Immunochemical probes for food proteins after heat processing

Summary While better hygiene controls and vaccinations have diminished the occurrence of infectious diseases in humans, food-borne diseases have increased. Thus sterilization of food products is of prime importance. The introduction of new technologies applied to food has necessitated new methods for the control of food safety and food quality. This review aims to point out the importance of immunochemistry in the identification of structural changes induced in food proteins during food processing. New technologies have introduced the use of additives in food products, therefore it is important to identify and quantify such additives, even after complete heat denaturation. Toxic chemicals, toxins and pesticides which can contaminate food products before or during processing should also be identified. Finally, the use of immunochemical tests as a control of sterilization procedures in heterogeneous foodstuffs is discussed.     

Implication of gut microbiota metabolites in cardiovascular and metabolic diseases

Evidence from the literature keeps highlighting the impact of mutualistic bacterial communities of the gut microbiota on human health. The gut microbita is a complex ecosystem of symbiotic bacteria which contributes to mammalian host biology by processing, otherwise, indigestible nutrients, supplying essential metabolites, and contributing to modulate its immune system. Advances in sequencing technologies have enabled structural analysis of the human gut microbiota and allowed detection of changes in gut bacterial composition in several common diseases, including cardiometabolic disorders. Biological signals sent by the gut microbiota to the host, including microbial metabolites and pro-inflammatory molecules, mediate microbiome–host genome cross-talk. This rapidly expanding line of research can identify disease-causing and disease-predictive microbial metabolite biomarkers, which can be translated into novel biodiagnostic tests, dietary supplements, and nutritional interventions for personalized therapeutic developments in common diseases. Here, we review results from the most significant studies dealing with the association of products from the gut microbial metabolism with cardiometabolic disorders. We underline the importance of these postbiotic biomarkers in the diagnosis and treatment of human disorders.     

浅谈我国食品安全保障机制的改进

随着生活水平的提高,提高食品质量安全已经成为我国食品生产的首要任务.本文总结了食品安全内涵的演变,分析了我国食品质量存在的不足,提出为改进我国食品质量安全,需要借鉴国内外成功经验建立食品质量安全可追溯系统以加强食品生产的全程监管和引入”肯定列表制度”以完善食品质量评价.为此,需要改革食品安全管理体制、规范食品安全信息采集及加强食品质量安全标准制定.政府对食品安全的日益重视及食品生产集约化程度的日益提高为此提供了便利.相信在不远的将来,我国也一定能建立起”源头能控制、过程可追溯、质量可保证、产品可召回”的食品质量安全保证体系.从而为广大消费者提供安全食品,并在国际市场占有一席之地.     

Uninterrupted protein synthesis is essential for survival in the early stages of carbontetrachloride-induced hepatocellular necrosis in the mouse

Summary The fatal syndrome produced by cycloheximide given 6 h after a hepatonecrogenic dose of CCl₄ is due neither to direct toxic synergism between CCl₄ and cycloheximide nor to transient sinusoidal thrombosis. It is suggested that survival in the presence of unknown factors released from dying liver cells requires uninterrupted protein synthesis. The life-saving effect of sterilization of the intestine by antibiotics indicates that the gut flora or its products play a vital role in pathogenesis.Acknowledgments. I wish to thank Mr C. R. West for carrying out the statistical analysis, Mrs Brenda Brooks for histological processing, and Berk Pharmaceuticals Ltd for information on Ancrod defibrination in mice.     

Tyrosinase inhibitors from natural and synthetic sources: structure, inhibition mechanism and perspective for the future

Tyrosinase is known to be a key enzyme in melanin biosynthesis, involved in determining the color of mammalian skin and hair. Various dermatological disorders, such as melasma, age spots and sites of actinic damage, arise from the accumulation of an excessive level of epidermal pigmentation. In addition, unfavorable enzymatic browning of plant-derived foods by tyrosinase causes a decrease in nutritional quality and economic loss of food products. The inadequacy of current conventional techniques to prevent tyrosinase action encourages us to seek new potent tyrosinase inhibitors. This article overviews the various inhibitors obtained from natural and synthetic sources with their industrial importance.Received 9 February 2005; received after revision 4 April 2005; accepted 14 April 2005     

Common Molecular Mechanisms of Mammary Gland Development and Breast Cancer

Hypoxia affects many important processes in tumour progression and is a key feature in the tumour microenvironment that needs to be taken into account when evaluating prognostics and therapeutic options for cancer patients. Hypoxia-regulating proteins, i.e. hypoxia inducible factors (HIFs), and associated gene products have been linked to certain tumour behaviours and might be useful as prognostic and predictive markers. Recently, hypoxia-driven gene products have been launched as novel cancer treatment targets with the potential to increase tumour-specific effects. Breast cancer consists of a multitude of different diseases with certain common characteristics, but also clearly disparate behaviours and genetic alterations. In this review we will summarise the role of hypoxia in breast cancer and specifically outline the importance of hypoxia and HIF-1alpha regarding prognostic and treatment-specific implications. (Part of a Multi-author Review).     

The rise of alternative bread leavening technologies in the nineteenth century

This article reveals how nineteenth-century chemists and health reformers tried to eradicate the use of yeast in bread, claiming they had devised healthier and more sanitary ways to raise bread. It describes the alternative technological solutions to baking bread, investigating factors that influenced their development and adaptation in the marketplace. A lack of scientific and cultural consensus surrounding yeast, what it was and what it did, fermented during this period. The conflict over yeast helped create a heterogeneous industrialization of the baking industry, changing processes and ingredients and creating new forms of bakery products. By examining the claims of promoters of rival scientific beliefs and technologies, as well as those of users and social commentators, we can see that technology’s eventual adaptation and impact on society is not predictable at its outset. Exploring the relationship between differing scientific beliefs, cultural understandings and alternative technologies also shows how science and industry cannot be isolated from their social and cultural context. The examination of the nineteenth-century technological development of commonplace commodities such as bread, baking powder and yeast, also reveals and explores a story that has not been told before in the history of science and technology. Why it has not been told is as enlightening as the story itself, revealing as it does our own privileging of what is important in science and history.     

近现代中国水产养殖业发展回顾与展望

本文较为系统地回顾了近现代我国淡、海水养殖业发展的历史，重点总结了新中国成立以来水产养殖业成功的理论与关键技术，分析了制约水产养殖业持续发展的种质、病害与环境等关键问题，展望了新世纪我国水产养殖业发展的前景。新世纪我国水产养殖业的发展态势日趋明朗，即朝着生态养殖和工程养殖两个方向发展；其理论基础是运用现代生物学理论和生物与工程技术，协调养殖生物与养殖环境的关系，达到互为友好、持续高效；其总体目标是实现养殖生物良种化、养殖技术生态工程化、养殖产品优质高值化和养殖环境洁净化，最终实现水产养殖业的可持续发展。新世纪我国水产养殖业发展对策是实施生态工程养殖战略，促进水产养殖业的健康发展；立足基础研究。强化高新技术的应用；实施良种工程，不断推出养殖新良种；从平衡水域各产业的需求出发，调整现有养殖区养殖结构、规模与布局；集成现代生物和工程技术，实施陆地和潮上带工程化养殖；以养殖生态学理论和现代工程技术为基础，大力发展浅海离岸设施渔业；从改善我国人口营养结构出发，大力发展水产品加工业等。     

Allergic contact dermatitis: epidemiology, molecular mechanisms, in vitro methods and regulatory aspects

Contact allergies are complex diseases, and one of the important challenges for public health and immunology. The German 'Federal Institute for Risk Assessment' hosted an 'International Workshop on Contact Dermatitis'. The scope of the workshop was to discuss new discoveries and developments in the field of contact dermatitis. This included the epidemiology and molecular biology of contact allergy, as well as the development of new in vitro methods. Furthermore, it considered regulatory aspects aiming to reduce exposure to contact sensitisers. An estimated 15-20% of the general population suffers from contact allergy. Workplace exposure, age, sex, use of consumer products and genetic predispositions were identified as the most important risk factors. Research highlights included: advances in understanding of immune responses to contact sensitisers, the importance of autoxidation or enzyme-mediated oxidation for the activation of chemicals, the mechanisms through which hapten-protein conjugates are formed and the development of novel in vitro strategies for the identification of skin-sensitising chemicals. Dendritic cell cultures and structure-activity relationships are being developed to identify potential contact allergens. However, the local lymph node assay (LLNA) presently remains the validated method of choice for hazard identification and characterisation. At the workshop the use of the LLNA for regulatory purposes and for quantitative risk assessment was also discussed.     

数据流中的近似查询技术

近年来,一种密集型数据的应用得到了广泛的关注。在这种应用中,数据不再来自存储于永久介质的数据库,而是以大量的、连续的、快速的、随时间变化的、无边界的数据流的形式到达。本文深入研究数据流中的近似查询处理问题,针对数据流查询处理的典型特征,平衡内存有限性与查询结果精确性两大关系,综合多个著名系统关于近似查询处理的精髓思想,加以总结提出一系列如窗口查询、直方图、随机采样、小波等近似查询技术。     

Leptin signaling and circuits in puberty and fertility

Leptin is an adipocyte-derived hormone involved in a myriad of physiological process, including the control of energy balance and several neuroendocrine axes. Leptin-deficient mice and humans are obese, diabetic, and display a series of neuroendocrine and autonomic abnormalities. These individuals are infertile due to a lack of appropriate pubertal development and inadequate synthesis and secretion of gonadotropins and gonadal steroids. Leptin receptors are expressed in many organs and tissues, including those related to the control of reproductive physiology (e.g., the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and gonads). In the last decade, it has become clear that leptin receptors located in the brain are major players in most leptin actions, including reproduction. Moreover, the recent development of molecular techniques for brain mapping and the use of genetically modified mouse models have generated crucial new findings for understanding leptin physiology and the metabolic influences on reproductive health. In the present review, we will highlight the new advances in the field, discuss the apparent contradictions, and underline the relevance of this complex physiological system to human health. We will focus our review on the hypothalamic circuitry and potential signaling pathways relevant to leptin’s effects in reproductive control, which have been identified with the use of cutting-edge technologies of molecular mapping and conditional knockouts.     

TD-SCDMA系统中引入阈值信噪比的信道估计

采用联合检测和智能天线等技术是TD-SCDMA移动通信系统的优势之一,但这些技术的实现必须以准确的信道估计为前提.本文探讨了适合于TD-SCDMA系统的信道估计算法,分析了一种加入阈值信噪比的信道估计算法原理.通过上行链路的模拟仿真表明,该信道估计算法的信道响应更接近理想值,有利于提高系统性能.     

中国大气污染防治技术综述

我国大气污染严重，污染废气排放总量处于较高水平。为控制和整治大气污染。“九五”以来，我国在污染排放控制技术等方面开展了大量研究开发工作，取得了许多新的成果，大气污染的防治也取得重要进展。本文综述了对我国大气造成污染的几种主要污染物及其治理措施。     

The sugar industry, political authorities, and scientific institutions in the regulation of saccharin: Valencia (1888-1939)

In the late-nineteenth century food production and trade were greatly transformed. Changes in the food chain gave rise to new problems connected with food safety and food quality, which caused new controls to be introduced throughout Europe. In this paper I will contribute to ongoing debates by focusing on the regulation of saccharin in an agrarian city in the south of Europe, Valencia. The laboratory-made sweetener was introduced into the food market at the turn of the century, becoming highly controversial shortly afterwards. Several local groups of players got involved in this dispute. The sugar industry was not only an important stakeholder in the passing of some specific laws that were to constrain the use of saccharin, but also the main driver of regulation, primarily in periods when saccharin could become a serious competitor and reduce the sector's profit. Furthermore, the combined work of the sugar industry and the municipal laboratories was essential for the implementation of regulations. It was in such municipal laboratories that scientists played a main role in regulation. My paper will address the commercial disputes linked to the use of saccharin and the limited role of science and scientists in its control.     

Aptamer and its applications in neurodegenerative diseases

Aptamers are small single-stranded DNA or RNA oligonucleotide fragments or small peptides, which can bind to targets by high affinity and specificity. Because aptamers are specific, non-immunogenic and non-toxic, they are ideal materials for clinical applications. Neurodegenerative disorders are ravaging the lives of patients. Even though the mechanism of these diseases is still elusive, they are mainly characterized by the accumulation of misfolded proteins in the central nervous system. So it is essential to develop potential measures to slow down or prevent the onset of these diseases. With the advancements of the technologies, aptamers have opened up new areas in this research field. Aptamers could bind with these related target proteins to interrupt their accumulation, subsequently blocking or preventing the process of neurodegenerative diseases. This review presents recent advances in the aptamer generation and its merits and limitations, with emphasis on its applications in neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, Huntington’s disease and multiple sclerosis.     

Establishment of intestinal homeostasis during the neonatal period

The intestinal mucosa faces the challenge of regulating the balance between immune tolerance towards commensal bacteria, environmental stimuli and food antigens on the one hand, and induction of efficient immune responses against invading pathogens on the other hand. This regulatory task is of critical importance to prevent inappropriate immune activation that may otherwise lead to chronic inflammation, tissue disruption and organ dysfunction. The most striking example for the efficacy of the adaptive nature of the intestinal mucosa is birth. Whereas the body surfaces are protected from environmental and microbial exposure during fetal life, bacterial colonization and contact with potent immunostimulatory substances start immediately after birth. In the present review, we summarize the current knowledge on the mechanisms underlying the transition of the intestinal mucosa during the neonatal period leading to the establishment of a stable, life-long host–microbial homeostasis. The environmental exposure and microbial colonization during the neonatal period, and also the influence of maternal milk on the immune protection of the mucosa and the role of antimicrobial peptides, are described. We further highlight the molecular mechanisms of innate immune tolerance in neonatal intestinal epithelium. Finally, we link the described immunoregulatory mechanisms to the increased susceptibility to inflammatory and infectious diseases during the neonatal period.     

基于STM32F103和M33的家居安防监视系统的硬件设计与实现

详细介绍了一种家居安防监视系统的硬件设计.该系统使用主控芯片STM32F103和模块M33,实现了图像采集和处理、GSM/GPRS通讯、短距离无线通讯、人机交互信息显示、红外感应、外部电源和内部锂电池供电等功能.实际运行表明,该系统具有可靠性好、功能强、成本低、安装和使用方便的特点,满足了人们对家居安防产品的要求.     

Whole genome sequencing as a means to assess pathogenic mutations in medical genetics and cancer

The past decade has seen the emergence of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies, which have revolutionized the field of human molecular genetics. With NGS, significant portions of the human genome can now be assessed by direct sequence analysis, highlighting normal and pathological variants of our DNA. Recent advances have also allowed the sequencing of complete genomes, by a method referred to as whole genome sequencing (WGS). In this work, we review the use of WGS in medical genetics, with specific emphasis on the benefits and the disadvantages of this technique for detecting genomic alterations leading to Mendelian human diseases and to cancer.     

We find them here, we find them there: Functional bacterial amyloid

Protein amyloid is often deposited in connection with neurodegenerative diseases. Such deposits generally possess three principal drawbacks: cytotoxicity, lack of spatial control in their deposition and structural polymorphism. These are typical features of biologically non-optimized systems which have not been exposed to evolutionary pressure. Nevertheless, Nature uses the cross-beta self-organizing principle in many structural contexts where a strong but pliable material is needed. Functional amyloid is found in humans, invertebrates, fungi and, not least, bacteria, in which amyloid may be the rule rather than the exception. Detailed case studies reveal how directed nucleation can use tailor-made proteins optimized to assume a specific amyloid conformation, leading to remarkably robust assemblies. This makes it highly challenging to purify and analyze the products formed in vivo. We contrast pathogenic and in-vitro-formed amyloid with functional amyloid, paying particular reference to bacterial amyloid, and discuss challenges and perspectives in identifying and characterizing this class of protein.     

Stérilisation de l'ovaire gauche du Poulet et de la Caille par l'action de la thymidine-3H pendant l'ovogenèse

Summary After successive in ovo³H-thymidine pulses during the period of oogenesis complete sterilization of the left ovary of the female chicken and quail have been obtained at the moment of hatching.