Effect of temperature and growth media on the attachment of Listeria monocytogenes to stainless steel

Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19111 cultivated in nutrient-rich medium (brain heart infusion, BHI) or starved in minimal medium (10% filter sterilized pond water and 90% sterilized distilled water) were investigated for their initial attachment to austenitic stainless steel No. 4 with satin finish at 4 °C, 20 °C, 30 °C, 37 °C, or 42 °C. A droplet (10 μl) containing  10⁷ CFU/ml of L. monocytogenes suspended in BHI or minimal medium was placed on the stainless steel surface. After holding in saturated humidity for 3 h at the desired temperature the surface was washed and prepared for scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Using SEM, attachment of L. monocytogenes was determined by counting cells remaining on the surface. When L. monocytogenes cultivated in BHI were used, with the exception of the number of attached cells being lower at 42 °C than at 37 °C and 30 °C, the number of attached cells increased with increasing temperature (P < 0.05). When L. monocytogenes starved in minimal medium were used, the number of attached cells also increased with increasing attachment temperature (P < 0.05), but the number of attached cells at 42 °C was lower than that at the other temperatures. The attachment of L. monocytogenes to stainless steel surface was greater when cultivated in rich medium of BHI vs starved in the minimal medium.     

Iron(VI) and iron(V) oxidation of thiocyanate

Thiocyanate (SCN-) is used in many industrial processes and is commonly found in industrial and mining waste-waters. The removal of SCN- is required because of its toxic effects. The oxidation of thiocyanate (SCN-) by environmentally friendly oxidants, Fe(VI) and Fe(V), has been studied anaerobically using stopped-flow and premix pulse radiolysis techniques. The stoichiometry with Fe(VI) was determined to be 4HFeO(4-) + SCN(-) + 5H2O-->4Fe(OH)3 + SO4(2-) + CNO(-) + O2 + 2OH-. The rate law for the oxidation of SCN- by Fe(VI) was found to be -d[Fe(VI)]/dt = k11([H+]/([H+] + Ka,HFeO4)) [Fe(VI)][SCN-] where k11 = 2.04 +/- 0.04 x 10(3) M-1 s-1 and pKa,HFeO4 = 7.33. A mechanism is proposed that agrees with the observed reaction stoichiometry and rate law. The rate of oxidation of SCN- by Fe(V) was approximately 3 orders of magnitude faster than Fe(VI). The higher reactivity of Fe(V) with SCN- indicates that oxidations by Fe(VI) may be enhanced in the presence of appropriate one-electron-reducing agents. The results suggest that the effective removal of SCN- can be achieved by Fe(VI) and Fe(V).     

Natural organic matter affects arsenic speciation and sorption onto hematite

Arsenic mobility in natural environments is controlled primarily by sorption onto metal oxide surfaces, and the extent of this sorption may be influenced strongly by the presence of other dissolved substances that interact with surfaces or with arsenic itself. Natural organic matter (NOM), a prevalent constituent of natural waters, is highly reactive toward both metals and surfaces and is thus a clear candidate to influence arsenic mobility. The objectives of this study were therefore to reveal the influences of diverse NOM samples on the sorption of arsenic onto hematite, a model metal oxide, as well as to reveal influences of arsenic on the sorption of NOM, using conditions and concentrations relevant to natural freshwater environments. Of the six NOM samples tested, four formed aqueous complexes with arsenate and arsenite. The extent of complexation varied with the NOM origin and, in particular, increased with the cationic metal (primarily Fe) content of the NOM sample. In addition, every NOM sample showed active redox behavior toward arsenic species, indicating that NOM may greatly influence redox as well as complexation speciation of arsenic in freshwater environments. When NOM and As were incubated together with hematite, NOM dramatically delayed the attainment of sorption equilibrium and diminished the extent of sorption of both arsenate and arsenite. Consistent with this result, when NOM and As were introduced sequentially, all NOM samples displaced sorbed arsenate and arsenite from hematite surfaces, and arsenic species similarly displaced sorbed NOM from hematite in significant quantities. Competition between NOM and As for sorption thus appears to be a potentially important process in natural waters, suggesting that NOM may play a greater role in arsenic mobility than previously recognized. In addition, in all sorption experiments, arsenite was consistently desorbed or prevented from sorbing to a greater extent than arsenate, indicating that interactions with NOM may also partially explain the generally greater mobility of arsenite in natural environments.     

Mycorrhizal colonization and grain Cd concentration of field‐grown durum wheat in response to tillage,preceding crop and phosphorus fertilization

BACKGROUND: A 3‐year field trial was conducted to investigate the effect of agricultural management practices including tillage, preceding crop and phosphate fertilization on root colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and grain cadmium (Cd) concentration of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L.). The relationship between grain Cd and soil and plant variables was explored to determine the primary factors affecting grain Cd concentration. RESULTS: Mycorrhizal colonization of the roots was reduced by conventional tillage or when the preceding crop was canola (Brassica napus L.), compared to minimum tillage or when the preceding crop was flax (Linum usitatissimum L.). In contrast, grain Cd was not consistently affected by any treatment. Grain Cd was generally below the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) of 100 µg Cd kg^?1 proposed by WHO. Grain Cd varied substantially from year to year, and could be predicted with 70% of variance accounted for by using the model: grain Cd concentration = ? 321.9 + 44.5× ln(grain yield) + 0.26× soil DTPA‐Cd + 182.5× soil electrical conductivity (EC)? 0.98× grain Zn concentration. CONCLUSIONS: These common agricultural management practices had no effect on grain Cd concentration in durum wheat though they impacted mycorrhizal colonization of roots. Grain yield and to a lesser extent soil conditions of EC and DTPA‐Cd and grain Zn influenced grain Cd, whereas mycorrhizal colonization levels did not. Copyright © 2010 Crown in the right of Canada. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd     

Arsenite oxidation by a poorly crystalline manganese-oxide. 2. Results from X-ray absorption spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction

Arsenite (As(III)) oxidation by manganese oxides (Mn-oxides) serves to detoxify and, under many conditions, immobilize arsenic (As) by forming arsenate (As(V)). As(III) oxidation by Mn(IV)-oxides can be quite complex, involving many simultaneous forward reactions and subsequent back reactions. During As(III) oxidation by Mn-oxides, a reduction in oxidation rate is often observed, which is attributed to Mn-oxide surface passivation. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) data show that Mn(II) sorption on a poorly crystalline hexagonal birnessite (δ-MnO?) is important in passivation early during reaction with As(III). Also, it appears that Mn(III) in the δ-MnO? structure is formed by conproportionation of sorbed Mn(II) and Mn(IV) in the mineral structure. The content of Mn(III) within the δ-MnO? structure appears to increase as the reaction proceeds. Binding of As(V) to δ-MnO? also changes as Mn(III) becomes more prominent in the δ-MnO ? structure. The data presented indicate that As(III) oxidation and As(V) sorption by poorly crystalline δ-MnO? is greatly affected by Mn oxidation state in the δ-MnO? structure.     

Hydrogenation of brown coal. 2. Iron-based catalysis

Some of the inherent cations of Victorian brown coals have been exchanged for iron by treatment with solutions of iron salts. Coals with various iron contents are obtained by variation of the pH of the solutions used. Hydrogenation of coals treated in this way at 395 °C, and an initial hydrogen pressure of 10 MPa, give product yields similar to those obtained using commercial cobalt molybdate on alumina catalysts, and greater than those obtained using red mud as a catalyst. The increase in yields compared with non-catalysed experiments results mainly from increased production of asphaltenes. The amount and composition of gas (80–90 wt% C0₂, resulting from decarboxylation) remains constant. Despite the similar conversions, the hydrogen consumption and tetralin/naphthalene ratios for iron-catalysed experiments are less than for cobalt—molybdate-catalysed experiments.     

Banded structures in oriented thermotropic polymers

Drawn fibres and shear-oriented thin films of four thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers have been examined using polarized light optical microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A banded structure is observed in polarized light, with the striations lying perpendicular to the fibre axis or shearing direction. This structure closely resembles those previously reported in lyotropic polymers, suggesting that the supramolecular organization implied by the banded structure is a feature characteristic of oriented liquid crystalline polymers in general.     

Design of a positive resist for projection lithography in the mid-UV

The design, synthesis, formulation, and process optimization of a new mid-UV resist are described. The synthesis of a spectrally matched sensitizer was guided by semiempirical quantum mechanical calculations that predict the effect of structural changes on optical absorption characteristics. The formulation was guided by computer profile simulation studies and the process development by a response surface analytical procedure. These techniques allowed formulation optimization to be achieved on the basis of an understanding of the complex interactions between the resist dissolution response functions and the modulation transfer function of the exposure tool for which the resist was designed.     

A priority queue in which initialization and queue operations takeO(loglogD) time

Many computer algorithms have embedded in them a subalgorithm called a priority queue which produces on demand an element of extreme priority among elements in the queue. Queues on unrestricted priority domains have a running time of (nlogn) for sequences ofn queue operations. We describe a simple priority queue over the priority domain {1,,N} in which initialization, insertion, and deletion takeO(loglogD) time, whereD is the difference between the next lowest and next highest priority elements in the queue. In the case of initialization,D=(N). Finding a least element, greatest element, and the neighbor in priority order of some specified element take constant time. We also consider dynamic space allocation for the data structures used. Space can be allocated in blocks of size (N ^1/p ), for small integerp. This research was supported by the National Science Foundation under grants MCS 77-21092 and MCS 80-002684.