The main chemical composition, contents of total phenolic (TPh), total flavonoid (TF), and total monomeric anthocyianin (TMA), as well as the antioxidant activity of two raspberry cultivars (Meeker and Willamette), two blackberry cultivars (Čačanska bestrna and Thornfree) and wild bilberry were studied. The raspberry cultivars had the highest total solids among fruits investigated. Bilberry fruits had the highest sugar-to-acid ratio. Blackberry fruits were richer in crude fibers (cellulose) in comparison to raspberry and bilberry fruits. The content of pectic substances was highest in the bilberry. Also, bilberry had a highest content of TPh (808.12 mg GAE/100 g FW), TF (716.31 mg RE/100 g FW) and TMA (447.83 mg CGE/100 g FW). The antioxidant activity was evaluated spectrophotometrically, using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity assay. The DPPH free radical scavenging activity, expressed as the EC50 value (in mg of fresh weight of berry fruit per ml of the reaction mixture), of bilberry (0.3157 ± 0.0145 mg/ml) was the highest. These results also showed that the antioxidant value of 100 g FW bilberry, raspberry - Willamette, raspberry - Meeker, blackberry - Čačanska bestrna and blackberry - Thornfree is equivalent to 576.50 mg, 282.74 mg, 191.58 mg, 222.28 mg and 272.01 mg of vitamin C, respectively. There was a significant positive correlation between the antioxidant activities and content of total phenolics (RTPh 2=0.9627), flavonoids (RTF 2=0.9598) and anthocyanins (RTMA 2=0.9496) in berry fruits. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR 31044

The study of metal bioaccumulation in the gills of European chub (Squalius cephalus) was conducted in September 2009 at the medium-sized rural river Sutla, characterized by agricultural and municipal type of water contamination. The concentration ranges were established for the first time in the soluble, metabolically available fractions of chub gills for 12 metals, which are environmentally extremely relevant and yet only seldom studied, as follows in a decreasing order: K, 225-895 mg L(-1); Na, 78-366 mg L(-1); Ca, 19-62 mg L(-1); Mg, 13-47 mg L(-1); Rb, 164-1762 μg L(-1); Sr, 24-81 μg L(-1); Ba, 13-67 μg L(-1); Mo, 1.3-16 μg L(-1); Co, 0.7-2.7 μg L(-1); Li, 0.4-2.2 μg L(-1); Cs, 0.2-1.9 μg L(-1); and V, 0.1-1.8 μg L(-1). The concentrations of Fe (1.6-6.4 mg L(-1)) and Mn (16-69 μg L(-1)) were also determined and were in agreement with previous reports. By application of general linear modelling, the influence of different abiotic (metal exposure level) and biotic parameters (fish sex, age, size and condition) on metal bioaccumulation was tested. It was established that bioaccumulation of many metals in fish depended on various physiological conditions, wherein Ba could be singled out as metal exhibiting the strongest association with one of biotic parameters, being significantly higher in smaller fish. However, it was also undoubtedly demonstrated that the concentrations of three metals can be applied as reliable indicators of metal exposure even in the conditions of low or moderate water contamination, such as observed in the Sutla River, and those were nonessential elements Li and Cs and essential element Fe. The results of our study present an important contribution to maintenance of high ecological status of European freshwaters, through enrichment of knowledge on the bioaccumulation of various metals in gills of European chub as frequently applied bioindicator species in monitoring of water pollution.

The purpose of this study was to find out whether a set of habitat characteristics, derived from the National Corine Land Cover (CLC) database of habitat types, could indicate the occurrence of white stork nests in a settlement. The analyses were performed for the settlements closer than 35 km from the Drava River (northern Croatia). Sixteen habitat characteristics were determined around 257 settlements occupied with white stork nests and 152 control sites without white stork nests within the same geographic region. We performed multivariate inspection of the data and a non-metric multidimensional preference analysis. The best variables for stork habitat selection were: distance to the nearest grassland habitat (P < 0.0001), distance to three nearest grassland habitats (P < 0.0001), altitude of the settlements above the sea level (P < 0.001), sum of distances to the three nearest agricultural mosaic habitats (P < 0.005) and standardized area proportion of forests (P < 0.05). The explanatory capacity of the model was 81.1%. We conclude that it is possible to define a small number of habitat characteristics derived from CLC database which can indicate the occurrence of white stork nests.

A systematic investigation of non-phosphorus containing glycolipids (GL) was conducted in the northern Adriatic Sea during two years at two stations with different nutrient loads. GL concentration varied both spatially and temporally, with values of 1.1-21.5 μg/L and 0.4-44.7 μg/L in the particulate and the dissolved fraction, respectively. The highest concentrations were measured during summer in surface waters and at the more oligotrophic station, where GL yields (% of total lipids) were often higher than 20% and 50% in the particulate and dissolved fractions, respectively. To obtain more insight into factors governing GL accumulation autotrophic plankton community structure (pico-, nano- and microplankton fractions), chlorophyll a, heterotrophic bacteria and nutrient concentrations were measured together with hydrographic parameters and sunlight intensity. During the investigated period smaller autotrophic plankton cells (pico- and followed by nanoplankton) prevailed in abundance over larger cells (microplankton), which were found in large numbers in freshened surface samples. Several major findings resulted from the study. Firstly, during PO4 limitation, particularly at the oligotrophic station, enhanced glycolipid instead of phospholipid accumulation takes place, representing an effective phosphate-conserving mechanism. Secondly, results suggest that at seawater temperatures >19 °C autotrophic plankton considerably accumulate GL, probably to achieve thermal stability. Thirdly, high sunlight intensities seem to influence increased GL accumulation; GL possibly plays a role in cell mechanisms that prevent/mitigate photooxidation. And finally, substantial accumulation of GL detected in the dissolved fraction could be related to the fact that GL do not contain biologically relevant elements, like phosphorus, which makes them an unattractive substrate for enzyme activity. Therefore, substantial portion of CO2 could be removed from the atmosphere in P-limited regions during summer via its capture by plankton and conversion to GL.

Spices are widely used in food processing. One of the main disadvantages of spices application is their frequent microbiological spoilage. Health benefits (microbiological status, mineral and heavy metal content) of commercial ground paprika (Capsicum annuum), as well as the colour and microbiological status of its conventional and supercritical oleoresins were examined in this work