Mixture-risk-assessment of pesticide residues in retail polyfloral honey

[EN] The presence of even tiny quantities of pesticide residues in honey, a traditional healthy product, is a matter of concern for producers, packers and consumers. This paper aims to quantify pesticides in retail brands of polyfloral honey, and to calculate the mixture risk assessment of honey for consumers according to the results obtained from the analyzed samples. A LC-MS/MS multi-residue method was developed and validated for 13 compounds: 11 pesticides (chlorfenvinphos, coumaphos, tau-fluvalinate, amitraz, which are very common in veterinary treatments, and imidacloprid, acetamiprid, simazine, cyproconazole, tebuconazole, chlorpiryphos-methyl, chlorpiryphos, widely used in agricultural practices), and 2 metabolites of amitraz (2,4-DMA and 2,4-DMF). Results showed that the samples contained pesticide residues at different concentrations; however, the MRL in honey for each of the 11 pesticides was never exceeded. The most common were amitraz (from 1 to 50 ¿Ýg/kg) present in 100% of the samples, and coumaphos (up to 14 ¿Ýg/kg) in 63%. The hazard index (HI) for adults was less than 0.002 in all cases, a long way from 1, the value established as the limit of acceptability. Therefore, commercial honey does not represent any significant risk to health. However, considering that residue levels should be present ¡§as low as reasonably achievable¡¿ it is deemed necessary to make an effort to reduce their presence by appropriate agricultural and, above all, beekeeping practices due to acaridae treatments.This study forms part of a project funded by the Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad of Spain (Programa Estatal de Investigacion Desarrollo e Innovacion Orientada a los retos de la sociedad; Project number AGL2013-48646-R), for which the authors are grateful.Juan Borrás, MDS.; Doménech Antich, EM.; Escriche Roberto, MI. (2016). Mixture-risk-assessment of pesticide residues in retail polyfloral honey. Food Control. 67:127-134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2016.02.051S1271346

The German Music@Home: Validation of a questionnaire measuring at home musical exposure and interaction of young children.

The present study introduces the German version of the original version of the Music@Home questionnaire developed in the UK, which systematically evaluates musical engagement in the home environment of young children. Two versions are available, an Infant version for children aged three to 23 months and a Preschool version for children aged two to five and a half years. For the present study, the original Music@Home questionnaire was translated from English into German and 656 caregivers completed the questionnaire online. A confirmatory factor analysis showed moderate to high fit indices for both versions, confirming the factor structure of the original questionnaire. Also, the reliability coefficients for the subscales (Parental beliefs, Child engagement with music, Parent initiation of singing, Parent initiation of music-making for the Infant version and Parental beliefs, Child engagement with music, Parent initiation of music behavior and Breadth of musical exposure for the Preschool version) ranged from moderate to high fits. Furthermore, the test-retest analysis (N = 392) revealed high correlations for the general factor and all subscales confirming their internal reliability. Additionally, we included language questionnaires for children of two and three years of age. Results showed that higher scores on the Music@Home questionnaire were moderately associated with better language skills in two-year-olds (N = 118). In sum, the study presents the validated German Music@Home questionnaire, which shows good psychometric properties. The two versions of the questionnaire are available for use in order to assess home musical engagement of young children, which could be of interest in many areas of developmental research

Влияние фосфатных связующих на физико-механические свойства периклазохромитовых огнеупоров

У данній статті наведено та порівняно фізико-механічні властивості периклазо-хромітових матеріалів в залежності від різних типів фосфатних зв’язуючих та введення різних домішок. Визначено, що найбільш раціональним є введення триполіфосфату натрію.In given clause are resulted and the physycal-mechanical properties periclase-cgromite of materials are compared depending on different of types phosphate binding and introduction of the various additives. Is determined, that most rational is the introduction treepolyphosphate sodume

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)1.

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field

Attitudes and barriers to mammography screening in Singaporean women through the eyes of their adult children: A focus group study

10.1016/j.ssmqr.2022.100168SSM - Qualitative Research in Health2100168-10016

Alterations to DNA methylation patterns induced by chemotherapy treatment are associated with negative impacts on the olfactory pathway

10.1186/s13058-023-01730-4Breast Cancer Research251136-complete

Active replication of middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus and aberrant induction of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines in human macrophages: Implications for pathogenesis

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection caused severe pneumonia and multiorgan dysfunction and had a higher crude fatality rate (around 50% vs. 10%) than SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) infection. To understand the pathogenesis, we studied viral replication, cytokine/chemokine response, and antigen presentation in MERS-CoV-infected human monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) versus SARS-CoV-infected MDMs. Only MERS-CoV can replicate in MDMs. Both viruses were unable to significantly stimulate the expression of antiviral cytokines (interferon alpha [IFN-alpha] and IFN-beta) but induced comparable levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin 6. Notably, MERS-CoV induced significantly higher expression levels of interleukin 12, IFN-gamma, and chemokines (IP-10/CXCL-10, MCP-1/CCL-2, MIP-1alpha/CCL-3, RANTES/CCL-5, and interleukin 8) than SARS-CoV. The expression of major histocompatibility complex class I and costimulatory molecules were significantly higher in MERS-CoV-infected MDMs than in SARS-CoV-infected cells. MERS-CoV replication was validated by immunostaining of infected MDMs and ex vivo lung tissue. We conclusively showed that MERS-CoV can establish a productive infection in human macrophages. The aberrant induction of inflammatory cytokines/chemokines could be important in the disease pathogenesis.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

CL-385319 inhibits H5N1 avian influenza A virus infection by blocking viral entry

CL-385319, an N-substituted piperidine, is effective in inhibiting infection of H1-, H2-, and to a lesser extent, H3-typed influenza A viruses by interfering with the fusogenic function of the viral hemagglutinin. Here we show that CL-385319 is effective in inhibiting infection of highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza A virus in Madin-Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK) cells with an IC 50 of 27.03 ± 2.54 μM. This compound with low cytotoxicity (CC 50 = 1.48 ± 0.01 mM) could also inhibit entry of pseudoviruses carrying hemagglutinins from H5N1 strains that were isolated from different places at different times, while it had no inhibitory activity on the entry of VSV-G pseudotyped particles. CL385319 could not inhibit N1-typed neuraminidase activity and the adsorption of H5-typed HA to chicken erythrocytes at the concentration as high as 1 mg/ml (2.8 mM). Computer-aid molecular docking analysis suggested that CL-385319 might bind to the cavity of HA2 stem region which was known to undergo significant rearrangement during membrane fusion. Pseudoviruses with M24A mutation in HA1 or F110S mutation in HA2 were resistant to CL-385319, indicating that these two residues in the cavity region may be critical for CL-385319 bindings. These findings suggest that CL-385319 can serve as a lead for development of novel virus entry inhibitors for preventing and treating H5N1 influenza A virus infection. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.link_to_subscribed_fulltex