Increased aflatoxin contamination in corn by the fungus Aspergillus flavus is associated with frequent periods of drought and heat stress during the reproductive stages of the plants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between aflatoxin contamination and physiological responses of corn plants under drought and heat stress. The study was conducted in Stoneville, MS, USA...

In 2011, the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration inadvertently discovered that, for decades, manufacturers had replaced expensive natural emulsifiers in food products with diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP). We wanted to compare urinary phthalate metabolite levels of children before and after the DEHP food contamination event and identify source(s) of phthalate exposure in addition to the illegal fo...

Fresh sugarcane juice is sold by street vendors without any heat treatment in São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil. Twenty-four samples of point-ofsale juice were tested by standard methods to determine heterotrophic bacteria, total and thermo-tolerant coliform counts, Salmonella, and parasites in the juice. 25% of samples showed poor sanitary conditions, with thermotolerant coliform levels higher tha...

The unwanted addition of salt to drilling causes flocculation which has an adverse effect on mud rheological properties. To treat the flocculated mud chemical, deflocculants are commonly used; however, their disadvantages such as negative environmental effects, lower tolerance to contamination, and toxicity motivated scientists to search for effective additives. Using plant derived additives in...

This work deals with sintering additives for the low temperature pressureless sintering of Si3N4, via a transient liquid technique. Much attention has been given to the development of a sintering process using low-cost Si3N4 powder (Silzot HQ, Germany) as the starting material and employing sintering additives which are also both economically attractive and enable sintering at low temperatures....

Chemical substances applied in animal husbandry or veterinary medicine and in crop protection represent substantial environmental loads, and their residues occur in food and feed products. Product approval is governed differently in these two sectors in the European Union (EU), and the occurrence of veterinary drug (VD) and pesticide residues indicated by contamination notification cases in the...

The aim of this study was to determine the activity and structure microbial communities in soils contaminated with heavy metals (HMs). To achieve goal, soil samples were taken from two sites (i.e., Piekary Śląskie Bukowno) Poland. A wide range methods applied, including: total metal-tolerant culturable bacteria enumeration; community analysis using phospholipid fatty acid method (PLFA); denatur...

Meat is very rich and convenient source of nutrients including also a large extent of microelements. Contamination with heavy metals is a serious threat because of their toxicity, bioaccumulation and biomagnifications in the food chain. The lead concentrations depend on the environmental conditions and the food production methods. Ingestion of contaminants, especially heavy metals, by animals c...

In the food industry, contamination by spoilage microorganisms results in severe safety and economic problems. In the sake-brewing process, spoilaging phenomena caused by several Lactobacillus species, so-called hiochi bacteria, seriously deteriorate the quality of sake, such as lowering the pH, increasing turbidity, and producing offflavors [1,2]. Sake with an ethanol concentration greater tha...