Patulin in South African commercial apple products

A survey on the presence of the mycotoxin, patulin, was conducted from 1996 to 1998 on sixty locally produced commercial apple products purchased from retail outlets in South Africa. Twenty-three of the 31 fruit juice samples had no detectable patulin contamination. The 8 contaminated juice samples had patulin concentrations ranging between 5 and 45 μg/l with a mean of 10 μg/l patulin. Of 6 whole fruit products, 2 samples were contaminated with 10 μg/g patulin. From 10 infant fruit juices, 6 samples had patulin concentrations ranging between 5 and 20 μg/l. The infant fruit purees showed no detectable patulin contamination. The low incidence of patulin in South African commercial apple products indicates that the quality of the fruit and the manufacturing practices are of a high standard.     

Determination of patulin in solid and semisolid apple and pear products marketed in Argentina

Patulin is an important index of quality and several methods are described for apple juice, but there is a lack of information about other products. The aim of this study was to implement an analytical method for solid and semisolid apple and pear products marketed in Argentina to evaluate patulin contamination. This method used a depectinization step and rapid clean-up with (SPE) Multisep®228 AflaPat multifunctional columns.The results showed that 21.6% of 51 products were contaminated (range 17–221 μg/kg, average of positive samples 61.7 μg/kg), but the highest levels were found in apple puree with 50% contaminated samples (average of positive samples 123 μg/kg). Efforts to decrease patulin on apple puree should be made.     

Patulin in homogenized fruit's and tomato products

Patulin is a mycotoxin produced by microscopic fungi belonging to the Penicillium and Aspergillus genera. The natural occurrence of patulin in baby food products marketed in Italy is frequently detectable in moldy fruits and their derivatives. The EC Regulation 1881/06 has limited the presence of patulin in baby food to 10 μg/kg or 10 μg/L on the basis of a Provisional Maximum Tolerable Daily Intake (PMTDI) of 0.4 μg/kg BW set by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA). A total of 80 homogenized baby foods were analyzed to evaluate the exposure of babies to patulin through the consumption of these products. The experimental tests have revealed significant differences between the products from organic production and those in traditional production in all the categories analyzed. The tomato concentrates showed an average of patulin concentration of 7.15 ng/ml of product; the tomato sauce of 4.05 ng/ml; the tomato sauce to the baby foods of 5.23 ng/ml; the homogenized apple of 0.85 ng/ml; the homogenized pear of 0.79 ng/ml. The tomato sauce conventional vs organic crops showed an average of 5.75 vs 3.49 ng/ml, respectively; the homogenized pear conventional vs organic ones of 0.72 vs 0.76 ng/ml, respectively; the homogenized apple conventional vs organic ones of 1.92 vs 0.13 ng/ml, respectively. The low incidence of the patulin level in Italian products is a clear parameter to establish the quality of the fruits and their derived products.     

Patulin assessment and fungi identification in organic and conventional fruits and derived products

In this study, patulin levels in apples and tomatoes obtained in conventional and organic farms with 0 and 100% of rotten area, were determined by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) to assess the influence of the production system with patulin content. Additionally, mould species were isolated and identified using classic morphological techniques and a DNA barcode system based on nrITS, β-tubulin and calmodulin genes. The most frequently isolated genera were Rhizopus, Mucor, Alternaria, Cladosporium, Botrytis, Aspergillus and Penicillium. Higher patulin levels were found in samples contaminated by Penicillium expansum. Patulin levels were not significantly different in samples obtained from the two production system (conventional and organic). Among the three studied apple varieties, Golden delicious was the most contaminated with patulin followed by Reineta. Fuji apples with 0 and 100% of rotten area did not present quantifiable patulin levels. A survey for first time realized in commercialized tomato products showed that 35.7% of the samples (10 of 28) contained patulin in levels ranging from 3.22 to 47.72 μg/kg. In apple juices, patulin levels ranged from 1.86 to 45.47 μg/kg, which is below the maximum legal requirement (50 μg/kg).     

Incidence and level of patulin contamination in pure and mixed apple juices marketed in Italy

A survey on the occurrence of patulin was conducted during 2005 on commercial pure apple juices (53 samples) and mixed apple juices (82 samples) marketed in Italy. The current study was undertaken to investigate the possible influence of the agro-food production process employed (conventional or organic), of the fruit percentage in the commercial product (higher or lower than 50%) and of the type of apple juice (clear or cloudy) on the occurrence and level of patulin contamination. Patulin could be quantified in 34.8% of the samples ranging from 1.58 to 55.41 μg kg⁻¹. With the exception of one sample, the level of patulin was lower than 50 μg kg⁻¹, the maximum permitted threshold in fruit juices according to the European legislation. Mean levels of patulin were significantly lower in mixed apple juices (4.54 μg kg⁻¹) than in pure apple juices (9.32 μg kg⁻¹). Levels of patulin contamination were comparable in clear and cloudy juices. A similar incidence of positive samples was found in conventional and organic apple based juices, and the magnitude between the mean contamination levels, although higher in organic (10.92 μg kg⁻¹) than in conventional juices (4.77 μg kg⁻¹), was not statistically significant (p = 0.771; Mann–Whitney test). The magnitude between the means of patulin contamination in juices containing more than 50% fruit (11.26 μg kg⁻¹) and in juices with 50% or less fruit (3.35 μg kg⁻¹) was statistically significant (p = 0.016; Mann–Whitney test).     

A survey of concentration of aflatoxin M1 in dairy products marketed in Turkey

The aim of this study was to examine the presence of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) in dairy product samples by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Aflatoxin M1 were found in 135 (64%) out of 210 analyzed samples. Only 7% of dairy product samples were contaminated at levels above the legal limits. AFM1 was detected in 43 (86%) of milk samples (ranging from 1 to 30 ng/l), in 38 (63%) of cheese (ranging from 12 to 378 ng/kg), in 28 (56%) of yoghurt (ranging from 2.5 to 78 ng/kg) and in 26 (52%) of dairy dessert samples (ranging from 1.5 to 80 ng/kg). None of the raw milk samples contained levels above the Turkish legal limit. The AFM1 levels of 7(14%) yoghurt, 5 (10%) dairy dessert and 3 (5%) cheese samples were above the limits of the Turkish Food Codex. It is emphasized that the presence of AFM1 in dairy products may be regarded as a potential hazard for human health.     

Aflatoxin M1 contamination in dairy products marketed in Iran during winter and summer

In the present study, 298 dairy product samples consisting of pasteurized milk (91 samples), yoghurt (68 samples), white cheese (72 samples), butter (31 samples) and ice cream (36 samples) collected from popular markets in four large Iranian cities were examined for aflatoxin M₁ (AFM₁) by thin layer chromatography (TLC) technique. The toxin was detected in 66 (72.5%) pasteurized milk samples (mean: 0.052 μg/l; range: 0.013–0.250 μg/l), 45 (66.1%) yoghurt samples (mean: 0.032 μg/kg; range: 0.015–0.119 μg/kg), 59 (81.9%) white cheese samples (mean: 0.297 μg/kg; range: 0.030–1.200 μg/kg), 8 (25.8%) butter samples (mean: 0.005 μg/kg; range: 0.013–0.026 μg/kg) and 25 (69.4%) ice cream samples (mean: 0.041 μg/kg; range: 0.015–0.132 μg/kg). The concentration of AFM₁ in 36.2%, 20.6%, 30.5%, 9.6% and 27.7% of pasteurized milk, yoghurt, white cheese, butter and ice cream samples, respectively, were higher than Iranian national standard limits. Levels of AFM₁ in samples of pasteurized milk, yoghurt, butter and ice cream collected in winter were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than those collected in summer. In the case of white cheese, level of AFM₁ was higher in winter than in summer, but the difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). The results indicated that the contamination of the dairy products in such a level could be a serious public health problem at the moment.     

Prevalence and antimicrobial resistance patterns of Listeria species isolated from poultry products marketed in Iran

In the present study, a total of 402 poultry product samples composed of raw, ready-to-cook (RTC) and ready-to-eat (RTE) products were examined for the presence of Listeria spp. The total contamination rate with Listeria spp. in poultry products was 33.3% with a higher rate of contamination in warm seasons than in cold seasons. The most species recovered was Listeria innocua (46.3%); the remaining isolates were Listeria monocytogenes (38.8%), Listeria ivanovii (9.7%) and Listeria seeligeri (5.22%). L. monocytogenes was detected in 14.1%, 12.2% and 11.4% of raw, RTC and RTE poultry products, respectively. Serotype 4b (44.9%) was the predominant serotype of L. monocytogenes isolates followed by 1/2a (40.8%), 1/2b (10.2%) and 1/2c (4.08%). Considering seasonal variability, 1/2a was the most prevalent serotype in warm seasons, while 4b was predominant in cold seasons. The Listeria spp. particularly L. monocytogenes isolates were highly resistant to ampicillin, penicillin, fluroquinolones and tetracycline. The results indicate that high prevalence of Listeria spp. especially L. monocytogenes in poultry products, and resistance of the isolates to the antimicrobials commonly used to treat human listeriosis could be a potential health hazard for consumers. In addition, prevalence of L. monocytogenes serotype 4b that involved in the majority of foodborne outbreaks of human listeriosis is a public health concern.     

降低丙烯腈成品的杂质含量

对成品丙烯腈色谱图中的未知杂质峰进行了定性、定量分析。探讨了生产装置解吸塔灵敏点温度、压力、溶剂水的温度和流量、成品塔成品采出板温度、回流量等多个工艺参数与丙烯腈中口恶唑含量的相关性 ,确定了降低灵敏点温度是降低成品丙烯腈中口恶唑含量的有效手段并付诸实施 ,将口恶唑的质量分数由 2× 1 0 -4 降低到了 2× 1 0 -5～ 3× 1 0 -5     

Survey of total mercury and arsenic content in infant cereals marketed in Spain and estimated dietary intake

Due to the fact that infants and children are especially sensitive to mercury and arsenic exposure, predominantly through diet, a strict control of the most widely consumed infant foods, especially infant cereals, is of paramount importance. Levels of both total mercury and arsenic in 91 different infant cereals from ten different manufacturers in Spain were determined by flow injection adapted to cold vapor and hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry, respectively. Cereals were assessed in terms of the different types, the predominating cereal in the formulation, the added ingredients, and whether the cereal was organically or conventionally obtained. In general, the content of toxic elements (median (Q₁; Q₃)) found in infant cereals based on conventionally obtained raw materials (n = 74, Hg: 2.11 (0.42; 4.58), As: 21.0 (9.4; 50.9) μg Kg⁻¹) was lower than in cereals produced by organic methods (n = 17, Hg: 5.48 (4.54; 7.64), As: 96.3 (87.5; 152.3) μg Kg⁻¹). Mercury content in infant cereals shows the higher values in those formulations with ingredients susceptible to particulate contamination such as gluten-free or cacao-based cereals. The highest arsenic content appears in the rice-based cereals. The mercury and the inorganic arsenic dietary intakes for infants fed on the infant cereals studied were assessed, taking into account the different stages of growth. Organic infant cereals based on cocoa showed the highest risk intakes of mercury, very close to exceeding the intake reference. Just the opposite, 95% of the organically produced infant cereals and 70% of the conventional gluten-free infant cereals showed an inadmissible risk of arsenic intake. Thus, it seems prudent to call for continued efforts in standardizing routine quality control and in reducing arsenic levels in infant cereals; in addition it is essential that relevant legislation be established and regulated by EC regarding these two toxic elements.     

Effect of processing of apple puree on patulin content

Mycotoxin patulin represents potential health hazard especially in apple based baby food. There are already a lot of data to predict the fate of the toxin during the processing of fruits, but not enough for the apple puree and the existing data for apple puree are not usually consistent. The objective of the study was to evaluate the course of patulin degradation during the processing of apple puree under the conditions close to the real production process. The apple samples were spiked with patulin at four levels of concentration (539 μg/kg, 140 μg/kg, 23 μg/kg and <2 μg/kg). The patulin content changes during the processing were followed. The samples were taken after the homogenization, pulping, pasteurization and aseptic packaging. All operations of apple puree production contributed to patulin reduction. The principle operation was pulping, where the patulin levels were reduced from 29% to 80% of original content.     

Nitrite level of pickled vegetables in Northeast China

Nitrite is commonly present in pickled vegetables. Nitrite has been proven to have adverse effects on health, including changing the normal form of hemoglobin and the formation of carcinogenic nitrosamines. The aim of our study was to determine the levels of nitrite in pickled vegetable samples consumed in Harbin, China. In this study, 218 samples of pickled turnip (PT) (n = 42, packaged (PK) = 19; unpackaged (UPK) = 23), pickled tuber mustard (PTM) (n = 44, PK = 23; UPK = 21), pickled cucumber (PCC) (n = 48, PK = 25; UPK = 23), and pickled cabbage (PCB) (n = 84, PK = 39; UPK = 45) were analyzed between October 2011 and December 2011, using colorimetric nitrite assay based on the Griess reaction. A nitrite level of <5 mg/kg was normally predominant in 147 (67%) samples of the investigated pickled vegetables, ranging from 0.01 mg/kg to 42.03 mg/kg, while a nitrite level of >20 mg/kg was detected in 9 (4%) samples. The overall nitrite content was 4.02 ± 0.62 mg/kg for PT, 4.52 ± 1.07 mg/kg for PTM, 3.91 ± 0.69 mg/kg for PCC, and 4.86 ± 0.80 mg/kg for PCB. The content of nitrite in unpackaged pickled vegetables (PT, 5.47 ± 0.89; PTM, 6.84 ± 2.02; PCC, 5.32 ± 1.27; PCB, 6.41 ± 1.28; and total, 6.08 ± 0.71 mg/kg) was significantly higher than those in packaged products (PT, 2.68 ± 0.72; PTM, 2.30 ± 0.55; PCC, 2.62 ± 0.54; PCB, 3.08 ± 0.81; and total, 2.73 ± 0.36 mg/kg) (P < 0.05). The variance in the concentration of nitrite in the pickled vegetables probably resulted from differences in quality, processing technique, and storage condition of the pickled vegetables. Our results indicated that, in China, low level nitrite is widely present in pickled vegetables. It is therefore important to assess the content of nitrite in pickled vegetables in China.     

Application of pulsed light to patulin reduction in McIlvaine buffer and apple products

Numerous studies around the world have reported the occurrence of patulin in commercialized apple products. The persistence of this mycotoxin in apple products indicates that current methods used to reduce it during the manufacturing process are not entirely successful and reflects the need to evaluate new detoxification methods. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of pulsed light (PL) dose on patulin degradation in McIlvaine buffer, apple juice and apple purée. The exposure of all samples to PL doses between 2.4 and 35.8 J/cm² resulted in a significant decrease in patulin levels. Patulin reduction in McIlvaine buffer did not depend markedly on the initial concentration of the mycotoxin. At the maximum dose tested, the remaining average patulin level dissolved in McIlvaine buffer was approximately 5–15%, while in apple juice the values declined up to 22%. In apple purée naturally contaminated with 29 μg/kg of patulin, exposure to a PL dose of 12 J/cm² provoked a 51% reduction in patulin concentration, while no residual contamination was detected for higher irradiation times.These results suggested that PL treatment would be a potential alternative method to reduce patulin contamination in apple products. However, further investigations need to be conducted to evaluate toxicological safety of patulin degradation product(s).     

中国东北地区的构造格局与盆地演化

东北地区不是海西期褶皱变质带(或造山带),而是早石炭世以来拼合成统一的复合地块,我们称为"佳木斯-兴蒙地块"。东北地区上古生界不是中-新生代盆地的结晶基底,而是具有准盖层性质的陆相-海相沉积盖层。晚古生代海相沉积建造中,暗色泥岩和碳酸盐岩发育,具有潜在的生烃潜力,是东北地区油气资源勘查的重要新层系。提出以嘉荫-牡丹江断裂和嫩江-开鲁断裂为界,将东北地区中-新生代盆地划分为西部、中部和东部三大盆地群,并确定了各盆地的成因类型、石油地质特征及时空演化规律。     

中国东北地区古生界油气前景展望

中国古生界油气勘探取得了重大进展,在塔里木、四川、鄂尔多斯等盆地发现多个大中型油气田,但对中国东北地区古生界油气资源量仍存有分歧。在前人工作基础上,总结探讨了中国东北地区古生界地层沉积、油气资源潜力、成油组合及成藏条件,并指明了油气勘探方向。研究表明:中国东北地区晚古生代由额尔古纳、松嫩-张广才岭、佳木斯及兴凯等微陆块组成;该地区古生界地层发育于前震旦系结晶变质基底之上,发育较为齐全,下古生界为海相沉积,上古生界为海陆交互相沉积;东北地区岩浆活动十分强烈,岩性齐全,海西期岩浆活动最为突出,以中酸性火山岩为主;东北地区古生界地层发育齐全,具多套烃源岩及储盖组合,油气成藏条件良好,以致密气为主,是今后天然气勘探的重要接替领域。     

CNPC Constructs Its First LNG Terminal in Northeast China

China National Petroleum Corporation （CNPC） broke ground in mid-April for the construction of its first liquefied natural gas （LNG） terminal in Dalian, a port city in northeastern Liaoning Province. This project, with a total investment of over 10 billion yuan （about $1.4 billion）, consists of a wharf, a receiving facility and transportation pipelines. It is designed to receive supplies from Qatar, Australia and other overseas markets. CNPC is also building a LNG receiving facility in Rudong county of Eastern China＇s Jiangsu Province. Experts predicted that by 2020 China would import 10 million tons of LNG annually, stimulating the interests of oil giants to build LNG projects.     

石油氧化产物中羟值的测定与研究

文章介绍了一种测定石油氧化物中羟值的简便方法--乙酰化法.该方法利用乙酰化试剂酯化石油氧化产物中的羟基,然后用氢氧化钠溶液中和酯化和水解过程中生成的乙酸,通过样品和空白样消耗氢氧化钠溶液的体积之差来求得羟值.该方法具有操作简便、快速、准确等优点,可用于常规方法无法测量的复杂混合物中羟值的测定.     

Reduction of Patulin Content in Apple Juice Using Activated Carbone

The mycotoxin, patulin （4-hydroxy-4H-furo [3, 2c] pyran-2 [6H]-one）, is produced by a number of fungi common to fruit and vegetable-based products, most notably apples. Patulin contamination within apple products poses a serious health risk to consumers. Studies done on laboratory animals have demonstrated that patulin has a broad spectrum of toxicity, including mutagen city and carcinogenicity. The aim of the experiment was studying influence of selectively acting activated carbon powder--Ercarbon SH （Erbsloh, Germany） which is special produced for lowering HMF （hydroxy methyl furfural）, on reduction of patulin content in clear apple juice. Industrial apple row material with some damaged parts was pressed, juice was pasteurized at 95 ℃ during 2 min. After cooling on 55 ℃, enzymatic treated and clarified juice were filtered by 0.45 [am pore sizes membrane filter, Apple clear juice sample was divided for five parts. The samples of apple juice were diluted to 11.5° Brix and contacted with concentrations of 2, 2.5, 3 and 3.5 g/L activated carbon powder for 30 min. After filtration in the experimental samples, putulin was quantitatively determined by HPLC （high performance liquid chromatography with UV） detector at 276 nm. The research revealed that the best results were achieved by treatment with activated carbon in its powder form at concentration of 2.5 g/L with 30 min contact time.     

东北地区早白垩世植物群组合序列及时代

将中国东北地区早白垩世的植物群划分为５个组合，由早到晚为：Ｏｎｙｃｈｉｏｐｓｉｓ－Ｇｉｎｋｇｏｓｉｂｉｒｉｃａ组合，代表层位为冀北地区和辽西地区的九佛堂组；Ａｃａｎｔｈｏｐｔｅｒｉｓ－Ｇｉｎｋｇｏｃｏｒｉａｃｅａ组合，代表层位为霍林河盆地霍林河组下含煤段和海拉尔盆地大磨拐河组；ＲｕｆｆｏｒｄｉａＤｒｙｏｐｔｅｒｉｔｅｓ组合，代表层位为阜新盆地阜新组（水泉段除外）等；Ｃｔｅｎｉｓｌｙｒａｔａ－Ｃｈｉｌｉｎｉａ组合，代表层位为阜新盆地阜新组水泉段、蛟河盆地杉松组；早期被子植物组合，代表层位为延吉盆地大拉子组和松辽盆地泉头组。各组合的地质时期为：梁赞期到凡兰吟期，凡兰吟期至欧特里夫早期，欧特里夫晚期至巴雷姆期，阿普特期至阿尔比早期，阿尔比中、晚期。参２８（梁大新摘）