Nonphytotoxic copper oxide nanoparticles are powerful “nanoweapons” that trigger resistance in tobacco against the soil-borne fungal pathogen Phytophthora nicotianae

Investigations into the potential application of nanoparticles acting as nanofungicides in sustainable agriculture are rapidly expanding due to the high antimicrobial properties of these compounds, which do not risk inducing pathogen resistance to fungicides.  A detailed understanding of the impact of copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) on soil-borne phytopathogenic fungi is yet to be obtained.  This study aimed to explore the in vitro antifungal activity and control efficacy of CuO NPs applied via irrigation with respect to tobacco black shank (TBS) disease caused by Phytophthora nicotianae.  The results revealed that CuO NPs greatly interfered with the reproductive growth process of this fungus, repressing hyphal growth, spore germination and sporangium production.  Additionally, morphological damage, intracellular ROS accumulation and increased SOD enzyme activity in hyphae were the antifungicidal mechanisms of these NPs.  In pot experiments, treatment with CuO NPs at 100 mg L^–1 significantly suppressed TBS development, compared with the effect on control plants, and the control efficacy reached 33.69% without inducing phytotoxicity.  Exposure to CuO NPs significantly activated a series of defense enzymes, and resistance genes in tobacco can further explain the mechanisms by which CuO NPs suppressed fungal infection.  The Cu content in both the leaves and roots of P. nicotianae-infested plants increased by 50.03 and 27.25%, respectively, after treatment with 100 mg L^–1 CuO NPs, compared with that of healthy plants.  In particular, a higher Cu content was observed in infected roots than in leaves.  Therefore, this study showed the potential of CuO NPs applied as nanofungicides and as nanoinducers of fungus resistance genes for the management of TBS through inhibition of pathogen infection and stimulation of plant defenses.     

植物介导金属纳米颗粒合成的研究进展

随着纳米科技的快速发展,人工合成的金属纳米颗粒已在农业生产、生物医药、个人消费品等领域广泛应用。同时,越来越多研究表明植物也能介导金属纳米颗粒的合成。这些研究为制备金属纳米颗粒提供了新思路,但是,多数研究只局限于植物合成方法的表观描述,缺乏对过程及机理的深入研究。这不仅阻碍了金属纳米颗粒与植物相互作用的理论认知,还限制了植物合成方法的大规模应用。本文总结了近年来植物体内金属纳米颗粒的鉴别与表征方法及植物合成纳米材料的应用,重点对植物合成纳米颗粒的过程进行了梳理,发现有机酸、还原性糖类、蛋白质等生物成分都会参与纳米颗粒的生成过程。今后需研发更多的表征手段,以原位技术全面揭示植物合成金属纳米颗粒的机制。     

Antibody-coated gold nanoparticles immunoassay for direct detection of Aeromonas salmonicida in fish tissues

Aeromonas salmonicida is the causative agent of furunculosis, a disease that affects both salmonid and non‐salmonid fish. Detection of A. salmonicida can be labour intensive and time consuming because of the difficulties in distinguishing the bacterium from other species given the wide variety of existing biochemical profiles and the slow growth characteristics which allow other organisms to overgrow the A. salmonicida. Herein, we report the development of a specific immunoassay using gold‐conjugated polyclonal antibodies for the rapid detection of A. salmonicida in fish tissues. Monodispersible 13‐nm gold nanoparticles were coated with polyclonal antibodies specific to A. salmonicida. Reddish purple agglutination of gold particles indicated the presence of A. salmonicida in samples. Positive reactions were detected visually with the naked eye. No agglutination was observed when A. salmonicida antibody‐coated gold nanoparticles were tested with other common bacterial fish pathogens, thereby verifying the specificity of the assay. The assay could detect A. salmonicida in fish tissues down to 1 × 10⁴ CFU mL^?1, and results were obtained within 45 min. The antibody‐coated gold nanoparticles were stable for at least 2 months at 4°C. The immunoassay using antibody‐coated gold nanoparticles represents a promising tool for the rapid and specific detection of A. salmonicida in fish tissues.     

Nano- and Microdelivery Systems for Marine Bioactive Lipids

There is an increasing body of evidence of the positive impact of several marine lipids on human health. These compounds, which include ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, have been shown to improve blood lipid profiles and exert anti-inflammatory and cardioprotective effects. The high instability of these compounds to oxidative deterioration and their hydrophobicity have a drastic impact in their pharmacokinetics. Thus, the bioavailability of these compounds may be affected, resulting in their inability to reach the target sites at effective concentrations. In this regard; micro/nanoparticles can offer a wide range of solutions that can prevent the degradation of targeted molecules, increase their absorption, uptake and bioavailability. In this work we will present the options currently available concerning micro- and nanodelivery systems for marine lipids; with emphasis on micro/nanoparticles; such as micro/nanocapsules and emulsions. A wide range of bottom-up approaches using casein, chitosan, cyclodextrins, among others; will be discussed.     

沉积物中人工纳米颗粒对BDE-47生态毒性的影响

为评价淡水沉积物中人工纳米颗粒对持久性有机污染物生态毒性的影响,以底栖动物铜锈环棱螺为受试生物,采用沉积物慢性生物测试研究了非毒性浓度的不同管径多壁碳纳米管(MWCNTs)和两种金属氧化物纳米颗粒(三氧化二铝纳米颗粒Al₂O₃-NPs和二氧化钛纳米颗粒TiO₂-NPs)存在条件下不同浓度2, 2', 4, 4'-四溴联苯醚(BDE-47)对铜锈环棱螺肝胰脏超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)、谷胱甘肽-S-转移酶(GST)活性和丙二醛(MDA)含量的影响.结果表明,两种管径大小的MWCNTs不影响低浓度(100 ng·g^-1) BDE-47对铜锈环棱螺的毒性,但显著降低较高浓度(500、2000 ng·g^-1)BDE-47对铜锈环棱螺的毒性,小管径MWCNTs对BDE-47毒性的影响稍大于大管径MWCNTs;Al₂O₃-NPs和TiO₂-NPs对低浓度BDE-47的毒性没有影响,但显著增加较高浓度BDE-47对铜锈环棱螺的毒性,TiO₂-NPs对BDE-47毒性的影响略大于非毒性浓度Al₂O₃-NPs.这表明,沉积物中不同种类和类型的纳米颗粒对有机污染物生态毒性的影响存在明显差异.     

茶多酚对淀粉酯纳米颗粒及其稳定的Pickering乳液性质的影响

为探究茶多酚（Tea Polyphenols, TPs）对辛烯基琥珀酸酐（Octenyl Succinic Anhydride, OSA）酯化淀粉纳米颗粒（Starch Nanoparticles,SNPs）及其稳定的Pickering乳液性质的影响,该研究在制备OSA-SNPs的过程中添加TPs,研究TPs对OSA-SNPs的理化性质和乳化性能的影响。结果发现,添加TPs使OSA-SNPs的平均粒径增加、表面Zeta电位绝对值下降、接触角减小（P<0.05）。通过傅立叶红外光谱扫描发现,TPs与OSA-SNPs之间存在氢键和疏水相互作用。在TP-OSA-SNPs稳定的乳液中,增加TP-OSA-SNPs的质量浓度（从0.5 g/mL至2.0 g/mL）,乳滴平均直径明显减小（P<0.05）;当TP-OSA-SNPs的质量浓度增加至2 g/mL时,乳液形成了油滴紧密堆积的界面结构,能够抑制油滴迁移。通过加速氧化试验发现,与OSA-SNPs相比,TP-OSA-SNPs稳定的乳液中氢过氧化物值（Peroxide Value, POV）相对较低（P<0.05）,说明TP-OSA-SNPs具有延缓乳液中油脂氧化的作用。结果表明,这种新型具有抗氧化功能的食品级颗粒乳化剂,对构筑淀粉基Pickering乳液载体具有潜在价值。     

Recovery of sperms bearing X chromosomes with different concentrations of magnetic nanoparticles in ram

Pre-conceptual sex selection is still a highly debatable process whereby X and Y chromosome bearing spermatozoa are isolated before oocyte fertilization. Recently, magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) have been used to determine X and Y chromosomes bearing spermatozoa as a result of searching for a cheap, highly efficient method using non-toxic materials. This study aimed to recover the sperm bearing X chromosomes in ram with different concentrations of MNP and then evaluate the success of this method using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Ram sperms were divided into four groups, treated with 0 (control), 50, 100 and 200 μg/ml MNP, respectively. MNP was used to restore sperm cells bearing X chromosomes. Upon recovery, the PCR was performed to identify the X and Y sperms, Methyl ThiazoleTetrazolium (MTT), to assess MNP toxicity and sperm viability and acridine orange (AO) to evaluate sperm DNA integrity. The results of PCR revealed that the treatment of spermatozoa- bearing X chromosomes with 50 μg/ml MNP had the highest effects on the recovery of X sperm rather than the other concentrations of MNP. However, the concentrations of MNP did not have any toxic effects on spermatozoa, sperm viability and, DNA integrity, but the high concentration of MNP (200 μg/ml) significantly reduced DNA integrity. According to MTT and AO results, the concentrations of MNP used in this study had no toxic effects on spermatozoa and did not reduce the sperm viability and DNA integrity, except that 200 μg/ml MNP significantly reduced DNA integrity.     

Chitosan nanoparticles enhance developmental competence of in vitro-matured porcine oocytes

Oxidative stress is inevitable as it is derived from the handling, culturing, inherent metabolic activities and medium supplementation of embryos. This study was performed to investigate the protective effect of chitosan nanoparticles (CNPs) on oxidative damage in porcine oocytes. For this purpose, cumulus–oocyte complexes (COCs) derived from porcine slaughterhouse ovaries were exposed to different concentrations of CNPs (0, 10, 25 and 50 µg/ml) during in vitro maturation (IVM). Oocytes treated with 25 µg/ml CNPs showed significantly higher levels of GSH, along with a significant reduction in ROS levels compared to control, CNPs10 and CNPs50 groups. In parthenogenetic embryo production, the maturation rate was significantly higher in the CNPs25 group than that in the control and all other treated groups. In addition, when compared to the CNPs50 and control groups, CNPs25-treated oocytes showed significantly higher cleavage and blastocyst development rates. The highest concentration of CNPs reduced the total cell number and ratio of ICM: TE cells in parthenogenetic embryos, suggesting that there is a threshold where benefits are lost if exceeded. In cloned embryos, the CNPs25 group, as compared to all other treated groups, showed significantly higher maturation and cleavage rates. Furthermore, the blastocyst development rate in the CNPs25-treated group was significantly higher than that in the CNPs50-treated group, as was the total cell number. Moreover, we found that cloned embryos derived from the CNPs25-treated group showed significantly higher expression levels of Pou5f1, Dppa2, and Ndp52il genes, compared with those of the control and other treated groups. Our results demonstrated that 25 µg/ml CNPs treatment during IVM improves the developmental competence of porcine oocytes by reducing oxidative stress.     

Nutritional significance of amino acids,vitamins and minerals as nutraceuticals in poultry production and health – a comprehensive review

Nutraceuticals have gained immense importance in poultry science recently considering the nutritional and beneficial health effects of their constituents. Besides providing nutritional requirements to birds, nutraceuticals have beneficial pharmacological effects, for example, they help in establishing normal physiological health status, prevent diseases and thereby improve production performance. Nutraceuticals include amino acids, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, etc. which are important for preventing oxidative stress, regulating the immune response and maintaining normal physiological, biochemical and homeostatic mechanisms. Nutraceuticals help in supplying nutrients in balanced amounts for supporting the optimal growth performance in modern poultry flocks, and as a dietary supplement can reduce the use of antibiotics. The application of antibiotic growth enhancers in poultry leads to the propagation of antibiotic-resistant microbes and drug residues; therefore, they have been restricted in many countries. Thus, there is a demand for natural feed additives that lead to the same growth enhancement without affecting the health. Nutraceuticals substances have an essential role in the development of the animals’ normal physiological functions and in protecting them against infectious diseases. In this review, the uses of amino acids, vitamins and minerals as well as their mode of action in growth promotion and elevation of immune system are discussed.