Aspergillus westerdijkiae polyketide synthase gene “aoks1” is involved in the biosynthesis of ochratoxin A

OchratoxinA (OTA) is a potential nephrotoxic, teratogenic, immunogenic, hepatotoxic and carcinogenic mycotoxin, produced by Aspergillus westerdijkiae NRRL 3174. Herein we describe the characterization of a putative OTA-polyketide synthasegene “aoks1”, cloned by using gene walking approach. The predicted amino acid sequence of the 2 kb clone display 34–60% similarities to different polyketide synthasegenes including lovastatine biosynthesis gene “lovb” in A. terreus, compactin biosynthesis gene “mlcA” in Penicillium citrinum and OTA biosynthesis gene “otapksPN” in P. nordicum. Based on the reverse transcription PCR and kinetic secondary metabolites production studies, aoks1 expression was found to be associated with OTA biosynthesis. Further a mutant, in which the aoks1gene was inactivated by Escherichia coli hygromycin B phosphotransferase gene, lost the capacity to produce OTA, but still producing mellein. To our knowledge this report describes for the first time characterization of a gene involved in OTA biosynthesis, with the information about mellein which was proposed in the literature to be an intermediate OTA. This study also suggests that aoks1 may be the second polyketide synthase gene required for OTA biosynthesis in A. westerdijkiae NRRL 3174

Review of mycotoxin reduction in food and feed: from prevention in the field to detoxification by adsorption or transformation

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites present worldwide in agricultural commodities and produced by filamentous fungi that cause a toxic response (mycotoxicosis) when ingested by animals. Prevention of mycotoxicoses includes pre- and post-harvest strategies. The best way to reduce the mycotoxin content in food and feed is the prevention of mycotoxin formation in the field, but this is often not sufficient, so other methods are needed. To decontaminate and/or detoxify mycotoxin-contaminated food and feed, the most prevalent approach in the feed industry is the inclusion of sorbent materials in the feed thus obtaining more or less selective removal of toxins by adsorption during passage through the gastrointestinal tract. Another reliable approach is to add enzymes or microorganisms capable of detoxifying some mycotoxins. Through a comprehensive review of published reports on the strategies for mycotoxin removal, this present work aims to update our understanding of mycotoxin removal. It provides an insight into the detoxification of mycotoxin present in food and feed. In the future, more emphasis needs to be placed on adsorption of mycotoxins in the gastrointestinal tract. Concerning the enzymatic transformation of mycotoxins, further efforts are required in understanding detoxification reactions, the toxicity of transformation products and in the characterization of enzymes responsible for transformations

Flora Bellissima, an expert software to discover botany and identify plants

To promote and facilitate access to botany for protecting biodiversity indirectly is the objective of Flora Bellissima. This sofware package is based on an integrated and complete database with numerous fonctionalities, as well as on an expert system of recognition of plants called “Ophélie”. Aimed at beginners, amateurs and experts, Flora Bellissima attempts to show that it is possible to reconcile scientific rigor and popularization, in order to bring together everyone interested in botany

Hydrothermal synthesis of nanosized BaTiO3 powders and dielectric properties of corresponding ceramics

BaTiO3 fine powders were synthesized by hydrothermal method at 150 °C or 250 °C for 7 h, starting from a mixture of TiCl3 + BaCl2 or TiO2 + BaCl2. The size of the crystallites is close to 20 nm whatever the starting mixture and the reaction temperature. These powders are well crystallized and constituted of a mixture of the metastable cubic and stable tetragonal phases. The ceramics obtained after uniaxial pressing and sintering at 1250 °C for 10 h or 20 h present high densification (up to 99.8%). The Curie temperature (Tc) and the electrical permittivity ( r) of the ceramics strongly depend on the type of titanium source that has been used for preparing the powder and on the sintering dwell time. Particularly, Tc is shifted towards lower temperature when TiCl3 is used. The permittivity value at Tc of BaTiO3 sintered at 1250 °C for 10 h reaches 7000 and 11,000 with respectively TiCl3 and TiO2 used as titanium source

A Financial Management Tool for Sport Federations

Purpose- The purpose of this study is to develop a tool to manage financial performance of sport federations. It stimulates thinking about the necessity for non-profit sport organisations to develop financial performance measures and management to survive and/or to grow. Design/methodology/approach- Adapting the Ritchie and Kolodinsky model of factor analysis through financial ratios in the sport federation context, the paper develops a framework for financial performance measurement of sport federations in Belgium for the years 2001 through 2006. Findings- Based on a principal component analysis, six financial performance-related categories were constructed, i.e.: public funds dependence; financial balance; attraction of resources; financial budget; member services investment and elite services investment. They form the basis of a dynamic strategic management tool where financial categories are related to each other. Research limitations/implications- The financial management tool can be a starting point for further organisational (performance) research. Differences and similarities between countries (e.g., sport policy priorities) and sport organisations (e.g., sport profiles) could be better investigated through this financial performance framework. Practical implications- The tool developed should help strategic volunteers and managers of sport federations to take strategic decision relying on financial information in order to pilot their organisation and to communicate with their stakeholders. Originality/value- Developing financial performance measurement of non-profit sport organisations is challenging and considerably different from for-profit and non-profit organisations. It provides researchers and practitioners with a viable model for analysing financial strategy and performance of sport federations over time

Reaction screening using a microreactor

This article discusses the screening of chemical reactions using a microreactor equipped with infrared spectroscopy as online analytics. An esterification reaction has been optimized in continuous mode with the proposed setup. The esterification did not work well due to the material of the microreactor (stainless-steel 316Ti) that catalyzed the decomposition of formic acid. However, despite the occurrence of decomposition, an optimization could be achieved with this system

Evaluation of membrane-based therapeutic plasma exchange as adjunctive treatment for immune-mediated hematologic disorders in dogs.

BACKGROUND Therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) has been used increasingly to treat immunological diseases in dogs, although data concerning its efficacy are lacking. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES To describe the clinic and the outcome of dogs with immune-mediated hematological disorders (IMHD) treated with membrane filtration TPE. ANIMALS One hundred forty-six dogs diagnosed with IMHD, including 17 dogs treated with and 129 control dogs treated without TPE. METHODS Retrospective study of cases selected with a search of all medical records for dogs diagnosed with IMHD (2010-2019). Primary outcomes included the assessment of safety and efficacy of adjunctive TPE compared to medical treatment alone. RESULTS The TPE group included 7 dogs with immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA), 5 dogs with immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (IMT), and 5 dogs with combined IMHA-IMT; the control group included 63 dogs with IMHA, 47 dogs with IMT, and 19 dogs with IMHA-IMT. Dogs treated with TPE were more often refractory to initial immunosuppression (71%) than controls (43%; P = .04). Complications were observed in 15/43 TPE treatments (35%). The response rate of dogs treated with TPE was 83% in IMHA (controls, 65%; P = .5) and 80% in IMT (controls, 70%; P = .71). Overall, 12/17 dogs (71%) treated with TPE reached complete remission, 2/17 (12%) partial remission, and 3/17 (18%) died or were euthanized. Eighty-two percent of the dogs treated with TPE survived to discharge (controls, 69%; P = .4). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE Despite a bias toward dogs refractory to initial immunosuppression, dogs treated with adjunctive TPE had a similar outcome as dogs treated medically

OSIrIS: a physically based simulation tool to improve training in thermal infrared remote sensing over urban areas at high spatial resolution

International audienceThis paper describes an infrared image simulator for remote sensing applications, called OSIrIS (outdoor scene and infrared image simulation). It has been developed partly for training and reproduces with great details the physical phenomena that play a major role in complex urban environment. OSIrIS performs a synthesis of scene based on a 3-D description of the landscape with a high spatial resolution (0.5 – 10 m). The physical processes are briefly described and their importance with respect to the objectives are discussed. Thermal emission depends on temperature and generally dominates the signal. Temperature is governed by heat equation and is solved by the means of boundary conditions such as in-depth temperature and flux balance at surface. Main parameters are solar and atmospheric radiations, wind, heat conduction and changes in humidity. An innovative approach was developed to take into account variations in time of the interactions between the landscape and the physical processes. OSIrIS aims at simulating situations that are encountered in reality. It enables users self-formation, helping them understanding changes in image radiance as a function of the input parameters and their own simulation requirements. Examples are given that illustrate specific aspects of infrared images