Identification of predominant lactic acid bacteria isolated from traditionally fermented vegetable products of the Eastern Himalayas

Gundruk, sinki and khalpi are lactic-fermented vegetable products of Sikkim in India, and inziangsang is a fermented leafy vegetable product of Nagaland and Manipur in India. A total of 65 samples of gundruk (25), sinki (12), khalpi (25) and inziangsang (3) were analysed for microbial counts. The population of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) as well as aerobic mesophilic counts were at the level of 10(7) cfu g(-1). Yeasts were detected only in few samples of sinki and khalpi. No moulds were detected. In order to identify the predominating organisms, a total of 269 strains of LAB were isolated from gundruk, sinki, khalpi and inziangsang samples. The phenotypic characteristics of these strains were determined followed by genotyping using RAPD-PCR, repetitive element PCR and species-specific PCR techniques. The major representatives of the LAB involved in these fermentations were identified as Lactobacillus brevis, Lactobacillus plantarum, Pediococcus pentosaceus, Pediococcus acidilactici and Leuconostoc fallax.     

Adhesive and chemokine stimulatory properties of potentially probiotic Lactobacillus strains

Five Lactobacillus plantarum strains and two Lactobacillus johnsonii strains, stemming either from African traditionally fermented milk products or children's feces, were investigated for probiotic properties in vitro. The relationship between the hydrophobic-hydrophilic cell surface and adhesion ability to HT29 intestinal epithelial cells was investigated, and results indicated that especially the L. johnsonii strains, which exhibited both hydrophobic and hydrophilic surface characteristics, adhered well to HT29 cells. Four L. plantarum and two L. johnsonii strains showed high adherence to HT29 cells, generally higher than that of the probiotic control strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG. Most strains with high adhesion ability also showed high autoaggregation ability. The two L. johnsonii strains coaggregated well with the intestinal pathogens Listeria monocytogenes Scott A, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium ATCC 14028. The L. plantarum BFE 1685 and L. johnsonii 6128 strains furthermore inhibited the adhesion of at least two of these intestinal pathogens in coculture with HT29 cells in a strain-dependent way. These two potential probiotic strains also significantly increased interleukin-8 (IL-8) chemokine production by HT29 cells, although modulation of other cytokines, such as IL-1, IL-6, IL-10, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta), did not occur. Altogether, our results suggested that L. plantarum BFE 1685 and L. johnsonii BFE 6128 showed good adherence, coaggregated with pathogens, and stimulated chemokine production of intestinal epithelial cells, traits that may be considered promising for their development as probiotic strains.     

Ultrasonographic measurement of the bovine teat: breed differences, and the significance of the measurements for udder health

The objective was to measure teat canal length and diameter, teat diameter and teat wall thickness by ultrasonographic scanning in order to determine the differences in bovine breeds, and to study the influence of teat canal length and diameter on the occurrence of mastitis. A total of 269 lactating dairy cows of four different breeds (Brown Swiss, Simmental, Simmental crossbred with Red Pied, and Holstein-Friesians) from seven Upper Austrian dairy farms were examined. Average teat canal length of Brown Swiss animals was shortest (15.7 mm) followed by Holstein-Friesians (17.2 mm) and Simmental (18.3 mm). These differences in teat canal length were highly significant (P < or = 0.001). There was no significant difference in teat canal length between pure-bred and crossbred Simmentals. Differences of teat canal diameter between breeds were significant (P < or = 0.05). Brown Swiss animals had the largest diameters (2.0 mm) and Holstein-Friesians the smallest (1.7 mm). Differences in teat diameter between Brown Swiss, Holstein-Friesian and Simmental were also significant. No differences were found between the pure-bred and crossbred Simmental cows. The narrowest teats were in Holstein-Friesians and the widest in Simmental. Holstein-Friesians also exhibited the thinnest teat walls while the Simmental had the thickest ones. Teat canal length and diameter were correlated with udder health. Teat canals of healthy udders tended to be longer (17.4 mm) and narrower (1.8 mm) than teat canals of infected udders (15.8 mm, 2.1 mm; P < or = 0.001). A logistic regression model showed significant effects of teat canal length, teat canal diameter and lactation number on udder health.     

Explosionskenngrößen von Ethylenoxid und Ethylenoxid/Propylenoxid‐Gemischen

Gas phases of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide, commonly used for technical alcoxylation reactions, can decompose explosively with an enormous temperature and pressure rise even without the presence of air. For the estimation of consequences of such reactions explosion pressures and rates of pressure rise of EO and certain mixtures of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at temperatures between 100 °C and 200 °C and pressures between 1 bar and 10 bar were determined experimentally using vessels with volumes of 3 dm³ and 100 dm³.     

Enhanced thermionic energy conversion and thermionic emission from doped diamond films through methane exposure

Thermionic electron emitters are a crucial component in applications ranging from high power telecommunication, electron guns, space thrusters and direct thermal to electrical energy converters. One key characteristic of diamond based electron sources is the negative electron affinity (NEA) properties of hydrogen terminated surfaces which can significantly reduce the emission barrier. Nitrogen and phosphorus doped diamond films have been prepared by plasma assisted chemical vapor deposition on metallic substrates for thermionic emitter application. Electron emission current versus temperature was measured and analyzed with respect to the Richardson-Dushman relation, with work function and Richardson constant deduced from the results. Initial emission measurements up to 500 °C in vacuum were followed by emitter characterization while the sample was exposed to methane. Vacuum measurements indicated a work function of 1.18 eV and 1.44 eV for phosphorus and nitrogen doped diamond films, respectively. Introduction of methane resulted in a significant increase of the emission current which was ascribed to contribution from ionization processes which increase charge transfer from the emitter surface. This phenomenon was utilized in a thermionic energy conversion structure by introduction of methane in the inter electrode gap where a two-fold increase in output power was observed upon introduction of the gaseous species.     

Trans fatty acids in margarines and shortenings marketed in Austria

Margarines and shortenings available in Austria were repeatedly sampled in 1991/1992 and the content oftrans fatty acids (TFA) determined by using capillary GLC. Wide variations of the TFA contents with respect to intra- and inter-brand differences were observed. Diet margarines contained up to 1% TFA, while TFA concentrations in tub or stick margarines were much higher (15.7±5.8% and 21.3±5.3%, respectively). A sub-set of samples was also purchased in 1995 and a general reduction of the TFA content was noticed. Taking into account different market shares of certain margarine types, a weighted average of 15.7% TFA and 6.5% TFA was calculated for the 1991/1992 and the 1995 samples. Based on availability data the amount of TFA supplied with margarines was estimated to be 3.7 g per person per day, while a more accurate method of measuring dietary intakes, i.e. diet history and food frequency data, approximates the amount of TFA supplied with margarines to be 1.5 g per person per day for the 1991/1992 samples and 0.6 g for the 1995 samples.     

Uncertainty evaluation and propagation for spectral measurements

The measurement of the spectral power distribution (SPD) of a radiation source by array spectroradiometers is a technique that is widely used. In many applications, quantities that are derived from the SPD by a weighted integral over a wavelength interval are of interest. These integral quantities ought to be accompanied by a reliable uncertainty statement, for example, to assess conformity with prescribed limits or in order to judge the consistency of results obtained at different laboratories. We have developed a generally applicable Monte Carlo procedure for evaluating the uncertainty of spectral measurements. The procedure naturally accounts for correlations in the SPD which turn out to be crucial. Means are provided to handle and transfer these large‐scale correlation matrices easily. The proposed approach is illustrated by the determination of the SPD of colored LEDs from array spectroradiometer measurements, together with the derived CIE 1931 color coordinates. MATLAB^TM software implementing the proposed analysis procedure is made available.     

Modeling outcomes of soccer matches

We compare various extensions of the Bradley–Terry model and a hierarchical Poisson log-linear model in terms of their performance in predicting the outcome of soccer matches (win, draw, or loss). The parameters of the Bradley–Terry extensions are estimated by maximizing the log-likelihood, or an appropriately penalized version of it, while the posterior densities of the parameters of the hierarchical Poisson log-linear model are approximated using integrated nested Laplace approximations. The prediction performance of the various modeling approaches is assessed using a novel, context-specific framework for temporal validation that is found to deliver accurate estimates of the test error. The direct modeling of outcomes via the various Bradley–Terry extensions and the modeling of match scores using the hierarchical Poisson log-linear model demonstrate similar behavior in terms of predictive performance.