Moderate ferulate and diferulate levels do not impede maize cell wall degradation by human intestinal microbiota

The degradation of plant fiber by human gut microbiota could be restricted by xylan substitution and cross-linking by ferulate and diferulates, for example, by hindering the association of enzymes such as xylanases with their substrates. To test the influence of feruloylation on cell wall degradability by human intestinal microbiota, nonlignified primary cell walls from maize cell suspensions, containing various degrees of ferulate substitution and diferulate cross-linking, were incubated in nylon bags in vitro with human fecal microbiota. Degradation rates were determined gravimetrically, and the cell walls were analyzed for carbohydrates, ferulate monomers, dehydrodiferulates, dehydrotriferulates, and other minor phenolic constituents. Shifting cell wall concentrations of total ferulates from 1.5 to 15.8 mg/g and those of diferulates from 0.8 to 2.6 mg/g did not alter the release of carbohydrates or the overall degradation of cell walls. After 24 h of fermentation, the degradation of xylans and pectins exceeded 90%, whereas cellulose remained undegraded. The results indicate that low to moderate levels of ferulates and diferulates do not interfere with hydrolysis of nonlignified cell walls by human gut microbiota.     

Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae is impaired by the garlic volatile allyl methyl sulfide (AMS) in vitro and in-feed garlic alleviates pleuropneumonia in a pig model

Decomposition products of ingested garlic are to a certain extent excreted via the lungs. If the supposed health-supporting capacities associated with garlic extend to these exhaled sulfurous compounds, they could have an effect on the course of pneumonia. In this study, the garlic-derived volatile allyl methyl sulfide (AMS) as a lead compound of volatile garlic metabolites was shown to exhibit an antibacterial effect against the pig pathogen Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae serotype 9. AMS caused a delay in the appearance of the optical density-monitored growth of A. pleuropneumoniae in medium when compared to unaffected growth curves, yet without lowering the stationary phase yield at the concentration range tested. At 1.1mM, AMS impaired the in vitro growth rate of A. pleuropneumoniae serotype 9 by 8% compared to unimpeded growth. In an animal trial, a garlic-fed group of 15 pigs that received a diet with 5% garlic feed component and a control group of 15 pigs that received a diet without garlic were infected with A. pleuropneumoniae serotype 2 via an aerosol and subsequently followed for 4 days. At the day of the challenge, blood AMS in the garlic-fed group amounted to 0.32 ± 0.13 μM. A beneficial, alleviating effect of garlic on the course and severity of an A. pleuropneumoniae infection in pigs was indicated by the reduced occurrence of characteristic pleuropneumonia lesions (27% of the lungs affected in the garlic-fed group vs. 47% in the control group) and a near to significant (p=0.06) lower relative lung weight post mortem in the garlic-fed group.     

Antioxidant and biocidal activities of Carum nigrum (seed) essential oil, oleoresin, and their selected components

In the present study, chemical constituents of the essential oil and oleoresin of the seed from Carum nigrum obtained by hydrodistillation and Soxhlet extraction using acetone, respectively, have been studied by GC and GC-MS techniques. The major component was dillapiole (29.9%) followed by germacrene B (21.4%), beta-caryophyllene (7.8%), beta-selinene (7.1%), and nothoapiole (5.8%) along with many other components in minor amounts. Seventeen components were identified in the oleoresin (Table 2) with dillapiole as a major component (30.7%). It also contains thymol (19.1%), nothoapiole (15.2.3%), and gamma-elemene (8.0%). The antioxidant activity of both the essential oil and oleoresin was evaluated in mustard oil by monitoring peroxide, thiobarbituric acid, and total carbonyl and p-anisidine values of the oil substrate. The results showed that both the essential oil and oleoresin were able to reduce the oxidation rate of the mustard oil in the accelerated condition at 60 degrees C in comparison with synthetic antioxidants such as butylated hydroxyanisole and butylated hydroxytoluene at 0.02%. In addition, individual antioxidant assays such as linoleic acid assay, DPPH scavenging activity, reducing power, hydroxyl radical scavenging, and chelating effects have been used. The C. nigrum seed essential oil exhibited complete inhibition against Bacillus cereus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa at 2000 and 3000 ppm, respectively, by agar well diffusion method. Antifungal activity was determined against a panel of foodborne fungi such as Aspergillus niger, Penicillium purpurogenum, Penicillium madriti, Acrophialophora fusispora, Penicillium viridicatum, and Aspergillus flavus. The fruit essential oil showed 100% mycelial zone inhibition against P. purpurogenum and A. fusispora at 3000 ppm in the poison food method. Hence, both oil and oleoresin could be used as an additive in food and pharmaceutical preparations after screening.     

Fruit and seed characterization of wild populations of a traditional Andean crop: Solanum betaceum Cav. (Solanaceae) in the Argentinian Yungas

Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution - Chilto (Solanum betaceum Cav.) is a traditional Andean crop, appreciated for its high nutritional and commercial value. Despite it is cultivated in many...     

Development of antibodies for the detection of N-acetyl-glufosinate

Glufosinate is a widely used herbicide, which is difficult to detect by conventional analytical techniques. For many other herbicides, suitable antibodies have been raised for immunoassay development. Unfortunately, glufosinate is a very small molecule and difficult to immunize with. Thus, a derivatization-assisted immunoassay (DAIA) using the target analyte N-acetyl-glufosinate (NAG) was constructed. The activated hapten was synthesized by a new approach, using a homobifunctional cross-linker suberic acid bis(N-hydroxysuccinimide ester). The preparation of a suitable conjugate, the immunization, and the characterization of polyclonal antibodies are shown. The determination of the conjugation density (hapten density) of the immunogens was performed by four different methods (high-performance liquid chromatography with a refractive index detector, total reflection X-ray fluorescence, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry), which gave similar results. The limit of detection was 17 mug/L NAG in water for the direct competitive enzyme immunoassay. NAG is also a main metabolite of glufosinate in resistant transgenic plants. The antibodies might be useful for the selective detection of NAG in the presence of the parent compound glufosinate (cross-reactivity 0.13%) and other metabolites.     

Relevance of feline calicivirus, feline immunodeficiency virus, feline leukemia virus, feline herpesvirus and Bartonella henselae in cats with chronic gingivostomatitis

Despite its common occurrence, the aetiology of chronic gingivostomatitis in cats remains uncertain. Aetiology is likely multifactorial, and several infectious agents may be associated with chronic gingivostomatitis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of feline calicivirus (FCV), feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), feline leukemia virus (FeLV), feline herpesvirus (FHV), and Bartonella henselae (B. henselae) in cats with chronic gingivostomatitis and in an age-matched control group. In addition, other factors, e. g., environmental conditions were investigated. In 52 cats with chronic gingivostomatitis and 50 healthy age-matched control cats, the presence of FCV ribonucleic acid (RNA), and FHV deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) (polymerase chain reaction [PCR] from oropharyngeal swabs), and B. henselae DNA (PCR from oropharyngeal swabs and blood), as well as FeLV antigen (serum), and antibodies against FCV, B. henselae, and FIV (serum) were examined. FCV RNA was significantly more common in cats with chronic gingivostomatitis (53.8%, p < 0.001) than in controls (14.0%); a significant difference was also found in the prevalence of antibodies to FCV between the cats with chronic gingivostomatitis (78.8%, p = 0.023) and controls (58.0%). Of the other infectious agents investigated, there was no significant difference in the prevalence between the cats with chronic gingivostomatitis and the controls. The results of this study allow the conclusion that FCV, but no other infectious agents, is commonly associated with chronic gingivostomatitis in cats.     

Reduction of nitrogen losses in agriculture by fertilizer additives: Appeal for more detailed scientific work—Comments on Guo et al. “Efficacy of four nitrification inhibitors for the mitigation of nitrous oxide emissions under different soil temperature and moisture,” Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science (2022), 185(1), 60–68

In Guo et al. (2022), the difference between pure nitrification inhibitors (NI), fertilizers treated with NI, and formulations containing NI was insufficiently considered. Presented results are misleading and inappropriate to evaluate the efficiency of an NI application by pure NI as well as NI-treated products such as ENTEC^® 26 and PIADIN^®, in particular with respect to practical field conditions.     

Evaluation of a TaqMan real-time PCR for the detection of Theileria parva in buffalo and cattle

A real-time PCR assay based on TaqMan probe chemistry was developed for the detection of Theileria parva DNA in blood samples. It uses a Theileria genus-specific PCR primer set and a T. parva-specific probe to amplify and hybridize with a species-specific part of the 18S rRNA gene of the parasite. The test was evaluated using positive and negative reference blood samples and shown to be specific for T. parva. Analytical sensitivity was determined by testing a dilution series of T. parva positive blood. It was shown to be able to detect parasitaemia as low as 2 × 10(-6)%. The Taqman assay results were also compared with that obtained with the real-time hybridization probe PCR assay, which is currently employed as the official test for the diagnosis of T. parva infections in buffalo and cattle and was shown to be equally sensitive. A panel of 1164 field samples was screened using both assays and 164 samples tested positive in both tests, indicating a good correlation.