A Model HACCP Plan for Small Scale Production of Baby Food

Abstract The development and quality evaluation of brown rice and vegetables based baby food will be intended as complementary infant food for children aged between the first 6 months and one year of life. Local indigenous raw materials such as brown rice, red lentils, orange-fleshed sweet potatoes and spinach leaves were used in the formulation of baby food powder. The main aim of this research is to design a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan for baby food powder production. A hazard analysis system was adopted and critical control points in each processing step were determined. A sample generic HACCP plan was recommended. Three Critical Control Points (CCPs) in the processing; cold storage of raw materials; pressure cooking and packaging were identified. A HACCP plan was completed with perquisite programs dealing with the identified hazards

The three-way relationship of polymorphisms of porcine genes encoding terminal complement components, their differential expression, and health-related phenotypes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The complement system is an evolutionary ancient mechanism that plays an essential role in innate immunity and contributes to the acquired immune response. Three modes of activation, known as classical, alternative and lectin pathway, lead to the initiation of a common terminal lytic pathway. The terminal complement components (TCCs: C6, C7, C8A, C8B, and C9) are encoded by the genes <it>C6</it>, <it>C7</it>, <it>C8A</it>, <it>C8B</it>, <it>C8G</it>, and <it>C9</it>. We aimed at experimentally testing the porcine genes encoding TCCs as candidate genes for immune competence and disease resistance by addressing the three-way relationship of genotype, health related phenotype, and mRNA expression.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Comparative sequencing of cDNAs of animals of the breeds German Landrace, Piétrain, Hampshire, Duroc, Vietnamese Potbelly Pig, and Berlin Miniature Pig (BMP) revealed 30 SNPs (21 in protein domains, 12 with AA exchange). The promoter regions (each ~1.5 kb upstream the transcription start sites) of <it>C6</it>, <it>C7</it>, <it>C8A</it>, <it>C8G</it>, and <it>C9</it> exhibited 29 SNPs. Significant effects of the TCC encoding genes on hemolytic complement activity were shown in a cross of Duroc and BMP after vaccination against Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae, Aujeszky disease virus and PRRSV by analysis of variance using repeated measures mixed models. Family based association tests (FBAT) confirmed the associations. The promoter SNPs were associated with the relative abundance of TCC transcripts obtained by real time RT-PCR of 311 liver samples of commercial slaughter pigs. Complement gene expression showed significant relationship with the prevalence of acute and chronic lung lesions.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The analyses point to considerable variation of the porcine TCC genes and promote the genes as candidate genes for disease resistance.</p

The cytoskeleton in cell-autonomous immunity: structural determinants of host defence

Host cells use antimicrobial proteins, pathogen-restrictive compartmentalization and cell death in their defence against intracellular pathogens. Recent work has revealed that four components of the cytoskeleton — actin, microtubules, intermediate filaments and septins, which are well known for their roles in cell division, shape and movement — have important functions in innate immunity and cellular self-defence. Investigations using cellular and animal models have shown that these cytoskeletal proteins are crucial for sensing bacteria and for mobilizing effector mechanisms to eliminate them. In this Review, we highlight the emerging roles of the cytoskeleton as a structural determinant of cell-autonomous host defence

Can Laminated Carbon Challenge Gold? Toward Universal, Scalable, and Low-Cost Carbon Electrodes for Perovskite Solar Cells

While perovskite solar cell (PSC) efficiencies are soaring at a laboratory scale, these are most commonly achieved with evaporated gold electrodes, which would present a significant expense in large-scale production. This can be remedied through the use of significantly cheaper carbon electrodes that, in contrast to metals, also do not migrate through the device. To this end, the present work investigates simple-to-prepare aluminum-supported carbon electrodes derived from commercially available, inexpensive materials that can be applied onto various hole-transporting materials and enable photovoltaic performances on par with those provided by gold electrodes. Successful integration of the new carbon-based electrode into flexible devices produced by a roll-to-roll printing technology by both pressing and lamination is demonstrated. However, temperature cycling durability tests reveal that the use of carbon electrodes based on commercial pastes is hindered by incompatibility of adhesive additives with the key components of the PSCs under heating. Resolving this issue, tailor-made graphite electrodes devoid of damaging additives are introduced, which improve the PSC stability under temperature cycling test protocol to the level provided by benchmark gold electrodes. The study highlights current challenges in developing laminated carbon electrodes in PSCs and proposes strategies toward the resolution thereof.This work was funded by the Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics and Australian Renewable Energy Agency. A.N.S. also acknowledges the financial support from the Australian Research Council (Centre of Excellence CE140100012; Future Fellowship FT200100317). Monash Centre for Electron Microscopy (MCEM) and Melbourne Centre for Nano fabrication (MCN) are acknowledged for providing access to their facilities. The authors are grateful to Dr T. Zhang, A. Surmiak, Dr. N. Peris, Dr. D. Senevirathna, and Dr. N. Pai from Monash University for the experimental support throughout this study

Non-aqueous one-pot SnO₂nanoparticle inks and their use in printable Perovskite solar cells

Metal halide perovskite materials are promising candidates for printable solar cells due to their feasibility for achieving high device efficiency at a low processing temperature. One of the key challenges in printed perovskite solar cell (PSC) research is to develop low-temperature-processable charge-transporting layers for both electron and hole-transporting materials, which can be used within large-scale roll-to-roll (R2R) printing techniques. Colloidal links allow for facile deposition, provided that the size of the nanoparticles (NPs) is controlled to less than a few tens of nanometres (ideally &lt; 20 nm); they can be deposited as uniform films and can be processed at low temperatures (typically &lt; 140 °C). Here, we report a facile and scalable route for the synthesis of SnO2 NP dispersions using a microwave-assisted "benzyl alcohol"approach that is compatible with all of these R2R printing requirements. The method enables crystalline SnO2 NPs to be synthesized with a controlled average particle size (∼6.5 nm) and be used directly as an ink without any post-synthesis purification (i.e., one-pot synthesis). The use of these SnO2 NPs has been explored as an electron transport layer (ETL) within planar PSCs using spin-coating and thermal processing at 140 °C for 2 min, yielding devices with over 18% photo-conversion efficiency. Comparable devices were also fabricated using slot die-coated SnO2 on glass substrates and R2R-coated SnO2 on plastic substrates, yielding efficiencies of 15.3 and 10.4%, respectively. Our results demonstrate the suitability of the developed SnO2 ink to be used for the deposition of ETLs in optoelectronic devices by industrial-scale R2R printing processes. </p

Fluorene-Based Oligomers for Highly Efficient and Stable Organic Blue-Light-Emitting Diodes

No Abstract.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/63067/1/2425_ftp.pd

Correction to: The first demonstration of entirely roll-to-roll fabricated perovskite solar cell modules under ambient room conditions (Nature Communications, (2024), 15, 1, (1656), 10.1038/s41467-024-46016-1)

Correction to: Nature Communicationshttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-46016-1, published online 12 March 2024 The original version of this article contained an error in Fig. 3c, in which the overlayed arrows and text moved behind the image. The correct version of Fig. 3c is: (Figure presented.) which replaces the previous incorrect version: (Figure presented.) This has been corrected in both the PDF and HTML versions of the Article

Microfluidic processing of ligand-engineered NiO nanoparticles for low-temperature hole-transporting layers in perovskite solar cells

Nickel oxide (NiO) is used as a hole-transporting layer (HTL) in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) because of its high optical transmittance, intrinsic p-type doping, and suitable valence band energy level. However, fabricating high-quality NiO films typically requires high-temperature annealing, which limits their applicability for low-temperature, printable PSCs. Herein, the need for such postprocessing steps is circumvented by coupling 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (HBA) or trimethyloxonium tetrafluoroborate (Me3OBF4) ligand-modified NiO nanoparticles (NPs) with a Tesla-valve microfluidic mixer to deposit high-quality NiO films at a temperature &lt;150 °C. The NP dispersions and the resulting thin films are thoroughly characterized using a combination of optical, structural, thermal, chemical, and electrical methods. While the optical and structural properties of the ligand-exchanged NiO NPs remain comparable with those possessing the native long-chained aliphatic ligands, the ligand-modified NiO thin films exhibit dramatic reductions in surface energy and an increase in hole mobilities. These are correlated with concomitant and significant enhancements in performance and stability factors of PSCs when the ligand-modified NiO NPs are used as HTL layers within p−i−n device architectures.</p

3D photo-responsive optical devices manufactured by advanced printing technologies

Photonic components responsive to external optical stimuli are attracting increasing interest, because their properties can be manipulated by light with fast switching times, high spatial definition, and potentially remote control. These aspects can be further enhanced by novel architectures, which have been recently enabled by the availability of 3D printing and additive manufacturing technologies. However, current methods are still limited to passive optical materials, whereas photo-responsive materials would require the development of 3D printing techniques able to preserve the optical properties of photoactive compounds and to achieve high spatial resolution to precisely control the propagation of light. Also, optical losses in 3D printed materials are an issue to be addressed. Here we report on advanced additive manufacturing technologies, specifically designed to embed photo-responsive compounds in 3D optical devices. The properties of 3D printed devices can be controlled by external UV and visible light beams, with characteristic switching times in the range 1-10 s

Controlling Homogenous Spherulitic Crystallization for high-efficiency Planar Perovskite Solar Cells fabricated under ambient high-humidity conditions

The influence of precursor solution properties, fabrication environment, and antisolvent properties on the microstructural evolution of perovskite films is reported. First, the impact of fabrication environment on the morphology of methyl ammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3) perovskite films with various Lewis‐base additives is reported. Second, the influence of antisolvent properties on perovskite film microstructure is investigated using antisolvents ranging from nonpolar heptane to highly polar water. This study shows an ambient environment that accelerates crystal growth at the expense of nucleation and introduces anisotropies in crystal morphology. The use of antisolvents enhances nucleation but also influences ambient moisture interaction with the precursor solution, resulting in different crystal morphology (shape, size, dispersity) in different antisolvents. Crystal morphology, in turn, dictates film quality. A homogenous spherulitic crystallization results in pinhole‐free films with similar microstructure irrespective of processing environment. This study further demonstrates propyl acetate, an environmentally benign antisolvent, which can induce spherulitic crystallization under ambient environment (52% relative humidity, 25 °C). With this, planar perovskite solar cells with ≈17.78% stabilized power conversion efficiency are achieved. Finally, a simple precipitation test and in situ crystallization imaging under an optical microscope that can enable a facile a priori screening of antisolvents is shown