Antimicrobial residues survey by LC-MS in food-producing animals in Lebanon

ABSTRACT

The treatment of animals with antimicrobial products may lead to the contamination of edible tissues by their residues, which may represent a risk to human health. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the level of antimicrobial residues in food-producing animals (chicken, beef, and milk) in Lebanon. A total of 310 samples were collected and analysed using an LC-MS/MS for the determination of 48 compounds belonging to different families in order to map their compliance according to the European Commission decision 2002/657/EC. Results show that 60% of the analysed samples were not contaminated by any residue, while 12% presented a concentration higher than the MRLs for tetracyclines, sulphonamides, quinolones, and macrolides. Results revealed that chicken were the most contaminated by antimicrobial residues, when compared to beef and milk. The obtained results demonstrate the uncontrolled use of antimicrobials in some Lebanese farms and claim for better management of livestock.     

Oil Families and Their Potential Sources in the Southern Gulf of Suez, Egypt

Four oil families are identified in the southern Gulf of Suez, through high-resolution geochemical studies including gas chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and carbon isotope analyses. Biological features characterize oils in family 1a, suggesting tertiary carbonate source rocks for these oils, rich in type II organic matter and deposited under anoxic depositional environment. Family 1b oil shows minor variations in the source of organic matter and the depositional environment, as it was derived from carbonate source rock with more algal and bacterial contribution and minor input of terrestrial organic sources, deposited under less saline condition compared to family 1a oil. Family 2 oil, although genetically related to family 1a oil, has some distinctive features, such as diasterane to sterane and pristane to phytane ratios, which suggest clay-rich source rocks and a more oxic depositional environment. Also, the lack of oleanane indicates pre-tertiary source rocks for this oil. In contrast, family 3 oil is of mixed sources (marine and non-marine), generated from low sulfur and clay-rich source rock of tertiary and/or younger age. Family 4 oil seems to be mixed from family 1b and family 3 oils, sourced mainly from carbonate source rocks rich in clay minerals with algal and bacterial contributions. Family 4 oil is highly mature, family 1b oil lies within equilibrium values (peak oil generation stage), while the other families are more or less near equilibrium.     

Fatigue Behavior of a Pavement Foundation with Recycled Aggregate and Waste HDPE Strips

A laboratory investigation was conducted to evaluate the fatigue behavior of an alternative pavement foundation material containing cement stabilized reclaimed crushed aggregate. Class C fly ash, and waste-plastic strip [high density polyethylene (HDPE)] reinforcement. The primary motivation for this research was to evaluate a composite that contained more than 90% recycled materials for use as an alternative foundation layer underneath conventional flexible or rigid pavement. The specific objectives of this study were (1) to evaluate the flexural fatigue behavior of the new composite, and (2) to evaluate the accumulation of fatigue damage in the material. The results indicate that the fatigue resistance of this material is similar to other traditional stabilized pavement materials. It was found that the dynamic elastic modulus remained approximately constant (degraded slowly) for most specimens up to the end of fatigue life. Fatigue damage computed using a dissipated energy approach showed that the damage accumulation in this material approximately follows Miner's rule for cumulative damage, which is often used in pavement engineering.     

Analysis and Optimization of Noise in Bipolar RF Harmonic Mixers

A noise analysis of bipolar harmonic mixers (BHM) used for direct-conversion receivers is presented in this paper. Analytical and simulated results for the transfer function of the mixer are presented. Simple analytical expressions describing noise contribution from all sources are derived. Estimation of flicker noise quite agrees with harmonic-balance simulation results. Based on the derived expressions, total time average noise power spectral density (PSD) at the output is compared with simulation results. For the recommended regions of operation, error is less than 20%. The overall BHM noise figure (NF) is calculated and optimized based on a simple extracted formula. Errors introduced by analysis remain within a 1.5-dB margin with respect to simulation results. The validity of analysis for high frequencies is justified. The effect of flicker noise coefficient on the overall mixer NF is compared for different available processes.     

An investigation of pore cracking in titanium welds

Two welded Ti-6A1-4V pressure vessels leaked prematurely in service. The leaks were caused by cracks emanating from weld porosity. The cracks originated during fabrication, with subsequent growth in service leading to the formation of the leak paths. Pore cracking is thought to be caused by a mechanism that involves both sustained-load and cyclic contributions, with the former being the more prominent. It is shown that the tendency for cracking is influenced by pore position and that pore size is not a deciding factor in that regard. The factors that govern pore cracking are discussed, and the possible role of interstitial embrittlement is assessed.     

Effect of chlormequat and alar on some biochemical constituents in tomato plants and fruits

The field experiment was conducted to study the effect of various levels of chlormequat (CCC) and alar on the biochemical changes in tomato plants and fruits at different stages of growth. This experiment included spraying with chlormequat and alar separately in two equal doses (250, 500 and 1000 ppm CCC or alar 25 and 40 days after transplanting). The different levels of chlormequat decreased the accumulation of dry matter in tomato plants, but alar increased it. Chlorophyll a, b, total chlorophyll and carotenoids content of tomato plants increased by the application of CCC or alar. The highest increase of concentration of chlorophyll a, b and carotenoids in tomato plants were found by spraying with 500 ppm alar or CCC. The application of CCC and alar declined the percentage of carbohydrates and the highest decrease resulted by adding of 1000 ppm alar or CCC. Alar caused an increase in the percentage of total nitrogen at the different stages of growth. The concentration of P, K, Ca and Mg increased by the foliar spray of all treatments. Alar application at all used levels significantly increased the yield and also the weight of fruits. Highest plant productivity was obtained by using alar and CCC at 250 ppm, followed by 500 ppm. However, the highest concentration (1000 ppm) depressed the plant productivity. The concentration of juice, total soluble solids and vitamin C in tomato fruits increased at most of the levels added. But the percentage of total sugars and total acidity seemed to exert another trend. The highest concentration of N, P, K, Ca and Mg in fruits was obtained by foliar application of 500 ppm CCC or alar.     

50-nm Self-Aligned and “Standard” T-gate InP pHEMT Comparison: The Influence of Parasitics on Performance at the 50-nm Node

Continued research into the development of III-V high-electron mobility transistors (HEMTs), specifically the minimization of the device gate length, has yielded the fastest performance reported for any three terminal devices to date. In addition, more recent research has begun to focus on reducing the parasitic device elements such as access resistance and gate fringing capacitance, which become crucial for short gate length device performance maximization. Adopting a self-aligned T-gate architecture is one method used to reduce parasitic device access resistance, but at the cost of increasing parasitic gate fringing capacitances. As the device gate length is then reduced, the benefits of the self-aligned gate process come into question, as at these ultrashort-gate dimensions, the magnitude of the static fringing capacitances will have a greater impact on performance. To better understand the influence of these issues on the dc and RF performance of short gate length InP pHEMTs, the authors present a comparison between In_0.7Ga_0.3As channel 50-nm self-aligned and "standard" T-gate devices. Figures of merit for these devices include transconductance greater than 1.9 S/mm, drive current in the range 1.4 A/mm, and fT up to 490 GHz. Simulation of the parasitic capacitances associated with the self-aligned gate structure then leads a discussion concerning the realistic benefits of incorporating the self-aligned gate process into a sub-50-nm HEMT system     

A Simple Quasi-2D Numerical Model of a Thermogage Furnace

A simple quasi-2D model for the temperature distribution in a graphite tube furnace is presented. The model is used to estimate the temperature gradients in the furnace at temperatures above which contact sensors can be used, and to assist in the redesign of the furnace heater element to improve the temperature gradients. The Thermogage graphite tube furnace is commonly used in many NMIs as a blackbody source for radiation thermometer calibration and as a spectral irradiance standard. Although the design is robust, easy to operate and can change temperature rapidly, it is limited by its effective emissivity of typically 99.5–99.8%. At NMIA, the temperature gradient along the tube is assessed using thermocouples up to about 1,500°C, and the blackbody emissivity is calculated from this. However, at higher operating temperatures (up to 2,900°C), it is impractical to measure the gradient, and we propose to numerically model the temperature distributions used to calculate emissivity. In another paper at this conference, the model is used to design an optimized heater tube with improved temperature gradients. In the model presented here, the 2-D temperature distribution is simplified to separate the axial and radial temperature distributions within the heater tube and the surrounding insulation. Literature data for the temperature dependence of the electrical and thermal conductivities of the graphite tube were coupled to models for the thermal conductivity of the felt insulation, particularly including the effects of allowing for a gas mixture in the insulation. Experimental measurements of the temperature profile up to 1,500°C and radial heat fluxes up to 2,200°C were compared to the theoretical predictions of the model and good agreement was obtained.     

Fabrication of an optically driven pH gradient generator based on self-assembled proton pumps

Optically manipulating the local pH of a target solution in a microchannel, or reservoir, provides a mechanism for activating and controlling a variety of biological and chemical processes on Lab-on-a-Chip (LOC) devices and micro-total analysis systems (μ-TAS). A microscale pH gradient generator that exploits the light-activated molecular proton pumps found in the purple membranes (PM) of bacteriorhodopsin is described in this paper. The photo-electro-chemical transducer is an ultrathin layer (~13?nm) of oriented PM patches self-assembled on an Au-coated porous substrate. A biotin labeling and streptavidin molecular recognition technique is used to ensure that the extracellular side of all PM patches is attached to the porous substrate enabling unidirectional and efficient transport of ions across the transducer surface. The photo-induced proton pumps generate a flow of ions that produce a measurable change in pH between the separated solutions. The self-assembly procedure is experimentally quantified based on the capacitance characteristics of the bR membranes. The investigation confirms that the transducer is covered with the bR proton pumps at a mass density of 2.33?ng/cm². Experimental tests also show that the proposed transducer can repeatedly generate pH gradients as high as 0.42 and absolute voltage differences as high as 25?mV when illuminated by an 18?mW, 568?nm light source. Furthermore, the ΔpH is observed to be nonlinear with respect to light intensity and exposure time. The ΔpH of the target solution is sufficient to cause a phenolphthalein indicator dye to change color or an ionic hydrogel micro-valve to expand.