Wine helps deter tooth decay
United Press International June 26
PAVIA, Italy—Red and white wine are effective in controlling several strains of streptococci bacteria that are involved in tooth decay, found an Italian study. The study, published in the July 11 issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, found wine can act as an effective antimicrobial agent against the tested pathogenic oral streptococci and might be active in caries (cavities) and the prevention of upper respiratory tract pathologies. Study leader Gabriella Gazzani and colleagues point out that previous studies suggested that moderate wine consumption has health benefits after reaching the stomach and digestion—in protecting against heart disease and cancer. Wine’s antibacterial activity has been recognized since antiquity, when wine was used to treat infected wounds, according to Gazzani of the University of Pavia.
School bus emissions study to be released
United Press International June 25
A U.S. government study suggested anti-idling advocates are on the right track in an ongoing debate concerning school bus exhaust emissions. Many regulatory agencies and school districts limit the idling of school buses while students enter or leave the vehicles, thereby restricting children’s exposure to airborne diesel pollutants. But concerns remained whether stopping and then restarting school bus engines might result in higher emissions of diesel pollutants than occur during continuous idling. In the new study by John Kinsey and colleagues at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, diesel emissions from a limited number of school buses under both scenarios were measured. The researchers concluded restarting buses results in fewer emissions, so long as the vehicles depart quickly without any extended period of idling. The study is to be published in the July 15 issue of the journal Environmental Science & Technology.
Astronomer studies extrasolar atmospheres
United Press International June 22
With increasingly frequent discoveries of extrasolar planets, a U.S. astronomer is working to better understand the atmosphere of such planets. Bruce Fegley, Jr., a Washington University professor of Earth and planetary sciences, said the farther out you go in the solar system, the more water you find. “The theory about the gas giant planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) is they have primary atmospheres, which means their atmospheres were captured directly from the solar nebula during accretion of the planets,” said Fegley. “On the other hand, the terrestrial planets (Venus, Earth, and Mars) have secondary atmospheres formed afterward by outgassing—heating up the solid material that was accreted and then releasing the volatile compounds from it. That then formed the earliest atmosphere.” He and collaborator Laura Schaefer said with new theoretical models they are able to surmise the outgassing of materials that went into forming the planets and make predictions about the atmospheres of extrasolar planets. Fegley presented his research earlier this year in Chicago during the 233rd National Meeting of the American Chemical Society. (Story also appeared in the Hindustan Times.)
It’s not just the water
The New York Times June 19, Section: Science Observatory, page D3, by Henry Fountain
With the arrival of summer, it’s time for fun in the sand and sun—and for the occasional beach closing because of pathogens that can cause gastrointestinal illness. Health officials determine whether a beach should be closed based on counts of E. coli bacteria in the water, an indicator of contamination by sewage (treated or untreated) or animal waste. But contamination is not necessarily just about the water, according to a new study by Satoshi Ishii and colleagues at the University of Minnesota. In a report in Environmental Science and Technology, they show that sand can play a role. The researchers studied contamination on and around a beach in the harbor shared by Duluth, Minn., and Superior, Wis., at the western tip of Lake Superior. They found that E. coli counts increased from the spring through summer and early fall, with treated sewage being the main source in spring and waste from gulls and other birds contributing a greater percentage as the months wore on. In particular, they found that beach sand contained very little bacteria in early spring but that counts increased greatly in the ensuing months. The findings, they say, suggest that wave action brings bacteria to the sand, where it survives and multiplies, forming a ready source of contamination later in the season, when wave action again can put it back in the water.
Sweet spark may hold clue to how things break
The New York Times June 19, Section: Science, page D3, by Kenneth Chang
The Wint-O-Green Life Saver Effect, long of interest to children and adults chewing the candies in pitch-black closets to see the blue-white sparks shooting out of their mouths, could provide scientists a way to better understand how things break. At the atomic level, that is. Last month, scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign reported in The Journal of the American Chemical Society that those faint sparks were energetic enough to power chemical reactions along the fracturing surfaces. “When you break a pencil, you actually have to have broken chemical bonds,” said Kenneth S. Suslick, a professor of chemistry at Illinois and one of the paper’s authors. “Yet our understanding of that process is surprisingly poor. In fact when you look at the quantum mechanics of that, it isn’t exactly clear how breakage occurs.” … Dr. Suslick said the sparks of light gave the opportunity to do spectroscopy, looking for specific colors of light given off by different atoms and molecules. That will give the scientists hints about how the bonds between atoms rearrange. “When you break materials, you’re almost always going to be driving chemical reactions,” he said. “It gives us a spectroscopic probe to see what’s going on right at the fracture point.”… “It’s basic science,” Dr. Suslick said. “I don’t see any applications, really. It’s one of those things that have a long and illustrious history.”
Study seeks ways to cut feed antibiotics
United Press International June 18
Taiwanese scientists are developing protein-enriched milk that they hope might reduce the need for antibiotics in animal feed. Winston Cheng at National Taiwan University and colleagues at National Chung Hsing University said their search for ways to promote growth of farm animals without adding antibiotics to feed has led them to an advance toward genetically engineering animals that produce higher levels of a natural growth-promoting protein in their milk. Cheng’s team notes the protein lactoferrin, or LF, has anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory qualities and might serve as an alternative to antibiotics in agriculture. The researchers genetically engineered laboratory mice to produce milk enriched in pig LF and then studied the growth of 10 generations of mice pups fed on the milk. Mice fed LF-enriched milk grew 10 percent to 15 percent faster than those fed on ordinary milk. … The research is reported in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. (Story also ran inThe Post Chronicle and Earth Times.)
New bladder cancer test in the works
WebMD June15
Scientists may have found a new way to test urine for signs of bladder cancer. A protein called A1BG seems to be more common in the urine of bladder cancer patients than in the urine of people without bladder cancer. That’s according to researchers from the University of Florida in Gainesville and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. They included the University of Florida’s Steve Goodison, Ph.D. Bladder cancer is one of the world’s five most common cancers, according to Goodison’s team. … Their findings appear in the Journal of Proteome Research.
Gelatin combo eyed for tomato waste encapsulation
NutraIngredients June 13
Researchers from Taiwan are eying a combination of gelatin and poly(-glutamic acid) (PGA) for the encapsulation of lycopene from tomato pulp waste, offering alternatives for the ingredient increasingly in the consumer’s eye. The research taps into an ever-growing trend for food manufacturers to use microencapsulation technologies as a way of achieving much-needed differentiation and enhancing product value. Tapping into key and emerging consumer trends with innovative techniques is becoming increasingly important for food manufacturers. Microcapsules are tiny particles that contain an active agent or core material surrounded by a shell or coating, and are now increasingly being used in food ingredients preparation. Writing in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, researchers from Taipei’s Fu Jen University and the Vedan Enterprise Corporation examined the potential of the gelatin-poly(-glutamic acid) (-PGA) combination as coating materials for lycopene encapsulation.
Academic societies team up to enhance influence, bolster performance
Daily Yomiuri Online (Tokyo) June 14
Academic societies in Japan, which are often derided as lacking international competitiveness and the ability to effectively transmit information to society, are teaming up to create larger entities and to improve the quality of their journals. The move coincides with the Science Council of Japan’s first survey of academic societies in 13 years. … The president-elect of the new federation, Prof. Hiizu Iwamura of Nihon University, said the new entity is modeled on the American Chemical Society, which has 34 independent suborganizations in specialized fields but which manages administration and budgets in an integrated fashion. “A large organization is necessary to convey researchers’ opinions to citizens in a systematic way and to make policy proposals. We’ve tried to promote green chemistry—which aims to reduce negative impacts on the environment—as a key government policy, but the effect on policymakers has been weak because the academic societies are divided across numerous disciplines,” Iwamura said.
Mercury level in lake rising
The Post-Standard (Syracuse, New York) June 3, by Tim Knauss
Glacier Lake at Clark Reservation State Park, in Jamesville, is an ideal barometer for measuring mercury that falls out of the atmosphere, according to Charles T. Driscoll, Jr., a mercury expert at Syracuse University [SU]. … According to an analysis of sediment beneath the lake by Driscoll and other researchers, the amount of mercury settling into Glacier Lake started increasing in the early 1990s, after falling sharply for the preceding two decades. … Driscoll and his colleagues studied Glacier, Skaneateles, Otisco and Cross lakes to see what role local and regional sources of mercury play in contaminating the lakes. The result was a scientific paper, “Local to Regional Emission Sources Affecting Mercury Fluxes to New York Lakes,” written by Driscoll; SU research associate Revital Bookman; Steven Effler, of the Upstate Freshwater Institute; and Daniel Engstrom, of the St. Croix Watershed Research Station, in Minnesota. … The paper has been submitted to the journal Environmental Science and Technology but is being peer-reviewed and has not yet been published.
Apple peel might keep cancer at bay
People’s Daily Online (China) June 5
Apple peel may either inhibit or kill cancer cells in laboratory cultures, a Cornell University research has found. Cornell researchers analyzed the peel from 230 pounds of red delicious apples and isolated their individual compounds. After identifying the structures of the promising compounds in the peel, the researchers tested the pure compounds against cancer cell growth in the laboratory. They identified a dozen compounds—triterpenoids—in apple peel that either inhibit or kill cancer cells in laboratory cultures, according to the research published this month in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
Tea—milking it
Science Magazine Online June 2
http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20070602/food.asp
Because adding milk to tea is routine in the United Kingdom, a team of Scottish researchers decided to investigate the potential health significance of this practice. Their concern: Because milk can bind to some of tea’s antioxidants, it might prevent them from countering free radicals. … Against this backdrop, Janet A. M. Kyle and her colleagues at the Rowett Research Institute purchased different teas from local stores, brewed them up, and then assayed their antioxidant activity. In a paper published online and in an upcoming Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, they report finding some brand-related differences in the inherent antioxidant activity of a brew. The good news: Adding milk doesn’t alter that activity. Moreover, they found, adding milk to tea doesn’t diminish the amount of antioxidants—such as the epigallocatechin gallate, which many commercial teas tout as EGCG—that ends up in tea-drinkers’ blood. So, it appears one can safely boost the protein content of your brew, by adding milk, without sacrificing tea’s antioxidant bounty.
New foods may provide health boost
The Greenville News (South Carolina) May 22, by Mike Foley
If your grocery cart is filled with the same old boring items each week, it’s time to make a change. Not by just trying new foods but by trying variations on the foods you eat, said Katherine Spinks, a registered dietitian with the Greenville Hospital System. “The key is not getting in a rut and eating the same thing every week,” she said. “Branch out. Buy more colorful foods. There are lots of studies that show darker colors have more nutritional value.” … And Spinks isn’t the only one who thinks so. Many of the items already in your shopping basket have close cousins that are better for you than the foods you’re used to. … Eat stinky, pungent, and bitter onions to get more cancer-fighting compounds than the milder, sweeter bulbs. While all onions are proven artery protectors, a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry found shallots, western yellow, New York bold, and Northern red onions pack the most antioxidants.
Suspected carcinogen in food wrappings now omnipresent
Cox News Service May 25, by Jeff Nesmith
WASHINGTON—New studies by university researchers and scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] indicate that a chemical designated as a likely human carcinogen is present in the blood of nearly every American, including newborn infants. The chemical, perfluorooctanoic acid, is associated with the manufacture and use of Teflon and other moisture-resistant products. It is commonly known as PFOA. … In a paper published on the Web site of the journal Environmental Science and Technology last month, the Johns Hopkins researchers described analyses of umbilical cord blood taken from 299 infants born in Baltimore, Md., in 2004 and 2005. When the blood samples were analyzed at CDC, every one of them contained PFOA, said pediatrician Lynn Goldman, principal author of the study, and 99 percent contained a related chemical, perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS).
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