Eastern Regional Research Center

Dr. Sevim Erhan, Center Director
Eastern Regional Research Center, NAA, ARS, USDA
600 East Mermaid Lane, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania  19038
Phone:  (215) 233-6400   FAX:  (215) 233-6777

In the Spotlight BioEnergy BridgeTM Partnership Robert Wallace, Executive Director of Penn State University's BioEnergy Bridge, visits ERRC to describe formation of a state-wide bioenergy research consortium and to invite ERRC to join.  His seminar can be viewed here. ________________________________________ New Methods for Ensuring Food Safety Microbiologist George Paoli inspects antibody-coated magnetic beads and biologist Chandi Wijey analyzes DNA samples in their efforts to develop immunological, microbiological, and genetic-based methdos for detection of Yersinia pestis in food.  (D1452-1) Good news for fans of raw cookie dough.  Researchers at ARS's Eastern Rgional Research Center (ERRC) in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, have filed a patent on technology that can further protect pasteurized liquid eggs from food safety threats.  These threats include both naturally occurring spoilage bacteria and pathogens such as Salmonella enteritidis, the primary cause of egg-related foodborne illness in the United States.  The technology has also been successfully applied to milk. But don't go running for that dough just yet.  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) still cautions against consuming any raw, unpasteurized eggs or products that contain them. Read all about it in the May-June 2009 issue of Agricultural Research Magazine. ________________________________________ DPPRU Molecular Modeling Promotes Milk Protein Innovation AlphaS2-Casein (AlphaS2-CN) comprises up to 10% of the casein fraction in bovine milk.  The role of AlphaS2-CN in milk and dairy products has not been studied in detail in part due to a lack of structural information on the molecule. Interest in the utilization of this molecule in dairy products and nutrition has been renewed by work in three areas: biological activity via potentially biologically active peptides, functionality in cheeses and products, and nutrition in terms of calcium uptake. To help clarify the behavior of AlphaS2-CN in its structure-function relationships in milk and its possible applications in dairy products, ERRC scientists have produced a working three dimensional (3D) molecular model for this casein (J. Dairy Science92:1338, 2009).  This effort completes the work on molecular modeling of the caseins.  Molecular models for this protein and for the other three major caseins (AlphaS1-CN β-CN and κ-CN) in pdb format may be downloaded from the DPPRU site. ________________________________________ Career Day Please click here to view photos from the 2009 ERRC Career Day, April 23 and 24. Note:  Password needed ________________________________________ Dairy Team-Up Leverages Research Towards Healthy Ingredients Dairy Management Inc., the National Dairy Council, and the Department of Defense Combat Feeding Program-Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center, have partnered with USDA-ARS on a new National Dairy Research Plan, a roadmap for dairy research.  The researchers of the Dairy Processing and Products Research Unit, USDA/ARS/ERRC, will collaborate to develop new milk ingredients, new technologies that enhance the health, safety and functionality of dairy products, and on methods to extend shelf-life. Click here to read the article (PDF). ___________________________________ ERRC Scientists Partners in Successful Development of New Method for Biodiesel Production from Non-Food Feedstock As the use of biodiesel, the renewable and domestically produced replacement for petroleum diesel fuel, expands worldwide, new feedstock supplies are needed to meet increasing demand.  The use of low cost starting materials is particularly interesting, since feedstock cost can constitute 80% of overall production cost when high value, edible fats and oils are used to produce biodiesel. Working in collaboration with BlackGold Biofuels, ERRC researchers have contributed to the successful development of a robust production process that converts trap grease, a low-value waste fat, to high quality biodiesel.  The accompanying article describes the announcement by the city of San Francisco, CA of its issuance of a contract to BlackGold for the first production scale implementation of its technology. Click here to read the article (PDF). ___________________________________  Guayule Go Native with this Promising Biofuel - and Biomedical - Crop Guayule (K1559-3) Perhaps the single most valuable gift the desert-dwelling guayule plant offers us is its superb natural latex. The white, rubber-rich substance, extracted and purified from this southwestern U.S. native shrub (Parthenium argentatum), is ideal for making high-quality gloves, medical devices, and other in-demand natural rubber products. Importantly, latex from guayule (pronounced why-YOU-lee) is free of the proteins responsible for the sometimes-deadly latex allergies caused by the most widely used natural-rubber source, the rubber tree, Hevea brasiliensis. But guayule may also prove to be an economical, environmentally friendly source of yet another prized commodity: energy. That energy can be made from the ground-up stems and branches, called “bagasse,” that are left after their latex has been removed. Read all about it in the February 2009 issue of Agricultural Research Magazine. ___________________________________ To learn more click here !

Upcoming Events      July 3 - Closed for Independance Day July 11 - Annual Electrical Maintenance Testing July 21 - American Red Cross Summer Blood Drive from 8:30 Am to 2:30 PM in the Auditorium July 29 - Green Team Meeting, Noon to 1 PM in Room 2006 10 Most Recent Publications Additional Publications - We have 5600+ publications online that you can view and print. The following publications are not yet online.  To request a reprint, please email Patti.Durkin@ars.usda.gov with your name, address, and reprint number.   REPRINT TITLE AUTHOR 8092 Characterization of various fast-pyrolysis bio-oils by NMR spectroscopy C.A. Mullen, G.D. Strahan, and A.A. Boateng 8091 Insertion of a heterologous gene construct into a non-functional ORF of the Streptococcus thermophilus chromosome J.A. Renye, Jr. and G.A. Somkuti 8090 A risk assessment model for importation of United States milling wheat containing Tilletia contraversa G.L. Peterson, T.B. Whitaker, R.J. Sefanski, E.V. Podleckis, J.G. Phillips, J.S. Wu, and W.H. Martinez 8089 Characteristics of enzymatically-deesterified pectin gels produced in the presence of monovalent ionic salts S.-H. Yoo, B.-H. Lee, B.J. Savary, S. Lee, H.G. Lee, and A.T. Hotchkiss 8088 Evaluation of plating media for recovering Salmonella from thermally treated egg albumen J.B. Gurtler 8087 Preparation of single or double-network chitosan/poly(vinyl alcohol) gel films through selectively cross-linking method S. Liang, L. Liu, Q. Huang, and K.L. Yam 8086 Efficacy of chlorine, acidic electrolyzed water and aqueous chlorine dioxide solutions to decontaminate Escherichia coli O157:H7 from lettuce leaves L.A. Keskinen, A. Burke, and B.A. Annous 8085 Transfer coefficient models for Escherichia coli O157:H7 on contacts between beef tissue and high-density polyethylene surfaces R.A. Flores, M.L. Tamplin, B.S. Marmer, J.G. Phillips, and P.H. Cooke 8084 Capabilities of direct sample introduction comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry to analyze organic chemicals of interest in fish oils E. Hoh, S.J. Lehotay, K. Mastovska, H.L. Ngo, W. Vetter, K.C. Pangallo, and C.M. Reddy 8083 Food powder delivery through a feeder system:  effect of physicochemical properties L.O. Pordesimo, C.I. Onwulata, and C.W.P. Carvalho

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