Impact of atmospheric pressure variations on aerobic biodegradation test.

Biodegradation rate is an important index to evaluate the environmental risk of chemicals, which is usually determined by measuring oxygen consumption through respirometer in a biodegradation test. However, atmospheric pressure variations affect reactor oxygen concentration and oxygen volume recorded by respirometer in biodegradation test, and the parameters of reactor volume and test material amount amplify its effect. Atmospheric pressure variation >1 kPa could introduce >20% underestimation in biodegradation rate when a small amount of test material (0.

Unusual 'feathery' cause of a parapharyngeal abscess in an infant.

A 7-month-old boy presented to the emergency department with reduced oral intake, neck swelling and fever. Clinical examination revealed a 3 cm left parotid and left level I neck swelling with left medialised tonsil but no trismus. Computed imaging confirmed the presence of an abscess in the peritonsillar area with extension into the parapharyngeal space and deep lobe of the parotid gland.

Evaluating the influences of mixing strategies on the Biochemical Methane Potential test.

Mixing plays an important role in the Biochemical Methane Potential (BMP) test, but only limited efforts have been put into it. In this study, various mixing strategies were applied to evaluate the influences on the BMP test, i.e.

Impacts of inoculum pre-treatments on enzyme activity and biochemical methane potential.

Biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests were carried out to investigate the influence of inoculum pre-treatments (filtration and pre-incubation) on methane production from cellulose and wheat straw. First-order model and Monod model were used to evaluate the kinetic constants of the BMP assays. The results demonstrated that fresh inoculum was the best option to perform BMP tests.

Effects of substrate concentration on methane potential and degradation kinetics in batch anaerobic digestion.

In this study, two experiments were conducted to evaluate the impact of substrate concentrations on methane potential and degradation kinetics of substrate. The biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests in Experiment I were performed at a constant inoculum to substrate ratio (ISR), whereas, different ISRs were applied in Experiment II. Results obtained from Experiment I revealed that methane potential of substrate increased at a saturating trend with higher substrate concentrations, and could differ by up to 30% between the lowest and highest investigated concentrations.

Early prediction of Biochemical Methane Potential through statistical and kinetic modelling of initial gas production.

A major drawback of Biochemical Methane Potential (BMP) tests is their long test duration, which could be reduced substantially if the final gas production could be predicted at an earlier stage. For this purpose, this study evaluates 61 different algorithms for their capability to predict the final BMP and required degradation time based on data from 138 BMP tests of various substrate types. By combining the best algorithms it was possible to predict the BMP with a relative root mean squared error (rRMSE) of less than 10% just 6days after initiation of the experiment.

Towards eliminating systematic errors caused by the experimental conditions in Biochemical Methane Potential (BMP) tests.

The Biochemical Methane Potential (BMP) test is increasingly recognised as a tool for selecting and pricing biomass material for production of biogas. However, the results for the same substrate often differ between laboratories and much work to standardise such tests is still needed. In the current study, the effects from four environmental factors (i.

Determination of methane yield of cellulose using different experimental setups.

In this work, biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests with cellulose as a model substrate were performed with the aid of three manually operated or conventional experimental setups (based on manometer, water column and gas bag) and one automated apparatus specially designed for analysis of BMP. The methane yields were 340 ± 18, 354 ± 13, 345 ± 15 and 366 ± 5 ml CH4/g VS obtained from experimental setups with manometer, water column, gas bag, and automatic methane potential test system, which corresponded to a biodegradability of 82, 85, 83 and 88% respectively. The results demonstrated that the methane yields of cellulose obtained from conventional and automatic experimental setups were comparable; however, the methane yield obtained from the automated apparatus showed greater precision.

Indirect, non-competitive amperometric immunoassay for accurate quantification of calpastatin, a meat tenderness marker, in bovine muscle.

A method is described for quantification of the beef tenderness marker, calpastatin, in meat samples by amperometric detection. Using a novel bovine recombinant partial calpastatin protein as standard antigen a low detection limit of 0.2 ng/mL was achieved.

Design, development and application of a bioelectrochemical detection system for meat tenderness prediction.

The analytical method described, based on antibody-antigen bio-recognition and the measuring system for amperometric detection, was designed for accurate, easy to use and cost effective quantification of calpastatin, a meat tenderness biomarker. The novel assay for calpastatin quantification was integrated in a portable electrochemical device known as the Tendercheck system and was used to analyze meat samples collected from animals of different breeds and ages. The data obtained were correlated (R² = 0.

Plasma amyloid-β as a function of age, level of intellectual disability, and presence of dementia in Down syndrome.

Adults with Down syndrome (DS) are at risk for developing Alzheimer's disease (AD). While plasma amyloid-β (Aβ) is known to be elevated in DS, its relationship to cognitive functioning is unknown. To assess this relationship, samples from two groups of subjects were used.

Label free capacitive immunosensor for detecting calpastatin--a meat tenderness biomarker.

An immunological capacitive biosensor for calpastatin was developed, optimized and applied for the analysis of meat extract samples. Anti-calpastatin antibody was immobilized on a gold electrode modified with a self-assembled monolayer of mercaptoundecanoic acid and Protein A from Staphylococcus aureus, and the obtained immunosensor was inserted as the working electrode in an electrochemical cell of a flow injection system. The dynamic range of the sensor was 20 to 160 ng/mL calpastatin.

Monitoring of glucose and glutamate using enzyme microstructures and scanning electrochemical microscopy.

Glucose oxidase and glutamate oxidase lines, with typical width of 100 microm, were patterned on gold surfaces using a micro-dispensing system, by shooting 100 pl droplets of the corresponding enzyme solutions. The probe of a scanning electrochemical microscope (SECM) was then carefully positioned in the close proximity of the enzyme microstructure and poised to +600 mV vs. Ag/AgCl, KCl 0.

Immunization with fibrillar Abeta(1-42) in young and aged canines: Antibody generation and characteristics, and effects on CSF and brain Abeta.

We describe a study testing fibrillar beta-amyloid(1-42) (Abeta42) vaccination in dogs. Three young beagles (4.6 years) were immunized twice with Abeta42 and a Th1 adjuvant (TiterMax Gold).

Reduced neuronal expression of synaptic transmission modulator HNK-1/neural cell adhesion molecule as a potential consequence of amyloid beta-mediated oxidative stress: a proteomic approach.

Abstract Oxidative stress imparted by reactive oxygen species (ROS) is implicated in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Given that amyloid beta (Abeta) itself generates ROS that can directly damage proteins, elucidating the functional consequences of protein oxidation can enhance our understanding of the process of Abeta-mediated neurodegeneration. In this study, we employed a biocytin hydrazide/streptavidin affinity purification methodology followed by two-dimensional liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry coupled with SEQUEST bioinformatics technology, to identify the targets of Abeta-induced oxidative stress in cultured primary cortical mouse neurons.