The Bologna reform’s impacts on the scientific publication performance of Ph.D. graduates—the case of Slovenia

Scientometrics - In this paper, the impact of the Bologna reform is analyzed based on differences in scientific publication performance among the Ph.D. graduates that enrolled into doctoral study...     

Reference-Guided De Novo Genome Assembly of the Flour Beetle Tribolium freemani

The flour beetle Tribolium freemani is a sibling species of the model organism and important pest Tribolium castaneum. The two species are so closely related that they can produce hybrid progeny, but the genetic basis of their differences has not been revealed. In this work, we sequenced the T. freemani genome by applying PacBio HiFi technology. Using the well-assembled T. castaneum genome as a reference, we assembled 262 Mb of the T. freemani genomic sequence and anchored it in 10 linkage groups corresponding to nine autosomes and sex chromosome X. The assembly showed 99.8% completeness of conserved insect genes, indicating a high-quality reference genome. Comparison with the T. castaneum assembly revealed that the main differences in genomic sequence between the two sibling species come from repetitive DNA, including interspersed and tandem repeats. In this work, we also provided the complete assembled mitochondrial genome of T. freemani. Although the genome assembly needs to be ameliorated in tandemly repeated regions, the first version of the T. freemani reference genome and the complete mitogenome presented here represent useful resources for comparative evolutionary studies of related species and for further basic and applied research on different biological aspects of economically important pests.     

Quality of groundwater in eastern Croatia. The problem of arsenic pollution

Groundwater in the area of eastern Croatia contains high concentrations of iron, manganese, ammonia, organic substances and arsenic. The appearance of inorganic arsenic in groundwater is mainly caused by arsenic from natural geological sources. Since the groundwater is the main source of drinking water for the population in this area, almost 200,000 people are daily drinking water with arsenic concentration ranging from 10 to 610 μg/L. The Croatian legislation recently revised the maximum concentration limit (MCL) for arsenic in drinking water to 10 μg/L. The population in the two towns (Osijek and Vinkovci) of this region is supplied with groundwater processed by coagulation-filtration method, but in the other towns and villages water treatment implies only rapid sand filtration. Both methods for water treatment have resulted with higher arsenic concentration than MCL, so the main goal of this study was determination of population exposure to arsenic via drinking water and possible improvement of drinking water quality. Population exposure to arsenic via drinking water is determined with hair analysis, since the hair arsenic concentration is one of three most commonly employed biomarkers used to identify or quantify overall arsenic exposure. During this study the preliminary analyses of hair arsenic concentrations in several towns and villages in eastern Croatia were provided. The positive correlation between heightened arsenic concentration in drinking water and hair arsenic concentration was determined. In order to improve drinking water quality e.g. arsenic removal from contaminated drinking water, different modified adsorbents were used and compared (zeolite–clinoptilolite, manganese greensand and cationic exchange resin). Adsorbents were chemically modified and saturated with Fe(III) ions, while the arsenic solutions were prepared by processed groundwater.     

Reduction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in common carp meat smoked in traditional conditions

Common carp meat was smoked in traditional conditions without filter and with zeolite, granular activated carbon, and gravel filters. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of using different filters in traditional smoking conditions on 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from the Environmental Protection Agency list (16 US-EPA PAHs). Determination and quantification of PAHs were performed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS). According to the obtained results, all examined samples of common carp meat smoked in traditional conditions were safe for consumers regarding to the European Commission Regulation on PAH content. After statistical analysis, the zeolite filter appeared to be the best one based on food safety of traditional production of smoked common carp meat. Application of any of these filters to produce smoked common carp meat in traditional conditions resulted in a safer product, as lower levels of PAHs were obtained.     

Listeria monocytogenes in retail establishments: Contamination routes and control strategies

In the past two decades, serious outbreaks of foodborne disease were caused by Listeria monocytogenes, a pathogen frequently found in delicatessens at retail. Although the prevalence of listeriosis is not high, the severity of disease is significant, with high hospitalization and mortality rates. Potential sources of L. monocytogenes and food contamination routes in retail and food service operations include incoming raw materials, food products, food handlers, customers, vendors, and environmental sources. Risk mitigation strategies for L. monocytogenes should be based on integrated control along the food chain continuum, from farm to retail establishment.     

Organochlorine pesticides in canned tuna and sardines on the Serbian market

The aim of this study was to determine the level of organochlorine (OC) pesticides in 57 samples of canned tuna and 31 samples of canned sardines in vegetable oil, collected from supermarkets in Serbia. OC pesticides α-HCH, β-HCH, δ-HCH, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), DDE, DDD, dielderin, endosulfane I, endosulfane II, endosulan sulfate, endrin, endrin ketone, heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, lindane, aldrin, metoxichlor, cis-chlordane and trans-chlordane were determined using a GS-MS method. The highest concentrations (µg kg^?1, arithmetic means) in canned tuna were for δ-HCH (60.6 ± 97.0) and p, p´-DDT (55.0 ± 25.1), while the corresponding values in canned sardines were for δ-HCH (90.7 ± 102.7) and endosulfane II (78.0 ± 145.9). Mean level for the sum of endosulfans was above the maximum limit in canned sardines (85.0 µg kg^?1). Also, dieldrin (39.7 µg kg^?1) was measured above the ML.