Effect of Origanum heracleoticum L. essential oil on food-borne Penicillium aurantiogriseum and Penicilium chrysogenum isolates

Molds are ubiquitously distributed in nature and their spores can be found in the atmosphere even at high altitudes. The difficulty of controlling these undesirable molds, as well as the growing interest of the consumers in natural products, have been forcing the industry to find new alternatives for food preservation. The modern trends in nutrition suggest the limitation of synthetic food additives or substitution with natural ones. Aromatic herbs are probably the most important source of natural antimicrobial agents. Origanum heracleoticum L. essential oil has been known as an interesting source of antimicrobial compounds to be applied in food preservation. In the this work, we have investigated the effect of essential oil obtained from O. heracleoticum on growth of six isolates of Penicillium aurantiogriseum and four isolates of Penicillium chrysogenum isolated from meat plant for traditional Petrovacka sausage (Petrovská klobása) production. The findings reveal that the essential oil of O. heracleoticum provides inhibition of all of fungal isolates tested. O. heracleoticum L. essential oil exhibited higher antifungal activity against the isolates of P. chrysogenum than the isolates of P. aurantiogriseum. O. heracleoticum essential oil showed a MIC value ranging from 25 to 100 μL/mL. The fungi cultivated in the medium with higher concentration of essential oil showed certain morphological changes. The alterations included lack of sporulation and loss of pigmentation

The influence of drought on the occurrence of aflatoxins in maize

In this study, a total of 78 maize samples harvested during September and October 2012 in Vojvodina were analyzed. Presence of aflatoxins (AFs) was deter­mined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. Among the 78 analyzed maize samples, even 44 (56.4%) samples were contaminated with AFs. Concentration interval between 1-10 μg/kg, 10-50 μg/kg and 50-80 μg/kg were found in 23.1%, 17.9% and 15.4% of analyzed maize samples, respectively. It was supposed that prolonged drought during spring and summer of 2012 had a great influence on high contamination frequency and concentration of AFs. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. III 46001

Characterization of extra-hard cheese produced from donkeys’ and caprine milk mixture

International audienceAbstractCheese cannot be produced solely from equine or donkeys’ milk, because of the unique physico-chemical properties of these milks. The purpose of this study was to characterize a novel dairy product, cheese produced from donkeys’ and caprine milk mixture (60:40% v/v), regarding its chemical, microbiological, textural and sensory properties. Fully ripened cheese was classified as a high-fat, extra-hard cheese, with high sodium (29.97 g.kg−1), magnesium (3.07 g.kg−1) and potassium (4.70 g.kg−1) content. The characterization by lab-on-a-chip electrophoresis revealed lysozyme, α-lactalbumin, immunoglobulins and casein fractions. Palmitic (C16:0) and oleic fatty acids (C18:2 n9-cis) with 25.11 and 24.70%, respectively, were found at the highest concentrations. The medium-chain fatty acids account 18.21% of the total fatty acid content in analysed cheese samples. Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Enterobacteriaceae, coagulase-positive staphylococci, Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens as well as moulds were under the limit of detection in all analysed samples. After 6 months of cheese ripening (0.94 aw, pH 4.71), total bacterial count, the counts of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts were 6.34 ± 0.03, 4.80 ± 0.10 and 5.81 ± 0.11 log CFU.g−1, respectively. The texture of mature cheese was moderately hard and crumbly. The cheese was described as very salty with strong pronounced creamy, fatty and acidic taste. The characterized donkey/caprine cheese could position this type of cheese as a high-quality functional product, thus having a potential impact on the market

Antioxidative potential of daedaleopsis tricolor basidiocarps and mycelium

Although some members of the genus Daedaleopsis have been prized for their medicinal and spiritual powers since Neolithic times, modern science has not yet sufficiently dealt with their bioactivities. This study aims at defining the antioxidative ac­tivities of extracts of Daedaleopsis tricolor wild and cultivated basidiocarps and mycelium and assessing their dependance on substrate type. Ethanol extracts (at a concentrations from 0.25 mg/mL to 16.00 mg/mL) of mycelium and wild fruiting bodies showed a considerable antioxidative potential (88.65% and 81.57%, respectively), which was almost the same as the commercial antioxidant BHA (88.91%). These radical scavenging abilities were reflected in EC50 values, which were 12.45 mg/mL for the extract of cultivated basidiocarps, 8.29 mg/mL for the extract of wild basidiocarps, 7.93 mg/mL for mycelium one, and 0.10 mg/mL for commercial antioxidant. Despite the fact that phenol proportion in the extracts was no neg­ligible (between 20.41 μg GAE/mg of the extract of dry wild basidiocarps and 146.37 μg GAE/mg of the extract of dry cultivated basidiocarps), its correlation with antioxidative activity was moderate. Flavonoids, in significant concentration, were detected only in the extract of cultivated fruiting bodies (28.64 μg QE/mg of dry extract), but no correlation with radical scavenging capacity was noted. A remarkable antioxidant potential, especially of the submerged cultivated mycelium, put D. tricolor high on the list of promising new natural antioxidants. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. 173032

Controlling the thermal environment of underground power cables adjacent to heating pipeline using the pavement surface radiation properties

This paper shows how the pavement surface radiation properties can be used to control the thermal environment of 110 kV underground cables in order to increase their ampacity. It is assumed that the ampacity is additionally affected by the cable bedding size and an underground heating pipeline. Thanks to an experimental apparatus, some useful data were collected for the validation of two different finite element method based models that predict the effect of the pavement surface radiation properties on the cable ampacity. The first model corresponds to the experimental apparatus and actual indoor conditions, while the second one corresponds to the theoretical case and assumed outdoor conditions (taking into account the thermal effects of solar radiation, cable bedding size, and heating pipeline). This paper examines two possible cases of outdoor conditions, one corresponding to summer period (the most unfavorable ambient conditions) and another one corresponding to winter period (the most common winter conditions in Serbia). This proposed new method is based on the experimental data and generalized using the finite element method in COMSOL. It is found that the ampacity of the considered 110 kV cable line can be increased up to 25.4 % for the most unfavorable ambient conditions and up to 8 % for the most common winter conditions. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. TR33046

Edible mycorrhizal species Lactarius controversus Pers. 1800 as a source of antioxidant and cytotoxic agents

The aim of this work was to study chemical profile and antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of ethanol and water extracts of Lactarius controversus (Pers.) 1800 mushroom species growing in eastern Serbia. The chemical characterization of phenolic compounds performed by HPLC-MS/MS demonstrated the presence of quinic acid among others. Determination of antioxidant activity, including radical scavenging effects on DPPH•, NO•, OH• and SOA radicals and ferric reducing ability was investigated. The highest DPPH radical scavenging effect was obtained for water extract (LcAq) while ethanol extract (LcEtOH) demonstrated the highest FRAP activity. Hexane extract applied in antibacterial assay against three pathogenic strains demonstrated antibacterial effect only against S. aureus ATCC25922. Anti-proliferative properties against estrogen dependent MCF 7 breast cancer cell lines using MTT showed higher activity for ethanolic extract. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. III 46001 i br. 172058

Phytochemical screening and biological activity of extracts of plant species Halacsya sendtneri (Boiss.) Dörfl.

This study is aimed at examining total polyphenol, flavonoid, gallotannin and condensed tannins content in acetone, chloroform, ethyl acetate and petroleum ether extracts of Halacsya sendtneri (Boiss.) Dörfl., their antimicrobial and antioxidant activities, as well as identifying and quantifying the phenolic components. The antioxidant activity is consistent with the results of total quantity of phenolic compound. The results showed that the acetone extract of plant species Halascya sendtneri (Boiss.) Dörfl. possessed the highest antioxidant activity. IC50 values were determined: 9.45��1.55 μg/mL for DPPH free radical scavenging activity, 13.46±1.68 μg/mL for inhibitory activity against lipid peroxidation, 59.11±0.83 μg/mL for hydroxyl radical scavenging activity and 27.91±0.88 μg/mL for ferrous ion chelating ability. The antimicrobial activity was tested using broth dilution procedure for determination of the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). The MICs were determined for 8 selected indicator strains. All of the extracts showed strong to moderate strong antimicrobial activity. The phenolic composition of Halacsya sendtneri extracts was determined by the HPLC method. The dominant phenolic compound in acetone, chloroform and ethyl acetate extract is rosmarinic acid. Ethyl acetate extract was also abundant in p-hydroxybenzoic acid and ferulic acid. The main compounds in petrol ether extract were chlorogenic acid and quercetin

Galectin-3 Deficiency Accelerates High-Fat Diet-Induced Obesity and Amplifies Inflammation in Adipose Tissue and Pancreatic Islets

Obesity-induced diabetes is associated with low-grade inflammation in adipose tissue and macrophage infiltration of islets. We show that ablation of galectin-3 (Gal-3), a galactoside-binding lectin, accelerates high-fat diet-induced obesity and diabetes. Obese LGALS3(-/-) mice have increased body weight, amount of total visceral adipose tissue (VAT), fasting blood glucose and insulin levels, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, and markers of systemic inflammation compared with diet-matched wild-type (WT) animals. VAT of obese LGALS3(-/-) mice exhibited increased incidence of type 1 T and NKT lymphocytes and proinflammatory CD11c(+)CD11b(+) macrophages and decreased CD4(+)CD25(+)FoxP3(+) regulatory T cells and M2 macrophages. Pronounced mononuclear cell infiltrate, increased expression of NLRP3 inflammasome and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) in macrophages, and increased accumulation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and receptor for AGE (RAGE) expression were present in pancreatic islets of obese LGALS3(-/-) animals accompanied with elevated phosphorylated nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappa B) p65 and mature caspase-1 protein expression in pancreatic tissue and VAT. In vitro stimulation of LGALS3(-/-) peritoneal macrophages with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and saturated fatty acid palmitate caused increased caspase-l-dependent IL-1 beta production and increased phosphorylation of NF-kappa B p65 compared with WT cells. Transfection of LGALS3(-/-) macrophages with NLRP3 small interfering RNA attenuated production in response to palmitate and LPS plus palmitate. Obtained results suggest important protective roles for Gal-3 in obesity-induced inflammation and diabetes.Serbian Ministry of Science and Technological Development [175071, 175069

Recent progress in research on the pharmacological potential of mushrooms and prospects for their clinical application

International audienceFungi are considered one of the most diverse, ecologically significant, and economically important organisms on Earth. The edible and medicinal mushrooms have long been known by humans and were used by ancient civilizations not only as valuable food but also as medicines. Mushrooms are producers of high- and low-molecular-weight bioactive compounds (alkaloids, lectins, lipids, peptidoglycans, phenolics, polyketides, polysaccharides, proteins, polysaccharide-protein/peptides, ribosomal and non-ribosomal peptides, steroids, terpenoids, etc.) possessing more than 130 different therapeutic effects (analgesic, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiplatelet, antiviral, cytotoxic, hepatoprotective, hypocholesterolemic, hypoglycemic, hypotensive, immunomodulatory, immunosuppressive, mitogenic/regenerative, etc.). The early record of Materia Medica shows evidence of using mushrooms for treatment of different diseases. Mushrooms were widely used in the traditional medicine of many countries around the world and became great resources for modern clinical and pharmacological research. However, the medicinal and biotechnological potential of mushrooms has not been fully investigated. This review discusses recent advances in research on the pharmacological potential of mushrooms and perspectives for their clinical application