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Fermentation has been applied to a multitude of food types for preservation and product enhancing characteristics. Interest in the microbiome and healthy foods makes it important to understand the microbial processes involved in fermentation. This is particularly the case for products such as fermented cashew (Anacardium occidentale). We hereby describe the characterisation of cashew samples throughout an entire fermentation production process, starting at the quinoa starter inoculum (rejuvelac). The viable bacterial count was 108 -109 colony forming units/g. The nutritional composition changed marginally with regards to fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. The rejuvelac starter culture was predominated by Pediococcus and Weissella genera. The &lsquo, brie&rsquo, and &lsquo, blue&rsquo, cashew products became dominated by Lactococcus, Pediococcus, and Weissella genera as the fermentation progressed. Cashew allergenicity was found to significantly decrease with fermentation of all the end-product types. For consumers concerned about allergic reactions to cashew nuts, these results suggested that a safer option is for products to be made by fermentation.

Framed from a constructivist approach, this manuscript draws from Savickas’ (2005) Theory of Career Construction to assess programmatic development and mastery of learning outcomes in preparation for life after higher education. Utilizing a mixed-method approach, findings outline recommendations for campusbased practitioner programming informed from the voices of NCAA Division I football student-athletes.

The results of an intensive reliability study on Pb-free ball grid array (BGA)/Sn-Pb solder assemblies as well as some lessons learnt dealing with mixed assembly production at Celestica are described in this paper. In the reliability study, four types of Pb-free ball grid array components were assembled on test vehicles using the Sn-Pb eutectic solder and typical Sn-Pb reflow profiles with 205°C to 220°C peak temperatures. Accelerated thermal cycling (ATC) was conducted at 0°C to 100°C. The influence of the microstructure on Weibull plot parameters and the failure mode will be shown. Interconnect defects such as nonuniform phase distribution, low-melting structure accumulation, and void formation are discussed. Recommendations on mixed assembly and rework parameters are given.

Abstract Many protocols have been used in clinical and research settings for collecting systolic blood pressure (SBP) measurements to calculate the ankle–brachial index (ABI); however, it is not known how useful it is to replicate measurements and which measures best reflect cardiovascular risk. Standardized measurements of ankle and arm SBP from 5140 overweight or obese individuals with type 2 diabetes were used to estimate sources of variation. Measurement characteristics of leg-specific ABI, as calculated using a standard algorithm based on the highest SBP of the dorsalis pedis or posterior tibial arteries, were projected using simulations. Coefficients of variability ranged from 2% to 3% when single SBP measurements were used and ABI was overestimated by 2–3%. Taking two SBP measurements at each site reduced standard errors and bias each by 30–40%. The sensitivity of detecting low ABI ranges exceeded 90% for ABI within 0.05 of the 0.90 clinical cut-point. The average and the minimum of the two (i.e. right and left) leg-specific ABI values had similar U-shaped relationships with Framingham risk scores; however, the average leg ABI had slightly greater precision. Replicating SBP measurements reduces the error and bias of ABI. Averaging leg-specific values may increase power for characterizing cardiovascular disease risk.

Objective The purpose of this study is to compare the incidence of acute renal injury (ARI) in patients on intermittent infusion to extended infusion piperacillin/tazobactam. Methods Data was collected for the intermittent infusion group from November 2010 to December 2010 until 100 patients were enrolled. The data was then compared to 100 patients in the extended infusion group from November 2011 to December 2011. Patients who received at least three consecutive doses of piperacillin/tazobactam and were inpatient for at least 48 hours were included. Patients were excluded for any of the following: baseline serum creatinine (SCr) ≥4 mg/dL, age less than 18 years old, pregnancy, penicillin allergy, or concurrent use with any cephalosporin or penicillin. The primary endpoint was the incidence of ARI, defined as a SCr two times the baseline or 0.5 mg/dL increase within 24 hours. The secondary endpoint was patient length of stay, measured as actual inpatient days. Results Eleven patients in the intermittent infusion group and nine patients in the extended infusion group developed ARI (11% vs. 9%, p = 0.637). The length of stay between the intermittent and extended infusion groups was 19 days vs. 14 days, respectively ( p = 0.083). Conclusion The incidence of ARI in patients on piperacillin/tazobactam was similar between the intermittent and extended infusion groups. Larger studies should be considered to confirm that the incidence of ARI associated with piperacillin/tazobactam is not infusion-related.

The analysis of a sample for the presence of target analytes is facilitated with a number of sample preparation and instrument techniques. Liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (tandem quadrupole) (LC-MS/MS) has been largely to thank for a large number of significant analytical methods for target analytes such as pesticides, mycotoxins, drugs, and antibiotics. A crude literature search using the keyword liquid chromatography mass spectrometry revealed more than 52,000 articles on the topic. On the other hand, liquid chromatography time of flight reveals only approximately 2300 articles. The main reason for this difference is arguably due to the recent development of time of flight (TOF) for the purpose of trace analytical determinations as opposed the fairly well-developed LC-MS/MS. In this regard, manual interpretation by the analyst is integral to the success in identification and confirmation of target analytes. Confident interpretation of data from LC-TOF can be developed through an accretion of information from the analytical process: sample extraction and cleanup, chromatographic retention time, mass spectral details such as the closeness of accurate mass of the molecular ion and fragments to those of a predicted target analyte, and finally comparison to authentic standards included in the same analytical process as the unknown. An accurate mass determination is in itself quite important to the tentative identification of an unknown target analyte. In this regard, a close agreement to the true mass of an unknown target analyte results in a smaller range of possible empirical formulae, a point that is well developed in this text. This work summarizes perspectives on (accurate) mass determinations using TOF and qTOF and its use as a tool for the identification and confirmation of target, nontarget, and unknown compounds.

Background There is currently considerable interest in developing renewable sources of energy. One strategy is the biological conversion of plant biomass to liquid transportation fuel. Several technical hurdles impinge upon the economic feasibility of this strategy, including the development of energy crops amenable to facile deconstruction. Reliable assays to characterize feedstock quality are needed to measure the effects of pre-treatment and processing and of the plant and microbial genetic diversity that influence bioconversion efficiency. Results We used the anaerobic bacterium Clostridium phytofermentans to develop a robust assay for biomass digestibility and conversion to biofuels. The assay utilizes the ability of the microbe to convert biomass directly into ethanol with little or no pre-treatment. Plant samples were added to an anaerobic minimal medium and inoculated with C. phytofermentans, incubated for 3 days, after which the culture supernatant was analyzed for ethanol concentration. The assay detected significant differences in the supernatant ethanol from wild-type sorghum compared with brown midrib sorghum mutants previously shown to be highly digestible. Compositional analysis of the biomass before and after inoculation suggested that differences in xylan metabolism were partly responsible for the differences in ethanol yields. Additionally, we characterized the natural genetic variation for conversion efficiency in Brachypodium distachyon and shrub willow (Salix spp.). Conclusion Our results agree with those from previous studies of lignin mutants using enzymatic saccharification-based approaches. However, the use of C. phytofermentans takes into consideration specific organismal interactions, which will be crucial for simultaneous saccharification fermentation or consolidated bioprocessing. The ability to detect such phenotypic variation facilitates the genetic analysis of mechanisms underlying plant feedstock quality.

Background Increasingly, genetic specimens are collected to expand the value of clinical trials through study of genetic effects on disease incidence, progression or response to interventions. Purpose and methods We describe the experience obtaining IRB-approved DNA consent forms across the 19 institutions in the Action for Health in Diabetes (Look AHEAD), a clinical trial examining the effect of a lifestyle intervention for weight loss on the risk of serious cardiovascular events among individuals with type 2 diabetes. We document the rates participants provided consent for DNA research, identify participant characteristics associated with consent, and discuss implications for genetics research. Results IRB approval to participate was obtained from 17 of 19 institutions. The overall rate of consent was 89.6% among the 15 institutions that had completed consenting at the time of our analysis, which was higher than reported for other types of cohort studies. Consent rates were associated with factors expected to be associated with weight loss and cardiovascular disease and to affect the distribution of candidate genes. Non-consent occurred more frequently among participants grouped as African-American, Hispanic, female, more highly educated or not dyslipidemic. Limitations The generalizabilty of results is limited by the inclusion/exclusion criteria of the trial. Conclusions Barriers to obtaining consent to participate in genetic studies may differ from other recruitment settings. Because of the potentially complex associations between personal characteristics related to adherence, outcomes and gene distributions, differential rates of consent may introduce biases in estimates of genetic relationships.

The effects of a low-fat diet or a low-fat diet with the addition of a soy supplement were investigated in a pilot Phase II study for asymptomatic, hormonally naive prostate cancer patients with rising prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels.A two-step intervention was implemented. During step 1 patients were begun on a low-fat diet with a goal to reduce fat intake to 15% of total daily calories. On PSA progression, a soy protein supplement was added to the diet (step 2). The primary end point was PSA reduction by 50%. Secondary end points were PSA doubling time and time to progression (TTP). Serum was analyzed for changes in the sex hormone and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I) axes.Among 18 evaluable patients, (median follow-up on study 10.5 months), no patient on either step had a PSA reduction by 50% at any time. There was a trend toward a longer PSA doubling time (P = 0.06) and a prolongation in estimated median TTP of approximately 3 months (P = 0.018) during step 2 compared with step 1 of the study. During step 1, free testosterone levels decreased by 5% (P0.01), and during step 2, IGF-I levels increased by 22% (P = 0.02).A low-fat diet with the subsequent addition of a soy supplement did not result in a significant decline in PSA levels. The addition of soy protein had a modest effect on TTP. A potentially undesirable effect associated with the administration of soy was an increase in IGF-I serum levels.

Florida sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis pratensis) were conditioned to confinement in an enclosure for 7 days, 6 hr a day. On day 8, cranes were catheterized and then confined in an enclosure. Venous blood (2 ml) was collected through the catheter and an attached IV line immediately before (-60 min) and 60 min after (0 min) confinement. Using a randomization table and a restricted cross-over experimental design, cranes were injected intravenously with either saline (control) or adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH; cosyntropin, Cortrosyn; 0.25 mg). At 30, 60, 120, 180, 240 and 300 min after injection, blood samples were collected and assayed for corticosterone. The cranes receiving ACTH increased their serum corticosterone concentrations as much as fivefold above baseline concentrations. Serum corticosterone concentrations remained significantly elevated for approximately 60 min after ACTH stimulation. Physical restraint and catheterization caused an increase in serum corticosterone almost comparable to that induced by ACTH stimulation. In cranes injected with saline, serum corticosterone decreased within 1 hr after physical restraint and catheterization, and remained at lower levels throughout the remaining 5 hr of confinement.