Search Results (1,424)

This study investigated the effects of dietary supplementation with Vitamin E (VE) and selenium (Se) on immunostressed broilers. In the experiment, a total of 576 Gushi chickens were randomly allocated into 12 groups. They were respectively fed diets with different levels of VE and Se. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) immune treatment was administered at 23, 25, and 27 days of age. At 28 days of age, the antioxidant indicators and immune factors in their serum, liver, and intestine were measured. The results indicated that (1) LPS treatment significantly elevated the contents of nitric oxide (NO) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in the duodenum and jejunum (p < 0.01). Conversely, adding VE and Se to the diet of LPS-treated chicks could significantly decrease the content of NO in the duodenum and the activities of NOS in the duodenum and jejunum (p < 0.01). (2) LPS treatment significantly decreased the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) in the liver of broilers, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and the activities of serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) (p < 0.01). Dietary supplementation of selenium could significantly reduce the content of MDA (p < 0.01), and the treatment groups with 200 mg/kg VE and 0.6 mg/kg Se exhibited the most favorable effects. (3) Adding Se or VE to the diet of LPS-treated chicks could significantly increase the thymus index and spleen index (p < 0.05) and significantly decrease the bursa of Fabricius index (p < 0.05). Among them, the thymus index was the highest in the 100 mg/kg VE group, and the interaction of the three factors had a significant influence on the thymus index and bursa of Fabricius index (p < 0.05). (4) The level ofinterleukin-6 (IL-6) in the serum of broilers in the LPS treatment group was significantly increased. However, selenium and Vitamin E were added to the diet of LPS-treated chicks to reduce the contents of serum IL-6 and IL-8, as well as adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). Moreover, the interaction of the three factors has a significant impact on immune indicators (p < 0.01). In conclusion, adding 100–200 mg/kg of VE and 0.6 mg/kg of Se to the diet of broiler chickens has certain advantages in enhancing immunity and antioxidant capacity. Full article

Guangxi, one of China’s dominant sericulture regions, generates substantial silkworm excrement (SE) annually, yet most remains underutilized. This study optimized cellulase-assisted ethanol extraction of flavonoids and chlorophyll from silkworm frass. Systematic experimentation (n = 31) revealed that extraction temperature exerted dominant influence on both contents (r = 0.54 and 0.37 for chlorophyll and flavonoids, respectively), while the two contents exhibited near-zero correlation (r = 0.06). An XGBoost model achieved R² = 0.9146 for flavonoid prediction; SHAP analysis identified a critical temperature threshold (~40 °C). Monte Carlo simulation (n = 10,000) constructed a Pareto frontier for multi-objective optimization. The optimized condition (9% enzyme, 50 °C) achieved chlorophyll and flavonoid contents of 1.13 and 6.42 mg/g, respectively. These findings demonstrate that sericulture waste can serve as a biorefinery feedstock and that interpretable machine learning can navigate multi-objective extraction challenges under data constraints. Full article

Crowdfunding has emerged as an alternative funding source among entrepreneurs, businesses, and industries. In recent years, research on machine learning-based project classification models has been conducted with the aim of predicting the success of crowdfunding campaigns, both for entrepreneurs and investors. However, most of the research has focused on classification approaches using non-content information such as project metadata, creators’ behavior, and social history, but there have been few attempts to use text content data per se, particularly in order to provide explanations and evidence for how the prediction decisions were made. To address this point, we propose to use a deep learning-based approach called Hierarchical Attention Network (HAN) to predict the success of crowdfunding campaigns and provide explanation and justification of the prediction decisions using attention weights. We collect publicly available data of crowdfunding campaigns and build our success prediction model with an accuracy of 86.38% and 87.29%, using an Updates section and backers’ comments in a Comments section, respectively. We also explore the feasibility of early success prediction during the funding period (up to 2 months), with as much as 80.99% accuracy in 1 to 2 months. Finally, we examine word and sentence attention weight scores to clarify key factors in predicting crowdfunding success. Full article

The integration of sustainable development into biology education has been a growing area of interest. Biology education for sustainability is considered through competencies and skills, taking different dimensions of knowledge into account. Solving problems requires not only knowledge but also communicative and strategic activity. Thus, biology education must emphasize the main visions of scientific literacy proposed in the literature, supporting students to understand society and everyday socioscientific challenges at the local as well as at the global level, and to deal with differing scientific results and uncertain information. However, there are very few studies from a holistic didactic viewpoint on the implementation of sustainable education (SE) in biology education in the context of teacher education and school education for promoting a sustainable future. This study addresses this gap via a bibliometric and content analysis of the literature (n = 165 and 131, respectively) based on the categories of the sustainable development goals (SDGs), subject aims, learning objectives, content knowledge, teaching methods, competencies and skills, and assessment methods. The literature analyzed emphasizes the environmental and social SDGs, the development of students’ factual and conceptual knowledge and learning, interactive teaching and learning methods, critical thinking and reflection, and summative and formative assessment methods. There is much less attention on economic and institutional SDGs, scientific skills, environmental attitudes, knowledge creation, strategic thinking and empathy, and diagnostic assessment methods. Compared to earlier studies performed in the 2010s, teaching and learning methods have become more diverse in contrast to the earlier focus on teacher-centered methods. Overall, the conclusion is that biology education must evolve beyond content mastery to integrate ethical, technological, and transdisciplinary dimensions—empowering learners not only to understand life but to sustain it—aligned with quality education (SDG 4), good health and well-being (SDG 3), and life on land (SDG 15). The findings also suggest that powerful knowledge needs to be emphasized for providing essential insights into ecosystems, biodiversity, and the processes that sustain life on Earth. They also highlight the importance of regular evaluations of teaching and learning for detecting how pedagogical and didactic approaches and strategies have supported students’ learning focused on sustainable development. Full article

Histomonosis, caused by Histomonas meleagridis, leads to economic losses in the poultry and livestock industry. In recent years, studies on the role of intestinal microbiota in host physiological health have attracted growing attention. Understanding the changes in gut bacterial communities of chickens is crucial for improving poultry and livestock production. This study investigated the impact of Histomonas meleagridis infection on the growth performance, overall health, and cecal microbiota composition of chickens. Body weight changes and pathological alterations were assessed at different time points post-infection through animal experiments, with 7 days post-infection defined as the early stage and 14 days as the peak stage of infection. Cecal content samples were collected from the 7-day control group (G1), 7-day infected group (G2), 14-day control group (G3), and 14-day infected group (G4) for 16S rRNA sequencing analysis. The microbial diversity analysis revealed that H. meleagridis infection altered the number of microbial species in the cecal microbiota of chickens. The alpha diversity index was significantly reduced (p < 0.05), and principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) revealed significant structural differences between infected and control groups (p = 0.001). Taxonomic composition analysis showed that beneficial gut bacteria, such as Firmicutes and Lactobacillus spp., decreased in abundance, whereas Bacteroidota, Proteobacteria, Escherichia spp., and Fusobacterium mortiferum were enriched in the infected group. LEfSe analysis indicated that G1 was enriched with Oscillospiraceae and Blautia; G2 with Christensenellaceae; G3 with Verrucomicrobia and Lactobacillus aviarius; and G4 with Proteobacteria and Fusobacteria. In conclusion, H. meleagridis infection markedly altered the cecal microbiota composition by shifting the relative abundances of beneficial and pathogenic bacteria, resulting in reduced microbial diversity. Full article

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) still lacks a licensed vaccine. The envelope glycoprotein E2 is a key neutralizing target, but its dense N-glycan shield can hinder epitope exposure. In this study, we revisit E2 glycan editing and examine whether single-site deletion preserves antigen integrity while improving immune responses in mice under a DNA immunization setting. Using a secreted E2 ectodomain (sE2384–661), we generated five N to D mutants at conserved sites (N1, N2, N4, N6, and N11) and evaluated them in a unified DNA immunization model with identical CpG content and delivery conditions across groups. The N2 mutant (N423, sE2-N2) maintained expression, secretion, and ER localization; furthermore, in mice, it was associated with higher anti-E2 titers and greater inhibition of H77 (genotype 1a) HCVcc at the tested dilutions, with limited activity against Con1 (1b). Cellular analyses showed increased IFN-γ ELISPOT counts and higher frequencies of granzyme B⁺/perforin⁺ CD8⁺ T cells after N2 immunization, while IL-4 remained low. Functionally, N2 elicited stronger specific lysis of CT26-sE2 targets in vitro and slowed CT26-sE2 tumor growth in vivo. In HCV-infected ICR^4R+ mice, therapeutic vaccination with sE2-N2 reduced blood HCV RNA and hepatic readouts compared with sE2. A monoclonal antibody isolated from sE2-N2-immunized mice (1C1) neutralized HCVcc in vitro and, after passive transfer, lowered viremia and liver signals in infected mice. Collectively, these findings indicate that selective removal of the N2 glycan preserves antigen properties and is associated with improved humoral and cellular immunity and measurable in vivo activity, supporting targeted glycan editing as a practical strategy to refine E2-based HCV vaccines. Full article

Current agricultural irrigation management practices are often extensive, and traditional soil moisture content (SMC) monitoring methods are inefficient, so there is a pressing need for innovative approaches in precision irrigation. This study proposes a Multi-Feature Fusion Network (MFF-Net) for SMC inversion. The model uses a designed Channel-Changeable Residual Block (ResBlockCC) to construct a multi-branch feature extraction and fusion architecture. Integrating the Channel Squeeze and Spatial Excitation (sSE) attention module with U-Net-like skip connections, MFF-Net inverts root-zone SMC from summer maize leaf images. Field experiments were conducted in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China, from 2024 to 2025, under three irrigation treatments: 60–70% θ_fc, 70–90% θ_fc, and 60–90% θ_fc (θ_fc denotes field capacity). This study shows that (1) MFF-Net achieved its smallest inversion error under the 60–70% θ_fc treatment, suggesting the inversion was most effective when SMC variation was small and relatively low; (2) MFF-Net demonstrated superior performance to several benchmark models, achieving an R² of 0.84; and (3) the ablation study confirmed that each feature branch and the sSE attention module contributed positively to model performance. MFF-Net thus offers a technological reference for real-time precision irrigation and shows promise for field SMC inversion in summer maize. Full article

Selenium (Se) biofortification in rice presents a promising strategy to address Se deficiency in populations relying on rice as a staple food. This study evaluated the impact of foliar Se application on Se accumulation, its distribution in unpolished and polished rice grains, grain yield, and antioxidant capacity across 21 rice genotypes. Foliar Se application significantly improved grain yield, with increases ranging from 5.7 to 67.5% compared to non-foliar Se application. Se concentrations in both unpolished and polished grains were notably enhanced by foliar application, reaching 41.1–543.9 µg kg⁻¹, whereas non-foliar treatments resulted in much lower concentrations (0–30.5 µg kg⁻¹). Foliar Se also altered Se partitioning, decreasing Se retention in unpolished grains (from 9.8–100% under non-foliar application to 19.7–66.1% with foliar Se application) and increasing its proportion in polished rice. Se loss during polishing was genotype-dependent and generally reduced by foliar Se application (9.4–72.3%). Antioxidant capacity was highest in unpolished rice and varied among genotypes, increasing further with foliar Se. A positive correlation between grain antioxidant capacity and Se concentration was observed in unpolished, but not polished rice. Overall, these findings demonstrate the effectiveness of foliar Se biofortification in enhancing Se content and antioxidant properties, emphasizing the importance of genotype selection such as RD16, RD79, KDML105, K2, KJ CMU 107, and HMD to maximize biofortification benefits. Full article

Calcium (Ca) and selenium (Se) are garnering growing interest because of their capacity to boost crop yields and minimize cadmium (Cd) concentration within edible parts. However, whether Ca and Se can synergistically inhibit Cd accumulation in crops and its mechanism remains poorly understood. A hydroponic experiment was conducted under Cd exposure with the combined supplementation of Ca and Se, specifically focused on Cd accumulation and its mechanism. The results revealed that Ca and Se synergistically enhanced growth and photosynthetic content, whereas they inhibited Cd accumulation in the roots, stems, and leaves of peppers. Ca and Se also synergistically reduced the content of Cd in the cell wall, organelle fraction, and soluble fraction of the roots, as well as in pectin, hemicellulose I, hemicellulose II, and cellulose. Ca and Se supplementation synergistically downregulated the expression levels of CaNramp1, CaNramp5, CaHMA1, and CaHMA2. These results revealed that Ca and Se synergistically reduced Cd accumulation in peppers by modulating targeted gene downregulation involved in Cd absorption and translocation. Full article

This experiment aimed to investigate the effects of replacing alfalfa hay with Glycyrrhiza stem and leaf silage (moisture content: 45%) on rumen in vitro fermentation parameters, nutrient digestibility, and dynamic changes of microbial community composition. In vitro fermentation was conducted with 0% (control group G0A100), 50% (G50A50), and 100% (G100A0) alfalfa hay replaced by semi-dry silage of Glycyrrhiza stems and leaves with 45% moisture content for 72 h. Cumulative gas production (GP), fermentation parameters, microbial community composition at different time points, and post-fermentation nutrient digestibility were determined, with comprehensive evaluation by principal component analysis (PCA) and gray relational analysis (GRA). Results showed that GP of G50A50 and G100A0 was significantly higher than G0A100 at 3 h (p < 0.05), and that of G50A50 was significantly higher than the other two groups at 24 h (p < 0.05). pH of G50A50 was significantly lower than the other two groups at 3 h (p < 0.05). In vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) at 24 h and 72 h, in vitro neutral detergent fiber digestibility (IVNDFD) at 12 h, and in vitro acid detergent fiber digestibility (IVADFD) at 12, 24 and 72 h of G0A100 and G50A50 were significantly higher than G100A0 (p < 0.05). PCA comprehensive scores ranked as G0A100 (0.170) > G50A50 (0.141) > G100A0 (−0.311). GRA comprehensive scores ranked as G50A50 (0.792) > G0A100 (0.756) > G100A0 (0.681). LEfSe analysis indicated distinct microbial biomarkers at 72 h, and KEGG functional profiles were highly consistent among groups. Under the experimental conditions, 50% Glycyrrhiza stem and leaf silage is recommended to replace alfalfa hay in dairy cow diets. Full article

Micro-minerals are essential for fish, but traditional inorganic micro-minerals (IMM) have low bioavailability. This study evaluated coated inorganic micro-minerals (CIMM) in juvenile American eels under commercial recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) conditions. Three experimental groups (n = 3 tanks per group, stocking density: 138 fish/m³) were fed basal diets supplemented for 56 days with: 1000 mg/kg IMM (IMM group, providing Cu 7, Fe 200, Mn 30, Zn 70, I 1.6, Se 0.4, and Co 1.2 mg/kg diet), 1000 mg/kg CIMM (CIMM group I), or 500 mg/kg CIMM (CIMM group II). Compared to the IMM group, the CIMM group I demonstrated significantly enhanced growth performance, with the specific growth rate increasing by approximately 31.14%, higher whole-body content and retention of minerals (Ca, P, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn), and superior intestinal health, as reflected by significantly increased activities of digestive enzymes (amylase and lipase), enhanced antioxidant capacity (elevated SOD and CAT, reduced MDA), and improved morphology (villi length and muscular thickness), an altered intestinal microbiota (increased relative abundance of Firmicutes and reduced relative abundance of Proteobacteria), and significant metabolomic alterations in purine metabolism and linoleic acid metabolism. The CIMM group II maintained growth performance, with no significant difference in WGR and SGR compared to the IMM group, while still showing significant improvements in feed intake and mineral retention (P, Cu, Fe, Zn), and antioxidant capacity. Collectively, this study not only confirms the efficacy of CIMM in commercial RAS but also reveals that the supplementation level previously shown to be effective in the laboratory (50% CIMM) is insufficient under commercial farming conditions, implying that the dietary micro-mineral requirements for juvenile American eels in commercial RAS may be higher than those established in laboratory settings. Full article

Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is a vital non-destructive analytical tool in the food and aquaculture industries. This study pioneers the application of portable NIR spectrometers for evaluating selenium (Se) content in the Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas). We developed quantitative and qualitative models to predict selenium levels in oyster tissue, representing a novel application for monitoring trace elements in marine organisms. Quantitative models were developed using partial least squares (PLS) regression on spectra collected with two portable spectrometers (Micro NIR 1700, Micro PHAZIR RX) and a benchtop FT-NIR instrument, with validation via cross-validation and an independent set. Qualitative models were also constructed to categorize Se content into three levels: 0–1, 1–3, and >3 mg/kg. For quantitative analysis, the Micro NIR 1700 model performed robustly in external validation (RP = 0.932; RMSEP = 0.392; RPD = 2.46). The Micro PHAZIR RX model achieved the highest RC (0.988) and the lowest RMSEC (0.233), yet cross-validation indicated a potential risk of overfitting. In contrast, the FT-NIR instrument yielded the best external predictive ability for powdered samples (RP = 0.954, RPD = 2.60), highlighting its high precision under laboratory conditions. For qualitative discrimination, the Micro PHAZIR RX’s classification module achieved a 100% correct recognition rate (AUC = 0.937). The models based on the Micro NIR 1700 and FT-NIR instruments showed cumulative contribution rates (CCR) of 98.61% and 97.59%, respectively, with high performance indices (PI) of 89.3 and 90.2, confirming their effective discrimination capability. The models established in this study enable the rapid, on-site detection of Se content in oyster samples, underscoring the significant potential of portable NIR spectroscopy for selenium analysis in shellfish. Full article

Recycling of 6xxx aluminum alloys, which are used extensively in the automotive industry, is important for ensuring a carbon-neutral future and the efficient use of resources on Earth. The sustainability of recycling in aluminum alloys is directly proportional to the correct classification of the scrap to be used. In this study, scrap stream from a novel scrap-sorting technology called MULTI-PICK has been used to validate. The 6063 and 6082 alloys produced with scrap stream, which are commonly used for structural parts in the automotive sector, are analyzed with hydrogen analysis and PREFIL. Cast billets are evaluated considering extrusion. After extrusion, microstructures of the profiles are investigated with scanning electron microscopy (SE), transmission electron microscopy (TE) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). Their mechanical properties and anisotropic behaviors are investigated with tensile testing in different orientations. Additionally, an alternative alloy called 6111 has been studied to replace the target alloys with low critical raw material (CRM) content. According to the findings, highly recycled 6xxx alloys can be used in the automotive industry without losing their existing properties. Furthermore, using alternative feedstock and retrofitted systems can decrease carbon footprint below 4 kgCeq/kgAl. Full article

Laser-induced breakdown spectrometry (LIBS), known as an express analysis technique, is for the first time applied in this study for determining selenium in soil. Modern agriculture requires elemental analysis methods to perform the continuous automated online control of microelement content in soil. However, selenium has never been quantitatively determined in soil by LIBS so far. Different sample preparation techniques (loose soil powder, mounted on adhesive tape and tableted soil) are employed here for LIBS determination of selenium in soil. The optimal choice of analytical line is challenging for selenium because of spectral interference with the minor and major soil components (Fe, Si, Zn, Al, Sb), but the Se I 196.09 nm line has the lowest spectral interference. A limit of detection of 3 mg/kg for selenium in soil is achieved in the present study using LIBS. The analytical performance of tape-mounted and loose soil powder samples with appropriate data averaging is found to be comparable to that achieved for tablets. Full article

In this study, selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) were synthesized using polysaccharides extracted from blueberry pomace (BP) as a stabilizing agent. BP was characterized as an acidic polysaccharide with a molecular weight of 5.4 × 10⁵ Da. The resulting BP-SeNPs were monodisperse spheres with an average size of 94.33 nm, as confirmed by TEM, DLS, FT-IR, XRD, and EDX analyses. Compared to SeNPs, BP-SeNPs demonstrated superior stability under varying conditions of storage time, temperature, pH, and ionic strength. Furthermore, in vitro evaluation using AAPH-induced rabbit erythrocytes revealed that BP-SeNPs offered enhanced protection against hemolysis. This protective effect was attributed to their ability to significantly bolster antioxidant enzyme activities (SOD, CAT, and GSH-Px) and preserve membrane integrity by maintaining ATPase function and sialic acid content. These results establish BP as an effective stabilizer for SeNPs and suggest the promising potential of BP-SeNPs as antioxidant agents in functional food or nutraceutical applications. Full article