Fluorescent bioassays for toxic metals in milk and yoghurt

Identification of cow, buffalo, goat and ewe milk species in fermented dairy products using synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy

In the dairy industry, substitution of high priced milk species with low priced ones is a common practice, and determination of milk species is critical. In this study, synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy (SFS) method was developed for identification of milk species in fermented dairy products (yoghurt and cheese). Three partial least square-discriminant analysis models were developed in order to identify pure-mixed samples, milk species and binary mixture type, and partial least square (PLS) model was utilized to quantify the mixing ratio in binary mixtures. PLS models used for yoghurt and cheese samples showed that detection limits of adulteration were below 3.3%. Apart from the buffalo-cow yoghurt and goat-cow cheese, precision of the measurements was found to be below 6.2. It can be said that SFS technique is applicable on yoghurt and cheese samples as it's a less destructive and a less costly method compared to DNA and protein based conventional methods.

Detection of selected trace elements in yogurt components

The objective of this study was to determine the concentrations of Cu, Cd, Pb, Mn, Cr, Co, Ni, Zn, and Hg in the white and fruit parts of commercially available yogurts (n = 30) from Nitra markets (Slovak Republic). The results were correlated to determine their relationships. Three yogurt fruit flavors were chosen and tested, strawberry (n = 10), blueberry (n = 10), and cherry (n = 10). The elements were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Higher concentrations of toxic elements, such as Cd and Pb, were found in the fruit parts of the yogurt, and in some cases, the tolerable limit was exceeded. The white part of the yogurt was not contaminated by toxic elements. White yogurt is a good source of nutrients for humans, but the fruit part in yogurt requires detailed monitoring and improvements in the processing techniques.

Bio-recovery of non-essential heavy metals by intra- and extracellular mechanisms in free-living microorganisms

Free-living microorganisms may become suitable models for recovery of non-essential and essential heavy metals from wastewater bodies and soils by using and enhancing their accumulating and/or leaching abilities. This review analyzes the variety of different mechanisms developed mainly in bacteria, protists and microalgae to accumulate heavy metals, being the most relevant those involving phytochelatin and metallothionein biosyntheses; phosphate/polyphosphate metabolism; compartmentalization of heavy metal-complexes into vacuoles, chloroplasts and mitochondria; and secretion of malate and other organic acids. Cyanide biosynthesis for extra-cellular heavy metal bioleaching is also examined. These metabolic/cellular processes are herein analyzed at the transcriptional, kinetic and metabolic levels to provide mechanistic basis for developing genetically engineered microorganisms with greater capacities and efficiencies for heavy metal recovery, recycling of heavy metals, biosensing of metal ions, and engineering of metalloenzymes.

Mercury (II) sensor based on monitoring dissociation rate of the trans-acting factor MerR from cis-element by surface plasmon resonance

Transcriptional switches regulate gene expression in response to environmental changes surrounding cell. Many studies have focused on two fundamentally different models of transcriptional control by bacterial metalloregulatory protein. Distortion of the DNA fragment including cis-element, to which the trans-acting factor MerR binds, is accepted as the mechanism of gene expression regulation by Hg (II) while, in cases of the other trans-acting factors ArsR and CadC, events of association to and dissociation from cis-element are known to control transcription in response to As (III) and Cd (II), respectively. In this study, interactions between green-fluorescent-protein-tagged trans-acting factor and immobilized cis-element were analyzed on solid surface. Fluorescent measurements and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) responses revealed that although the equilibrium dissociation constant (KD) was much lower in MerR than in ArsR and CadC, the dissociation rate of MerR from DNA increased in response to Hg (II) at concentrations of 5-10(4) µg l(-1). These results firstly demonstrate an increase of KD between MerR and its recognition site in DNA by Hg (II), and possibility of rapid Hg (II) quantification with the low detection limit (5 µg l(-1)) and the high dynamic range (10(1)-10(4) µg l(-1)).