Aromatic amines sources, environmental impact and remediation

Aromatic amines are widely used industrial chemicals as their major sources in the environment include several chemical industry sectors such as oil refining, synthetic polymers, dyes, adhesives, rubbers, perfume, pharmaceuticals, pesticides and explosives. They result also from diesel exhaust, combustion of wood chips and rubber and tobacco smoke. Some types of aromatic amines are generated during cooking, special grilled meat and fish, as well. The intensive use and production of these compounds explains its occurrence in the environment such as in air, water and soil, thereby creating a potential for human exposure. Since aromatic amines are potential carcinogenic and toxic agents, they constitute an important class of environmental pollutants of enormous concern, which efficient removal is a crucial task for researchers, so several methods have been investigated and applied. In this chapter the types and general properties of aromatic amine compounds are reviewed. As aromatic amines are continuously entering the environment from various sources and have been designated as high priority pollutants, their presence in the environment must be monitored at concentration levels lower than 30 mg L1, compatible with the limits allowed by the regulations. Consequently, most relevant analytical methods to detect the aromatic amines composition in environmental matrices, and for monitoring their degradation, are essential and will be presented. Those include Spectroscopy, namely UV/visible and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR); Chromatography, in particular Thin Layer (TLC), High Performance Liquid (HPLC) and Gas chromatography (GC); Capillary electrophoresis (CE); Mass spectrometry (MS) and combination of different methods including GC-MS, HPLC-MS and CE-MS. Choosing the best methods depend on their availability, costs, detection limit and sample concentration, which sometimes need to be concentrate or pretreated. However, combined methods may give more complete results based on the complementary information. The environmental impact, toxicity and carcinogenicity of many aromatic amines have been reported and are emphasized in this chapter too. Lately, the conventional aromatic amines degradation and the alternative biodegradation processes are highlighted. Parameters affecting biodegradation, role of different electron acceptors in aerobic and anaerobic biodegradation and kinetics are discussed. Conventional processes including extraction, adsorption onto activated carbon, chemical oxidation, advanced oxidation, electrochemical techniques and irradiation suffer from drawbacks including high costs, formation of hazardous by-products and low efficiency. Biological processes, taking advantage of the naturally processes occurring in environment, have been developed and tested, proved as an economic, energy efficient and environmentally feasible alternative. Aerobic biodegradation is one of the most promising techniques for aromatic amines remediation, but has the drawback of aromatic amines autooxidation once they are exposed to oxygen, instead of their degradation. Higher costs, especially due to power consumption for aeration, can also limit its application. Anaerobic degradation technology is the novel path for treatment of a wide variety of aromatic amines, including industrial wastewater, and will be discussed. However, some are difficult to degrade under anaerobic conditions and, thus, other electron acceptors such as nitrate, iron, sulphate, manganese and carbonate have, alternatively, been tested.

Bacterial cellulose-lactoferrin as an antimicrobial edible packaging

Bacterial cellulose (BC) films from two distinct sources (obtained by static culture with Gluconacetobacter xylinus ATCC 53582 (BC1) and from a commercial source (BC2)) were modified by bovine lactoferrin (bLF) adsorption. The functionalized films (BC+bLF) were assessed as edible antimicrobial packaging, for use in direct contact with highly perishable foods, specifically fresh sausage as a model of meat products. BC+bLF films and sausage casings were characterized regarding their water vapour permeability (WVP), mechanical properties, and bactericidal efficiency against two food pathogens, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Considering their edibility, an in vitro gastrointestinal tract model was used to study the changes occurring in the BC films during passage through the gastrointestinal tract. Moreover, the cytotoxicity of the BC films against 3T3 mouse embryo fibroblasts was evaluated. BC1 and BC2 showed equivalent density, WVP and maximum tensile strength. The percentage of bactericidal efficiency of BC1 and BC2 with adsorbed bLF (BC1+bLF and BC2+bLF, respectively) in the standalone films and in inoculated fresh sausages, was similar against E. coli (mean reduction 69 % in the films per se versus 94 % in the sausages) and S. aureus (mean reduction 97 % in the films per se versus 36 % in the case sausages). Moreover, the BC1+bLF and BC2+bLF films significantly hindered the specific growth rate of both bacteria. Finally, no relevant cytotoxicity against 3T3 fibroblasts was found for the films before and after the simulated digestion. BC films with adsorbed bLF may constitute an approach in the development of bio-based edible antimicrobial packaging systems.

Compositional analysis of biofilms formed by Staphylococcus aureus isolated from food sources

The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmicb. 2016.00390

Food consumption of adolescents. A simplified questionnaire for evaluating cardiovascular risk

OBJECTIVE: To develop a simplified questionnaire for self-evaluation by adolescents of foods associated with the risk of coronary diseases. METHODS: Frequency questionnaires about 80 foods were answered by representative samples of 256 adolescents aged 12 to 19 from Rio de Janeiro as part of the Nutrition and Health Research project. The dependent variable was the serum cholesterol predicting equation as influenced by diet, and the independent variables were the foods. The variables were normalized and, using Pearson's correlation coefficient, those with r>0.10 were selected for the regression model. The model was analyzed for sex, age, random sample, and total calories. Those food products that explained 85% of the cholesterol variation equation were present in the caloric model, and contained trans fatty acids were selected for the questionnaire. RESULTS: Sixty-five food products had a statistically significant correlation (P<0.001) with the dependent variable. The simplified questionnaire included 9 food products present in all tested models: steak or broiled meat, hamburger, full-fat cheese, French fries or potato chips, whole milk, pies or cakes, cookies, sausages, butter or margarine. The limit of the added food points for self-evaluation was 100, and over 120 points was considered excessive. CONCLUSION: The scores given to the food products and the criteria for the evaluation of the consumption limits enabled the adolescents to get to know and to balance their intake.

A nutrient balance model for typical Irish farming systems

The twin objectives of the work described were to construct nutrient balance models (NBM) for a range of Irish animal production systems and to evaluate their potential as a means of estimating the nutrient composition of farm wastes. The NBM has three components. The first is the intake of nutrients in the animal's diet. The second is retention or the nutrients the animal retains for the production of milk, meat or eggs. The third is the balance or the difference between the nutrient intake and retention. Data on the intake levels and their nutrient value for dairy cows, beef cattle, pigs and poultry systems were assembled. Literature searches and interviews with National experts were the primary sources of information. NBMs were then constructed for each production system. Summary tables of the nutrient values for the common diet constituents used in Irish animal production systems, the nutrient composition of the animal products and the NBMs (nutrient intake, retention and excretion) for a range of production systems were assembled. These represent the first comprehensive data set of this type for Irish animal production systems. There was generally good agreement between the derived NBMs values and those published in the literature. The NBMs were validated on a number of farms. Data on animal numbers, fertiliser use, concentrates inputs and production output were recorded on seven farms. Using the data a nutrient input/output balance was constructed for each farm. This was compared with the NBM estimate of the farm nutrient balance. The results showed good agreement between the measured balance and the NBM estimate particularly for the pig and poultry farms. However, the validation emphasised the inherent risks associated with NBMs. The average values used for feed intake and production parameters in the NEMs may result in the under or over estimate of actual nutrient balances on individual farms where these variables are substantially different. On the grassland farms there was a poor correlation between the input/output estimate and the NBM. This possibly results from the omission of the soil's contribution to the nutrient balance. However, the results indicate that the NBMs developed are a potentially useful tool for estimating nutrient balances. They also will serve to highlight the significant fraction of the nutrient inputs into farming systems that are retained on the farm. The potential of the NBM as a means of estimating the nutrient composition of farm wastes was evaluated on two farms. Feed intake and composition, animal production, slurry production was monitored during the indoor winter feeding period. Slurry samples were taken for analysis. The appropriates NBMs were used to estimate the nutrient balance for each farm. The nutrient content of the slurry produced was calculated. There was a good agreement between the NBM estimate and the measured values. This preliminary evaluation suggests that the NBM has a potential to provide the farmer with a simple means of estimating the nutrient value of his slurry.

Observações preliminares sôbre caponização de frangos "Leghorn" com estrogênios

The effect of "Capastrol", pellets of diethilstilbestrol at 0,015 g., in 12 weeks S. C. W. Leghorn cockerels, was studied. The results secured are in accordance with those obtained by other authors and can be resumed as follows: 1) paleness and shrunken of the comb, whose size is reduced, in comparison with the controls; 2) no differences in the total weight gain between control and treated lot; 3) size of testis greatly reduced in treated males; 4) improvement of meat by fat deposition in chickens that received treatment.

O farelinho de trigo fermentado com Bacta-Mon e excremento de vaca na alimentação de pintos

Bacta-mon, produced by Bacta-mon S. A., São Paulo, Brazil, is recommended as a microbiological, and suggested as a supplement for animal rations. This experiment deals with this product in chicken feeding. Four lots of baby chicken received, during 6 weeks the following treatments: a control ration Rl; a ration R2 containing 10 per cent of wheat standard middlings fermented by Bacta-mon, substituting equal weight of wheat standard middlings of the control ration Rl; two rations R3 and R4, both without meat meal and containing 10 per cent of wheat standard middlings fermented respectively by Bactamon and fresh cow manure, substituting equal weight of wheat standard middlings of the control. The results may be so summarized: (1) On the basis of the weights of the chicks at 6 weeks age, we concluded that there was not any advantage in the addition of the wheat standard middlings fermented by Bacta-mon. (2) The rations R3 and R4 were considered statistically equivalents and lower the control ration Rl. (3) It seems that the main difference observed in these results may be atributed to lack of animal protein. (4) The highest mortality and the lowest consumption of feed by the lots receiving ration R3 and R4, seem to indicate, in addition, that this prejudice was due the lack of animal protein and the unpalatability of these rations.

Transferring QTL technology to the pig breeding industry (PigQTech) - a demonstration project

The aim of the project has been to demonstrate how the farm animal breeding industry can utilise gene mapping technology to accelerate genetic improvement. Previous theoretical studies had suggested that the use of marker assisted selection could potentially increase the annual improvement for quantitative traits like backfat with about 10% and for more difficult traits such as meat quality and reproduction by as much as 40-60% compared with existing technology. The work has comprised two major tasks: 1. Commercially relevant populations have been screened for segregation at QTLs identified in experimental populations. The aim has been to establish optimal strategies for QTL detection in commercial pig populations and the extent to which QTLs explaining major phenotypic differences between divergent lines used in experimental studies also explain quantitative variation within commercial lines. The results are important for specifying future strategies for finding economically valuable QTLs. 2. Marker assisted backcrossing has been used to demonstrate how a QTL allele can be introgressed from one breed to another. The work has focused on the major fatness QTL on pig chromosome 4 previously identified in a wild pig/Large White intercross. The end result was not designed to be a commercially viable product in its own right, but the process has validated a number of points of major importance for the exploitation of QTLs in livestock.

Utilización de alimentos líquidos para el ganado porcino

La distribución de alimentos líquidos al ganado porcino es un sistema alternativo en el cual el alimento se prepara y distribuye a través de un equipo totalmente informatizado y automatizado. Además de materias primas y piensos permite también el uso de co-productos líquidos de la industria agroalimentaria o productos fermentados. Su utilización evita el coste de su transformación o eliminación permitiendo rebajar el coste de producción del cerdo porque su precio es altamente competitivo. La aplicación de alimentos líquidos fermentados tiene efectos benéficos sobre el epitelio intestinal, la microflora digestiva y el estado sanitario de los lechones, reduciendo la morbilidad y aumentando los resultados de crecimiento. Este sistema de alimentación facilita igualmente la aplicación de programas multifase ajustando diariamente el aporte a las necesidades en nutrientes del cerdo reduciendo la excreción (N, P, metales pesados) y con ello, el riesgo de contaminación medioambiental. The distribution of liquid diets for swine is an alternative system where feed is prepared and distributed by an automatic computerized device. In addition to feedstuffs and complementary dry feed, this system allows the use of fresh or fermented agri-food liquid by-products. These products are cheaper and its use as feed avoids the cost of its transformation or elimination, reducing the environmental load and the cost per kg of pig meat. The fermented liquid feed protects the intestinal epithelium, helps to control digestive microflora and animal health improving piglet growth performance after weaning. This feeding device also helps implementation of multiphase feeding programs, adjusting nutrient supplies to requirements daily, and consequently reducing the nutrient excretion (N, P, heavy metals) and the risk of environmental pollution.

Determinació de diferents compostos bioactius en ingredients naturals per a l'elaboració de bombons funcionals amb beneficis cardiovasculars

Durant les darreres dècades, i degut, principalment, a un canvi en els hàbits alimentaris, hi ha hagut un augment a nivell mundial de malalties cròniques (l’obesitat, malalties cardiovasculars, etc.). En els països mediterranis hi ha menys incidència d’aquestes malalties i sembla ser que això es deu a l’anomenada dieta mediterrània. La dieta mediterrània es caracteritza per una combinació d’oli d’oliva com a grassa principal, verdures, hortalisses i fruites en abundància, lleguminoses, fruits secs, formatges i iogurt, peix, pa, pasta, cereals i els seus derivats i un consum moderat de vi i carns. Aquest model alimentari, ric en tocoferols, fitosterols i fitoestanols que ajuden a reduir el contingut de colesterol en sang, fa que en les poblacions mediterrànies hi hagi menys incidència de malalties cardiovasculars. Aquests compostos inhibeixen el deteriorament oxidatiu dels olis, actuen com agent antipolimerització per olis de fregir. Tenen capacitat de reduir els nivells de colesterol, evitant la incidència de malalties cardiovasculars. Els fitoesterols y fitoestanols es poden trobar en forma lliure o esterificada amb àcids grassos, àcids fenòlics i glucosa. Els objectius d’ aquest treball han estat, primer en el desenvolupament de mètodes d'anàlisi ràpids, fiables i robusts dels tocoferols, fitoesterols i fitoestanols i la seva aplicació en fruits sec, oli de segó, oli de pinyol de raïm i productes que els continguin. El primer mètode va estar basat en la cromatografía líquida (HPLC-DAD) amb extracció en fase sòlida (SPE) com tècnica alternativa a la saponificació para la determinació de fitoesterols lliures. Aquest mètode va estar aplicada a mostres de bombons que contenia fitoesterols. El segon mètode va estar basat en la cromatografia de gasos (GCFID) amb aponificació i SPE per quantificar fitoesterols i fitoestanols lliures, esterificats i totals. En els documents annexos es descriuen a profunditat els mètodes desenvolupats.

Epidemiological aspects of toxoplasmosis in schoolchildren residing in localities with urban or rural characteristics within the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Immunofluorescence tests (IF) for toxoplasmosis were performed on a total of 608 schoolchildren in elementary and junior high grades. 166 being in the Bonsucesso district (an urban region of Rio de Janeiro) and 442 children from locations within the lowlands of Jacarepaguá (with rural characteristics). All the IF-IgM were nonreactive, whilst 416 schoolchildren (68.4%) were IF-IgG serum-reactive ([greater than or equal to] 1:16). The percentages of serum-reactives in Jacarepaguá were significantly higher than in Bonsucesso, both as regards the total number of schoolchildren (p < 0.001), as also when subdivided according to the age-grades from six to eight years (p < 0.001) or from twelve to fourteen (p < 0.05). Both in Jacarepaguá and in Bonsucesso, the prevalence of reactions in the 12 to 14 year age-grade was significantly greater than in the 6 to 8 year age-grade (p < 0.001 in both cases). Expressively larger prevalences of serum reactions were found in Jacarepaguá among schoolchildren who preferred eating raw or undercooked meat, as well as among those having cats as pets; this occurred equally in the 6 to 8 year and in the 12 to 14 year age-grades. In Bonsucesso, the only significant difference was in the 6 to 8 year age-grades that had cats as pets. Thus, it has been verified that the risk of infection is greater and more precocious in localities with rural characteristics than in urban regions.

Quantification of clenbuterol at trace level in human urine by ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

Clenbuterol is a β2 agonist agent with anabolic properties given by the increase in the muscular mass in parallel to the decrease of the body fat. For this reason, the use of clenbuterol is forbidden by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in the practice of sport. This compound is of particular interest for anti-doping authorities and WADA-accredited laboratories due to the recent reporting of risk of unintentional doping following the eating of meat contaminated with traces of clenbuterol in some countries. In this work, the development and the validation of an ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS) method for the quantification of clenbuterol in human urine is described. The analyte was extracted from urine samples by liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) in basic conditions using tert butyl-methyl ether (TBME) and analyzed by UHPLC-MS/MS with a linear gradient of acetonitrile in 9min only. The simple and rapid method presented here was validated in compliance with authority guidelines and showed a limit of quantification at 5pg/mL and a linearity range from 5pg/mL to 300pg/mL. Good trueness (85.8-105%), repeatability (5.7-10.6% RSD) and intermediate precision (5.9-14.9% RSD) results were obtained. The method was then applied to real samples from eighteen volunteers collecting urines after single oral doses administration (1, 5 and 10μg) of clenbuterol-enriched yogurts.

Ecologic correlations of selected food groups with disease incidence and mortality in Switzerland.

Background: There is little information regarding the impact of diet on disease incidence and mortality in Switzerland. We assessed ecologic correlations between food availability and disease.Methods: In this ecologic study for the period 1970-2009, food availability was measured using the food balance sheets of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Standardized mortality rates (SMRs) were obtained from the Swiss Federal Office of Statistics. Cancer incidence data were obtained from the World Health Organization Health For All database and the Vaud Cancer Registry. Associations between food availability and mortality/incidence were assessed at lags 0, 5, 10, and 15 years by multivariate regression adjusted for total caloric intake.Results: Alcoholic beverages and fruit availability were positively associated, and fish availability was inversely associated, with SMRs for cardiovascular diseases. Animal products, meat, and animal fats were positively associated with the SMR for ischemic heart disease only. For cancer, the results of analysis using SMRs and incidence rates were contradictory. Alcoholic beverages and fruits were positively associated with SMRs for all cancer but inversely associated with all-cancer incidence rates. Similar findings were obtained for all other foods except vegetables, which were weakly inversely associated with SMRs and incidence rates. Use of a 15-year lag reversed the associations with animal and vegetal products, weakened the association with alcohol and fruits, and strengthened the association with fish.Conclusions: Ecologic associations between food availability and disease vary considerably on the basis of whether mortality or incidence rates are used in the analysis. Great care is thus necessary when interpreting our results.

Hàbits alimentaris en nens de 8 a 12 anys de la comarca d'Osona

Introducció: La dieta mediterrània és considerada un dels patrons alimentaris més saludables ja que diversos estudis epidemiològics mostren que protegeix front diverses malalties cròniques com ara les malalties cardiovasculars, la diabetis i alguns càncers. Malauradament al nostre país els patrons alimentaris estan canviant a conseqüència de la modernització de la societat i estan portant a l’allunyament del patró de dieta mediterrània. Això és especialment crític entre la població infantil i juvenil, fet que predisposa a que en un futur augmenti la prevalença de malalties cròniques entre la població adulta. Objectiu: avaluar els hàbits alimentaris i l’estat nutricional d’escolars de 8 a 12 anys de la comarca d’Osona. Mètodes: estudi de disseny observacional i transversal. La mostra estava constituïda per 191 escolars de 4rt i 5è d’ensenyança primària d’escoles de la comarca d’Osona. La informació sobre la dieta es va recollir a través d’una enquesta alimentària, un recordatori de 24 hores, un qüestionari de freqüència de consum alimentari i el test KIDMED. Les determinacions antropomètriques que es van realitzar van ser talla, pes, IMC (Índex de Massa Corporal), plec tricipital, perímetre braquial i perímetre abdominal. L’anàlisi estadística de totes les dades es va portar a terme mitjançant el programa estadístic SPSS per Windows versió 12.0. Resultats: quan es valora la qualitat de l’esmorzar, s’observa que només en el 16.8% dels casos la qualitat era bona, en el 68.6% dels casos la qualitat havia de millorar i en el 12.6% era de qualitat insuficient i en el 2.1% era de mala qualitat. També s’observa que la dieta que segueixen és desequilibrada quantitativament, concretament és baixa en hidrats de carboni, rica en greixos i lleugerament elevada en proteïnes. L’anàlisi qualitativa mostra que hi ha un molt baix consum de verdures i hortalisses i de fruita, mentre que s’arriba a les racions recomanades de carnis i d’olis i greixos. El test KIDMED mostra una puntuació mitjana de 7.21±1.96 punts, el que indica que la dieta de la població és de qualitat millorable. Pel que fa a l’estat nutricional s’observa que un 24,6% presenta valors de baix pes i un 17,8% sobrepès o obesitat, el que indica que un 42,4% de la població estudiada presenta un estat nutricional incorrecte. Conclusions: La dieta del col·lectiu estudiat s’allunya de les recomanacions de la SENC (Sociedad Española de Nutrición Comunitaria). Els resultats del test KIDMED indiquen que només un 44% de la població segueix un patró òptim de Dieta mediterrània i l’anàlisi de l’estat nutricional mostra que un 42,4% presenta un estat nutricional incorrecte, sigui per excés o per defecte de pes. Per tant, es fa necessari dissenyar estratègies d’educació alimentària adequades per millorar els hàbits alimentaris dels escolars i aconseguir en un futur un estat òptim de salut.

Factors associated with 24-hour urinary volume: the Swiss salt survey.

BACKGROUND: Low 24-hour urine volume (24 UV) may be a significant risk factor for decline in kidney function. We therefore aimed to study associated markers and possible determinants of 24 UV in a sample of the Swiss population. METHODS: The cross-sectional Swiss Salt Study included a population-based sample of 1535 (746 men and 789 women) individuals from three linguistic regions of Switzerland. Data from 1300 subjects were available for the present analysis. 24 UV was measured using 24-hour urine collection. Determinants of 24 UV were identified using multivariable linear regression models. RESULTS: In bivariate analysis, 24 UV was higher in women compared to men (2000 ml/24 h [interquartile range (IQR): 1354, 2562] versus 1780 ml/24 h [IQR: 1244, 2360], p = 0.002). In multivariable regression analyses, independent associated markers of 24 UV were female sex (β = 280, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 174, 386, p < 0.0001), fluid intake (β = 604, 95% CI: 539, 670, p < 0.0001), sodium excretion (β = 4.2, 95% CI: 3.4, 4.9, p < 0.0001) age (β = 6.6, CI: 3.4, 9.7, p < .0001), creatinine clearance (β = 2.4, CI: 0.2, 4.6, p = 0.04), living in the German-speaking part of Switzerland (β = 124, CI: 29, 219, p = 0.01), alcohol consumption (β = 41, CI: 9, 73, p = 0.01 for increasing categories of alcohol consumption), body mass index (β = -32, CI: -45, -18, p < 0.0001), current smoking (β = -146, CI: -265, -26, p = 0.02), and consumption of meat and cold cut (β = -56, CI: -108, -5, p = 0.03). CONCLUSION: In this large population-based, cross-sectional study, we found several strong and independent correlates for 24 UV. These findings may be important to improve our understanding in the development of chronic kidney disease.