A physical stability study of whey-based prickly pear beverages

This study aimed at the development of whey-based prickly pear (WBP) beverages. Prickly pear juice and acid whey were characterized and a factorial design was used to study the effect of three factors. Four formulations of whey-based prickly pear beverages were prepared using the fractional 2^3-1 factorial design. To note, the three factors considered were whey treatment (WT) and added sugar and pectin (S and P). Two levels for each factor were tested, namely added sugar (5 or 10%), whey treatment (with or without heat treatment) and added pectin (0 or 0.05%). The turbidity percentage increase, the color-index percentage decrease, the sedimentation percentage increase, as well as the serum separation percentage were evaluated after 40 days of storage condition at 4 °C. The three factors optimization for the beverages' maximum stability were implemented by testing the main and interaction effects plots, the analysis of variance (ANOVA), the normal probability plots of standardized effects and residuals, the Pareto charts and the contour plots. The achieved results showed that the beverages were physically stabilized by sugar and HM-pectin amount increase using the heat-treated whey. Hence, regression models were suggested, which fitted the experimental data very well (R² >75% and p < 0.05).     

Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry and Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry Study of Impurity Measurements in HgCdTe

In this study, time-of-flight (TOF) secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) was compared against dynamic SIMS to determine detection limits and background levels for nine impurities: Li, Na, K, Al, Ni, As, In, Fe, and Cu. Statistics were gathered by measuring six material test structure samples from six different liquid phase epitaxy (LPE) HgCdTe double layer heterojunction (DLHJ) wafers. Also included is a comparison between dynamic SIMS and TOF-SIMS capabilities.     

Predicting and reducing “hospital-acquired infections” using a knowledge-based e-surveillance system

The use of automated computer methods when detecting hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) enhances the validity of the surveillance in an effective manner. This is because manual infection control systems used by hospitals are time consuming and are often restricted to intensive care units. This paper proposes a new knowledge-based electronic surveillance system to predict and reduce HAIs. The system can gather patient-associated data from hospital databanks to automatically predict patient injury based on the standard central line-associated bloodstream infection algorithm for HAI detection rules. The application of the proposed electronic system reduces the number of central lines associated with infection of the bloodstream and reduces the length of stay for patient treatment and thus reduces costs. The proposed system has several advantages: (a) It is a web-based system that collects actual data from patients from several IT sources, which will help collect patient data safely and quickly, thereby predicting HAIs effectively. (b) It has an integrated simulator to generate patient records, providing the ability to train medical personnel and nurses to enhance their skills. (c) It is a multimedia-based system to improve patient health reporting. (d) It assists policymakers in reviewing and approving control plans and policies to reduce and prevent hospital injuries. (e) The investigational results of the system showed an enhancement value equal to 87%.     

Interaction effects of fermentation time and added asparagine and glycine on acrylamide content in yeast-leavened bread

The interaction effects of fermentation time and added asparagine and glycine on acrylamide precursors (asparagine and reducing sugars) in dough and content of acrylamide in yeast-leavened wheat bread were studied. Two experiments, with low and high levels of added asparagine (0–0.044 and 0.071–0.476 g/100 g flour, respectively), were performed. Glycine was added (0.042–0.380 g/100 g flour) only in the high asparagine addition experiment. The fermentation time, which was varied between 13 and 164 min, showed a reducing effect on acrylamide precursors in the dough in both experiments (p < 0.001). These effects of fermentation were more pronounced in the experiment with low asparagine levels, which resembled levels in ingredients. In contrast, fermentation time did not affect the content of glycine in the dough. Added asparagine increased the levels of asparagine in dough and of acrylamide in bread (p < 0.001). A strong correlation was found between the contents of asparagine in the fermented dough and acrylamide in breads at all levels of asparagine. Glycine significantly increased the colour intensity and reduced the acrylamide in bread (p < 0.001) with the latter effect being dependent on the level of asparagine.