80 research outputs found
Technical Design Report EuroGammaS proposal for the ELI-NP Gamma beam System
The machine described in this document is an advanced Source of up to 20 MeV
Gamma Rays based on Compton back-scattering, i.e. collision of an intense high
power laser beam and a high brightness electron beam with maximum kinetic
energy of about 720 MeV. Fully equipped with collimation and characterization
systems, in order to generate, form and fully measure the physical
characteristics of the produced Gamma Ray beam. The quality, i.e. phase space
density, of the two colliding beams will be such that the emitted Gamma ray
beam is characterized by energy tunability, spectral density, bandwidth,
polarization, divergence and brilliance compatible with the requested
performances of the ELI-NP user facility, to be built in Romania as the Nuclear
Physics oriented Pillar of the European Extreme Light Infrastructure. This
document illustrates the Technical Design finally produced by the EuroGammaS
Collaboration, after a thorough investigation of the machine expected
performances within the constraints imposed by the ELI-NP tender for the Gamma
Beam System (ELI-NP-GBS), in terms of available budget, deadlines for machine
completion and performance achievement, compatibility with lay-out and
characteristics of the planned civil engineering
Occurrence and distribution of aflatoxin contamination in groundnuts (Arachis hypogaea L) and population density of Aflatoxigenic Aspergilli in Malawi
Aflatoxin B1 levels in groundnut products from local markets in Zambia
In Zambia, groundnut products (milled groundnut powder, groundnut kernels) are mostly sold in under-regulated markets. Coupled with the lack of quality enforcement in such markets, consumers may be at risk to aflatoxin exposure. However, the level of aflatoxin contamination in these products is not known. Compared to groundnut kernels, milled groundnut powder obscures visual indicators of aflatoxin contamination in groundnuts such as moldiness, discoloration, insect damage or kernel damage. A survey was therefore conducted from 2012 to 2014, to estimate and compare aflatoxin levels in these products (n = 202), purchased from markets in important groundnut growing districts and in urban areas. Samples of whole groundnut kernels (n = 163) and milled groundnut powder (n = 39) were analysed for aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) by competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA). Results showed substantial AFB1 contamination levels in both types of groundnut products with maximum AFB1 levels of 11,100 ÎĽg/kg (groundnut kernels) and 3000 ÎĽg/kg (milled groundnut powder). However, paired t test analysis showed that AFB1 contamination levels in milled groundnut powder were not always significantly higher (P > 0.05) than those in groundnut kernels. Even for products from the same vendor, AFB1 levels were not consistently higher in milled groundnut powder than in whole groundnut kernels. This suggests that vendors do not systematically sort out whole groundnut kernels of visually poor quality for milling. However, the overall contamination levels of groundnut products with AFB1 were found to be alarmingly high in all years and locations. Therefore, solutions are needed to reduce aflatoxin levels in such under-regulated markets
International agricultural research to reduce food risks: case studies on aflatoxins
Despite massive expansion of human and livestock populations, fuelled by agricultural innovations, nearly one billion people are hungry and 2 billion are sickened each year from the food they eat. Agricultural and food systems are intimately connected to health outcomes, but health policy and programs often stop at the clinic door. A consensus is growing that the disconnection between agriculture, health and nutrition is at least partly responsible for the disease burden associated with food and farming. Mycotoxins produced by fungi are one of the most serious food safety problems affecting staple crops (especially maize and groundnuts). Aflatoxins, the best studied of these mycotoxins, cause around 90,000 cases of liver cancer each year and are strongly associated with stunting and immune suppression in children. Mycotoxins also cause major economic disruptions through their impacts on trade and livestock production. In this paper we use the case of fungal toxins to explore how agricultural research can produce innovations, understand incentives and enable institutions to improve, simultaneously, food safety, food accessibility for poor consumers and access to markets for smallholder farmers, thus making the case for research investors to support research into agricultural approaches for enhancing food safety in value chains. We first discuss the evolution of food safety research within the CGIAR. Then we show how taking an epidemiological and economic perspective on aflatoxin research connects health and nutrition outcomes. Finally, we present three case studies illustrating the traditional strengths of CGIAR research: breeding better varieties and developing new technologies
American Society for Enhanced Recovery (ASER) and Perioperative Quality Initiative  (POQI) joint consensus statement on perioperative fluid management within an enhanced recovery pathway for colorectal surgery
Inorganic arsenic speciation at river basin scales: The Tinto and Odiel Rivers in the Iberian Pyrite Belt, SW Spain
International audienc
The challenge associated with the robust computation of meteor velocities from video and photographic records
International audienc
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