Seafood is one of the most important components of a healthy diet due to its composition. With the Black, Marmara, Aegean and Mediterranean Sea, Turkey has substantial sources of seafood. Seas are highly impacted by environmental pollution. Among these, heavy metal pollution has long been recognized as a serious problem for seafood. As heavy metals cannot be degraded, they are deposited, assimilated or incorporated in water, sediment and aquatic animals. By these properties, they can be transferred to humans through the food chain especially by the consumption of fish and shellfish. The aim of this study is to determine the concentrations of Cd, As, Pb and Hg levels in selected fish species and marine animals from all of the 4 seas of Turkey by using the ICP-MS technique, and to compare the results with the legislations safe limits. For this purpose, 13 different fish species, mussels and shrimps have been obtained from the Black, Marmara, Aegean and Mediterranean Seas. According to the results, metal concentrations decrease in the order As>Pb>Hg>Cd. In all the seas, the same order was found. Statistically significant differences were observed in the metal levels between fish species and the shellfish in all regions. Except for the two samples, all the results was found compatible with the Turkish Food Codex and European Commission Regulation limits. Arsenic levels were detected between 0,076-4,230 mg/kg within the samples. Cadmium levels were detected as higher than the limits in two samples obtained from the Mediterranean Sea, Scophthalmus maximus and Mullus barbatus species as 0,076 mg/kg and 0,064 mg/kg, respectively. The highest and the lowest levels of mercury and lead were measured as 0,005-0,405 and 0,015-0,405 mg/kg, respectively. The results obtained from this study revealed that, except for a few cases, the selected heavy metal concentrations in most samples were below the limits. Also, besides the mussels and the shrimps, there was no single type of fish that was consistently high in all metals. The examined seas and the seafood were found to be safe for human consumption.

Pine honey is a honeydew honey that can be produced endemically in eastern Mediterranean. Turkey is the world's largest producer of pine honey with around 95% export share. Antibiotic residue in honey is still an important problem worldwide. The aim of this study was to determine sulfonamide and tetracycline group antibiotics in pine honey collected from Aegean Region of Turkey. For this purpose, 59 natural pine honey samples were detected by competitive enzyme-linked immunoassay method. Tetracycline group antibiotics were found in 35 honey samples out of 59 between 6 and 42 ppb, whereas in 24 of the samples the levels were below the detection level (< 4 ppb). Sulfonamide group antibiotics were found in 31 honey samples out of 59 between 3 and 32 ppb, while 28 samples were below the detection limit (< 2 ppb). There are no maximum residue limits established for antibiotics in honey according to the European Community regulations, which means honeys should not contain antibiotics.

The objectives of this study were to isolate and identify Salmonella spp. from broiler carcasses, wings and liver samples by immunomagnetic separation based cultivation technique, to verify the isolates as Salmonella spp. by the detection of oriC gene by PCR, to identify the isolates using malic acid dehydrogenase and DT104 specific primers as S. Typhimurium and S. Typhimurium DT104. Also to determine the two important virulence genes, virulence plasmid (spvC) and invasion (invA) for molecular characterization, to evaluate the antibiotic resistance profiles of the isolates. For this purpose, 110 broiler carcasses, 110 broiler wings and 110 broiler liver samples with a total number of 330 were analyzed. Ninety six (29.1%) of the samples were detected as contaminated with Salmonella spp. According to the results 11 isolates (11.4%) were identified as S. Typhimurium. None of these serotypes were determined as specific phage type DT104. InvA gene was detected from all the (100.0%) Salmonella isolates and 14 isolates (14.6%) were detected as positive for spvC gene. Eighty-three isolates (86.4%) were resistant to at least 5, 70 isolates (72.9 %) resistant to at least 7 and 36 isolates (37.5%) were resistant to at least 9 antibiotic. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONThis work is significant because Salmonella is still an important public health problem all around the world. This study would provide some data about the incidence of S. Typhimurium and S. Typhimurium DT104 in chicken meat and parts and the antibiotic resistance of the isolates in Turkey. Besides, the method used in study and the parts chosen for analysis would be a model for the other researchers who are thinking to study in this area.

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Summary:Species identification in food of animal origin is an important subject for food control. Adulteration in foods is relevant for economical, religous, legislation or public health concerning reasons. The aim of this study was to determine the adulteration in different meat products such as sucuk (n=37), sausage (n=33) and salami (n=32). A total of 102 different meat products obtained from various markets in Ankara were analyzed for species identification by PCR. According to the analyzes, five (13.5%) poultry, and one (2.7%) poultry and equine meats together were found in the sucuk samples that are not declared in their labels. Also, seven (21.8%) and two (6.1%) poultry meat were detected in 32 salami and 33 sausage samples, respectively. These results indicate that 15 (14.7%) of the total samples were found to contain undeclared species. As a result, there were meat products which were not in compliance with their labels in various markets, presenting a potential public health risk and economical losses of consumers.Keywords: Adulteration, meat species identification, mislabeling, PCR. Farklı tip et ürünlerinde PZR ile tür tayiniÖzet: Et ürünlerinde tür tayini gıda güvenliği açısından önemli bir konudur. Etikette bildirilmeyen çeşitli hayvan türlerine ait etlerin kullanımı, tüketici sağlığı, ülke ekonomisi, dini ve yasal düzenlemeler ile ilişkilendirilmektedir. Bu çalışmada, sucuk, salam, sosis gibi ürünlerde farklı türlere ait etlerin varlığının tespiti amaçlanmıştır. Araştırmada Ankara'da çeşitli marketlerde satışa sunulan toplam 102 adet işlenmiş et ürünü tür tayini amacıyla PZR yöntemi kullanılarak incelenmiştir. Yapılan analizler sonucunda, incelenen 37 adet sucuk örneğinden etikette belirtilmeyen 5 (%13.5) kanatlı, 1 (%2.7) kanatlı ve tek tırnaklı eti tespit edilmiştir. Benzer şeklide, 32 salam örneğinin yedisinde (%21.8), 33 adet sosis örneğinin de ikisinde (%6.1) kanatlı eti bulunmuştur. Ürünlerin etiket bilgileri karşılaştırıldığında 15 adet (% 14.7) örneğin etiketinde belirtilmeyen farklı hayvan türlerine ait etlerden üretildiği tespit edilmiştir. Sonuç olarak, Ankara'da farklı marketlerden alınan işlenmiş et ürünleri örneklerinde, etiketlerinde belirtilmeyen hayvan türlerine ait etlerin kullanıldığı ve bu durumun potansiyel halk sağlığı sorunları yanında tüketicinin ekonomik olarak da kayba uğramasına sebep olabileceği ortaya konmuştur. Anahtar sözcükler: Hile, et tür tayini, yanlış etiketleme, PZR.