Antioxidant activity of pea protein hydrolysates produced by batch fermentation with lactic acid bacteria

Nine Lactobacillus strains known for surface proteinase activity were chosen from our collection and tested for their ability to grow in pea seed protein-based medium, and to hydrolyze purified pea proteins in order to produce peptides with antioxidant (AO) activity. Two strains, Lactobacillus rhamnosus BGT10 and Lactobacillus zeae LMG17315, exhibited strong proteolytic activity against pea proteins. The AO activity of the pea hydrolysate fraction, MW lt 10 kDa, obtained by the fermentation of purified pea proteins with Lactobacillus rhamnosus BGT10, was tested by standard spectrophotometric assays (DPPH, ABTS, Fe3+-reducing capacity) and the recently developed direct current (DC) polarographic assay. The low molecular weight fraction of the obtained hydrolysate was separated using ion exchange chromatography, while the AO activity of eluted fractions was determined by means of a sensitive DC polarographic assay without previous concentration of samples. Results revealed that the fraction present in low abundance that contained basic peptides possessed the highest antioxidant activity. Based on the obtained results, it can be concluded that Lactobacillus rhamnosus BGT10 should be further investigated as a candidate strain for large-scale production of bioactive peptides from legume proteins

The process of obtaining quartz sand size fraction -0.4 + 0.05 mm for use in water glass production

The paper presents the process of quartz sand processing from the „Bijela Stijena“-Skočić deposit in the plant „Kesogradnja d.o.o.“ at Kozluk near Zvornik, Republic of Srpska. Bearing in mind the fact that this quartz sand is used for water glass production in the company „Birač“ - Zvornik or „Alumina“ Zvornik, it was necessary to meet the quality requirements prescribed by that industrial production. Thus, the required size was -0.4+0.05 mm and the Fe2O3 content was maximum of 0.04%. Based on the laboratory tests, a technological scheme for the quartz raw material valorization was conceived in the separation of the company „Kesogradnja d.o.o.“. The obtained results showed that quartz sand for water glass size fraction -0.4+0.05 mm could be obtained in the plant. Also, by introducing a magnetic concentration after washing and grading, the Fe2O3 content was reduced from 0.131% as it is in the initial sample to 0.038% which meets the required conditions from the water glass producers

The HERA-B Ring Imaging Cherenkov Counter

The HERA-B RICH uses a radiation path length of 2.8 m in C_4F_10 gas and a large 24 square meters spherical mirror for imaging Cherenkov rings. The photon detector consists of 2240 Hamamatsu multi-anode photomultipliers with about 27000 channels. A 2:1 reducing two-lens telescope in front of each PMT increases the sensitive area at the expense of increased pixel size, resulting in a contribution to the resolution which roughly matches that of dispersion. The counter was completed in January of 1999, and its performance has been steady and reliable over the years it has been in operation. The design performance of the RICH was fully reached: the average number of detected photons in the RICH for a beta=1 particle was found to be 33 with a single hit resolution of 0.7 mrad and 1 mrad in the fine and coarse granularity regions, respectively.Comment: 29 pages, 23 figure

Search for the Flavor-Changing Neutral Current Decay D0→μ+μ−D^0 \to \mu^+\mu^- with the HERA-B Detector

We report on a search for the flavor-changing neutral current decay $D^0 \to \mu^+\mu^-$ using $50 \times 10^6$ events recorded with a dimuon trigger in interactions of 920 GeV protons with nuclei by the HERA-B experiment. We find no evidence for such decays and set a 90% confidence level upper limit on the branching fraction $Br(D^0 \to \mu^+\mu^-) <2.0 \times 10^{-6}$.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures (of which 1 double), paper to be submitted to Physics Letters

Measurement of the J/Psi Production Cross Section in 920 GeV/c Fixed-Target Proton-Nucleus Interactions

The mid-rapidity (dsigma_(pN)/dy at y=0) and total sigma_(pN) production cross sections of J/Psi mesons are measured in proton-nucleus interactions. Data collected by the HERA-B experiment in interactions of 920 GeV/c protons with carbon, titanium and tungsten targets are used for this analysis. The J/Psi mesons are reconstructed by their decay into lepton pairs. The total production cross section obtained is sigma_(pN)(J/Psi) = 663 +- 74 +- 46 nb/nucleon. In addition, our result is compared with previous measurements

A Search for the Electric Dipole Moment of the Tau-Lepton

Using the ARGUS detector at the e+e- storage ring DORIS II, we have searched for the real and imaginary part of the electric dipole formfactor d_tau of the tau lepton in the production of tau pairs at q^2=100 GeV^2. This is the first direct measurement of this CP violating formfactor. We applied the method of optimised observables which takes into account all available information on the observed tau decay products. No evidence for CP violation was found, and we derive the following results: Re(d_tau)=(1.6+-.9)*10^(-16) ecm and Im(d_tau)=(-0.2+-0.8)*10^(-16) ecm, where statistical and systematic errors have been combined.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures (10 subfigures

Limits for the central production of Θ+ and Ξ−− pentaquarks in 920-GeV pA collisions

We have searched for Θ+(1540) and Ξ−−(1862) pentaquark candidates in proton-inducedreactions on C, Ti, and W targets at midrapidity and s√=41.6  GeV. In 2×108 inelastic eventswe find no evidence for narrow (σ≈5  MeV) signals in the Θ+→pK0S and Ξ−−→Ξ−π− channels; our 95% C.L. upper limits (UL) forthe inclusive production cross section times branching fraction B dσ/dy $y ≈0 are (4-16) μb/N for a Θ+ mass between 1521 and 1555 MeV,and 2.5μb/N for the Ξ−−. The UL of the yield ratio of Θ+/Λ(1520)<(3-12)% is significantly lower than model predictions.Our UL of B Ξ−−/Ξ(1530)0<4% is at variance with the results that have provided the first evidencefor the Ξ−−

The Physics of the B Factories

This work is on the Physics of the B Factories. Part A of this book contains a brief description of the SLAC and KEK B Factories as well as their detectors, BaBar and Belle, and data taking related issues. Part B discusses tools and methods used by the experiments in order to obtain results. The results themselves can be found in Part C

Drought Impact Is Alleviated in Sugar Beets (Beta vulgaris L.) by Foliar Application of Fullerenol Nanoparticles

Over the past few years, significant efforts have been made to decrease the effects of drought stress on plant productivity and quality. We propose that fullerenol nanoparticles (FNPs, molecular formula C-60(OH)(24)) may help alleviate drought stress by serving as an additional intercellular water supply. Specifically, FNPs are able to penetrate plant leaf and root tissues, where they bind water in various cell compartments. This hydroscopic activity suggests that FNPs could be beneficial in plants. The aim of the present study was to analyse the influence of FNPs on sugar beet plants exposed to drought stress. Our results indicate that intracellular water metabolism can be modified by foliar application of FNPs in drought exposed plants. Drought stress induced a significant increase in the compatible osmolyte proline in both the leaves and roots of control plants, but not in FNP treated plants. These results indicate that FNPs could act as intracellular binders of water, creating an additional water reserve, and enabling adaptation to drought stress. Moreover, analysis of plant antioxidant enzyme activities (CAT, APx and GPx), MDA and GSH content indicate that fullerenol foliar application could have some beneficial effect on alleviating oxidative effects of drought stress, depending on the concentration of nanoparticles applied. Although further studies are necessary to elucidate the biochemical impact of FNPs on plants; the present results could directly impact agricultural practice, where available water supplies are often a limiting factor in plant bioproductivity