I read this book the same weekend that the Packers took on the Rams, and the experience of the latter event, obviously, colored my judgment. Although I abhor anything that smacks of being a handbook (like, \"How to Earn a Merit Badge in Neurosurgery\") because too many volumes in biomedical science already evince a boyscout-like approach, I must confess that parts of this volume are fast, scholarly, and significant, with certain reservations. I like parts of this well-illustrated book because Dr. Sj6strand, without so stating, develops certain subjects on technique in relation to the acquisition of judgment and sophistication. And this is important! So, given that the author (like all of us) is somewhat deficient in some areas, and biased in others, the book is still valuable if the uninitiated reader swallows it in a general fashion, realizing full well that what will be required from the reader is a modulation to fit his vision, propreception, adaptation and response, and the kind of problem he is undertaking. A major deficiency of this book is revealed by comparison of its use of physics and of chemistry to provide understanding and background for the application of high resolution electron microscopy to problems in biology. Since the volume is keyed to high resolution electron microscopy, which is a sophisticated form of structural analysis, but really morphology in a modern guise, the physical and mechanical background of The instrument and its ancillary tools are simply and well presented. The potential use of chemical or cytochemical information as it relates to biological fine structure , however, is quite deficient. I wonder when even sophisticated morphol-ogists will consider fixation a reaction and not a technique; only then will the fundamentals become self-evident and predictable and this sine qua flon will become less mystical. Staining reactions (the most inadequate chapter) ought to be something more than a technique to selectively enhance contrast of morphological elements; it ought to give the structural addresses of some of the chemical residents of cell components. Is it pertinent that auto-radiography gets singled out for more complete coverage than other significant aspects of cytochemistry by a high resolution microscopist, when it has a built-in minimal error of 1,000 A in standard practice? I don't mean to blind-side (in strict football terminology) Dr. Sj6strand's efforts for what is \"routinely used in our laboratory\"; what is done is usually well done. It's just that …

Methods in Enzymology.

The chemical diversity and distribution of glucosinolates and isothiocyanates among plants

Chitosan-based biomaterials for tissue engineering

Pectin is an important polysaccharide with applications in foods, Pharmaceuticals, and a number of other industries. Its importance in the food sector lies in its ability to form gel in the presence of Ca2+ ions or a solute at low pH. Although the exact mechanism of gel formation is not clear, significant progress has been made in this direction. Depending on the pectin, coordinate bonding with Ca2+ ions or hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions are involved in gel formation. In low‐methoxyl pectin, gelation results from ionic linkage via calcium bridges between two carboxyl groups belonging to two different chains in close contact with each other. In high‐methoxyl pectin, the cross‐linking of pectin molecules involves a combination of hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions between the molecules. A number of factors—pH, presence of other solutes, molecular size, degree of methoxylation, number and arrangement of side chains, and charge density on the molecule— influence the gelation o...

Chemistry and uses of pectin--a review.

Perspectives for chitosan based antimicrobial films in food applications

Preharvest factors affecting postharvest texture

Changes in cell wall neutral sugar composition during fruit ripening: a species survey

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] is a versatile crop due to its multitude of uses as a high protein meal and vegetable oil. Soybean seed traits such as seed protein and oil concentration and seed size are important quantitative traits. The objective of this study was to identify representative protein, oil, and seed size quantitative trait loci (QTL) in soybean. A recombinant inbred line (RIL) population consisting of 131 F6-derived lines was created from two prominent ancestors of North American soybeans (‘Essex’ and ‘Williams’) and the RILs were grown in six environments. One hundred simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers spaced throughout the genome were mapped in this population. There were a total of four protein, six oil, and seven seed size QTL found in this population. The QTL found in this study may assist breeders in marker-assisted selection (MAS) to retain current positive QTL in modern soybeans while simultaneously pyramiding additional QTL from new germplasm.

/pdf/seed-quality-qtl-in-a-prominent-soybean-population-4epndy1ri0.pdf

Seed quality QTL in a prominent soybean population.

Chitinous material was extracted from mycelia of Aspergillus niger and Mucor rouxii grown in yeast peptone dextrose broth for 15 and 21 days, respectively. The extracted material was characterized for purity, degree of acetylation, and crystallinity and tested for antibacterial and eliciting properties. The maximum glucosamine level determined in the mycelium of A. niger was 11.10% dw and in the mycelium of M. rouxii was 20.13% dw. On the basis of the stepwise extraction of freeze-dried mycelia, it appeared that M. rouxii mycelia contained both chitin and chitosan, whereas A. niger contained only chitin. The yields of crude chitin from A. niger and M. rouxii were 24.01 and 13.25%, respectively, and the yield of chitosan from M. rouxii was 12.49%. Significant amounts (7.42-39.81%) of glucan were associated with chitinous compounds from both species and could not be eliminated by the extraction method used. The degrees of acetylation were determined to be 76.53 and 50.07% for chitin from A. niger and M. rouxii, respectively, and 19.5% for M. rouxii chitosan. The crystallinity of fungal chitin and chitosan was estimated to be less intense than in corresponding materials from shrimp shells. The extracted chitin and chitosan in a concentration of 0.1% reduced Salmonella Typhimurium DT104 2576 counts by 0.5-1.5 logs during a 4 day incubation in tryptic soy broth at 25 °C. Furthermore, all tested chitinous materials from fungal sources significantly reduced lesions caused by Botrytis cinerea and Penicillium expansum in harvested apples.

/pdf/physicochemical-properties-and-bioactivity-of-fungal-chitin-1pemlm889y.pdf

Physicochemical properties and bioactivity of fungal chitin and chitosan.

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] is an important crop because of its high oil and protein concentration. However, there is an inverse relationship between seed protein and oil concentration, making it difficult to improve both traits simultaneously. Molecular breeding may be helpful to facilitate a balanced accumulation of desirable alleles. The objective of this study was to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) governing soybean protein, oil and seed size. To achieve this objective, 101 F 6 -derived recombinant inbred lines (RIL) from a population developed from a cross of N87-984-16 x TN93-99 were used. Heritability estimates on an entry mean basis for protein and oil concentrations, and seed size were 0.66, 0.54, and 0.71, respectively. A total of 585 simple sequence repeat (SSR) molecular genetic markers were screened and 94 were polymorphic in the RIL. Single factor ANOVA was used to identify candidate QTL, which were then confirmed by composite interval mapping. One novel molecular marker (Satt570) on molecular linkage group (MLG) G associated with a protein QTL was detected. Novel molecular markers (Satt274, Satt420, and Satt479) located on MLG D1b, O, and O respectively and a previously reported marker (Satt317) located on MLG H were associated with oil QTL in this study. Molecular markers Satt002 (MLG D2) and Sattl84 (MLG D1a) associated with seed size QTL were verified whereas Satt147 (MLG D1a) was novel. The individual QTL explained 20.2, 9.4-15, and 10 to 16.5% of the phenotypic variation for protein and oil concentrations, and seed size, respectively. Thus, we identified major loci for improving soybean seed quality.

Carl E. Sams

Papers

Preharvest factors affecting postharvest texture

Changes in cell wall neutral sugar composition during fruit ripening: a species survey

Seed quality QTL in a prominent soybean population.

Physicochemical properties and bioactivity of fungal chitin and chitosan.

Quantitative Trait Loci for Seed Protein and Oil Concentration, and Seed Size in Soybean