Şeftali %78-85 oranında su içeren ve üretimi oldukça fazla olan bir meyvedir. İçerdiği yüksek nemden dolayı bozulmadan tüketilebilir halde uzun süre tutulabilmesi için muhafaza edilmesi gerekir. Bu çalışmada, 8’e dilimlenmiş şeftali meyvesini etüvde (50, 60, 70°C) ve iklimlendirme kabininde (sabit %30 bağıl nemde 50, 60, 70°C) kurutulmuştur. Çalışmada en kısa kuruma süresi 12 saat ile etüvde 70°C kurutma sıcaklığında bulunurken, en uzun kuruma süresi ise 41.5 saat ile iklimlendirme kabini 50°C %30 RH nemde yapılan denemede tespit edilmiştir. Tüm renk değerlerine bakıldığında şeftali meyvesi renk değerlerini en iyi muhafaza eden yöntem etüv 60°C sıcaklıkta yapılan denemede tespit edilmiştir. Eğriler oluşturulurken literatürde en çok kullanılan Lewis, Yağcıoğlu ve Page kurutma modelleri seçilmiştir ve arasında kuruma verilerini en iyi Yağcıoğlu modeli (R2: 0,9999) tahmin etmiştir. Yağcıoğlu modeli etüvde kurutma yönteminde 60°C sıcaklıkta kuruma verilerini en iyi modellemiştir. Kurutma işlemi sonrasında örneklerin termofiziksel özellikler (termal iletkenlik, termal difüzivite, özgül kütle ve özgül ısı) etüvde 60°C de kurutulan örneklerde belirlenmiştir.

Bu çalışma KOP bölgesi illerinin sıcaklık nem indeksi (SNİ) değerlerinin süt sığırcılığı açısından uygunluğunun belirlenmesi amacıyla yapılmıştır. Bu doğrultuda, KOP Bölgesi’nde bulunan Yozgat, Kırıkkale, Kırşehir, Niğde, Aksaray, Karaman, Konya ve Nevşehir illerinin 2000-2021 yılları arasındaki sıcaklık ve nem değerlerine ait aylık ortalamalar kullanılmıştır. KOP Bölgesinde yer alan illerin ortalama sıcaklık ve nem verilerinden SNİ değerleri hesaplanmıştır. Çalışmada, SNİ hesaplanması için ‘‘(0,8 × T) + [(RH/100) × (T-14,4)] + 46,4’’ eşitliği kullanılmıştır. Kritik SNİ seviyesi olarak 72 değeri temel alınmıştır. Çalışmada, SNİ, sıcaklık ve nem değerleri üzerine, il, ay ve yıl ile interaksiyon etkisi istatistiki olarak önemli bulunmuştur (P<0,05). KOP Bölgesinde yer alan iller için ortalama SNİ değerleri ise 50,88-55,25, sıcaklık değerleri 9,96-13,18oC ve nem değerleri %54,03-64,78 arasında belirlenmiştir. Ortalama SNİ en yüksek Aksaray (55,25) ve Kırıkkale (55,13) illerinde, en düşük ise Yozgat (50,88) ilinde hesaplanmıştır. Elde edilen ortalama SNİ değerleri kritik değerlere yakın olan Temmuz ve Ağustos ayları da dâhil süt sığırcılığı için tehlike oluşturmadığı tespit edilmiştir. Ancak SNİ değerlerinin yüksek olduğu bu aylarda süt verim ve kalitesi, hastalık ve üreme ile ilgili problem yaşamamak için yeterli havalandırma, fan, sisleme ve gölgelikler, su ihtiyacının karşılanması, bakım, besleme ve barındırma gibi birçok sürü yönetim uygulamalarına dikkat edilmesinin süt sığırcılığı açısından yararlı olacağı kanaatine varılmıştır.

Sanayi devriminden sonra hızlı kentleşmeye paralel olarak ortaya çıkan atıklar ve bu atıkların yönetimi kentler için önemli bir sorun teşkil etmektedir. Ülkemizde kentsel atıklar için gelişigüzel uzaklaştırma yöntemi ve düzenli depolama yöntemi kullanılmaktadır. Düzenli depolama yöntemi atık üretiminin zararlılığının önlenmesi ve azaltılması amacıyla uygulanmaktadır. Fakat düzenli depolama tesisleri kentsel çevre içerisinde yer aldığında yaşam ortamının kalitesinde düşme ya da kentsel ekolojide bozulmalar gibi çevresel sorunlar meydana getirmektedir. Çevresel sorunlardan biri olan kirleticiler Burdur kentinde yer alan Katı Atık Düzenli Depolama Tesisi ve yakın çevresinde görülmektedir. Katı Atık Düzenli Depolama Tesisi potansiyel kentsel yapılaşma alanında yer almaktadır. Bu sebeptendir ki çevredeki görüntü ve hava kirliliği en aza indirgenmelidir. Tesise peyzaj onarım tekniği kullanılarak peyzaj tasarım projesinin hazırlanması, minimum değişiklikle çevresel sorunların giderilebileceğini göstermektedir. Bu kapsamda; Burdur kentinde yer alan Katı Atık Depolama Tesisinin sebebiyet verdiği kirleticilerin önüne geçilmesi ve potansiyel kentsel yerleşim alanlarının çevresel kalitesini artırmak amacı ile öneri projesi hazırlanmıştır.

Probiyotik mikroorganizmalar sıcaklık, pH, oksijen ve su aktivitesi gibi faktörler ile birlikte ürün matriksi ve gıda işlem proseslerinden büyük ölçüde etkilenmektedir. Isıl işleme alternatif teknolojiler, artan probiyotik canlılığı, prebiyotik stabilite ve daha yüksek biyoaktif bileşik konsantrasyonuna sahip yenilikçi gıda ürünlerini tasarlamak için son yıllarda giderek önem kazanmaktadır. Gelişen bu alternatif teknolojilerin probiyotik ürünlere uygulanması, bakteri canlılığını arttırmakla birlikte, probiyotik fermantasyonu ile kolesterolün bağlanması, Caco-2 hücrelerine yapışma, anjiyotensin dönüştürücü enzim (ACE) inhibitörünü artırma, antioksidan, antimikrobiyal aktivite ve sistolik kan basıncını düşürme gibi biyolojik etkileri iyileştirmektedir. Ayrıca, bu teknolojiler ile fermantasyon kinetikleri optimize edilmekte, bakteri faaliyetleri sonucunda bakteriosin, oligosakkarit, peptit, fenolik bileşik, flavonoidler gibi bileşikler üretilmekte, fermente edilmekte, korunmakta, biyoaktif (vitamin ve mineral biyoyararlılığı) ve duyusal özellikler iyileştirilmektedir. Son yıllarda artan sağlık etkilerine sahip postbiyotikler elde etmek için de gelişen bu teknolojiler uygulanmaktadır. Çalışmalar, alternatif işleme teknolojilerinin gıdalardaki probiyotik, prebiyotik ve postbiyotiklerin terapötik etkisini artırdığını göstermektedir. Bu derlemede, ısıl işleme alternatif teknolojilerin probiyotik fermantasyonu üzerindeki etkisi incelenmektedir.

Dietary diversity became a global concern in improving health conditions through the habit of food group consumption by adding health dimension to the issue of food calorie consumption. Access to nutritionally adequate and good quality diet is essential to human health, productivity and work output. However, despite the various concerns by governments all over the world on ensuring that every household can at least provide three square meals per day, food insecurity continues to be a major development problem across the globe. This study assessed the effect of COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on households’ dietary diversity in Jos Metropolis, Plateau State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 265 households. Data was collected using well-structured questionnaire. The analytical techniques were; Descriptive statistics, Dietary Diversity index and Z-Statistics Test. Gender, age, household size, education, marital status, cooperative membership and access to credit were the socioeconomic characteristics described. Result indicate that 86% of the households had low food dietary diversity while 14% of the households had high food dietary diversity before and after the pandemic lockdown. Similarly, 18% of the households had low calorie consumption while 82% of the households had high dietary diversity before and after the pandemic lockdown. Cereals, legumes/grains, oils/fat, roots and tubers, sugar and honey and meats were the most common food consumed by the households daily before and after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Result further indicate that the pandemic lockdown had effect on the dietary diversity and food consumption patterns of the urban households. It can be concluded that the understanding of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on dietary diversity and food consumption patterns of households is important in developing policy measures such as social safety nets, home feeding programmes, the school feeding programme, conditional cash transfers schemes and improved marketing channels that will help mitigate against households falling into food insecurity during similar pandemic in the future.

The SCD gene is a significant component of the leptin signaling pathway. The SCD gene has also been suggested as a candidate essential gene that can change the ratio of saturated to unsaturated fatty acids in milk and increase the amount of conjugated linoleic fatty acid, which is thought to have anti-cancer properties. The current research was carried out on Holstein cows to determine the association between SCD (Stearoyl-Coenzyme A Desaturase) gene polymorphism and total milk yield at 305 days (TMY305) and daily milk yield (DMY). The polymorphism in the SCD gene was identified using the PCR-RFLP technique and the SatI restriction enzyme for genotyping at SNP c.878T>C in the exon 5. The TT, TC, and CC genotype frequencies were 0.21, 0.50, and 0.29 respectively. While the allele frequencies of T and C were 0.46 and 0.54, respectively. According to the Chi-square test results, the SCD/c.878T>C distribution was in Hardy-Weinberg disequilibrium (P<0.05). Statistical analysis indicated a significant association between the SCD gene polymorphism and TMY305 (P<0.05). The TC genotypes showed a higher mean TMY305 compared to the TT and CC genotypes.

Probiotics are widely used in different forms of food or food supplements due to their health benefits. Probiotics consumption has seen an increase over the years. The main species used in probiotic products are Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium, along with other species such as Bacillus. Generally, probiotic microorganisms are accepted as safe even though they are resistant to several antibiotics. Some probiotic strains with intrinsic antibiotic resistance may be beneficial in regenerating gut microbiota during antibiotic therapy. However, the antibiotic resistance genes identified in probiotic microorganisms may carry the risk of the transfer of resistance genes to pathogens, raising concerns. For instance, tetracycline resistance genes have often been detected in probiotic organisms Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus. The antibiotic resistance genes carried on mobile genetic elements create reservoirs for pathogen resistance. This transfer of resistant genes to opportunistic pathogens and their spread may pose great danger. Hence, the purpose of this review was to assess the presence of antibiotic resistance in probiotic microorganisms and the potential transfer of the resistant genes to pathogens or commensal bacteria in the intestine.

Sweet cherry, which affects consumers’ preferences with its aroma, taste and sensory properties, is a significant fruit species for human health with its bioactive compounds such as organic acids, vitamins and anthocyanins. However, its post-harvest shelf life is very short due to its sensitive fruit structure. Thus, the significant economic losses occur. In the study, effects of pre-harvest Aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG), Salicylic acid (SA) and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) applications on fruit quality characteristics and biochemical content in sweet cherry were determined. SA and PGPR treatments increased fruit size, but AVG decreased (If the fruit weight is 4.51 in the control application, 4.49 in the SA application and 4.10 in the PGPR, how can it be said that SA and PGPR increase the fruit weight).  The fruits treated with SA, AVG and PGPR had higher fruit firmness values than the control’-fruits. Salisylic acid treatmens did not affect the rate of soluble solids content(SSC) in fruit, SSC rate was higher in PGPR treated-fruit, but AVG decreased the SSC. Titratable acidity (TA) was lower in PGPR treated-fruit, but was higher in the AVG and SA treated-fruit. Fruits treated with the SA and AVG had higher fruit color values than control fruits, while the lowest color values was obtained with PGPR treatment. In general; PGPR, SA and AVG were effective in the concentration of organic acids, but their effects varied depending on the organic acid compounds. As a result, AVG and SA delayed fruit ripening and fruit softening while PGPR, AVG and SA improved fruit quality (It is not clear how this idea was reached). These applications can be considered as a promising method for improving fruit quality at harvest and  maintaining post-harvest fruit quality of sweet cherry.

Farmers in Bangladesh are enthusiastic in dragon fruit farming as a new and promising crop that offers both difficulties and potential. The purpose of the study was to examine the advantages and disadvantages of this novel fruit from the perspective of growers. It is a descriptive survey research which was conducted in purposively selected four Upazilas of Chapainawabganj region of Bangladesh including Chapainawabganj Sadar, Gomastapur, Nachol, and Godagari from 16th April to 25th May, 2022. Pearson’s correlation test was administered to determine the relationship between socio-demographic characteristics of the growers and their knowledge on dragon fruit production. Socio-demographic profile of the randomly selected growers of the study revealed that majority of the respondents were in their middle age, highly educated, had a medium annual income with medium sized land, little farming experience, less training and higher cosmopolitan behavior. Majority of the dragon fruit growers showed high level of understanding regarding dragon fruit cultivation and their fellow farmers and mass media were determined to be the most effective sources of information. According to the study’s findings, the majority of farmers were inspired to grow dragon fruit because it is more resistant to pests and diseases, promotes excellent health, yields for a long time, and can be grown from both seeds and cuttings. Furthermore, the fruit has a higher profit margin than other field crops. Weeds, bird invasions, high labor expenses, lack of technical knowledge of farmers on dragon fruit farming were recognized as major obstacles to fruit production. According to a correlation analysis, farmers’ age, extension contacts, and cosmopolitan nature were significantly and positively correlated with their knowledge of growing dragon fruit. More government support, especially from the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), and fixing the issues described above could increase the fruit’s future prospects in the country.

Taking long-term threats on food supply and safety, effects of Covid-19 pandemic on nutritional habits of consumers were investigated in this study. Consumers living in Yeşilyurt district of Tokat province in 2021 constituted the primary material of the present study. Simple random sampling method was used in selection of the sample size and 162 people participated into face-to-face interviews. Changes in food consumption habits of consumers before and after the pandemic were investigated. Present findings revealed an increase in monthly food expenditures of consumers during the pandemic period. About 45% of the participating consumers stated that their nutrition levels were affected during the pandemic period. The variables that had the highest positive correlation with the nutritional effects after Covid-19 pandemic were identified as consumption of dietary supplements (vitamins, etc.) and medicinal-aromatic plants after the pandemic. Path analysis was applied to survey findings and the variables with the greatest direct effects on nutritional level of the consumers after Covid-19 pandemic were identified as change in winter preparations (88.88%), monthly fruit consumption (84.59%) and monthly meat consumption (83.44%).