Composition of methyl esters from heat-bodied linseed oils

Two heat-bodied linseed oils, with Gardner viscosities of 37 and 55 min, were saponified, converted to their methyl esters, and separated into 2 fractions with urea and methanol. Gas-liquid chromatography showed the adduct fraction, which comprised 38–41% of the total methyl esters, to contain: palmitic, stearic, oleic, “linoleic,” and trace amounts of “linolenic” acid. The nonadducting fraction (59–62%) of the total methyl esters was separated by molecular distillation at 140C/7 μ into a distillate and residue. The distillate amounted to 18–25% of the total methyl esters and had an iodine value (I.V.) of 142–145; its absorption at 232 mμ indicates 2.5–3.0% conjugated diene. Hydrogenation of this distillate gave a liquid product with an iodine number of 4 and a pour point of −50C. Gas chromatograms of the distillate and its hydrogenated derivative indicated at least 5–7 components. Comparison of these peaks with known fatty acid methyl esters indicates that the components of these fractions were either cyclic or branched esters. The nonadducting residue fraction was composed mainly of polymeric acids. Presented before the Division of Organic Coatings and Plastics Chemistry, Am. Chem. Soc. Washington, D.C., 1962. A laboratory of the No. Utiliz. Res. & Dev. Div., ARS, U.S.D.A.     

N-2-mercaptoethyl amides of fatty acids—A new class of derivatives

Twelve N-2-mercaptoethyl amides have been prepared by reacting 2-aminoethyl mercaptan with a carboxylic acid in refluxing xylene or toluene. All products were well-defined crystalline compounds except for the dimer acid derivatives. Addition of dithiol amides, prepared from dimer acids and 2-aminoethyl mercaptan, to diolefins gave a new class of potential protective coatings, a polyamide of a dimerized fatty acid with a β-thio linkage. Oxidation of the dithiols gave the corresponding disulfides, another new class of compounds, a polyamide with a β-disulfide structure. Film properties have been obtained with both classes of polymers. Air-dried films were soft and tacky, but baking the films improved hardness. Dry-to-touch times of less than 2 hr at 150C and good alkali resistance were obtained. Presented at the AOCS Meeting in Chicago, October, 1964. No. Util. Res. and Dev. Div., ARS, USDA.     

Reactions of conjugated fatty acids. III. Kinetics of the Diels-Alder reaction

Summary The kinetics of a Diels-Alder-type reaction between diethylazodicarboxylate andt,t-9,11-octadecadienoic acid has been studied in various solvent systems and with acidic catalysts. The rate of the reaction was found to vary as follows: a) the reaction rate is faster in polar solvents than in nonpolar solvents; b) addition of acidic catalysts to nonpolar solvents increases the rate of the reaction, and acidic catalysts appear to have no effect on the rate of reaction in polar solvents; c) when compatibility can be maintained, addition of water to polar solvent systems appears to increase the reaction rate in proportion to the amount of water added. The reaction follows second-order or pseudo second-order kinetics. Probably it is more complex than the over-all reaction kinetics indicate. Certain reactions were studied at two temperatures, and information on activation energy of the reaction has been obtained. Presented at fall meeting, American Oil Chemists’ Society, Philadelphia, Pa., Oct. 10–12, 1955.     

Polyester amides from linseed oil for protective coatings

The sodium alkoxide-catalyzed reaction of linseed oil or linseed methyl esters with diethanolamine produces almost exclusively linseed diethanolamides. Reaction conditions, e.g., temperature, amount of excess diethanolamine and mode of adding reactants, are reported. The best conditions for producing diethanolamide directly from linseed oil (1 mole) required adding oil to the sodium alkoxide in diethanolamine (6 moles) and heating at 110–115C for 35 min. The linseed diethanolamide isolated in 93–95% yield was an amber oil. Progress of the reaction, followed by thin-layer chromatography, showed only trace amounts of byproducts. Polyester amides were prepared by heating linseed diethanolamide in refluxing xylene with dibasic acids or anhydrides, e.g., azelaic, maleic, fumaric, phthalic, terephthalic, itaconic, brassylic and dimer acids. Molecular weight, viscosity and film properties (air-dried and baked) of the polyester amides were determined. Presented at the AOCS Meeting, Chicago, October 1964. No. Utiliz. Res. Dev. Div., ARS, USDA.     

Are consumer profiling techniques equivalent for some product categories? The case of orange‐flavoured powdered drinks

Taking into account consumers’ perception in new product development has been regarded as a key strategy to developing more successful food products. In this context, consumer profiling techniques have increased their popularity in the last decade. The aim of the present work was to compare four consumer profiling techniques (sorting, projective mapping, intensity scales and check‐all‐that‐apply questions) in orange‐flavoured powdered juice drinks. A consumer study was carried out with 200 regular consumers of the category, which were divided into four groups. Each group used a different methodology to evaluate seven commercial powdered drinks. After completing the task consumers were asked to rate its difficulty on a nine‐point hedonic scale. Results showed that the four evaluated methodologies were able to identify differences in consumers’ perception of the sensory characteristics of the drinks, providing similar information. However, the application of CATA questions and intensity scales was regarded as easier for consumers. Advantages and disadvantages of the evaluated methodologies are discussed.     

Simple and rapid methods for detecting Salmonella enteritidis in raw eggs

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there were 300,000 cases of Salmonella enteritidis (SE) in 1997. Egg products were associated with many of the cases. To address this problem, many producers implemented flock surveillance of the SE situation at their facilities. A rapid and simple method for detecting SE from poultry samples is critical for the effective implementation of such testing strategies. A lateral flow device for the detection of SE utilized in this study was manufactured by Neogen, Lansing, MI. The test panel is a presumptive qualitative test system that detects only members of Group D1 Salmonella species. A series of studies were conducted to optimize the test procedure for raw eggs with different sample preparations. A novel antigen extraction method was developed for use with the test panel kit. The detection limit of the test panel kit was increased approximately tenfold when the extraction method was used. Detection of SE was 100% in raw egg pools inoculated with 10 SE cells per ml of egg and incubated at a 1:10 ratio in buffered peptone water (BPW) or tetrathionate brilliant green broth (TBG) for 24 h at 37 degrees C. The developed lateral flow test kit could provide a simple, rapid, and inexpensive method for egg producers and processors to test specifically for Salmonella group D1 serovars, such as SE, in egg samples.     

Use of a multivariate approach to assess the incidence of Alicyclobacillus spp. in concentrate fruit juices marketed in Argentina: results of a 14-year survey

The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of Alicyclobacillus spp. in fruit/vegetable juices (concentrated pulps and clarified and non-clarified juices) marketed in Argentina between 1996 and 2009.The presence of Alicyclobacillus was determined in a total of 8556 samples of fruit and vegetable juices (apple, pear, grape, peach, blend of juices, tangerine, pineapple, orange, mango, plum, guava, apricot, lemon, banana, kiwi, carrot, strawberry, grapefruit, and beetroot) collected in seven Argentinean provinces. Multiple factor analysis (MFA) was carried out on a data matrix that contained the percentage of positive samples, type of juice, raw material and production year.Except for kiwi and orange, Alicyclobacillus was found in juices from all the evaluated raw materials. The highest percentage of positive samples was found for beetroot, strawberry, banana, peach, mango, carrot and plum juices. The percentage of positive samples for these juices ranged from 100% to 24%.Furthermore, the application of multivariate techniques provided an insight on the relationship between the incidence of Alicyclobacillus and production variables. This approach enabled the identification of the most relevant variables that increased the percentage of positive samples among the juices, which could help in developing strategies to avoid the incidence of this bacterium.By means of hierarchical cluster analysis seven groups (clusters) of juices which showed different percentages of positive samples for Alicyclobacillus spp. were identified. This analysis showed that pineapple, peach, strawberry, mango and beetroot juices had higher rates of positivity for Alicyclobacillus than the rest of the evaluated juices. MFA analysis also showed that some clear relationships could be highlighted between the percentage of samples positive for Alicyclobacillus and five types of fruit juices (strawberry, beetroot, grapefruit, pineapple and mango). It was observed that a large proportion of juices produced in 2000, 2005 and 2008 were located in clusters with higher incidence of Alicyclobacillus spp., whereas a larger proportion of clarified concentrate juice and concentrate pulp samples showed higher probability of incidence of Alicyclobacillus in these products. Data presented in this study brings a contribution to the ecology of Alicyclobacillus in fruit/vegetable juices marketed in Argentina. This information would be useful to enhance the microbiological stability of fruit juices regarding the presence of Alicyclobacillus spp.     

Growth of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis in albumen and yolk contents of eggs inoculated with this organism onto the vitelline membrane

By using an in vitro model simulating the potential opportunities for Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis (SE) to proliferate within eggs contaminated with this organism following oviposition, we investigated growth of SE in eggs. Seventy to 140 CFU of one of three SE strains originating either from egg contents, chicken meat, or a human infection were experimentally inoculated onto the vitelline membrane of eggs collected from specific-pathogen-free flocks of chickens and incubated at 25 degrees C. SE organisms were detected in 6 of 71 yolk contents of the eggs inoculated with any of the test strains attaining levels ranging from 2.0 x 10(2) to 4.2 x 10(8) CFU/ml by day 6. The organisms were also detected in the albumen from 38 of 55 eggs tested, growing to levels ranging from 1.0 x 10(2) to 4.3 x 10(8) CFU/ml by day 6 after inoculation. An additional three yolk contents and 15 albumen samples were culture positive for SE following enrichment. There was no correlation between the number of the organisms in the yolk contents and that in the albumen from each of the eggs. When 73 to 91 CFU of the egg strain were inoculated into samples of separated albumen obtained from eggs that were stored at 4 degrees C for 1 to 4 weeks or at 25 degrees C for 1 week, slight growth (3.0 x 10(2) to 7.4 x 10(3) CFU/ml) was found in only 3 of the 60 albumen samples by day 6 after inoculation, but the organisms were recovered from 52 samples following enrichment. The results suggest that the environment on or near the vitelline membrane can be conducive to SE proliferation over time.     

Folding of firefly (Photinus pyralis) luciferase: aggregation and reactivation of unfolding intermediates

The guanidine-induced unfolding of firefly (Photinus pyralis) luciferase involves two inactive equilibrium intermediates and is freely reversible at low protein concentration and low temperature. However, reactivation is exceedingly slow so that the equilibrium is attained only after several days of incubation and reactivation yields decrease strongly with increasing protein concentration, suggesting that aggregation is a competing side reaction [Herbst et al. (1997) J. Biol. Chem. 272, 7099-7105]. We investigated the role of the equilibrium intermediates in the aggregation process using size-exclusion chromatography and dynamic light scattering to monitor their association state. Although the more unfolded intermediate aggregated much more rapidly, both intermediates associated irreversibly without a conformational change visible by fluorescence or circular dichroism, forming small oligomers which remained soluble in the presence of the denaturant. The association kinetics are compatible with a nucleated polymerization mechanism. Unfolding kinetics at 1 M denaturant indicated the presence of a further inactive intermediate capable to reactivate rapidly with kinetics similar to those observed for luciferase reactivation in the presence of cell extracts. The data suggest a kinetic trap in luciferase refolding that is accessible from both equilibrium intermediate conformations and is avoided in the presence of molecular chaperones.     

Epidemiology and control of egg-associated Salmonella enteritidis in the United States of America

The isolation rate for Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis (SE) in humans in the United States of America (USA) increased from 1,207 sporadic isolates identified in 1976 (0.6 isolates/100,000 population) to 10,201 identified in 1995 (4.0/100,000 population). The proportion of reported Salmonella isolates which were SE increased from 5% to 25% during the same time period. In 1990, 1994, and 1995, SE was the most commonly reported reported Salmonella serotype in the USA. Much of this increase has been associated with the consumption of contaminated shell eggs. An examination of the results of a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) survey of spent hens at slaughter and unpasteurised liquid egg at breaker plants (liquid egg processors) in 1991 and 1995 reveals an increase in the prevalence of SE isolates overall and in most regions of the USA. SE phage type 4 (pt 4), the predominant SE phage type in other parts of the world, has emerged in the egg industry in the western USA concurrent with a sharp increase in the number of sporadic human SE pt 4 isolates in California and Utah. Research on the molecular structure and virulence of SE pt 4 isolates from the USA as compared with isolates from other parts of the world (human and poultry) should be a priority. A comparison of DNA from pt 4 isolates from the USA and Europe may provide information about the potential threat to public health and poultry in the USA from this phage type. Some regional success in the reduction of human illness as a result of SE control efforts is apparent. The Pennsylvania Egg Quality Assurance Program has shown progress in reducing SE infection in participating flocks. At a national level, however, neither the incidence of human illness due to SE nor the prevalence of SE in flocks and unpasteurised liquid eggs have decreased significantly, despite the implementation of the USDA 'trace back' regulation from 1990 to 1995, and intensified efforts to educate food handlers and to enforce safe food handling practices. More effort is needed to control SE at every stage of the egg continuum, from production through to consumption. A risk-reduction approach, with barriers to the introduction and multiplication of the pathogen throughout the farm-to-table continuum, is the most practical method for reducing human illness from SE in shell eggs at present. An effective long-term solution will require interdisciplinary efforts involving government, industry, consumers, and academics. Interventions should be developed and evaluated in compliance with the potential for reducing the risk to human health and cost-effectiveness.