The sensory evaluation and antimicrobial efficacy of Lactobacillus acidophilus supernatant on Salmonella enteritidis in milk.

Postbiotics are metabolites derived from living probiotic bacteria like Lactobacillus strains, during the fermentation process and/or produced in pure form on laboratory scales. These compounds, depending on the type of probiotic from which they are prepared, have specific antibacterial agents such as: organic acids, bacteriocins, short-chain fatty acids, and peptides. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of Lactobacillus acidophilus supernatant (LAS) on the growth pattern of Salmonella enteritidis at fluctuating temperatures and the sensory evaluation of milk that contains this probiotic. Baranyi and Roberts's model determined the best-fit curve for the microbial growth. According to mathematical equations, the highest and lowest specific growth (µ max) rates of S. enteritidis were obtained at 0.055 h-1 and 0.0059 h-1 and also highest and lowest maximum generation time (MGT) values were obtained at 20.06 h and 8.85 h, respectively. Sensory evaluation by the Triangel test reveals that LAS could not establish a significant (p > .05) adverse effect on milk perceptible. Regarding the results obtained in the present study, LAS, without causing adverse sensory change, could act as a safe food additive for the control of bacterial pathogens and reducing food waste, particularly in milk and milk-containing food products.

Non-Pharmacologic Interventions in COVID-19 Pandemic Management; a Systematic Review.

Introduction: Different countries throughout the world have adopted non-pharmacologic interventions to reduce and control SARS - CoV-2. In this systematic approach, the impact of non-pharmacologic interventions in management of COVID-19 pandemic was assessed. Methods: Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, systematic search was carried out on the basis of a search strategy on PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and WHO databases on COVID-19. The impact of travel ban, personal protective equipment, distancing, contact tracing, school closure, and social distancing and the combined effect of interventions on COVID-19 were assessed. Results: Of the 14,857 articles found, 44 were relevant. Studies in different countries have shown that various non-pharmacological interventions have been used during the COVID-19 pandemic. The travel ban, either locally or internationally in most of the countries, movement restriction, social distancing, lockdown, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), quarantine, school closure, work place closure, and contact tracing had a significant impact on the reduction of mortality or morbidity of COVID-19. Conclusion: Evidence shows that the implementation of non-pharmacologic interventions (NPIs), for this study suggests that the effectiveness of any NPI alone is probably limited, thus, a combination of various actions, for example, social distancing, isolation, and quarantine, distancing in the workplace and use of personal protective equipment, is more effective in reducing COVID-19.

Vision-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Inherited Retinal Dystrophies.

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of inherited retinal dystrophies (IRDs) on vision-related quality of life (VRQoL) among IRDs' patients in Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 192 patients with different types of IRDs who were randomly selected from registered patients in the Iranian National Registry for Inherited Retinal Dystrophy (IRDReg®). All ophthalmic findings were collected based on the recorded data in IRDReg®. Moreover, the eligible participants were interviewed to fill out the National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire-25 (NEI VFQ-25) to assess their VRQoL. Ordinal logistic regression was used to evaluate the possible association of the different clinical and nonclinical factors such as demographic information, socioeconomic status, and visual function with VRQoL. Results: The overall mean of a composite score of VRQoL was 45. All subscales obtained from the NEI VFQ-25 questionnaire except general health, mental health, and ocular pain had a significant negative correlation with logMAR best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and near visual acuity variables. There was a statistically significant relationship between VRQoL and factors like age (odds ratio [OR] = 0.91, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.87-0.94), employment status (OR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.05-4.74), logMAR BCVA (OR = 0.31, 95% CI: 0.19-0.49) and normal color vision (OR = 1.92, 95% CI: 1.74-5.01). Conclusion: The VRQoL of patients with IRDs in this study was low. BCVA could be an indicator to show VRQoL.

Molecular Detection and Identification of Zoonotic Microsporidia Spore in Fecal Samples of Some Animals with Close-Contact to Human.

BACKGROUND: Microsporidia species are obligatory intracellular agents that can infect all major animal groups including mammals, birds, fishes and insects. Whereas worldwide human infection reports are increasing, the cognition of sources of infection particularly zoonotic transmission could be helpful. We aimed to detect zoonotic microsporidia spore in fecal samples from some animals with close - contact to human. METHODS: Overall, 142 fecal samples were collected from animals with closed-contact to human, during 2012-2013. Trichrome - blue staining were performed and DNA was then extracted from samples, identified positive, microscopically. Nested PCR was also carried out with primers targeting SSU rRNA gene and PCR products were sequenced. RESULTS: From 142 stool samples, microsporidia spores have been observed microscopically in 15 (10.56%) samples. En. cuniculi was found in the faces of 3 (15%) small white mice and 1 (10%) laboratory rabbits(totally 2.81%). Moreover, E. bieneusi was detected in 3 (10%) samples of sheep, 2 (5.12%) cattle, 1 (10%) rabbit, 3 (11.53%) cats and 2 (11.76%) ownership dogs (totally 7.74%). Phylogenetic analysis showed interesting data. This is the first study in Iran, which identified E. bieneusi and En. Cuniculi in fecal samples of laboratory animals with close - contact to human as well as domesticated animal and analyzed them in phylogenetic tree. CONCLUSION: E. bieneusi is the most prevalent microsporidia species in animals. Our results can also alert us about potentially zoonotic transmission of microsporidiosis.