Browsing by Author "Dionísio, Lídia"
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- Application of unsteady-state heat transfer equations to thermal process of morcela de arroz from Monchique region, a portuguese traditional blood sausagePublication . Pereira, Jorge; Ferreira-Dias, S.; Dionísio, Lídia; Patarata, L.; Matos, T. J. S.Morcela de Arroz (MA) is a popular cooked blood and rice sausage produced following empirical procedures in the Monchique region, south of Portugal. Presenting high pH (about 6.5) and water activity (around 0.97), it is commercialized without preservatives, unpacked and with restricted commercialization period (1 week at 0C-5C). The aim of this study was (i) to assess the adequacy of unsteady-state heat transfer equations (USHTE) using Heisler charts to predict temperature in the centre of the product and the time needed to attain the temperature needed for cooking and (ii) to determine if the thermal treatment traditionally applied complies with the recommendations for refrigerated processed foods of extended durability (REPFEDs). A very good fit of USHTE to the experimental time/temperature data was observed. MA thermal process complies with the REPFEDs recommendations. Bacillus cereus and Clostridium perfringens were not detected in any of the tested samples.
- Are the defined substrate-based methods adequate to determine the microbiological quality of natural recreational waters?Publication . Valente, Marta Sofia; Pedro, Paulo; Carmen Alonso, M.; Borrego, Juan J.; Dionísio, LídiaMonitoring the microbiological quality of water used for recreational activities is very important to human public health. Although the sanitary quality of recreational marine waters could be evaluated by standard methods, they are time-consuming and need confirmation. For these reasons, faster and more sensitive methods, such as the defined substrate-based technology, have been developed. In the present work, we have compared the standard method of membrane filtration using Tergitol-TTC agar for total coliforms and Escherichia coli, and Slanetz and Bartley agar for enterococci, and the IDEXX defined substrate technology for these faecal pollution indicators to determine the microbiological quality of natural recreational waters. ISO 17994: 2004 standard was used to compare these methods. The IDEXX for total coliforms and E. coli, Colilert (R), showed higher values than those obtained by the standard method. Enterolert (R) test, for the enumeration of enterococci, showed lower values when compared with the standard method. It may be concluded that more studies to evaluate the precision and accuracy of the rapid tests are required in order to apply them for routine monitoring of marine and freshwater recreational bathing areas. The main advantages of these methods are that they are more specific, feasible and simpler than the standard methodology.
- Biodetection of turfgrass fungal diseases using sniffer dogsPublication . Serrão, M.; Coelho, Luísa; Dionísio, Lídia; Guerrero, Carlos; Duarte, AmilcarThe results in this work evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of the olfactory capacity of the intervening dog in the fungus biodetection. On 100 attempts, a sensitivity and a specificity of 100% (Table 1) were obtained for the biodetection of the fungus Sclerotium rolfsii when the 4-year-old English Springer Spaniel female dog was faced to a straight line of 5 equally distanced Falcons. The post-inoculation time of the samples, used in the sessions, varied between 24 and 72H, however there was no difference in the detection response by the female dog Julieta. This is also a noteworthy additional fact, given the potential for prevention that can represent the detection of a fungus with such a short post-inoculation time. Further work is being established to assess the olfactory ability to detect the presence of the fungus in inoculated turfgrass samples and finally to detect it in the field.
- Biological control of turfgrass diseases with organic composts enriched with Trichoderma atroviridePublication . Coelho, Luísa; Reis, Mário; Guerrero, Carlos; Dionísio, LídiaThe increasing demand of natural products for the control of plant diseases has led to the search for biological control agents, namely fungi, often isolated from composts of organic residues. By composting two different mixes of agro-industrial residues, P1 and P2 composts were obtained, from where a known antagonist, Trichoderma atroviride, was isolated. Later, a second composting process was performed and when the composting mix reached room temperature, the previously isolated T. atroviride was inoculated in both composts to enrich its population (E) and named as P1E and P2E. The suppressive capacity of these two composts against Sclerotium rolfsii, Clarireedia spp. and Rhizoctonia solani was tested two weeks after T. atroviride inoculation, in 100 mL pots with turfgrass seeded with Agrostis stolonifera. The tested treatments were: composts P1 and P2 without any treatment; thermally treated P1 and P2 (P1t, P2t); P1 and P2 enriched without and with previous thermic treatment (P1E, P2E, P1tE, P2tE), and a commercial peat-based substrate, natural (P) and thermally treated (Pt), enriched (PE) and enriched after thermal treatment (PtE). Enriched composts achieved the highest disease control. P1E was more effective in controlling Clarireedia spp.; pots with infected plants grown on P1E, showed 53.5% less affected area compared to P1t. P2E was more effective against R. solani; results showed 69.3% less affected area compared to P2t and both were effective in S. rolfsii control, with a reduction of 38.5% in P1E and 43.5% in P2E. The larger population of Trichoderma spp. observed in the enriched substrates associated to the greater enzyme activity, namely and N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase, standing out in P2E, will have contributed strongly to the biocontrol of the studied diseases. An increase in some macro and micronutrients was observed in the enriched heat-treated substrates.
- Controlo de Sclerotinia homoeocarpa em relva com compostos orgânicosPublication . Coelho, Luísa; Dionísio, Lídia; Guerrero, Carlos; Reis, MárioOs relvados são suscetíveis a doenças causadas por fungos, sendo Sclerotinia homoeocarpa um dos que causa maiores prejuízos em muitos países. A compostagem permite a valorização e tratamento de resíduos orgânicos, originando compostos com aplicações agrícolas, nomeadamente para controlo de doenças causadas por patogénicos do solo. Produziram-se dois compostos, designados P1 e P2, por compostagem de resíduos agroindustriais, em pilhas com arejamento por reviramento. Desde o final da fase termofílica até ao final dos processos de compostagem recolheram-se amostras onde se isolaram e identificaram fungos presentes em ambos os compostos. Dos isolados, 26 apresentaram potencial antagonista, sendo 12 provenientes de P1 e 14 de P2. Realizaram-se ensaios in vitro, pelo método de confrontação direta, para avaliar a capacidade antagonista destes fungos para S. homoeocarpa. Doze dos isolados, dos géneros Trichoderma, Fusarium e Bionectria, impediram o crescimento de S. homoeocarpa, com taxas de inibição entre 52 e 68%. Os compostos obtidos foram também testados, in vivo, em relva (Agrostis stolonifera L.) cultivada em vaso. No cultivo em vaso, usando os compostos como substratos, verificou-se redução da área de relva afetada pela doença, principalmente em P2. Os compostos testados controlaram S. homoeocarpa tanto in vitro como em vaso destacando-se o composto P2.
- Culture media performance on the detection of actinomycetes from compostsPublication . Coelho, Luísa; Reis, Mário; Dionísio, LídiaIn this study we evaluated the performance of six culture media on the detection of actinomycetes that were present in composts of agro-industrial wastes from the Algarve region. The composts were produced with orange wastes, olive pomace and grass clippings, in the proportion of 2:1:1 of volume. Two compost piles were built with different ventilation systems, one with forced ventilation and the other with mechanical turning and natural ventilation. In order to quantify the population of actinomycetes, different growth media containing antibiotics were tested and one culture medium containing only half of the concentration of the Plate Count Agar (½ PCA) was also tested. The incubation took place at two temperatures, 25º and 55ºC. Different results were obtained for the enumerations from the culture media. The population of actinomycetes achieved higher values when incubated at 55ºC and when the samples were inoculated in the ½ PCA culture medium. Thus, the antibiotics showed no beneficial effect in the tested culture media. The results suggest the use of the ½ PCA culture medium as the most adequate in order to count the bacterial populations in these samples. This medium is also the less expensive and the one that showed the fastest bacterial growth.
- Effect of packaging technology on microbiological and sensory quality of a cooked blood sausage, Morcela de Arroz, from Monchique region of PortugalPublication . Pereira, J; Dionísio, Lídia; Patarata, L.; Matos, T. J. S.Morcela de Arroz (MA), a popular Portuguese blood sausage, with high pH and water activity (a(w)), is traditionally commercialized without preservatives and unpacked. This study evaluated the best packaging solution to extend MA shelf life stored at 4 +/- 1 degrees C for 44 days: without packaging (WP), vacuum (VP) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) (80% CO2; 20% N-2). Mesophilic (MTVC), psychrotrophic (PTVC), lactic acid bacteria (LAB), pseudomonads, molds and yeasts, Enterobacteriaceae, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens, sensory properties, pH, moisture and aw were studied. Moisture and a(w) decreased (p < 0.05) in WP. pH decreased in WP and MAP during storage. MTVC and PTVC counts increased to values around 7 log CFU/g at 44 days of storage. LAB and Enterobacteriaceae counts were higher (p < 0.05) in VP. Pseudomonads were inhibited (p < 0.05) by MAP after 8 days of storage. Sensory parameters were affected (p < 0.05) by packaging and storage time. Globally, MAP performed better. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
- First report of curvularia trifolii causing curvularia blight in agrostis stolonifera in South of PortugalPublication . Coelho, Luísa; Borrero, C.; Bueno-Pallero, Francisco Angel; Guerrero, Carlos; Fonseca, Filomena; Reis, Mário; Avilés, M.; Dionísio, LídiaAlgarve region (Portugal) has nearly 40 golf courses with a significant economic impact. Summer surveys on 10 golf courses detected an unknown disease on one course in 2009 and on another course in 2012 and 2013 at 29 to 30°C daily average. The second course had symptoms on about 25% of the turf of two putting greens. Diseased bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.) had a green dappled pattern with irregular patches of turfgrass on yellowed leaves. Prior to decaying, affected leaves turned brown and then gray. Crown and leaf sheath infections resulted in dark brown dry rot. No lesions were observed on the roots. Leaves were surface disinfected with 5% commercial bleach (0.225% sodium hypochlorite) and cultured on potato dextrose agar (PDA). Ten fungal colonies grew from the leaf tissue, and brown mycelia, conidiophores, and conidia were observed under a microscope. Conidia were ventricose pyriform, mostly abruptly curved, 20 to 36 µm (30 µm, SD = 4) × 7 to 12 µm (10.5 µm, SD = 1.3) (n = 50), predominantly three-septate, with a prominent hilum and enlarged and darkened central cells. Colonies grown on PDA were black-brown with a black reverse side. Conidia differed in size, 15.4 to 24.6 µm (19.99 µm, SD = 3.00) × 6 to 11 μm (8.68 µm, SD = 1.54) (n = 50) and morphology (cylindrical or slightly curved). These characteristics were consistent with Curvularia trifolii (Kauffm.) Boedijn. (Ellis 1971; Falloon 1976; Khadka 2016). Species identification of the representative isolate A2 1.12 was confirmed by analysis of nucleotide sequences of the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region using primers ITS1 and ITS4 (White et al. 1990) and GPDH gene region with primer set gpd (Koike et al. 2013). BLAST searches of GenBank showed a high similarity of the isolate ITS sequence (MG029439) to the reference sequence JN712458 of C. trifolii (99% identity) and GPDH sequence (MK570108) with LT715803.1 (97.88% identity). The maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree showed that our isolate clustered with C. trifolii. The pathogenicity assay of this isolate was conducted in greenhouse on A. stolonifera ‘Penncross’. The isolate was grown on PDA (25°C, 10 days). Five pots (100 ml) were filled with a sand and peat mix (9:1 v/v) with 0.06 g of seeds per pot, covered with a fine sand layer. Turfgrass was cut once a week beginning 2 weeks after seeding and was fertigated with 0.5 g/liter of Peter’s foliar feed (27 + 15 + 12; N + P2O5 + K2O; and micronutrients; Scotts, Heerlen, The Netherlands). To obtain a conidial suspension for inoculation, cultured plates were scraped with a sterilized spreader and water. The suspension was filtered through a sterile gauze. Conidia were counted under a microscope (400×) with a hemocytometer. The suspension was adjusted to 8 × 103 conidia/ml, and 10 ml was sprayed per pot. Pots maintained humidity for 2 days under microtunnels. The first disease symptoms appeared 3 days after inoculation. Bentgrass from the five pots developed Curvularia blight and rotted crown symptoms. Control plants (five pots treated with water) did not display symptoms. This trial was repeated once. On PDA, C. trifolii was reisolated from leaf lesions and morphologically identified, confirming Koch’s postulates. Ellis (1971) referred to the presence of C. trifolii in Portugal, but no region, symptom description, or grass species was detailed. Sivanesan (1987) reported C. trifolii in Portugal only on Lolium multiflorum. Therefore, this is the first report of C. trifolii in Algarve, affecting A. stolonifera. This disease can increase maintenance costs in greens in this area.
- Growth kinetics and physiological behavior of co-cultures of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Kluyveromyces lactis, fermenting carob sugars extracted with wheyPublication . Rodrigues, Brígida; Lima-Costa, Maria Emília; Constantino, A.; Raposo, Sara; Felizardo, C.; Gonçalves, D.; Fernandes, T.; Dionísio, Lídia; Peinado, J. M.Alcoholic fermentation of carob waste sugars (sucrose, glucose and fructose) extracted with cheese whey, by co-cultures of Saccharomyces.cerevisiae and Kluyveromyces lactis has been analyzed. Growth and fermentation of S. cerevisiae in the carob-whey medium showed an inhibition of about 30% in comparison with water-extracted carob. The inhibition of K. lactis on carob-whey was greater (70%) when compared with the whey medium alone, due to osmolarity problems. Oxygen availability was a very important factor for K. lactis, influencing its fermentation performance. When K. lactis was grown alone on carob-whey medium, lactose was always consumed first, and glucose and fructose were consumed afterwards, only at high aeration conditions. In co-culture with S. cerevisiae, K. lactis was completely inhibited and, at low aeration, died after 3 days; at high aeration this culture could survive but growth and lactose fermentation were only recovered after S. cerevisiae became stationary. To overcome the osmolarity and K. lactis' oxygen problems, the medium had to be diluted and a sequential fermentative process was designed in a STR-31 reactor. K. lactis was inoculated first and, with low aeration (0.13 vvm), consumed all the lactose in 48 h. Then S. cerevisiae was inoculated, consuming the total of the carob sugars, and producing ethanol in a fed-batch regime. The established co-culture with K. lactis increased S. cerevisiae ethanol tolerance. This fermentation process produced ethanol with good efficiency (80 g/l final concentration and a conversion factor of 0.4g ethanolig sugar), eliminating all the sugars of the mixed waste. These efficient fermentative results pointed to a new joint treatment of agro-industrial wastes which may be implemented successfully, with economic and environmental sustainability for a bioethanol industrial proposal. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
- High diversity of Phytophthora species in natural ecosystems and nurseries of Portugal: detrimental side effect of plant introductions from the age of discovery to modern globalizationPublication . Horta Jung, Marília; Maia, Cristiana; Mora-Sala, Beatriz; Abad-Campos, Paloma; Schena, Leonardo; Mosca, Saveria; Carella, Giuseppe; Moricca, Salvatore; Nechwatal, Jan; Dionísio, Lídia; Cravador, Alfredo; Jung, ThomasBetween 2010 and 2015, an extensive survey of Phytophthora diversity was performed across Portugal. Baiting and direct isolation tests obtained 48 Phytophthora taxa in 62 of 70 forest stands (89%) from 148 of 302 rhizosphere soil samples (49%) and 25 of 29 tree species (86%), and from bark cankers of Alnus lusitanica and Fagus sylvatica ; from 33 of 34 rivers and forest streams (97%); and in 12 of 13 forest nurseries (92%) from 54 of 87 root ball samples (61%) and 16 of 21 tree species (76%). The 799 Phytophthora isolates belonged to 28 known and three recently described species; one designated and two new non‐hybrid taxa; and five designated and nine new hybrid taxa. The majority, 34 Phytophthora taxa (71%), are introduced aliens in Europe while nine (19%) and five (10%) taxa are of cryptic and native origin, respectively. Phytophthora cinnamomi was the most common species in forests (56%) and forest nurseries (61%). Multiple first records for Portugal and partly Europe of both Phytophthora taxa and tree declines and new host– Phytophthora associations were found. Isolation rates from forest soil differed considerably between declining (65%) and healthy trees (10%), regardless of the tree species. The widespread infestations of nurseries with aggressive wide‐host range pathogens like P . cinnamomi , P . pseudocryptogea , P . × cambivora , P . multivora and P . plurivora , and host‐specific pathogens like P . alticola , P . quercetorum and P . quercina , will inevitably cause their further spread to the wider environment, exacerbating pathogen threats to forest ecosystems and thus weakening their resilience to climatic extremes.