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The impact of various grape stock cultivars on the As, Cu, Co and Zn content of the grape berry (must, seed)
39-44Views:159Scientific research from the last decades showed that the inappropriate industrial and agricultural production caused an abnormal increase of the potentially toxic elements in the soil. Unfortunately the acidification of the soil is an increasing problem in Hungary. According to Várallyay et al. (2008) 13% of the Hungarian soils are highly acid. Accumulation of toxic elements differs in the genetically diverse plant species. The root of the plant constitutes a filter so that the rootstock is also kind of a filter system, which may prevent that the scion part (such as berry) accumulate high levels of various potentially toxic elements from the soil. The aim of research was to determine how different grape rootstocks influence the As, Co, Cu and Zn content of the musts and seeds. Thus, specifying which of the grape rootstocks takes up the lowest level of these 4 elements (As, Co, Cu and Zn), and accumulates in berries, so could reduce the potentially toxic element load of the grape berries. The grape rootstock collection of the University of Debrecen was set up in 2003 in 3x1 m spacing on immune sandy soil. Grafting of ‘Cserszegi fűszeres’ was started in 2010. We could evaluate yields harvested from 12 rootstock varieties of the experiment in October 2011. We obtained valuable differences in the arsenic, copper, cobalt and zinc concentrations of musts and seeds of ‘Cserszegi fűszeres’ grafted into different rootstocks. The results obtained from the 2011 harvest support the statement that the choice of rootstock might be an important factor to increase food safety. The differences in concentration of the four elements observed in case of the rootstock may have been caused on one hand by the rootstock effect, and on the other hand, the vintage effect has a very significant impact on the vines element uptake. Several years of experimental results will be needed to answer these questions.
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Definition antioxidant activity of selenium-enriched food sprout, as well as their microbiological analysis
25-30Views:244In this present study, we prepared selenium-enriched food sprouts, where the antioxidant capacity was analysed, we also determined their microbiological status. We took into account the fact, we choose micronutrients to our treatment, that selenium can be delivered to the body by a small amount with the most widely consumed food.
We focused during our research to determine that the increasing concentrations of selenium treatment, in which we used sprouts, knowing fully well that it has an impact on aboriginal antioxidant capacity of sprouts, which is mainly due to high vitamin content of sprouts.
Furthermore, we think it is important to make microbiological analysis, because germination conditions, for example temperature, pH, all this will create an ideal environment for the growth of microorganisms. So we had goal to determine, how the used selenium concentration affect the total plate count, coliform bacteria count and Staphylococcus aureus count of sprouts.
We determined the aboriginal water-soluble and lipid-soluble antioxidant capacity of sprout with the PHOTOCHEM chemiluminometer and we applied pour plate technique for the mapping of the mycrobiological state of sprouts.
Experimental results are evaluated, we state that increasing concentrations of selenite or selenate treatment, is primarily water-soluble antioxidant capacity of sprouts was affected. The water-soluble antioxidant capacity of wheat sprout was much higher than the measured values in pea sprout, this may be linked to what we measured. That is much higher ascorbic acid content in case of wheat sprout, which is well known as one of the most important antioxidant properties compounds of wheat sprout.
We conclude from the results of the microbiological, that the highest concentrations of selenite or selenate treatment has a relative significant anti-microbial effect in case of wheat sprouts. Coliform and total plate count showed no clear decreasing tendency, although the values of treatments in both cases obtained were below the control values.
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Element content analyses in the Institute for Food Sciences, Quality Assurance and Microbiology
203-207Views:129The role of chemical elements to ensure and promote our health is undisputed. Some of them are essential for plants, animals and human, others can cause diseases. The major source of mineral constituents is food, drinking water has a minor contribution to it, so the knowledge of elemental intake through food is crucial and needs continuous monitoring and by this way it promotes the food quality assurance and dietetics.
With the evolution of spectroscopic methods increasingly lower concentrations could be determined, so the elemental composition of a sample could be more precisely and fully described. Due to the results the gathered knowledge up to the present is supported and new observations can be done helping us to understand such complex systems as biological organisms are.
The quality of a food is determined by the full process of its production, consequently it starts with agricultural production so elemental-analysis usually cover the whole soil – plant – (animal) – food chain, by this way the „Fork-to-Farm” precept is true in elemental analysis field also.
The history of elemental analysis in the University of Debrecen, Centre for Agricultural and Applied Economic Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences and Environmental Management, Institute of Food Processing, Quality Assurance and Microbiology goes back to 1980s when the so called Regional Measurement Central gave the background for research. The continuous deployment resulted in an obtain of an inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometer (ICP-AES) in 1988, which extended the scope of examinations due to its excellent performance characteristics
compared to flame atom absorption (FAAS) and flame emission spectrometers (FES). The instrumental park retain up to date correlate to the developing analytical techniques due to acquiring a newer ICPAES in 1998 and an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer in 2004 – which sensitivity is three order of magnitude better compared to ICP-AES. The Institute supports the work with its own ICP-AES and ICP-MS since 2011. -
Comparison of the sample preparation methods worked out for the examination of the element content of wine
77-82Views:143The examination of the potentially toxic elements content of the wines is not easy task, because the most elements are in little concentration (mg kg-1 or μg kg-1) in the wine and the wines contain great amount of organic matrix. The efficient sample preparation is essential for the accurate determination of element content. The eim of our research was to determine which sample preparation method will be the most efficient in examination of wines with ICP technology. The examined wine sample was a 2008 Chardonnay from the Eger wine region. We did the sample preparation and analysis examination in University of Debrecen, Centre for Agricultural and Applied Economic Sciences, Institute of Food Science, Quality Assurance and Microbiology.
We did the analysis examinations with ICP- MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy). We always did the sample preparations and the examinations in three times rehearsal. The applied sample preparation methods: dilution with distilled water, open digestion and microwave digestion.
We were able to measure B, Al, Mn, Fe and Zn with only dilution and open sample preparation. In the smaller quantity present Sr and Ba were measurable in the wine in the case of all three methods well. We were able to measure the Co with dilution and open digestion method, while Cr, Ni, and Te with only dilution method. In the case of arsenic we were not able to measure reliable result with dilution and open digestion method because of organic matrix and other components
(alcohols, monosaccharides, polysaccharides, polyalcohols and inorganic salts). On the whole we are able to say that in the case of certain elements (B, Mn, Fe, Zn, Sr, Ba) the open digestion and dilution sample preparation is applicable well, however, in the case of certain elements (As, Al, V, Cr, Se, Mo, Cd, Hg, Pb) we have to develop the methods. It may be development of one of the way, if we develop sample preparation methods to examined element specifically and not
to wine generally.