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Abstract
In the present study, antibiotic resistance profiles and biofilm forming abilities of 9 Listeria monocytogenes isolates obtained from out of 30 retail meat samples were determined, and the effect of commercial white vinegar on these virulence factors in isolates exposed to subMIC concentrations were investigated. All isolates were found to be resistant to cefotixin and oxacillin, 8 isolates (26.6%) to clindamycin, 1 isolate (3.3%) to rifampicin, and 1 (3.3%) isolate was found to show intermediate resistance against clindamycin. Biofilm formation was determined for all the isolates at 22 °C and 37 °C (24 h, 48 h and 72 h). MIC values of white vinegar samples were determined at 3.12% for all isolates. MIC/2 and MIC/4 concentrations of white vinegar increased the biofilm forming capacity of the isolates by 21.2% and 17.1%, respectively. After exposure to MIC/2 concentration of white vinegar for seven days, the antibiotic resistance status of the isolates to tetracycline, rifampicin, and clindamycin changed, and the biofilm forming abilities significantly decreased at 4 °C and 37 °C for 48 h and at 37 °C for 72 h (P < 0.05). The results showed that the use of subMIC concentrations of white vinegar should be avoided in routine sanitation applications.
Abstract
Present study aimed to optimise stabiliser concentration and swelling time of oat in the production of oat milk using response surface methodology. The effects of independent variables (stabiliser concentration, swelling time) on dependent variables (rheological and sensory properties) were studied using a central composite rotatable design of experiments. Physico-chemical properties and colour values of samples were not significantly (P > 0.05) correlated to stabiliser concentration and swelling time. While stabiliser concentration affected the consistency index (P < 0.05), swelling time had no effect on the rheological properties. The stabiliser ratio affected the sensory texture of samples (P < 0.05). The sensory scores did not increase with increasing K value, on the contrary, the samples with the highest K value had lower sensory scores (P < 0.05). Considering the K value and sensory scores, the optimum stabiliser concentration and swelling time were determined as 0.102%, and 51.2 min, respectively.
Abstract
The aims of the present study were to detect Escherichia coli in chicken distributed in Birjand, to investigate the prevalence of ESBL and AmpC beta-lactamases producers among them, and to identify their antibiotic resistance patterns. The study was conducted on 150 chicken samples, and the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns were determined by the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method. Phenotypic identification of ESBL and AmpC was performed by the combined disk test (CDT). The specific genes of ESBL and AmpC beta-lactamases were detected using two multiplex PCR (m-PCR) assays. According to our results, 116 out of 150 chicken samples were contaminated with E. coli. Moreover, the highest resistance of E. coli isolates was observed to trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (46%), ampicillin (40%), and amoxicillin (29.33%). In the molecular confirmation step, among 17 (11.33%) beta-lactamase producers, five samples contained the bla CTX-M14 gene (3.33%), two samples contained bla DHA (1.33%) and bla CTX-M3 gene (1.33%), and just one sample carried bla CMY-2 gene (0.66%). The bla SHV and bla TEM genes were not detected in any strains isolated from the chicken samples. This study showed the contamination of chicken with antibiotic-resistant E. coli. Therefore, it is recommended that veterinarians be more precautious in prescribing antibiotics.
Abstract
Turkish red pine (Pinus brutia Ten.) is an important tree species that grows widely in Türkiye. In this study, Box-Behnken experimental design was created and optimised for ultrasound assisted extraction of bioactive components of Turkish red pine waste bark. Extraction yield, total phenolic content (TPC), total concentrated tannin (TCT), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and 2,2-azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) were determined at experimental points. As a result of the optimisation process, optimum parameter values were found at 34.8 °C temperature, 6.5 min time and 116.3 W ultrasonic power. Under optimum conditions, the extraction efficiency was 13.16%, TPC 103.09 mg GAE/g, TCT 13.29 mg CE/g, FRAP 602.14 mg TEAC/g, and ABTS 624.51 mg TEAC/g activity results were obtained. The extracts obtained showed low in vitro toxicity against healthy cell lines (HEK-293, human embryonic kidney), proliferation of CaCo-2 (human colorectal adenocarcinoma) and MIA PaCa-2 (human pancreatic adenocarcinoma) cancer cells was significantly reduced. It was also determined that this extract has lower activity against Alzheimer's disease (AD)-associated AChE (acetylcholinesterase)-BChE (butyrylcholinesterase) than diabetes disease associated ɑ-glucosidase and ɑ-amylase. The extracts also showed significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella Typhimurium, and Escherichia coli.
Abstract
Intermittent fasting (IF) is a dietary strategy that involves alternating periods of abstention from calorie consumption with periods of ad libitum food intake and has been shown to have beneficial effects in many ways. Recent studies have shown that IF attenuates neurodegeneration and improves cognitive decline, enhances functional recovery after stroke as well as attenuates the pathological and clinical features of epilepsy in animal models. Furthermore, IF induced several molecular and cellular adaptations in neurons that overall enhanced cellular stress resistance, synaptic plasticity, and neurogenesis. In this review, the beneficial effects of IF on central neurological disorders are discussed. The information summarised in this review can be used to help contextualise existing research and better guide the development of future IF interventions.
Abstract
Nattokinase (NK) is effective in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. Cucumber is rich in nutrients with low sugar content and is safe for consumption. The aim of this study was to construct a therapeutic cucumber that can express NK, which can prevent and alleviate cardiovascular diseases by consumption. Because the Bitter fruit (Bt) gene contributes to bitter taste but has no obvious effect on the growth and development of cucumber, so the NK-producing cucumber was constructed by replacing the Bt gene with NK by using CRISPR/Cas9. The pZHY988-Cas9-sgRNA and pX6-LHA-U6-NK-T-RHA vectors were constructed and transformed into Agrobacterium tumefaciens EHA105, which was transformed into cucumber by floral dip method. The crude extract of NK-producing cucumber had significant thrombolytic activity in vitro. In addition, treatment with the crude extract significantly delayed thrombus tail appearance, and the thrombin time of mice was much longer than that of normal mice. The degrees of coagulation and blood viscosity as well as hemorheological properties improved significantly after crude extract treatment. These findings show that NK-producing cucumber can effectively alleviate thrombosis and improve blood biochemical parameters, providing a new direction for diet therapy against cardiovascular diseases.
Abstract
In this paper, fresh Muzao (Zizyphus jujuba cv. Muzao) at full-red and white-ripe periods were used as raw materials to brew low-alcohol jujube wines directly without cooking or extraction. The results showed that the contents of total acid, total phenolics, and total tannin of white-ripe jujube wines (WRJW) were significantly higher than that of full-red jujube wines (FRJW) under the same ratio of jujube fruit/water (P < 0.05). When the ratio of jujube fruit to water increased from 1:1 to 1:5, the total esters contents of WRJW increased from 2261.56 μg L−1 to 3671.51 μg L−1, but decreased in FRJW. Especially, the contents of ethyl octanoate, ethyl decanoate, and isoamyl caprylate in WRJW (1:5) were significantly higher than in other wine samples (P < 0.05). These three esters with a variety of aroma description characteristics can give jujube wine a more complex flavour. The sensory evaluation also showed that the WRJW (1:5) had the highest score. This wine had the following characteristics: clear and transparent, light yellow, pure elegant fruit and wine aroma, pleasant fragrance, harmonious wine body, fresh taste, sweet and sour, with typical characteristics of jujube wine. The research results can provide a theoretical basis and technical reference for the industrial production of high-quality jujube wine.
Abstract
Proper gluten quantitation is essential for providing safe gluten-free food for patients living with celiac disease (CD). However, gluten quantitation faces several challenges: the lack of a reference method and certified reference materials, the variability of methods and the effects of genetic and environmental factors on gluten. Among all these challenges our research group focuses on gluten reference material development. Gluten content is determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) methods to obtain comparable data for the selection of cultivars used in our reference material development efforts. As ELISA methods are developed for determining low gluten concentrations, application for these special research purposes requires a 10,000-fold dilution. The formerly performed process was a post-extraction liquid dilution that proved to be sufficient for wheat samples. However, gluten contents of rye and barley samples were found to be overestimated by ELISA methods. One of the suggested reasons is the structural and solubility changes of gluten proteins during the dilution process. Therefore, our present study focuses on the comparison of the original dilution method and a revised version using solid-phase dilution in a gluten-free matrix.
Abstract
Jerusalem artichoke tuber extracts (JAE) bioactivity including anticancer, antimicrobial, and digestion-inhibiting properties were investigated. The findings showed that the extracts were able to inhibit cancer growth in the HT-29 colon cancer cell line (HT-29 cc cell line) in a dose-dependent form. The suppression of cell proliferation rose to about 78.05 ± 3.9 percent at a dose of 250 μg mL−1. The Annexin V assay showed dose-dependent DNA fragmentation and detected late apoptotic induction in the HT-29 cc cell line. Depending on the concentration, the extract was able to stop the cell cycle in the HT-29 cc cell line at the G1 phase. Also, JAE prevented the HT-29 cc cell line growth, which resulted in programmed cell death. Additionally, the extracts are potential antibacterial agents and may inhibit lipase and α-amylase.
