Characterization of Bacillus megaterium, Bacillus pumilus, and Paenibacillus polymyxa isolated from a Pinot noir wine from Western Washington State.

This report provides the first confirmed evidence of Bacillus-like bacteria present in a wine from Washington State. These bacteria were isolated from a 2013 Pinot noir wine whose aroma was sensorially described as being 'dirty' or 'pond scum.' Based on physiological traits and genetic sequencing, three bacterial isolates were identified as Bacillus megaterium (strain NHO-1), Bacillus pumilus (strain NHO-2), and Paenibacillus polymyxa (strain NHO-3). These bacteria grew in synthetic media of low pH (pH 3.5) while some survived ethanol concentrations up to 15% v/v. However, none tolerated molecular SO2 concentrations ≥0.4 mg/l. Growth of strains NHO-1 and NHO-3 in a Merlot grape juice resulted in increases of titratable and volatile acidities while decreases in titratable acidity were noted for NHO-2.

Regional differences in birth size: a comparison between the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study and contemporaneous births on the Åland Islands.

The Åland Islands were recently ranked as Finland's healthiest region with lower prevalence of several non-communicable diseases compared with the national mean. We have compared birth characteristics of 1697 individuals born on the Åland Islands between 1937 and 1944 with contemporaneous data from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study (HBCS; n=11,808). This is a first step towards a potential future analysis of Ålandic health from a life-course perspective. Mean birth weight and length were calculated for both cohorts. Birth weight was entered into a multiple linear regression model with sex, maternal age, marital status and birth year as predictors. Mean birth weight in the Åland cohort was 3499 g, 87 g (95% CI 62; 111) higher compared with the HBCS. Sex and maternal marital status were the strongest predictors of birth weight. More detailed studies are needed to explore the potential effects of this difference in average birth weight between cohorts.

Random networks of fibres display maximal heterogeneity in the distribution of elastic energy.

Above a small length scale, the distribution of local elastic energies in a material under an external load is typically Gaussian, and the dependence of the average elastic energy on strain defines the stiffness of the material. Some particular materials, such as granular packings, suspensions at the jamming transition, crumpled sheets and dense cellular aggregates, display under compression an exponential distribution of elastic energies, but also in this case the elastic properties are well defined. We demonstrate here that networks of fibres, which form uncorrelated non-fractal structures, have under external load a scale invariant distribution of elastic energy (epsilon) at the fibre-fibre contacts proportional to 1/epsilon. This distribution is much broader than any other distribution observed before for elastic energies in a material. We show that for small compressions it holds over 10 orders of magnitude in epsilon. In such a material a few 'hot spots' carry most of the elastic load. Consequently, these materials are highly susceptible to local irreversible deformations, and are thereby extremely efficient for damping vibrations.

The influence of nitrogen and biotin interactions on the performance of Saccharomyces in alcoholic fermentations.

AIM: To study the impact of assimilable nitrogen, biotin and their interaction on growth, fermentation rate and volatile formation by Saccharomyces. METHODS AND RESULTS: Fermentations of synthetic grape juice media were conducted in a factorial design with yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN) (60 or 250 mg l(-1)) and biotin (0, 1 or 10 microg l(-1)) as variables. All media contained 240 g l(-1) glucose + fructose (1 : 1) and were fermented using biotin-depleted Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains EC1118 or UCD 522. Both strains exhibited weak growth and sluggish fermentation rates without biotin. Increased nitrogen concentration resulted in higher maximum fermentation rates, while adjusting biotin from 1 to 10 microg l(-1) had no effect. Nitrogen x biotin interactions influenced fermentation time, production of higher alcohols and hydrogen sulfide (H(2)S). Maximum H(2)S production occurred in the medium containing 60 mg l(-1) YAN and 1 microg l(-1) biotin. CONCLUSIONS: Nitrogen x biotin interactions affect fermentation time and volatile production by Saccharomyces depending on strain. Biotin concentrations sufficient to complete fermentation may affect the organoleptic impact of wine. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This study demonstrates the necessity to consider nutrient interactions when diagnosing problem fermentations.

Inhibition of Salmonella Typhimurium and Listeria monocytogenes in mung bean sprouts by chemical treatment.

This study was undertaken to compare the efficacies of chlorous acid (268 ppm), sodium hypochlorite (200 ppm), and lactic acid (2%) in eliminating total mesophilic microorganisms, Salmonella Typhimurium, and Listeria monocytogenes on commercial mung bean sprouts immediately after treatment and during posttreatment refrigerated storage. Treatment with sodium hypochlorite for 10 min did not reduce the total aerobic count. However, treatment with lactic acid and chlorous acid for 10 min initially reduced the total aerobic count by 0.6 and 0.8 log CFU/g, respectively, and maintained the same level or a lower level of the total aerobic count during the storage time. Treatment with chlorous acid reduced Salmonella Typhimurium from 5.0 log to undetectable levels (<0.48 log CFU/g), and the pathogen remained undetectable over a 9-day storage period. Treatment with lactic acid resulted in an initial 3-log reduction and further reduced the number of Salmonella Typhimurium cells to undetectable levels after 3 days. For L. monocytogenes, treatment with chlorous acid resulted in an initial 5-log reduction, and treatment with lactic acid resulted in a 2-log reduction at the beginning and undetectable levels after 9 days. When chemically injured cells were investigated by the selective overlay method, no statistical difference was observed (P < 0.05) between the number of injured cells recovered following treatment with chlorous acid and the number of bacteria counted on selective media, whereas sodium hypochlorite generated more injured cells than the other treatments did. These data suggest that treatment with chlorous acid may be useful in reducing total mesophilic microorganisms, Salmonella Typhimurium, and L. monocytogenes in commercial mung bean sprouts.

Investigations of aroma volatile biosynthesis under anoxic conditions and in different tissues of "Redchief Delicious" apple fruit (Malus domestica Borkh.).

Disks from different tissues were obtained from "Redchief Delicious" apple fruit (Malus domestica Borkh.) and analyzed for the ability to metabolize 1-pentanol as well as synthesize constitutive esters and alcohols under anoxic and aerobic conditions. The skin tissue displayed a greater capacity to synthesize pentanal, pentyl acetate, pentyl propionate, pentyl butyrate, and pentyl hexanoate than the hypanthial and carpellary tissues during incubation with 1-pentanol. With the exception of pentyl acetate and pentyl propionate biosynthesis, the hypanthial tissue synthesized these compounds at a higher rate than the carpellary tissue. Anoxia inhibited both constituent and 1-pentanol-derived ester biosynthesis. While anoxia inhibited ester biosynthesis, ethanol biosynthesis increased at a greater rate in tissue disks held under these conditions. Biosynthesis of 1-butanol, 2-methyl-1-butanol, and 1-hexanol was greater in tissue disks held in air during the first part of the measurement period and dropped off more rapidly than those transpiring in tissue disks held under anoxic conditions. The biosynthetic rates of all esters, both constituent and 1-pentanol-derived, increased as a result of air exposure. While hypoxic or anoxic conditions may promote ethanol synthesis, these conditions also appear to inhibit the formation of the ethanol-derived esters partially responsible for the off-flavor in apples attributed to ultralow O(2) controlled atmosphere storage.

Human spermicidal activity of inorganic and organic oxidants.

OBJECTIVE: To identify prospective oxidants that rapidly immobilize human sperm upon contact with human semen. DESIGN: Inorganic, organic, and enzymatically-generated oxidants were mixed with human semen and spermicidal activity was tracked by a modified Sander-Cramer assay. SETTING: Commercial and university-based laboratories. PATIENT(S): Semen samples obtained through a university-based andrology laboratory. INTERVENTION(S): Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Quantitation of spermicidal activity of test oxidants. RESULT(S): Sperm lost motility within 20 seconds of exposure to enzymatically generated free iodine (I(2)). Toluidine blue, phenazine methosulfate, or methylene blue exhibited some, albeit much less, spermicidal activity. Oxidants formed by mixing ascorbic acid with Fe(III)-EDTA, xanthine with xanthine oxidase, or by exposing sperm to the nitric oxide generator, SIN-1 (3-morpholinosydnonimine hydrochloride), were far less potent spermicidal agents. CONCLUSION(S): Free I(2) formed in situ and presented to semen is an extremely potent spermicide. Additional studies on methods of generating de novo I(2) may be beneficial in developing a novel new class of nondetergent-based spermicides.

Regional, temporal, and seasonal variations in births and deaths: the effects of famines.

A knowledge of the seasonal variation in births and deaths during normal years is important for analyses of the effects of wars, famines, epidemics or similar privations on these two variables. In studies of seasonality, multiple trigonometric regression models are more flexible than the simple sine curve. The seasonal variation in mortality in Iceland, 1856-1990, shows a strong secular decrease, and a connection between this and the epidemiological transition is considered. As a consequence of the severe famine in Finland in 1867-68, the mortality for the whole year 1868 was almost four times as high as during normal years, and the seasonality of the mortality was even more accentuated. The birth rate in Finland during 1868 was about 70 percent of that during normal years and showed an aberrant seasonality, with a strong trough from October 1868 to February 1869 (fewer conceptions between January and May 1868, when the food shortage was severe).

Statistical analysis of the seasonal variation in demographic data.

There has been little agreement as to whether reproduction or similar demographic events occur seasonally and, especially, whether there is any universal seasonal pattern. One reason is that the seasonal pattern may vary in different populations and at different times. Another reason is that different statistical methods have been used. Every statistical model is based on certain assumed conditions and hence is designed to identify specific components of the seasonal pattern. Therefore, the statistical method applied should be chosen with due consideration. In this study we present, develop, and compare different statistical methods for the study of seasonal variation. Furthermore, we stress that the methods are applicable for the analysis of many kinds of demographic data. The first approaches in the literature were based on monthly frequencies, on the simple sine curve, and on the approximation that the months are of equal length. Later, "the population at risk" and the fact that the months have different lengths were considered. Under these later assumptions the targets of the statistical analyses are the rates. In this study we present and generalize the earlier models. Furthermore, we use trigonometric regression methods. The trigonometric regression model in its simplest form corresponds to the sine curve. We compare the regression methods with the earlier models and reanalyze some data. Our results show that models for rates eliminate the disturbing effects of the varying length of the months, including the effect of leap years, and of the seasonal pattern of the population at risk. Therefore, they give the purest analysis of the seasonal pattern of the demographic data in question, e.g., rates of general births, twin maternities, neural tube defects, and mortality. Our main finding is that the trigonometric regression methods are more flexible and easier to handle than the earlier methods, particularly when the data differ from the simple sine curve.

Formation of volatile branched chain esters in bananas (Musa sapientum L.).

Substrates controlling the formation of branched chain volatile esters in ripening bananas were investigated by the application of alcohol and amino acid precursors to whole fruit and tissue samples. The resulting changes in the profile of the volatile esters were determined using SPME and GC. These changes revealed the selectivity characteristics of the esterification enzyme AAT, the availability of acyl CoA's for ester formation, and the role of substrate supply on volatile production. The results obtained suggest that substrate supply is a major determinant of the quantitative and qualitative composition of the resulting aroma profile.

Seasonal variation of livebirths, stillbirths, extramarital births and twin maternities in Switzerland.

A study was made of the seasonal variation in all births, and births according to marital status, multiplicity and birth status (live and still) in Switzerland recorded between 1876 and 1990. To obtain seasonal variation in as pure as possible form, our analyses are based on rates. When comparing the seasonality in data sets showing markedly different levels, standardised indices were used. Assuming the length of pregnancies with twins to be about one month shorter than for pregnancies with singletons, lagged twinning rates were calculated but, in comparison with actual twinning rates, the general seasonal variation remained. Therefore, this study was based on actual twinning rates. A monotonic increase in the amplitude of the seasonal variation in general births was noted for the period 1876-1930, with strong seasonal variation holding for 1921-1980. After that, a marked decline in the amplitude can be observed. Seasonality of both all births and twin maternities showed very similar pattern for the periods 1876-1930 and 1969-1990, with maxima in the spring (March-May) and troughs in late autumn (October-December). Twin maternities showed a strong seasonality for the period 1876-1930, being about 20% higher in March than in October. The twinning rate in the period 1876-1930 was about 2.6 per thousand units higher than in the period 1969-90. For twin maternities there was also a stronger seasonal variation during the earlier period than during the later one. The pattern of the seasonal variation for extramarital births, showing a maximum in February (conceptions in May-June) and a minimum in August (conceptions in November-December) with a difference of no less than 24% was more marked than for the marital births. It seems likely that this seasonality of extra-marital maternities was due mainly to seasonal variation of coital rates and multiple ovulation in the early summer months coinciding with optima of light, temperature and food supply. A strong reduction in the rate of stillbirths (gestational age more than 29 weeks) was observed during the twentieth century. The stillbirth rate declined from about 40 per 1000 in the 1870s to fewer than 5 per 1000 in the 1980s. Irrespective of this strong decline in the stillbirth rate, the same seasonal rhythm was noticed throughout the period with high stillbirth rates among births around March and low rates during the summer and autumn.

Statistical analysis of the seasonal variation in the twinning rate.

There have been few secular analyses of the seasonal variation in human twinning and the results are conflicting. One reason for this is that the seasonal pattern of twinning varies in different populations and at different periods. Another reason is that the statistical methods used are different. The changing pattern of seasonal variation in twinning rates and total maternities in Denmark was traced for three periods (1855-69, 1870-94, and 1937-84). Two alternative methods of analysis are considered. The method of Walter and Elwood and a trigonometric regression model give closely similar results. The seasonal distribution of twin maternities for the periods in the 19th century showed highly significant departures. For both twin and general maternities, the main peaks can be seen from March to June and a local peak in September. During the spring-summer season the twinning rates were higher than the total birth rates, indicating a stronger seasonal variation for the twin maternities than for the general maternities. For 1937-84, there was a similar, but less accentuated, pattern. Studies of other populations are compared with the Danish results. The more accentuated seasonal variation of twinning in the past indicate that some factors in the past affected women during summer-autumn and around Christmas time, making them more fecund and particularly to be more prone to polyovulation and/or more able to complete a gestation with multiple embryos.

Skewed secondary sex ratio in the offspring of carriers of the 214G > A mutation of the RS1 gene.

Carriers of X-linked juvenile retinoschisis (RS) were previously suggested to give birth to an excess of boys. We determined the carrier status for the 214G > A mutation of the RS1 gene in 202 females belonging to a large RS founder pedigree. The secondary sex ratio (SSR) in the offspring of 149 carriers was 129.8 (z = 2.25), which differed significantly from that of the Finnish population (SSR 106) but not from that of 53 non-carrier females belonging to the same pedigree (SSR 116.7; z = 0.51). Since possible causes for the skewed SSR include factors affecting fertilisation, implantation and embryonic death, we searched for expression of RS1 in various placental and uterine cells and found that, in addition to the retina, RS1 is expressed in the uterus. We hypothesize that the RS1 protein has a role in implantation or embryonic survival.

Autosomal recessive cornea plana. A clinical and genetic study of 78 cases in Finland.

PURPOSE: To review the literature of autosomal recessive cornea plana (RCP) and to perform a clinical and genetic study on this disorder in Finland. The 78 Finnish RCP patients represent the majority of RCP cases worldwide; outside Finland only 35 cases have been reported. METHODS: Families with RCP, particularly in northern Finland, have been followed up by the senior author since the 1950s and extensive genealogical studies have been made. RESULTS: The most typical symptoms are greatly reduced corneal refraction, 25-35 dioptres, causing strong hyperopia, slight microcornea, an extended limbus zone, a central, deep corneal opacity and a marked arcus senilis, seen even before the age of 20. We present a pedigree comprising 33 affected persons with cornea plana. We have mapped the two genes for the dominantly and the recessively inherited type of cornea plana to the same region on the long arm of chromosome 12, (12q21). CONCLUSIONS: In northern Finland RCP has a higher frequency than elsewhere, probably as a result of a strong founder effect in the population that arrived in these regions approx. 400 years ago. The strong accumulation of this rare disease in these isolated areas and the strong genealogical connections between different families with RCP, suggest that probably all the Finnish RCP cases are caused by the same mutation.

The genetics of cornea plana congenita.

Cornea plana congenita is believed to occur in a mild autosomal dominant (CNA1) and a more severe autosomal recessive (CNA2) form. We recently assigned a CNA2 locus to a region on chromosome 12 by linkage analysis. In this study we compared these traits clinically and genetically. Using the horizontal corneal refraction value in diopters (D) as a parameter, a control population (n = 473) had a mean value of 43 center dot 4 (SD 1 center dot 5 D) for men and 43 center dot 7 (SD 1 center dot 6 D) for women, whereas in 51 subjects affected with CNA2 the mean value was 29 center dot 9 (SD 5 center dot 2 D) and in five subjects affected with CNA1 the mean value was 37 center dot 8 (SD 1 center dot 6 D). By linkage analysis in two CNA1 families the CNA2 locus could be conclusively excluded. These data suggest that at least two forms of hereditary cornea plana exist which are both clinically and genetically distinct.

Changes of the eye caused by the climate in Rwanda, Africa.

Rwanda is a small but densely populated country, situated at the watershed between East and West Africa, close to the equator. The mean elevation is around 1500 m. We studied 114 males (mean age 28.42 years) and 111 females (mean age 29.84 years) at the ophthalmological outpatient department of the Centre Hospitalier in Kigali. Changes to the eye caused by the climate were fewer than expected. Only 10 patients (5 males, 5 females) with pterygium (mean age 33.0 years), and four males and two females with climatic droplet keratopathy (mean age 47.5 years) were observed. However, the size of the pinguecula was marked. Corneal thickness, measured with Haag-Streit's device, averaged 0.524 mm in 38 males and 0.521 mm in 38 females. The Rwandans showed a normal chamber depth, a mean of 2.98 mm being noted in 107 males and a mean of 2.80 mm in 106 females.

Biometric analysis of the multiple maternities in Finland, 1881-1990, and in Sweden since 1751.

Hellin's law states that if the twinning rate is w, then the triplet rate is w2, the quadruplet rate is w3, and so forth. The opinion of today is that Hellin's law holds only approximately. In this study the inaccuracy of Hellin's law is studied and the discrepancies are explained mathematically. In our earlier studies we built linear models for the twinning rate. Because most of the mothers are younger than 40 years of age and because in this age interval the twinning rate depends linearly on age, linear regression methods have been applied. Hellin's law suggests using the square-root transformation of the triplet rate r. Statistical arguments speak in favor of using the arcsin square root of r transformation. We discuss both transformations. Despite the fact that Hellin's law is only approximate, the arcsin transformation proves valuable. The transformed triplet rate can be modeled in a way similar to the twinning rate. We consider secular data from Finland for 1881-1990 and from Sweden since 1751. Using Hellin's law, we compare the triplet rates and the twinning rates and study the time trends of the observed twinning and triplet rates. The data are standardized. Our theoretical results are applied to multiple maternity data for Finland. Using maternal age as the regressor, we build a linear model for the twinning rate and for the arcsin-transformed triplet rate. This analysis shows a decreasing linear time trend in the triplet series for the period 1881-1950 but not in the twinning series. The triplet rate has an increasing trend after 1960, which seems to be mainly caused by artificial induction of ovulation.