Journal of Food Quality and Hazards Control

2

Authors: R. García-Fernández

Food-borne pathogens are the leading causes of illness and death especially in developing countries followed by the consumption of contaminated foods. Hence, to achieve food safety and quality, the ability of detecting pathogens in food is a necessity. This task faces many challenges, among them i) the wide variety of food products, ii) the native microflora, e.g. in raw foods, can interfere with detection and isolation of a pathogen, iii) pathogens in foods are generally present at lower levels and their infectious doses may be as low as a few cells, iv) sample preparation procedures usually requires dilution of solid samples and the detection limit is affected by sample size and assay volume. Moreover, many techniques traditionally used to extract and purify pathogens and toxins in foods suffer poor recovery rates, resulting in reduced assay sensitivity and efficiency. Together with the traditionally used microbiological methods in food analysis, i.e., light microscopy, culture and colony counting, different methods have been conventionally employed. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunology-based methods have advantages of acceptable sensitivity, specificity and rapidity (Byrne et al., 2009; Lazcka et al., 2007). In the last years, several kinds of biosensors, using different biological recognition elements (bioreceptors) such as antibodies, enzymes, nucleic acids, cells, non-enzymatic proteins, biomimetics or bacteriophages have been described (Velusamy et al., 2010). Recent researches also revealed the significance of metabolomics, genomics, transcriptomics and prote-omics about this issue (Bergholz et al., 2014). The former results in characterizing the diversity in food systems and analysis of new emerging pathogens and whole genomes sequencing may be effective in detection of food-borne outbreak. In the past decade, many investigations have analyzed transcriptomes and/or proteomes of bacteria under conditions simulating of a pathogen may experience on a food, thus providing information to develop new control strategies. Such "omics" technolo-gies have resulted in the accessibility of various datasets that can let identifying molecular targets for achieving new antimicrobial agents. New insights into food-borne pathogens are gained with the discovery of novel toxin genes. The analysis of these increasing data sets through bioinformatics, providing a more detailed scenario that underlies the mechanisms of pathogenicity as well as diseases (Bierne and Cossart, 2007; Metris et al., 2011; Mondal et al., 2012). Finally, X-ray crystallography and also electron microscopy have provided information about structure and molecular mechanisms of toxins from these organisms (Lee et al., 2013; Stiles et al., 2014). Such data have been increasing in the last years, and certainly will allow developing structure-based drug approaches for control of pathogenic microorganisms.

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Authors: D.M. Abd El-Aziz

Background: Pseudomonas spp. are of important food spoiling bacteria. They present around the world and are isolated from diverse sources. The main objective of this survey was to detect Pseudomonas spp. in fresh chicken and fish obtained from markets of Assiut city, Egypt. Methods: In this cross-sectional survey, 50 samples of fresh raw chicken and 50 samples of fresh raw fish meat were randomly collected from Assiut city markets, Egypt. Then, in laboratory, cultural and PCR techniques were carried out to detect Pseudomonas spp. in the samples. Results: Pseudomonas spp. were isolated from 80% of the examined chicken samples and found in all the examined fish samples. All the isolates were confirmed as Pseudo-monas spp. using 16S rRNA-PCR. The average number of Pseudomonas spp. in chicken flesh and Tilapia nilotica were 2.6×104 and 2.8×103 CFU/g, respectively; while this rate was 1.4×105 CFU/g for African catfish (Clarias gariepinus). Conclusions: This study indicated contamination of fresh raw fish and chicken samples with Pseudomonas spp. which may be attributed to cross contamination. This contamination predicts inadequate shelf life of the examined samples especially African catfish.

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Authors: A. Golshan Tafti1*, M. Gholamrezaie Zadeh Baravati2, H. Jalali2

Background: Date (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is one of the most important agricultural crops in Iran. This study was carried out to determine the possibility of using date paste for manufacturing a new ready-to-eat food product. Methods: Various formulations were prepared by mixing Mazafati date paste, bread, oil (animal and olive), nuts and spices; but only six formulas were chosen according to sensory evaluation. The six formulations consisted of different ratios of the date paste (40, 50, and 60%), Sangak bread (25, 35, and 45%), nuts (9%), spices (1%) and animal or olive oil (5%). The research was conducted in a completely randomized design test with three replications. Statistical analysis of the data was carried out using SAS software (ver. 9.1). Results: The formulas contained various ranges of fat (13.20-15.86%), reducing sugars (25.16-32.50%), sucrose (2.90-6.63%) and protein (5.85-7.80%). The pH value of the formulas ranged from 5.65 to 5.79. The formulations containing 60% date paste had significantly higher amounts of moisture, sucrose and reducing sugars (p<0.05). Although there were no significant difference in the sensorial attributes (taste, texture, odour) between the formulas 3 and 6 (60% date paste, 25% bread and 5% animal or olive oil), they gained the highest score in comparison to other formulas. Conclusion: According to the results, the formulas 3 and 6 possessed desirable quality and high nutritional value and therefore, are recommended to be used in the manufacture of the new ready-to-eat food product. Introduction The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is considered as an important and strategic crop in arid and semiarid regions of Iran which is placed in the package of non-petroleum exports (Ahmadnia and Sahari, 2008). The provinces of Kerman, Khuzestan, Sistan and Baluchistan, Bushehr, Fars and Hormozgan are the main date produc-ing regions of Iran. In spite of annual production of *Corresponding

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Authors: S. Maktabi*, M. Pourmehdi, M. Zarei, R. Moalemian

Background: Listeria monocytogenes is one of the most important food-borne bacteria causing septicemia, meningitis and encephalitis in humans. The objective of this study was to evaluate the occurrence and antibiotic resistance of the bacterium in retail minced beef in Ahvaz, South-West of Iran. Methods: In this survey, 150 samples of minced beef were randomly obtained from retail butcheries in Ahvaz, Iran and tested for presence of L. monocytogenes. The proce-dure was one-step enrichment in Listeria enrichment broth followed by plating on oxford agar. Isolated colonies were subjected to subsequent biochemical tests and poly-merase chain reaction (PCR) assay using the target iap-P60 gene encoding P60 protein. Susceptibility of the isolates to various antibiotics was investigated by Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method. The results were analyzed by chi-square test and fisher’s exact test us-ing SPSS 16.0 software. Results: The incidence of Listeria spp. was 2.7% (4 of 150 samples) and only one sample (0.66%) was contaminated to L. monocytogenes. Statistical analysis showed no significant difference in prevalence of Listeria between various regions (p>0.05). The isolate was resistant to streptomycin and showed an intermediate susceptibility to tetracycline and penicillin. However, it was sensitive to other tested antibiotics. Conclusion: Our findings showed the presence of antibiotic resistant L. monocytogenes strain among beef samples in this region of Iran and so, indicated the potential risk for public health from consumption of raw or undercooked beef which may increase the possibility of acquisition of resistance to antibiotics.

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Authors: E. Mortaz1, S.S. Athari2

Pickled foods in Middle Eastern countries are usually salty. The manufacture of pickles involves many chemi-cal reactions. Pickling can preserve food for several months, because acidic marinades inhibit the growth of bacteria and fungi. Pickling was developed to allow foodstuffs to be used out of season. On the other hand, the taste of pickles is valued. Pickle consumption is rela-tively high in cold weather (Akcay et al., 2014; Woods et al., 2003). People with asthma must be cautious when consuming pickles. Acidic steam from vinegar can cause severe asthmatic attacks. Moreover, pickles and condiments can seriously injure the gastrointestinal system (Akcay et al., 2014). Acidic blood can be neutralized by alkalis. If pick-les are consumed, alkaline minerals may be recovered from storage in the body, notably calcium from the bones. This can diminish the body’s reserve of calcium. Heavy consumption of pickled foods can lead to osteopo-rosis in postmenopausal women and in people who have, or are prone to develop kidney stones. In the elderly, heavy consumption of pickled foods may lead to weak-ness of the respiratory and nervous systems. It may in-duce severe coughing which could lead to asthma (Bracken et al., 2002; Rosenkranz et al., 2012; Subbarao et al., 2009). Pickles stimulate the secretion of digestive enzymes, increasing the rate of digestion. This can in-crease food intake, leading to obesity. Pickles are salty, limiting their value for patients with renal failure, cardio- vascular disease or high blood pressure, and for smokers. In general, the consumption of pickles is likely to present risks to people with respiratory disorders such as asthma, and to those with gastrointestinal disorders

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Authors: R. Latorre1, J. Sadeghinezhad2, B. Hajimohammadi3, F. Izadi3*, M.T. Sheibani2

Background: Nowadays, there is an increase of meat and animal carcass consumption worldwide. Due to the economic value of meat, the likelihood of using unauthorized tis-sue is possible in meat products. Based on these observations, the aim of the present study was to apply morphological method for detection of unauthorized tissues in pro-cessed meat products. Methods: In this study, a total of 20 samples of different types of processed meat prod-ucts including Kabab Loghme (n=5), sausage (n=5), handmade hamburger (n=5) and Kabab Koobideh (n=5) were randomly collected from restaurants and supermarkets in Iran. The samples were divided into three parts and then, one piece was taken from each part for the histological study. The tissues were fixed in 10% neutral-buffered formalin and were dehydrated and embedded in paraffin and routinely processed for light micros-copy. The paraffin-embedded blocks were cut into 6 μm sections and stained using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) for histological study. Results: The skeletal muscle tissues were visible clearly in all samples. A wide range of unauthorized tissues have been detected including connective tissue (n=20), gizzard (n=2), adipose tissue (n=7), soya (n=11), cartilage (n=5) and ovary (n=1). Conclusion: The present study showed the use of unauthorized tissues in Iranian pro-cessed meat products which were detectable by histological method. Therefore, histolog-ical technique may be a simple and economic tool for evaluation of the meat adulteration and to improve hygiene and meat quality.

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Authors: I. Azevedo, H. Albano, J. Silva, P. Teixeira*

Background: Multidrug resistant Enterobacteriaceae which was confined to the hospital environments is now emerging in the domestic food related environments as well. The main objective of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of antibiotic re-sistant Enterobacteriaceae in the domestic food related environments. Methods: Resistance to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, tetracy-cline, nalidixic acid, nitrofurantoin, and trimethoprim was evaluated in 125 isolates; col-lected in domestic food related environments using agar micro dilution method. Results: Results indicated that 49.6% of the isolates were resistant to at least one antibi-otic (32.8% to ampicillin, 6.4% to nitrofurantoin, 4% to tetracycline, 3.2% to nalidixic acid, 2.4% to chloramphenicol and 1.7% to trimethoprim). Resistance to multiple antibi-otics was observed in 6.4% of the isolates. Conclusion: This study implicates existence of antibiotic resistant Enterobactericeae in the domestic food related environments. This resistance phenomenon requires continual vigilance; and further studies are required to evaluate the role of domestic surfaces in the transmission of resistant pathogens and spread of infectious diseases

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Authors: A. Ehsani1, M. Hashemi2

Background: The presence of antibacterial drug residues in food caused many concerns for consumers. This study was designed to determine of antibacterial drug residues in commercial eggs distributed in Urmia, Iran. Methods: Disc diffusion microbial inhibition test was performed using three media seeded with Bacillus subtilis at different pH values (6, 7.2 or 8) and a fourth medium seeded with Micrococcus luteus. Two hundred commercial eggs were collected random-ly and examined for antibacterial drug residues. Standard solutions of antibiotics were used as control. Results: The results of this study revealed that twenty five samples (12.5%) of the pre-pared eggs were positive for antibacterial substances and all of them were related to macrolides group. Conclusion: The presence of these residues in eggs could cause health hazards like hy-persensitivity reaction, development of resistant organisms to these antibacterial agents, destruction of gastrointestinal natural flora, etc. In conclusion, the antibiotic residues in commercial eggs have to be monitored as routine test due to their side effects on human health

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Authors: M.R. Koushki1, M.H. Azizi2*, M. Azizkhani1, P. Koohy-Kamaly1

Background: Environmental problems of the plastic materials used in food packaging and the demand for food quality improvements lead to the development of packaging in natural materials. Edible films such as calcium alginate extend the shelf life by acting as a selective barrier against moisture and oxygen. The main objective of this study was to explore a calcium alginate based edible film to improve the quality and extend the shelf life of food products. Methods: Tests of physical properties including water vapor permeability (WVP) and oxygen transmission rate (OTR) and mechanical properties including tensile strength (TS) and elongation at break (E) of two calcium alginate based formulations (dextrose monohydrate based and maltodextrin based) were done in triplicate. Data were investi-gated using SPSS (16.0). Significant differences in the results were detected by the Mann-Whitney U test. Results: There was no significant difference in mechanical properties and WVP of these two formulations, though WVP values related to the dextrose monohydrate based formu-lation were slightly higher than those of the maltodextrin based formulation. A signifi-cant decrease was observed in OTR of the maltodextrin based formulation compared to the dextrose monohydrate based formulation. Conclusion: There was no significant difference in mechanical properties (TS and E) and WVP between these two formulations; however, a significant reduction was ob-served in OTR of the maltodextrin based formulation compared to the dextrose monohy-drate based formulation. Therefore, the last was more suitable as a barrier to oxygen.

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Authors: Dr. S. Boughattas

Dear Editor In a recent article published in the Journal of Food Quality and Hazards Control 1 (2014) 36-40, an interesting molecu-lar approach based on DNA detection was described to iden-tify chicken meat within supposed commercial (both tradi-tional and industrial) beef burgers. The method was able to detect the fraudulent contamina-tion even with the presence of 0.1% of the indigenous meat. Cheaper meat or meat waste products are sometimes added to the first meat ingredient in the hamburger; however the high rates of observed contamination, open discussion about the need of more meticulous sanitary controls. I found that the described approach could be also of a big interest in veggies and fish/seafood burgers control. Indeed in some specific diets, meat is avoided which led to emerge of new burgers without meat ingredients. However, food adulteration can be observed within the food safety and quality control agencies. Taken in account the high demand for more transparency in food industry, the new molecular technique can be helpful as it offers specific, sensitive, fast and reliable way to detect undeclared chicken and beef meat in burgers.

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Authors: S. Mason1, S. Arjmandtalab2*, B. Hajimohammadi3,4, A. Khosravi Arsanjani4, S. Karami2, M. Sayadi5, A. Oryan6

Background: Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) is a major carcinogenic compound that may be existed in milk and dairy products. This study was aimed to determine the presence of AFM1 in in-dustrial and traditional yogurt samples produced in Iran. Methods: A total of 80 yogurt samples (40 industrial, 40 traditional) was collected from su-permarkets in Yazd city, Iran. AFM1 content of the selected samples was determined by en-zyme linked immunesorbent assay (ELISA). Results: Analysis of the data indicated that 96.25% of the yogurt samples were contaminat-ed with AFM1 in concentration levels ranging from ˂5 to 91 ng/kg. The AFM1 content of 5% of the samples was higher than the limit accepted by European Union (50 ng/kg). The mean concentration of AFM1 in traditional yogurt (33.6 ng/kg) was significantly (p<0.05) higher than industrial ones (24.55 ng/kg). Conclusion: High level of AFM1 contamination of yogurt produced in Iran could be a seri-ous risk for the public health.

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Authors: R. Garcia1, S.S. Athari2,3*

Allergic asthma is the most common acute inflammatory airway disorder and their incidence population has exploded in the last years, being estimated that over 300 million people worldwide have the condition. Here, we present a brief overview of relationship of allergic asthma with diet and food intake. Several studies have shown that most asthma cases are due to an allergic immune response to environmental allergens. Diet affects strongly the devel-opment of asthma because the systemic inflammatory mediators are affected by a high fat diet and obesity. Thus, obesity has effect on airway function and trigger inflammation path-ways. There are also strong associations between asthma and dietary antioxidants, such as vitamins, and they may protect the respiratory system from inflammation and allergic reac-tions. An increased prevalence of food allergy has been also observed in the last years and this problem could be a major risk factor for severe asthma. According to the findings of many researchers, specific diets could help controlling asthma, therefore therapeutic strate-gies for allergic asthma suggest the modification of diet, which could include antioxidant-rich foods, the avoidance of allergic food, low saturated fat intake and maintenance of weight in the healthy range.

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Authors: A. Heshmati1*, J. Salaramoli2

Background: Cadmium (Cd) is not considered as essential element for living organisms, therefore its presence in tissues is considered as toxic element. From food hazards control point of view, information on the distribution of these toxic elements in the animal tissues is very important. The present study was designed to evaluate Cd distribution pattern in kidney and liver of broiler chicken. Methods: Forty eight day-old broiler chickens were randomly and equally divided into dif-ferent groups including control, I, II and III. During 42 days Cd was added to their diet in amount of 0, 25, 50 and 100 ppm, respectively. From each group, four chickens were sacri-ficed at 14, 28, 42 days of age, and amount of Cd in their liver and kidney were measured by atomic absorbent spectrophotometer. Analysis of data was performed by two-way ANOVA using SPSS software version 16.0. Results: Interaction effect of the time duration of Cd diet consumption and the accumula-tion of Cd contents from either liver or kidney in different groups was significant (p<0.05). Increasing dietary Cd levels and exposure days resulted in higher Cd accumulation in kidney and liver. In all groups and in all different ages, kidney Cd levels were higher than those of liver. Conclusion: Cd content in chicken organs is attributable to its dietary level and the duration of exposure. The mean concentration of Cd accumulated in chicken kidney tissue was higher in comparison to it in liver tissue

1

Authors: M. Kumar , S.S Athari *

Allergic asthma as a heterogeneous disease, is a main global problem in health. Newly, 300 million people worldwide have asthma. In recent years, asthma has become an increasingly prevalent disease worldwide, especially for children. Allergic asthma is characterized by symptoms of wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath, airway inflammation. Asthma has a strong genetic background but exposing to allergens and other nonspecific environmental factors could activate this susceptibility. The involved allergen specific immune response induces T helper 2 lymphocytes that active eosinophils, mast cells, basophils, airway epithelial cells, and immunoglobulin-secreting B cells that lead to allergic and inflammation responses (Bel, 2013; Corren et al., 2011). Today, several drugs have been developed to control asthma. Traditional medicines, especially herbal ones have been used to control and manage it for a long time. Recently, tends to traditional medicine has been increased due to their low side effects and cost (Athari, 2013; Bel, 2013). According to the unofficial reports, in some countries such as Iran, local people believe that eating hedgehog meat can completely cure asthma sufferers. Eating hedgehog's meat is not only ineffective but it can be harmful in some cases of severe asthma since hedgehog proteins can cause allergic reactions in atopic patients and exacerbate asthma attacks. It could be kind of food allergies that lead to asthma. The infections and parasites of the animal meat can also be risk factors for it. On the other hand, there is no scientific evidence to prove that eating hedgehog's meat is useful for the treatment of asthma, so far. To date, no cure for asthma has been identified, rather only controlling drugs and techniques have been proposed. The slaughter of the animals due to something that does not benefit in terms of work, in ethical and moral glance, is inhuman. It will damage wildlife and the environment. Therefore, this is a dangerous approach in public health and a serious threat to health that is important warning for consumers and health care providers till by informing these people do this to avoid.

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Authors: K.W. Witwer *

In a recent editorial article published by Salehi (2014) in Journal of Food Quality and Hazards Control (1: 93), the author cited two studies of plant microRNAs (miRNAs) as supporting "adverse health consequences" of genetically modified foods (Zhang et al., 2012a; Zhang et al., 2012b). The first of these studies reported that a conserved, ubiqui-tous, and high-abundance plant microRNA could regulate expression of the mammalian gene LDLRAP1 (Zhang et al., 2012a). On the other hand, analysis of public RNA expres-sion datasets (Zhang et al., 2012b) found little evidence for uptake of plant dietary miRNAs, or “xenomiRs” (Witwer, 2012) by ingesting animals. Strikingly, and of some poten-tial concern, it was suggested that the foods examined in these two studies (plants without specific modifications) are safe, while a food category not examined in the studies (ge-netically modified plants) represents a health risk. It might be useful to examine the two cited studies more closely, as well as to consider the more recent literature on the topic of xenomiRs. The first issue to resolve is that Zhang et al. (2012b) have not claimed that "double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) generat-ed in genetically modified plants...can create biosafety risks" indicated by mentioned article. Instead, they reported that MIR168a, a ubiquitous and abundant mature endogenous plant miRNA (not dsRNA), can affect the expression of a mammalian gene in the liver (Zhang et al., 2012b). This result was questioned in light of new evidence from a sub-sequent study (Dickinson et al., 2013) that included im-portant additional experimental controls. Had the initial finding been validated, it would still have had no specific relevance to genetically modified food as opposed to plants in general. If adverse consequences could be inferred from the original study, the logical conclusion would be "to avoid the hazards of..." eating any and all plants, not just genet-ically modified foods. Genetic modification, in this scenario, would have provided useful tools to reduce the expression of the putatively harmful MIR168a and thus allow safer con-sumption of plant material. The point is moot, however, since no xenomiR-based harm has been established for mod-ified or unmodified plants. Secondly, a subsequent independent publication (Zhang et al., 2012b) did not state that dietary xenomiRs "enter the serum and plasma of humans and animals." Quite the oppo-site: examining around 80 public datasets, the authors found that meager, highly variable evidence of xenomiR detection was most consistent with contamination rather than actual uptake. Sources of environmental plant RNA abound, espe-cially in labs that study plant sequences. Contamination is easily detected with sensitive high-throughput techniques (Tosar et al., 2014) and gives a possible explanation for previous, apparently positive results. The history of safe plant consumption demonstrates that hypothetical xenomiR-based regulatory mechanisms are not a health risk. Indeed, essential human genes contain many binding sites for plant RNA products, without evidence of adverse consequences (Jensen et al., 2013). Since interac-tions of these genes with foreign xenomiRs or other RNA interference effectors would have resulted in negative selec-tion, we must assume that the interactions do not occur. One reason why xenomiRs do not affect genes in the ingesting animal—and contrary to the statement that "food-derived small RNAs and dsRNAs can enter the circulation"—is that they are not normally present in circulation and cannot reach copy numbers in mammalian cells that would be consistent with regulatory influence. An increasing number of investi-gators have found no significant uptake of plant xenomiRs into mammalian blood (Baier et al., 2014; Dickinson et al., 2013; Snow et al., 2013; Witwer et al., 2013), even when the most abundant miRNAs in the food sources are examined. None has reported uptake of dsRNA. The many barriers to uptake and function of dietary RNA have been reviewed elsewhere (Petrick et al., 2013; Witwer and Hirschi, 2014). Considering the mounting evidence against uptake and func-tion of even high-abundance, ubiquitous plant xenomiRs, there is currently no scientific reason to discourage ingestion of genetically modified plants on the basis of small RNA considerations.

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Authors: M. Moradi, A. Hassani, A. Ehsani, M. Hashemi *, M. Raeisi , S.S. Naghibi

Background: In current study, chemical composition and antibacterial activity of leaves and flowers essential oils of Origanum vulgare ssp. gracile against four food-borne pathogens including Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella thyphimurium and Staphylococcus aureus were examined. Methods: The different organs (leaves and flowers) of O. vulgare ssp. gracile were harvested at flowering stage from wild grown plants in Kurdistan province, Iran. Phytochemical properties of the essential oils were identified by GC and GC/MS analysis. Also, antibacterial effects of O. vulgare ssp. gracile against each bacterial strain were detected by calculating the minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration using micro-dilution method. Data was analyzed by chi square and fisher exact tests using SPSS 16.0. Results: Main components of leaf and flower oils were carvacrol (46.5% and 60.6%), γ-terpinene (13.91% and 16.64%) and ρ-cymene (13.54% and 7.21%). E. coli and S. aureus had similar sensitivity to essential oils, but S. typhimurium showed more sensitivity. Output of composition analysis showed that the O. vulgare ssp. gracile flowers essential oil has more effect than those from leaves. Conclusion: This work showed substantial inhibitory effect of O. vulgare ssp. gracile essential oils on food-borne pathogens. The efficiency of O. vulgare ssp. gracile flowers oils in reduction of the bacterial activity was higher than the leaves essential oils. According to the results of this research, this essential oil can be utilized as a natural preservative in food products.

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Authors: B. Hajimohammadi, G. Eslami, A. Zohourtabar, A. Dehghani, A. Oryan, H. Pourmirzaei Tafti , F. Radouani

Background: Sarcocystosis is one of the most widespread parasitic diseases in cattle caused by three main species of Sarcocystis genus. The major aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of Sarcocystis spp. in meat produced in Yazd, central Iran with special reference to species identification, using Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Methods: During March 2012 to May 2013, samples were randomly collected from esophagus, heart, diaphragm, intercostal muscle and tongue of 120 slaughtered cattle at Yazd, central Iran. After DNA extraction, PCR-RFLP was used for detection and identification of Sarcocystis spp. The statistical analysis was performed by Chi-Square test, using SPSS software (v. 16.0). Results: The molecular analysis showed that Sarcocystis spp. was found in 112 of 120 (93.3%) slaughtered cattle. The prevalence of S. cruzi, S. hirsuta and S. hominis were 90%, 38.3% and 57.5% respectively. Among the 112 infected cattle, single and multiple (infected by more than one species) infection were seen in 45 and 67 cattle, respectively. No significant association was detected between sex, age, sample type and the prevalence of Sarcocystis spp. (p>0.05). Conclusion: Considering its public health importance, high prevalence of S. hominis should be highlighted in this region. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first of its kind to be conducted in Iran. More detailed studies are needed to describe the distribution pattern and species identification of Sarcocycstis spp. in other regions of Iran.

1

Authors: R. Salehi

MicroRNAs are small endogenous noncoding RNAs ap-proximately 19-22 nucleotides in length that have been conserved among a vast array of species. They mediate posttranscriptional regulation of protein-coding genes by binding to the 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) and some-times to the 5′UTR or coding regions of target mRNAs. Their mode of action involve either by transcript degrada-tion or translation inhibition depending on a complete or partial match between the microRNA’s seed, a short seg-ment of few critical nucleotides which is directing specific microRNA-mRNA binding, and its target site. Deregula-tion of microRNA expression has been implicated in many diseases including multifactorial complex one like cancers, neuro-degeneration and cardiovascular diseases. The find-ings indicate that exosomal secretory microRNAs, as a silence master of gene expression can make multi transla-tion inhibitory leading to the creation of specific biological events (Carroll et al., 2013). Since their discovery, microRNAs have become the fo-cus of research and have been identified as key regulators of cellular physiological process and different biological functions such as differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis of cells, hormone secretion, etc. Recently, it has been reported that exogenous plant mi-croRNAs appear to enter the serum and plasma of humans and animals (Zhang et al., 2012). It has been also revealed that food-derived exogenous plant microRNAs can pass through the mouse gastrointestinal track and enter the cir-culation and various organs especially the liver where it cross-kingdomly regulates mouse genes and affecting physiological condition. It was recently claimed that small double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) generated in Genetically Modified (GM) plants as the result of using gene silencing techniques can create bio-safety risks (Zhang et al., 2011). In conclusion, there is convincing evidence that microRNAs act as a post-transcriptional master regulator of gene expression in mammals. On the other hand, there is evidence that food-derived small RNAs and dsRNAs can enter to the circula-tion and this class of freely circulating RNAs contributes quite efficiently to the gene regulation of different host organs. GM foods are a source of small RNAs which differ from those of their unmodified counterparts. So, there is a fairly reasonable prediction of the higher risk of gene de-regulation as a consequence of consuming GM foods. Of course, more experimental data are needed to confirm this hypothesis but based on the emerging scientific reports; it is advisable to avoid the hazards of GM food

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Authors: M. Khodadadi1, R. Khosravi1, A. Allahresani2, Y. Khaksar3, L. Rafati4, B. Barikbin1

Background: Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) is a toxic and carcinogenic mycotoxin which after pres-ence in milk and dairy products such as cheese and butter could make them as contaminated food. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the concentration of AFM1 in pasteur-ized and traditional cheese marketed in Southern Khorasan, from December 2011 to January 2012. Methods: A total of 102 cheese samples (including 43 non-pasteurized traditional and 59 pasteurized cheese) were analyzed for detection of AFM1. The samples were collected ran-domly from three major cities of Southern Khorasan province, Iran. A rapid and sensitive indirect competitive Enzyme Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay (ELISA) method using mono-clonal antibody was used to measure AFM1 concentration in the samples. Results: According to the results of this study, AFM1 was detected in 14 (32.55%) tradition-al and 21 (35.59%) pasteurized cheese samples. In total, 25.42% of pasteurized and 27.90% of traditional cheese samples were contaminated at above level of the Iranian standard limits (50 ng/kg). Conclusion: Considering high contamination level of both pasteurized and traditional cheese products in Southern Khorasan, it is recommended to establish continuous monitor-ing program of AFM1 by food safety agencies in order to control the incidence of mycotoxin contamination

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Authors: M. Ahmadi1*, V. Razavilar2, A.A. Motallebi2, R. Esmailzadeh Kenari3, A.A. Khanipour4

Background: Antioxidant activities of plant extracts are being studied to increase the shelf life of fish products. Some plants such as Urtica dioica L. (nettle) can be a good source of antioxidants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of hydroalcoholic and water extracts of nettle leaf on the chemical properties of superchilled minced meat of the common kilka fish (Clupeonella cultriventris caspia). Methods: One hundred g of minced meat of kilka was mixed with 200 and 400 ppm of both hydroalcoholic and water extracts of nettle separately, and stored at -2 °C. The Total Vola-tile Basic Nitrogen (TVB-N) and Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances (TBARS) of the samples were analyzed at days 0, 3, 7, 14, 21 and 28. The statistical analysis was carried out using Duncan’s multiple range tests in MStat-C software. Results: Both hydroalcoholic and water extracts of nettle extended the shelf life of minced kilka from 2 days to 8 days. However, no relation (p>0.05) was observed between chemical values and kind of extracts. Also, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) between two concentration levels of extracts and chemical values. Conclusion: Treatment levels of nettle extracts could effectively delay chemical deteriora-tion, and extend the shelf life of minced kilka during storage. A combination of superchilling temperature (-2 °C) and treatment of minced kilka with 200 and 400 ppm of hydroalcoholic and water extracts of nettle can extend the shelf life to 28 days. Based on the results of this study, it is proposed that these plant extracts can be used as safe preservatives for minced fish

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Authors: N. Mollakhalili Meybodi1, M.A. Mohammadifar2*, A.R. Naseri2

Beverage emulsions are systems that are composed of two liquids including oil and water which are prepared by homogenizing oil phase in an acidic aqueous phase. They must be stable in both concentrated and diluted form for a period of 6-12 months upon standing at room temperature. Two immiscible phases contained systems are thermodynamically unsta-ble. In other words, they are vulnerable to break down over time by different process such as flocculation, coalescence, gravitational separation, phase inversion and ostwald ripening. The rate of destabilization depends on physicochemical properties of two phases, interfacial layer characteristic and the components present in both continuous and dispersed phase. However, beverage emulsions are thermodynamically unstable; it is possible to make it ki-netically stable using an appropriate emulsifier with respect to emulsion properties, change the dispersed phase characteristic in a way that retards its upward movement. In this article, the most common factors affected on beverage oil-in-water emulsion stability are reviewed. We will also introduce some solutions to improve beverage emulsion stability