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Evaluating the Role of Nutrient Competition in Debaryomyces hansenii Biocontrol Activity Against Spoilage Molds in the Meat Industry
Get PDFThe rejection of chemical preservatives reflects the growing demand for natural and safe products. This concern has spurred scientific interest in yeasts as biocontrol agents, given their antagonistic activity against undesired fungi, which is one of the main problems associated with preservative reduction. Debaryomyces hansenii is a non-conventional yeast that has shown great potential for inhibiting filamentous fungi in the food industry. This study investigated the role of nutrient competition in the biocontrol activity of D. hansenii against unwanted molds. Potentially pathogenic molds from spoiled food were isolated using different media and identified using Sanger sequencing. The inhibitory effects of different autochthonous D. hansenii strains under varying nutrient conditions were assessed against isolated molds using semipermeable membranes. Inhibition activity was measured by assessing mycelial expansion and spore production using image software analysis and classical cell counting using a Neubauer chamber. The results indicated that D. hansenii effectively inhibited mold growth and sporulation, with the autochthonous strains LR2 and SRF1 showing higher inhibitory activity than the control strain CBS767. The effectiveness of inhibition varied with the yeast–mold combination, highlighting the need for a species-specific analysis. Nutrient competition plays a complementary role in D. hansenii biocontrol but does not directly impact overall inhibition. This suggests that other mechanisms, such as direct cell interactions or metabolite production, may be crucial. These findings enhance our understanding of the potential of D. hansenii as a natural preservative and advance biocontrol methods for food safety.This work was supported by Grant Plan Galileo from Plan Propio de Investigación, University of Córdoba 2024.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
OLIGOTREND, a global database of multi-decadal chlorophyll a and water quality time series for rivers, lakes, and estuaries
Get PDFReversed eutrophication, called oligotrophication, has been widely documented globally over the last 30 years in rivers, lakes, and estuaries. However, the absence of a comprehensive and harmonized dataset has hindered a deeper understanding of its ecological consequences. To address this data gap, we developed the OLIGOTREND database, which contains multi-decadal time series of chlorophyll a, nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), and related physicochemical parameters, totalling 4.3 million observations. These data originate from 1894 unique monitoring locations across estuaries (n = 238), lakes (687), and rivers (969). Most time series cover the period from 1986–2022 and comprise at least 15 years of chlorophyll a observations. Each location is associated with catchment and hydroclimatic attributes. Trend and breakpoint analyses were applied to all time series. Chlorophyll a showed temporally variable and ecosystem-specific responses to nutrient declines with an overall declining trend for 18 % of the time series, contrasting greatly with a majority of declining trends for nutrient concentrations. We harmonized the database to ensure reproducibility and ease of access and support future updates and contributions. Available at https://doi.org/10.6073/pasta/a7ad060a4dbc4e7dfcb763a794506524 (Minaudo and Benito, 2024), the OLIGOTREND database supports collaborative efforts aimed at further advancing our understanding of biogeochemical and biological mechanisms underlining oligotrophication and ecological impacts of global long-term environmental change.This study was funded by the Iberian Association of Ecology (SIBECOL) through the 2022 early-career advanced grant to Camille Minaudo and Xavier Benito. Both Camille Minaudo and Xavier Benito have received funding from the postdoctoral fellowships programme Beatriu de Pinós funded by the Secretary of Universities and Research (Government of Catalonia) and by the Horizon 2020 programme of research and innovation of the European Union under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement no. 801370. Andras Abonyi was supported by the National Research, Development and Innovation Office, Hungary (project FK 142485), and by the János Bolyai Research Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Estela Romero acknowledges the support of the Grant “Severo Ochoa Centres of Excellence” (CEX2018-000828-S) funded by grant no. MCIN/AEI/10.13039/50110001103 and the project KALORET (PID2021-128778OA-I00) funded by grant no. MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by “ERDF A way of making Europe”.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Monitoring of stored product insects and decision support systems at the post-harvest stages of durable agricultural commodities: a review
Get PDFCereals, pulses, dried fruits and other durable agricultural commodities are stored, usually for long periods, before being processed further for consumption. During storage they are frequently attacked by a range of insect pests causing significant quantitative and qualitative losses. In this context, conventional insecticides still remain the dominant pest-management approach for stored product insects. Failure to control insect infestations in the field, as well as in the warehouses themselves, can lead to extensive contamination of stored grain. Hence, establishing strategies for early diagnosis that are also aligned with internationally established regulatory and phytosanitary frameworks, and meet industrial demands is an absolute priority. Current insect monitoring methods at the post-harvest stages of durable agricultural commodities, despite their incontestable advantages, are met with several drawbacks, such as reduced detection sensitivity and increased cost, as well as the capacity for multi-species detection, a parameter that is not always desirable. Newer methods that have been developed during the last two decades, are able to provide both increased detection sensitivity and specificity, and the ability to interpret detection data, to further utilize them in decision-support tools. This review covers the current developments towards improved insect detection and estimation of their populations, based on a wide range of methods, from traditional sampling to e-trapping.This work was funded in part by a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFAp)’s Crop Protection and Pest Management Grant#2023-70006-40604 and Grant #2024-67013-42400. This work was partially funded by the General Secretariat for Research and Innovation of the Ministry of Development and Investments under the PRIMA Programme. PRIMA is an Art.185 initiative supported and co-funded under Horizon 2020, the European Union’s Programme for Research and Innovation (project code: ΓΓP210476806). Acronym: GreenDriedFruits.The use of trade names is for the purposes of providing scientific information only and does not constitute an endorsement by the United States Department of Agriculture, University of Thessaly (UTH), Crop Research Institute (CRI) and IRTA. The USDA, UTH, CRI and IRTA are equal-opportunity employers. This work has been funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion, la Agencia Estatal de Investigacion and FEDER (UE) (Grants PID 2021-125284OR-100 and the European Union Next Generation EU/PRTR-PDC2022-133321-I00, MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/ FEDER, UE) and by the CERCA Program (Centres de Recerca de Catalunya, Spain) of the Generalitat de Catalunya.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Increase Blast Resistance and Grain Yield in Japonica Rice Cultivars in Flooded Fields
Get PDFArbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi establish symbiotic associations with a wide range of plant species. Root colonization by AM fungi improves the uptake of mineral nutrients in the host plant, mainly phosphorus, in exchange for photosynthetically fixed carbon. Rice is one of the most important cereal crops in the world that is cultivated in diverse ecosystems, mainly in flooded fields. Although rice is a host for AM fungi, flooding depresses colonization of rice roots by AM fungi. However, once fungal penetration into the rice root has occurred, the functional capacities of the AM fungus are not affected by flooding. In this study, we investigated mycorrhizal responsiveness in a panel of temperate japonica rice varieties in low fertility soil collected from rice fields. We show that inoculation with an AM fungus, either Rhizophagus irregularis or Funneliformis mosseae, stimulates seedling growth, improves Pi nutrition and enhances resistance to infection by the fungus Magnaporthe oryzae in aerobically grown rice plants in low fertility soil. The fungus M. oryzae is the causal agent of the rice blast disease, one of the most devastating diseases in cultivated rice worldwide. Field trials were conducted in flooded paddy fields of eastern Spain (mediterranean region) in 2023 and 2024. Three elite rice varieties were inoculated with R. irregularis and grown in nurseries under aerobic conditions during early vegetative stage. The AM-inoculated seedlings were then transplanted to flooded fields. We show that inoculation with R. irregularis increases grain yield and blast resistance, namely leaf blast, neck blast, node blast and panicle blast, in flooded field conditions. Although all the japonica rice varieties here examined benefited from the AM symbiosis, its effects varied depending on the rice variety and the geographical location. These findings demonstrated that the application of AM fungi in nurseries may be integrated with conventional rice cultivation systems in paddy fields for the development of sustainable rice production systems less dependent on chemical fertilizers and pesticides.This research was supported by project PLEC2021-007786 funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by the “European Union Next Generation EU/PRTR” and project PID2021-128825OB-I00 funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and “ERDF A way of making Europe”. We also acknowledge financial support from the MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 through the “Severo Ochoa Program for Centres of Excellence in R&D” (CEX2019-000902-S) and the CERCA Program/Generalitat de Catalunya.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Evaluation of the Dose of African Swine Fever Virus Required to Establish Infection in Pigs Following Oral Uptake
Get PDFAfrican swine fever virus (ASFV) is known to be very stable within a protein-rich environment and indirect virus transmission can be mediated via oral uptake of different materials. However, experimental studies in pigs have shown that infection by ASFV via the oral route can be difficult to establish. Currently, there is a lack of studies using strict oral inoculations of pigs with different doses of ASFV. Therefore, we aimed to determine the dose of a European genotype II ASFV that is required to establish infection of pigs by the oral route. In this study, 24 pigs were divided into four groups of six. Three of the groups were fed with a low, medium or high dose of the ASFV POL/2015/Podlaskie virus. The pigs in the fourth group served as positive controls and were inoculated intranasally, just once, using the low dose of the virus. All the pigs inoculated intranasally with ASFV succumbed to the infection, while only three of the six pigs that were fed the high dose of the virus became infected. None of the 12 pigs that were fed with either the medium or low dose of the virus became infected, despite receiving up to thirteen doses each. In two of the pigs infected by intranasal inoculation, the presence of a variant form of the ASFV genome was detected. The results obtained in this study underline that ASFV infection is more difficult to establish via the oral route when compared to the intranasal route. The high dose needed in order to establish oral infection could have implications for future strategies using baited vaccines containing infectious live-attenuated ASFV.This research was funded by internal resources at the University of Copenhagen and Statens Serum Institut and by the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration (FVST), the latter as part of the agreement for commissioned work between the Danish Ministry of Food and Agriculture and Fisheries and the University of Copenhagen and Statens Serum Institut.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
In vitro evaluation of microalgae as a source of polyunsaturated fatty acids for ruminants
Get PDFMicroalgae may be adequate sources of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) for ruminants, but information regarding their dry matter (DM) digestibility is still scarce. The in vitro digestibility of various dried PUFA-rich microalgae for ruminants (Arthrospira platensis, Nannochloropsis gaditana, Scenedesmus almeriensis, Tetraselmis chuii, and Tisochrysis lutea) was evaluated and the ruminal biohydrogenation of their PUFA assessed. All microalgae had high content of ash (> 78.1 g kg-1 DM), total nitrogen (> 66.3 g kg-1 DM) and ether extract (> 122 g kg-1 DM). The highest levels of α-linolenic acid (C18:3n-3), eicosapentaenoic acid (C20:5n-3), and docosahexaenoic acid (C22:6n-3) were found in S. almeriensis, N. gaditana, and T. lutea, respectively. Most PUFA of microalgae were extensively biohydrogenated by ruminal microorganisms, but biohydrogenation of C20:5n-3 in N. gaditana and C22:6n-3 in T. lutea was lower, suggesting that a substantial amount of these PUFA can escape the rumen unaffected. The in vitro total DM digestibility (TDMD) of microalgae was high (from 538 to 970 g kg-1 DM). The proportion of DM digested in the rumen in relation to TDMD ranged from 49.3 to 64.5%, indicating that a considerable DM digestion occurred in the intestine. Therefore, the microalgae N. gaditana and T. lutea are efficient nutritional sources of bypass C20:5n-3 and C22:6n-3 fatty acids, respectively, for ruminants.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. The present research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (PID2022-136956OR-C32).T.d.E. received a Margarita Salas grant from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, financed by the European Union Next Generation EU (UP2021-035).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Metagenomic and proteomic analyses reveal similar reproductive microbial profiles and shared functional pathways in uterine immune regulation in mares and jennies
Get PDFThis study aims to unveil potential differences in the vaginal and uterine microbiomes in mares and jennies, and to identify possible mechanisms involved in uterine immune homeostasis. The microbiota was characterized using 16S rRNA sequencing, and the uterine proteome was analyzed using UHPLC/MS/MS in 18 samples from healthy mares and 14 from jennies. While taxonomic analysis revealed high interspecies similarities, β-diversity analysis showed distinct clustering, with only two vaginal taxa and five uterine taxa differing between species. Despite compositional differences, PICRUSt analysis suggested minimal variations in predicted functional pathways across species. Comparing vaginal and uterine microbiota within the same species revealed overlapping bacterial taxa, but significant differences in α- and β-diversity and functional pathways. The uterine microbiota of both species was dominated by Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Actinobacteria, with abundant taxa like Streptococcus, Pseudomonas, Bacillus, Corynebacterium, and Staphylococcus, many of which are frequently associated with endometritis. The presence of Lactobacillus in the equine reproductive tract was minimal or non-existent. KEGG functional pathway analysis predicted that uterine microbiota of both species utilize metabolic pathways with potential immunomodulatory effects. Proteomic enrichment analysis showed that numerous overexpressed uterine proteins in both species are linked to adaptive and innate immune regulation and defense mechanisms against symbionts. Gene enrichment analysis identified several enriched Gene Ontology terms, including response to bacterial stimuli, humoral immune regulation, and TGF-beta receptor signaling, underscoring microbial-host interactions. The uterine microbiota may play a vital role in maintaining immune balance. Further research is required to confirm its interaction with the uterine immune system and clarify the mechanisms involved.The authors received financial support for this study from the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities PID2019-107797RA-I00/ AEI/10.13039/501100011033, PID2023-149815OB-I00 and from Junta de Extremadura-FEDER (IB20163 and IB20008).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Protection and diagnostic interference induced by heat-inactivated, phage-inactivated and live vaccine prototypes against animal tuberculosis
Get PDFIntroduction: Vaccination emerges as a promising cost-eective tool to reduce
the impact and spread of animal tuberculosis, especially in regions where testand-slaughter eradication strategy is socioeconomically unfeasible or unfruitful
for dierent reasons, provided it is safe, e cacious and compatible with
diagnosis.
Methods: In this study, we preliminarily evaluated the diagnostic interference
(using guinea pigs) and the protective e cacy (using mice) of three heatinactivated, three phage-inactivated and one live attenuated vaccine prototypes
prepared from M. bovis, M. caprae, and M. microti.
Results and discussion: Phage-inactivation killed almost all (96.41–99.92%)
bacteria to be included in vaccines and filtering was used to remove the
remaining viable cells. All the assayed vaccines induced skin test reactions in
response to bovine tuberculin, but they were smaller in the phage-inactivated
vaccine groups. All the vaccines were diagnosis-compatible with defined skin
test antigens based on ESAT-6, CFP-10, and Rv3615c. In contrast with the
rest of prototypes, vaccination with heat- and phage-inactivated M. microti
did not prompt the production of detectable anti-MPB70+MPB83 antibodies.
Mean bacterial burden was lower in all vaccinated groups in comparison with
the control, being significantly reduced in the lungs of the heat-inactivated M.
microti and M. caprae and phage-inactivated M. caprae groups. Considering
both diagnostic interference and protection collectively, the heat-inactivated M.
microti vaccine showed the best performance. Further studies to evaluate these
vaccines and to improve phage-driven inactivation are warranted.The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research and/or publication of this article. This study has been carried out with funds from Grants PID2019-105155RB-C33 and PID2022-142939OR-C21 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by ERDF/EU, and Grant EFA115/01 INNOTUB II funded by the INTERREG POCTEFA 2021–2027 Program (co-funded by the European Union). LF-V holds a pre-doctoral fellowship from the Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment of the Basque Government. RP-R thanks support from grants NIH RO1AI162821 and Spanish MICINN contracts PID2019-110240RB-I00 and PID2022-136611OB-I00.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Selection and Use of Wild Lachancea thermotolerans Strains from Rioja AOC with Bioacidificant Capacity as Strategy to Mitigate Climate Change Effects in Wine Industry
Get PDFLachancea thermotolerans help increase the acidity of wines by producing L-lactic
acid, which can serve as a strategy to mitigate the decrease in total acidity in wines
promoted by climate change. The aim of the present paper is to test the capability of wine
bioacidification of wild strains isolated from Rioja AOC. For this purpose, L. thermotolerans
strains isolated from musts were used in mixed fermentation (co-inoculation and sequential
inoculation) with Saccharomyces cerevisiae to determine the fermentation performance and
L-lactic acid production, in both laboratory scale and pilot scale. Fermentation kinetics was
evaluated, in addition to the final wine chemical composition and organoleptical properties.
The results indicated that the isolated strains produced L-lactic acid; these effects were
dependent on the strain and the inoculation strategy, being higher the effect in sequential
inoculation (9.20 g/L) than in co-inoculation. This L-lactic acid production capacity was
maintained at a pilot scale (4.65 g/L), in which the acidity increase was perceptible in the
sensorial analysis, and an ethanol concentration decrease was also reported. The wine
acidification depends on the appropriate selection of the strains, the inoculation procedure,
the yeast adaptation to media, and competence with other yeast species present in the
fermentation broth. The wild L. thermotolerans Lt97 strain could be used as a bioacidification
tool for wines affected by climate change.The authors are grateful to the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Spain (Project IDI-20210391) for its financial support. Authors thank Bodegas Roda S.A. for their implication in the project; and to Unit of Microbiology, Department of Genetics, Physiology and Microbiology, Complutense University of Madrid for strain typification.Funding for this research was provided by the LowpHWine Companies Consortia through the CDTI project LowpHWine (IDI-20210391). Daniel Fernández-Vázquez and Mercè Sunyer-Figueres have received a grant from Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, Spain, Investigo Program (2021-C23.I01.P03.S0020-0000008).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Enhancing the oxidative stability of flaxseed oil using food-grade O/W Pickering emulsions stabilized by antioxidant-rich cocoa byproduct particles
Get PDFPickering emulsions with antioxidant properties are of great interest in developing encapsulation systems for
compounds that are highly susceptible to oxidation. In this study, the fabrication of antioxidant O/W Pickering
emulsions using cocoa bean shell (CBS) particles with dual functionality, as both Pickering emulsifiers and
interfacial reservoirs of polyphenols, for the encapsulation of flaxseed oil was demonstrated. The antioxidant-rich
CBS was pretreated to obtain Pickering stabilizers, which were characterized in terms of chemical composition
and antioxidant activity using gravimetry, liquid chromatography, and spectrophotometry. O/W Pickering
emulsions were then prepared by microfluidization using various concentrations of CBS particles (0.5–5 % w/w)
and characterized in terms of droplet size, microstructure, and physical and oxidative stability. The results
showed that CBS particles contain valuable macronutrients, including proteins (18.21 %) and fibers (57.75 %), as
well as flavonoids, phenolic acids, and methylxanthines, which exhibit remarkable antioxidant activity. The
obtained Pickering emulsions exhibited high resistance to creaming and a reduction in droplet size as CBS
particle concentration increased, which was consistent with the TURBISCAN Stability Index (TSI) data. Moreover,
emulsions stabilized with ≥4.0 % (w/w) CBS particles showed high stability against creaming over 42 days
of storage at room temperature. Furthermore, oxidative stability exhibited similar trends, as indicated by
OXITEST values and the measurements of primary (Peroxide values) and secondary (TBARS) oxidation products
over time. These findings could contribute to the development of flaxseed oil Pickering emulsions with enhanced
oxidative stability and health-promoting properties for food applications.This research was funded by ANID (Agencia Nacional de Investigación Científica, Chile) through FONDECYT-REGULAR project N° 1240824, and ESPOL Polytechnic University through project N° CIBE-05–2023. Additionally, we would like to thank Dr. Fernando Leal-Calderon from the Université de Bordeaux (France) for the technical assistance.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio