Treatment of an acid soil with bentonite used for wine fining: effects on soil properties and the growth of Lolium multiflorum

When used to fine wines, bentonite acquires a protein load that makes it a potentially useful fertilizer. Other properties of bentonite are also potentially useful for soil amendment. In the work described in this paper, waste bentonite from a winery was applied to an acid soil, and its effects on soil properties and on the growth of Lolium multiflorum were evaluated. Soil N, K, and P contents all increased, as did pH and cation exchange capacity. Biomass production increased as the dose of bentonite increased up to 5 g kg(-1), decreasing at larger doses (possibly as a result of falling potassium/magnesium ratio and increasing electrical conductivity). Environmental drawbacks of waste bentonite include its high soluble copper content, although its conversion in the soil to less soluble forms reduces its potential phytotoxicity. The copper, manganese, and zinc contents of the ryegrass crop were low.     

Biological evaluation of phytoplankton (Chlorella sp., Tetraselmis sp. and Isochrysis galbana) as food for milkfish (Chanos chanos) fry

Phytoplankton cultures of Chlorella sp., Tetraselmis sp. and Isochrysis galbana were used alone as feed to rear separate batches of newly caught milkfish (Chanos chanos) fry (about 21 days old). Ultrastructural studies of fry hepatocytes and pancreatic acinar cells indicated that they cannot directly utilize Chlorella, which has a rigid cell wall. The fry can directly utilize Tetraselmis and Isochrysis, but neither is nutritionally adequate for growth and survival if used as the only feed. Tetraselmis is nutritionally inferior to Isochrysis.     

Gender status effect on carcass and meat quality traits of feedlot Angus × Nellore cattle

The study evaluated the effect of gender status on carcass and meat quality of feedlot Angus × Nellore cattle. A total of 176 cattle, 20 months old, were confined for 190‐days and assigned to four treatments: bulls, immunocastrated, steers, and heifers. Bulls had greater rib eye area and HCW (p = 0.0001). Heifers had increased fat thickness (p = 0.0001). Steers and heifers had higher marbling scores (p = 0.0001). There was interaction between gender and aging time for Warner‐Bratzler Shear Force (p = 0.0002), L* (p = 0.0118), and b* (p = 0.0113) values of beef. The sensory panel results showed that beef from bulls had the lowest consumer overall acceptance (p = 0.0278). Especially, regardless tenderness, steers and immunocastrated beef were considered tender, independent of aging time. Beef produced by heifers, steers, and immunocastrated is considered to be of higher quality than bulls. Thus, it is may be an interesting alternative to produce high‐quality beef than bulls, to attend the consumer demand for high‐quality products. Additionally, the low fatty acids n6 levels and low n6:n3 ratio, high levels of CLA, MUFAs, and oleic acid suggests that the heifer meat is favorable for human health.     

BDDE-Inspired Chalcone Derivatives to Fight Bacterial and Fungal Infections

The growing number of infectious diseases around the world threatens the effective response of antibiotics, contributing to the increase in antibiotic resistance seen as a global health problem. Currently, one of the main challenges in antimicrobial drug discovery is the search for new compounds that not only exhibit antimicrobial activity, but can also potentiate the antimicrobial activity and revert antibiotics’ resistance, through the interference with several mechanisms, including the inhibition of efflux pumps (EPs) and biofilm formation. Inspired by macroalgae brominated bromophenol BDDE with antimicrobial activity, a series of 18 chalcone derivatives, including seven chalcones (9–15), six dihydrochalcones (16–18, and 22–24) and five diarylpropanes (19–21, and 25 and 26), was prepared and evaluated for its antimicrobial activity and potential to fight antibiotic resistance. Among them, chalcones 13 and 14 showed promising antifungal activity against the dermatophyte clinical strain of Trichophyton rubrum, and all compounds reversed the resistance to vancomycin in Enterococcus faecalis B3/101, with 9, 14, and 24 able to cause a four-fold decrease in the MIC of vancomycin against this strain. Compounds 17–24 displayed inhibition of EPs and the formation of biofilm by S. aureus 272123, suggesting that these compounds are inhibiting the EPs responsible for the extrusion of molecules involved in biofilm-related mechanisms. Interestingly, compounds 17–24 did not show cytotoxicity in mouse embryonic fibroblast cell lines (NIH/3T3). Overall, the results obtained suggest the potential of dihydrochalcones 16–18 and 22–24, and diarylpropanes 19–21, 25 and 26, as hits for bacterial EPs inhibition, as they are effective in the inhibition of EPs, but present other features that are important in this matter, such as the lack of antibacterial activity and cytotoxicity.