Physical and Chemical Characteristics of Edible Offal from Free-Range Reared Swallow-Belly Mangalica Pigs

Physical (pH and L*a*b* values) and chemical (moisture, protein, total fat, total ash, K, P, Na, Mg, Ca, Zn, Fe, Cu, and Mn) characteristics of offal consisting of the tongue, heart, lungs, liver, spleen, kidney, brain, and spinal cord of free-range reared Swallow-Belly Mangalica pigs were determined. Many significant differences were found among mean values of quality traits. However, except for a few cases, the determined offal quality traits were in the characteristic ranges reported in the literature. Lungs were high in pH24h (P24h, moisture (P<0.01), and total ash concentration. The highest levels of protein (P<0.01), Mg, Fe (P<0.05), Zn (P<0.01), and Mn (P<0.01) and the lowest of Na were found in liver. The darkest colour (lowest L* value), highest concentration of K, the lowest concentration of total fat and Ca were found in spleen. Finally, spinal cord was the highest in total ash (P<0.01), P (P<0.01), and Ca (P<0.05) and the lowest in protein, Mg (P<0.05), Fe, and Zn (P<0.01) concentration

Determination of nickel content in the semimembranosus muscle of pigs produced in Vojvodina

The content of nickel was investigated in the M. semimembranosus of sixty-nine pigs from ten different genetic lines produced in Vojvodina. Nickel was determined by flame atomic absorption spectrometry after mineralization by dry ashing. The difference in the nickel content in the analyzed muscle tissues among different genetic lines of pigs was not significant (P &gt; 0.05). Nickel levels ranged from 12.93 to 80.18 μg/100 g, with a general average of 32.41 μg/100 g. The average level of nickel was found to be higher than the levels observed in pork in some developed countries

Improvement of water vapor barrier properties of chitosan-collagen laminated casings using beeswax

Collagen casings are commercially used in sausage production. In this paper, collagen film that is used for sausage casings was laminated with chitosan film to produce barrier casing film. Chitosan coating was prepared by dissolving chitosan powder in 1% acetic acid. After dissolving chitosan, caraway essential oil, wetting agent Tween 20 and different amounts of beeswax, from 0 to 25 g were added to the solution. The solution was coated on collagen film surface in three layers, using a sponge brush to make laminated films. Films were air dried at temperature t =23 °C ± 2 °C. Uncoated collagen film was used as reference. Film thickness, water vapor barrier properties and FTIR spectra were determined. With growing amount of beeswax added to the chitosan layer, film thickness grew from 112 µm for laminated film with 5 g of beeswax to 225 µm for film with 25 g of beeswax, compared to 83 µm for collagen film. Water vapor barrier properties improved with growing amount of beeswax in chitosan layer, ranging from 130.71 g/m2 24h for laminated film with added 5 g of beeswax to 66.96 g/m2 24h for the film with 25 g of beeswax, compared to 290.64 g/m2 24h for collagen film. Addition of beeswax showed great potential in lowering water vapor permeability of laminated collagen-chitosan film. FTIR spectra could be used to determine quantitative law dependency between added amount of beeswax and spectra absorption values,as well as to prove compactness of chitosan-beeswax layer

The anthropogenic impact on water quality of the river Danube in Serbia: Microbiological analysis and genotoxicity monitoring

The aim of this work was to examine the impact of urban wastewaters on the water quality of the Danube River in Serbia. Samples of water and sediments for microbiological analysis and genotoxicity monitoring were collected from 6 sites during spring and/or autumn 2010. Sanitary analysis, i.e. enumeration of total and fecal coliforms and intestinal enterococci, indicated moderate to critical fecal contamination, while organic load assessment (oligotroph to heterotroph ratio, index of phosphatase activity) revealed the category of moderately polluted water. Mercury-resistant bacteria were detected in all water samples, with high numbers at locations positioned downstream of Belgrade. There was no correlation of the microbiological parameters of the sediment and water samples. Genotoxicity monitoring, performed by the comet assay on hemocytes of mussels Sinanodonta woodiana, indicated a significant increase of DNA damage in mussels collected from the studied sites compared with the control group.Projekat ministarstva br. 173025 i br. 4300

Aquatic macroinvertebrates of the Jablanica river, Serbia

Research on the community of aquatic macroinvertebrates was carried out during 2005 and 2006 at four sampling sites along the Jablanica River, a right-hand tributary of the Kolubara River. Fifty-seven taxa were recorded in the course of the investigation. The most diverse group was Ephemeroptera, followed by Trichoptera and Plecoptera. Members of the Rhitrogena semicolorata group were the most abundant. Our results could be the basis for evaluation of the influence of damming of the Jablanica River on the status of its water and can serve as a model for studying the influ­ence of hydromorphological degradation of aquatic ecosystems

Assessment of possible association between rs378854 and prostate cancer risk in the Serbian population

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer among men worldwide. Despite its high incidence rate, the molecular basis of PCa onset and its progression remains little understood. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have greatly contributed to the identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) associated with PCa risk. Several GWAS identified 8q24 as one of the most significant PCa-associated regions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of SNP rs378854 at 8q24 with PCa risk in the Serbian population. The study population included 261 individuals diagnosed with PCa, 257 individuals diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and 106 healthy controls. Data quality analysis yielded results showing deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium in groups of PCa patients and BPH patients as well as in the control group. There was no significant association between alleles and genotypes of the genetic variant rs378854 and PCa risk in the Serbian population. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 173016

New records and noteworthy data of plants, algae and fungi in SE Europe and adjacent regions, 12

This paper presents new records and noteworthy data on the following taxa in SE Europe and adjacent regions: red algae Hildenbrandia rivularis, saprotrophic fungus Cryptomarasmius corbariensis, lichenised fungi Lecanora stenotropa, Micarea misella and Sticta sylvatica, liverworts Fossombronia caespitiformis and Peltolepis quadrata, mosses Dicranoweisia cirrata and Fissidens exilis, horsetail Equisetum × moorei, gymnosperm Juniperus virginiana, monocots Galanthus reginae-olgae subsp. vernalis and Spiranthes spiralis and dicots Linaria pelisseriana, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Pilosella rhodopea and Taraxacum erythrospermum are given within SE Europe and adjacent regions

Aquatic macroinvertebrates of the Jablanica river, Serbia

Research on the community of aquatic macroinvertebrates was carried out during 2005 and 2006 at four sampling sites along the Jablanica River, a right-hand tributary of the Kolubara River. Fifty-seven taxa were recorded in the course of the investigation. The most diverse group was Ephemeroptera, followed by Trichoptera and Plecoptera. Members of the Rhitrogena semicolorata group were the most abundant. Our results could be the basis for evaluation of the influence of damming of the Jablanica River on the status of its water and can serve as a model for studying the influ­ence of hydromorphological degradation of aquatic ecosystems.Istraživanja zajednice akvatičnih makrobeskičmenjaka vršena su tokom 2005. i 2006. godine na četiri lokaliteta reke Jablanice, desnog sastavka Kolubare. Ukupno je zabeleženo 57 taksona. Najraznovrsnije grupe su bile Ephemeroptera, Trichoptera i Plecoptera. Najbrojniji takson je Rhitrogena semicolorata Gr. Dobijeni rezultati predstavljaju osnovu za procenu uticaja izgradnje brane na status vode reke Jablanice i mogu biti korišćeni kao model za ispitivanje uticaja hidromorfoloških promena na vodene ekosisteme uopšte.Projekat ministarstva br. 14302