Sensory and Physicochemical Studies of Thermally Micronized Chickpea (Cicer arietinum) and Green Lentil (Lens culinaris) Flours as Binders in Low‐Fat Beef Burgers

Pulses are known to be nutritious foods but are susceptible to oxidation due to the reaction of lipoxygenase (LOX) with linolenic and linoleic acids which can lead to off flavors caused by the formation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Infrared micronization at 130 and 150 °C was investigated as a heat treatment to determine its effect on LOX activity and VOCs of chickpea and green lentil flour. The pulse flours were added to low‐fat beef burgers at 6% and measured for consumer acceptability and physicochemical properties. Micronization at 130 °C significantly decreased LOX activity for both flours. The lentil flour micronized at 150 °C showed a further significant decrease in LOX activity similar to that of the chickpea flour at 150 °C. The lowering of VOCs was accomplished more successfully with micronization at 130 °C for chickpea flour while micronization at 150 °C for the green lentil flour was more effective. Micronization minimally affected the characteristic fatty acid content in each flour but significantly increased omega‐3 and n‐6 fatty acids at 150 °C in burgers with lentil and chickpea flours, respectively. Burgers with green lentil flour micronized at 130 and 150 °C, and chickpea flour micronized at 150 °C were positively associated with acceptability. Micronization did not affect the shear force and cooking losses of the burgers made with both flours. Formulation of low‐fat beef burgers containing 6% micronized gluten‐free binder made from lentil and chickpea flour is possible based on favorable results for physicochemical properties and consumer acceptability.     

Likelihood of a marine vessel accident from wind energy development in the Atlantic

Offshore wind energy development is planned for areas off the Atlantic coast. Many of the planned wind development areas fall within traditional commercial vessel routes. In order to mitigate possible hazards to ships and to wind turbines, it is important to understand the potential for increased risk to commercial shipping from the presence of wind farms. Risk is identified as the likelihood that an occurrence will happen, and the consequences of that occurrence, should it occur. This paper deals with the likelihood of commercial vessel accidents, because of the development of offshore wind energy along the US Atlantic coast. Using Automatic Identification System (AIS) data, historical shipping routes between ports in the Atlantic were identified, from Maine to the Florida Straits. The AIS data were also used as inputs to a numerical model that can simulate cargo, tanker and tug/towing vessel movement along typical routes. The model was used to recreate present day vessel movement, as well as to simulate future routing that may be required to avoid wind farms. By comparing the present and future routing of vessels, an analysis of potential maritime accidents was used to determine the increased marginal risk of vessel collisions, groundings and allisions with stationary objects, because of the presence of wind farms. The outcome of the analysis showed little increase in vessel collisions or allisions, and a decrease in groundings as more vessels were forced seaward by the wind farms. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

餐厨垃圾与污泥厌氧发酵产气动力学特性研究

对餐厨垃圾、污水厂污泥以及餐厨垃圾与污泥混合甲烷发酵的产气能力与动力学特性进行了实验分析,餐厨垃圾在中温和高温发酵的产甲烷潜能分别是400和426 mL CH4?gVS−1,经过120℃、20 min蒸煮除油后的餐厨垃圾在中温和高温发酵的产甲烷潜能分别是418和531 mL CH4?gVS−1。经Gompertz模型计算,除油后餐厨垃圾的最大产甲烷速率Rmax比除油前提高了49.8%（中温）和19.0%（高温）,但餐厨垃圾中固体有机物的产甲烷速率变化不明显。在餐厨垃圾机械破碎匀浆过程中,部分固体有机物被液化,中、高温发酵产气过程的一级动力学呈现两阶段特征,液相有机物在中温发酵的产甲烷速率（速率常数k = 0.1955 d−1）略快于高温（k = 0.1543 d−1）;而固体有机物在高温条件下的产甲烷速率（k = 0.0804 d−1）快于中温（k = 0.0388 d−1）。除油后餐厨垃圾中的固体有机物和污泥高温发酵的产甲烷速率也快于中温发酵,表明高温发酵有利于提高固体有机物的产气速率。污泥的产气潜能较低,产气速率慢,与餐厨垃圾共发酵有助于调节碱度和防止发酵体系的酸化。     

Crystallographic Texture Evolution of a Zinc Sheet Subjected to Different Strain Paths

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A - The use of zinc sheets has largely increased in the last years, fundamentally because of new tendencies in architecture and, at the same time, due to...     

Neoantigen-Specific T-Cell Immune Responses: The Paradigm of NPM1-Mutated Acute Myeloid Leukemia

The C-terminal aminoacidic sequence from NPM1-mutated protein, absent in normal human tissues, may serve as a leukemia-specific antigen and can be considered an ideal target for NPM1-mutated acute myeloid leukemia (AML) immunotherapy. Different in silico instruments and in vitro/ex vivo immunological platforms have identified the most immunogenic epitopes from NPM1-mutated protein. Spontaneous development of endogenous NPM1-mutated-specific cytotoxic T cells has been observed in patients, potentially contributing to remission maintenance and prolonged survival. Genetically engineered T cells, namely CAR-T or TCR-transduced T cells, directed against NPM1-mutated peptides bound to HLA could prospectively represent a promising therapeutic approach. Although either adoptive or vaccine-based immunotherapies are unlikely to be highly effective in patients with full-blown leukemia, these strategies, potentially in combination with immune-checkpoint inhibitors, could be promising in maintaining remission or preemptively eradicating persistent measurable residual disease, mainly in patients ineligible for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). Alternatively, neoantigen-specific donor lymphocyte infusion derived from healthy donors and targeting NPM1-mutated protein to selectively elicit graft-versus-leukemia effect may represent an attractive option in subjects experiencing post-HSCT relapse. Future studies are warranted to further investigate dynamics of NPM1-mutated-specific immunity and explore whether novel individualized immunotherapies may have potential clinical utility in NPM1-mutated AML patients.     

Local Therapies and Modulation of Tumor Surrounding Stroma in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma: A Translational Approach

Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare and aggressive neoplasm of the pleural mesothelium, mainly associated with asbestos exposure and still lacking effective therapies. Modern targeted biological strategies that have revolutionized the therapy of other solid tumors have not had success so far in the MPM. Combination immunotherapy might achieve better results over chemotherapy alone, but there is still a need for more effective therapeutic approaches. Based on the peculiar disease features of MPM, several strategies for local therapeutic delivery have been developed over the past years. The common rationale of these approaches is: (i) to reduce the risk of drug inactivation before reaching the target tumor cells; (ii) to increase the concentration of active drugs in the tumor micro-environment and their bioavailability; (iii) to reduce toxic effects on normal, non-transformed cells, because of much lower drug doses than those used for systemic chemotherapy. The complex interactions between drugs and the local immune-inflammatory micro-environment modulate the subsequent clinical response. In this perspective, the main interest is currently addressed to the development of local drug delivery platforms, both cell therapy and engineered nanotools. We here propose a review aimed at deep investigation of the biologic effects of the current local therapies for MPM, including cell therapies, and the mechanisms of interaction with the tumor micro-environment.     

In vitro antimicrobial properties of silver–polysaccharide coatings on porous fiber-reinforced composites for bone implants

Biostable fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) implants prepared from bisphenol-A-dimethacrylate and triethyleneglycoldimethacrylate resin reinforced with E-glass fibers have been successfully used in cranial reconstructions in 15 patients. Recently, porous FRC structures were suggested as potential implant materials. Compared with smooth surface, porous surface allows implant incorporation via bone ingrowth, but is also a subject to bacterial attachment. Non-cytotoxic silver–polysaccharide nanocomposite coatings may provide a way to decrease the risk of bacterial contamination of porous FRC structures. This study is focused on the in vitro characterization of the effect porosity on the antimicrobial efficiency of the coatings against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa by a series of microbiological tests (initial adhesion, antimicrobial efficacy, and biofilm formation). Characterization included confocal laser scanning microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The effect of porosity on the initial attachment of S. aureus was pronounced, but in the case of P. aeruginosa the effect was negligible. There were no significant effects of the coatings on the initial bacterial attachment. In the antimicrobial efficacy test, the coatings were potent against both strains regardless of the sample morphology. In the biofilm tests, there were no clear effects either of morphology or of the coating. Further coating development is foreseen to achieve a longer-term antimicrobial effect to inhibiting bacterial implant colonization.     

Thermochromic composite fibres containing liquid crystals formed via melt extrusion

A three-layered composite fibre has been generated via a modified wire-coating melt co-extrusion process. The continuous fibre consists of a thermochromic liquid crystalline (TLC) layer encapsulated between a transparent polypropylene outer sheath and a black polyether ether ketone inner core. The fibres exhibit clear thermochromic behaviour consistent with the behaviour of unincorporated TLCs, and have been formed into a textile. The presence of the black inner core was found to be the key for the clear retention of colour within the fibres against both white and black backgrounds. The temperature-sensitive fibres and textiles can be applied to a variety of thermal mapping applications, such as in the medical and engineering fields, due to the tunable nature of TLCs.