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 & Irish. 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.

Bacteriocins as a new generation of antimicrobials: toxicity aspects and regulations

Abstract: In recent decades, bacteriocins have received substantial attention as antimicrobial compounds. Although bacteriocins have been predominantly exploited as food preservatives, they are now receiving increased attention as potential clinical antimicrobials and as possible immune-modulating agents. Infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria have been declared as a global threat to public health. Bacteriocins represent a potential solution to this worldwide threat due to their broad- or narrow-spectrum activity against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Notably, despite their role in food safety as natural alternatives to chemical preservatives, nisin remains the only bacteriocin legally approved by regulatory agencies as a food preservative. Moreover, insufficient data on the safety and toxicity of bacteriocins represent a barrier against the more widespread use of bacteriocins by the food and medical industry. Here, we focus on the most recent trends relating to the application of bacteriocins, their toxicity and impacts.

Nonword Repetition and Sentence Repetition as Clinical Markers of Specific Language Impairment: The Case of Cantonese.

Abstract: Purpose Recent research suggests that nonword repetition (NWR) and sentence repetition (SR) tasks can be used to discriminate between children with SLI and their typically developing age-matched (T...

Lessons from Enterprise Resource Planning Implementations in Ireland – Towards Smaller and Shorter ERP Projects:

Abstract: The enterprise resource planning (ERP) software market has been growing at a very fast pace over the last few years and has been predicted to keep growing rapidly in the long term. This has led to an abundance of media reports on the subject of ERP and to managers wondering whether their companies should implement ERP systems. In order to separate the reality of the ERP phenomenon from the hype that surrounds it, we studied 14 ERP implementation projects in Irish organizations and focused on the key relationships between organizations which attempt to implement ERP systems and their implementing partners. We found that the ERP implementations that are going on in Ireland at the moment are different to the projects that have been reported elsewhere in two key respects. Firstly, the organizations interested in ERP software are, on average, far smaller than the case studies reported in the literature and the majority of the cases we reviewed were small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Secondly, the durations of implementation were far shorter than reported elsewhere. These results are not surprising if one considers the smaller average size of Irish organizations, but they indicate that the ERP movement is truly ready for an extension towards the SME market. They also indicate that the duration of the implementation of ERP software may be related to the size and complexity of the client organization and that SMEs can expect to have an easier time implementing ERPs than the current literature suggests. We also found that software implementers play a key role, not only in technical terms, but also in managerial and political terms, because they can help their clients in correcting their expectations and perceptions of ERP systems and ERP implementations.

Bile stress response in Listeria monocytogenes LO28: adaptation, cross-protection, and identification of genetic loci involved in bile resistance.

Abstract: Bile is one of many barriers that Listeria monocytogenes must overcome in the human gastrointestinal tract in order to infect and cause disease. We demonstrated that stationary-phase cultures of L. monocytogenes LO28 were able to tolerate concentrations of bovine, porcine, and human bile and bile acids well in excess of those encountered in vivo. Strain LO28 was relatively bile resistant compared with other clinical isolates of L. monocytogenes, as well as with Listeria innocua, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium LT2, and Lactobacillus sakei. While exponential-phase L. monocytogenes LO28 cells were exquisitely sensitive to unconjugated bile acids, prior adaptation to sublethal levels of bile acids or heterologous stresses, such as acid, heat, salt, or sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), significantly enhanced bile resistance. This adaptive response was independent of protein synthesis, and in the cases of bile and SDS adaptation, occurred in seconds. In order to identify genetic loci involved in the bile tolerance phenotype of L. monocytogenes LO28, transposon (Tn917) and plasmid (pORI19) integration banks were screened for bile-sensitive mutants. The disrupted genes included a homologue of the capA locus required for capsule formation in Bacillus anthracis; a gene encoding the transcriptional regulator ZurR; a homologue of an Escherichia coli gene, lytB, involved in isoprenoid biosynthesis; a gene encoding a homologue of the Bacillus subtilis membrane protein YxiO; and a gene encoding an amino acid transporter with a putative role in pH homeostasis, gadE. Interestingly, all of the identified loci play putative roles in maintenance of the cell envelope or in stress responses.