Comparison of quality characteristics of Çökelek and Lor cheeses

The objective of this study was to compare some quality characteristics of Çökelek (cottage cheeselike) and Lor (whey cheese) cheeses during a storage period of 21 days. Çökelek and Lor cheeses significantly (P < 0.05, P < 0.01) showed differences in terms of the examined parameters and storage period. Mean value of lipolysis in Çökelek cheese was higher (P < 0.01) than that of Lor cheese. Also storage time affected (P < 0.01) the values of lipolysis in two experiments. It was found that αs1casein was hydrolyzed much faster than those of γ-casein and β-casein in the Çökelek and Lor cheeses, the γ-, β-, and αs1casein levels in two cheeses remained relatively constant during storage. There were no significant differences in water-soluble N (WSN), trichloroacetic acid soluble N (TCA-SN) and phosphotungstic acid soluble N (PTA-SN) contents of the two experiments, but the storage time significantly (P < 0.01) affected these parameters. The counts of coliforms, lactic acid, proteolytic, psycrotrophic bacteria and yeasts-molds between Çökelek and Lor cheese samples were found to be significant (P < 0.01), but total aerobic mesophilic bacteria (TAMB) and Salmonella thermophilus counts were not significant statistically. Storage time significantly (P < 0.01) affected the examined microbiological parameters. Sensory evaluations of the experimental cheeses showed differences in terms of cheese types and storage period.Key words: Çökelek, Lor, lipolysis , proteolysis, microbiology, sensory

Effect of different brine concentrations and ripening period on some quality properties of Turkish white pickled cheese

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of different brine concentrations on some properties of Turkish white cheese. Cheeses made from pasteurized milk (65°C for 30 min) were ripened in 11, 14 and 17 g 100 ml-1 NaCl for 90 days at 7±1°C. Some physicochemical and biochemical analyses were carried out during storage time. The effects of brine concentrations on total solids, protein, ash, salt, pH, and WSN values were found to be significant (P<0.05). On the contrary, fat, lipolysis, TCA-SN and PTA-SN values of the cheese samples were not significantly affected by the brine concentrations used. On the other hand, the values of protein, ash, salt, pH, lipolysis, WSN, TCA-SN and PTA-SN of the experimental cheeses were significantly (P<0.05, P<0.01) affected by storage time, while the effect of storage period on total solids and fat contents was found to be insignificant (P>0.05).Key words: Turkish white cheese, brine salting, ripening, lipolysis, proteolysis

Performance Studies of Prototype II for the CASTOR forward Calorimeter at the CMS Experiment

We present results of the performance of the second prototype of the CASTOR quartz-tungsten sampling calorimeter, to be installed in the very forward region of the CMS experiment at the LHC. The energy linearity and resolution, as well as the spatial resolution of the prototype to electromagnetic and hadronic showers are studied with E=20-200 GeV electrons, E=20-350 GeV pions, and E=50,150 GeV muons from beam tests carried out at CERN/SPS in 2004. The responses of the calorimeter using two different types of photodetectors (avalanche photodiodes APDs, and photomultiplier tubes PMTs) are compared.Comment: 16 pages, 22 figs., submitted to EPJ-

Pedunculated solitary fibrous tumours arising from the pleura

Solitary fibrous tumour (SFT) is one of the rare tumours which arise from visceral pleura. Klemperer and Rabin first described SFT as a distinct clinical entity among primary pleural tumoUrs in 1931. Approximately 820 cases have been reported in literature to date. The management of patients with SFT is complete resection of the tumour and follow up of the patient to detect any possible late recurrence. In the present paper, we report two cases of pedunculated solitary fibrous tumours of the pleura that appeared as a wandering chest nodule to which surgical resection undertaken at our hospital. The aim is to summarise our experience in the management of solitary fibrous tumour

Unilateral hemothorax in a 46 year old South Indian male due to a giant arteriovenous hemodialysis fistula: a case report

In a patient undergoing regular hemodialysis through an arteriovenous fistula access, pleural effusion is a known long term complication. However, a unilateral hemothorax is relatively uncommon. Here we report a 46 year old male, end-stage renal disease patient, on maintenance hemodialysis, who presented with a giant brachiocephalic AV fistula in his left arm and progressive breathlessness. Radiological imaging revealed a left sided pleural effusion. Ultrasound guided aspiration revealed a hemorrhagic pleural fluid. A Doppler study of the fistula revealed a high velocity blood flow through the fistula, thereby establishing the cause of the unilateral hemothorax. Ligation of the fistula resulted in complete resolution of the hemothorax. The other possible causes for hemothorax in a dialysis patient are also discussed in this case report

Search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

A search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu decay channel, where l = e or mu, in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV is presented. The data were collected at the LHC, with the CMS detector, and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 inverse femtobarns. No significant excess is observed above the background expectation, and upper limits are set on the Higgs boson production cross section. The presence of the standard model Higgs boson with a mass in the 270-440 GeV range is excluded at 95% confidence level.Comment: Submitted to JHE

Combined search for the quarks of a sequential fourth generation

Results are presented from a search for a fourth generation of quarks produced singly or in pairs in a data set corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5 inverse femtobarns recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2011. A novel strategy has been developed for a combined search for quarks of the up and down type in decay channels with at least one isolated muon or electron. Limits on the mass of the fourth-generation quarks and the relevant Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix elements are derived in the context of a simple extension of the standard model with a sequential fourth generation of fermions. The existence of mass-degenerate fourth-generation quarks with masses below 685 GeV is excluded at 95% confidence level for minimal off-diagonal mixing between the third- and the fourth-generation quarks. With a mass difference of 25 GeV between the quark masses, the obtained limit on the masses of the fourth-generation quarks shifts by about +/- 20 GeV. These results significantly reduce the allowed parameter space for a fourth generation of fermions.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Measurement of the t t-bar production cross section in the dilepton channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

The t t-bar production cross section (sigma[t t-bar]) is measured in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV in data collected by the CMS experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.3 inverse femtobarns. The measurement is performed in events with two leptons (electrons or muons) in the final state, at least two jets identified as jets originating from b quarks, and the presence of an imbalance in transverse momentum. The measured value of sigma[t t-bar] for a top-quark mass of 172.5 GeV is 161.9 +/- 2.5 (stat.) +5.1/-5.0 (syst.) +/- 3.6(lumi.) pb, consistent with the prediction of the standard model.Comment: Replaced with published version. Included journal reference and DO