INTRODUCTION Electromagnetic wave interaction with materials containing water at microwave frequencies is dominated by water [1]. Water is an important component of many biological and nonbiological materials. It is sometime divided into two categories: free water and bound water. From an electrical standpoint, behavior of free water is well described by the Debye dielectric model [1] with a si...

A fluorimetric method was used to determine the o-phthaldialdehyde (OPA) reactivity of amino groups for the assessment of non-enzymatic browning reactions in products with a prolonged shelf-life. The studies were conducted in four commercial infant cereals: wheat-based '7-cereals' and '8-cereals', and gluten-free 'rice cereal' and 'rice-corn cereal'. The cereals were monitored at 28 degrees C f...

270 samples of different types of pasta and cereal products, distributed in a nursery school canteen in Milan (Italy), were analyzed to estimate the occurrence of ochratoxin A. OTA was found in all analyzed samples (100%), 39 samples exceeded the maximum limit established by European Commission Regulation for OTA in the foodstuffs listed in the relevant category. The mean concentration of ochra...

Cereal Chern. 76(2):299-302 Reversed-phase (RP-) and size-exclusion (SE-) high-performance liquid chromatography have become important methods for rapid identification of wheat and other cereal cultivars and for revealing quality differences. Accuracy and reproducibility are essential for good results. Due to recent changes in these methods, however, such as using smaller columns, lower flow ra...

BACKGROUND Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a toxic fungal metabolite that frequently contaminates cereal crops. DON is toxic to animals, but the effects on humans are poorly understood, in part because exposure estimates are of limited precision. OBJECTIVES In this study we used the U.K. adult National Diet and Nutrition Survey to compare 24-hr urinary DON excretion with cereal intake. METHODS One ...

Cronobacter spp. are important foodborne pathogens that can cause severe diseases such as meningitis, sepsis, and necrotizing enterocolitis in neonates. In this study, 195 food samples, including cereals, cereal products, powdered infant formula (PIF), infant food formula, herbs, spices, vegetables, and fruits, were analyzed for the presence of Cronobacter spp. by culture-based method. The pres...