7,363 research outputs found

    Salmonella in pork – Lessons to be learned from salmonella control in poultry

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    Based on Reg. (EC) No. 2160/2003, programs to control Salmonella in primary production in poultry have been decided and implemented in Europe. This paper addresses the question of the efficacy of these programs to reduce the incidence of salmonellosis in humans in Germany

    Investigation of optimal thermal parameters for essential oils extraction using laboratory and solar distillation systems

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    Essential oils are used in medicines, foods, fragrances, perfumery and cosmetics etc.  Different methods are used for essential oils extraction.  Out of all these methods, distillation methods have advantage of extracting refine essence of the plant materials and herbs by evaporating volatile components.  The main object of the research is to investigate optimal thermal parameters and to develop simple and best methodologies for easy adaptation of these techniques for decentralized applications.  The research for essential oils extraction was conducted under laboratory conditions and by using solar energy.  For each laboratory experiment, equal weights of the herbs were used.  The energy consumption for different herbs was recorded with the help of energy meters and process curves were drawn for comparison.  The heat energy consumption to extract one milliliter of essential oil from Cloves buds, Fennel, Cumin, Patchouli, Cassia and Orange barks was found to be 0.133, 0.503, 0.574, 2.716, 2.807 kWh respectively.  The methodology and thermal parameters provide useful information regarding temperature and energy requirements to process different herbs.  On the basis of laboratory results, a de-centralized solar distillation system was developed using Scheffler reflector (8 m2 aperture area) and evaluated.  The power and system efficiency of solar based system was found to be 1.58 kW and 43.25% respectively.  Successful results were obtained for essential oils extraction from herbs by using solar energy.  These results were found similar to that of laboratory showing that the solar energy can be effectively used for the distillation of essential oils.Keywords: Essential oils, herbs, scheffler reflector, solar distillation Citation: Munir A., and O. Hensel.  Investigation of optimal thermal parameters for essential oils extraction using laboratory and solar distillation systems.  Agric Eng Int: CIGR Journal, 2010, 12(1): 107-114

    UMass Dartmouth Community Engaged Research Academy: Some Methods to Develop Inclusive CER

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    Breakout Session 1A: The UMass Dartmouth Community Engaged Research Academy has completed two years of CER skills building, mentoring, seed funding, and other resources, with seven supported CER scholars to date. This interactive breakout session draws on the curriculum of the CER Academy to build particular skills, stakeholder analysis and mapping of needs that together chart the path to inclusive and practical CER proposals, and lead to creative, relevant approaches to grant seeking. In a stakeholder analysis, the goal is to identify who is involved in a CER issue, to what extent they are engaged at the start of the process of identifying needs to be addressed in the research, how likely they are to try to address the issue and remain involved as those who have a stake in outcomes, and what might happen post-research findings, leading to impact, implementation, and dissemination. The mapping of basic and perceived human needs (adapted from David Gil’s Unraveling Social Policy) deepens researchers’ understanding of the problems they will address, in a format that serves as a readily accessible communications tool for working with community partners. This training workshop will address stakeholder analysis, mapping basic and perceived human needs, and CER grant seeking through the analysis of a CER disparities issue as a case study. At the end of the workshop, participants will have learned a clearly articulated process for working through these essential steps toward inclusive CER, and to engage, more effectively, with community partners challenged by health disparities

    NPTI: New Periodic Emission Inspection to guarantee PN Emission Stability of all modern vehicles

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    Periodic Technical Inspection of emission quality PTI was abandoned by most EU member states in 2014 following the EU-Directive 2014/45 which recommended to delegate emission quality to OBD. After Dieselgate this naĂŻve dream was over and VERT proposed during the German Dieselgate Hearing Sept.2016 to re-introduce PTI for all vehicles with emission control by DPF and SCR. With the introduction of particulate filters on diesel as well as GDI engines, the measurement of particulate emissions during PTI or road-side checks however, became a nontrivial task. Opacity and smoke meters do not have sufficient sensitivity to identify particulate filter failures or tampering on new, low emission internal combustion engines. Recent studies conducted in the Netherlands, Switzerland and Belgium have shown that about 10% of passenger cars equipped with DPF have high PN emissions that could indicate a damaged or removed DPF. To address this problem, the VERT Association launched a New Periodic Technical Inspection (N-PTI) initiative to develop a simple, robust and tamper-proof method for checking the functionality of DPFs using particle number (PN) instruments. The N-PTI initiative, launched in November 2016, is supported by the European Union as well as the governments of Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Switzerland. The proposed test is conducted at idle using a PN instrument. It is assumed that the process will be suitable with minor, if any, modifications for petrol engines. The test protocol is also appropriate for road-side inspections, such as by the police. The first results are promising. Instruments in their prototype stage are already capable of recognizing vehicles that have been manipulated using partial bypass that resulted in PN emissions close to maximum allowed type approval levels (i.e., 6Ă—1011 1/km) and present a satisfactory correlation with PEMS compliant instrumentation. Work on the testing procedure and pass/fail limit is still ongoing. This work is also under the evaluation of the CITA (International Motor Vehicle Inspection Committee) Roadworthiness Technical Working Group which focuses on tampering with exhaust emission control systems. The results show a good correlation between emission levels during the type approval cycle (NEDC/ WLTC) and low idle emissions even with first generation N-PTI instruments. These results suggest that the technical specifications of NPTI instruments should have acceptable uncertainty, with low cost. The Netherlands and Germany have already started programs that will lead to the adoption of mandatory N-PTI emission testing requirements. NMI, the Dutch metrology institute, has released a draft InternationalRecommendation with the specifications of the PTI particulate number counter. The N-PTI DPF test maybecome available in the Netherlands at RDW test stations as soon as 2019, while the nationwide targetdate for the introduction of N-PTI testing is 2021. In Germany, the Federal Council passed a law inSeptember 2017 (published in the German StVZO 2017) that re-introduces PTI first by smokemeasurement but PN measurements at idle are to be required from 2021

    Std fimbriae-fucose interaction increases Salmonella-induced intestinal inflammation and prolongs colonization

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    Author summary The intestinal epithelium is a crucial biological interface, interacting with both commensal and pathogenic microorganisms. It’s lined with heavily glycosylated proteins and glycolipids which can act as both attachment sites and energy sources for intestinal bacteria. Fut2, the enzyme governing epithelial α1,2-fucosylation, has been implicated in the interaction between microbes and intestinal epithelial cells. Salmonella is one of the most important bacterial gastrointestinal pathogens affecting millions of people worldwide. Salmonella possesses fimbrial and non-fimbrial adhesins which can be used to adhere to host cells. Here we show that Salmonella expresses Std fimbriae in the gastrointestinal tract in vivo and exploit Std fimbriae to bind fucosylated structures in the mucus and on the intestinal epithelium. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the Std fimbriae-fucose interaction is necessary for bacterial colonization of the intestine and for triggering intestinal inflammation. These data lend new insights into bacterial adhesion-epithelial interactions which are essential for bacterial pathogenesis and key factors in determining tissue tropism and host susceptibility to infectious disease

    Comparative examination and validation of ELISA test systems for Salmonella diagnosis of slaughtering pigs

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    Infections with Salmonella enterica are one of the most important sources of human gastroenteritis. The consumption of contaminated pork products was found to be assoc1ated with 20% of human salmonellosis in Germany, whereas S. Typhimurium, especially phagetype DT 104, is the most frequently isolated Salmonella serotype from pork (Steinbach and Kroell, 1999)

    Seven-day Oral Intake of Orthosiphon stamineus Leaves Infusion Exerts Antiadhesive Ex Vivo Activity Against Uropathogenic E. coli in Urine Samples

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    Orthosiphon stamineus leaves (Java tea) extract is traditionally used for the treatment of urinary tract infections. According to recent in vitro data, animal infection studies, and transcriptomic investigations, polymethoxylated flavones from Java tea exert antiadhesive activity against uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). This antiadhesive activity has been shown to reduce bladder and kidney lesion in a mice infection model. As no data on the antivirulent activity of Java tea intake on humans are available, a biomedical study was performed on 20 healthy volunteers who self-administered Orthosiphon infusion (4 × 3 g per day, orally) for 7 days. The herbal material used for the study conformed to the specification of the European Pharmacopoeia, and ultra high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) of the infusion showed rosmarinic acid, caffeic acid, and cichoric acid to be the main compounds aside from polymethoxylated flavones. Rosmarinic acid was quantified in the tea preparations with 243 ± 22 µg/mL, indicating sufficient reproducibility of the preparation of the infusion. Urine samples were obtained during the biomedical study on day 1 (control urine, prior to Java tea intake), 3, 6 and 8. Antiadhesive activity of the urine samples was quantified by flowcytometric assay using pre-treated UPEC NU14 and human T24 bladder cells. Pooled urine samples indicated significant inhibition of bacterial adhesion on day 3, 6 and 8. The urine samples had no influence on the invasion of UPEC into host cells. Bacterial proliferation was slightly reduced after 24 h incubation with the urine samples. Gene expression analysis (qPCR) revealed strong induction of fitness and motility gene fliC and downregulation of hemin uptake system chuT. These data correlate with previously reported datasets from in vitro transcriptomic analysis. Increased bacterial motility was monitored using a motility assay in soft agar with UPEC UTI89. The intake of Java tea had no effect on the concentration of Tamm-Horsfall Protein in the urine samples. The present study explains the antiadhesive and anti-infective effect of the plant extract by triggering UPEC from a sessile lifestyle into a motile bacterial form, with reduced adhesive capacity
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