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Background This study investigates the safety evaluation of enterocin-producing 11 E. mundtii and two E. faecium strains previously isolated from small livestock colostrums. Enterococcus species do not possess Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status. Hence, it is critical to scrutinize enterococci’s antibiotic resistance, virulence characteristics, and biogenic amine production capabilities in order to assess their safety before using them as starter or adjunct cultures. Results Enterococcus strains showed susceptibility to medically significant antibiotics. Multiple-drug resistance (MDR) was found in only E. faecium HC121.4, and its multiple antibiotic resistance (MAR) index was detected to be 0.22. The tetL and aph(3')-IIIa were the most commonly found antibiotic resistance genes in the strains. However, E. mundtii strains HC56.3, HC73.1, HC147.1, and E. faecium strain HC121.4 were detected to lack any of the antibiotic resistance genes examined in this study. Only E. mundtii HC166.3 showed hemolytic activity, while none of the strains engage in gelatinase activity. The strains were identified to have virulence factor genes with a low rate. None of the virulence factor genes could be detected in E. mundtii HC26.1, HC56.3, HC73.1, HC165.3, HC166.8, and E. faecium HC121.4. The E. mundtii HC73.2 strain displayed the highest presence of virulence factor genes, namely gelE , efaA fs , cpd , and ccf . Similarly, the E. mundtii HC112.1 strain showed a significant presence of genes efaA fm , ccf , and acm . There was no decarboxylation of histidine, ornithine, or lysine seen in any of the strains. Nevertheless, E. faecium HC121.4 and HC161.1 strains could decarboxylate tyrosine, but E. mundtii HC26.1, HC56.3, HC73.1, HC73.2, HC112.1, HC147.1, HC155.2, HC165.3, HC166.3, HC166.5, and HC166.8 strains only showed a limited capacity for tyrosine decarboxylation. None of the strains possessed the hdc , odc , or ldc genes, but all of them had the tdc gene. Conclusion The E. mundtii HC56.3 and HC73.1 strains were deemed appropriate for utilization in food production. Using the remaining 11 strains as live cultures in food production activities could pose a possible risk to consumer health.

The goal of this research was to evaluate the functional properties and safety of antilisterial Enterococcus faecium BT29.11 isolated from Turkish Beyaz cheese. E. faecium BT29.11 showed the highest inhibitory activity against Listeria monocytogenes, followed by Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant enterococci. E. faecium BT29.11 was identified by 16S rDNA sequence analysis, and genus- and species-specific PCR. The entA, entB, and entX structural genes were detected in E. faecium BT29.11. It was determined that the BT29.11 strain was a slow acid producer and did not show extracellular proteolytic and lipolytic activity. E. faecium BT29.11 demonstrated good probiotic properties. E. faecium BT29.11 was found to be y-hemolytic, gelatinase-negative, and susceptible to clinically important antibiotics. Only ermC and acm were detected in the BT29.11 strain. E. faecium BT29.11 decreased the growth of L. monocytogenes in ultra-high temperature (UHT) milk. The findings of this research indicated that E. faecium BT29.11, an antilisterial strain, might be employed as a probiotic adjunct culture in fermented food products.

ABSTRACT Istanbul’s rich historical background has given rise to a cosmopolitan culinary culture. The Ottoman Empire played a significant role in shaping the local culinary culture, which was further enriched by the societies that coexisted under its auspices. Alongside the food traditions of Muslim Turks, Istanbul’s cuisine was also influenced by the contributions of minority groups, making it one of the most varied and multi-faceted culinary cultures. This research article delves into the culinary cultures of three specific non-Muslim minority groups—Rums, Istanbul Armenians and Turkish Sephardics— and their influence on Istanbul’s cuisine through content analysis. The introduction illustrates the reasoning behind the selected minority groups, followed by a broad definition and formation of the concept of Istanbul cuisine. The following sections introduce the culinary cultures and hospitality practices of the selected minority groups and their contribution to Istanbul cuisine. The final part demonstrates how the city’s hospitality industry can embrace traditional recipes and contemporary influences and help preserve and celebrate Istanbul’s rich culinary heritage while shaping its future. There is limited research on the role of minority cuisines in enriching Istanbul’s culinary heritage in the context of hospitality. This article aims to fill that research gap.

The purpose of this study was to determine the antimicrobial activity and occurrence of bacteriocin structural genes in Enterococcus spp. isolated from different cheeses and also investigate some of their virulence factors. Enterococcus strains were isolated from 33 different cheeses. Enterococcus faecium (6 strains) and Enterococcus faecalis (5 strains) enterocin-producing strains were identified by 16S rDNA analyses. Structural genes entA, entB, entP and entX were detected in some isolates. Multiple enterocin structural genes were found in 7 strains. None of the tested enterococci demonstrated anyβ-haemolytic activity and only one strain had gelatinase activity. Six strains showed multiple antibiotic resistance patterns and in addition, vanA and several virulence genes were detected in many strains. Only E. faecalis MBE1-9 showed tyrosine decarboxylase activity and tdc gene was detected only in this strain.

Enterococci are lactic acid bacteria (LAB) that play a role in the aroma formation, maturation, and sensory development of fermented foods such as meat and dairy products. They also contribute to the improvement of the extended shelf life of fermented foods by producing bacteriocin. The aim of this study was to isolate bacteriocin-producing LAB from sheep and goat colostrum, to characterize the bacteriocin-producing strains, and determine the technological properties of the strains. A total of 13 bacteriocin-producing LAB was isolated and identified as 11 Enterococcus mundtii and two Enterococcus faecium. The strains were found to be genetically different from each other by phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences and random amplified polymorphic-DNA (RAPD-PCR). It has been determined that bacteriocins show activity in a wide pH range and are resistant to heat, lose their activity with proteolytic enzymes and α-amylase, but are resistant to detergents. While the presence of the munKS gene was detected in all of the strains, it was determined that E. faecium HC121.4, HC161.1, E. mundtii HC147.1, HC166.5, and HC166.8 strains contained multiple enterocin genes. Trisin-SDS-PAGE analysis revealed two active protein bands of approximately 5.1 and 5.5 kDa in E. faecium HC121.4 and one active protein band with a weight of approximately 4.96 kDa in other strains. E. mundtii strains and E. faecium HC161.1 were identified as mundticin KS producers, and E. faecium HC121.4 was defined as an enterocin A and B producer. Except for E. mundtii HC166.8, acid production of strains was found to be slow at 6 h and moderate at 24 h. None of them showed extracellular proteolytic and lipolytic activities. It was found that the strains had esterase, esterase lipase, leucine arylamidase, acid phosphatase, and naphthol-AS-Bl-phosphohydrolase activities, while protease activities were low and peptidase activities were high. In conclusion, bacteriocin producer 13 Enterococcus strains isolated from sheep and goat colostrum were found to have the potential to be included in starter culture combinations.

Bacillus cereus is a pathogenic bacterium commonly found in nature and can produce toxins that cause food poisoning. This study aimed to detect the prevalence of B. cereus group bacteria in 50 unpackaged and 20 packaged spice samples frequently used as flavoring in Turkish cuisine, as well as investigate the presence of toxin genes and antibiotic resistance in the isolates. A total of 48 B. cereus group bacteria were isolated from 27 of 70 (38.57%) spice samples. The prevalence of B. cereus group bacteria in packaged (25%, 5/20) and unpackaged (44%, 22/50) spice samples did not differ significantly ( P  ˃ 0.05). All B. cereus group isolates were identified as B. cereus sensu stricto ( B. cereus ) using molecular methods. The hemolytic activity tests revealed that the most strains (44/48, 91.67%) are β-hemolytic. The distributions of toxin genes in isolates were investigated by PCR. It was determined that all isolates were identified to have 2–8 toxin genes, except B. cereus SBC3. The three most common toxin genes were found to be nheA (47/48, 97.92%), nheB (46/48, 95.83%), and entFM (46/48, 95.83%). All B. cereus isolates were susceptible to linezolid and vancomycin, while 35.42% (17/48) showed resistance to erythromycin. Multi-drug resistance (MDR) was detected in 8.3% (4/48) of B. cereus isolates, while 33.33% of the isolates showed multiple antibiotic resistance (MAR) index values higher than 0.2. The findings indicate that B. cereus may pose a health risk in packaged and unpackaged spices if present in high quantities. Therefore, the presence of B. cereus strains in both packaged and unpackaged spices should be monitored regarding consumer health and product safety.

This research describes the method of neutron activation analysis (NAA) and Compton suppression for determination of some toxic elements in red mud (collected from Eti Seydisehir Aluminium Plant in Turkey). Furthermore, short-term leaching tests of elements were undertaken on red mud to evaluate in terms of the environmental impact. Morphological characterizations and qualitative element composition of red mud were also performed by SEM–EDX analysis. Fe, Al, Na, Ti and Ca contents in red mud were found significantly high. It can be concluded that some toxic elements may not easily mobile under the environmental conditions.

Bauxite residues (red mud) produced by digestion of bauxite ore during the production of alumina contain naturally occurring radionuclides such as 238U, 232Th and 40K and toxic elements such as Al, Cr, Co, Mn and Ni. In this research, red mud collected from Eti Seydisehir Aluminium Plant in Turkey was studied to determine the concentration of natural radionuclides for evaluating their radiological effects. Short-term leaching tests of radionuclides were performed by Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP)-1311 method to assess in terms of their environmental impact. Furthermore, self-attenuation factors were experimentally determined using radioactive point sources with two different amounts to ascertain how gamma rays are attenuated in the residue depending on the energy and the volume of residue. The activity concentrations of 234,235,238U, 232Th and 40K in red mud and leachate samples were determined by neuron activation analysis and Compton suppression methods. The method was tested using NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) 1632d and 2709a reference materials. It can be concluded from the results of leaching tests that natural radionuclides may not easily be mobile under environmental conditions and the mobility of the radionuclides depends on the pH value of water and contact time with the water. The activity concentration index which is the most commonly used calculation method was applied to the samples and the results showed that the reuse of red mud as a secondary raw material may not be hazardous depending on the percentage of utilization of it.

The annual atmospheric deposition rates of [sup.210]Po and [sup.210]Pb were determined in Izmir, Turkey. The samples were collected from 18 November 2008 to 17 November 2009. The annual [sup.210]Po deposition flux was determined as 44.1 ± 3.0 Bq m year, while [sup.210]Pb flux was calculated as 73.1 ± 4.4 Bq [m.sup.-2] [year.sup.-1] using bulk collectors. The monthly deposition fluxes of [sup.210]Po and [sup.210]Pb were correlated with the amount of precipitation. The activity concentrations of the samples were found to vary between 5.7 ± 1.1 and 167.1 ± 7.5 mBq [L.sup.-1], with an average value of 41.2 ± 1.9 mBq [L.sup.-1] for [sup.210]Po; and between 5.3 ± 0.6 and 265.7 ± 10.8 mBq [L.sup.-1], with an average value of 67.3 ± 2.7 mBq [L.sup.-1] for [sup.210]Pb. The activity ratios of [sup.210]Po/[sup.210]Pb in the samples ranged from 0.16 to 3.39, with an average value of 0.80. During the course of the study, [sup.210]Po enhancement from both natural and anthropogenic sources was observed. Keywords Atmospheric depositional flux * [sup.210]Po * [sup.210]Pb * [sup.210]Po enhancement

Elevated concentrations of the radium isotopes 224,226,228Ra exist in the scale and produced water in oil exploration. The activity concentration of 226Ra was calculated from 186.2 keV peak with no usual spectral interference of 185.7 from 235U. The activity concentration of 228Ra was calculated from its first daughter product 228Ac using the 911.2 keV gamma rays since it is a pure beta emitter. The activity concentration of 224Ra was calculated from 212Pb using the 238.6 keV gamma-ray and the secular equilibrium equation with 228Ra. The IAEA 448 (oil contaminated field soil) reference material was used as a quality control for 226,228Ra and but was unreliable for 224Ra using 212Pb.