Science and animal welfare in France and European Union: Rules,constraints, achievements

The welfare of food-producing animals is a focus of public debate in Europe. Political institutions, have introduced regulations based on scientific data. Meanwhile, the practices of producers and transformers were modified. Implementation of care practices is added to the goal of sustainable basic health of animals. Nevertheless urban consumers still look for the “naturalness” of living animals. A brief historical perspective introduces the building process of European regulations. A short list of Directories and Recommendations provides a clue on the complexity of resulting construct. Now, this complexity is calling for simplification of rules while practices should be compatible with professional constraints. Few selected examples are brought to illustrate how the concepts initially studied by scientists (welfare, pain, stress, “consciousness”/awareness) were integrated in regulations and implemented by producers and meat industry in order to simultaneously maintain the requirements for high quality and security standards. At the same time, free trade market constraints introduced new distortions, in particular those linked to the world demand for proteins. Indeed, the controversy about animal welfare, initially brought on ethical grounds, became a case for ongoing adjustements of EU policy, requesting to combine scientific knowledge on animals, consequent evolution in the representation of animals by urban consumers with the challenge of adaptation and implemention of regulations.     

Prevalence of Salmonella enterica and the hygienic indicator Escherichia coli in raw meat at markets in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

This study investigated the hygienic status and prevalence of Salmonella and Escherichia coli in retail meat sold at open markets in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. A total of 150 samples of beef meat (n = 45), beef intestine (n = 45), mutton (n = 30), and chicken (n = 30) were collected from four local markets for investigation. The prevalence of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica was 9.3%, and six serotypes, all previously unreported in Burkina Faso, were identified: Derby, Tilene, Hato, Bredeney, Agona, and Senftenberg. Most of the Salmonella isolates were sensitive to the 12 antimicrobial drugs tested. The prevalence of E. coli was 100% in all the meat types. An assessment of hygiene practices for the production, transportation, display, and vending of the meat revealed unhygienic conditions. Meat sellers had a low education level and poor knowledge of foodborne pathogens and their transmission routes. The findings showed that foodstuff handlers were in dire need of education about safe food handling practices.     

Fate and effects of Camembert cheese micro-organisms in the human colonic microbiota of healthy volunteers after regular Camembert consumption

The objective of this study was to determine i) if Camembert cheese micro-organisms could be detected in fecal samples after regular consumption by human subjects and ii) the consequence of this consumption on global metabolic activities of the host colonic microbiota. An open human protocol was designed where 12 healthy volunteers were included: a 2-week period of fermented products exclusion followed by a 4-weeks Camembert ingestion period where 2x40 g/day of Camembert cheese was consumed. Stools were collected from the volunteers before consumption, twice during the ingestion period (2nd and 4th week) and once after a wash out period of 2 weeks. During the consumption of Camembert cheese, high levels of Lactococcus lactis and Leuconostoc mesenteroides were measured in fecal samples using real-time quantitative PCR, reaching median values of 8.2 and 7.5 Log(10) genome equivalents/g of stool. For Ln. mesenteroides, persistence was observed 15 days after the end of Camembert consumption. The survival of Geotrichum candidum was also assessed and the fecal concentration reached a median level of 7.1 Log(10) CFU/g in stools. Except a decreasing trend of the nitrate reductase activity, no significant modification was shown in the metabolic activities during this study.     

In situ degradability of conventional and unconventional starch sources for ruminants,and factors determining their washable fraction: methodological implications

BACKGROUND: The in situ technique (IS) is used for characterising, screening and evaluating feedstuffs in ruminants. However, it is often not adapted to the particular characteristics of feeds (i.e. kinetics of starchy feeds with a standard framework used in forage). This may lead to potential biases in the final conclusions. In two successive experiments, we evaluated the degradative characteristics of conventional (CON) and unconventional (UNC) starchy feedstuffs (ING) and factors affecting their washable fractions (WF). The suitability of IS was then assessed. RESULTS: Two well‐defined ruminal fermentation patterns (CON and UNC) were observed. The WF and insoluble washable (ISWF) fractions were affected by ING, state of presentation [WAY, fresh (F) or pre‐dried (D)], particle size (PSI) and their interactions. The UNC and F feeds had greater WF and ISWF than CON and D, respectively. Increasing PSI linearly reduced WF and its proportion of ISWF. CONCLUSION: The PSI and WAY are critical factors to consider when designing experiments for the evaluation of starchy feedstuffs for ruminants using IS. It is still very risky to propose ‘standard’ parameters as this will always depend on the particular ING evaluated. Conducting pre‐evaluation tests before implementing each research protocol could help to refine the procedure. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Response of a Lactobacillus plantarum human isolate to tannic acid challenge assessed by proteomic analyses

Scope : To gain insight on the mechanisms used by intestinal bacteria to adapt and resist the antimicrobial action of dietary tannins and identify targets for tannic acid in Lactobacillus plantarum. Methods and results : A proteomic analysis of an L. plantarum human isolate exposed to the tannic acid challenge was undertaken. Tannic acid targeted proteins involved in outstanding processes for bacterial stress resistance including cyclopropanation of membrane lipids, stress response at population scale and maintenance of cell shape. To respond to this aggression, tannic acid‐misfit cells of L. plantarum challenged with tannic acid reorganized their metabolic capacity to economize energy and express proteins involved in oxidative stress defense and cell wall biogenesis, indicating that the injury incurred by tannic acid was based on oxidative damage and disruption of the cell envelope. The induction of 3‐octaprenyl‐4‐hydroxybenzoate carboxy‐lyase, which is sensitive to changes in redox conditions and involved in ubiquinone biosynthesis in other bacteria, suggests for a tannic acid‐induced redox imbalance. Conclusion : The results reveal the adaptation of a gastrointestinal isolate of L. plantarum to tannic acid and identify antibacterial targets for this dietary compound. This provides the basis for the selection of tannin‐resistant microorganisms and their use to obtain health benefits from tannin‐containing diets.     

Parameter identification and modeling of the biochemical methane potential of waste activated sludge

Anaerobic digestion is widely used in waste activated sludge treatment. In this paper, partial least-squares (PLS) is employed to identify the parameters that are determining the biochemical methane potential (BMP) of waste activated sludge. Moreover, a model is developed for the prediction of the BMP. A strong positive correlation is observed between the BMP and volatile fatty acids and carbohydrate concentrations in the sludge. A somewhat weaker correlation with COD is also present. Soluble organics (sCOD, soluble carbohydrates and soluble proteins) were shown not to influence the BMP in the observed region. This finding could be most-valuable in the context of application of sludge pretreatment methods. The obtained model was able to satisfactory predict the BMP.     

Influence of polymeric additives on paraffin wax crystallization in model oils

Wax deposition, precipitation, and gelation make the transport of crude oil in pipelines challenging. The effect of several ethylene copolymers, and small molecules with a long alkyl chain, on wax formation was investigated for n-C₃₂H₆₆ in decane and de-aromatized white oil. Addition of a small amount of EVA (ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) copolymers delayed nucleation by reducing the onset temperature and the wax appearance temperature. They modified the wax crystal-structure and morphology from large plates to tiny particles by adsorbing to the wax surfaces and inhibiting growth. Viscosity and the pour-point were improved by inhibiting the formation of large aggregates. It was demonstrated that the content of vinyl acetate groups in EVA copolymers affected wax crystallization. The small molecules, propylene copolymers, and ethylene copolymers with ethyl acrylate, maleic anhydride, and ethylene glycol showed a weak inhibiting effect. The effect of wax inhibitors was determined by the content and by the type of structure-disturbing groups in the copolymers.     

Impact of the Cd2+ treatment on the electrical properties of Cu2ZnSnSe4 and Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

The present contribution aims at determining the impact of modifying the properties of the absorber/buffer layer interface on the electrical performance of Cu₂ZnSnSe₄ (CZTSe) thin‐film solar cells, by using a Cd²⁺ partial electrolyte (Cd PE) treatment of the absorber before the buffer layer deposition. In this work, CZTSe/CdS solar cells with and without Cd PE treatment were compared with their respective Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGSe)/CdS references. The Cd PE treatment was performed in a chemical bath for 7 min at 70 °C using a basic solution of cadmium acetate. X‐ray photoemission spectroscopy measurements have revealed the presence of Cd at the absorber surface after the treatment. The solar cells were characterized using current density–voltage (J–V), external quantum efficiency, and drive‐level capacitance profiling measurements. For the CZTSe‐based devices, the fill factor increased from 57.7% to 64.0% when using the Cd PE treatment, leading to the improvement of the efficiency (η) from 8.3% to 9.0% for the best solar cells. Similar observations were made on the CIGSe solar cell reference. This effect comes from a considerable reduction of the series resistance (R_S) of the dark and light J–V, as determined using the one‐diode model. The crossover effect between dark and light J–V curves is also significantly reduced by Cd PE treatment. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Radical‐scavenging properties of extracts from the white button mushroom,Agaricus bisporus

BACKGROUND: Agaricus bisporus is the premier cultivated edible mushroom but is usually considered to be of lesser value nutritionally and medicinally compared with other cultivated mushrooms. The objective of this study was to investigate the radical‐scavenging properties of methanolic extracts and the free radical‐processing enzyme activities of water extracts from A. bisporus fruit bodies. Analyses were performed on total fruit bodies from three strains and on separated stipe, cap and gills from one strain, all cultivated experimentally under the same conditions. RESULTS: EC₅₀ values of scavenging ability on 1,1‐diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl radicals (DPPH^?), scavenging ability on 2,2‐azino‐bis(3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulfonic acid) radical cations (ABTS^?+) and reducing power of methanolic extracts from total fruit bodies ranged between 1.7 and 5.0 and were 1.1–1.9 times higher in a white hybrid than in two wild strains, cream and brown. The gills exhibited higher antioxidant activities relative to the stipe and cap. In water extracts, glutathione peroxidase activities were up to eight times higher than glutathione reductase activities and no difference was observed between strains. Catalase activity was highest in the brown wild strain. The only significant differences in free radical‐processing enzymes between the three parts of the mushroom were higher catalase activity in the gills and lower glutathione reductase activity in the stipe. CONCLUSION: The radical‐scavenging properties of the button mushroom are comparable to those of other edible mushrooms and dependent on the strain and on the section of the fruit body. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry