OCCURRENCE OF AFLATOXIN M1 IN RAW MILK DURING THE SUMMER AND WINTER SEASONS IN HAMEDAN, IRAN

A survey on the occurrence of aflatoxin M₁ (AFM₁) was carried out in summer and winter in raw milk samples from 93 traditional and industrial dairy farms of the Hamedan district in order to address representative data on AFM₁ in milk collected from these regions. Of the 186 milk samples, AFM₁ was detected in 119 samples (63.97%). The mean concentration of AFM₁ in contaminated samples was 43.4 ng/L, and the minimum and maximum levels were ≤10 and 410 ng/L, respectively. Fourteen (11.76%) contaminated samples had AFM₁ in concentrations in excess of the maximum levels specified in European Union regulations, i.e., 50 ng/L. The contamination ratio of milk in summer and winter months was 56.5 and 71.7%, respectively (P < 0.02). This is the first report on AFM₁ determinations in raw milk from western Iran, one of the main milk‐production areas, as well as comparison between milk obtained from different dairy farms in Iran.     

The effect of Lallemantia royleana (Balangu) seed, palmate-tuber salep and carboxymethylcellulose gums on the physicochemical and sensory properties of typical soft ice cream

This study was aimed primarily at determining the suitability of two Iranian sources of hydrocolloid, Balangu seed and palmate-tuber salep (PTS), for the production of ice cream mix. For this purpose, the effect of these gums and carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) on some physicochemical and sensory characteristics of a typical soft ice cream was investigated. In comparison with carboxymethylcellulose, Balangu seed did not make a significant difference ( P  > 0.05) to most characteristics and could be used as a suitable stabiliser. Although products prepared using only the palmate-tuber salep showed more differences from the corresponding ones with carboxymethylcellulose, the variations were not significant.     

Fat and protein contents, acidity and somatic cell counts in bulk milk of Holstein cows in the Khorasan Razavi Province, Iran

Relationships between total bulk milk somatic cell score (SCS) and milk fat and protein contents and acidity were investigated in the Khorasan Razavi Province, a region that contributes 6.83% of total milk production in Iran. A total of 1476 samples were analysed. Data were obtained by randomly collecting 123 samples of bulk tank milk from 41 dairy farms during April 2006 to March 2007, every month. Milk was analysed for titratable acidity, protein and fat contents and somatic cell counts (direct microscopic cell count and with Somatos, Russia). Microscopic and Somatos somatic cell counts were comparable. Results showed that the season of raw milk production did not have a significant effect on acidity. Milk fat content increased gradually from spring to winter and there were significant differences ( P <  0.05) between spring and other seasons. Higher levels of milk protein fractions were observed during the autumn and winter than in other seasons. The highest total bulk milk somatic cell counts were observed in July. Total bulk milk SCS had significant effects ( P <  0.05) on acidity and fat and protein contents. Moreover, the level of acidity and fat in milk decreased with increasing SCS. A significant positive relationship was observed between total bulk milk SCS and the protein content of milk. Elevated SCS were associated with lowered milk quality in Holsteins in the Khorasan Razavi Province.     

Effect of ultrasonic irradiation on rheological properties of asphaltenic crude oils

In this work, the rheological changes of several crude oil samples exposed to ultrasonic waves for different time intervals in addition to the effect of temperature on viscosity behavior of heavy crude oils were investigated using a series of steady shear flow and oscillatory tests. The colloidal structural evolutions of flocs in oil samples were illustrated by analysis of the size distribution of flocculated asphaltene particles (confocal microscopy tests). The rheological investigations indicate that the ultrasonic irradiation dissolved heavy components in crude oil. After ultrasonic treatment, the Kouh-e-Mond crude oil was found to be pseudoplastic. In addition, confocal microscopy confirms that there was an optimum duration for ultrasonic irradiation, at which the viscosity and flocculation rate of asphaltenic crude oils reduced to the minimum values. The optimum was found to be approximately 40 min for the Kouh-e-Mond crude oil. Experimental results illustrate that the ultrasonic irradiation could disaggregate heavy colloid components in crude oil, and breakdown of asphaltene molecules would only occur in a specific time interval of irradiation. Also according to the temperature sweep test, the oil temperature rise caused by ultrasonic irradiation was not the main reason for rheological changes of the crude oil and this alteration may be due to physical and chemical phenomena induced by sonication in crude oil.     

Application of coupled XFEM-BCQO in the structural optimization of a circular tunnel lining subjected to a ground motion

A new structural optimization method of coupled extended finite element method and bound constrained quadratic optimization method (XFEM-BCQO) is adopted to quantify the optimum values of four design parameters for a circular tunnel lining when it is subjected to earthquakes. The parameters are: tunnel lining thickness, tunnel diameter, tunnel lining concrete modulus of elasticity and tunnel lining concrete density. Monte-Carlo sampling method is dedicated to construct the meta models so that to be used for the BCQO method using matlab codes. Numerical simulations of the tensile damage in the tunnel lining due to a real earthquake in the literature are created for three design cases. XFEM approach is used to show the cracks for the mentioned design cases. The results of the BCQO method for the maximum design case for the tunnel tensile damage was matching the results obtained from XFEM approach to a fair extent. The new coupled approach manifested a significant capability to predict the cracks and spalling of the tunnel lining concrete under the effects of dynamic earthquakes.     

A line-scanning semi-confocal multi-photon fluorescence microscope with a simultaneous broadband spectral acquisition and its application to the study of the thylakoid membrane of a cyanobacterium Anabaena PCC7120

We describe the construction and characterization of a laser‐line‐scanning microscope capable of detection of broad fluorescence spectra with a resolution of 1 nm. A near‐infrared femtosecond pulse train at 800 nm was illuminated on a line (one lateral axis, denoted as X axis) in a specimen by a resonant scanning mirror oscillating at 7.9 kHz, and total multi‐photon–induced fluorescence from the linear region was focused on the slit of an imaging polychromator. An electron‐multiplying CCD camera was used to resolve fluorescence of different colours at different horizontal pixels and fluorescence of different spatial positions in a specimen at different vertical pixels. Scanning on the other two axes (Y and Z) was achieved by a closed‐loop controlled sample scanning stage and a piezo‐driven objective actuator. The full widths at half maximum of the point‐spread function of the system were estimated to be 0.39–0.40, 0.33 and 0.56–0.59 μm for the X (lateral axis along the line‐scan), Y (the other lateral axis) and Z axes (the axial direction), respectively, at fluorescence wavelengths between 644 and 690 nm. A biological application of this microscope was demonstrated in a study of the sub‐cellular fluorescence spectra of thylakoid membranes in a cyanobacterium, Anabaena PCC7120. It was found that the fluorescence intensity ratio between chlorophyll molecules mainly of photosystem II and phycobilin molecules of phycobilisome (chlorophyll/phycobilin), in the thylakoid membranes, became lower as one probed deeper inside the cells. This was attributable not to position dependence of re‐absorption or scattering effects, but to an intrinsic change in the local physiological state of the thylakoid membrane, with the help of a transmission spectral measurement of sub‐cellular domains. The efficiency of the new line‐scanning spectromicroscope was estimated in comparison with our own point‐by‐point scanning spectromicroscope. Under typical conditions of observing cyanobacterial cells, the total exposure time became shorter by about 50 times for a constant excitation density. The improvement factor was proportional to the length of the line‐scanned region, as expected.