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A semiautomated two-step method for in vitro selection of DNA aptamers using magnetic separation and solid-phase emulsion polymerase chain reaction has been developed. The application of a magnetic separator allows the simultaneous processing of up to 12 SELEXs (systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment) with different targets or buffer conditions. Using a magnetic separator and covalent target immobilization on magnetic beads, the selection process was simplified and the substeps of aptamer/target incubation, washing, and elution of the aptamers were merged into one automated procedure called "FISHing". Without further processing the resulting FISHing eluates are suitable for BEAMing (beads, emulsion, amplification, and magnetics), which includes the amplification by emPCR (emulsion polymerase chain reaction) and strand separation by the implementation of covalently immobilized reverse primers on magnetic beads. The novel selection process has been proved and validated by selecting and characterization of aptamers to the wine fining agent lysozyme.

a b s t r a c tTwo commercial available lactases from Aspergillus oryzae and Kluyveromyces lactis were used to study the synthesis of galactooligosaccharides (GOS) in sweet and acid whey. At 38 g L À1 initial lactose concentration, the A. oryzae enzyme gave a GOS yield of 10.91 ± 0.01% in lactose solution, 10.93 ± 0.18% in sweet whey and 11.32 ± 0.59% in acid whey. Thus, the components in whey did not influence the enzymes transgalactolytic activity. On the other hand, the K. lactis enzyme showed a strong dependence on whey type and whey concentration. At 38 g L À1 initial lactose concentration, GOS yields were 10.93 ± 0.26% in lactose solution, 4.30 ± 0.17% in sweet whey and 10.56 ± 0.41% in acid whey. However, with increasing initial lactose concentration, the inhibitory effect of sweet whey was decreasing, which resulted in even higher yields than in lactose solution.

Galactooligosaccharides (GOS) are synthesized by the enzyme β-galactosidase during the hydrolysis of lactose. In this so-called transgalactosylation reaction the galactosyl moiety is transferred to another sugar molecule instead of water resulting in oligosaccharides of different chain lengths and glycosidic linkages. Because their structures are similar to oligosaccharides present in human breast milk, they act as prebiotics, which has been shown for infants and adults to be alike. While so far most of the research to maximize GOS yield has been carried out using buffered lactose solution as a starting material, more and more work is now conducted with dairy by-products such as whey and whey permeate, or even milk, for direct GOS synthesis in order to develop new GOS-enriched dairy products. This review aims to summarize the results obtained with various dairy liquids, and it rates their suitabilities to act as raw material for GOS production. Most of the studies using whey or milk have been carried out with enzymes from Aspergillus oryzae, Kluyveromyces lactis, Bacillus circulans, Streptococcus thermophilus, and several Lactobacillus species. As the initial lactose concentration (ILC) is known to be a crucial factor for high GOS yield, most of the research has been done with concentrated or supplemented milk and whey. However, a clear dependency on ILC could only be observed for the A. oryzae lactase, indicating a strong influence of milk components like minerals and proteins on the transfer activities of most enzymes.

Aerobic spores pose serious problems for both food product manufacturers and consumers. Milk is particularly at risk and thus an important issue of preventive consumer protection and quality assurance. The spore-former Bacillus cereus is a food poisoning Gram-positive pathogen which mainly produces two different types of toxins, the diarrhea inducing and the emetic toxins. Reliable and rapid analytical assays for the detection of B. cereus spores are required, which could be achieved by combining in vitro generated aptamers with highly specific molecular biological techniques. For the development of routine bioanalytical approaches, already existing aptamers with high affinity to B. cereus spores have been characterized by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy and fluorescence microscopy in terms of their dissociation constants and selectivity. Dissociation constants in the low nanomolar range (from 5.2 to 52.4 nM) were determined. Subsequently, the characterized aptamers were utilized for the establishment and validation of an aptamer-based trapping technique in both milk simulating buffer and milk with fat contents between 0.3 and 3.5%. Thereby, enrichment factors of up to 6-fold could be achieved. It could be observed that trapping protocol and characterized aptamers were fully adaptable to the application in milk. Due to the fact that aptamer selectivity is limited, a highly specific real time PCR assay was utilized following trapping to gain a higher degree of selectivity.

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The quality of the beverage industry's products has to be constantly monitored to fulfill consumers' high expectations. The thermo-acidophilic Gram-positive Alicyclobacillus spp. are not pathogenic, but their heat-resistant endospores can survive juice-processing conditions and have become a major economic concern for the fruit juice industry. Current detection methods rely on cultivation, isolation, and organism identification, which can take up to a week, resulting in economic loss. This work presents the selection and identification of DNA aptamers targeting Alicyclobacillus spores by spore-SELEX (systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment) in orange-juice-simulating buffer. The selection process was verified by various techniques, including flow cytometric binding assays, radioactive binding assays, and agarose gel electrophoresis. The subsequent aptamer characterization included the determination of dissociations constants and selectivity by different techniques, such as surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy and fluorescence microscopy. In summary, 10 different aptamers with an affinity to Alicyclobacillus spp. have been developed, analyzed, and characterized in terms of affinity and specificity.

Marzipan is a confectionary which is mostly offered in form of filled chocolate, pralines, or pure. According to the German guidelines for oil seeds only almonds, sugar and water are admitted ingredients of marzipan. A product very similar in taste is persipan which is used in the confectionary industry because of its stronger flavor. For persipan production almonds are replaced by debittered apricot or peach kernels. To guarantee high quality products for consumers, German raw paste producers have agreed a limit of apricot kernels in marzipan raw paste of 0.5%. Different DNA-based methods for quantitation of persipan contaminations in marzipan are already published. To increase the detection specificity compared to published intercalation dye-based assays, the present work demonstrate the utilization of a multiplex real-time PCR based on the Plexor technology. Thus, the present work enables the detection of at least 0.1% apricot DNA in almond DNA or less. By analyzing DNA mixtures, the theoretical limit of quantification of the duplex PCR for the quantitation of persipan raw paste DNA in marzipan raw paste DNA was determined as 0.05%.