Real-time pcr method combined with a matrix lysis procedure for the quantification of listeria monocytogenes in meat products

In this study a real-time PCR method has been developed for the specific quantification of the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes on meat products through the gene hlyA. The PCR was combined with a matrix lysis that allowed the obtaining of the microorganisms without sample dilution and the elimination the PCR inhibitors from dry-cured ham. The qPCR method calibration curve had an efficiency of 100.4%, limits of detection and quantification were 30.1 ± 6.2 CFU/g which is under the legal limit of L. monocytogenes in ready-to-eat products, and an analytical variability <0.25 log hlyA gene copies/reaction. The analysis was performed simultaneously with the reference method ISO 11290-2. The comparison of the qPCR-matrix lysis results with the reference method showed an excellent correspondence, with a relative accuracy between 95.83–105.20%. Finally, the method was applied to commercial derived meat samples and the pathogen was quantified in one of the commercial samples assayed in 69.1 ± 13.9 CFU/g while the reference method did not quantify it. The optimized qPCR showed higher precision and sensitivity than the reference method at low concentrations of the microorganism in a shorter time. Therefore, qPCR-matrix lysis shows a potential application in the meat industry for L. monocytogenes routine control. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Oral Health Practices, Beliefs and Dental Service Utilization of Albanian Immigrants in Milwaukee, Wisconsin: A Pilot Study

There is limited information on the oral health of Albanian immigrant population residing in the U.S. This creates a hinderance to developing and implementing appropriate dental care programs for the population. This study investigated oral health practices, beliefs, dental visits and associated factors of Albanian adults living in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Purposive and snowball sampling methods were employed. Self-administered questionnaires were used to collect data on oral health practices, beliefs, dental visits and socio-demographic information. Descriptive and multivariable logistics regression were conducted. Overall, 266 adults were recruited, 54% male, 56% have lived 10 or more years in the U.S., 95% rated their oral health as excellent/good and 87% reported having a dental visit in the last year. Age, ability to speak English, having a usual source of dental care, and reporting excellent/good oral health were associated with having a dental visit in the last year. A substantial number of Albanians adult reported a dental visit in the last year and those that did not write or read in English had lower odds of reporting a dental visit

Critical behavior of dissipative two-dimensional spin lattices

We explore critical properties of two-dimensional lattices of spins interacting via an anisotropic Heisenberg Hamiltonian and subject to incoherent spin flips. We determine the steady-state solution of the master equation for the density matrix via the corner-space renormalization method. We investigate the finite-size scaling and critical exponent of the magnetic linear susceptibility associated to a dissipative ferromagnetic transition. We show that the Von Neumann entropy increases across the critical point, revealing a strongly mixed character of the ferromagnetic phase. Entanglement is witnessed by the quantum Fisher information which exhibits a critical behavior at the transition point, showing that quantum correlations play a crucial role in the transition even though the system is in a mixed state.Comment: Accepted for publication on Phys. Rev. B (6 pages, 5 figures

Methodes en syntaxe M. Gross, Hermann, 1975, 414 pp.

Narcissism, the body and modernity The notion of narcissism is often used and misused within contemporary social theory. Whereas the concept is frequently used in discussions of moral decline and of the negative impact of consumer culture on social character, the aim of this article is instead to put forward a social psychological analysis of narcissism. Goffman’s discussion of the presentation of self in everyday life and Giddens’ theory of self-identity and modernity, are used as points of departure in an analysis of the social psychological aspects of narcissism. The main argument in the article is that it is necessary to study the contextual aspects of the construction of what is often called ”narcissistic disorders”. This implies a change of emphasis from narcissism as a general social and cultural disorder, to more specific analysis of critical situations and critical milieux. The article also contains a discussion of the relation between the ambivalent character of modernity, the cult of the body and narcissism. Examples from the gym culture are used in order to highlight some of the arguments in the article.Sociologisk Forsknings digitala arkiv</p

Assessing the Impact of Sustainability Improvement Options on the Agri-food Supply Chain Governance Structures: Development of an Evaluation Tool

The competitiveness of a supply chain is driven by the ability of supply chain governance structures to adapt to the chains’ continuously changing technical and organizational characteristics. The present study addresses the adoption of sustainability improvement options in the area of organization and management in the agri-food sector; within this framework the study proposes a tool for assessing the impact of sustainability oriented processes on the supply chain governance structures, in turn influencing the competitiveness of the supply chain. Two different approaches, proposed by (Gereffi et al., 2005) and (Hobbs and Young, 2000) have been linked to provide a theoretical framework for the tool development. The proposed new conceptual framework links the dimensions defining five different governance structures complexity of transaction, ability to codify and capabilities in the supply-base (Gereffi et al.,) to the product characteristics, regulatory and technology aspects defined by Hobbs and Young as drivers influencing the vertical coordination of supply chains. The method suggested for measuring the relations between improvement options and the chain governance structure is the adopt ion of experts’ evaluations. This method improves the tool capacity to provide a context-related supply chain governance structure assessment and management