In-House Validation and Comparison of Two Wheat (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Triticum aestivum</Emphasis>) Taxon-Specific Real-Time PCR Methods for GMO Quantification Supported by Droplet Digital PCR

Common wheat is one of the most important staple food crops worldwide. However, unlike other important staple crops such as maize or soybean, genetically modified (GM) wheat is not yet present in the global food market. Nonetheless, in the recent past, the adventitious presence of GM glyphosate-tolerant volunteers was reported in open wheat fields in the USA. The European Union Reference Laboratory for GM Food and Feed (EURL-GMFF) was therefore called to develop a strategy to detect such unauthorised GM wheat in wheat samples by using both taxon-specific and screening tests. Two candidate common wheat taxon-specific real-time PCR methods were suggested, one targeting ssII-D gene coding for starch synthase and the other targeting waxy-D1 gene, coding for granule-bound starch synthase. In the present study, the two above-mentioned real-time PCR taxon-specific methods were in-house verified and compared, proposing droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) as a new tool for supporting the application of the European Network of GMO Laboratories (ENGL) established method performance criteria. Preliminary performance data of waxy-D1 and ssII-D methods in ddPCR format are shown too to give a contribution to the bridging process from the consolidated to the emerging quantitative PCR methodology.     

Fining white wine with plant proteins: effects of fining on proanthocyanidins and aroma components

Plant-derived insoluble proteins (wheat gluten, and isolates from pea, lentil, and soybean) were used as fining agents in model white wine (made from Catalanesca grapes) after cold stabilization. Plant proteins were effective in giving a fast and remarkable decrease in turbidity. GC/MS and HPLC/MS approaches indicated that individual proteins had a different impact on the levels of compounds relevant to wine stability. Protein stability of wine was not affected by fining with plant proteins. Lentil proteins and gluten gave the best removal of monomeric and dimeric flavonol. Both caused a decrease in the total content of fermentative aroma compounds, such as ethyl esters, acetate esters, and alcohols. Lentil proteins had the highest impact on the aroma components, giving a marked decrease in aroma components. Gluten may thus be regarded as giving the best balance between fining efficacy and retention of aroma compounds. Also, gluten in the treated wines remained well below the suggested threshold for gluten-free foods. This study provides a methodological frame for thorough characterization of the impact of specific interventions on key wine components.     

Syngas production by steam and oxy-steam reforming of biogas on monolith-supported CeO2-based catalysts

In this study, the syngas production by steam reforming (SR) and oxy-steam reforming (OSR) of clean biogas over cordierite monoliths (400 cpsi) lined with Ni, Rh, or Pt on CeO₂ catalyst was deeply investigated. Structured catalysts were prepared by using an alternative method to traditional washcoating based on the combination of the solution combustion synthesis (SCS) with the wetness impregnation (WI) technique. TEM and SEM analysis were used to study the morphology of the catalytic layer and to determine its thickness, while the quality of the coating in terms of adhesion on the monolith was evaluated by ultrasonic treatment in isopropyl alcohol solution. The performance and the stability of the structured catalysts were investigated at different process parameters, namely temperature (700–900 °C), steam-to-carbon (S/C = 1–5) and oxygen-to-carbon (O/C = 0.1–0.2) molar ratios, and weight space velocity (WSV = 30,000–250,000 NmL g_cat^?1 h^?1). The SCS + WI deposition method allowed obtaining a uniform and thin coated layer with high mechanical strength. The following order of activity was exploited: Rh > Pt > Ni for biogas SR and Rh > Pt ≈ Ni for biogas OSR. The Rh-based catalyst exhibited higher activity and long-lasting stability towards biogas SR and OSR reactions for syngas production.     

Commiphora myrrha (Nees) Engl. extracts: evaluation of antioxidant and antiproliferative activity and their ability to reduce microbial growth on fresh‐cut salad

With the aim to develop natural preservatives displaying also chemopreventive activity, different Commiphora myrrha (Nees) Engl. extracts were studied. Myrrh essential oils, obtained by steam distillation and microwave‐assisted hydrodistillation, and several other extracts, obtained by sequential procedures with petroleum ether (PE), ethanol, ethyl acetate and butanol, have been screened for their antioxidant (DPPH· scavenging assay) and antiproliferative activity (on both nontumour and colon cancer cell lines) without previous purification. Considering that the colon cancer cell lines were more sensitive to PE and ethanol extracts, the latter of which showed the highest antioxidant activity (EC50 = 0.160 ± 0.008 mg mL^?1), both have been selected for further antibacterial/antifungal activity tests using an antimicrobial diffusion test and a growth inhibition test on salads. Results showed that the ethanol extract possessed the higher antibacterial and antifungal activity. Compared to untreated product, fresh‐cut salads treated with these two myrrh extracts displayed a significant lower bacterial growth. Although further investigation is required, these promising results offer hints as how to improve the shelf life of fresh‐cut salad.     

A correlative study on data from pork carcass and processed meat (Bauernspeck) for automatic estimation of chemical parameters by means of near-infrared spectroscopy

The use of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is proposed in this study for the characterization of the quality parameters of a smoked and dry-cured meat product known as Bauernspeck (originally from Northern Italy), as well as of some technological traits of the pork carcass used for its manufacturing. In particular, NIRS is shown to successfully estimate several key quality parameters (including water activity, moisture, dry matter, ash and protein content), suggesting its suitability for real time application in replacement of expensive and time consuming chemical analysis. Furthermore, a correlative approach based on canonical correlation analysis was used to investigate the spectral regions that are mostly correlated to the characteristics of interest. The identification of these regions, which can be linked to the absorbance of the main functional chemical groups, is intended to provide a better understanding of the chemical structure of the substrate under investigation.     

Methane oxy-steam reforming reaction: Performances of Ru/γ-Al2O3 catalysts loaded on structured cordierite monoliths

The in situ deposition of 1.5 wt.% Ru/γ-Al₂O₃ catalytic layers on cordierite monoliths (400 cpsi, diameter 1 cm, length 1.5 cm), combining Solution Combustion Synthesis (SCS) with Wet Impregnation (WI), was addressed. First of all, the physicochemical properties of the catalyst at powder level were investigated by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), N₂ adsorption (BET), and H₂ chemisorption, while the morphology of final structured catalysts was evaluated by SEM analysis and mechanical strength tests by sonication. The catalytic activity towards methane Oxy-Steam Reforming (OSR) reaction was studied after the choice of the most suitable catalyst load, carrying out tests varying the temperature (500–800 °C), the oxygen-to-carbon ratio (O/C = 0.45–0.75, oxygen as moles), the steam-to-carbon ratio (S/C = 1.0–2.4), and the weight space velocity (WSV = 34,000–400,000 N ml g_cat⁻¹ h⁻¹), in order to identify the optimum operative conditions. The results showed that a total catalytic layer load (active metal plus oxide carrier) equal to 6.5 mg cm⁻² was enough to achieve excellent performances, while no substantial improvements were obtained at higher catalytic layer loads. Moreover, the coated Ru/γ-Al₂O₃ monolith exhibited a good catalytic activity towards the studied reaction also at considerably high WSV values (till 400,000 N ml g_cat⁻¹ h⁻¹).