Behavior of Listeria monocytogenes inoculated into raw tomatoes and processed tomato products

Rates of death and growth of Listeria monocytogenes inoculated onto raw whole and into chopped tomatoes stored at 10 and 21 degrees C were not influenced by prior treatment of tomatoes with chlorine or packaging under an atmosphere of 3% O2 and 97% N2. Growth of the pathogen occurred in whole tomatoes held at 21 degrees C but not at 10 degrees C, while death occurred in chopped tomatoes stored at these temperatures. Likewise, growth patterns of mesophilic aerobic microorganisms, psychrotrophic microorganisms, and yeasts and molds on whole and chopped tomatoes were essentially unaffected by chlorine and modified atmosphere packaging treatments. Populations of L. monocytogenes inoculated into commercially processed tomato juice and sauce and held at 5 degrees C remained constant for 14 days. A gradual decrease in the number of viable L. monocytogenes cells was observed in juice and sauce held at 21 degrees C. In contrast, the organism died rapidly when suspended in commercial tomato ketchup at 5 and 21 degrees C. Unlike low-acid raw salad vegetables such as lettuce, broccoli, asparagus, and cauliflower on which we have observed L. monocytogenes grow at refrigeration temperatures, tomatoes are not a good growth substrate for the organism. Nevertheless, L. monocytogens can remain viable on raw whole and chopped tomatoes and in commercial tomato juice and sauce for periods extending beyond their normal shelf-life expectancy.     

Anaerobic degradation of m-cresol in anoxic aquifer slurries: carboxylation reactions in a sulfate-reducing bacterial enrichment

The anaerobic biodegradation of m-cresol was observed in anoxic aquifer slurries kept under both sulfate-reducing and nitrate-reducing but not methanogenic conditions. More than 85% of the parent substrate (300 microM) was consumed in less than 6 days in slurries kept under the former two conditions. No appreciable loss of the compound from the corresponding autoclaved controls was measurable. A bacterial consortium was enriched from the slurries for its ability to metabolize m-cresol under sulfate-reducing conditions. Metabolism in this enrichment culture was inhibited in the presence of oxygen or molybdate (500 microM) and in the absence of sulfate but was unaffected by bromoethanesulfonic acid. The consortium consumed 3.63 mol of sulfate per mol of m-cresol degraded. This stoichiometry is about 87% of that theoretically expected and suggests that m-cresol was largely mineralized. Resting-cell experiments demonstrated that the degradation of m-cresol proceeded only in the presence of bicarbonate. 4-Hydroxy-2-methylbenzoic acid and acetate were detected as transient intermediates. Thus, the parent substrate was initially carboxylated as the primary degradative event. The sulfate-reducing consortium could also decarboxylate p- but not m-hydroxybenzoate to near stoichiometric amounts of phenol, but this reaction was not sulfate dependent. The presence of p-hydroxybenzoate in the medium temporarily inhibited m-cresol metabolism such that the former compound was metabolized prior to the latter and phenol was degraded in a sequential manner. These findings help clarify the fate of a common groundwater contaminant under sulfate-reducing conditions.     

Interaction code for polar and nonpolar amino acids: "ice-breaker" model]

A novel model for the study of recognition and interaction code of amino acids in peptides, proteins and their complexes has been proposed. The model is designed on the modern notions on the structure and properties of water and hydrophobic bonds. It is assumed that the polar side chains of amino acids during the formation of the hydrophobic bonds act as "ice-breaker", thus destroying the organized structure of water (clusters or "icebergs") around the hydrophobic radicals of amino acids.     

Spatial structure of the basic chain of the neurotoxin I molecule from the venom of cobra Naja naja oxiana and its crystal packing

The structure of the alpha-carbon chain was solved by molecular replacement method at 2.7 A resolution. Neurotoxin I (NTX-I) is one of the main protein components purified from the venom of the central asian cobra Naja naja oxiana. NTX-I is known to bind specifically to acetylcholine receptors thus preventing the transmission of the neuroconductivity signal from synapses to muscles. NTX-I crystals were grown either by vapour diffusion or dialysis methods using specially prepared microdialysis cell. The intensities of reflections from native NTX-I crystals were measured in the range of 38.0-2.1 A-1 by omega-scan method with a Syntex P21 diffractometer operated in automatic regime. To determine the position and mode of packing of NTX-I molecule in unit cell program packages MERLOT and BLANC were applied running on a NORD-500 computer.     

Optimal hunting group size: the need for lions to defend their kills against loss to spotted hyaenas

This paper presents preliminary evidence that kleptoparasitism by spotted hyaenas may influence optimal hunting group size of lions. In the absence of adult male lions, hyaenas can drive female and subadult lions off their kills provided they outnumber the lions by a factor of four. Hence the larger the group of lions on the kill, the greater their chance of defending their food against invading hyaenas. At Savuti, where there was a shortage of adult male lions, the groups of female and subadult lions lost almost 20% of their food to hyaenas. Losses were most frequent for those living in small groups. These lions were often satiated by the time the hyaenas acquired the kill, so the hyaenas did not cause immediate need, yet constituted a constant energy drain on lions by forcing them to hunt more frequently. The implications of these observations for modelling optimal hunting group size of lions are discussed.     

A new enzymatic activity participating in the initiation of glycogen biosynthesis in rat brain

A rat brain extract, able to synthesize from UDP-Glc an alpha-1,4-glucan covalently bound to a protein in the absence of added primer is described. The compound formed is precipitable by dilute trichloroacetic acid (TCA). In the presence of glycogen, added as primer, this molecule is enlarged and is not precipitable by TCA. Unprimed and primed activities differ in several aspects, such as the behavior in the presence of some effectors, and the optimum pH. Umprimed and primed activities presented two pHs optima, both sharing only one. The proteoglucans synthesized under the different pHs gave different patterns after analysis under denaturing PAGE and the oligosaccharides synthesized on the protein backbone differ in the glucosyl length. It is concluded that also in rat brain, the initiation process of glycogen biosynthesis is mediated through the formation of a glycoprotein. Our present results showed that the step of the putative "Glycogen Initiator" proposed by use before, requires two enzymes UDPGlc-transglucosylating activities, Glycogen Initiator 1 and Glycogen Initiator 2, before Glycogen Synthase in the alpha-1,4-glucosidic linkages formation.     

Cell separation system studied by mixed culture of single wild strain with tetrads-forming mutant strain of Micrococcus luteus

Mixed culture study of singly occurring wild strain IFO 3333 of Micrococcus luteus and a tetrads-forming mutant strain MT, in the absence or presence of trypsin, supported our previous assumption that at least two kinds of separation systems were involved in cell separation of M. luteus, the one having a physiological role in cutting off the outermost layer of the cell wall (separation system-Om) and the other in cutting off the inner layer of the "proper" cell wall or the septum (separation system-In). The separation system-Om of IFO 3333 insensitive to trypsin substituted, freely from the cells, for that of MT sensitive to trypsin.