Research Publications (Food Safety)

Abstract Food quality and safety are crucial public health concerns with global significance. In recent years, a series of fluorescence detection technologies have been widely used in the detection/monitoring of food quality and safety. Due to the advantages of wide detection range, high sensitivity, convenient and fast detection, and strong specificity, quantum dot (QD)‐based fluorescent nanosensors have emerged as preferred candidates for food quality and safety analysis.

The field experiments were conducted in a randomised block design during two consecutive rabi seasons of 2016–17 and 2017–18 to evaluate the effect of botanicals and bio-pesticides on insect and mite pests of potato during the post-rainy season.

A piece of carbonized cotton textile (denim) was prepared and shown to be a viable sorbent for the fabric phase sorptive extraction of pesticide residues from various fruit juices. The presented sorbent was made by heating the acidified cotton textile in a furnace.

Potentially Toxic Elements (PTEs) in foods are a threat to global health. This study investigated concentrations of selected PTEs; cadmium, chromium, nickel and lead in fish and cultivated vegetables from and along the dams, respectively. Totally, 84 samples; 60 Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), 12 Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) and 12 Bitter leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) obtained from six dams in Southwestern Nigeria were digested using aqua-regia.

Monascus sp. is an important food microbial resource with the production of cholesterol-lowering agent lovastatin and other healthy metabolites. However, the mycotoxin citrinin naturally produced by Monascus sp. and the insufficient productivity of lovastatin limit its large-scale use in food industry.

The development of different matrix adsorbents is a research focus in the multiresidue analysis of veterinary drugs in foods. In this study, a novel elastic matrix adsorbent based on a reduced graphene oxide-coated melamine sponge was prepared and applied in matrix purification for the simultaneous determination of 52 veterinary drugs in mutton by UPLC–MS/MS. Efficient and convenient matrix removal was achieved through simple soaking and squeezing.

Cadmium-109 whole-body and internal biokinetics were experimentally investigated in critically endangered diamond sturgeon Acipenser gueldenstaedtii after uptake from water or food, in fresh (FW) and brackish (BW; 9‰) salinities typical of the Caspian Sea. Whole-body rates of uptake of 109Cd from water and subsequent depuration were quantified over 14 and 28 days, respectively.

Abstract Genotoxic and hepatotoxic effects of lead (Pb) on a freshwater fish, climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) were studied at an environmentally relevant concentration (43.3 ppm). The genotoxic potential of Pb was confirmed by micronucleus study, with increased frequencies of erythrocytic nuclear alterations like lobed, blebbed, notched, fragmented, and micronuclei were observed in erythrocytes in treated groups as compared to control.

Background AnticFast® Beta-Lactams Rapid Test Kit is a qualitative two-step (2 min + 5 min) rapid lateral flow assay to detect β-lactam (penicillins and cephalosporins) antibiotic residues in raw commingled cow’s milk.

A sensitive and accurate analytical method was developed and validated to detect bambermycin, a commonly used antibiotic in animal feed and livestock. The presence of bambermycin residues in food products can pose health risks to consumers, emphasizing the need for a sensitive and accurate analytical method.

Microwave‐assisted extraction (MAE) is an important technique in analytical chemistry. It offers several advantages over traditional extraction methods, such as improved extraction efficiency, shorter extraction times, reduced solvent consumption, and enhanced analyte recovery.

Peas are among the most popular leguminous plants, consumed by both humans and animals in large quantities.

In aquatic ecosystems, arsenate (As(V)) and lead (Pb(II)) frequently coexist but their joint toxicity on microalgae remains unknown. In this study, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii was exposed to various levels of combined As(V) and Pb(II) treatments. The cell growth, respiration, pigment synthesis, polysaccharides and protein secretion as well as As speciation of C. reinhardtii were analyzed.

A major obstacle to agricultural production and yield quality is heavy metal contamination of the soil and water, which leads to lower productivity and quality of crops. The situation has significantly worsened as a result of the growing population and subsequent rise in food consumption. The growth of nutrient-rich plants is hampered by lead (Pb) toxicity in the soil. Brassica oleracea L.

Phenotyping is used in plant breeding to identify genotypes with desirable characteristics, such as drought tolerance, disease resistance, and high-yield potentials. It may also be used to evaluate the effect of environmental circumstances, such as drought, heat, and salt, on plant growth and development. Wheat spike density measure is one of the most important agronomic factors relating to wheat phenotyping.

Abstract The conclusions of the EFSA following the peer review of the initial risk assessments carried out by the competent authorities of the rapporteur Member State, Estonia, and co‐rapporteur Member State, Germany, for the pesticide active substance metribuzin and the assessment of application to amend existing residue definition are reported.

Nano-enabled agriculture has emerged as an attractive approach for facilitating soil pollution mitigation and enhancing crop production and nutrition. In this study, we conducted a greenhouse experiment to explore the efficacy of silicon oxide nanoparticles (SiONPs) and iron oxide nanoparticles (FeONPs) in alleviating arsenic (As) toxicity in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and elucidated the underlying mechanisms involved.

Arsenic poses a significant health risk worldwide, impacting the gut microbiota, reproductive health, and development. To address this issue, a cost-effective method like probiotic supplementation could be beneficial. However, the interplay between arsenic toxicity, probiotics, gut microbiota, and maternal transcript modulation remains unexplored. This study investigates the impact of Lactobacillus rhamnosus (L.

Antibiotic residues in animal-derived food (egg) are threatening human health. Semiconductor heterojunction surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates can be used for ultra-sensitive detection of antibiotic residues in egg. Here, a TiO2/ZnO heterojunction was developed as a new SERS substrate based on an interface engineering strategy.

Abstract In this study, two prediction models were developed using visible/near‐infrared (Vis/NIR) spectroscopy combined with partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS‐DA) and least squares support vector machine (LS‐SVM) for the detection of pesticide residues of avermectin, dichlorvos, and chlorothalonil at different concentration levels on the surface of cauliflowers.

Environmental quality and food safety is threatened by contamination of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) heavy metals in agricultural soils. Therefore, it is necessary to develop effective techniques for remediation of such soils. In this study, we prepared iron-modified biochar (Fe-BC) which combines the unique characteristics of pristine biochar (BC) and iron.

Abstract Following a request from the European Commission, EFSA was asked to deliver a scientific opinion on the assessment of the application for renewal of Agal‐Pro BL/BL‐L®. The additive is a preparation of alpha‐galactosidase produced by a genetically modified strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (CBS 615.94) and endo‐1,4‐beta‐glucanase produced by a non‐genetically modified strain of Aspergillus niger (CBS 120604).

Biochar is an attractive and environmental friendly heavy metal sorbent, but is full-scale application is usually restricted by the limited sorption sites and surface area. Phosphate groups could strongly complex with heavy metal ions. Therefore, in the present study, phytic acid (PA) modified biochar (P-WBC) was prepared via the hydrolysis carbonization of wheat straw and PA at 300 °C and 700 °C.

The TMA/TMAO pathway represents one of many microbe‐dependent pathways that will ultimately be linked to CHD pathogenesis Molecular docking results found that baicalein, fisetin, acacetin, and myricetin in flavonoid aglycones, and baicalin, naringin and hesperidin in flavonoid glycosides had good binding effects on TMA‐lyase, which were the most active and could be used as lead compounds for structural modification.

A novel dual-signal fluorescent sensor was developed for detecting organophosphorus pesticides (OPs). It relies on the catalytic activities of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and choline oxidase (ChOx) to generate hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) through the conversion of acetylcholine (ACh) to choline·H2O2 then oxidizes ferrocene-modified tetraphenylethylene (TPE-Fc) to its oxidized state (TPE-Fc+), resulting in enhanced cyan fluorescence due to aggregation.