- Email: [email protected]
Engage students in real-life applications of biotechnology science by using virtual laboratories
Abstracts / Journal of Biotechnology 231S (2016) S4–S109
The conclusion of our study was that storage in refrigeration regime changes the chemical composition only slightly and implicitly the nutritive value of pasteurized liquid melange, but also did not stop the biochemical processes which are responsible for starting the egg-product quality degradation. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.342 Quantifying the quality of tourism services – Study on public catering services Simona Constantinescu, Simona Man ∗ , Ioana Balan, Oana Sicoe Murg, Elena Tonea, Ramona Ciolac Banat’s University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “King Michael I of Romania” from Timisoara, Faculty of Agricultural Management, Romania E-mail address: simi [email protected] (S. Man). The analysis of public catering services, of the causes of their deterioration, represents the highest priority for the transformation of this industry of “hospitality” in a profitable resource, requiring a “culture of quality” at all levels, from the managers, down to the last worker. Application of the quality in public catering services sector is difficult. We chose the improvement of serving process in public catering units, process random chosen, without certain selection criteria, taking into account the following characteristics in order to achieve the ideal: the promptitude of the personnel; the staff’s behavior; the payment methods; the atmosphere in the serving halls. The study has on base the application of questionnaires to the clients of public catering units from Timisoara (Romania), on a sample of 1200 subjects, classified by gender, age, education, income, and to identify the pattern we used the histogram of requirements. It has concluded that analyzed units addresses to all categories of people, anyone may dispose of the services offered. However, were identified also disadvantages such as: the need of extension, changing of the space designed for preparations training, irregularities related on service personnel (minority staff), concluding that, for a proper organization for implementation of the solutions is necessary the application of effective strategies from managers. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.343 Tourism in rural areas-ways of economic, social and environmental support for rural communities through public–private partnership Ramona Ciolac, Calin Stoenescu ∗ , Anda Milin, Corina Sirbu, Ioana Balan, Simona Constantinescu Banat’s University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “King Michael I of Romania” from Timisoara, Agricultural Management Faculty, Romania E-mail address: [email protected] (C. Stoenescu). Tourism in rural areas presents a wide variety of specific forms, but regardless of prevailing activities, it has basically two objectives: economic development of rural areas and preserving local natural resources.
S97
The lack of a realistic vision of the European future village is becoming more acute. At communitarian level the public-private partnerships solution has very good results, because they: - Gather and combine human and financial resources available from the public–private sector. - Associates local players around collective projects in order to achieve the improvement of the economic competitiveness of the region. - Strengthen the dialogue and the cooperation between different rural actors, in order to facilitate the adaptation and changing process from the agricultural sector, the concerns related to environment, the diversification of the rural economy. Rural local communities will have more success in the future, in creating new tourism products, the reasons being: - The existence of a rural area rich in resources; - Interested people to practice such an activity; - The existence of a material base capable to ensure the primarily basic services (accommodation and food). The development of tourism in rural areas will bring to its benefits on multiple levels, from economic to environmental, the purpose being a sustainable development in time. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.344 Engage students in real-life applications of biotechnology science by using virtual laboratories Gabriela Boldureanu 1,∗ , Adriana Prodan 2 , Daniel Boldureanu 3 , Nicoleta Niculescu 4 , Carmen Costuleanu 5 , Stejarel Brezuleanu 5 , Mioara Borza 2 , Ioana Raluca Adochiei 6 , Cristian Rotariu 3 , Gabriela Gladiola Andruseac 3 1
Department for Interdisciplinary Research in Social Sciences and Humanities, “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi, Romania 2 Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi, Romania 3 Department of Biomedical Science, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iasi, Romania 4 Faculty of Entrepreneurship, Business Engineering and Management, University Politehnica of Bucharest, Romania 5 Faculty of Agriculture, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “Ion Ionescu de la Brad” Iasi, Romania 6 Military Technical Academy, Bucharest, Romania E-mail address: [email protected] (G. Boldureanu). The virtual laboratories are interactive simulations in which students perform experiments, collect data and answer questions to assess their understanding. Virtual laboratories have been developed to reproduce experiments that were made in physical laboratories. The biotechnology virtual laboratory is a web-based application designed to introduce to the students the principles of bioreactors and its applications. Based on “anywhere–anytime” concept, students with a minimal level of knowledge on biotechnology will better comprehend the basic design and operations features of bioreactors.
S98
Abstracts / Journal of Biotechnology 231S (2016) S4–S109
The virtual laboratory is divided in a theoretical part and a Modeling & Simulation part: 1. Bioreactor components: through interactive animations are shown the vessel, agitator, baffle, sparger and the jacket. 2. Operations features of the bioreactor including: (a) Temperature measurement and control system: by studying the thermal effect of biochemical processes, students can draw conclusions on biomass accumulation, consumption speed of the substrate and elaboration of biosynthesis product; (b) pH measurement and control: the students will discover that the stability of natural penicillin (G,V) and those of semisynthesis is influenced by the pH of gastric acid; (c) Dissolved oxygen controller: this controller offers the students a number of information which refers to the increase and maintaining the efficient activity of microorganisms and distribution of oxygen concentration in the culture environment; (d) Foam control. The virtual laboratory combines animations, illustrations and videos to convey basic information and engage students in real-life applications of biotechnology science. Acknowledgement: This research was supported by “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy” Iasi, Romania, Contract 30891/30.12.2014 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.345 Comparative efficiency of different biofertilizers applied to the same field Dagnija Vecstaudza 1,∗ , Maris Senkovs 2 , Solvita Stelmahere 1 , Zaiga Petrina 2 , Galina Makarenkova 2 , Vizma Nikolajeva 2 , Olga Muter 1 1 Institute of Microbiology & Biotechnology, University of Latvia, Latvia 2 Department of Microbiology & Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Latvia, Latvia
E-mail address: [email protected] (D. Vecstaudza). Biofertilizer (BF) is a product containing microorganisms, which improves plant growth and development. BFs are well known alternative to conventional fertilizers. This study was aimed at comparing the efficiency of different experimental BFs, which were applied to the same field. Mini-field experiments were conducted in a loamy sand soil, during 3 years in Zemgale region of the central part of Latvia. Microorganisms with target properties were previously isolated from this site. In particular, bacteria with a high cellulolytic activity as well as phosphorus solubilizers were selected for BFs. Besides, Trichoderma as a ubiquitous fungal genus, representing versatile biocontrol agents and known as plant growth promoters, was used. Identification of the most active strains and up-scaling of microbial biomass followed by immobilization procedure. Peat, ceramic beads, wood derived biochar and canopy straw were tested as potential carriers. Influence of the BFs was tested on barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), rape (Brassica napus L.) and corn (Zea mays). Seed germination, growth and development of seedlings were monitored. Fungal abundance in soil samples was estimated with emphasis on the prevalence of Trichoderma spp. in Trichodermaamended soils. Concentration of microscopic fungi increased significantly in the plot with rape, while concentration of bacteria and actinobacteria increased in soil with barley amended by a peat-based biofertilizer. Concentration of microorganisms increased significantly in plots with rape treated by the canopy straw with cellulolytic microbial
consortium. Obtained data will be used for further improvement of BFs. Acknowledgement: Research was financially supported by the Latvian National Program 2014.10-4/VPP-6/6 ResProd. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.346 Retrospective study of uveitis in 181 dogs diagnosed at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Bucharest Andra Elena Enache ∗ , Iuliana Ionascu, Alexandru Sonea, Anca Catalina Cucos Ophthalmology-Surgery Department, University of Agronomical Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Bucharest Romania, Romania E-mail address: [email protected] (A.E. Enache). Canine uveitis is a common diagnosis and may be the only clinical manifestation of several systemic diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate causes of uveitis in dogs diagnosed between 2012 and 2015 at the Teaching Hospital of Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Bucharest. Only dogs that had complete physical and ophthalmic examinations and underwent full diagnostic work-up were considered. One-hundred and eighty-one dogs with a mean age of 6.34 ± 4.62 were included, 98 females and 83 males. Crossbreed dogs (n = 42) were overrepresented, followed by Pekingese dogs (n = 17). Unilateral uveitis was diagnosed in 129 dogs (71.2%). Aqueous flare (90%) and miosis (70%) were frequent ocular findings, whereas only 78 dogs had low intraocular pressures. The most common cause of uveitis was due to ocular trauma (n = 44). Endogenous causes were considered in 115 dogs and included lens-induced uveitis (n = 35, 30.4%), neoplastic uveitis (n = 26, 22.6%), uveodermatologic syndrome (n = 14, 12.2%), infectious agents (n = 8, 7%), metabolic causes (n = 4, 3.5%) and pigmentary uveitis (n = 3, 2.6%). Immune-mediated uveitis and those cases in which no cause was identified remained high (66.9%). Infectious causes were identified in eight dogs, with Ehrlichia canis being the most common causative agent. As infectious diseases become more prevalent, general examination and serological investigations should be considered in all dogs with no history of ocular trauma. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.347
The conclusion of our study was that storage in refrigeration regime changes the chemical composition only slightly and implicitly the nutritive value of pasteurized liquid melange, but also did not stop the biochemical processes which are responsible for starting the egg-product quality degradation. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.342 Quantifying the quality of tourism services – Study on public catering services Simona Constantinescu, Simona Man ∗ , Ioana Balan, Oana Sicoe Murg, Elena Tonea, Ramona Ciolac Banat’s University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “King Michael I of Romania” from Timisoara, Faculty of Agricultural Management, Romania E-mail address: simi [email protected] (S. Man). The analysis of public catering services, of the causes of their deterioration, represents the highest priority for the transformation of this industry of “hospitality” in a profitable resource, requiring a “culture of quality” at all levels, from the managers, down to the last worker. Application of the quality in public catering services sector is difficult. We chose the improvement of serving process in public catering units, process random chosen, without certain selection criteria, taking into account the following characteristics in order to achieve the ideal: the promptitude of the personnel; the staff’s behavior; the payment methods; the atmosphere in the serving halls. The study has on base the application of questionnaires to the clients of public catering units from Timisoara (Romania), on a sample of 1200 subjects, classified by gender, age, education, income, and to identify the pattern we used the histogram of requirements. It has concluded that analyzed units addresses to all categories of people, anyone may dispose of the services offered. However, were identified also disadvantages such as: the need of extension, changing of the space designed for preparations training, irregularities related on service personnel (minority staff), concluding that, for a proper organization for implementation of the solutions is necessary the application of effective strategies from managers. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.343 Tourism in rural areas-ways of economic, social and environmental support for rural communities through public–private partnership Ramona Ciolac, Calin Stoenescu ∗ , Anda Milin, Corina Sirbu, Ioana Balan, Simona Constantinescu Banat’s University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “King Michael I of Romania” from Timisoara, Agricultural Management Faculty, Romania E-mail address: [email protected] (C. Stoenescu). Tourism in rural areas presents a wide variety of specific forms, but regardless of prevailing activities, it has basically two objectives: economic development of rural areas and preserving local natural resources.
S97
The lack of a realistic vision of the European future village is becoming more acute. At communitarian level the public-private partnerships solution has very good results, because they: - Gather and combine human and financial resources available from the public–private sector. - Associates local players around collective projects in order to achieve the improvement of the economic competitiveness of the region. - Strengthen the dialogue and the cooperation between different rural actors, in order to facilitate the adaptation and changing process from the agricultural sector, the concerns related to environment, the diversification of the rural economy. Rural local communities will have more success in the future, in creating new tourism products, the reasons being: - The existence of a rural area rich in resources; - Interested people to practice such an activity; - The existence of a material base capable to ensure the primarily basic services (accommodation and food). The development of tourism in rural areas will bring to its benefits on multiple levels, from economic to environmental, the purpose being a sustainable development in time. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.344 Engage students in real-life applications of biotechnology science by using virtual laboratories Gabriela Boldureanu 1,∗ , Adriana Prodan 2 , Daniel Boldureanu 3 , Nicoleta Niculescu 4 , Carmen Costuleanu 5 , Stejarel Brezuleanu 5 , Mioara Borza 2 , Ioana Raluca Adochiei 6 , Cristian Rotariu 3 , Gabriela Gladiola Andruseac 3 1
Department for Interdisciplinary Research in Social Sciences and Humanities, “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi, Romania 2 Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi, Romania 3 Department of Biomedical Science, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iasi, Romania 4 Faculty of Entrepreneurship, Business Engineering and Management, University Politehnica of Bucharest, Romania 5 Faculty of Agriculture, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “Ion Ionescu de la Brad” Iasi, Romania 6 Military Technical Academy, Bucharest, Romania E-mail address: [email protected] (G. Boldureanu). The virtual laboratories are interactive simulations in which students perform experiments, collect data and answer questions to assess their understanding. Virtual laboratories have been developed to reproduce experiments that were made in physical laboratories. The biotechnology virtual laboratory is a web-based application designed to introduce to the students the principles of bioreactors and its applications. Based on “anywhere–anytime” concept, students with a minimal level of knowledge on biotechnology will better comprehend the basic design and operations features of bioreactors.
S98
Abstracts / Journal of Biotechnology 231S (2016) S4–S109
The virtual laboratory is divided in a theoretical part and a Modeling & Simulation part: 1. Bioreactor components: through interactive animations are shown the vessel, agitator, baffle, sparger and the jacket. 2. Operations features of the bioreactor including: (a) Temperature measurement and control system: by studying the thermal effect of biochemical processes, students can draw conclusions on biomass accumulation, consumption speed of the substrate and elaboration of biosynthesis product; (b) pH measurement and control: the students will discover that the stability of natural penicillin (G,V) and those of semisynthesis is influenced by the pH of gastric acid; (c) Dissolved oxygen controller: this controller offers the students a number of information which refers to the increase and maintaining the efficient activity of microorganisms and distribution of oxygen concentration in the culture environment; (d) Foam control. The virtual laboratory combines animations, illustrations and videos to convey basic information and engage students in real-life applications of biotechnology science. Acknowledgement: This research was supported by “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy” Iasi, Romania, Contract 30891/30.12.2014 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.345 Comparative efficiency of different biofertilizers applied to the same field Dagnija Vecstaudza 1,∗ , Maris Senkovs 2 , Solvita Stelmahere 1 , Zaiga Petrina 2 , Galina Makarenkova 2 , Vizma Nikolajeva 2 , Olga Muter 1 1 Institute of Microbiology & Biotechnology, University of Latvia, Latvia 2 Department of Microbiology & Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Latvia, Latvia
E-mail address: [email protected] (D. Vecstaudza). Biofertilizer (BF) is a product containing microorganisms, which improves plant growth and development. BFs are well known alternative to conventional fertilizers. This study was aimed at comparing the efficiency of different experimental BFs, which were applied to the same field. Mini-field experiments were conducted in a loamy sand soil, during 3 years in Zemgale region of the central part of Latvia. Microorganisms with target properties were previously isolated from this site. In particular, bacteria with a high cellulolytic activity as well as phosphorus solubilizers were selected for BFs. Besides, Trichoderma as a ubiquitous fungal genus, representing versatile biocontrol agents and known as plant growth promoters, was used. Identification of the most active strains and up-scaling of microbial biomass followed by immobilization procedure. Peat, ceramic beads, wood derived biochar and canopy straw were tested as potential carriers. Influence of the BFs was tested on barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), rape (Brassica napus L.) and corn (Zea mays). Seed germination, growth and development of seedlings were monitored. Fungal abundance in soil samples was estimated with emphasis on the prevalence of Trichoderma spp. in Trichodermaamended soils. Concentration of microscopic fungi increased significantly in the plot with rape, while concentration of bacteria and actinobacteria increased in soil with barley amended by a peat-based biofertilizer. Concentration of microorganisms increased significantly in plots with rape treated by the canopy straw with cellulolytic microbial
consortium. Obtained data will be used for further improvement of BFs. Acknowledgement: Research was financially supported by the Latvian National Program 2014.10-4/VPP-6/6 ResProd. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.346 Retrospective study of uveitis in 181 dogs diagnosed at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Bucharest Andra Elena Enache ∗ , Iuliana Ionascu, Alexandru Sonea, Anca Catalina Cucos Ophthalmology-Surgery Department, University of Agronomical Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Bucharest Romania, Romania E-mail address: [email protected] (A.E. Enache). Canine uveitis is a common diagnosis and may be the only clinical manifestation of several systemic diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate causes of uveitis in dogs diagnosed between 2012 and 2015 at the Teaching Hospital of Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Bucharest. Only dogs that had complete physical and ophthalmic examinations and underwent full diagnostic work-up were considered. One-hundred and eighty-one dogs with a mean age of 6.34 ± 4.62 were included, 98 females and 83 males. Crossbreed dogs (n = 42) were overrepresented, followed by Pekingese dogs (n = 17). Unilateral uveitis was diagnosed in 129 dogs (71.2%). Aqueous flare (90%) and miosis (70%) were frequent ocular findings, whereas only 78 dogs had low intraocular pressures. The most common cause of uveitis was due to ocular trauma (n = 44). Endogenous causes were considered in 115 dogs and included lens-induced uveitis (n = 35, 30.4%), neoplastic uveitis (n = 26, 22.6%), uveodermatologic syndrome (n = 14, 12.2%), infectious agents (n = 8, 7%), metabolic causes (n = 4, 3.5%) and pigmentary uveitis (n = 3, 2.6%). Immune-mediated uveitis and those cases in which no cause was identified remained high (66.9%). Infectious causes were identified in eight dogs, with Ehrlichia canis being the most common causative agent. As infectious diseases become more prevalent, general examination and serological investigations should be considered in all dogs with no history of ocular trauma. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2016.05.347