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Background: Salmonella typhimurium is one of the most important species of Salmonella that is intracellular parasite and attacks host mucus membrane. These bacteria can cause gastroenteritis, and their main transmission route is water, poultry, meat, egg, and raw food. The aim of this study was to detect three virulence genes associated with S. typhimurium named invA, STM4497, and fliC183 genes by Multiplex PCR method.
Materials and Methods: 183 samples of poultry were collected from food products in Zanjan (Iran) and cultured in BPW (Buffered Peptone Water) for 18 hr and at 37°C, and in RVS broth (Rappaport Vassiliadis Soya) for 6 hr at 41.5°C. After amplification of genomic DNA by Multiplex PCR method, occurrence of pathogen contamination was checked and compared with standard strain.
Results: From the total of 183 collected samples, 52(28.4%) samples were positive for S. typhimurium. The frequency of STM4497, fliC183, and invA genes were 49 (27%), 3 (2%), and 53 (29%), respectively.
Conclusion: Simultaneous detection of invA, STM4497, and fliC183 genes were recognized as a key for detection of S. typhimurium by Multiplex PCR method. 

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There are several methods for calculating surface area of agricultural and food materials which have been used since long time ago. Along with the progress in computer science, image processing has been considered as a method that can be used to quantify the apparent characteristics of food and agricultural materials and to substitute human vision. In this research, a digital image processing method has been adopted for surface area calculation. the efficiency of this method was compared with the three customary methods, namely, using Area Measuring System (AMS), planimeter method, and gravimetric method. Three experiments were devised using different tgpes of samples. Results showed that under all circumstances, the image processing method was no less accurate than the other methods. Moreover, its accuracy was independent of the operator accuracy and skill. The AMS was considerably faster than the other methods. The image processing method stood in the third place after the planimeter method where the time difference between them was less than five seconds.

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Malnutrition of children specially during weaning is one of the most important problems in developing countries such as Iran. So studying about supplementary and weaning foods is one of the important priorities. Considering the scientific reports show effects of germination on the nutritional improvement of cereals and legumes. This study was conducted on the weaning food production, mixed of germinated wheat and lentil powder to evaluate its physical and chemical properties in the National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute in year 2000. The search method was experimental and data collection was done by observation and measurement technique. At first two samples of wheat and lentil powder and germinated wheat and lentil powder with ratio of 89 to 11 as a proper ratio for supplying essential amino acids, were prepared and chemical composition of protein, fat, carbohydrate, ash, fiber and energy were measured. For physical experiment 12 samples of wheat and lentil powder and germinated wheat and lentil powder with ratios of 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 40%, and 50% mixed with water and their viscosity were measured. The result of chemical experiments showed that the percent of protein, ash and fiber of germinated sample was higher than regular sample but this difference was significant (P<0.003) only for fiber. The measured viscosity indicated that it decreases significantly during germination. The proper viscosity of supplementary food was acceptable for gruel of wheat and lentil with ratio of 15% and for germinated sample 40% (less than 3000 cps). It means that for preparation of 100ml of baby food, it needs 15gr ungerminated and 40gr germinated flour respectively. So weaning food prepared by germinated flour has a higher nutritional values. (More than 2.5 times). This study showed that use of germinated wheat and lentil flour as a proper base in weaning food formulation can be recommended because of their higher nutritional values.

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The effect of four light intensities (0, 100, 2000 and 5000 lux) on some reproductive charachteristicsof Artemiaurmianabroodstocks was investigated. 30 male and female individuals were reared in 3 liter containers until the death of all females over the consecutive weeks. Results showed significant differences in terms of average weekly offspring productions among the treatments. The broodstocks cultured in 5000 lux had an increasing trend in offspring production from the first to the fifth week, but a decreasing trend from the sixth to the tenth week. A relatively similar situation was observed in the 2000 lux treatment. The broodstocks cultured in 0 and 100 lux intensities had reduction fluctuations in offspring production from the first to the sixth and seventh weeks, respectively. The highest percentages of egg-sac females were observed in the early and mid-raising weeks, showing the maximum in the mid-week (until the fifth week) in all treatments. In most weeks, a considerable increase was detected in the encysted embryos production in the broodstocks reared in 0 and 100 lux intensities as compared with 2000 and 5000 lux intensities. The survival percentage of broodstocks at the end of the fifth week was 95, 86, 23 and 30 % (in order from high to low levels of light intensities).Considering the increased production of offspring and higher survival rate in the broodstocks as well as the increase in egg-sacsfemales (during the first five weeks), it is recommended that the light intensity of 5000 lux is useful for the mass culture of A. urmianain hatchery reared broodstock.

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The antibacterial and antioxidant activities of methanol and acetone extracts of three marine algae, including Hypnea hamulosa, Gracilaria corticata and Enteromorpha intestinalis wereinvestigated.Antioxidant activities were determined by means of total antioxidant capacity, total phenolic compounds, DPPH radical scavenging activity and ferric reducing antioxidant power. Antibacterial activity was determined using a paper disc diffusion method against pathogenic bacteria, including Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis. Acetone extract of E. intestinalis showed the highest antioxidant activity and contained the highest phenolic compounds. The highest percentage of DPPH radical scavenging activity was observed in the methanol extract of H. hamulosa (p<0.05). The highest ferric reducing antioxidant power was observed in the methanol extract of Glacilaria (p<0.05). The strongest inhibition (p<0.05) against L. monocytogenes was shown by the methanol extract of E. intestinalis and the highest inhibition against B. subtilis and E. coli was observed in the acetone extract (p<0.05). In conclusion, E. intestinalis extracts showed favorable antioxidant and antibacterial activity suggesting its application in food and pharmacological industries.

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Application of antagonistic agents in the rhizosphere of plants is an important approach in control of soil-borne pathogens. Establishment and persistence of biocontrol agents in the soil is a major concern in biological control. This study aimed to determine the effect of plant debris of oak forests on activity of Pseudomonas fluorescens and Trichoderma vierns against Meloidogyne javanica in tomato in green house conditions. In different treatments, both or one of the bioagents were applied to the soil inoculated with M. javanica and amended or unamended with oak plant debris. Based on the results, the growth–related factors of tomato improved in those treatments, in which plant debris were mixed with the soil. In case of nematode-related factors, the number of galls on roots decreased significantly in pots amended with plant debris. Maximum reduction in reproduction factor was observed in treatments with one or both of the biocontrol agents. In comparison to unamended treatments, the rate of reduction in root gall was 56.3% for treatments receiving T. virens and maximum increase in dry weight of root was observed in soils treated with P. fluorescens or T. virens, 68.2% and 56.1%, respectively.

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In this study an agar/gelatin bilayer film was produced from agar and gelatin monolayers using the casting method in two phases. Then, the characteristics of this bilayer film, including water vapor permeability (WVP), water solubility, water absorption, mechanical and optical properties were compared with those of monolayer films. The results showed that  WVP of the bilayer film (3.25×10^-10 g/msPa)  was significantly lower than the agar (3.90 × 10^-10 g/msPa), and gelatin (4/32×10^-10 g/msPa). Absorption of UV light by bilayer film was significantly higher than the single-layer agar and gelatin films. Although the tensile strength of the bilayer film (10.8 MPa) was higher than the single-layer gelatin (2.86 MPa), it was lower than the single layer of agar film (30.49 MPa) (P<0.05). In conclusion, some properties of agar and gelatin films can be improved by making bilayers film of both biopolymers. 

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The present study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of the pH-shift process in protein recovery from whole and gutted common kilka and characteristics of the produced gel compared with muscle surimi obtained with the conventional method. Although both acidic and alkaline methods reduced total pigment (TP) in isolates obtained from the whole and gutted fish, the alkaline version was more effective and the lowest amount of TP was observed in the isolate from gutted fish using alkaline version. The last sample also contained the lowest amount of TCA soluble peptide which was significantly lower than the others. Also, gel produced from the isolate recovered form gutted kilka with the alkaline version had significantly higher water holding capacity and gel hardness but it was weaker than the sample obtained with conventional method. The results were supported with higher relative amount of actomyosin and actin in the structure of the gels produced from the gutted fish isolate and surimi from fish muscle, as reflected in SDS-PAGE. Nevertheless, the whiteness of the samples recovered with pH-shift process was quite lower than the muscle surimi which reveals the necessity of more research in this area.    

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Control of stored-product insect by gamma radiation could be enhanced by other possible techniques such as essential oils as effective alternatives to chemical insecticides. In this study, the efficiency of gamma radiation combined with Perovskia atriplicifolia (Benth) was verified to assess their enhanced antifeedant effect against the Tribolium castaneum (Herbst). Flour disc bioassay was employed to assess the nutritional indices, such as relative growth rate (RGR), relative consumption rate (RCR), efficiency of conversion ingested food (ECI) and feeding deterrence index (FDI). The results showed that irradiation, essential oil and combination of both of them significantly reduced RGR, RCR and ECI in treated larvae and adults. As irradiation at 100 Gy reduced RGR of the larvae and adults from 0.0884 and 0.0366 to 0.0596 and 0.0332 mg/mg/day respectively, when combined with doses of P. atriplicifolia essential oil, the reduction reached to 0.051 - 0.388 and 0.01- 0.224 mg/mg/day respectively. The reduction rates in larvae were even greater when combination of irradiation and EO treatments were used. The results showed a significant increase in the feeding deterrence due to irradiation, essential oil and specially their combination. Therefore, findings led to a conclusion that irradiation can enhance antifeedant activity of essential oils.

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The main goal of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of Ziziphora clinopodioides against some food spoilage and pathogenic bacteria and determine Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC). Extract of Ziziphora was tested for its growth inhibitory and bactericidal effect on 6 Gram-negetive (Enterobacter aerogenes, Escherichia coil, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Salmonella enteriticlis, Shigella dysenteria and Pseudomonas aeroginosa) and 3 Gram-positive (Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus) species. Minimum inhibitory Concentration (MIC) was determined using dilution method and minimum bactericidal concentration(MBC) was taken from the concentration of the lowest dosed test tube showing no growth on subcultured. All of microorganisms were inhibited by the extract of Ziziphora clinopodioides except Pseudomonas aeroginosa. The MIC and MBC for Gram-negetive bacteria, including Enterobacter aerogenes, Escherichia coil, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Salmonella enteriticlis and Shigella dysenteria were 1000-2000 μg/L. The MIC and MBC for Gram-positive bacteria, including Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus, were 1000-4000 μg/L. Acording to the results of this study, It is applicable to use extract of Ziziphora as the natural preservatives and flavoring agents in food products.

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Extracted polysaccharides from green seaweeds are heterogeneous in structural and molecular properties. Basically, sulfated polysaccharides from green seaweeds contain various amounts of rhamnose (16.5-45.0%), xylose (2.1-12.0%), glucose (0.5-6.4%) and sulfate (16.0-23.2%), and their building blocks are chiefly comprised of β-D-GlcpA-(1 → 4)α-L-Rhap3s. Molecular weight of sulfated polysaccharides varies from 93.4 × 103 to 1690 × 103 g/mol. The biological effects of seaweed sulfated polysaccharides are immunomodulation, cancer cell growth suppression, antioxidation, antihyperlipidemic, antiviral and anticoagulation. As the chemical structure and molecular properties of sulfated polysaccharides differ from one seaweed species to another, the biological properties varies subsequently. Overall, given the fact that highly variable marine environment can significantly incorporate into the existing discrepancies of sulfated polysaccharide structures due to seaweed phylogenetic differences, executing more comprehensive studies on various species is necessary to have a better understanding of their function and future applications

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Aim: The objective of this study was to determine the occurrence and antimicrobial resistance pattern of Staphylococcus aureus strains, as one of the important foodborne pathogens, isolated from unpacked ice creams.
Materials & Methods: A total of 122 unpacked ice cream samples were randomly collected from different localities in East Azerbaijan province and transferred to the laboratory using a cool box and screened for the presence of S. aureus strains. Also, the isolates resistance to antibiotics was determined by disk diffusion method.
Findings: In total, 21.3% of the ice creams samples were contaminated with S. aureus strains. Furthermore, antibiotic susceptibility testing revealed that the highest resistance was against penicillin and erythromycin, whereas the highest susceptibility was observed against gentamicin and rifampin. A warning issue was the significant resistance to vancomycin.
Conclusions: The relative high isolation and antimicrobial resistance rates detected in S. aureus strains isolated from unpacked ice creams underline the necessity for applying strict standards at all processing steps by food control agencies and emphasize the need for educational efforts for those personnel involved in products preparation procedures in order to promote food hygiene. It is worth noting that the emergence of resistance to vancomycin, as the last line of treatment for staphylococcal infections, is a worrying global health concern. Moreover, this study highlighted that poor adherence to personal hygiene and health principles during the food products preparation and/or storage could be a potential factor in the spread of pathogenic bacteria and resistance genes in the community.

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The growth performance, biomass and survival of the marine polychaete (Perinereis nuntia)reared on different sandy substrates were evaluated. For this purpose, larvae of P. nuntia with initial length of 1 cm were collected and cultured on 4 different sandy substrates for 4-month period. The tested sands were collected from Bandargah Beach (Bushehr provience) and graded by screenings to 4 substrates grain size of  <0.5, 0.5-2, 2-4 and  >4 mm with 4 replications. At the end of the experiment, the worms grown in the sandy bed of less than 0.5 mm had significantly higher final weight and specific growth rate (p<0.05) and worms grown in the sandy bed more than 4 mm had higher survival and biomass (p<0.05). In general, this study showed that using different sandy substrates had no significant effects on growth performance and survival of P.nuntia.

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Aim: One of the influential factors in maintaining health is nutritional status. As a meal that is prepared quickly and easily and sold in restaurants and eateries, fast food has been popular in many communities. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of health education on the knowledge, attitude, and practice of fast food consumption among primary students in Tehran.
Materials and Methods: In this semi-experimental study, 120 primary school students were selected by simple random sampling method during 2015-2016 academic year in Tehran and they were randomly allocated to intervention and control groups. The data were collected from schools in district 6, Tehran, using a valid and reliable questionnaire before and after the intervention in the areas of knowledge, attitude, practice, and demographic variables. The data were analyzed by SPSS 22 software, using descriptive statistics and independent & paired t-tests, Chi-square, and Mann-Whitney tests.
Findings: Regarding the knowledge, attitude, and practice scores, there were no significant differences between the two groups (intervention and control) before the intervention, but during ``3 months after education``, a significant difference in knowledge, attitude, and practice scores was seen (p<0.01). In the intervention group, the mean score for knowledge, attitude, and practice, 3 months after intervention was increased by 7.13, 12.96 and 0.87 scores, respectively (p<0.001).
Conclusion: Increasing the awareness of educational health in terms of knowledge, attitude, and practice is effectivein the reduction of fast food consumption in primary students.

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Background: The new unknown pandemic introduced in December 2019 in China is now known as SARS-CoV-2 induced COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) disease. Some studies have been published by World Health Organization (WHO), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Food and Drug Administration (FDA); however, there is a little information about food safety and COVID-19. The world has not sufficiently addressed the effects of COVID-19 on food safety. The remarkable point is the hypothesis that this epidemic has passed through a food source eaten by an individual and subsequently turned humans into an intermediate host. In particular, the recent state of information about SARS-CoV-2 is challenging owing to its high transmission and mortality rate in people as a potential source of pathogen and infections. However, there is currently no evidence about COVID-19 spread through food. Materials & Methods: Due to the fact that food is a basic humans need and could be an indirect carrier for the virus; therefore, hygiene protocols must be carefully implemented. Also, some studies have suggested that taking supplements, fermented dairy foods, probiotic products, as well as Vitamins C and D could be helpful. Heat treatment and pasteurization could prevent SARS-CoV-2 transmission through food.
Conclusion: It is recommended that further studies be performed on the duration of COVs survival at different levels of contact with foods under certain conditions with nanoparticles, nano-packaging, nano-emulsions, and nano-encapsulation to evaluate their size effect.

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Aims: The Scomberoides commersonnianus (Talang Queenfish) is in the Persian Gulf waters and constitutes a part of catches in Arab states of the Persian Gulf. Fish food habits are important in understanding food chains. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diet composition of Talang Queenfish in the coastal water of Hormozgan province.
Materials & Methods: In this experimental study, 422 Talang Queenfish were collected from coastal waters of Bandar Abbas. Total length and fork length were calculated. The weight was measured by a digital scale and recorded on a special sampling sheet. Tables and charts were drawn, using Excel 2007 software, and the data were analyzed, using SPSS 20 software  by T Paoli tests and Pearson correlation coefficient.
Findings: The minimum and maximum fork length was 18 cm and 86 cm, respectively, and the mean fork length was 54.282cm. With increasing the fork length, fish weight increased with exponential model (r=0.0151; p<0.05). The length and weight of fish showed a high correlation (r=0.98; p<0.05). The highest gastrosomatic index was in November and the lowest was in June. The vacuity index was 62.32. The food preferences were fish, Crustacean, and Molluscs. The main food of Scomberoides commersonnianus was Anchovies, and the subsidiary food included Hairtail Fish, Goldstripe sardinella, Ponyfish, Silver sillago, Catfish, Threadfin Bream, Goatfish and other Clupeidae fishes.
Conclusion: According to the vacuity index, this fish does not eat a lot. The food preferences are fish, Crustacean, and Molluscs and Anchovies is the main food. The subsidiary food included Hairtail Fish, Goldstripe sardinella, Ponyfish, Silver sillago, Catfish, Threadfin Bream, Goatfish and other Clupeidae fishes.

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