Nutritional quality and acceptability of a product formulated with mechanically deboned poultry meat,plasma and bovine red cell

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the nutritional quality and acceptability of a meat product formulated with mechanically deboned poultry meat (40%), bovine plasma (40%) and bovine red cells (3%) as major ingredients. Proteins, fat, humidity and ash were determined by AOAC procedure, iron and calcium by Atomic Absorption Spectrometry and essential amino acids by HPLC. Biological evaluation was performed using digestibility and PER procedures. To evaluate the acceptability (flavor, color and odor) of the product were used 277 children. Results indicated that 100 g of the formulated meat product contain 10.7 g of proteins, 4.4 g of fat, 68.6 g of humidity, 2.9 g of ash, 4.9 mg of iron, 46.6 mg of calcium. Essential amino acids are above the FAO requirements for a highly nutritional protein digestibility (92.4%) and PER (2.18). Acceptability was 91.3% for flavor, 81.2% for color and 92.4% for odor. The high nutritional quality and acceptability along with the low cost make this meat product suitable for government social programs.     

HIV training and perceived competence among doctoral students in psychology.

A training-needs assessment was conducted at California School of Professional Psychology, Berkeley/Alameda, on students' beliefs about clinical competence, past training in HIV issues, and future training needs at the school. They perceived themselves to be somewhat competent in providing clinical services to HIV patients and members of groups at high risk for HIV. A modest correlation was found between the students' total HIV training and perceived competence, but none was found between the multicultural emphasis in HIV education and their perceived competence. These findings suggest an ethical dilemma surrounding inadequately trained psychologists providing services to multicultural populations. Ethical issues concerning training standards and criteria for clinical competency are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Single-Cell Proteomics: The Critical Role of Nanotechnology

In single-cell analysis, biological variability can be attributed to individual cells, their specific state, and the ability to respond to external stimuli, which are determined by protein abundance and their relative alterations. Mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomics (e.g., SCoPE-MS and SCoPE2) can be used as a non-targeted method to detect molecules across hundreds of individual cells. To achieve high-throughput investigation, novel approaches in Single-Cell Proteomics (SCP) are needed to identify and quantify proteins as accurately as possible. Controlling sample preparation prior to LC-MS analysis is critical, as it influences sensitivity, robustness, and reproducibility. Several nanotechnological approaches have been developed for the removal of cellular debris, salts, and detergents, and to facilitate systematic sample processing at the nano- and microfluidic scale. In addition, nanotechnology has enabled high-throughput proteomics analysis, which have required the improvement of software tools, such as DART-ID or DO-MS, which are also fundamental for addressing key biological questions. Single-cell proteomics has many applications in nanomedicine and biomedical research, including advanced cancer immunotherapies or biomarker characterization, among others; and novel methods allow the quantification of more than a thousand proteins while analyzing hundreds of single cells.     

Design and characterization of a one‐compartment scale‐down system for simulating dissolved oxygen tension gradients

BACKGROUND: A laboratory scale one‐compartment scale‐down system (1‐CSDS), used to generate dissolved oxygen tension (DOT) gradients was designed and characterized. The system consists of a 1.5‐L stirred‐tank bioreactor coupled to an automatic DOT controller that changes the oxygen partial pressure in the inlet gas through a feedback proportional–integral–derivative algorithm, while maintaining the hydrodynamic conditions constant. Oscillatory control of DOT was achieved by employing time‐dependent square wave or sinusoidal setpoints. RESULTS: The 1‐CSDS can be modeled as a first‐order dynamic system, but showing a permanent lag between the system response and the setpoint. The 1‐CSDS had a faster response rate for generating oscillating DOT when a square wave setpoint was used rather than a sinusoidal setpoint. The 1‐CSDS generated symmetric DOT oscillations at periods above of 100 s. CONCLUSION: The 1‐CSDS is suited to investigate the responses of microorganisms and cells, of biotechnological importance, to oscillatory DOT conditions. It was found that the response of the 1‐CSDS was limited by the k_La. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry     

Contribution of a disulfide bridge to the stability of 1,3-1,4-P-D-glucan 4-glucanohydrolase from Bacillus licheniformis

Bacillus 1,3-1,4-ß-glucanases possess a highly conserveddisulfide bridge connecting a ß-strand with a solventexposedloop lying on top of the extended binding site cleft The contributionof the disulfide bond and of both individual cysteines (Cys61and Cys90) in the Bacillus licheniformis enzyme to stabilityand activity has been evaluated by protein engineering methods.Reduction of the disulfide bond has no effect on kinetic parameters,has only a minor effect on the activity-temperature profileat high temperatures, and destabilizes the protein by less than0.7 kcal/mol as measured by equilibrium urea denatu ration at37°C. Replacing either of the Cys residues with Ala destabilizesthe protein and lowers the specific activity. C90A retains 70%of wild-type (wt) activity (in terms of Vmax), whereas C61Aand the double mutant C61A–C90A have 10% of wt V_max. Alarger change in free energy of unfolding is seen by equilibriumurea denaturation for the C61A mutation (loop residue, 3.2 kcal/molrelative to reduced wt) as compared with the C90A mutation (ß-strandresidue, 1.8 kcal/mol relative to reduced wt), while the doublemutant C61A–C90A is 0.8 kcal/mol less stable than thesingle C61A mutant. The effects on stability are interpretedas a result of the change in hydrophobic packing that occursupon removal of the sulfur atoms in the Cys to Ala mutations     

Preparation and Characterization of NTC Thermistors: Nickel Manganites Doped with Lithium

Oxides of the form Ni_xMn_3-x O₄ present properties that make them useful as NTC thermistors. Nickel manganites doped with lithium were synthesized by two methods: insertion with n -BuLi and reaction of nickel-manganese formates with lithium formate. XPS and XRD studies showed that both procedures led to oxides with spinel structure, although with different cation distributions. Dilatometry established that a cationic reordering took place on manganites doped by insertion with n -BuLi during sintering. SEM mapping studies showed that a segregation on grain boundaries took place, leading to an increase in Mn content and a decrease in nickel on the particle surface. Finally, electrical studies showed the nickel manganites doped with lithium, Ni_xMn_3-x-yLi_yO₄, had similar resistivities and sensitivity indexes to nickel manganites, Ni_xMn_3-xO₄, but higher electrical stability.     

Study on the influence of maintenance operations on energy consumption and emissions in healthcare centres by fuzzy cognitive maps

The present work is aimed at performing a qualitative analysis of the effect of maintenance intensity on energy consumption, energy costs and emissions in healthcare centres. Most relevant variables involved in the maximization of the building efficiency were determined by means of fuzzy cognitive maps. Twelve variables were observed to show a direct connection to the energy and environmental efficiency as well as to its maintenance condition. The joint effect of these factors was seen to improve the overall performance of the building in terms of efficiency. However, even though maintenance appeared as one of the most highly-rated variables, it did not seem to affect the overall performance by itself, but it was rather due to the synergistic action of the remaining variables. The behaviour of those variables was evidenced to show a significant change for buildings below 1250?m² floor area as compared to those exceeding such threshold value.     

Spray-atomized and codeposited 6061 Al/SiCp composites

Spray atomization and codeposition processes have received considerable attention for the synthesis of discontinuously reinforced metal-matrix composites. This methodology involves the mixing of reinforcements and matrix under thermal conditions such that the matrix contains both solid and liquid phases. In principle, such an approach avoids the extreme thermal excursions, with concomitant degradation in interfacial properties and extensive macrosegregation, normally associated with casting processes. Furthermore, this approach also eliminates the need to handle fine reactive particulates normally associated with powder metallurgical processes. To investigate the utility of this process for the preparation of metal-matrix composites, several silicon carbide particulate-reinforced 6061 Al composites were prepared. The spray-atomized and codeposited materials exhibited attractive combinations of strength, elastic modulus and elongation, although further work is needed to optimize their properties.