Effects of Microvibrations and Their Damping on the Evolution of Pinot Noir Wine during Bottle Storage.

(c) The Author/sEnvironmental conditions such as vibrations, temperature, and exposure to light can lower the quality of bottled wine, causing great economic and image losses for wineries. Even under optimal storage conditions, environmental microvibrations can be a constant source of energy transfer to the stored bottles, and little is known about their effects over time. In this study, the effects of microvibrations on a fine Pinot noir wine were evaluated over a storage period of one year under controlled conditions and compared with those obtained using natural magnetic levitation as a damping technique to reduce the power transmitted by the vibrations. The wines were subjected to the treatments according to the following experimental set-up: (A) wines not exposed to microvibrations, but to natural magnetic levitation; (B) wines placed on a shelf in contact with the floor, and exposed to microvibrations; (C) controls, a shelf in direct contact with the floor, without the application of microvibrations; (D) wines on a shelf with natural magnetic levitation and exposed to microvibrations. Phenolic and volatile compounds were not significantly different between treatments, which is in line with the reduced energy stress applied. In contrast, the storage time significantly influenced these chemical profiles. Through the sensory analysis performed after 0 and 12 months of storage, it was possible to distinguish the wines, as the overall quality improved, especially for the microvibration-treated samples. After 12 months of storage: (a) the overall sensory quality improved for all wines compared to the samples at T0; (b) the damping of microvibrations reduced the rate of wine evolution; (c) treatment with microvibration up to 6 months was useful for improving the quality of wine not yet ready for the market. Therefore, modulation of wine evolution can be achieved by applying a combination of microvibrations and their damping, depending on the enological objective.Published onlin

Effects of transport conditions on the stability and sensory quality of wines

The quality of wine can be affected by several factors after bottling: temperature changes, shipment time, type and amount of mechanical stress (vibrations) and environmental conditions, such as light exposure and relative humidity. The effects of delivery using different packaging systems (boxes, bottles, containers) and the impacts of mode of shipment (car, truck, airplane and cargo ship) are reviewed, along with compositional markers, the reactions leading to off-odours and/or off-flavours and the approaches to monitoring transportation conditions (temperature, relative humidity and type and entity of vibration) and their impacts on the sensory profile of the wine. Temperature fluctuations are more prevalent during the transport of wine over land than by sea, and may lead to a decrease in the fresh, fruity and floral aromas of the wine and to premature aging due to the ‘pump’ effect (repeated expansion and contraction cycles). Trans-shipment phases should be reduced to a minimum, especially in hot climates. Vibrations, even for a short period of time (15 days), can alter the overall quality of the product.Publishe

Notes on the anatomy and phylogenetic position of Eremias ercolinii Lanza & Poggesi 1975 (Reptilia Lacertidae)

Detailed examination of the only known specimen of Eremias ercolinii Lanza & Poggesi 1975 shows that it has affinities within the Ophisops-Mesalina clade and, on present evidence, is best regarded as a member of Mesalina Gray 1838. However, its exact phylogenetic position will only be confirmed when more material becomes available. Limb proportions and scale form suggest that Mesalina ercolinii probably spends time in low, dense vegetation

Real-time optical manipulation of cardiac conduction in intact hearts

Optogenetics has provided new insights in cardiovascular research, leading to new methods for cardiac pacing, resynchronization therapy and cardioversion. Although these interventions have clearly demonstrated the feasibility of cardiac manipulation, current optical stimulation strategies do not take into account cardiac wave dynamics in real time. Here, we developed an all‐optical platform complemented by integrated, newly developed software to monitor and control electrical activity in intact mouse hearts. The system combined a wide‐field mesoscope with a digital projector for optogenetic activation. Cardiac functionality could be manipulated either in free‐run mode with submillisecond temporal resolution or in a closed‐loop fashion: a tailored hardware and software platform allowed real‐time intervention capable of reacting within 2 ms. The methodology was applied to restore normal electrical activity after atrioventricular block, by triggering the ventricle in response to optically mapped atrial activity with appropriate timing. Real‐time intraventricular manipulation of the propagating electrical wavefront was also demonstrated, opening the prospect for real‐time resynchronization therapy and cardiac defibrillation. Furthermore, the closed‐loop approach was applied to simulate a re‐entrant circuit across the ventricle demonstrating the capability of our system to manipulate heart conduction with high versatility even in arrhythmogenic conditions. The development of this innovative optical methodology provides the first proof‐of‐concept that a real‐time optically based stimulation can control cardiac rhythm in normal and abnormal conditions, promising a new approach for the investigation of the (patho)physiology of the heart

Quartz crystal microbalance genosensing of brettanomyces bruxellensis yeast in wine using a rapid and efficient drop and collect protocol

A miniaturized quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) genosensor is proposed for sensitive and real-time detection of short ssDNA sequences (53 bp) or DNA extracted from Brettanomyces bruxellensis (Brett) yeast cells. The presence of Brett yeast causes a depreciation of the quality of aged fine wines, producing molecules of unpleasant odors and biogenic amines that are harmful to human health. More specifically, standard quartz crystal (S-QCM) and homemade 4 nm gold transmission electron microscopy (TEM)-grid patterned quartz (multi-TEM QCM) are herein proposed for biofunctionalization steps with different ssDNA sequences. By employing a rapid and efficient drop and collect protocol, the specific detection of 1 pg/\ub5L ssDNA Brett of a short sequence and 100 ng/\ub5L DNA of B. bruxellensis extracted from a wine sample (VR2008) is reported

Acoustic multi-detection of Gliadin using QCM crystals patterned with controlled sectors of tem grid and annealed Nanoislands on gold electrode

Celiac diseases are a group of gluten ingestion-correlated pathologies that are widespread and, in some cases, very dangerous for human health. The only effective treatment is the elimination of gluten from the diet throughout life. Nowadays, the food industries are very interested in cheap, easy-to-handle methods for detecting gluten in food, in order to provide their consumers with safe and high-quality food. Here, for the first time, the manufacture of controlled micropatterns of annealed gold nanoislands (AuNIs) on a single QCM crystal (QCM-color) and their biofunctionalization for the specific detection of traces of gliadin is reported. In addition, the modified quartz crystal with a TEM grid and 30 nm Au (Q-TEM grid crystal) is proposed as an acoustic sensitive biosensing platform for the rapid screening of the gliadin content in real food products

Chemosensory Profile of South Tyrolean Pinot Blanc Wines: A Multivariate Regression Approach

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The transverse-axial tubular system of cardiomyocytes

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