High Variety Research Articles

The effects of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 3-19 and Pediococcus pentosaceus 18-1 on preventing the accumulation of biogenic amines and promoting the production of volatile organic compounds during sour meat fermentation

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are frequently used in meat fermentation, and mixed stater cultures are reported to perform better than single ones. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 3-19 and Pediococcus pentosaceus 18-1 were chosen from 28 sour-meat-origin strains to examine the effects of single and combined inoculation on sour meat quality. Natural fermentation was used as a control to investigate changes in pH, water activity (aw), amino acid nitrogen (AN), texture, microbial diversity, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during fermentation. The pH and aw of each inoculation group were significantly decreased, and AN content was significantly increased. The inoculation of P. pentosaceus 18-1 significantly reduced putrescine, cadaverine, and tryptamine content (p < 0.05), while the inoculation of Lpb. plantarum 3-19 significantly reduced cadaverine amounts (p < 0.05). At the fermentation endpoint, the total biogenic amines content in the C group was 992.96 ± 14.07, which was 1.65, 2.57, and 3.07 times higher than that in the Lp, Pe, and M groups, respectively. The mixed inoculation group combined the advantages of both strains and decreased total biogenic amines most significantly. At the end of fermentation, the VOCs in C, Lp, Pe, and M groups were 10.11, 11.56, 12.45, and 13.39 times higher than those at the beginning of fermentation. Inoculation promoted the production of key VOCs (OAV > 2000) such as heptanal, octanal, and (E)-2-nonanal. The mixed inoculation group had the highest variety and content of VOCs and the highest content of the above key VOCs, significantly enhancing its fruity, floral, ester, and other aromas. Sensory evaluation indicated that the M group had the best overall acceptability. Finally, it was suggested that a combination of Lpb. plantarum 3-19 and P. pentosaceus 18-1 is a novel and efficient starter culture for processing sour meat since they lower the amounts of biogenic amines in the meat and promote the production of VOCs.

Antioxidant Activity of Aqueous Extracts Obtained from By-Products of Grape, Olive, Tomato, Lemon, Red Pepper and Pomegranate.

The aim of this work was to study the antioxidant potential of aqueous extracts obtained from different by-products. The effectiveness of these extracts was compared with that of rosemary extract. Total phenol carotenoid and vitamin C contents, as well as in vitro antioxidant activity, were assessed. Phenol content was positively correlated with in vitro antioxidant activity in extracts, while carotenoids showed a less clear relationship. Vitamin C was associated with antioxidant activity in lemon and pepper pomace extracts. Extracts from olive, grape, and lemon by-products displayed the highest antioxidant activity (radical scavenging activity), this being similar to the activity of rosemary extracts. Moreover, the phenolic profile of the extracts was analyzed, revealing diverse phenolic compounds. Rosemary extracts contained the highest variety and quantity of phenolic compounds, while olive pomace extracts were rich in hydroxytyrosol and 4-hydroxybenzoic acid. Lemon and pepper extracts contained high amounts of tyrosol, and tomato extracts had abundant epicatechin. The PCA analysis distinguished extracts based on in vitro antioxidant activity, phenol, carotenoid, and vitamin C content, along with their phenolic compound profiles. This study emphasizes the capacity of aqueous extract by-products as valuable sources of antioxidants and highlights the importance of understanding their bioactive components.

Duality in Political Discourse: A Critical Analysis of the Constitutional Union Party in Morocco

This article critically examines the discourse of the Constitutional Union party (CU) in Morocco, focusing on uncovering discursive duality within its political communication. Drawing on Critical Discourse Studies, the study adopts Van Dijk’s (2008) mental model approach to illuminate the party’s ideological perspectives and evaluate its consistency with declared liberal principles, specifically investigating how liberalism is cognitively reflected in CU’s discourse. Through analysis of CU’s discursive strategies claimed to embody ideological connotations across political, economic, and gender issues, the study identifies linguistic anomalies that point to a divide between liberal and non-liberal elements in the party’s disseminated discourse. This observed linguistic duality prompts critical inquiries into the consistency of the party’s ideological stance throughout a variety of contexts, a fact that stresses the necessity for further exploration of the social legitimacy of Moroccan political parties in relation to their circulated discourse.

Colonization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus species in healthy and sick pets: prevalence and risk factors

BackgroundThe characterization of staphylococcal species that colonize pets is important to maintain animal health and to minimize the risk of transmission to owners. Here, the prevalence of Staphylococcus spp. and methicillin resistance was investigated in canine and feline isolates, and risk factors of staphylococcal colonization were determined. Pets were examined and separated into four groups: (1) healthy dogs, (2) healthy cats, and (3) dogs and (4) cats with clinical signs of bacterial infections of skin, mucous membranes, or wounds. Specimens were collected by a veterinary physician from six anatomic sites (external ear canal, conjunctival sacs, nares, mouth, skin [groin], and anus). In total, 274 animals (cats n = 161, dogs n = 113) were enrolled.ResultsStaphylococcus species were highly diverse (23 species; 3 coagulase-positive and 20 coagulase-negative species), with the highest variety in healthy cats (19 species). The most frequent feline isolates were S. felis and S. epidermidis, while S. pseudintermedius was the most prevalent isolate in dogs. Risk factors of staphylococcal colonization included the presence of other animals in the same household, medical treatment within the last year, and a medical profession of at least one owner. Methicillin resistance was higher in coagulase-negative (17.86%) compared to coagulase-positive (1.95%) staphylococci. The highest prevalence of methicillin-resistant CoNS colonization was observed in animals kept in homes as the most common (dogs and cats).ConclusionsThe association of methicillin-resistant CoNS colonization with animals most often chosen as pets, represents a high risk of transmission between them and owners. The importance of nosocomial transmission of CoNS was also confirmed. This information could guide clinical decisions during the treatment of veterinary bacterial infections. In conclusion, the epidemiologic characteristics of CoNS and their pathogenicity in pets and humans require further research.

Factors Associated With Participation in Physical Leisure Activities in Taiwanese Community-Dwelling Older Adults.

This study was to identify factors at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and community levels that relate to physical leisure participation in Taiwanese community-dwelling older adults and to examine their relative importance. We used a cross-sectional study with purposive sampling (N = 160). Physical leisure participation was quantified as the variety, frequency, and duration of participation. Data were analyzed using a series of hierarchical multiple linear regressions. The results showed that higher variety, frequency, or duration of physical leisure participation was associated with older males and with those who reported having better health, fewer depressive symptoms, and greater social support. Intrapersonal- and interpersonal-level factors play a relatively more important role in predicting physical leisure participation than factors at the community level. Understanding factors that relate to these three levels of participation has the potential to inform interventions that are tailored to individual profiles.

R-linguistics. The Principle of Linguistic Duality

Introduction. R-linguistics uses the axiomatic method in its approach to modeling the world and language [1]. Axioms define the categories of language, their properties and ways of formation. On this basis, when processing the accumulated data in the form of relations, it is possible to form systems of categories and determine the verbs connecting these categories. A reasonable question arises: if categories (to be such) must satisfy certain axioms, does this requirement apply to verbs as well? The purpose of this article is to deal with this issue.Methodology and sources. The results of the previous parts of the series are used as research tools. The axioms and methods of verb categorization formulated earlier are used to develop the necessary mathematical representations of the verb axiomatics.Results and discussion. The article introduces the axiom for the verbs of the language (the axiom of the verbal cross) and shows that this axiom is related to the categorization axiom (the correctness axiom). Although this connection is not identical, it becomes such with the additional use of the axiom of extensiveness. This relationship made it possible to formulate the fundamental principle of linguistics – the principle of duality.Conclusion. The axiomatics of verbs and categories of a language turns out to be connected, and one determines the other, so that by and large it does not matter which of them is the source of the model of the world and the appearance of language. This unity is formulated as the principle of duality in linguistics. The manifestations of the principle of duality in the language are diverse, but this article focuses on the discussion of the appearance in the language of verbs-processes and adverbs. This transition is considered, starting with obtaining the initial data about the world, to the emergence of ideas about processes and adverbs as a feature system of verbs.

A Brief Account on Protozoan Infection in Asian Stinging Catfish, Heteropneustes Fossilis (Bloch, 1794) In Different Seasons of Bangladesh

The study was conducted to identify the protozoan parasites in a freshwater indigenous air breathing fish, Heteropneustes fossilis (Bloch, 1794). The host fish was collected during mid of the April 2018 to end of the March 2019 from freshwater bodies of Mymensingh, Kishoregonj, Faridpur, Jashore, Manikganj and Bogura districts of Bangladesh. Three species of phylum myxozoa namely Henneguya singhi, Henneguya qadrii, Henneguya mystusia, one species of phylum ciliophora namely Trichodina siddiquae and two species of phylum mastigophora namely Trypanosoma singhii and Piscinoodium pillulare were identified in H. fossilis. The parasites of all infected hostswere observed in gill, body slime and blood, however gillswere commonly infected by parasites rather than body slime and blood. Three species of parasite Piscinoodium pillulare, Henneguya qadrii and Henneguya mystusia were first recorded in this host fish and novel locality record in Bangladesh. H. fossilis was found to be infected over the three major (p&lt;0.05) (summer, rainy and winter) seasons and demonstrated a strong significant association (P0&lt;05) with season during the study period. In H. fossilis, highest variety and highest number of parasites were found in winter season, prevalence and intensity was found 78.31% and 5.17 respectively. Lowest prevalence and intensity were found in rainy season respectively 45.87 and 4.72. Among all the parasites Henneguya singhi was common in all the three seasons and its rate of infection was found elevated in summer (20.69%) and rainy season (19.27%). In H. fossilis prevalence of female fish were highest in all the three seasons, summer (55.22%), rainy (50.75%) and winter (85.57%) than their male counterparts 38.76%, 38.09% and 68.12%, respectively. Dhaka Univ. J. Biol. Sci. 32(1): 21-32, 2023 (January)

АДАПТИВНІСТЬ ТА АГРОЕКОЛОГІЧНА СТІЙКІСТЬ СКОРОСТИГЛИХ СОРТІВ СОЇ

The growing season of ultra-fast ripening and fast ripening soybean varieties comprises 83-85 days. 17 ultra-fast and fast ripening soybean varieties were included in the State Register of Plant Varieties of Ukraine Suitable for Cultivation in 2021. The growing season for the majority of them is 85 days. However, it is shorter for Diona – 83 days and Arnica – 84 days. The height of plants of fast ripening soybean varieties differs greatly – from 58 cm to 110 cm. Arrata is the highest variety – 110 cm, Rohiznianka and Rizdviana are 81 cm each, OAC Avatar and Diona – 80 cm each. The height of the lower beans attachment of fast ripening soybean varieties is 10-16 cm from the soil surface. OAC Brooke has the highest attachment of lower beans – 16 cm. It is followed by Rohiznianka – 15 cm, Kobza and OAC Avatar – 14 cm each. Resistance to lodging is an indicator that determines if a plant can be cut completely without its stem bending over. Aventurine, OAC Lakeview, Hieba and Berkana have the highest level of resistance to lodging and received 9 points each; OAC Avatar, Rohiznianka, Holubka got 8.9 points each. All fast ripening soybean varieties have high resistance to seed shedding – 7-9 points. The most drought-resistant varieties include OAC Lakeview, Hieba, Berkana – they got 9 points each. The most disease-resistant soybean varieties are Aventurine, Kobza, Diona, Arrata, Rohiznianka, Arnica – they received 9 points each. The seed yield of fast ripening soybean varieties is 2-3.25 t/ha. Diona has the highest yield – 3.25 t/ha followed by Arrata – 3 t/ha. The least productive varieties are Rohiznianka – 2 t/ha, OAC Brooke – 2.03 t/ha, Kobza – 2.14 t/ha. Soy varieties with the highest protein content in seeds include Berkana – 43.4%, Raiduha – 42.3%, Holubka and Melody – 42.1% each. The seeds of Arrata have the lowest protein content – 38%. It is followed by Legend and Diona – 38.5% each, and then Kobza – 39.1%. As for the fat content, Hieba is leading – 22%, followed by OAC Lakeview – 21.7% and Holubka – 21.6%. The seeds of Krasunia have the lowest fat content – 19.3% followed by Arnica – 20.5% and Melody – 20 .6%.

Assessing the Diversity and Relative Abundance of the Order Odonata, Hymenoptera, and Hemiptera in Rice, Maize, and Wheat Fields

The objective of the current study was to assess the diversity of Odonata, Hymenoptera, and Hemiptera in the fields of rice, maize, and wheat under relevant factors. The area of these crops in the District Faisalabad was where specimens related to these orders were gathered. Faisalabad employees choose several ways of collecting, like hand picking, using a hand net, and forceps. From October 2013 to April 2014, the entire sampling was random. With the aid of taxonomic information, collected insects were identified based on their morphological traits and faunal diversity belonging to selected orders as the trustworthiness of these crops for these orders was documented. The highest variety (H′) was found in maize fields (7.3204), followed by rice (2.2707), and wheat fields (2.1758). In contrast, the highest diversity (H max) was almost equally distributed among the three crops. However, the highest levels of evenness (J) were found in the maize crop as compared to others. Wheat crop fields (0.1757), rice fields (0.0779), and maize fields (0.0779) showed the highest levels of dominance (D) (-2.0049). All crops had equal documented levels of wealth (R). The overall results between these crops were statistically significant (P = 0.05053; F = 3.0522) and t-Test analysis was also significant, but the P-value ratio was different.

Interactions between soil additives and a variety of naturally occurring nematode-demolishing fungi in banana fields of Meru and Embu Counties, Kenya

Abstract. Wairimu WJ, Kimenjul JW, Muiru WM, Wachira PM. 2022. Interactions between soil additives and a variety of naturally occurring nematode-demolishing fungi in banana fields of Meru and Embu Counties, Kenya. Cell Biol Dev 6: 82-93. Plant-parasitic nematodes pose a significant danger to banana production, as they reduce the productivity, quality, and lifetime of banana orchards. This study aimed to evaluate the diversity, quantity, and occurrence of nematode-demolishing fungi in banana production farms to use them to manage plant-parasitic nematodes. Also examined was the impact of organic and inorganic soil additives on nematode-demolishing fungi. The study region was divided into three agroecological zones: UM3 (Low), UM2 (Middle), and UM 1 (Upper). Ten farms were chosen randomly for a soil sample in each zone to determine the diversity and abundance of nematode-demolishing fungi. One farm was chosen randomly for soil additive treatments in each zone. The gathered soil samples were used to isolate and identify nematode-demolishing fungi at the species level. The diversity of nematode-demolishing fungi varied significantly between zones, with the highest variety and number of fungi found in the highest zone. Arthrobotrys, Monacrosporium, Nematoctonus, Harposporium, and Paecilomyces were the identified genera. Arthrobotrys was the most often isolated genus, with a frequency of 45%, followed by Harposporium, with a frequency of 18%. The remaining three genera each had a frequency of 9%. The A. dactyloides, A. oligospora, A. robusta, A. longispora, A. superba, H. anguillulae, H. crassum, Meria coniospora, Monacrosporium cionopagum, N. leiosporus, and P. lilacinus were among the species identified. The A. oligospora had captured and destroyed 98 plant parasite nematodes, whereas M. cionopagum and Dactyllela phymatopaga had eliminated 88 and 76 plant parasitic nematodes, respectively, within the same time frame. The amount of nematode-demolishing fungi was significantly different between the various soil additives, with chicken dung having the greatest number of 74 isolates, followed by cow manure, goat manure, the control treatment, and inorganic additive with 71, 69, 54, and 39 isolates, respectively. The amount of isolated nematode-demolishing fungi fluctuated throughout time, from 89 pre-treatment isolates to 122 after three months and 96 after six months. The variation of nematode-demolishing fungi over time was significantly different, demonstrating the impact of diverse soil additives on their existence. Arthrobotrys spp. is a suitable option for field efficacy studies since it was the most diversified, had the highest demolishing rate, and the organic additives facilitated its dispersion in banana plantations.

Linking xylem structure and function: the comparative method in from the cold.

This article is a Commentary on Savage et al. (2022), 235: 953–964.

Gut Bacterial Diversity and their Antibiotic Resistance in Honey Bee Communities of Dhaka City

The study was undertaken to isolate and identify the bacteria from the gut of honey bees and to investigate their antibiotic sensitivity. A total 35 honey bees were collected from Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University and Curzon Hall area of Dhaka city. This study was conducted to identify the gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria based on the morphological features using microscope. In this study, four species of honey bees were identified, of which, Apis dorsata was the most dominant (31.43%) species and followed by 17.14% for Apis cerana and 2.86% for Apis mellifera and Apis florea, respectively. In total, five gram-positive bacteria genera including Lactobacillus sp. (37.5%), Streptococcus sp. (9.38%), Staphylococcus sp. (21.88%), Enterococcus sp. (6.25%), and Clostridium sp. (9.38%); and two gram-negative bacteria i.e., Pseudomonas sp. (3.13%), and Enterobacter sp. (12.5%) were detected. Gram-positive bacteria were the most dominant at the honey bee gut in two sites, while bacteria did not detect in A. dorsata gut which was collected from Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University. However, five types of bacteria were isolated from the gut of A. dorsata collected from Curzon Hall area. In total, the highest varieties (6 out of 7) and number of isolates (15) were found from A. florea. Whereas, the highest number of bacteria was isolated from A. florea (12) for Curzon Hall area, and A. cerana (6) for Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University. In antibiotic susceptibility test, the isolated Streptococcus sp., Staphylococcus sp. and Enterococcus sp. were sensitive to the majority of the antibiotics. However, the isolated Lactobacilllus sp., Clostridium sp., Enterobacter sp. and Pseudomonas sp. were resistant to the majority of antibiotics. The results show that the presence or absence of bacterium in honey bees gut was an indicator for their overall health. Bangladesh J. Zool. 50 (1): 83-93, 2022

Abstract 2331: Metabolic profiling of pre and post treatment ovarian cancer tissues using in situ mass spectrometry imaging

Abstract Chemotherapy resistance represents a major problem in ovarian cancer prognosis and reliable indicators of chemotherapy sensitivity remain an unmet need. Here, we examined metabolic profiles of pre- and post-neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) tumor samples from patients with high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC). We performed spatially resolved, desorption electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (DESI-MS) on sections from clinically annotated HGSC samples collected according to a laparoscopic triage algorithm from patients pre- and post-NACT. Patients were considered to be either excellent (ER) if they presented complete response or only microscopic disease left at interval surgery, or poor responders (PR) if they presented stable or progressive disease after NACT. Tumor tissues from 50 patients (29 ER and 21 PR, 13 ER matched pre and post NACT, 13 PR matched pre and post-NACT) were eligible for the analyses Data relative to the detected metabolites, were collected from epithelium and stroma separately. We first identified differentially upregulated metabolites in ER and PR groups and performed pathway analysis. The over-represented pathways in the chemo-naïve PR tissues included the nucleotide metabolism pathway in epithelial areas, and degradation of cysteine and homocysteine, metabolism of amino acids and derivatives, as well as sulfur amino acids metabolism in the stromal areas (p values FDR adjusted 0.045). In general, both the epithelium and stroma of PR tissues of chemo-naïve tumors, contained a higher number and a higher variety of lipid species compared with ER tissues. In post-NACT tumor epithelial areas, there was global downregulation of metabolites across all patient samples, compared to the pre-chemo specimens; this was more evident in ER patients. In post-NACT tumors from PR patients, glutathione synthesis and recycling pathway, and sulfite oxidation to sulfate pathway and many glycerolipids species were upregulated in the epithelium, while phosphatidic acids were upregulated in the stroma. Lastly, we evaluated the predictive power of the metabolic data extracted by the epithelial areas of chemo-naïve tissues, in classifying patients as ER or PR. We used 10-fold cross-validation to create a ridge regression model for the classification of ER and PR samples from pre-NACT tumor tissues. This model, based on 78 differentially expressed metabolites (small molecules and lipids), correctly classified patients as ER or PR with an accuracy of 76.2% (sensitivity 84.6% and specificity 62.5%). Our findings indicate altered metabolic pathways in ovarian cancer tissues based on response to NACT. The identification of differentially activated pathways, such as sulfate metabolism and glutathione metabolism in tumors with poor response, suggest novel actionable targets to overcome chemotherapy resistance in patients with HGSC. Citation Format: Sara Corvigno, Meredith Spraldin, Michael Keating, Sunil Badal, Igor Pereira, Elaine Stur, Nicholas Bateman, Waleed Barakat, Thomas Conrads, Sanghoon Lee, George Maxwell, Susan K. Lutgendorf, Premal Thaker, Jinsong Liu, Nicole Fleming, Katheleen Darcy, Livia S. Eberlin, Anil K. Sood. Metabolic profiling of pre and post treatment ovarian cancer tissues using in situ mass spectrometry imaging [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 2331.

Characteristics of introduced varieties of pea (Pisum sativum L.) in the zone of the Southern Forest-Steppe of Ukraine

Aim. To assess new introduced varieties of pea (Pisum sativum L.) of different ecological and geographical origin in conditions of the Southern part of the Forest-Steppe of Ukraine according to a set of productivity and adaptability indicators. Methods. During 2018–2020 in the conditions of Ustymivka Experimental Station of Plant Production of the Plant Production Institute named after V. Ya. Yuriev NAAS of Ukraine (Poltava region, 49°18′21″N, 33°13′56″E) 30 new pea samples originating from Belarus, Azerbaijan, Canada, Poland and the Netherlands were studied. In the ripening phase of pods and seeds (BBCH 86–90) in field and laboratory conditions yields, productivity, 1000 beans weight, early-ripening, plant height and height of attachment of the lower pods above the soil level, number of nodes to the first pod and their total number per plant, number of pods and seeds per plant, number of seeds per pod, pod parameters were studied. Results. As a result of studying new samples of pea, the range of variation of their yield from 200.5 to 300.0 g/m2 was established, while the varieties ‘Aleks’, ‘Atlant’, ‘Minskiy ovoschnoy’ (Belarus), ‘Fidan’ (Azerbaijan), ‘Dacota’ (Canada), ‘Angela’ (Netherlands) were more productive, in which the mass of grain from the plant exceeded 10.0 g. The productivity of the plant was high due to both the increased number of seeds and the weight of 1000 grains. Almost all the studied samples were mediumripe (71–80 days) and are optimal for the Southern Forest-Steppe zone of Ukraine. The most early maturing (64–69 days) were the Belarusian varieties ‘Yan’, ‘Gontso’, ‘Goryinets’, ‘Alfa’, ‘Pryivabnyi’, ‘Malyish’ and the Dutch ‘Angela’ variety. The lowest varieties were Belarusian varieties – ‘Goryinets’, ‘Vlad’, ‘Alfa’, ‘Atlant’ and others (31.0–60.0 cm), which can be used as sources on this basis. Special attention should be paid to varieties that combine several valuable features: ‘Aleks’, ‘Atlant’, ‘Minskiy ovoschnoy’, ‘Korelicheskiy ovoschnoy’, ‘Slodyich’, ‘Malyish’, ‘Kosmay’, ‘Kelvidon’ (Belarus), ‘Fidan’ (Azerbaijan), ‘Jof’ (Poland), ‘CDC Limerick’ (Canada), ‘Orix’ (Spain). Conclusions. The above varieties can be recommended as sources of valuable traits for practical use in breeding, and they are suitable for cultivation in the Southern Forest-Steppe, subject to inclusion in the State Register of plant varieties suitable for distribution in Ukraine.

Growth of probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus GR-1 using saccharified oil palm mesocarp fibre as affected by saccharification time and fermentation time

Abundant low-cost oil palm mesocarp fibre could serve as a potential feedstock for the production of oligosaccharides which may have prebiotic properties. Thus, a study was carried out to determine the ability of saccharified oil palm mesocarp fibre (OPMF) to support the growth of a probiotic microorganism (Lactobacillus rhamnosus GR-1). The saccharified OPMF was produced using different saccharification times (1, 3 and 6 hrs) while fermentation of the saccharified OPMF with L. rhamnosus GR-1 was carried out for 0, 12 and 24 hrs. Growth of L. rhamnosus GR-1 was measured based on OD600 using a UV-spectrophotometer along with the pH of the growth media. The results showed a significantly higher (p&lt;0.05) growth of L. rhamnosus GR-1 with increasing saccharification time and fermentation time. Increased saccharification time of up to 6 hrs also resulted in a higher variety of oligosaccharides compared to 1 hour and significantly reduced (p&lt;0.05) pH of the growth media. The use of saccharified OPMF produced comparable growth of L. rhamnosus GR-1 with significantly lower (p&lt;0.05) pH compared to using fructooligosaccharide in the growth media. The results showed the ability of saccharified OPMF to support the growth of probiotic L. rhamnosus GR-1.

Higher fruit and vegetable variety associated with lower risk of cognitive impairment in Chinese community-dwelling older men: a 4-year cohort study.

Few studies have examined the variety in fruit and vegetable (FV) intake with cognitive impairment in older adults. This study examined the associations of variety in fruit, vegetable and combined FV with 4-year incident cognitive impairment in Chinese community-dwelling older adults. Data was derived from a cohort study among Chinese community-dwelling older adults aged ≥ 65years in Hong Kong. At baseline, a validated food frequency questionnaire was used to assess variety in fruit, vegetable and combined FV. Cognitive impairment was defined as a Community Screening Instrument of Dementia score of < 29.5 points and/or Mini-Mental State Examination score of < 27 points. Adjusted multiple logistic regression was performed to examine the associations. Results are presented as odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Of the 1518 participants [median age: 70years (IQR 68-74), 32.7% women] included at baseline, 300 men and 111 women were newly identified as cognitively impaired at the 4-year follow-up. In men, higher variety in vegetable (adjusted OR: 0.97, 95% CI 0.95-0.99, p = 0.029) and combined FV (adjusted OR: 0.98, 95% CI 0.96-0.98, p = 0.039) were significantly associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment. Fruit variety was not associated with cognitive impairment. In women, there were no associations between variety in fruit, vegetable and combined FV with cognitive impairment in the adjusted model. Independent of FV quantity, higher variety in vegetable and combined FV were associated with lower risk of cognitive impairment in Chinese community-dwelling older adults, and these associations were only observed in men.

Ethics by Dietrich von Hildebrand

Reviewed by: Ethics by Dietrich von Hildebrand Peter C. Meilaender Dietrich von Hildebrand, Ethics. Steubenville, OH: Hildebrand Press, 2020. 500 pp. It is unlikely that most readers of The Journal of Austrian Studies are well acquainted with the work of Dietrich von Hildebrand. This new edition of von Hildebrand's Ethics, last published in English 50 years ago, offers a welcome opportunity to remedy that. Von Hildebrand was an important twentieth-century Christian phenomenologist. A student of Edmund Husserl and Adolf Reinach and a friend of Max Scheler, von Hildebrand went on to teach philosophy at the University of Munich. One of the most dramatic episodes of his biography, however, is intimately linked to the city of Vienna. Von Hildebrand had been an early and consistent critic of Nazism. When Hitler came to power, therefore, he was compelled to flee, traveling initially to Vienna in 1933. For approximately the next five years, he edited an important anti-Nazi weekly review, Der christliche Ständestaat. (He also wrote a study of Engelbert Dollfuss.) Hitler came to regard him as one of his most important enemies and even ordered his execution. When Germany annexed Austria in [End Page 123] 1938, therefore, von Hildebrand once again had to flee. After several stops in Europe, he ultimately ended up in the United States, where he taught philosophy at Fordham University until his retirement. Among the projects that von Hildebrand—who made contributions in many areas of philosophy—was able to finish after settling in the United States was his Ethics, originally published in 1953, but on which he had already been working 20 years earlier, while in Vienna. In his introductory essay to the present edition, John F. Crosby, the country's leading interpreter and translator of von Hildebrand, describes the Ethics as "the central text in Hildebrand's philosophy as a whole and in his moral philosophy in particular." Von Hildebrand distinguishes among several basic varieties of goods that call for affirmative responses from us. One such category is the merely "subjectively satisfying," those things that appeal to us for various reasons but are not necessarily of great intrinsic importance. As I type this review, for instance, I am munching on a chocolate bar and sipping an espresso, both of them subjectively satisfying, but neither a source of significant moral value. Other things are "objective goods" for the person. The salad that I ate for lunch before the chocolate, for example, was objectively good for me (as well as being a source of subjective satisfaction). Food and shelter, exercise, education, friendship—all of these are objective goods for me and in that sense genuine sources of value. But not the highest source. The most fundamental category of good is that which is important "in itself," quite apart from any subjective satisfaction it might offer or even whether it supplies any objective good for me. Von Hildebrand refers to such goods as "values"—the most important concept in his ethical thought. While there are different types of value, such as intellectual or aesthetic value, the highest variety is moral value. Thus, an act of forgiveness or charity, even one that bears no relation to me personally, possesses a depth of objective value demanding an affirmative response. Only when I recognize and respond to the call of these values is my soul properly attuned to the ontological structure of the universe. Indeed, the great nobility of the human soul is revealed precisely in its ability to transcend both what is subjectively satisfying and even what is objectively good for us and instead to affirm that which is truly valuable in and of itself. Hildebrand's philosophy of value allows him to give a rich account of the moral life, in ways too detailed and subtle than can be done justice in a brief review. He offers a detailed phenomenological analysis of a wide range [End Page 124] of moral attitudes and behaviors. In a pair of late chapters, for example, he provides a remarkably deft synopsis of the various forms of concupiscence and pride, which he identifies as the two sources of moral "disvalue." I defy anyone to read these without repeated twinges of guilty...

Idea selection in design teams: a computational framework and insights in the presence of influencers

AbstractIdea selection is crucial in design as it impacts the outcome of a project. A collaborative design activity could be considered as a social process where the interactions and individual states (such as the importance in the team and self-efficacy level) could affect decision-making. It is often seen in design teams that some individuals, referred to as ‘influencers’ in the article have more capacity to influence than others, hence they govern the team process for better or worse. Due to the limited work done in the past to study the effect of these influencers on design outcomes, the work aims at increasing the understanding by presenting some insights from its agent-based simulation. The simulation results show how different influencer team compositions affect design outcomes in terms of quality and exploration of the solutions. The idea selection starts with the agents who are ready with their solution in their ‘mind’. The work presented in this article describes a framework for simulating decision-making during idea selection by considering the influencer and majority effect. The empirical study presented in the article verifies the model logic, that is, the presence of influencer and the majority during idea selection and supports the assumption that individuals’ agreement on solutions proposed by other team members depends on the degree of influence and past agreement. The results of the simulation show that teams with well-defined influencers produced solutions with higher variety and had more uniform contributions from team members, but also produced solutions of lower quality.

From mommet to ugly: An analysis of the linguistic duality and idiolect of Tess Durbeyfield in the Spanish translations of Tess of the d’Urbervilles

The current study aims at critically exploring the resulting identity of Tess of the d’Urbervilles’ main character, Tess Durbeyfield, in the Spanish translations through the analysis of her linguistic variation. Throughout the novel, Tess is characterised by a unique duality in linguistic variation, which shapes her identity. She is capable of using both dialectal and non-dialectal marks, which differentiates her from the rest of the novel’s characters. To reach thus the goal of this research, that is, to verify whether Tess Durbeyfield’s multifaceted identity is maintained in the Spanish translations, it is essential to analyse the linguistic variation of the novel’s heroine in the target texts. For the project, the three Spanish translations that exist of the novel have been analysed (carried out in 1924, 1994 and 2017).&#x0D; In order to reach this aforementioned objective, the strategies carried out by the different translators regarding linguistic variation will be analysed, focusing on the possible identity distortion that these decisions may entail in the heroine’s characterization. In order to observe Tess Durbeyfield’s idiolect and linguistic variation, all dialogues from the novel and its corresponding translations have been analysed and classified. In the project, through selected dialogues, it will be observed whether the translation strategies regarding the heroine’s linguistic variation imply a reconfiguration of Tess’s identity in the target texts

Signal Retrieval from Non-Sinusoidal Intensity Modulations in X-ray and Neutron Interferometry Using Piecewise-Defined Polynomial Function.

Grating-based phase-contrast and dark-field imaging systems create intensity modulations that are usually modeled with sinusoidal functions to extract transmission, differential-phase shift, and scatter information. Under certain system-related conditions, the modulations become non-sinusoidal and cause artifacts in conventional processing. To account for that, we introduce a piecewise-defined periodic polynomial function that resembles the physical signal formation process, modeling convolutions of binary periodic functions. Additionally, we extend the model with an iterative expectation-maximization algorithm that can account for imprecise grating positions during phase-stepping. We show that this approach can process a higher variety of simulated and experimentally acquired data, avoiding most artifacts.