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Development and characterisation of brown seaweed hydrolysates and fermentates with potential to reduce enteric methane
No full textPeer-reviewedSeaweeds are a valuable source of bioactive molecules widely discussed as having potential to reduce enteric methane (CH4) emissions from livestock. The brown seaweeds, Ascophyllum nodosum (Linnaeus) Le Jolis and Himanthalia elongata (Linnaeus) S. F. Gray are rich in polyphenols, specifically phlorotannins, with known antimicrobial and astringent bioactivities. Brown seaweeds can find use as animal feed additives if issues concerning their palatability and digestibility as well as the impact on protein absorption by the animal are overcome. Fermentation and hydrolysis are traditional processes used for preservation of biomass, but which may beneficially improve palatability and digestibility of feeds. The aim of this work was to assess the potential of fermented and hydrolysed brown seaweeds as agents for CH4 abatement. Ascophyllum nodosum and Himanthalia elongata of Irish origin were fermented and hydrolysed independently with commercially available lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and xylanase enzyme. Molecular weight cut off (MWCO) fractions generated from treated seaweed biomasses were assessed for their antimicrobial activities against the methanogens Methanococcus maripaludis and Methanobrevibacter ruminantium using 96-well plate and well diffusion assays. Batch experiments were carried out using anaerobic conditions at 37 °C for a period of 11 days. The A. nodosum fermentate and H. elongata hydrolysate were characterised for their polyphenol, phlorotannin, peptide, fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) and volatile compound contents using different mass spectrometry methods including GC-MS and LC-MS. Inhibition of M. maripaludis and M. ruminantium was observed in the presence of MWCO extracts generated from the treated seaweeds using the 96-well microtiter plate and well diffusion assays at concentrations of 1 mg/mL. The most antimicrobial A. nodosum MWCO fractions included the polyphenol fractions ≤ 100-kDa & 50-kDa in size, the A. nodosum phlorotannin extract ≤ 100-kDa in size and the H. elongata tannin fraction ≤ 100-kDa in size. 147 and 82 novel peptide sequences were identified in the 3 kDa MWCO fractions generated independently from the A. nodosum fermentate and H. elongata xylanase hydrolysate. Fifty volatile compounds were identified in the A. nodosum fermentate. The H. elongata hydrolysate and A. nodosum fermentate contained significant levels of palmitic acid -1536.37 µg fatty acid/g and 1139.37 µg fatty acid/g lipid, respectively
Adapting to Change: A guide for forest owners facing climate challenges. Forestry & Energy Review 15(1): 14-17
No full textClimate change is disrupting European forests and their markets, making adaptation through building resilience via diversification and finding new uses for a changing mix of wood species essential for the future. Gesche Schifferdecker, Annechien Hoeben, Jonathan Spazzi and Ian Short explain more
Pairing acidic and starch-rich foods lowers glycaemic responses by inhibiting oro-gastric starch hydrolysis: Evidence from in vitro semi-dynamic digestion
No full textPeer-ReviewedHuman studies over the past three decades have consistently shown that lowering the pH of starch-rich meals can significantly attenuate postprandial glycaemia. Based on our previous in vitro studies demonstrating the substantial contribution of salivary α-amylase during oro-gastric digestion of neutral-pH, starch-rich meals, we hypothesized that this effect is primarily mediated by the premature, acid-induced inhibition of salivary α-amylase during oral and/or gastric digestion. This study aimed to test this hypothesis by examining the starch digestion kinetics of food combinations from three independent human studies assessing the impact of combining acidic foods (white wine vinegar, pomegranate juice or kiwifruit) with bread or breakfast cereal. Five meals underwent semi-dynamic digestion in vitro using an adapted version of INFOGEST protocols. Samples were collected at all stages of digestion to determine the temporal profiles of starch release and hydrolysis into oligosaccharides. Approximately 40% of the total starch in bread was hydrolysed into oligosaccharides during oro-gastric digestion; however, this decreased to 15% - 20% (>50% reduction) with the addition of vinegar (p < 0.01) or pomegranate juice (p < 0.05). Similarly, for breakfast cereal, starch hydrolysis decreased from 35% to around 15% with kiwifruit (p <0.001 to <0.01). These results are consistent with the glycaemic attenuations reported in the literature for the same acidic meals, confirming our hypothesis and further substantiating existing knowledge on the relationships between meal pH, starch digestibility and glycaemic responses
Alaria esculenta, Ulva lactuca, and Palmaria palmata as Potential Functional Food Ingredients for the Management of Metabolic Syndrome
No full textHypertension, type 2 diabetes (T2D), and obesity raise an individual’s risk of suffering from diseases associated with metabolic syndrome (MS). In humans, enzymes that play a role in the prevention and development of MS include angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE-1) associated with hypertension, α-amylase associated with T2D, and lipase linked to the development of obesity. Seaweeds are a rich source of bioactives consisting of proteins/peptides, polysaccharides, and lipids. This study examined the potential of seaweed-derived bioactives from Alaria esculenta, Ulva lactuca, and Palmaria palmata as inhibitors of ACE-1, α-amylase, and lipase. In vitro enzyme inhibitory assays were used to quantify the bioactivity of the seaweed extracts and compare their half-maximal inhibitory (IC50) values to recognised positive control enzyme inhibitory drugs captopril© (an ACE-1 inhibitor), acarbose (an α-amylase inhibitor), and orlistat (a lipase inhibitor). Three seaweed extracts displayed enzyme inhibitory activities equal to, or more effective than, the reference positive control drugs. These were P. palmata peptides (ACE-1 IC50 94.29 ± 3.07 µg/mL, vs. captopril© 91.83 ± 2.68 µg/mL); A. esculenta polyphenol extract (α-amylase IC50 147.04 ± 9.72 µg/mL vs. acarbose 185.67 ± 12.48 µg/mL, and lipase IC50 106.21 ± 6.53 µg/mL vs. orlistat 139.74 ± 9.33 µg/mL); and U. lactuca polysaccharide extract (α-amylase IC50 168.06 ± 10.53 µg/mL vs. acarbose 185.67 ± 12.48 µg/mL). Proximate analysis also revealed that all three seaweeds were a good source of protein, fibre, and polyunsaturated essential fatty acids (PUFAs). These findings highlight the potential of these seaweeds in the management of diseases associated with MS and as foods
Effects of season, age and parasite management practices on gastro – intestinal parasites in pigs kept outdoors in Ireland
No full textAbstract Outdoor farming offers pigs considerable behavioural freedom and better consumer acceptance than intensive, indoor systems. However, gastro – intestinal (GI) parasites pose a significant health and welfare challenge for pigs reared outdoors. The aim of this study was to ascertain effects of management, season and animal factors such as age, on a range of different GI parasites in Irish pigs farmed outdoors. Sixty-five pig faecal samples (a mix from at least 2–4 animals per paddock) were collected from 65 paddocks across 20 outdoor pig farms, over two visits (1st visit – February/May-December 2023, n = 37, 2nd visit– July/October 2023, n = 28). Samples were collected and mixed thoroughly to achieve a paddock level sample. Data were also collected related to pig characteristics (grower/fatteners or sows and boars), anthelmintic usage (Yes/No) and paddock rotation (Yes/No) and categorized at paddock level. Samples were analysed using the McMaster floatation method, faecal egg count (FEC) was calculated, and GI parasites were identified by morphology. Generalized linear mixed models were used to analyse the effect of season, age, anthelmintic usage and paddock rotation on FEC. Four parasite taxa were identified (Eimeria/Isospora spp., strongyles, Ascaris suum and Trichuris suis). Infection rates were > 80% for Eimeria/Isospora spp. and strongyles, 31% for A. suum and 9% for T. suis for both visits. Eimeria/Isospora spp. FEC was higher at the 2nd visit (P < 0.001) and strongyles FEC was higher at the 1st visit (P < 0.05). Fattener pigs had higher FEC for Eimeria/Isospora spp. (P < 0.01) and sows/boars had higher strongyle counts (P < 0.05). Strongyle count was lower with anthelmintic use (P < 0.05) and Eimeria/Isospora spp. count was lower (P = 0.05) with paddock rotation when anthelmintics were used. Lower winter temperatures may have influenced the seasonal variation in strongyle FEC. This study provides a comprehensive picture of GI parasites in outdoor pig farms in Ireland in terms of the taxa, their prevalence and risk factors
Herd-level occurrence and risk factors associated with respiratory and enteric pathogens from dairy calves in Ontario: A cross-sectional study
Full text linkPeer-reviewedThis cross-sectional herd-level study aimed to determine the occurrence of and risk factors for pathogens associated with neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD) and bovine respiratory disease (BRD) on Ontario dairy farms. From April to August 2022, a convenience sample of 100 dairy farms was visited once. A questionnaire covering farm biosecurity, calving and colostrum management, preweaning nutrition, and housing was administered on-farm. At each farm visit, approximately 5 calves between 2 and 35 d old were randomly selected for fecal sampling. Furthermore, approximately 5 calves between 21 to 122 d old were randomly selected for nasopharyngeal sampling. In total, 363 fecal samples (from 83 dairy farms) and 390 nasopharyngeal swab samples (from 80 dairy farms) were collected. Fecal samples were analyzed individually using a multiplex PCR to identify bacterial and parasitic enteric pathogens. Nasopharyngeal swabs were analyzed as one pooled sample per farm using bacterial culture and real-time PCR. The most common enteric pathogens detected at herd-level were Cryptosporidium parvum (67.4%) and Escherichia coli K99+ (13.2%). The most common respiratory pathogens detected at herd-level were Pasteurella multocida (62.5%), bovine coronavirus (42.5%), and Mycoplasma bovis (21.2%). Multivariable logistic models were built to explore associations between the most common pathogens and herd-level predictors selected from the questionnaire. Herd positivity for C. parvum was positively associated with having more than 61 preweaning calves per year and feeding mainly whole milk to calves. The presence of M. bovis was positively associated with herds that combined manual and automatic milk-feeding systems, and the presence of bovine coronavirus was positively associated with having more than 98 preweaning calves during the year. Univariable Poisson regression models were built to explore the association between the most common pathogens and preweaning calf mortality. Herds that were positive for C. parvum, M. bovis, or bovine coronavirus had a greater risk of preweaning calf mortality. These results provide insights for future research on pathogens associated with NCD and BRD and offer guidance for veterinarians and dairy farmers in implementing disease control measures in dairy calf herdsOntario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affair
Computer Vision and Transfer Learning for Grading of Egyptian Cotton Fibres
No full textEgyptian cotton fibres have worldwide recognition due to their distinct quality and luxurious textile products known by the “Egyptian Cotton“ label. However, cotton fibre trading in Egypt still depends on human grading of cotton quality, which is resource-intensive and faces challenges in terms of subjectivity and expertise requirements. This study investigates colour vision and transfer learning to classify the grade of five long (Giza 86, Giza 90, and Giza 94) and extra-long (Giza 87 and Giza 96) staple cotton cultivars. Five Convolutional Neural networks (CNNs)—AlexNet, GoogleNet, SqueezeNet, VGG16, and VGG19—were fine-tuned, optimised, and tested on independent datasets. The highest classifications were 75.7%, 85.0%, 80.0%, 77.1%, and 90.0% for Giza 86, Giza 87, Giza 90, Giza 94, and Giza 96, respectively, with F1-Scores ranging from 51.9–100%, 66.7–100%, 42.9–100%, 40.0–100%, and 80.0–100%. Among the CNNs, AlexNet, GoogleNet, and VGG19 outperformed the others. Fused CNN models further improved classification accuracy by up to 7.2% for all cultivars except Giza 87. These results demonstrate the feasibility of developing a fast, low-cost, and low-skilled vision system that overcomes the inconsistencies and limitations of manual grading in the early stages of cotton fibre trading in Egypt
Semi-dynamic in vitro digestion of honey chlorella vulgaris reveals biochemical and structural insights during gastro-intestinal transit
Full text linkPeer-reviewedConcerns about current food systems have prompted increased exploration of sustainable alternative protein sources, such as microalgae. This study investigated honey Chlorella vulgaris, a chlorophyll-deficient mutant, distinguished by its consumer-friendly honey colour, milder flavour and improved texture. To facilitate the nutritional transition towards this source, a standardised in vitro semi-dynamic INFOGEST digestion model was employed to analyse the digestive behaviour of C. vulgaris, focusing on the biochemical and structural changes during in vitro digestion. Gastric digestion was conducted over 67.5 min with dynamic fluid addition and gastric emptying. Results indicated slow gastric digestion of C. vulgaris due to the initially low pepsin activity and low protein solubility. Significant protein breakdown commenced when the pH dropped to 3.5. By the end of the gastric phase, 11.8 % of the protein and 3.0 % of free amine groups were released, generating new peptides of 0.3–1 kDa. Followed by 2 h static intestinal digestion, some cell structures remained intact, indicating a barrier to nutrient release. Pancreatic enzymes caused substantial protein hydrolysis, generating a higher fraction of 0.1–0.3 kDa peptides, with a notable release of essential amino acids as well as phenolic compounds.
This study highlighted that protein insolubility and the cell wall structure of C. vulgaris may impede enzyme effectiveness, leading to a reduced protein breakdown. Furthermore, introduction of processing steps may enhance bioaccessibility in microalgae-derived foods, thereby contributing to the development of nutritional and sustainable food productions
Mixed species broadleaved and broadleaved/conifer stands in Great Britain for timber production
Full text linkUsing mixed species stands of broadleaves and of broadleaves and conifers, where broadleaves are the final crop, can be a desirable management option. This can increase overall yield, financial return, improve the quality of timber and increase resilience to damaging abiotic and biotic agents. There are few formal trials of such stands, but there is knowledge of how these can be established and managed, developed through the experiences of forest managers and landowners. This article presents a literature review of mixed stands containing broadleaves, focusing on practice in Great Britain
