First Day Of Analysis Research Articles

Bacteriological Quality of Beef Sold at different Retail Points in Owo Metropolis

The present study aimed to investigate the bacteriological characteristics of fresh beef sold in various retail centers within the Owo communities, located in Ondo State, Nigeria. Samples were collected from six different locations using a systematic random sampling method, with two samples collected from each location—one in the morning (M) and the other in the evening (E). The standard procedure for isolating microorganisms was followed. Morphological and biochemical characterization of isolates are presented in Table 1, while Table 2 displays bacterial counts on the fresh beef samples over a period of ten days. On the first day of analysis, the sample from Ikare Junction exhibited the highest bacterial counts (152 x 105cfu/g for the morning sample and 276 x 105cfu/g for the evening sample), which was statistically significant (p±>0.05). Conversely, the sample from Ehin-ogbe had the lowest bacterial count (36 x 105cfu/g) in the morning, while the sample from Ijebu had 116 x 105cfu/g in the evening. There was a noteworthy (p±>0.05) disparity between morning and evening samples across all locations, with the evening samples consistently showing higher bacterial counts. This discrepancy could be attributed to prolonged exposure to contamination over time. Table 1 also revealed the probable organisms according to the biochemical and morphological characterization of the isolates. The isolates were E. coli, Enterobacter spp., Serratia spp., Citrobacter spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidemidis, Bacillus subtilis, K. preumomiae, Lactobacillus spp., Leuconostoc spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis, Preteus mirabilis, Salmonella spp. and Shigella spp. The presence of these organisms in fresh beef depicts a deplorable state of poor hygienic and sanitary practices employed in the slaughtering and processing of fresh beef. Their presence indicates a public health hazard and gives a warning signal for the possible occurrence of food-borne intoxication. Proper hygiene practices should be observed during handling, marketing, and calls for concerted efforts on the part of relevant authorities to check the trend since it is a public health challenge.

Thymbra capitata L. hydrolate as a washing solution for controlling Listeria monocytogenes and spoilage microorganisms on rocket salad

Ready-to-eat (RTE) vegetables, including fresh-cut ones, are exposed to the risk of the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes. Nowadays, fresh-cut products are widely consumed because of their convenience. Nevertheless, effective washing treatments are required for their preparation, to maintain freshness and microbiological safety. Currently, natural substances are increasingly demanded as alternatives to traditional synthetic washing agents. Therefore, this study investigates the application of Thymbra capitata hydrolate as washing solution for rocket salad (Eruca sativa) stored at 4 °C for 48 h, to evaluate a potential application both during the production process of fresh-cut vegetables, and also at the domestic level. The hydrolate applied at a concentration of 500 μL/mL for 5 min allowed to reduce L. monocytogenes load of about 1 log CFU/g at each time of analysis, and to determine a significant reduction of microbial groups normally found on rocket salad, particularly total mesophilic and psychrotrophic counts. The treatment showed no negative effects on pH, aw, and colour of the rocket salad. At a sensory level, the differences among control and treated samples were minimally perceived only on the first day of analysis but disappeared over time. Therefore, this alternative washing treatment revealed to counteract L. monocytogenes growth and to help maintaining the quality of rocket salad. Hence, it could be optimized for a concrete application, also considering the enhancement of the antilisterial activity, the sustainability and low cost of the hydrolate, which represents a by-product from the production of essential oils.

D-Alluloz ilaveli keklerin diyet lifi analizi ve depolama süresince mikrobiyolojik değişikliklerin belirlenmesi

D-Allulose is a monosaccharide that is rarely found in foods and can be obtained commercially by enzymatic reactions and isolation from bacteria. It can not be absorbed because of its chemical composition's resistance to digestive enzymes. It is referred to as a "energy-free natural sweetener" for this reason. These findings has led to an increase in D-allulose usage in the food industry. In this study, the total dietary fiber of cakes with additional D-allulose was determined, as well as the microbiological changes that occurred during storage. Three distinct cakes were made for the trial as the control (sugar), 50% sugar plus 50% D-allulose, and 100% D-allulose. In the baked cakes, dietary fiber analysis was done on day 1 and microbiological analyses were done on days 0, 7, 14, and 21. On the first day of analysis, there was no difference between the groups in the total spor-forming bacteria counts of the cake groups, but on the 7th, 14th, and 21st days of analysis, there were statistically significant differences between the groups (p0.05). The control group's total dietary fiber content were 5.93 g/100 g, and AL 100 group’s content were 10.70 g/100 g. D-Allulose is regarded as a natural sweetener with significant antimicrobial properties and a high dietary fiber content.

Skin swabbing is a refined technique to collect DNA from model fish species

Model fish species such as sticklebacks and zebrafish are frequently used in studies that require DNA to be collected from live animals. This is typically achieved by fin clipping, a procedure that is simple and reliable to perform but that can harm fish. An alternative procedure to sample DNA involves swabbing the skin to collect mucus and epithelial cells. Although swabbing appears to be less invasive than fin clipping, it still requires fish to be netted, held in air and handled—procedures that can cause stress. In this study we combine behavioural and physiological analyses to investigate changes in gene expression, behaviour and welfare after fin clipping and swabbing. Swabbing led to a smaller change in cortisol release and behaviour on the first day of analysis compared to fin clipping. It also led to less variability in data suggesting that fewer animals need to be measured after using this technique. However, swabbing triggered some longer term changes in zebrafish behaviour suggesting a delayed response to sample collection. Skin swabbing does not require the use of anaesthetics and triggers fewer changes in behaviour and physiology than fin clipping. It is therefore a more refined technique for DNA collection with the potential to improve fish health and welfare.

Maintenance of strains of Campylobacter jejuni in laboratories after use of cryoprotectors and pre-treatment of stress

This study evaluated the feasibility and the production of transcripts of sodB, p19, ciaB and dnaJ genes in strains of Campylobacter jejuni ATCC 33291, NCTC 11351, and 2383 IAL stored in whole UHT milk and or neopepton + 12% glycerol, submitted or not to pre-treatments at 4°C or 10°C for 30 minutes. The analyzes were performed immediately after freezing in liquid nitrogen (day 0) and after maintenance for 30, 60, and 90 days at -20ºC. The viability was evaluated by the traditional culture method and the production of transcripts by the RT-PCR technique. The quantification was only possible on the first day of analysis (day 0) and presented a mean of 3.0 x 107 CFU, and in the other periods of storage the strains presented confluent growth, not allowing their enumeration. The results indicated that whole UHT milk was more adequate for cryopreservation than the use of neopepton + 12% glycerol. The use of pre-treatments combined with the use of UHT milk as a cryoprotective medium stabilized the cells in order to transcribe the ciaB, dnaJ, sodBand p19 genes in the strains maintained under -20 ° for 30 to 60 days, indicating that they are more suitable methods for the maintenance of strains in the laboratory.

Intradermal Application of Crotamine Induces Inflammatory and Immunological Changes In Vivo.

Crotamine is a single-chain polypeptide with cell-penetrating properties, which is considered a promising molecule for clinical use. Nevertheless, its biosafety data are still scarce. Herein, we assessed the in vivo proinflammatory properties of crotamine, including its local effect and systemic serum parameters. Sixty male Wistar rats were intradermically injected with 200, 400 and 800 µg crotamine and analyzed after 1, 3 and 7 days. Local effect of crotamine was assessed by determination of MPO and NAG activities, NO levels and angiogenesis. Systemic inflammatory response was assessed by determination of IL-10, TNF-α, CRP, NO, TBARS and SH groups. Crotamine induced macrophages and neutrophils chemotaxis as evidenced by the upregulation of both NAG (0.5–0.6 OD/mg) and MPO (0.1–0.2 OD/mg) activities, on the first and third day of analysis, respectively. High levels of NO were observed for all concentrations and time-points. Moreover, 800 μg crotamine resulted in serum NO (64.7 μM) and local tissue NO (58.5 μM) levels higher or equivalent to those recorded for their respective histamine controls (55.7 μM and 59.0 μM). Crotamine also induced a significant angiogenic response compared to histamine. Systemically, crotamine induced a progressive increase in serum CRP levels up to the third day of analysis (22.4–45.8 mg/mL), which was significantly greater than control values. Crotamine (400 μg) also caused an increase in serum TNF-α, in the first day of analysis (1095.4 pg/mL), however a significant increase in IL-10 (122.2 pg/mL) was also recorded for the same time-point, suggesting the induction of an anti-inflammatory effect. Finally, crotamine changed the systemic redox state by inducing gradual increase in serum levels of TBARS (1.0–1.8 μM/mL) and decrease in SH levels (124.7–19.5 μM/mL) throughout the experimental period of analysis. In summary, rats intradermally injected with crotamine presented local and systemic acute inflammatory responses similarly to histamine, which limits crotamine therapeutic use on its original form.

Comparison of the effects of continuous versus intermittent enteral feeding on plasma leptin and ghrelin levels in Intensive Care Units

ABSTRACT Objective: The aim of this prospective randomized trial is to verify whether there is an association between the methods of administration of enteral nutrition and the leptin and ghrelin hormones, which have a major role in the regulation of energy metabolism. Methods: This study enrolled 38 enteral-fed patients aged 18 to 85 in the Intensive Care Unit. The patients were prospectively randomized to receive either continuous infusion (n=19) or intermittent feeding (n=18) of enteral nutrition. In addition to routine biochemical assays, blood samples were taken from the patients for leptin and ghrelin analyses on the 1th, 7th, and 14th days of enteral nutrition. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the groups regarding descriptive statistics and categorical variables such as underlying diseases, complications, steroid use and others (p>0.05). The decrease in the number of white blood cells and in creatinine and C-reactive protein levels over time were statistically significant (p=0.010, p=0.026, p<0.001 respectively). There was no statistically significant difference between the groups with respect to leptin and ghrelin levels (p=0.982 and p=0.054). Leptin levels did not change over time; however, the ghrelin levels of both groups were significantly higher on the 7th and 14th days than on the first day of analysis (p=0.003). Conclusion: This study revealed that both continuous and intermittent enteral nutrition feeding regimens were well tolerated in Intensive Care Unit patients showing minor complications. The method of administration of enteral nutrition alone did not affect the leptin and ghrelin levels. Randomized controlled large cohort trials are needed to to compare intermittent and continuous enteral nutrition to determine which one is more adaptable to diurnal patterns of secretion metabolic hormones.

Physicochemical and sensory characteristics of pan bread samples available in the Brazilian market

Pan bread samples available in the Brazilian market were evaluated for their physicochemical and sensory characteristics. Twelve pan breads, seven white and five whole grain breads, were evaluated. Moisture, water activity (Aw), firmness, and color (L*, a*, b*) of the crumb were evaluated on the first, fourth, seventh, and tenth days after purchasing the breads. Specific volume was evaluated on the first day of analysis with averages of 4.72 and 4.70 mL/g for the white and whole grain breads, respectively. The average results on the first day of analysis were: 37.03% and 41.23% moisture, 0.954 and 0.966 Aw, 276.27 and 267.83 gf firmness, 74.73 and 64.45 L* values, 0.37 and 3.85 a* values, and 15.51 and 18.98 b* values for the white and whole grain breads, respectively. The samples showed an increase in firmness, reduction in moisture and Aw, and no color changes over time. A survey conducted prior to the acceptance test showed that the three most important factors influencing purchase were taste (19.6%), tenderness (16.8%), and expiration date of the product (14.3%). The results showed that 37.2% of the panelists preferred white bread, 62.8% preferred bread with fibers, and 82.6% would probably or definitely buy white bread with fibers.