1. Optimization of a calcium-based treatment method for jellyfish to design food for the futureFrancesca Anna Ramires, Stefania De Domenico, Danilo Migoni, Francesco Paolo Fanizzi, Dror Angel, Rasa Slizyte, Katja Klun, Gianluca Bleve, Antonella Leone, 2022, original scientific article Abstract: Edible jellyfish are a traditional Southeast Asian food, usually prepared as a rehydrated product using a salt and alum mixture, whereas they are uncommon in Western Countries and considered as a novel food in Europe. Here, a recently developed, new approach for jellyfish processing and stabilization with calcium salt brining was upgraded by modifying the pre-treatment step of freshly caught jellyfish and successfully applied to several edible species. Treated jellyfish obtained by the application of the optimized version of this method respected both quality and safety parameters set by EU law, including no pathogenic microorganisms, absence or negligible levels of histamine and of total volatile basic nitrogen, no heavy metals; and the total bacterial, yeast, and mold counts were either negligible or undetectable. Jellyfish treated by the presented method exhibited unique protein content, amino acid and fatty acid profiles, antioxidant activity, and texture. The optimized method, initially set up on Rhiszostoma pulmo, was also successfully applied to other edible jellyfish species (such as Cotylorhiza tuberculata, Phyllorhiza punctata, and Rhopilema nomadica) present in the Mediterranean Sea. This study discloses an innovative process for the preparation of jellyfish-based food products for potential future distribution in Europe.
Keywords: jellyfish, novel food, safety, quality, nutritional traits, organic calcium salts
Published in DiRROS: 17.07.2024; Views: 4; Downloads: 3
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2. Water quality characteristics and source analysis of pollutants in the Maotiao river basin (SW China)Yinjiu Li, Qiuhua Li, Shulin Jiao, Chen Liu, Liuying Yang, Guojia Huang, Si Zhou, Mengshu Han, Anton Brancelj, 2022, original scientific article Abstract: Rivers are an important mediator between human activities and the natural environment. They provide multiple functions, including irrigation, transportation, food supply, recreation, and water supply. Therefore, evaluations of water quality and pollution sources are of great significance for ecological restoration and management of rivers. In this study, the improved “vušekriterijumska optimizacija i kompromisno rješenje” (VIKOR in Serbian; in English: Multicriteria Optimization and Compromise Solution), and a geodetector were used to analyze the water quality characteristics and pollution sources of the Maotiao River Basin (Gizhou province, SW China). The results showed that the water quality of the Maotiao River Basin deteriorated significantly during the summer drought period, as was evident in the reservoirs and lakes. It improved in the wet season (i.e., during the summer period) due to runoff dilution. Water quality decreased along the river’s course, from upstream to downstream sections. The results of the geographic detector analysis showed that agricultural areas were the primary factor affecting the spatial distribution of water quality in the river basin. In July, August, and November 2020, the influence of agricultural land was 0.72, 0.60, or 0.80, respectively, and the interactions among urban, industrial, agricultural, and forested areas explained 99.2%, 83.2%, or 99.9% of the spatial differentiation of water quality, respectively. Due to the influence of spatial scale, settlements have a small influence on the spatial distribution of water quality. Their impact factors were 0.38, −0.24, and −0.05, respectively. Notably, the negative relationship of water quality and forested areas reflects that topography, types of landscapes, and soil thickness have considerable influences on the Maotiao River Basin’s water quality. Based on the findings, we infer that good farmland water conservancy projects and comprehensive management of different types of landscapes, such as forests, agriculture, and urban area and water bodies, are of great significance for improving water quality.
Keywords: water quality, statistical data, VIKOR model, CRITIC model
Published in DiRROS: 16.07.2024; Views: 2; Downloads: 4
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3. Adaptive visual quality inspection based on defect prediction from production parametersZvezdan Lončarević, Simon Reberšek, Samo Šela, Jure Skvarč, Aleš Ude, Andrej Gams, 2024, original scientific article Abstract: At the end of a production process, the manufactured products must usually be visually inspected to ensure their quality. Often, it is necessary to inspect the final product from several viewpoints. However, the inspection of all possible aspects might take too long and thus create a bottleneck in the production process. In this paper we propose and evaluate a methodology for adaptive, robot-aided visual quality inspection. With the proposed method, the most probable defects are first predicted based on the production process parameters. A suitable classifier for defect prediction is learnt in an unsupervised manner from a database that includes the produced parts and the associated parameters.Arobot then steers the camera only towards viewpoints associated with predicted defects, which implies that the trajectories of robot motion for the inspection might be different for every product. To enable dynamic planning of camera trajectories, we describe a methodology for evaluation and selection of the most appropriate autonomous motion planner. The proposed defect prediction approach was compared to other methods and evaluated on the products from a real-world production line for injection moulding, which was implemented for a producer of parts in the automotive industry.
Keywords: robot learning, robotic quality inspection, visual quality inspection, injection moulding, production parameters, robot motion planning
Published in DiRROS: 15.07.2024; Views: 43; Downloads: 15
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4. Does regular quality control improve the quality of surgery in Slovenian breast cancer screening program?Andraž Perhavec, Sara Milićević, Barbara Perić, Janez Žgajnar, 2020, original scientific article Abstract: The aim of our study was to evaluate the quality of surgery of Slovenian breast cancer screening program (DORA) using the requested EU standards. Furthermore, we investigated whether regular quality control over the 3-year period improved the quality of surgical management. Patients and methods. Patients who required surgical management within DORA between January 1st, 2016 and December 31st, 2018 were included in the retrospective study. Quality indicators (QIs) were adjusted mainly according to European Society of Breast Cancer Specialists (EUSOMA) and European Breast Cancer Network (EBCN) recommendations. Five QIs for therapeutic and two for diagnostic surgeries were selected. Additionally, variability in achieving the requested QIs among surgeons was analysed. Results. Between 2016 and 2018, 14 surgeons performed 1421 breast procedures in 1398 women. There were 1197 therapeutical (for proven breast cancer) and 224 diagnostic surgical interventions respectively. Overall, the minimal standard was met in two QIs for therapeutic and none for diagnostic procedures. A statistically significant improvement in three QIs for therapeutic and in one QI for diagnostic procedures was observed however, indicating that regular quality control improves the quality of surgery. A high variability in achieving the requested QIs was observed among surgeons, which remained high throughout the study period. Conclusions. Adherence to all selected surgical QIs in patients from screening program is difficult to achieve, especially to those specifically defined for screen-detected lesions. Regular quality control may improve results over time. Reducing the number of surgeons dedicated to breast pathology may reduce variability of management inside the institution.
Keywords: breast surgery, mammography, screening program, quality control
Published in DiRROS: 12.07.2024; Views: 44; Downloads: 13
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7. Health-related quality of life in Slovenian patients with colorectal cancer : a single tertiary care center studyJan Grosek, Jerica Novak, Katja Kitek, Alta Bajrić, Ana Majdič, Jurij Aleš Košir, Aleš Tomažič, 2019, original scientific article Keywords: health-related quality of life, colorectal cancer, colorectal surgery, Slovenia
Published in DiRROS: 05.07.2024; Views: 81; Downloads: 36
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9. Distribution of toxigenic cyanobacteria in Alpine lakes and rivers as revealed by molecular screeningMaša Jablonska, Leonardo Cerasino, Adriano Boscaini, Camilla Capelli, Claudia Greco, Aleksandra Krivograd-Klemenčič, Ute Mischke, Nico Salmaso, Rainer Kurmayer, 2024, original scientific article Abstract: The increasing frequency of cyanobacteria blooms in waterbodies caused by ecosystem eutrophication could endanger human health. This risk can be mitigated by effective monitoring incorporating molecular methods. To date, most molecular studies on toxigenic cyanobacteria have been limited to microcystins (MCs), disregarding other cyanotoxins, to freshwater planktic habitats while ignoring benthic habitats, and to limited geographic areas (usually one or a few specific waterbodies). In this study, we used PCR-based methods including PCR product sequencing and chemical-analytical methods (LC-MS/MS) to screen many plankton (n = 123) and biofilm samples (n = 113) originating from 29 Alpine lakes and 18 rivers for their cyanotoxin production potential. Both mcyE (indicating MC synthesis) and anaC (indicating anatoxin (ATX) synthesis) gene fragments were able to qualitatively predict MC or ATX occurrence. The abundance of mcyE gene fragments was significantly related to MC concentrations in plankton samples (R2 = 0.61). mcyE gene fragments indicative of MC synthesis were most abundant in planktic samples (65 %) and were assigned to the genera Planktothrix and Microcystis. However, mcyE rarely occurred in biofilms of lakes and rivers, i.e., 4 % and 5 %, respectively, and were assigned to Microcystis, Planktothrix, and Nostoc. In contrast, anaC gene fragments occurred frequently in planktic samples (14 % assigned to Tychonema, Phormidium (Microcoleus), and Oscillatoria), but also in biofilms of lakes (49 %) and rivers (18 %) and were assigned to the genera Phormidium, Oscillatoria, and Nostocales. The cyrJ gene fragment indicating cylindrospermopsin synthesis occurred only once in plankton (assigned to Dolichospermum), while saxitoxin synthesis potential was not detected. For plankton samples, monomictic and less eutrophic conditions were positively related to mcyE/MC occurrence frequency, while oligomictic conditions were related to anaC/ATX frequency. The anaC/ATX frequency in biofilm was related to the lake habitats generally showing higher biodiversity as revealed from metabarcoding in a parallel study.
Keywords: cyanotoxins, planktic and benthic habitats, water quality monitoring, early warning, toxigenic cyanobacteria, European Alps
Published in DiRROS: 03.06.2024; Views: 191; Downloads: 118
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10. Neuromuscular component of muscle quality assessment in older adults : narrative reviewKatarina Puš, Boštjan Šimunič, 2024, review article Abstract: The concept of muscle quality encompasses both microand macroscopic aspects of muscle architecture and composition and has gained increasing attention with inclusion in the definition of sarcopenia, indicating the significance of muscle quality in evaluating muscle function and strength among older individuals. Muscle quality consists of two main components: neuromuscular and morphological and is often defined as the ratio between the two. The aim of this review is to present currently used methods for assessment of muscle quality with an emphasis on neuromuscular component in older adults. The most used methods for assessing morphological component are imaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, dualenergy X-ray absorptiometry and non-imaging bioimpedance analysis. In the neuromuscular component upper and lower body strength are assessed with different methods such as hand grip strength, isokinetic lower limb strength and isometric lower limb strength. Currently, there are three proposed muscle quality assessment methods for field or population studies: muscle quality index, ultrasound sarcopenia index and bioimpedancederived phase angle. Despite the exploration of muscle quality through various assessment methods, a consensus on the most appropriate and universally applicable approach has yet to be established.
Keywords: ageing, skeletal muscle, ultrasound sarcopenia index, muscle quality index, phase angle
Published in DiRROS: 13.05.2024; Views: 164; Downloads: 125
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