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Two different peptones obtained by enzymatic hydrolysis of yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) head waste have been shown to be effective in promoting the growth of lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus bulgaricus Persian Type Culture Collection (PTCC) 1332, Lactobacillus acidophilus PTCC 1643, Lactobacillus casei PTCC 1608, Lactobacillus delbrukii PTCC 1333, Lactobacillus plantarum PTCC 1058, Lactococcus lactis PTCC 1336, and Lactobacillus sakei PTCC 1712). Peptones obtained from the enzymatic hydrolysis with Alcalase or Protamex were used instead of the standard peptones used in commercial MRS media. Peptones produced by Alcalase and Protamex had a 34% and 19% degree of hydrolysis, respectively. The resultsshowed that the peptones from Alcalase and Protamex were better at promoting lactic acid bacteria (LAB) growth than the commercial MRS media (P<0.05). The choice of proteolytic enzyme used to produce the fish hydrolysate had a considerable impact on the performance of the resulting hydrolysate, both in terms of maximum growth rate and biomass production. Peptones produced using Alcalase, with a higher degree of hydrolysis, induced better growth and performed better overall as an LAB substrate than those using Protamex. Current study revealed that enzymatic-modified fish by-products can be used as low cast nitrogen source for bacterial growth.

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Abstract-People with limb amputation deal with thermal stresses in their daily activities. Unfortunately, in the majority of this population, all thermal transfer mechanisms, including convection, radiation, evaporation, and conduction, can be disturbed due to the prosthetic socket barrier, decreased body surface area, and/or vascular disease. The thermal environment inside prosthetic sockets, in addition to decreased quality of life and prosthesis use, comfort, and satisfaction, could put people with amputation at high risk for skin irritations. The current review explores the importance of thermal and perspiration discomfort inside prosthetic sockets by providing an insight into the prevalence of the problem. The literature search was performed in two databases, PubMed and Web of Knowledge, to find relevant articles. After considering the review criteria and hand-searching the reference sections of the selected studies, 38 studies were listed for review and data extraction. This review revealed that more than 53% of people with amputation in the selected studies experienced heat and/or perspiration discomfort inside their prostheses. In spite of great technological advances, current prostheses are unable to resolve this problem. Therefore, more attention must be paid by researchers, clinicians, and manufacturers of prosthetic components to thermal-related biomechanics of soft tissues, proper fabrication technique, material selection, and introduction of efficient thermoregulatory systems.

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BackgroundIn malaria endemic areas, continuous exposure to Plasmodium parasites leads to asymptomatic carriers that provide a fundamental reservoir of parasites, contributing to the persistence of malaria transmission. Therefore, in the present investigation, the presence and prevalence of malaria asymptomatic cases were determined to evaluate the reservoir of infection in two malaria endemic areas with a previous history of malaria transmission in the south of Iran, Bashagard and Ghale-Ganj districts of Hormozgan and Kerman provinces, respectively, where malaria transmission has been drastically reduced in the recent years.MethodsThe population samples (n=500 from each of the studied areas) were randomly collected from non-febrile, long-term residing, aged two to over 60years, during 20092010. Three identical surveys were carried out in both study areas and in each phase all the consent participants were interviewed and clinically examined. In all, three surveys to detect hidden parasite reservoirs (both Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax), thick and thin blood smears and a highly sensitive nested-PCR were applied. In addition, the sero-prevalence survey for detecting malaria exposure was done by using a serological marker.ResultsIn this study, P. vivax and P. falciparum parasites were not detected by light microscopy and nested-PCR assay in all three surveys of samples. Antibody responses against P. vivax and P. falciparum were detected in 1 % and 0.2 % of the total examined individuals, respectively, in Bashagard district. Regarding to Ghale-Ganj district, about 0.9% of the individuals had IgG -specific antibody to P. vivax at the first and second surveys, but at the third survey 0.45% of the participants had positive antibody to P. vivax parasite. IgG -specific antibody to P. falciparum was detected in 0.2% of the participants at the first and follow-up surveys. The overall regional differences were not statistically significant (P>0.05).ConclusionTaken together, the lack of asymptomatic carrier with the evidence of extremely low sero-positive to both P. vivax and P. falciparum among examined individuals supported the limited recent transmission in the studied areas and, therefore, these parts of Iran have potential to eliminate the disease in the next few years. However, continued follow up and action are still needed in both studied areas and also in their neighbouring province, Sistan and Baluchistan, which has the highest reported cases of malaria in Iran and also, has the largest border line with Afghanistan and Pakistan, with no elimination activities. This data will provide useful information for managing elimination activities in Iran.

Chemical (pH 3.3, 70°C, 85°C; pH 12, 70°C, 85°C) and biochemical (Alcalase, Protamex, Neutrase, Flavourzyme, and Trypsin) hydrolysis of Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) visceral protein was investigated. The results of this study revealed that there are significant differences between enzymes in terms of degree of hydrolysis (DH%; P < 0.05). Alcalase-hydrolyzed fish protein had the highest DH% (50.13%), and Trypsinhydrolyzed fish protein had the minimum DH% (14.21%). The highest DH% in chemical hydrolysis was related to pH 3.3 at 85°C (68.87%). The highest protein recovery (83.64%) and protein content (73.34) were related to enzymatic hydrolysis by Alcalase. The results of current study showed the significant effect of hydrolysis conditions on fish protein hydrolysate properties. Microbial enzymes could produce fish hydrolysates with higher degree of hydrolysis when compared to animal enzyme. Also, in chemical hydrolysis it is clear that hydrolysis at the lower pH and at higher temperature causes to more protein recovery and degree of hydrolysis.

Litopenaeus vannamei is economically important shrimp species in worldwide aquaculture. This study was conducted to assess the effect of different levels of probiotic Pediococcus pentosaceus (PP) on growth performance, feed utilization, digestive enzyme activity, intestinal microflora count and body composition of L. vannamei. Four diets containing different concentrations [0 (PP0), 10 6 (PPI), 10 7 (PPII) and 10 8 (PPIII) CFU/g] of PP were formulated. After 8 weeks feeding trial, the experimental shrimps were challenged with Vibrio anguillarum and noted the surveillance. At the end of the feeding trial, the obtained results revealed a significant increase (p < .05) in final body weight, final length, weight gain (WG), survival rate, protease and amylase activities, lactobacillus sp. and Bacillus sp. intestinal count, total haemocyte counts (THC) and lysozyme activity in PPIII group when compared with the other groups. Similarly, WG, amylase activity, Bacillus sp. count, THC and lysozyme activity were significantly enhanced in case of PPII compared to the control group (p < .05). Interestingly, FCR and Vibrio sp. counts were significantly decreased in case of PPIII group when compared to the other groups (p < .05). Also, significant level of surveillance was noted in the challenging test with V. anguillarum. These results suggested that the P. pentosaceus improved the growth performance, digestive enzyme activity, immunity and tolerance against V. anguillarum of L. vannamei. K E Y W O R D S digestive enzyme activity, immunity, intestinal microflora, Litopenaeus vannamei, nutritional utilization, Pediococcus pentosaceus, Vibrio anguillarum 1