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Antibiotics have several negative effects on aquatic ecosystems and are difficult to degrade using traditional water/wastewater treatment methods. As a result, new treatment techniques must be employed to eliminate these contaminants from aquatic environments. Research on the relationship between the decomposing process of antibiotics and different factors by new technologies is scarce. This research focuses on the capability of ozone micro-nano bubbles (OzMNBs) to eliminate the antibiotics ciprofloxacin (CIPR) and levofloxacin (LEVO) in aqueous solutions. We studied the CIPR and LEVO decomposition to different variables through the central composite design method. The main variables included pH, ozonation time, and initial antibiotic concentration. The correlation coefficients of the quadratic model obtained by using the software, Design Expert version 13.0.1. Analysis of variances proved the significance of models and main factors. Verification tests also confirmed that the final optimum conditions of the antibiotics decomposition were: pH 9, ozonation for 40 min and, initial antibiotic concentration of 5 mg/L. In optimum conditions, removal rate of about 97% and 100% was obtained for CIPR and LEVO, respectively. The order of influence of various factors on CIPR and LEVO decomposition were obtained and the interactions between the main factors were also investigated. At the last stage of the research, the efficiency of OzMNBs in the removal of total organic carbon and mineralization of the solutions containing CIPR and LEVO under optimum conditions was examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Propolis exhibits multiple biological and pharmacological properties attributed to the presence of natural bio active compounds. In spite of its potential healthy effects, its use in health‐food and pharmaceutical products is very restricted due to its intense aroma, highly unstable, low aqueous solubility, and low bioavailability. The purpose of this study is to fabricate an appropriate, stable, and biodegradable casein‐based nanocarrier as propolis delivery system. Propolis‐loaded casein nanocarriers were prepared at different propolis extract/caseinate ratio and assessed for physicochemical, structural, and thermal properties. Results: The nanocarriers showed an increase of particle size augmenting propolis extract/caseinate ratio and caseinate concentration. Image processing studies revealed an increase in L* parameter (89.743), while b* parameter revealed a reduction in the yellow color (14.655) increasing the amount propolis extract in the nanocarrier. Surface photomicrographs evidenced that an increment of propolis extract decreased the network compactness of the nanocarriers correlated with the lower entrapment of propolis extract into carriers at higher propolis extract/caseinate ratio. X‐ray diffraction pattern suggested that propolis encapsulation produced a decrement in the caseinate crystallinity while differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric/differential thermal analysis thermograms evidenced an increment of thermal stability of nanocarrier with increasing propolis extract content. Conclusion: Propolis extract encapsulated within casein nanocarriers represented convenient physicochemical attributes and could provide as bioactive load in food/medical system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lentils are one of the most important rainfed legumes in the world. They are an excellent source of minerals, vitamins, and amino acids. Methods: Proximate composition (moisture, total ash, total fat, protein, fiber, and carbohydrate), mineral content, antioxidant activity (DPPH IC50), and total phenolic compounds (TPC) were determined in the raw, germinated, and cooked samples of two cultivars of Iranian lentils. Results: Cooking and germination showed a significant effect on TPC, antioxidant activity, and minerals. The highest amount of phenolic compounds was obtained in raw black lentil, followed by raw green and germinated lentils. The black cultivar showed a higher quantity of K, Cu, Ca, and Zn and treatments decreased the concentrations of mineral elements in the investigated samples. Moreover, losses of the minerals in the cooked samples were higher than the germinated ones. Conclusions: Cooking and germination brought about a significant reduction in the phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity. Meaningful reductions were also recognized in the mineral content during cooking and germination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A rapid, simple and accurate extraction QuEChERS method was used for simultaneous determination of 22 hormones with a wide range of polarities in 35 infant formulae by use of LC–ESI-MS/MS. In the present method, some changes were made compared to other methods, which include eliminating the enzymatic hydrolysis step, derivatization and performing analysis a wide range of analytes with different polarities in single run. Three validation runs based on three levels of pre-extraction spiked quality control samples were conducted. Limits of detection obtained by use of the QuEChERS methods were less than those of other extraction methods with the same matrix and recoveries were more satisfactory. Under optimal experimental conditions, good linearity was observed in the range of 1–50 µg L−1. Limits of detection and quantification were in the range of 0.33–1.66 µg L−1 and 1–5 µg L−1, respectively and recoveries of analytes ranged from 73 to 118%. The amount of hormone residues in the samples was not significant. The present method is proposed for routine analysis of hormones potentially present in infant formula and other milk-derived products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of silicon (Si) was studied in strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) plants grown under greenhouse conditions and harvested at vegetative, flowering and fruiting stages. Vegetative growth and fruit dry weight were improved by Si. The concentration of carbohydrates decreased in the leaves but increased in the roots upon Si treatment. However, the level of the soluble protein pool increased in both leaves and roots at the expense of free amino acids at all three developmental stages. Analyses of phenolics by HPLC and assay of enzyme activity in both soluble and cell wall-bound fractions of the leaves, roots and fruits indicated that Si significantly modified the profile of phenolics and the activity of metabolising enzymes at all three developmental stages. All fruit quality parameters were remarkably improved by Si. According to our results, Si improves both quantitative and qualitative parameters in strawberries through stimulation of growth and modification of phenolics metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this research, magnetic graphene nanoparticles were prepared and used as adsorbents for preconcentrating the aflatoxins in rice, wheat, and sesame samples. For this purpose, graphene was synthesized by Hummer's method. Magnetically modified graphene formed by the deposition of magnetite (Fe3O4) on graphene was used for the separation of aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, and G2 from the samples. The extractants were subsequently analyzed with high-performance liquid chromatography and fluorescence detection. Parameters affecting the efficiency of the method were thoroughly investigated. The measurements were done under the optimized conditions. For aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, and G2, limits of detection were 0.025, 0.05, 0.05, and 0.075 ng/g and limits of quantification were 0.083, 0.16, 0.16, and 0.23 ng/g, respectively. Accuracy was examined by the determination of the relative recovery of the aflatoxins. The relative recovery of aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, and G2 were quite satisfactory (between 64.38 and 122.21% for food samples). Relative standard deviations for within laboratory repeatability ( n = 6) were in the range from 1.3 to 3.2. The application of this sorbent for the separation and concentration of the mentioned aflatoxins from food samples was examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aflatoxins content of 140 cotton seed samples were determined using high-performance liquid chromatography. Samples were obtained from wholesalers in Iran between May 2010 and June 2011. Aflatoxin B1 gave the highest incidence of contamination and was found in 129 of the 139 samples. The highest concentration of aflatoxin was 14.4 ng g−1. Thirteen cotton seed samples (9.35%) were above one of the regulatory limits of the European Union (5 ng g−1), but no sample was above the highest EU limit and the safety limit recommended by the FDA (20 ng g−1) and regulatory limits of Iran (50 ng g−1) for total aflatoxin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consumption of food crops contaminated with heavy metals (HMs) is a significant risk factor for human health and safety. We evaluated the health risks of HMs in contaminated food crops irrigated with surface water. Results showed there is a substantial buildup of HMs in rice, collected from the Tajan river basin, Iran. The transfer factor (TF) value for toxic elements Cd (3.6–12.4) and Pb (4.9–23.6) were significantly high and exceeded the permissible limits for crops set by WHO. The principal component analysis was used to analyze the relevance of different metals and identify the primary sources. The results showed that two factors dominated the metals variability (94.10% of total variance) that Cr, Fe, Cd, and Pb were dominated by PC1 whereas another factor charged Zn and Cu. The average total hazard quotient (THQ) values for Pb, Fe, Cr, and Cd were 13.8, 7.7, 5.5, and 1.5, respectively, that suggest a considerable risk to the health of regular rice consumers. The high hazard index (HI) value (29.2) demonstrated that the exposure concentration was very high compared to the effective threshold, and it may have potentially harmful implications for human health. To sum up, these results proved that rice from this basin could be a serious dietary source of Pb and Cd exposure to the consumer population. • Distribution of HMs in the studied area is under the impact of urbanization, industrial and agricultural activities. • Total hazard quotients show the high rate of toxicological risk in the Tajan River watershed. • The calculated transfer factor (TF) of HMs showed that the rice product could have a high potential for health risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twenty-seven samples of infant formulae and follow-on formulae and fifteen samples of baby food from Iranian markets were analyzed for concentrations of four polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH4) determined by use of gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrophotometry. An assessment of risks posed to infants and toddlers was conducted by calculating the margin of exposure and incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) by use of the Monte Carlo Simulation Method. Benzo (a) anthracene, was not detected in any of the samples, while approximately 64.3% samples contained detectable amounts of benzo (a) pyrene, while chrysene was observed in three samples and benzo (b) fluoranthene was detected in one sample. One of the samples contained 1.43 μg PAH4/kg, which was greater than the maximum tolerable limit (MTL; 1 μg/kg) stated in Commission Regulation (EU) 2015/1125. Accordingly, the 95% ILCRs in the infants/toddlers due to ingestion of milk powder and baby foods were determined to be 1.3 × 10−6 and 7.3 × 10−7, respectively. Also, the 95th centiles of the MOEs, due to ingesting milk powder or baby foods by infants/toddlers were estimated to be 3.6 × 104 and 7.2 × 104, respectively. In Iran, infants and toddlers are not at serious health risk (MOE ≥ 1 × 104 and ILCR < 1 × 10−4). Image 1 • Four polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH4) determined in infant formulae, follow-on formulae and baby foods. • An assessment of risks posed to infants and toddlers was conducted by use of the Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) method. • One of the samples contained 1.43 μg PAH4/kg, which was greater than the maximum tolerable limit (MTL; 1 μg/kg). • In Iran, infants and toddlers are not at serious health risk (MOE ≥ 1 × 104 and ILCR < 1 × 10−4). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although graphene oxide (GO) is a good adsorber, it has a low stability in pure form which can be improved by the development of GO-based composites. In this study, 3D nanostructures with GO, surface-decorated by nanocomplexes of chitosan (CS) and gum Arabic (GA), so called 3D GO-CS/GA nanocomposites were designed. The instrumental analysis confirmed the interaction of complexes with oxygenated functional groups of GO which improved both of d-spacing in 3D sheets by 16%, and GO thickness from 1.0 to 8.1 nm. Also, an unprecedented ~3-fold increase was observed in the surface area of 3D GO-CS/GA compared with single GO. The 3D nanocomposites showed a mesoporous structure with a pore volume of 0.72 cm3/g and a prevailing pore size distribution of about 10 nm. The adjustability of nanocomposite surface charge over pH was another important result. The synthesized nanostructures would be of profound interest for numerous areas including adsorption processes. Unlabelled Image [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• HSI coupled with the PLS-DA model successfully identified the saffron geographical origin with 100% accuracy. • Crocins content of saffron samples was predicted using the HIS system coupled with the RBF model. • The potential of HSI for rapid and non-destructive quality evaluation of saffron was proven. A portable Hyperspectral Imaging (HSI) system (400–1000 nm) coupled with chemometrics techniques was developed to identify the geographical origin and to determine the Crocins content of saffron rapidly and non-destructively. Reflectance spectra of 160 saffron samples from two geographical origins were captured and preprocessed using the Savitzky–Golay (SG) algorithm. PCA as an unsupervised clustering and PLS-DA, RBF, and MLP as supervised techniques were applied for the classification and geographical origin differentiation of the samples. Afterward, the sample's Crocins content was measured and their associations with their spectra were modeled using PLSR, RBF, and MLP models. The PCA results indicated that saffron samples were originally distributed in two different clusters. PLS-DA model with a spectral range from 400 to 1000 nm achieved the best clustering performance (Sensitivity and Specificity: 100 %). The RBF model showed good predictive capabilities in the saffron Crocins content prediction and quality evaluation (R2 cal > 0.94 and R2 pred > 0.83). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lemon peels utilizable foodstuffs were analysed for crude protein, phosphorus, calcium, copper, manganese, iron, zinc, sodium, potassium and some chemical parameters in feedstuffs. The levels of protein (9.42 %), fat (4.98%), ash (6.26%), fiber (15.18%), sodium (755.5 mg/100g), potassium (8600 mg/100g), calcium (8452.5 mg/100g), copper (4.94 mg/100g), iron (147.65 mg/100g), magnesium (1429.50 mg/100g), zinc (13.94 mg/100g) and phosphorus (6656 mg/100g) detected in the lemon peels were compared with that of Iranian national standard for animal food. The value of fat, crude protein and fiber are comparable to the values for varieties of animal feed reported by Iranian national standard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proximate composition and mineral concentration of Saffron petals were investigated using standard analytical methods. Saffron petal samples were obtained from the flowers of Torbateheydariyeh farms and were evaluated for metals, protein, phosphorus, fiber, fat and ash content. The levels of protein (10.20 %), fat (5.3%), Ash (7.00 %), fiber (8.80%), sodium (25.75 mg/100g), potassium (542.13 mg/100g), calcium (486.25 mg/100g), copper (0.87 mg/100g), iron (17.99 mg/100g), magnesium (2.93 mg/100g), zinc (1.80 mg/100g) and phosphorus (209.90 mg/100g) detected in the saffron petals were compared with that of Iranian national standard for the animal food. As a conclusion, saffron petals can be used as an animal food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A rapid and simple High-Performance Liquid Chromatographic method with UV detection (HPLC-UV) has been developed for the first time to determination of natamycin in Doogh. Doogh is a refreshing drink that is made with yogurt, water, and mint. The method is based on extraction of 10 g of Doogh with 75 ml. of methanol and 25 ml. of distilled water. An aliquot of 20 p1 of Extract after filtration injected to HPLC. This compound was detected using a Grace Smart PP C18 column (100 × 4.6 mm, 3 μm I.D.) and the mobile phase used, was acetonitril: 30mM perchloric acid (35:65) in 5 mm, The flow rate was maintained at 0.5 rnL/min and the analytical signal was measured at 304 nm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spontaneously fermented wheat bran sourdough (WBS) is a source of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and metabolites with potential applications as functional ingredients. In this study, dominant LAB isolated from the spontaneous fermentation of WBS were analyzed for their exopolysaccharide (EPS) production capacities. Biochemical and molecular tests led to the identification of Lactobacillus plantarum and Pediococcus pentosaceus as the dominant isolates. Compositional analysis of microbial EPSs revealed the presence of 71.44 and 94.64% total carbohydrate content, 1.56 and 3.48% total protein content, and 0.23 and 0.49% w/w of phosphorus content for L. plantarum and P. pentosaceus , respectively. The molecular weight of EPS isolated from L. plantarum (5.36 × 10 5  Da) was greater than that of P. pentosaceus (4.65 × 10 5  Da). DPPH radical scavenging capacity, ABTS, and reducing power (FRAP) of the EPSs were significantly different (P < 0.05). FT-IR spectroscopy analysis demonstrated that the EPSs were complex polysaccharides containing different functional groups represented by stretching vibrations related to alcoholic, carboxylic acid and aromatic groups. In the context of their importance in sourdough fermentation, the EPSs demonstrated potential antioxidant properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]