Many 14C dating laboratories have established that coal samples exhibit a finite 14C age, apparently caused by contamination of the specimens before any laboratory preparation is undertaken. In this work, the possibility that the contamination is due to microbial and fungal activity in the coal substrate is considered and some suggestions are made for alternative sources of background test mate...

The negative effects of micronutrient deficiencies on human capital acquisition and economic productivity are well documented. A less well understood but potentially serious threat to human health in developing countries is the contamination of food crops by fungal toxins. This paper surveys what is known about the health and economic burdens attributable to insufficient micronutrients and toxi...

Sixty eight patients with localized cutaneous leishmaniasis from an area with Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis transmission had cultures performed with a modified Marzochís vacuum aspiratory puncture technique to establish sensitivity and contamination rate with this new method. Overall sensitivity of three aspirates was 47.1%; (CI95% 39.4; 59.4) significantly greater than the sensitivity of a...

Blastomyces dermatitidis belongs to a group of thermally dimorphic fungi that grow as sporulating mold in the soil and convert to pathogenic yeast in the lung following inhalation of spores. Knowledge about the molecular events important for fungal adaptation and survival in the host remains limited. The development of high-throughput analytic tools such as RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) has potentia...

Mycotoxins such as aflatoxins, fumonisins, trichothecenes, and ochratoxins are contaminants of many agronomic crops worldwide, and cause both economic losses and health effects. The potential of antagonistic microorganisms to be developed into biological control agents has been investigated in several crop systems, as alternatives to chemical fungicides for control of mycotoxigenic fungi. Labor...

Aflatoxin, the fungal carcinogen first identified in 1960, is now recognized as the prototypical laboratory carcinogen. It causes mutations in the p53 tumor-suppressor gene as well as ras mutations, which are involved in the majority of human cancers. Aflatoxin has been shown to contaminate tobacco products. Tobacco-related cancers, including those associated with ETS, often show the same p53 m...

introduction: aflatoxin b1 (afb1) is one of the most well-known hepatocarcinogens in humans. contamination of raw materials, used in the production of sausages and burgers, with aflatoxin producing molds can lead to increased level of aflatoxin in the final products and can impose hazards to human health. unfortunately, aflatoxin is resistant to heating and freezing processes, etc. and can rema...

conclusions the study showed that elevator buttons could lead to transmission of pathogenic bacteria. it is necessary to clean and disinfect elevator buttons daily, especially in departments with high contamination potential such as laboratories, particularly in biological laboratories and pilot plant rooms. methods the study was a across sectional research. samples were taken from elevator but...