Selection and characterization of the probiotic potential of some lactic acid bacteria isolated from infant feces

Abstrac

Optimized flextensional transducers for an implantable hearing aid

Relaxor single crystal based flextensional transducers were investigated for an implantable hearing aid application. Oval shape cymbal structure, adopted due to anatomic requirement, was simulated using finite element analysis (FEA). The optimum lateral orientation was determined to be along the longer direction of oval cap. The simulation results suggest that optimized single crystal transducers offer 100% improved performance over the analogous PZT transducers, adequate for implantable hearing aid device applications

Influence of the culture medium composition on the exopolysaccharides synthesis by Streptococcus sp. IL5 strain

The synthesis of exopolysaccharides was determined for the Streptococcus sp. IL5 strain in MRS and M17 medium, with carbon sources such as glucose, lactose and sucrose. According to the obtained results, by using glucose as carbon source, the highest quantity of exopolysaccharides was obtained, namely of 400 mg l−1. The influence of various glucose concentrations (5, 10, 15, 20%) on exopolysaccharide production was tested. It resulted in that, at a concentration of 15% glucose, a maximum quantity of synthesized exopolysaccharides was obtained. The influence of temperature and of pH on the exopolysaccharide synthesis capacity of the strain was tested as well. From the tests the temperature of 37 °C and pH 7 proved to be the ideal parameters for obtaining a maximum exopolysaccharides quantity. Based on chromatographic methods, the content of synthesized polysaccharide was determined, consisting of 31.87% anhydrous glucose with a degree of polymerization of 36.7%

Interakce mezi spotřebou energie, CO2 a ekonomickým rozvojem v zemích Evropské unie Interakce mezi spotřebou energie, CO2 a hospodářským rozvojem v zemích Evropské unie Interakce mezi spotřebou energie, CO2 a hospodářským rozvojem v zemích Evropské unie

Sustainable development has become a major problem in European Union (EU) countries. This has prompted many researchers to examine a broad range of interactions among sustainable development indicators. This study uses the variance decomposition and cointegration approach to assess the causal relationship among energy consumption, CO2 emissions, and economic development (gross domestic product [GDP], foreign direct investment [FDI], net exports, and employment in industry) in the eight new and 15 old EU countries. The results confirm the existence of at least long-run equilibrium relationships among economic growth and energy consumption, CO2, FDI, and net exports. In addition, short-run bidirectional causality among GDP, energy consumption, and CO2 emissions is found for the old EU countries, whereas unidirectional causalities run from GDP to energy consumption and CO2 emissions in the new EU countries. Evidence from the variance decomposition analysis shows that 22% of the future shock in GDP is due to fluctuations in energy consumption, CO2, and employment in the old EU countries, whereas 53.1% emanates from CO2, employment, and FDI in the new EU countries. These findings have potentially important implications for sustainable development and environmental policy in both old and new EU countries.Udržitelný rozvoj se stal v zemích Evropské unie (EU) hlavním problémem. To přimělo mnoho vědců k prozkoumání široké škály interakcí mezi ukazateli udržitelného rozvoje. Tato studie využívá přístup k rozkladu a kointegraci variací k posouzení kauzálního vztahu mezi spotřebou energie, emisemi CO2 a ekonomickým rozvojem (hrubý domácí produkt [HDP], přímé zahraniční investice [PZI], čistý vývoz a zaměstnanost v průmyslu) v osmi nových a 15 starých zemí EU. Výsledky potvrzují existenci alespoň dlouhodobých rovnovážných vztahů mezi ekonomickým růstem a spotřebou energie, CO2, PZI a čistým exportem. U starých zemí EU je navíc zjištěna krátkodobá obousměrná příčinná souvislost mezi HDP, spotřebou energie a emisemi CO2, zatímco jednosměrné příčinné souvislosti se pohybují od HDP ke spotřebě energie a emisím CO2 v nových zemích EU. Důkazy z analýzy rozkladu rozptylu ukazují, že 22% budoucího šoku v HDP je způsobeno kolísáním spotřeby energie, CO2 a zaměstnanosti ve starých zemích EU, zatímco 53,1% pochází z CO2, zaměstnanosti a PZI v nových zemích EU . Tato zjištění mají potenciálně důležité důsledky pro udržitelný rozvoj a politiku životního prostředí ve starých i nových zemích EU