Thermoluminescence study of Mn doped lithium tetraborate powder and pellet samples synthesized by solution combustion synthesis

In this paper, the thermoluminescence (TL) dosimetric characteristics under beta-ray, x-ray and gamma-ray excitations of powder and pellet Mn-doped lithium tetraborates (LTB) which were produced by solution combustion synthesis technique were investigated, and the results were compared with that of TLD-100 chips. The chemical composition and morphologies of the obtained LTB and Mn-doped LTB (LTB:Mn) were confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with EDX. LTB:Mn was studied using luminescence spectroscopy. In addition, the effects of sintering and annealing temperatures and times on the thermoluminescence (TL) properties of LTB:Mn were investigated. The glow curves of powder samples as well as pellet samples exposed to different beta doses exhibited a low temperature peak at about 100 °C followed by an intense principal high temperature peak at about 260 °C. The kinetic parameters (E, b, s) associated with the prominent glow peaks were estimated using Tm-Tstop, initial rise (IR) and computerized glow curve deconvolution (CGCD) methods. The TL response of integral TL output increased linearly with increasing the dose in the range of 0.1-10 Gy and was followed by a superlinearity up to 100 Gy both for powder and pellet samples using beta-rays. Powder and pellet LTB:Mn were irradiated to a known dose by a linear accelerator with 6 and 18 MV photon beams, 6-15 MeV electron beams and a traceable 137Cs beam to investigate energy response. Further, TL sensitivity, fading properties and recycling effects related with beta exposure of LTB:Mn phosphor were evaluated and its relative energy response was also compared with that of TLD-100 chips. The comparison of the results showed that the obtained phosphors have good TL dose response with adequate sensitivity and linearity for the measurement of medical doses

Computer vision based analysis of potato chips - A tool for rapid detection of acrylamide level

In this study, analysis of digital color images of fried potato chips were combined with parallel LCMS based analysis of acrylamide in order to develop a rapid tool for the estimation of acrylamide during processing. Pixels of the fried potato image were classified into three sets based on their Euclidian distances to the representative mean values of typical bright yellow, yellowish brown, and dark brown regions using a semiautomatic segmentation algorithm. The featuring parameter extracted from the segmented image was NA2 value which was defined as the number of pixels in Set-2 divided by the total number of pixels of the entire fried potato image. Using training images of potato chips, it was shown that there was a strong linear correlation (r = 0.989) between acrylamide level and NA2 value. Images of a number of test samples were analyzed to predict their acrylamide level by means of this correlation data. The results confirmed that computer vision system described here provided explicit and meaningful description from the viewpoint of inspection and evaluation purpose for potato chips. Assuming a provisional threshold limit of 1000 ng/g for acrylamide, test samples could be successfully inspected with only one failure out of 60 potato chips. © 2006 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA

Effect of salts on the formation of acrylamide, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and flavour compounds in a crust-like glucose/wheat flour dough system during heating

Among many strategies known to mitigate acrylamide formation, addition of cations, particularly calcium, is effective and can be used in bakery products. In this study, the effects of NaCl, KCl, CaCl2, MgCl2, sodium lactate, calcium lactate, and magnesium lactate on aroma and acrylamide formation were investigated in glucose/wheat flour dough systems during heating. Addition of salts inhibited Maillard reaction in favour of caramelisation, with divalent cations found to be most effective. The impact of salts on acrylamide reduction became less effective with increasing temperature. Most Strecker aldehydes and pyrazines decreased in the presence of salts, however CaCl2 and calcium lactate increased the concentration of furans, furfurals, and diketones. Calcium lactate also increased some ethyl-substituted pyrazines at high temperatures. Reduction of acrylamide with salts is associated with higher amounts of furan derivatives and decreased amounts of Strecker aldehydes and pyrazines. The mechanisms behind these changes are discussed

7th Drug hypersensitivity meeting: part two

No abstract availabl

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Summary Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

A generic procedure to monitor Maillard-derived Xuorescent compounds in cookies by Xow-injection analysis

Flow-injection analysis is proposed for routine measurement of Maillard-derived Xuorescent compounds (FC) in cookies as a marker of the extent of baking. In addition, procedure was applied to investigate the formation of free and total (bound to protein free) FC in cookie-resembling models and in commercial wheat-based cookies as well. FC accounts for the overall Xuorescence response of Maillard-derived Xuorescent compounds (bound or not to protein) formed during baking but not for a single compound. Free and total FC values increased exponentially during baking at 200, 210 and 220 °C and an induction period of 10 min was observed for free FC. In the complex scenario of the progress of the Maillard reaction (MR) during baking, formation of FC (347/415, ext/emm) was not the limiting step for browning development at the advanced stage of the reaction. Furthermore, the formation of Maillard-derived Xuorescent compounds and browning during baking were a consequence of parallel reactions apart from the classical MR scheme of consecutive reactions. Total/free FC ratio was dependent on the baking conditions applied and ratio was signiWcantly decreased at severe baking conditions. Total/free FC ratio could be used as a reference marker for monitoring the process and to identify potential over-processing situations during baking. In addition, Xuorescent residues were originally bound to protein because total/free FC ratio decreased drastically as increased the temperature and time of the process. Levels of total FC were nearly 20-fold of free FC in commercial samples. Values of FC were positively correlated with acrylamide, a Maillard-derived food processing contaminant. © Springer-Verlag 2009.Peer Reviewe