Surface hydrocarbon components of two species ofNasutitermes from Trinidad

Colonies ofNasutitermes costalis (Holmgren) andN. ephratae (Holmgren) were collected from five locations in Trinidad. Cuticular hydrocarbons were characterized by gas chromatography-electron impact mass spectrometry and quantified by capillary gas chromatography. Sixteen major components were identified; all but one component (12, 16-dimethyltriacontane) were common to both species. The methyl-branched hydrocarbons were predominant inN. costalis, while the majority of the hydrocarbon components inN. ephratae weren-alkanes. One hydrocarbon (11,15-dimethylheptacosane) was found in abundance in samples ofN. ephratae from Trinidad but was not previously reported from collections of this species in Panama. In addition to the morphology of the soldiers and alates and the architecture of the arboreal nests,N. costalis andN. ephratae from Trinidad can easily be separated by chromatograms of the hydrocarbons.N. costalis has an enormous 13,17-dimethylhentriacontane peak (mean = 42.4% of total hydrocarbon). InN. ephratae this peak is much smaller and the 12,16-dimethyltriacontane peak is completely missing.N. costalis from Trinidad andN. corniger from Panama appear to have cuticular hydrocarbon profiles that are more similar to one another than are those ofN. ephratae from Trinidad and Panama.Isoptera: Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae.     

The dorsal tegmental noradrenergic projection: An analysis of its role in maze learning.

Evaluated the hypothesis that the noradrenergic projection from the locus coeruleus (LC) to the cerebral cortex and hippocampus is an important neural substrate for learning. Four experiments were conducted with 61 male Wistar rats. Maze performance was studied in Ss receiving either electrolytic lesions of LC or 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesions of the dorsal tegmental noradrenergic projection. The LC lesions did not disrupt the acquisition of a running response for food reinforcement in an L-shaped runway, even though hippocampal-cortical norepinephrine (NE) was reduced to 29%. Greater telencephalic NE depletions (to 6% of control levels) produced by 6-OHDA also failed to disrupt the acquisition of this behavior or to impair the acquisition of a food-reinforced position habit in a 'T'-maze. Neither locomotor activity nor habituation to a novel environment was affected by the 6-OHDA lesions. Ss with such lesions were, however, found to be significantly more distractible than were controls during the performance of a previously trained response. The hypothesis that telencephalic NE is of fundamental importance in learning was not supported. The data suggest that this system may participate in attentional mechanisms. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Airflow inside an open ventilated system: Influence of operator’s arms or moving conveyor

This study deals with the influence of static and dynamic objects on the airflow (generated by a unidirectional air supply) inside an “open” ventilated system used in an agro-food production line. Firstly, the presence of operator’s arms, considered here as objects, leads to the appearance of recirculating zones under each arm. The influence of different positions of the static arms protected by gloves on the airflow organization has been studied. Secondly, modifications induced by the motion of a conveyor system or of moving arms on the airflow have been explored.In an experimental approach, airflow organization has been studied by visualization and by Particle Image Velocimetry for static cases and moving conveyor case.Numerical simulations were carried out using Computational Fluids Dynamics codes. Results obtained for moving gloves cases highlight the contribution of dynamic meshes tools, implemented in the CFD codes to make simulations of moving objects.     

Inhibitory effect of acid concentration,aging, and different packaging on Escherichia coli O157:H7 and on color stability of beef

The presence of pathogens such as Escherichia coli O157:H7 (EC) represents risks to public health and to economy of Brazilian beef industry. In this context, the application of lactic acid (LA) is an efficient practice employed to reduce bacterial count without compromising consumer safety. Our aim was to verify the inhibitory effect of LA application combined with aging and different packaging on EC and its effects on beef color. The LA effect on EC counts was concentration dependent during aging and storage, with T2 (10% of LA added) demonstrating greater (p < .05) reductions than T1 (5% of LA added). Aging did not affect (p > .05) EC counts, however reduced (p < .05) the total aerobic mesophilic bacteria. LA application promoted a decrease on beef redness (p > .05) after application and during storage. LA treatment (T2) promoted a reduction in E. coli O157:H7, despite the effects on beef color.

Practical applications

The present data evidence a breakthrough in lactic acid (LA) researches once evaluate the inhibitory effect of aging, LA concentration and package on Escherichia coli O157:H7 and the influence of these technologies in beef color. Moreover, the data presented allow clarifying the meat industry about the potential use of LA preservation on beef.     

Determination of the geographical origin of processed spice using multielement and isotopic pattern on the example of Szegedi paprika

This case study presents a fast and reliable method of combining strontium isotope ratios (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) with a multielement pattern (Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Mo, Cd, Ba, Pb, Th, U, Mg, Ca, Sc, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As and rare earth elements) by means of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to establish a unique fingerprint of authentic Szegedi Fűszerpaprika (PDO) and classify authentic and purchased paprika from different known, declared and unknown geographical origin using multivariate statistical tools (principal component and canonical discriminant analysis). Since paprika represents a processed spice, alterations in element and Sr isotopic composition throughout the production process were investigated. The Sr source in the final product was identified to stem from bioavailable Sr sources in soil. Therefore, the ammonium nitrate extract of a soil is sufficient to establish a Sr fingerprint for agricultural products of a region. As a consequence, the spice paprika can be traced back to its geographical origin even after processing.     

Microbes versus microbes: control of pathogens in the food chain

Foodborne illness continues as a considerable threat to public health. Despite improved hygiene management systems and increased regulation, pathogenic bacteria still contaminate food, causing sporadic cases of illness and disease outbreaks worldwide. For many centuries, microbial antagonism has been used in food processing to improve food safety. An understanding of the mode of action of this microbial antagonism has been gained in recent years and potential applications in food and feed safety are now being explored. This review focuses on the potential opportunities presented, and the limitations, of using microbial antagonism as a biocontrol mechanism to reduce contamination along the food chain; including animal feed as its first link. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry     

Regulation of genes encoding proteolytic enzymes during mammary gland development

The mammary gland undergoes extensive tissue remodelling during each lactation cycle. During pregnancy, the epithelial compartment of the gland is vastly expanded (Benaud et al. 1998). At the end of lactation the epithelial cells undergo apoptosis and adipocyte differentiation is induced (Lilla et al. 2002). Ductal and alveolar growth during puberty and pregnancy, and the involution process require the action of proteolytic enzymes (including matrix metalloproteinases, plasminogen and membrane-peptidases) and the corresponding genes are activated during these periods (Benaud et al. 1998; Alexander et al. 2001). Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) are expressed in several cell types of the mammary gland including stromal fibroblasts (e.g., MMP3, MMP2), epithelial cells (e.g., MMP7 or MMP9), adipocytes (e.g., MMP2) and lymphoid cells (e.g., MMP9) (Crawford et al. 1996; Lund et al. 1996; Wiseman et al. 2003). A number of knock-out mice, which are deficient for individual MMP genes (e.g., MMP2, MMP3) or plasminogen, display alterations to mammary gland structure and impairment of lactation (Lund et al. 1999; Wiseman et al. 2003).     

Scanner design

The scanner is a subroutine which is frequently called by an application program like a compiler. The primary function of a scanner is to combine characters from the input stream into recognizable units called tokens. A method has been presented in this paper for designing such a scanner, also frequently referred to as a lexical analyser in the current literature. The major steps involved in this design process are: identification of tokens, construction of a state diagram, building driver tables and finally writing a scanning routine. The rules for generating the driver tables are described and an algorithm for the scanner, utilizing these driver tables, is included. The method has been successfully used to build the system scanner for a user oriented plotting language. It is concluded that the method is well defined, gives rise to a modular design and as such easily lends itself to language extensions.