Mapping of powdery mildew using multi-spectral HJ-CCD image in Beijing suburban area

Powdery mildew is one of the most serious diseases, which has a significant impact on the production of winter wheat. As an effective alternative to traditional sampling methods, remote sensing can be a useful tool in disease detection. This study examines the potential of a moderate resolution multispectral satellite image in disease monitoring at regional scale. At the suburban area around Beijing, a large size ground survey sample (n = 90) and the corresponding HJ-CCD image were acquired at the grain filling stage of winter wheat. A number of spectral features were found to be sensitive to powdery mildew through an independent t-test. Based on these spectral features, classification models were established using both spectral information divergence (SID) and spectral angle mapper (SAM), respectively. The results showed that the overall accuracies of disease identification and severity estimation were moderate. The estimation of normal and seriously infected samples yielded higher accuracies than slightly infected samples. The single phase HJ-CCD can only be used for locating the infected areas of powdery mildew, whereas is unable to discriminate the severity levels of disease. The presence of several stressors and disturbances other than disease is a possible reason of the unsatisfactory performance of disease monitoring models. Therefore, the integration of multi-phase onboard data and some relevant ancillary data is necessary to improve the accuracy and reliability of disease monitoring at regional scale.     

Effect of the Addition of Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) on the Quality and Microbiological Stability of Craft Wheat Beers

Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) is a valuable source of vitamins, macro- and microelements, and essential oils. The purpose of this study was to compare the physicochemical properties, sensory properties, antioxidant activity, and microbiological stability of wheat beers enriched with varying additions of crushed lemongrass. Sensory evaluation showed that wheat beers enriched with 2.5% m/v lemongrass were characterised by balanced taste and aroma (overall impression). Physicochemical analysis of the wheat beers showed that increasing the concentration of lemongrass in the finished product negatively affected the ethanol content. Alcohol content in wheat beer enriched with 1% m/v lemongrass was on average 14.74% higher than wheat beer enriched with 2.5% m/v lemongrass and on average 17.93% higher than wheat beer enriched with 5% m/v addition of lemongrass. The concentration of lemongrass in the finished product also increased the acidity of the beers and affected the colour of the wheat beers compared to the control beer. The total polyphenol content and antioxidant activity of lemongrass-enriched wheat beers varied. Of the lemongrass-enriched beers analysed, the beer product with 5% m/v lemongrass was the most microbiologically stable. According to the study, crushed lemongrass-enriched wheat beer may represent a new trend in the brewing industry, but the brewing process still needs to be improved.     

Does Nitrogen Fertilization Affect the Secondary Structures of Gliadin Proteins in Hypoallergenic Wheat?

One of the macronutrients indispensable for plant growth and development is nitrogen (N). It is responsible for starch and storage protein (gliadins and glutenins) biosynthesis and, in consequence, influences kernels’ quality and yields. However, applying N-fertilizers increases gluten content in wheat, and it may intensify the risk of developing allergy symptoms in gluten-sensitive individuals. The purpose of our research was to analyse whether and how the elimination of N-fertilizers during the cultivation of wasko.gl− wheat (modified genotype lacking ω-gliadins) changes the secondary structures of gliadin proteins. To this aim, using the FT-Raman technique, we examined flour and gliadin protein extracts obtained from kernels of two winter wheat lines: wasko.gl+ (with a full set of gliadin proteins) and wasko.gl− (without ω-gliadin fraction) cultivated on two different N-fertilization levels—0 and 120 kg N·ha⁻¹. On the basis of the obtained results, we proved that nitrogen fertilization does not have a major impact on the stability of the secondary structures of gliadin proteins for wasko.gl− wheat line with reduced allergenic properties. Furthermore, the results presented herein suggest the possibility of increasing the stability of glutenin structures as a result of the N-fertilization of wasko.gl− wheat line, which gives hope for its use in the production of wheat articles devoted to people suffering from diseases related to gluten sensitivity.     

The Effect of a Biostimulant Based on a Protein Hydrolysate of Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) on the Growth and Yield of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

The research object was the liquid protein hydrolysate “AGROMOREE” from the rainbow trout, which was provided by the company “Russian Aquaculture LLC”. The purpose of this study was the evaluation of the effect of the hydrolysate “AGROMOREE” as a biostimulant on the growth and yield of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Biometric indicators of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) growth were determined in the laboratory and in field tests. In the laboratory, the liquid concentrated hydrolysate was dried to facilitate its use. “AGROMOREE” promoted an increase in germination of 2–4% in all samples compared to the control samples, as well as an increase in the length and number of wheat roots. The biostimulant “AGROMOREE” was introduced in the soil in liquid form at about 3000 L/ha and 4000 L/ha in the field tests. This study showed that “ARGOMOREE” contributed to an increase in the length and quantity of wheat ears, the quantity of grains in the ear and the seed weight. At the same time, the quantity of productive stems increased, so that the biostimulant “AGROMOREE” increased the productivity by 3.9–6.3% with respect to the control sample. In general, using the biostimulant “AGROMOREE” on spring wheat seeds from 2019 in the growing season of 2021 provided an increase in yield from 0.21 t/ha to 0.28 t/ha. The maximum value of raw gluten content in the seed was 5.2%, higher than the content in the control. The content of the mass fraction of protein in the seed was in the range of 12.33–12.56%, i.e., 2% higher than that of the control sample. Thus, according to qualitative and quantitative indicators and the total productivity indicators, the biostimulant «AGROMOREE» can be used to increase wheat productivity and reduce the use of nitrogen fertilizers.     

Use of Temperature- and Humidity-Dataloggers in Food Engineering

The use of dataloggers in food engineering is discussed in two examples. The first example describes the measurement of temperature and humidity in a bulk tank car during transport and unloading. In the case of wheat flour the relative humidity in the air raises from about 80% r.h. to values near 100% r.h. at the air compressors for pneumatical unloading start working. The second example shows the use of the datalogger in education on heat transfer. The device was fixed in an ice cream sample which was placed in a store at –25°C. The measured hardeningtime agrees well to theoretical heat transfer calculation.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Surface and interfacial properties of water-soluble wheat proteins

Surface and interfacial properties of water-soluble wheat proteins were investigated and compared with six reference proteins (bovine serum albumin, ovalbumin, β-lactoglobulin, trypsin, cytochrom C and β-amylase). Albumins extracted from wheat flour were separated by the free solution isoelectric focusing. The surface activity at the air/water, dodecane/water interfaces and dilatational rheological behaviour of the adsorbed layers was determined by pendant drop technique. Considerably high surface activity of wheat proteins was found at both interfaces exceeding the corresponding values of most of the reference proteins. Exceptionally, low dilatational moduli (typically  < 10 mN/m) were obtained for wheat fractions in the continuous and the stepwise compression experiments with no age effect (1–20 min) and almost no relaxation. Surface/interfacial activity and rheological properties observed imply that water-soluble wheat proteins are generally characterized by strong hydrophobicity and more flexible molecular structure than the reference proteins.     

毛细管区带电泳分离小麦种子醇溶蛋白的研究

利用毛细管区带电泳（ＣＺＥ）检测了在不同电泳条件下分离小麦种子醇溶蛋白的效果。结果显示,用碱性缓冲液（０．０６ｍｏｌ／Ｌ硼酸钠,ｐＨ９．０,并含有２０％乙腈和１％ＳＤＳ）及４７ｃｍ×５０μｍｉ．ｄ．毛细管柱,在１５ｋＶ电压和３０℃的条件下可获得较高的分辨度和重复性。     

Effect of High Humidity Exposure to Wheat Starch Based High Conducting Flexible Polymer-in-Salt-Electrolyte

Polymer-in-salt-electrolytes (PISEs) are an important class of electrolytes as they carry the promise of faster and single ion transport. Unfortunately, due to unavailability of a suitable polymer host PISE has still not reached to commercial level. In the present work, using a novel synthesis protocol developed by the group, glutaraldehyde crosslinked wheat starch has been successfully modified with sodium iodide (NaI) to synthesize a flexible PISE membrane with desired electrochemical properties. Present paper reports the effect of crosslinker and exposure to high humidity ambience on electrochemical and morphological properties. It has been established that on exposure to higher humidity atmosphere starch-based PISEs stabilize at lower resistance value, but with higher ion relaxation time, which indicates that effect of high humidity treatment is more on salt dissociation instead of assisting the ion transport. The studied materials have conductivity ≈0.01 S cm⁻¹ range with ESW >2.5 V, ensuring its usability in electrochemical devices. The developed synthesis protocol does not require any complicated synthesis route and/or sophisticated instrument hence the overall process is economical also, adding up to its potentiality for energy device fabrication.     

对甲基二溴偶氮胂的合成及其与稀土显色反应的研究

本文报道了对甲基二溴偶氮胂的合成,该显色剂在酸性介质中与稀土元素产生高灵敏度显色反应,大多数常见元素不干扰,所拟分析方法已成功地应用于小麦和铝合金中稀土总量的测定     

新疆小麦粉的特性及面条专用粉的应用研究

通过对美国硬红冬麦粉与新疆小麦粉的比较研究,找到了新疆小麦粉的主要特征及弱点,并针对性地制订了改良方案,为研制新疆的面条专用粉提供了新方法。