University College Cork

About: University College Cork is a education organization based out in Cork, Ireland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 12056 authors who have published 28452 publications receiving 958414 citations. The organization is also known as: Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh & National University of Ireland, Cork.

Listeria monocytogenes Scott A: Cell Surface Charge, Hydrophobicity, and Electron Donor and Acceptor Characteristics under Different Environmental Growth Conditions

Abstract: We determined the variations in the surface physicochemical properties of Listeria monocytogenes Scott A cells that occurred under various environmental conditions. The surface charges, the hydrophobicities, and the electron donor and acceptor characteristics of L. monocytogenes Scott A cells were compared after the organism was grown in different growth media and at different temperatures; to do this, we used microelectrophoresis and the microbial adhesion to solvents method. Supplementing the growth media with glucose or lactic acid affected the electrical, hydrophobic, and electron donor and acceptor properties of the cells, whereas the growth temperature (37, 20, 15, or 8 degrees C) primarily affected the electrical and electron donor and acceptor properties. The nonlinear effects of the growth temperature on the physicochemical properties of the cells were similar for cells cultivated in two different growth media, but bacteria cultivated in Trypticase soy broth supplemented with 6 g of yeast extract per liter (TSYE) were slightly more hydrophobic than cells cultivated in brain heart infusion medium (P < 0.05). Adhesion experiments conducted with L. monocytogenes Scott A cells cultivated in TSYE at 37, 20, 15, and 8 degrees C and then suspended in a sodium chloride solution (1.5 x 10(-1) or 1.5 x 10(-3) M NaCl) confirmed that the cell surface charge and the electron donor and acceptor properties of the cells had an influence on their attachment to stainless steel.

Current perspectives on antifungal lactic acid bacteria as natural bio-preservatives

Abstract: Fungal spoilage of foods represents a major cause of concern for food manufacturers. The use of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) to alleviate fungal decay of foods and feeds is a promising solution. The study and application of antifungal LAB has received a surge of interest in recent years. Significant progress has been reported on the isolation and characterization of antimycotic compounds, which include various organic acids, cyclic dipeptides and fatty acids, while various food-based applications of these antifungal LAB have been described in literature. This review summarizes the current knowledge on antifungal LAB, their bioactive metabolites, applications in food systems and interactions with their target fungi.

Divergent metabolic outcomes arising from targeted manipulation of the gut microbiota in diet-induced obesity

Abstract: Objective The gut microbiota is an environmental regulator of fat storage and adiposity. Whether the microbiota represents a realistic therapeutic target for improving metabolic health is unclear. This study explored two antimicrobial strategies for their impact on metabolic abnormalities in murine diet-induced obesity: oral vancomycin and a bacteriocin-producing probiotic ( Lactobacillus salivarius UCC118 Bac + ). Design Male (7-week-old) C57BL/J6 mice (9–10/group) were fed a low-fat (lean) or a high-fat diet for 20 weeks with/without vancomycin by gavage at 2 mg/day, or with L salivarius UCC118Bac + or the bacteriocin-negative derivative L salivarius UCC118Bac − (each at a dose of 1×10 9 cfu/day by gavage). Compositional analysis of the microbiota was by 16S rDNA amplicon pyrosequencing. Results Analysis of the gut microbiota showed that vancomycin treatment led to significant reductions in the proportions of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes and a dramatic increase in Proteobacteria , with no change in Actinobacteria. Vancomycin-treated high-fat-fed mice gained less weight over the intervention period despite similar caloric intake, and had lower fasting blood glucose, plasma TNFα and triglyceride levels compared with diet-induced obese controls. The bacteriocin-producing probiotic had no significant impact on the proportions of Firmicutes but resulted in a relative increase in Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria and a decrease in Actinobacteria compared with the non-bacteriocin-producing control. No improvement in metabolic profiles was observed in probiotic-fed diet-induced obese mice. Conclusion Both vancomycin and the bacteriocin-producing probiotic altered the gut microbiota in diet-induced obese mice, but in distinct ways. Only vancomycin treatment resulted in an improvement in the metabolic abnormalities associated with obesity thereby establishing that while the gut microbiota is a realistic therapeutic target, the specificity of the antimicrobial agent employed is critical.

Importance of glass transition and water activity to spray drying and stability of dairy powders

Abstract: Spray-drying is a rapid dehydration method allowing production of high quality dairy powders. In dehydration and subsequent powder handling and storage, however, both chemical and physical changes, such as caking, lactose crystallisation, and nonenzymatic browning, may impair powder characteristics and result in loss of powder quality. Many of these changes are related to the physical state of lactose, as rapid removal of water in spray drying results in the formation of low- moisture, amorphous, noncrystalline structures of lactose and other milk components. The amor- phous components may exist as solid-like glasses or highly supercooled, viscous liquids. The forma- tion of amorphous, glassy lactose during spray drying allows production of a free-flowing powder. High temperatures or residual water contents at the later stages of the drying process, however, may cause stickiness, caking, browning, and adhesion of the powder particles to the processing equip- ment. The glass transition of amorphous lactose occurs in the vicinity of room temperature at a water content of about 6.8 g (g × 100) -1 of lactose corresponding to an equilibrium relative humidity of 37% and 0.37 a w (water activity). At higher water contents, as the glass transition of amorphous lactose is well below storage temperature, dairy powders become sticky and the amorphous lactose may exhibit time-dependent crystallisation. Crystallisation of amorphous lactose may also release sorbed water from the amorphous material, which enhances other deteriorative changes, such as the nonenzymatic browning reaction. Amorphous lactose in dairy powders encapsulates milk fat, which, as a result of lactose crystallisation, is released and becomes susceptible for rapid oxidation. The glass transition and water activity are, therefore, important factors controlling processability, handling properties and stability of dairy powders.