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Altering the temperature of aerobically grown Lactobacillus fermentum results in a change in cellular octadecenoic and dihydrosterulic acid content. Cultures subjected to temperatures below 20 degrees and above 26 degrees celsius showed decreased oleic and vaccenic acid content with an associated increase in dihydrosterulic acid. Temperature change causes L. fermentum to shift from vaccenic to oleic acid synthesis. Oleic acid is subsequently converted to dihydrosterulic acid. Total cellular lactobacillic and fatty acid content and mean fatty acid chain length are unaffected by temperature modification.

Aims: The aim of the study was to investigate the isomerization of linoleic (LA) and linolenic acids (LNAs) into their conjugated isomers by Propionibacterium freudenreichii DSM 20270 and utilize this feature for microbial enrichment of blackcurrant press residue (BCPR) with health‐beneficial conjugated fatty acids. Methods and Results: First, the ability of P. freudenreichii to isomerize 0·4 mg ml−1 of LA and LNA was studied in lactate growth medium. Free LA and α‐LNA were efficiently converted into conjugated linoleic (CLA) and α‐linolenic acid (α‐CLNA), being the predominant isomers c9,t11‐CLA and c9,t11,c15‐CLNA, respectively. The bioconversion of α‐LNA by P. freudenreichii was more efficient in terms of formation rate, yield and isomer‐specificity. Thereafter, free LA and LNAs obtained from hydrolysed BCPR neutral lipids, by lipolytically active oat flour, were subjected to microbial isomerization in BCPR slurries. In 10% (w/v) slurries, a simultaneous enrichment in c9,t11‐CLA and c9,t11,c15‐CLNA of up to 0·51 and 0·29 mg ml−1 was observed from starting levels of 0·96 mg LA ml−1 and 0·37 mg α‐LNA ml−1 respectively. Conclusions: This study shows that growing cultures of P. freudenreichii DSM 20270 are able to simultaneously enrich BCPR with health‐beneficial conjugated isomers of LA and α‐LNA. Significance and Impact of the Study: This study demonstrates that microbial isomerization technique can be utilized to enrich lipid‐containing plant materials with bioactive compounds and thereby enable valorization of low value plant‐based side streams from food industry into value‐added food ingredients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main fatty acids present in ten analyzed strains of lactic acid bacteria are palmitic, cis-vaccenic and lactobacillic acid. Most of the Lactobacillus and Lactococcus strains are unable to produce oleic acid. Some strains do not synthesize lactobacillic acid, though all the strains produce dihydrosterculic acid. Lactobacillic acid constitutes 21 to 31% of the total fatty acid concentration of Lactobacillus fermentum and L. buchneri.

Aims The trans-10, cis-12 conjugated linoleic acid ( CLA) is known for its antilipogenic effect but the mechanism is not fully clear. In this study, the potential of yeast ( Saccharomyces cerevisiae) metabolism to offer evidence for the mechanism was investigated. Methods and Results The inhibitory effect of CLA on lipid accumulation was studied by analysing the transcript abundance of selected genes involved in triacylglycerol synthesis ( LRO1, DGA1, ARE1 and ARE2) in the presence of the two bioactive CLA isomers: trans-10, cis-12 and the cis-9, trans-11 CLA. None of the enzymes was reduced in transcription but the expression of ARE2 was induced by trans-10, cis-12 CLA. However, the ARE2 overexpression did not contribute to lipid accumulation. The expression of the Δ9 desaturase gene, OLE1, was reduced by the cis-9, trans-11 but not by the trans-10, cis-12 isomer. In the TGL3/ TGL4-knockout strain the triacylglycerol content also remained high in the CLA fed cells. Conclusions Triacylglycerol hydrolysis rather than synthesis was the most probable reason for the reduced lipid content in yeast induced by CLA. Significance and Impact of the Study This study revealed new aspects of the functionality of CLA in eukaryotic lipid metabolism. Yeast was proven to be an applicable model to study further the mechanism of trans-10, cis-12 CLA functionality on lipid metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim. The aim of the study was to find out how nursing home residents, their families and nurses experienced the change to primary nursing in the nursing home. Background. This study was carried out in a nursing home in Finland. Following years of functional nursing, the change to primary nursing had started 18 months prior to data collection. The transition was preceded by staff training, planning for the change to primary nursing and discussions with staff members. Meetings were also arranged with family members to inform them of what was happening and why. Staff implemented the changeover independently with the support of the institution's management. Methods. The data were gathered in focused interviews. There were five interview themes: change in the nursing home, the position of the resident in the nursing home, the relationship between the resident and nurse, the relationship between family member and nurse, and the role of the nurse as provider of nursing care. Findings. Residents reported no major changes in nursing care or in their relationship with nurses. However, family members had noticed changes in the behaviour of the nursing staff. Staff members had become friendlier, spent more time with the residents and showed a strong job motivation. Cooperation between nurses and family members had changed very little. Some nurses in the early stages of the change tended to show signs of resistance. Others said that there had been many changes during the past year, that they acted more independently and could use their own decision-making authority more freely than before. They treated residents as individuals and gave them a greater say in decision-making. They felt responsible for the development of the workplace as a collectivity. Conclusions. Primary nursing is one way in which nurses and family members can work more closely in the best interests of older residents. The findings of this study speak in favour of making the change from functional to primary nursing and at the same time highlight certain problems and possibilities in this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of temperature on the accumulating triglycerides of Lipomyces starkeyi was studied in 10-L fermentation experiments. The temperature during the growth, lipid accumulation and postaccumulation phases was altered. The cellular lipid content, the glucose conversion efficiency and the specific lipid production rate were highest when the growth phase temperature was 28°C, instead of 16-18°C. The temperature of the accumulation phase had an influence on the lipid quality at the end of the accumulation. Oleic acid content increased from 52 to over 60% when the accumulation phase temperature was decreased from 28 to 15°C and, concomitantly, palmitic acid decreased from 33 to 26%. The degree of fatty acid unsaturation was the highest (0.75 Δmol) when the accumulation phase temperature was the lowest (15°C) and vice versa. The temperature shift after the lipid accumulation phase affected neither the composition nor the amount of the accumulated lipids. In conclusion, the temperature profile for the highest lipid yield with the most desired composition should be: (i) a growth phase temperature that gives the maximum growth rate and (ii) an accumulation phase temperature that produces the desired ratio of palmitic to oleic acid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]