A study protocol for a randomised crossover study evaluating the effect of diets differing in carbohydrate quality on ileal content and appetite regulation in healthy humans

A major component of the digesta reaching the colon from the distal ileum is carbohydrate. This carbohydrate is subject to microbial fermentation and can radically change bacterial populations in the colon and the metabolites they produce, particularly short-chain fatty acids (SCFA). However, very little is currently known about the forms and levels of carbohydrate in the ileum and the composition of the ileal microbiota in humans. Most of our current understanding of carbohydrate that is not absorbed by the small intestine comes from ileostomy models, which may not reflect the physiology of an intact gastrointestinal tract. We will investigate how ileal content changes depending on diet using a randomised crossover study in healthy humans. Participants will be inpatients at the research facility for three separate 4-day visits. During each visit, participants will consume one of three diets, which differ in carbohydrate quality: 1) low-fibre refined diet; 2) high-fibre diet with intact cellular structures; 3) high-fibre diet where the cellular structures have been disrupted (e.g. milling, blending). On day 1, a nasoenteric tube will be placed into the distal ileum and its position confirmed under fluoroscopy. Ileal samples will be collected via the nasoenteric tube and metabolically profiled, which will determine the amount and type of carbohydrate present, and the composition of the ileal microbiota will be measured. Blood samples will be collected to assess circulating hormones and metabolites. Stool samples will be collected to assess faecal microbiota composition. Subjective appetite measures will be collected using visual analogue scales. Breath hydrogen will be measured in real-time as a marker of intestinal fermentation. Finally, an continuous fermentation model will be inoculated with ileal fluid in order to understand the shift in microbial composition and SCFA produced in the colon following the different diets. ISRCTN11327221. [Abstract copyright: Copyright: © 2019 Byrne CS et al.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE PERFORMANCE OF FOOD MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES IN MALAYSIA

This study attempts to fill the gap of extensive growth theory model by providing statistical analysis in a parametric form that removed the doubts in the results generated. Using this model, the factors affecting the output growth in the food industries were identified in this study to be the individual contributions of capital, labour, material as well as the combined contributions of the quality of these inputs, which were expressed as the total factor productivity (TFP) growthMalaysian food industry, productivity performance, total factor productivity

Transfer of manure from livestock farms to crop fields as fertilizer using an ant inspired approach

Intensive livestock production might have a negative environmental impact, by producing large amounts of animal excrements, which, if not properly managed, can contaminate nearby water bodies with nutrient excess. However, if animal manure is exported to distant crop fields, to be used as organic fertilizer, pollution can be mitigated. It is a single-objective optimization problem, in regards to finding the best solution for the logistics process of satisfying nutrient crops needs by means of livestock manure. This paper proposes a dynamic approach to solve the problem, based on a decentralized nature-inspired cooperative technique, inspired by the foraging behavior of ants (AIA). Results provide important insights for policy-makers over the potential of using animal manure as fertilizer for crop fields, while AIA solves the problem effectively, in a fair way to the farmers and well balanced in terms of average transportation distances that need to be covered by each livestock farmer. Our work constitutes the first application of a decentralized AIA to this interesting real-world problem, in a domain where swarm intelligence methods are still under-exploited.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Recycling and the Environment: a Comparative Review Between Mineral-based Plastics and Bioplastics

Since their conception in the 1950s, mineral-based plastics have completely revolutionised our society with production reaching record highs year upon year. This cheap, and durable material has seen usage across a plethora of diverse industries and products, replacing traditional materials such as metals and wood. However, our reliance on mineral-based plastics has led to their improper disposal across the global, affecting our environments and ecosystems. As a response, different methods have been developed to help dispose of the large amounts of plastic waste produced, such as incineration or dumping in landfill sites, but these methods are not without their drawbacks including release of toxic substances into the air and leachate into the soil and waters respectively. Consequently, much interest is generated and channelled in recent years to the introduction of several types of biopolymers. These include plastics based on cellulosic esters, starch derivatives, polyhydroxybutyrate and polylactic acid. These biopolymers have been viewed as a suitable replacement for mineral-based plastics, and their production a good strategy towards sustainable development as they are mainly composed of biocompounds such as starch, cellulose and sugars. This short review article provides an overview as to whether biopolymers can rival mineral-based plastics considering properties such as mechanical strength, Young’s modulus and crystallinity and could they be regarded as a suitable material to reduce our reliance on mineral-based plastics, whilst simultaneously reducing non-renewable energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions

Anaerobic codigestion of dairy manure and food manufacturing waste for renewable energy generation in New York State

Anaerobic digestion is a microbiological process that converts biodegradable organic material into biogas, consisting primarily of methane and carbon dioxide. Anaerobic digestion technologies have been integrated into wastewater treatment facilities nationwide for many decades to increase the economic viability of the treatment process by converting a waste stream into two valuable products: biogas and fertilizer. Thus, anaerobic digestion offers potential economic and environmental benefits of organic waste diversion and renewable energy generation. The use of biogas has many applications, including cogeneration, direct combustion, upgrading for conversion to feed a fuel cell, and compression for injection into the natural gas grid or for vehicular use. The potential benefits of waste diversion and renewable energy generation are now being realized by major organic waste generators in New York State, in particular the food manufacturing and dairy industries, thus warranting an analysis of the energy generation potential for these waste products. Anaerobic codigestion of dairy manure and food-based feedstocks reflects a cradle-to- cradle approach to organic waste management. Given both of their abundance throughout New York State, waste-to-energy processes represent promising waste management strategies. The objective of this thesis was to evaluate the current technical and economic feasibility of anaerobically codigesting existing dairy manure and food manufacturing waste feedstocks in New York State to produce high quality biogas for renewable energy generation. The first element to determining the technical feasibility of anaerobic codigestion potential in New York State was to first understand the feedstock availability. A comprehensive survey of existing organic waste streams was conducted. The key objective was to identify the volume and composition of dairy manure and liquid-phase food manufacturing waste streams available in New York State to make codigestion of multiple feedstocks in centralized anaerobic codigestion facilities an economically attractive alternative to traditional waste disposal pathways (e.g. landfill and wastewater treatment facilities). A technical and environmental assessment of processing food manufacturing wastes and dairy manure for production of electricity via cogeneration, while dependent on biogas quantity and quality as well as the proximity of the waste generators to the centralized codigestion facility, suggests that a real possibility exists for integrating dairy operations with food manufacturing facilities, dependent on the values of the parameters indicated in this thesis. The results of the environmental analysis show that considerable electricity generation and greenhouse gas emissions reductions are possible, depending primarily on feedstock availability and proximity to the centralized anaerobic digester. The initial results are encouraging and future work is warranted for analyzing the site-specific technical and economic viability of codigesting dairy manure and food manufacturing wastes to produce high quality biogas for renewable energy generation in New York State