The stress of food allergy issues in daily life.

Objective: Food allergies are a growing health concern, but their implications for daily psychological functioning are unknown. This micro-longitudinal study investigated the daily frequency of food allergy issues and how this related to experiences of stress, mood and physical energy.

Design: One hundred and eight adults with physician-diagnosed food allergies completed an initial Internet survey followed by a 2-week Internet daily diary survey.

Understanding the Needs of Food-Allergic Adults.

Food allergies are a growing issue, yet society's understanding of how individuals' lives are affected is limited. We conducted four focus groups with food-allergic adults in New Zealand to gain an in-depth understanding of the issues that impacted their quality of life. Key themes identified included allergen-free eating issues, health care system issues, costs of having a food allergy, effects on well-being, external influences (e.

The effect of holding live sea urchins (Evechinus chloroticus) in air prior to gonad removal on gonad adenine nucleotide profiles during storage at 4°C.

Sea urchin gonads are usually sold as a fresh chilled product. Thus, to evaluate the effect of live urchin's post-harvest conditions on gonad shelf-life, gonads were extracted either immediately after harvesting or after holding urchins in air at either 4 or 15°C for 144 and 72h, respectively. Gonads were subsequently washed in brine and stored at 4°C for 10days prior to adenine nucleotide (nmol/gw/w) profile determination.

Adsorption of enterobactin to metal oxides and the role of siderophores in bacterial adhesion to metals.

The potential contribution of chemical bonds formed between bacterial cells and metal surfaces during biofilm initiation has received little attention. Previous work has suggested that bacterial siderophores may play a role in bacterial adhesion to metals. It has now been shown using in situ ATR-IR spectroscopy that enterobactin, a catecholate siderophore secreted by Escherichia coli, forms covalent bonds with particle films of titanium dioxide, boehmite (AlOOH), and chromium oxide-hydroxide which model the surfaces of metals of significance in medical and industrial settings.

Distinct proteinase 3-induced cytokine patterns in Wegener´s granulomatosis, Churg-Strauss syndrome, and healthy controls.

Objectives: To analyse whether a specific cytokine pattern is elicited in response to the autoantigen proteinase 3 (PR3) in active Wegener's granulomatosis (WG).

Methods: Six-colour flow cytometry was used to analyse cytokine production and surface markers of the total CD4+ T-cell population ex vivo and in PR3-stimulated T-cell lines of patients with active PR3-ANCA-positive WG, PR3-ANCA-negative Churg-Strauss syndrome (CSS), and healthy controls (HC).

Results: The cytokine response of the total PB CD4+ T cell population was skewed towards distinct pro-inflammatory cytokine patterns in WG (Th1-type) and CSS (Th17, Th1-/Th2-type).

Characterization of monolaurin resistance in Enterococcus faecalis.

There is increasing concern regarding the presence of vancomycin-resistant enterococci in domestically farmed animals, which may act as reservoirs and vehicles of transmission for drug-resistant enterococci to humans, resulting in serious infections. In order to assess the potential for the use of monolaurin as a food preservative, it is important to understand both its target and potential mechanisms of resistance. A Tn917 mutant library of Enterococcus faecalis AR01/DGVS was screened for resistance (MIC, >100 microg/ml) to monolaurin.

Adsorption to metal oxides of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa siderophore pyoverdine and implications for bacterial biofilm formation on metals.

The initiation of biofilm formation is poorly understood, and in particular, the contribution of chemical bond formation between bacterial cells and metal surfaces has received little attention. We have previously used in situ infrared spectroscopy to show, during the initial stages of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm formation, the formation of coordinate covalent bonds between titanium dioxide particle films and pyoverdine, a mixed catecholate and hydroxamate siderophore. Here we show using infrared spectroscopy that pyoverdine can also form covalent bonds with particle films of Fe2O3, CrOOH, and AlOOH.

Interaction of Escherichia coli and soil particles in runoff.

A laboratory-scale model system was developed to investigate the transport mechanisms involved in the horizontal movement of bacteria in overland flow across saturated soils. A suspension of Escherichia coli and bromide tracer was added to the model system, and the bromide concentration and number of attached and unattached E. coli cells in the overland flow were measured over time.

Laboratory scale Clean-In-Place (CIP) studies on the effectiveness of different caustic and acid wash steps on the removal of dairy biofilms.

A laboratory scale, bench top flow system was used to partially reproduce dairy plant conditions under which biofilms form and to quantify the effectiveness of caustic and acid wash steps in reducing the number of viable bacteria attached to stainless steel (SS) surfaces. Once bacteria attached to surfaces, a standard clean-in-place (CIP) regime (water rinse, 1% sodium hydroxide at 65 degrees C for 10 min, water rinse, 1.0% nitric acid at 65 degrees C for 10 min, water rinse) did not reproducibly ensure their removal.

Erosion and subsequent transport state of Escherichia coli from cowpats.

Processes by which fecal bacteria enter overland flow and their transportation state to surface waters are poorly understood, making the effectiveness of measures designed to intercept this pathway, such as vegetated buffer strips, difficult to predict. Freshly made and aged (up to 30 days) cowpats were exposed to simulated rainfall, and samples of the cowpat material and runoff were collected. Escherichia coli in the runoff samples were separated into attached (to particles) and unattached fractions, and the unattached fraction was analyzed to determine if the cells were clumped.

Morphotypic conversion in Listeria monocytogenes biofilm formation: biological significance of rough colony isolates.

Adherence to a stainless steel surface selected isolates of Listeria monocytogenes with enhanced surface colonization abilities and a change in phenotype from the common smooth colony morphology to a succession of rough colony morphotypes. Growth in broth culture of the best-adapted, surface-colonizing rough colony morphotype gave a smooth colony revertant. Comparative analysis revealed that the smooth and rough variants had similar phenotypic and biochemical characteristics (e.

Thermal-Death Times of Listeria monocytogenes in Green Shell Mussels ( Perna canaliculus ) Prepared for Hot Smoking.

Thermal-death times were determined for seven strains of Listeria monocytogenes in green shell mussels ( Perna canaliculus ) that had been soaked in brine in preparation for hot smoking. Subsamples (25 g) of blended mussels were aseptically transferred into plastic pouches and inoculated with 10 cells of L. monocytogenes g.