled fish, macroinvertebrates, and phytoplankton assemblages and physicochemical factors at each site. We used the richness and diversity of fish, macroinvertebrates, and phytoplankton to evaluate the condition of the aquatic ecosystems of the river sites. We also evaluated the water quality of the reservoir sites using the physicochemical factors of the State Environmental Protection Administration of China. We classified the results into five levels—excellent, good, moderate, poor, and bad—with the comprehensive evaluation index (CEI). More than 40% of the sampling sites were in either poor or bad condition. Nearly half of the excellent or good sites were in the south of Jinan. The CEI was significantly different between the reference and impaired sites; it was significantly and positively correlated with the qualitative habitat evaluation index and was significantly and negatively correlated with conductivity, total alkalinity, and ammonia nitrogen.     

香蕉果酒带皮发酵对其品质和挥发性香气成分的影响

为了探究香蕉皮对香蕉果酒品质和风味的影响,该研究对带皮香蕉果酒和去皮香蕉果酒发酵过程中糖度、酒精度、总酸和多酚等理化指标进行测定,同时利用气相色谱-质谱联用技术测定两种果酒中挥发性香气物质,结果显示带皮香蕉果酒的酒精度为10.5% vol,低于去皮香蕉果酒的12.3% vol,但是发酵结束后带皮香蕉果酒中总酸（4.03 g/L）和感官评分（87.62）,要显著优于去皮香蕉果酒。此外,带皮香蕉果酒及其蒸馏酒中甲醇含量分别为120.20 mg/L和372.30 mg/L,远低于对应国家限量标准。挥发性风味物质分析结果显示香蕉酒中主要的风味物质为酯类和醇类,带皮香蕉果酒风味物质种类比去皮香蕉果酒更为丰富,其中乙酸乙酯（>8.10 mg/L）和3-甲基-1-丁醇（>15.78 mg/L）是香蕉果酒中主要的挥发性风味物质。因此香蕉皮的添加可以改善果酒品质和风味且不会显著提高果酒中甲醇的含量,但是对出酒率有一定的影响,该研究为实现食品原料的整体化综合利用、减少食品加工废弃物的生成拓宽了思路,同时也为开发高品质香蕉酒提供了参考。     

Interaction between β-lactoglobulin and lactase and its effect on enzymatic activity

The activity of Kluyveromyces lactis β-galactosidase increased when it was measured in the presence of either β-lactoglobulin or bovine serum albumin, whereas α-lactalbumin showed no effect on enzyme activity. Heating β-lactoglobulin further increased β-galactosidase activity. Affinity chromatography assays demonstrated that lactase bound specifically to β-lactoglobulin, resulting in enzyme activation. Heating β-lactoglobulin in the presence of lactose resulted in a reaction between the protein and the sugar (lactolation), which diminished the binding capacity of the protein to the enzyme and therefore its activating effect. It was concluded that β-lactoglobulin raises lactase activity through two different mechanisms, one of which depends on the release of sulfhydryl groups by heat treatment from the denatured protein, and the other a result of the ability of the native protein to bind the enzyme.     

Identification and field evaluation ofAnomala octiescostata (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) sex pheromone

Using GC-EAD, the sex pheromone of the scarab beetleAnomala octiescostata was identified to be a 8:2 binary mixture of (R,Z)-5-(–)-(oct-1-enyl)oxacyclopentan-2-one and (R,Z)-5-(–)-(dec-1-enyl)oxacyclopentan-2-one. These semiochemicals have been also reported as sex pheromone constituents of otherAnomala species, either geographically or seasonally isolated fromA. octiescostata. Synthetic sex pheromone was highly attractive in the field; 0.1 mg captured significantly more males than two virgin females. Buried traps were significantly more attractive than those positioned at 30, 90, and 150 cm above the ground. In a dose-response test (0.1–100 mg), no saturation due to overdose of pheromone was observed, but in most cases, two dosages differing by 10-fold were not significantly different. Response of males to traps baited with different ratios of the two components was tested in two experiments with randomized blocks and Latin-square designs. Deviation from the natural ratio (8:2) of sex pheromone did not significantly diminish the response of males. Peak flight activity of beetle was recorded at 9:00–10:00 AM JST on sunny days in the end of April 1993.Presented in part at the 10th Annual ISCE Meeting, July 31–August 4, 1993, Clearwater Beach, Florida.     

中温联合二甲基二碳酸盐对荔枝原汁品质的影响

该研究比较了二甲基二碳酸盐（Dimethyl Dicarbonate,DMDC）、中温及两者联合处理对荔枝原汁微生物及理化指标的影响。结果表明：荔枝原汁经DMDC或中温单独处理灭菌效果较差,联合处理组残留微生物最少,菌落总数、乳酸菌分别为0.41、0.36 lg CFU/mL,酵母菌和霉菌未检出;与新鲜荔枝汁相比,DMDC处理对荔枝原汁品质无影响,中温及联合处理组抗坏血酸和色泽无明显变化,总酚（总黄酮）分别增加了40.16%（7.16%）、38.01%（4.35%）;铁离子还原能力（清除DPPH自由基能力）分别提高了15.55%（11.85%）、7.61%（3.71%）,说明中温能促进酚类物质的释放,提高抗氧化活性。相关性分析显示,荔枝原汁的∆E与Vc呈负相关,抗氧化活性与总酚、总黄酮呈正相关;聚类热图分析与感官评价表明,联合处理能促进风味物质的释放,且不会造成明显的蒸煮味;联合处理组在4 ℃贮藏21 d的菌落总数均小于100 CFU/mL。综上,中温联合DMDC处理对荔枝原汁微生物有较好的灭菌效果,且对品质无不良影响,4 ℃贮藏期可达21 d,该研究为高品质荔枝原汁产业化提供了科学依据。     

Comparative evaluation of conventional and advanced frying methods on hydroxymethylfurfural and acrylamide formation in French fries

In this study, deep fat frying, microwave frying, air frying, and vacuum frying processes were used to mitigate acrylamide (AA) and hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) formation during the frying of French fries. The highest reduction of AA and HMF range was found in vacuum frying (61.42–81.14%), followed by air frying (59.2–78.7%), as compared to deep fat frying and microwave frying. Both these method samples also showed significantly (p < 0.05) lower browning index (BI) and CIE a* values. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to visualize the effects of the different frying methods on AA and HMF content. Vacuum frying and air frying were found to be alternative frying technologies to minimize AA and HMF content in French fries.     

Changes in the physicochemical,structural and emulsifying properties of chicken myofibrillar protein via microfluidization

Microfluidization is a novel and effective technology to improve the properties of myofibrillar protein. The effects of microfluidization with varying pressures (0–120 MPa) on the physicochemical, structural and emulsifying properties of chicken myofibrillar protein (CMP) were studied. Microfluidization treatment remarkably increased the absolute ζ-potential, contact angle, solubility, emulsifying ability and emulsifying stability of CMP. Simultaneously, the turbidity of CMP decreased. After microfluidization treatment, more α-helix structures were transformed into disordered structures, more hydrophobic and negatively charged groups were exposed, leading to improvements in CMP properties. After 90 MPa treatment, the absolute ζ-potential, storage modulus, loss modulus and dynamic apparent viscosity of CMP-camellia oil emulsion reached the maximum values. The hydrophobic interaction between CMP and camellia oil induced CMP to expose more hydrophobic and negatively charged groups, leading to the improved emulsifying properties of CMP. Our results demonstrate that microfluidization treatment has great potential to improve the product qualities of emulsion-type meat products.     

Combination system of pulsed ohmic heating and 365-nm UVA light-emitting diodes to enhance inactivation of foodborne pathogens in phosphate-buffered saline,milk, and orange juice

This study developed and investigated the combination system of pulsed ohmic heating (POH) and ultraviolet A light-emitting diode (UVA-LED) to enhance inactivation of pathogens in phosphate-buffered saline, milk, and orange juice. When Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium (6–8 log CFU/ml) in samples were subjected to the simultaneous combination of POH and UVA-LED at 50–65°C, the reduction levels increased >1 log CFU/ml compared with each treatment alone. After pathogens in PBS were subjected to the combination treatment at 65°C (50 s), the degree of intracellular ROS generation and lipid peroxidation were increased approximately 1.6 times than each treatment alone. Moreover, propidium iodide uptake values, which indicated cell membrane damage, for E. coli O157:H7 were 0.92, 14.22, and 19.92 after UVA-LED, POH, and their combination treatment, respectively. Therefore, the combination of POH and UVA-LED may possibly be applied as an effective hurdle technology for food safety.Industrial relevanceIt was identified that the combination treatment induced the generation of intracellular ROS; thereby causing lipid peroxidation and cell membrane damage of pathogens. However, the combination system has no effect on DNA damage of pathogens. In addition, there was no significant difference in the content of vitamin and malondialdehyde in milk and orange juice before and after the combination treatment. Thus, this research provides a fundamental database for the applicability of the combination system of POH and UVA-LED to the pasteurization process in the food industry.     

Understanding the influence of PEF treatment on minerals and lipid oxidation of wet- and dry-aged venison M. longissimus dorsi muscle

Pulse electric fields (PEF) treatment can be used to improve meat quality attributes, such as tenderness and mass transfer kinetics of dry ageing of meat. This study investigated the effect of PEF (high-PEF 10 kV, 50 Hz, 20 μs; low-PEF 2.5 kV, 50 Hz, 20 μs) and ageing method (wet- and dry-ageing) on venison mineral profiles, and lipid and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) oxidative stability. Twelve loins from six red deer were assigned to six groups: no-PEF dry-aged control, no-PEF control, wet-aged Low-PEF, dry-aged Low-PEF, dry-aged High-PEF, wet-aged High-PEF. Secondary oxidation products contents were not affected by PEF treatment (p > 0.05), but were affected by dry ageing (p < 0.05). CLA was stable across PEF treatments and different ageing regimes (p > 0.05). PEF treatments did not have any effect on minerals (p > 0.05). This study validates the safety of using PEF in venison processing with limited detrimental oxidative modifications.Industrial relevance - PEF treatment and the dry-ageing regimes applied to venison in the present study did not produce excessive oxidative by-products that could compromise product quality. The application of both PEF treatments (HPEF 10 kV, 50 Hz, 5 μs; LPEF 2.5 kV, 50 Hz, 5 μs) could potentially improve the drying of venison with a low risk of increasing oxidation.