'Echt onnatuurlijk is fruit in de melk' : toevoegingen aan biologische producten: discussies en verlangens

Aanleiding voor deze nota is de vraag of toevoegingen aan biologische voedselproducten wringen met het imago van natuurlijkheid. Kunnen deze producten rekenen op instemming van (biologische) voedselgebruikers? Door middel van workshops en discussies is de mening van producenten, verwerkers en gebrukers onderzocht. In plaats van te spreken over wetenschappelijke conclusies, worden de resultaten van dit project liever gezien als bouwstenen voor discussie. Want er is nog veel onduidelijk over wat er van consumenten verwacht kan worden als het gaat om hun houdingen ten aanzien van natuurlijkheid, toevoegingen en biologisch en hun (daadwerkelijk) koopgedrag. En ook al zouden hierover meer onderbouwde conclusies gepresenteerd kunnen worden, dan nog is het aan de biologische branche zelf om hun visie te bepalen hoe men zich in de markt wil profileren

Winkelkeuze van biologische kopers : onderzoek onder consumenten en ondernemers

This study describes how health food stores can reinforce their market position and reveal further growth potential within this retail channel. Through a qualitative and quantitative study among consumers, we looked at purches pattern and motives of heavy users and light users of organic products who are both customers and non customers of the health food store. Associations with the health food store and supermarket were compared and the main areas distinguishing health food stores are described. Retailers were also interviewed in order to discover whether consumer perception corresponded with that of the retaile

Теплофизические модели слоисто-неоднородных горных массивов

Стисло розглянуто математичні моделі процесів переносу тепла в шаруватонеоднорідних гірничих масивах. Запропоновано загальний метод моделювання теплопереносу в шаруватих системах різної геометрії. Знайдено рівняння «склеювання», за допомогою якого розглянуто асимптотичні випадки.Mathematical models of heat transfer in layered inhomogeneous rock media are summarized. A general method of modeling the heat transfer in layered systems of a different geometry is proposed. A “matching” equation for different asymptotic cases has been found

Accounting Problems Under the Excess Profits Tax

DNA vaccines based on subunits from pathogens have several advantages over other vaccine strategies. DNA vaccines can easily be modified, they show good safety profiles, are stable and inexpensive to produce, and the immune response can be focused to the antigen of interest. However, the immunogenicity of DNA vaccines which is generally quite low needs to be improved. Electroporation and co-delivery of genetically encoded immune adjuvants are two strategies aiming at increasing the efficacy of DNA vaccines. Here, we have examined whether targeting to antigen-presenting cells (APC) could increase the immune response to surface envelope glycoprotein (Env) gp120 from Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 (HIV- 1). To target APC, we utilized a homodimeric vaccine format denoted vaccibody, which enables covalent fusion of gp120 to molecules that can target APC. Two molecules were tested for their efficiency as targeting units: the antibody-derived single chain Fragment variable (scFv) specific for the major histocompatilibility complex (MHC) class II I-E molecules, and the CC chemokine ligand 3 (CCL3). The vaccines were delivered as DNA into muscle of mice with or without electroporation. Targeting of gp120 to MHC class II molecules induced antibodies that neutralized HIV-1 and that persisted for more than a year after one single immunization with electroporation. Targeting by CCL3 significantly increased the number of HIV-1 gp120-reactive CD8(+) T cells compared to non-targeted vaccines and gp120 delivered alone in the absence of electroporation. The data suggest that chemokines are promising molecular adjuvants because small amounts can attract immune cells and promote immune responses without advanced equipment such as electroporation.Funding Agencies|Research Council of Norway; Odd Fellow</p

Kracht van keurmerken : een systematisch inzicht in keurmerken en de beleving door de consument

Voor een derde van de consumenten heeft een voedingsmiddel meerwaarde als er een keurmerk op staat, hoewel in Nederland deugdelijk wordt gecontroleerd of een voedingsmiddel een keurmerk mag dragen. Tussen keurmerken op het gebied van duurzame voeding zitten de verschillen vaak in de doelstellingen en/of de implementatie. Van de Nederlandse consumenten zegt 8% te kiezen voor specifieke keurmerkproducten. Vijfentwintig procent gaat twijfelen over het kopen van een product als er geen keurmerk op staat. Zestien procent zegt bewust producten te kopen zonder keurmerken

Protective Efficacy of Newcastle Disease Virus Expressing Soluble Trimeric Hemagglutinin against Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Influenza in Chickens and Mice

Background: Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) causes a highly contagious often fatal disease in poultry, resulting in significant economic losses in the poultry industry. HPAIV H5N1 also poses a major public health threat as it can be transmitted directly from infected poultry to humans. One effective way to combat avian influenza with pandemic potential is through the vaccination of poultry. Several live vaccines based on attenuated Newcastle disease virus (NDV) that express influenza hemagglutinin (HA) have been developed to protect chickens or mammalian species against HPAIV. However, the zoonotic potential of NDV raises safety concerns regarding the use of live NDV recombinants, as the incorporation of a heterologous attachment protein may result in the generation of NDV with altered tropism and/or pathogenicity. Methodology/Principal Findings: In the present study we generated recombinant NDVs expressing either full length, membrane-anchored HA of the H5 subtype (NDV-H5) or a soluble trimeric form thereof (NDV-sH5 3). A single intramuscular immunization with NDV-sH5 3 or NDV-H5 fully protected chickens against disease after a lethal challenge with H5N1 and reduced levels of virus shedding in tracheal and cloacal swabs. NDV-sH5 3 was less protective than NDV-H5 (50% vs 80% protection) when administered via the respiratory tract. The NDV-sH5 3 was ineffective in mice, regardless of whether administered oculonasally or intramuscularly. In this species, NDV-H5 induced protective immunity against HPAIV H5N1, but only after oculonasal administration, despite the poor H5-specific serum antibody response it elicited. Conclusions/Significance: Although NDV expressing membrane anchored H5 in general provided better protection than its counterpart expressing soluble H5, chickens could be fully protected against a lethal challenge with H5N1 by using the latter NDV vector. This study thus provides proof of concept for the use of recombinant vector vaccines expressing a soluble form of a heterologous viral membrane protein. Such vectors may be advantageous as they preclude the incorporation of heterologous membrane proteins into the viral vector particles

Dendritic cell vaccination and immune monitoring

We exploited dendritic cells (DC) to vaccinate melanoma patients. We recently demonstrated a statistical significant correlation between favorable clinical outcome and the presence of vaccine-related tumor antigen-specific T cells in delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) skin biopsies. However, favorable clinical outcome is only observed in a minority of the treated patients. Therefore, it is obvious that current DC-based protocols need to be improved. For this reason, we study in small proof of principle trials the fate, interactions and effectiveness of the injected DC

Engrained experience—a comparison of microclimate perception schemata and microclimate measurements in Dutch urban squares

Acceptance of public spaces is often guided by perceptual schemata. Such schemata also seem to play a role in thermal comfort and microclimate experience. For climate-responsive design with a focus on thermal comfort it is important to acquire knowledge about these schemata. For this purpose, perceived and “real” microclimate situations were compared for three Dutch urban squares. People were asked about their long-term microclimate perceptions, which resulted in “cognitive microclimate maps”. These were compared with mapped microclimate data from measurements representing the common microclimate when people stay outdoors. The comparison revealed some unexpected low matches; people clearly overestimated the influence of the wind. Therefore, a second assumption was developed: that it is the more salient wind situations that become engrained in people’s memory. A comparison using measurement data from windy days shows better matches. This suggests that these more salient situations play a role in the microclimate schemata that people develop about urban places. The consequences from this study for urban design are twofold. Firstly, urban design should address not only the “real” problems, but, more prominently, the “perceived” problems. Secondly, microclimate simulations addressing thermal comfort issues in urban spaces should focus on these perceived, salient situations

Peptide microarrays for the profiling of cytotoxic T-lymphocyte activity using minimum numbers of cells

The identification of epitopes that elicit cytotoxic T-lymphocyte activity is a prerequisite for the development of cancer-specific immunotherapies. However, especially the parallel characterization of several epitopes is limited by the availability of T cells. Microarrays have enabled an unprecedented miniaturization and parallelization in biological assays. Here, we developed peptide microarrays for the detection of CTL activity. MHC class I-binding peptide epitopes were pipetted onto polymer-coated glass slides. Target cells, loaded with the cell-impermeant dye calcein, were incubated on these arrays, followed by incubation with antigen-expanded CTLs. Cytotoxic activity was detected by release of calcein and detachment of target cells. With only 200,000 cells per microarray, CTLs could be detected at a frequency of 0.5% corresponding to 1,000 antigen-specific T cells. Target cells and CTLs only settled on peptide spots enabling a clear separation of individual epitopes. Even though no physical boundaries were present between the individual spots, peptide loading only occurred locally and cytolytic activity was confined to the spots carrying the specific epitope. The peptide microarrays provide a robust platform that implements the whole process from antigen presentation to the detection of CTL activity in a miniaturized format. The method surpasses all established methods in the minimum numbers of cells required. With antigen uptake occurring on the microarray, further applications are foreseen in the testing of antigen precursors that require uptake and processing prior to presentation