Experiments are carried out on partially premixed turbulent flames stabilized in a conical burner. The investigated gaseous fuels are methane, methane diluted with nitrogen, and mixtures of CH4, CO, CO2, H2 and N2, simulating typical products from gasification of biomass, and co-firing of gasification gas with methane. The fuel and air are partially premixed in concentric tubes. Flame stabilization behavior is investigated and significantly different stabilization characteristics are observed in flames with and without the cone. Planar laser induced fluorescence (LIF) imaging of a fuel-tracer species, acetone, and OH radicals is carried out to characterize the flame structures. Large eddy simulations of the conical flames are carried out to gain further understanding of the flame/flow interaction in the cone. The data show that the flames with the cone are more stable than those without the cone. Without the cone (i.e. jet burner) the critical jet velocities for blowoff and liftoff of biomass derived gases are higher than that for methane/nitrogen mixture with the same heating values, indicating the enhanced flame stabilization by hydrogen in the mixture. With the cone the stability of flames is not sensitive to the compositions of the fuels, owing to the different flame stabilization mechanism in the conical flames than that in the jet flames. From the PLIF images it is shown that in the conical burner, the flame is stabilized by the cone at nearly the same position for different fuels. From large eddy simulations, the flames are shown to be controlled by the recirculation flows inside cone, which depends on the cone angle, but less sensitive to the fuel compositions and flow speed. The flames tend to be hold in the recirculation zones even at very high flow speed. Flame blowoff occurs when significant local extinction in the main body of the flame appears at high turbulence intensities. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The possible origin of Escherichia coli found on cuts and trimmings in the breaking facility of a beef packing plant was examined using multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis. Coliforms and E. coli were enumerated in samples obtained from 160 carcasses that would enter the breaking facility when work commenced and after each of the three production breaks throughout the day, from the conveyor belt before work and after each break, and from cuts and trimmings when work commenced and after each break. Most samples yielded no E. coli, irrespective of the surface types. E. coli was recovered from 7 (<5%) carcasses, at numbers mostly ≤1.0 log CFU/160,000 cm(2). The log total numbers of E. coli recovered from the conveyor belt, cuts, and trimmings were mostly between 1 and 2 log CFU/80,000 cm(2). A total of 554 E. coli isolates were recovered. Multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis of 327 selected isolates identified 80 distinct genotypes, with 37 (46%) each containing one isolate. However, 28% of the isolates were of genotypes that were recovered from more than one sampling day. Of the 80 genotypes, 65 and 2% were found in one or all four sampling periods throughout the day. However, they represented 23 and 14% of the isolates, respectively. Of the genotypes identified for each surface type, at least one contained ≥9 isolates. No unique genotypes were associated with carcasses, but 10, 17, and 19 were uniquely associated with cuts, trimmings, and the belt, respectively. Of the isolates recovered from cuts, 49, 3, and 19% were of genotypes that were found among isolates recovered from the belt, carcasses, or both the belt and carcasses, respectively. A similar composition was found for isolates recovered from trimmings. These findings show that the E. coli found on cuts and trimmings at this beef packing plant mainly originated from the conveyor belt and that small number of E. coli strains survived the daily cleaning and sanitation process, thus persisting in the plant.

Microalgae show growth and fatty acids (FAs) accumulation up to a certain level which is dependent on species and type of cultivation conditions. Application of abiotic stress on microalgae can induce nutrient uptake and enhance biocomponent accumulation.

The aim of the study was to determine the effects of meat pH on the abilities of 11 psychrotolerant Clostridium spp. to grow on, and to possibly cause blown pack spoilage of vacuum packaged beef. Beef steaks of pH 5.4–5.6, 5.7–5.9 or ≥6.0, i.e. of normal, intermediate or high pH were prepared and vacuum packaged. Groups of 3 steaks of the same pH range were inoculated with log phase cultures of Clostridium algoriphilum, Clostridium algidixylanolyticum, Clostridium bowmanii, Clostridium estertheticum, Clostridium frigoris, Clostridium frigidicarnis, Clostridium gasigenes, Clostridium lacusfryxellense, Clostridium psychrophilum, Clostridium tagluense or Clostridium vincentii. Each pack was resealed immediately after the steak was inoculated, and pack volumes were determined by water displacement, immediately after resealing and at intervals during storage at 2 °C for 56 days. All of the clostridia grew in packs of high pH beef but none caused pack swelling. Packs of intermediate pH beef inoculated with C. estertheticum began to swell after 14 days, with a mean rate of increase of pack volumes of 6.80 ml/day. One pack of intermediate pH beef inoculated with C. frigoris was swollen after 37 days. Packs of normal pH beef that had been inoculated with C. estertheticum began swelling after 14 days with a mean rate of increase of pack volumes of 7.70 ml/day. Packs of normal or intermediate pH beef inoculated with other clostridia did not swell. After storage, the numbers of most Clostridium spp., as determined by real-time PCR were greater on beef of high pH than of lower pH values, but the numbers of C. frigidicarnis and C. lacusfryxellense were highest on intermediate pH meat, the numbers of C. estertheticum were higher on meat of lower than of high pH, and the numbers of C. tagluense were the same on meat of all pH values. With high pH meat, glucose was reduced to very low level in rinse fluids from packs that had been inoculated with any Clostridium sp. With intermediate and normal pH meat, glucose was reduced to very low concentrations in only rinse fluids from beef that had been inoculated with C. estertheticum.

Swab samples were obtained from groups of 25 carcasses at various stages of processing at a large beef packing plant. The log mean number of aerobes recovered from carcasses after skinning was 2.2 log CFU/cm(2). Spraying the uneviscerated carcasses with 5% lactic acid reduced the numbers of aerobes by about 1 log unit; but subsequent carcass dressing operations, a second treatment with 5% lactic acid, pasteurizing, and carcass cooling had no substantial effect upon the number of aerobes on carcasses. The total numbers of coliforms or Escherichia coli cells recovered from skinned carcasses were <2 log CFU/2,500 cm(2). The numbers were reduced by the washing of uneviscerated carcasses but increased after evisceration operations. The numbers were reduced by spraying with lactic acid and pasteurizing, with no coliforms or E. coli being recovered from pasteurized carcass sides. No coliforms or E. coli cells were recovered from the forequarters of cooled carcass sides, but E. coli cells were recovered from the hindquarters of 1 of 50 cooled carcass sides, at 1.4 log CFU/1,000 cm(2). The numbers of aerobes on conveyor belts in the carcass breaking facility were similar to the numbers on cooled carcass, but the numbers of aerobes on cuts and trimmings and the number of coliforms and E. coli cells on the products and belts were higher than the numbers on carcasses. The findings indicate that most cooled carcasses produced at the plant carry E. coli at numbers <1 CFU/10,000 cm(2) but that product can be contaminated with small numbers of E. coli (<1 CFU/100 cm(2)) during carcass breaking.

Cinnamon oil is obtained by steam distillation from cinnamon leaves and is usually considered highly cost-effective compared to bark oil, however, which results in tons of waste cinnamon leaves (WCL) discarded annually. By using MS/MS molecular networking (MN) assisted profiling, six main chemical diversities including flavonols and flavones, phenolic acids, lactones, terpenoids, phenylpropanoids and flavanols were rapid revealed from WCL aqueous extract. 101 compounds were tentatively identified by assigning their MS/MS fragments within typical pathways under ESI-MS/MS dissociation. The featured phenolic acids, terpenoids and their glycosides in cinnamon species were recognized as the main constituents of WCL. The hydrophilic lactones, lignans and flavanols were reported for the first time in cinnamon leaves. Furthermore, ABTS and FRAP assays integrated with MN analysis were conducted to uncover an antioxidant fraction, from which 40 potential antioxidant compounds were rapidly annotated. This fundamental information will help expand the utilization of WCL from cinnamon oil industry.

We assayed for the presence of human papilloma virus (HPV) DMA in serum and/or peripheral blood fraction (PBF) of individuals with cervical, head/neck, or bladder cancer due to schistosomiasis. Using mass spectroscopy coupled with competitive PCR, HPV DNA was detected at the individual molecule level by using "Mass-ARRAY" assays. The resultant sensitivity was superior to real-time fluorescent PCR-based assays, while specificity was maintained. Our principal findings were: (i) Virtually all tested cervical cancers and schistosomiasis-associated bladder cancers, and a plurality of head/neck cancers, are associated with HPV DNA in the tumor. (ii) All 27 bladder cancers due to schistosomiasis were associated with the presence of HPV-16 DNA, which can be detected in tumor and serum but not in PBF. In contrast, no serum HPV-16 DNA signal was detected in seven individuals with schistosomiasis-associated bladder cancers after surgical removal of the tumor. (iii) Among the head/neck cancers we studied, anterior tumors were more often associated with HPV DNA in tumor, serum, and/or PBF than posterior tumors. (iv) In cervical cancer, where all tumors contain HPV DNA, viral DNA could be detected often in serum and/or PBF. Further, HPV-16 DNA was detected in serum and/or PBF of most patients with untreated high-grade cervical dysplasia but disappeared if the dysplasia was eliminated. The sensitive, specific, and quantitative MassARRAY technique should make it feasible to monitor cancer occurrence and treatment and recurrence of malignancies and dysplasias associated with HPV DNA. © 2005 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA.

Atopic dermatitis (AD), a chronic inflammatory skin disease characterized by relapsing eczema and intense prurigo, requires effective and safe pharmacological therapy. Recently, rapamycin, an mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) inhibitor, has been reported to play a critical role in immune responses and has emerged as an effective immunosuppressive drug. In this study, we assessed whether inhibition of mTOR signalling could suppress dermatitis in mice. Rapamycin was topically applied to inflamed skin in a murine AD model that was developed by repeated topical application of Dermatophagoides farina body (Dfb) extract antigen twice weekly for 7 weeks in NC/Nga mice. The efficacy of topical rapamycin treatment was evaluated immunologically and serologically. Topical application of rapamycin reduced inflammatory cell infiltration in the dermis, alleviated the increase of serum IgE levels and resulted in a significant reduction in clinical skin condition score and marked improvement of histological findings. In addition, increased mTOR phosphorylation in the lesional skin was observed in our murine AD model. Topical application of rapamycin ointment inhibited Dfb antigen-induced dermatitis in NC/Nga mice, promising a new therapy for atopic dermatitis.