Perception of professional social support as a predictor of burnout level of pre-school teachers

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between perception of pre-school teachers' professional social support and burnout levels. The model of this research is the relational screening model included in the quantitative research model. The participants of the study were 297 pre-school teachers working in official schools of the Ministry of National Education in Tekirdag in 2017-2018 academic year. The data were collected by burnout scale, teacher professional social support scale and participant information form. According to the data, there was a statistically significant negative correlation between burnout and all sub-dimensions of social support scale. In addition, professional social support perceptions of preschool teachers were found to be a significant predictor of burnout levels. Keywords: Burnout, professional social support, pre-school teache

Determination and Improvement of Microbial Safety of Wheat Sprouts with Chemical Sanitizers

In this study, total aerobic mesophilic bacteria (TAMB), total coliform (TC), yeasts and moulds (YM), and Escherichia coli, Salmonella, and Staphylococcus aureus counts of wheat seeds and sprouts germinated for 9 days under different relative humidity (RH) (90% and 95%) and temperatures (18 degrees C, 20 degrees C, and 22 degrees C) were determined. The disinfection capabilities of sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) (100, 200, and 400 ppm) and hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) (3% and 6%) on wheat seeds/sprouts were also investigated. It has been found that native TAMB, TC, YM, and E. coli population significantly increased (p < 0.05) with the germination; however, no Salmonella and S. aureus were detected on the seeds and/or sprouts. Again, increasing the temperature and RH resulted in a rapid proliferation of microorganisms. On the other hand, E. coli population could be completely eliminated by the treatment of different concentrations of NaOCl or H(2)O(2) before the germination of wheat seeds. Again, increasing the NaOCl and H(2)O(2) concentrations resulted in additional reductions of TAMB, TC, and YM population; and the highest reductions in sprouts were observed when the seed was soaked in 400 ppm NaOCl for 30 minutes followed by tap water wash and germination for 9 days. Population reduction of 1.46 log colony-forming unit (cfu)/g of TAMB, 1.97 log cfu/g of YM, and 0.84 log cfu/g of TC in sprouts was achieved when compared with the control. The chemical sanitization did not negatively affect the germination capability of the seeds. Therefore, soaking the seeds in 400 ppm of NaOCl for 30 minutes followed by a germination environment of 18 degrees C and 90% RH was found to be the most appropriate germination condition for wheat sprouts with reduced microbial population

Extraction of a novel water-soluble gum from nettle (Urtica dioica) seeds: Optimization and characterization

WOS:000577936100044PubMed: 32574736Nettle seed gum (NSG) which is a novel potential source of hydrocolloid was characterized in terms of yield, physicochemical, rheological, functional and thermal properties. According to Response Surface Methodology, the maximum extraction yield was determined as 6.17% on dry basis. In order to clarify the structural information of the gum, the FT-IR analysis and monosaccharide composition determination were performed. In the results, the NSG had 8.48% moisture, 10.81% total ash, 2.89% total protein, 1.15% total oil and 76.67% total carbohydrate. The FT-IR analysis revealed the existence of carboxyl groups, which gives the gum the capability of ion binding. Furthermore, Mannose/Galactose ratio was calculated as 1.07, indicating the water solubility of gum. DSC analysis showed that the NSG was highly stable in thermal process. Intrinsic viscosity, average viscosity and molecular weight values were determined as 8.56 +/- 0.4 dL/g and 1.89 +/- 0.1 x 10(6) g/mol, respectively. The emulsification capacity, emulsion stability and foam formation capacity of the NSG were 48%, 40% and 4%, respectively. The NSG exhibited shear thinning behavior while dynamic rheological analysis indicated the NSG had viscoelastic properties and G ' (the storage modulus) was higher than G '' (the loss modulus). In conclusion, the present study supplied novel knowledge on the NSG, which will be inestimable for clarifying its matchless functional properties. (c) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Fabrication and characterization of curcumin loaded ovalbumin nanocarriers and bioactive properties

In this study, curcumin loaded ovalbumin nanoparticles (CONPs) were fabricated at optimized processing conditions and compared with the neat ONPs. The particles were characterized for molecular, thermal, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. The particle size values varied from 45.64 nm to 138.14 nm and the encapsulation efficiency of the CONP was 24%. SEM images indicated that ONPs and CONPs had spherical shapes and the particle diameters and size distributions were in accordance with the DLS measurement results. Fabrication of CONPs provided better (P < 0.05) inhibition on test pathogens as compared to pure curcumin, which demonstrates that particle size reduction of curcumin positively influenced its antibacterial efficiency. It was also clear that nanoencapsulation of curcumin significantly (P < 0.05) increased its antioxidant activity, suggesting that the curcumin/ovalbumin nanoencapsules could achieve similar antioxidant effect at much lower curcumin concentrations. FTIR results showed that curcumin was entrapped inside the ovalbumin nanocarriers successfully. According to DSC measurements, the melting temperature of ovalbumin did not change by curcumin encapsulation. In conclusion, the results suggested that ONPs could be an available carrier for encapsulation of curcumin at nano scale and had the potential to be used in the food industry and other bioactive delivery systems.Scientific Research Projects Coordination Department of Yildiz Technical University, Turkey [2015-07-05-KAP02]This study was supported by the Scientific Research Projects Coordination Department of Yildiz Technical University, Turkey with the Project code of 2015-07-05-KAP02

Optimization of production parameters for fabrication of thymol-loaded chitosan nanoparticles

Thymol is the major antimicrobial and bioactive constituent found in thyme (Thymus vulgaris) essential oil. In this study, it was aimed to determine the parameters for fabrication of thymol loaded chitosan nanoparticles with optimum encapsulation efficiency, zeta potential, and partide size properties using a two-stage emulsion-ionic gelation approach. For this purpose, temperature (25-45 degrees C) and chitosan (3-6 mg/mL), thymol (3-6 mg/mL), Tween 80 (3-6 mg/mL) and TPP (0.15-0.75 mg/mL) concentrations were studied as optimization parameters by applying the numerical point prediction method. The results showed that the partide size, zeta potential and encapsulation efficiency of the chitosan nanopartides could be controlled by processing conditions. Additionally, this study was focused on optimization of these parameters with factorial design (FD) in nanoencapsulation of Thymol. The optimized production parameters on the basis of the criteria of attaining the minimum particle size, maximum zeta potential, and maximum encapsulation efficiency were 42 degrees C temperature, chitosan rate 3 mg/mL, Thymol rate 5.9 mg/mL, Tween 80 rate 3 mg/mL and TPP rate 0.75 mg/mL. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.WOS:0005282674000232-s2.0-85079903127PubMed: 3205787

Interaction Between Some Phenolic Compounds and Probiotic Bacterium in Functional Ice Cream Production

In this study, effect of ellagic acid (EA), gallic acid (GA), grape seed extract (GSE), pomegranate peel extract (PPE), and peppermint essential oil (PEO) supplementation on sensorial and antioxidative properties of ice cream was determined. Additionally, survival of Lactobacillus casei Shirota in ice cream and its interaction with the supplements were also investigated. All the supplements increased total phenolic content of ice creams significantly (P < 0.05). DPPH radical scavenging activities of ice creams supplemented with EA, GA, PPE, or GSE were higher than that of control group. Moreover, PPE made the best contribution to phenolic content and antiradical activity of ice cream. L. casei Shirota was highly adapted to ice cream media and survived with high numbers (7.21 log cfu/mL) during the storage period for 60 days. Supplementation of ice creams provided lower decrease in bacterial number, and the best bacterial behaviors were observed in the ice creams supplemented with GA or PPE. All ice cream samples tested in this study had generally acceptable sensorial scores. In conclusion, EA, GA, PPE, GSE, and PEO could be used to enhance the phenolic content of ice cream and to gain antioxidant property, and there was a good interaction between L. casei and these phenolic compounds. Additionally, PPE supplementation provided the best result for all concerns

Application of Non-linear Models to Predict Inhibition Effects of Various Plant Hydrosols on Listeria monocytogenes Inoculated on Fresh-Cut Apples

In this study, we studied the effects of some plant hydrosols obtained from bay leaf, black cumin, rosemary, sage, and thyme in reducing Listeria monocytogenes on the surface of fresh-cut apple cubes. Adaptive neurofuzzy inference system (ANFIS), artificial neural network (ANN), and multiple linear regression (MLR) models were used for describing the behavior of L. monocytogenes against the hydrosol treatments. Approximately 1-1.5 log CFU/g decreases in L. monocytogenes counts were observed after individual hydrosol treatments for 20 min. By extending the treatment time to 60 min, thyme, sage, or rosemary hydrosols eliminated L. monocytogenes, whereas black cumin and bay leaf hydrosols did not lead to additional reductions. In addition to antibacterial measurements, the abilities of ANFIS, ANN, and MLR models were compared with respect to estimation of the survival of L. monocytogenes. The root mean square error, mean absolute error, and determination coefficient statistics were used as comparison criteria. The comparison results indicated that the ANFIS model performed the best for estimating the effects of the plant hydrosols on L. monocytogenes counts. The ANN model was also effective; the MLR model was found to be poor at estimating L. monocytogenes numbers

Fabrication and characterization of probioticLactobacillus plantarumloaded sodium alginate edible films

WOS:000563766100002In this study, sodium alginate (SA) based probioticLactobacillus plantarumcarrier edible films were fabricated and characterized for survival of probiotics, physicochemical, mechanical, barrier, molecular and thermal properties. Probiotic bacteria adapted well to the polymer matrix, which was indicated by the high survival rate during film drying and the storage for 60 days. Probiotic population remained at higher levels in the case of cold storage. Free or encapsulated bacteria incorporation significantly (P 0.05) difference between elongation at break levels was observed. Water vapor permeability values significantly increased by the addition of encapsulated probiotics, probably due to the hydrophilic character of the wall material (maltodextrin). DSC thermograms showed that water evaporation peaks were at 121-130 degrees C while no glassy transition or melting behavior was observed at the SA based films. In conclusion, the results indicated that SA was confirmed as a potent carrier ofLactobacillus plantarumand SA based probiotic films could be conveniently used as edible coating of foods.Yildiz Technical UniversityYildiz Technical University; Scientific Research Project Unit of Yildiz Technical University of Turkey [FBA-2019-3515]We would like to thank Yildiz Technical University for providing funds for this project with project number FBA-2019-3515 of the Scientific Research Project Unit of Yildiz Technical University of Turkey