Search Results (545)

Rhizoctonia solani is a necrotrophic phytopathogenic fungus that causes disease in various crops. In agriculture, many crops suffer from root or seedling rot caused by this soil-borne pathogen, whereas cabbage and rice develop lesion-like symptoms on aboveground tissues. Diseases caused by R. solani are generally controlled using chemical fungicides; however, environmentally friendly alternatives are needed for sustainable agriculture. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of lecithin, a mixture of phospholipids previously registered in Japan as an agrochemical for controlling cucumber powdery mildew, against Rhizoctonia diseases. In cabbage, foliar spraying of 0.2–1.0% soybean lecithin effectively suppressed leaf symptoms caused by R. solani isolate RhiCa-2, which was identified as AG-1 IB. In rice and Brachypodium distachyon, 0.2–1.0% lecithin significantly suppressed leaf symptoms induced by R. solani AG-1 IA. Hyphal staining of inoculated leaves revealed reduced hyphal density on lecithin-treated leaves. Consistently, hyphal growth of R. solani on cellophane placed on water agar was retarded by lecithin treatment. However, 5.0% lecithin induced phytotoxicity in B. distachyon. Egg yolk-derived lecithin also exhibited disease-suppressive activity in cabbage and B. distachyon, with efficacy comparable to that of soybean lecithin under the conditions tested. These results suggest that lecithin suppresses foliar infection by R. solani, at least in part, through direct inhibitory effects on fungal hyphae, and may serve as a potential alternative material for disease control in sustainable crop production. Full article

Soybean is a critical economic, oil and industrial raw material crop, yet its production is often hindered by pathogen infection and pesticide residues. This study explored the synergistic effects of Rhizophagus intraradices and mycorrhizal helper bacteria (MHB) on AMF colonization, AMF spore density, total number of bacterial colonies, soybean growth, root rot disease index, and carbendazim residues. Hydroponic and pot experiments were conducted using a completely randomized design (CRD) with five biological replicates per treatment; after 30 days of growth, three replicates were randomly selected for all measurements. Results showed that inoculation with microbial agents, particularly co-inoculation, increased soybean biomass, reduced disease index, and decreased carbendazim residues. In the hydroponic experiment, co-inoculation increased plant height, aboveground fresh weight, and underground dry weight by 64.28%, 78.13%, and 109.09%, respectively, and decreased carbendazim residues by 71.84% relative to the carbendazim-alone group. In the pot experiment, co-inoculation reduced carbendazim residues by 81.25% and root rot disease index by 45.56% compared with the carbendazim-alone group. Correlation analysis showed a strong positive correlation (p < 0.001) between carbendazim degradation in hydroponic and pot systems, indicating stable degradation function across environments. Co-inoculation of R. intraradices and MHB synergistically promotes soybean growth, suppresses root rot, and reduces carbendazim residues, providing a theoretical basis for developing functional microbial inoculants for safe and green soybean production. Full article

Sudden death syndrome (SDS) and soybean cyst nematode (SCN) are major yield-limiting diseases in North American soybean production, with limited effective management options. Long-term soybean monoculture has been reported to suppress SDS and SCN, but the mechanisms, onset, and persistence of such suppression remain poorly understood. To study these mechanisms, a six-year field study (2018–2023) was conducted at two Ontario sites with contrasting disease histories: Chatham (conducive) and Essex (suppressive). We evaluated suppression development and resilience across soybean monoculture (SSSSSS) and corn–soybean rotations (SCSCSC/CSCSCS), using eight cultivars differing in SDS and SCN resistance across two maturity groups. In Chatham, disease index (DX) progressively declined under monoculture; the most susceptible cultivar, HS11RY07, declined from a mean DX of 89 to 43 by year six, with corresponding yield increases, and rotational yield advantages diminished. In Essex, introducing corn rotation increased SDS symptoms during soybean phases; monoculture yields became comparable to rotation in later years. Importantly, suppression developed without corresponding reductions in Fusarium virguliforme and SCN populations, which remained variable across years, suggesting that monoculture may disrupt pathogen effectiveness rather than eliminating it. This decoupling of pathogen abundance and disease severity is consistent with soil-mediated biological suppression; the microbial drivers are addressed in subsequent work. Full article

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative joint disease characterized by persistent low-grade inflammation and progressive cartilage destruction. Macrophage-driven inflammatory responses contribute to extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation and accelerate disease progression. Here, we investigated the therapeutic potential of a DHA-derived lipid mediator mixture (LM), generated via soybean lipoxygenase and composed of 17S-hydroxydocosahexaenoic acid, resolvin D5, and protectin DX (3:47:50), in regulating macrophage–chondrocyte crosstalk and OA progression. LM significantly reduced IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α production in lipopolysaccharide-induced THP-1 macrophages. Conditioned medium from LM-treated macrophages attenuated ECM degradation in primary chondrocytes by suppressing MMP13 and ADAMTS5 while restoring COL2A1 and ACAN expression, indicating that LM may indirectly protects ECM by modulating the inflammatory microenvironment. In parallel, LM directly protected chondrocytes against IL-1β-induced inflammatory and catabolic responses, and restored ECM homeostasis. Mechanistically, LM significantly increased SIRT1 expression and deacetylation activity, as demonstrated by reduced NF-κB p65 acetylation. Both pharmacological inhibition by EX527 and siRNA-mediated SIRT1 knockdown abolished the protective effects of LM on ECM preservation. In vivo, LM oral administration alleviated cartilage destruction, improved joint structure and suppressed OA progression in a monosodium iodoacetate-induced OA model. Notably, micro-CT studies have demonstrated that LM significantly improved subchondral bone architecture, as evidenced by increased bone volume fraction and improved trabecular parameters. Histological analyses confirmed that LM attenuated inflammation and maintained cartilage integrity. Consistently, immunohistochemical findings showed reduced MMP13 expression, restoration of collagen II and aggrecan, and upregulation of SIRT1 in the LM-treated group compared to OA rats. Collectively, these findings suggest that LM mitigates OA progression by reducing inflammation, preserving ECM homeostasis, and attenuating subchondral bone deterioration. Full article

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is associated with the aggregation and deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ), making Aβ aggregation an important target in AD-related research. Food-derived components have attracted attention as potential modulators of Aβ-related processes, but the direct effects of diverse food samples on Aβ42 aggregation remain unclear. Here, we screened 120 food-sample preparations derived from 115 food items for inhibitory activity against Aβ42 aggregation using an automated microliter-scale high-throughput screening system with quantum-dot-labeled Aβ (QDAβ). Among primary screening samples, 34 showed detectable Aβ42 aggregation-inhibitory activity, and 12 were classified as highly active (1/EC₅₀ ≥ 10 mL/mg). Within the present screening set, highly active samples were frequently observed among tea-related samples. Black tea, Camembert, Red perilla, and Black soybean were selected as representative hits for further validation. Automated MSHTS images and dose–response data showed concentration-dependent suppression of Aβ42 aggregate formation. These inhibitory effects were further supported by thioflavin T (ThT) assays and transmission electron microscopy, which showed suppression of ThT-positive fibrillar aggregation and reduced fibrillar aggregate formation. In differentiated PC12 cells, selected food samples increased cell viability in Aβ42-treated cells at some concentrations. These findings provide a basis for functional food research and active component analysis of food-derived Aβ42 aggregation modulators. Full article

In response to the challenges of insufficient multi-scale feature representation and limited model adaptability in soybean leaf disease recognition from field images, a semantic residual Transformer (Sem-ResFormer) model is proposed for soybean leaf disease identification. The proposed model is constructed by integrating multi-scale residual feature extraction, Transformer-based global dependency modeling, and a semantic mapping mechanism, through which effective modeling and semantic representation of multi-scale visual information in lesion regions are achieved. A multimodal large model fine-tuning strategy combined with cross-architecture hyperparameter transfer is employed. The optimal hyperparameter configuration of the Vision Transformer, obtained via Bayesian optimization, is transferred to Qwen2.5-VL, and a progressive fine-tuning strategy is adopted, whereby the adaptability of the model to task-specific data is gradually enhanced. Experiments were conducted on a constructed five-class field-image soybean leaf disease dataset containing 3852 images, with 674 labeled images used in the initial few-shot fine-tuning stage. Under an input resolution of 720 × 720, the proposed method achieved an overall accuracy (OA) of 95.33%, surpassing the OA obtained with the default parameter configuration (93.64%) and the ResNet-50-based transfer method (93.43%). In the initial few-shot stage, the OA was improved from 74.05% under zero-shot conditions to 90.66%. These results demonstrate that the proposed method effectively improves soybean leaf disease recognition accuracy and model adaptability under the constructed field-image dataset with visual variability. Full article

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer incidence and mortality in many countries worldwide although there is considerable geographic variation. Diet is thought to impact risk of developing breast cancer but identifying specific dietary factors involved in the etiology of this disease has proven difficult. The two primary factors that initially led to an interest in soy are the historically low breast cancer incidence and mortality rates in Japan and the uniquely high concentration of isoflavones in soybeans and foods derived from this legume. Isoflavones bind to both estrogen receptors although preferentially to estrogen receptor-β. Prospective cohort studies indicate that isoflavone intake is associated with a reduced risk of developing breast cancer, but randomized controlled trials in which the impact of soy and isoflavones on markers of breast cancer risk has been evaluated are not supportive of this protective association. It may be that for isoflavones to reduce risk, intake needs to occur during childhood and/or adolescence. The notion that consuming soy early in life reduces risk of adult breast cancer, herein referred to as the “early soy intake hypothesis” (ESIH), was proposed >30 years ago. The results of rodent studies and retrospective observational studies that examined incidence and/or markers of breast cancer risk support the ESIH. However, a lack of randomized controlled trials precludes a clear recommendation for soy consumption during childhood and/or adolescence specifically for breast cancer prevention. Although soy foods provide high-quality protein and a variety of nutrients and can be part of a healthy diet for young and adolescent girls, more research is needed to advance the ESIH. Full article

Background: Regional dietary variations in China are well-documented, but their mortality associations in local populations, particularly among individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D) or hypertension, remain unclear. This study aimed to identify dietary clusters in Suzhou and investigate their associations with mortality. Methods: This prospective analysis included 53,269 participants aged 30–79 years from the China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) Suzhou Wuzhong subcohort. The baseline diet was assessed via a food frequency questionnaire, and three dietary clusters were identified by K-means clustering of 10 food groups. Multivariable Cox models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), diabetes-related, and cancer mortality, stratified by baseline health status, T2D, and hypertension. Results: During follow-up, 1263 deaths occurred among healthy adults, 351 in T2D, and 2410 in hypertension. The Traditional/Preserved-Heavy cluster was characterized by lower intake frequencies across most food groups and more frequent preserved vegetable intake; the Meat-Centric cluster by relatively moderate intake frequencies and higher meat and poultry intake; and the Plant-and-Dairy-Abundant cluster by relatively abundant overall dietary intake, more frequent intake of fresh fruit, dairy products, and soybean products, and less frequent preserved vegetable intake. With the Meat-Centric cluster (cluster 2) as the reference, the Plant-and-Dairy-Abundant cluster (cluster 3) in T2D was associated with lower all-cause (HR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.44–0.85), CVD (0.47, 0.24–0.91), and diabetes-related mortality (0.25, 0.09–0.71). BMI modified the association with all-cause mortality in T2D (p interaction = 0.033). In hypertension, cluster 1 was linked to higher all-cause (1.13, 1.03–1.23) and CVD mortality (1.17, 1.00–1.37), whereas cluster 3 was associated with a lower risk of diabetes-related mortality (0.40, 0.16–0.98). Conclusions: A dietary habit rich in fruit, dairy products, soybean products, and less frequent preserved vegetable intake was associated with lower mortality risk, particularly in T2D patients, whereas a habit with lower overall intake and more frequent preserved vegetable intake was linked to higher mortality in hypertension participants. These findings should be interpreted in light of the accompanying socioeconomic and lifestyle differences across dietary clusters. Full article

Soybean (Glycine max L.) is a globally strategic crop valued for its high-quality protein and oil, yet its yield potential is frequently constrained by inconsistent seed germination and a heavy reliance on chemical treatments that carry environmental and health risks. Physical pre-sowing stimulation has emerged as an eco-friendly alternative, but the comparative efficacy of direct current (DC) versus alternating current (AC) high-voltage electric fields—and the mechanistic basis for their differential effects—has remained poorly understood. Here, we systematically compared DC and AC pre-sowing treatments across a comprehensive matrix of field intensities (0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 kV/cm) and exposure durations (30, 60, and 120 s) at a fixed electrode gap of 10 cm, using soybean seeds of the Volgogradka 1 cultivar. Germination energy (day 3) and total germination (day 7) were assessed under standardized laboratory conditions in triplicate, followed by a replicated field trial to evaluate plant height, bean yield, and disease incidence. DC treatment significantly outperformed both the untreated control and AC treatment: germination energy increased by up to 60%, and total germination reached 100% compared with 85% in the control. The optimal DC window was identified at 0.8–1.5 kV/cm with a 30 s exposure. In stark contrast, AC treatment at industrial frequency not only failed to enhance germination but also frequently suppressed it and markedly increased susceptibility to fungal crown rot. Field results corroborated these findings: DC-treated seeds produced the highest bean mass (85 g per five plants vs. 80 g in the control), while AC-treated seeds yielded the lowest (72 g). Backward elimination regression analysis revealed that field intensity alone was the sole significant predictor of treatment outcomes, whereas exposure time and interaction effects were non-significant. We conclude that short-duration DC pre-sowing stimulation (1.0 kV/cm, 30–60 s) is a robust, chemically safe, and readily scalable technique for enhancing soybean establishment and yield. Conversely, AC treatment at power frequency is not recommended due to its deleterious effects on plant health and productivity. These findings establish a clear, evidence-based framework for the rational design of electrical seed treatment protocols. Full article

Image generation of plant disease in the natural environment has always been a challenging task. Traditional methods applied in the image generation of plant disease are without sufficient diversity and detailed lesions. Thus, this paper applies an image harmonization method to generate diverse combinations of disease images by integrating different backgrounds and target regions to enhance diversity. To construct the dataset, we captured real disease images of soybean and rice in natural environments. Next, the Squeeze-and-Excitation (SE) attention mechanism was integrated into the domain verification network (DoveNet), together with a mask guide generator, to focus more attention on lesions. Two discriminators worked together to capture global and local features, ensuring the preservation of critical contextual information. Finally, the improved DoveNet achieved a MSE of 43.77, a PSNR of 33.02, and an SSIM of 0.9806, showing a reduction of 3.61 in the MSE, an increase of 0.50 in the PSNR, and a 2.49% improvement in the SSIM compared with the original DoveNet. Meanwhile, through visual Turing tests we confirmed that images generated using the improved DoveNet were of much better quality and more convincing. Full article

Background: Daidzein, a secondary metabolite primarily obtained from soybean (Glycine max L.) and other legumes, has significant nutritional and pharmacological value. Chemically, daidzein is an isoflavone and plays a crucial role in the therapeutic amelioration of numerous disorders, including allergies, inflammation, diabetes, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases. Emerging preclinical evidence suggests potential antineoplastic activity of daidzein against various cancers. This current work aims to perform a critical evaluation of daidzein’s potential as an anticancer molecule with an in-depth understanding of its mechanisms of action. Methods: The data for this review were obtained from various sources, including PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Results: Daidzein, as a pure phytochemical or in combination with other phytochemicals and anticancer drugs, has been reported to induce apoptotic and autophagic cell death, impeding cell growth, viability, proliferation, and angiogenesis, and arresting cell division at various phases in vitro. Various daidzein formulations also exhibited similar anticancer effects by immunomodulation and genetic alteration in the cancer cells. In vivo anticancer studies of daidzein also suggest modulation of several hallmark pathways, such as inhibition of nuclear factor-κB, Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription, and rat sarcoma virus/rapidly accelerated fibrosarcoma. Conclusions: Irrespective of numerous promising preclinical studies, the absence of clinical studies provides a major challenge to establishing daidzein’s safety and efficacy in human cancers. Therefore, further advancements in clinical research of daidzein are vital for manifesting as an antineoplastic drug. Full article

Adequate spray deposition and penetration of pesticides into the lower part of the soybean canopy can increase the chances of successfully protecting plants from diseases and insects. Only a small number of comprehensive studies have examined how spray application parameters (nozzle types, travel speed, droplet size, application rate, application equipment) affect droplet penetration into the inner and lower parts of the soybean canopy. However, the data obtained from replicated plots in these field experiments showed significant variability due to uneven soybean canopy characteristics and unpredictable wind speed and direction. To minimize variability in field studies, this study used a new methodology: conducting the experiment under controlled conditions in a wind tunnel. This research was conducted to evaluate the effect of increasing the distance between soybean rows on the spray coverage and deposition of different droplet size classes from various nozzles, delivering spray to the lower canopy in a wind tunnel. Four commercially available spray nozzles with droplet size classification from medium to extremely coarse were mounted on a spray boom with a spray controller to spray an application rate of 150 L ha⁻¹ under laminar wind speeds of 0, 2.4, and 5.1 m s⁻¹. Rectangular pots containing fully grown soybeans were placed in the test section of the tunnel at center-to-center distances of 0.38 and 0.76 m to replicate narrow and wide row spacings, respectively, commonly used by soybean growers. Eight points in each soybean row were selected to collect spray deposition and coverage with water-sensitive papers (WSPs) and acrylic plates (APs), respectively, at the top, middle, and lower layers of the canopy. Results showed that the top of the soybean canopy consistently received the highest amount of spray, regardless of application conditions, as expected, while the middle and lower layers of the canopy did not receive much spray. Nozzle types and wind speeds were not significant factors in increasing spray penetration into the middle to lower layers of soybean plants. Although wider row spacing improved the spray deposition in the lower part of the canopy, this improvement was not statistically significant. The main conclusions derived from this study indicate that even using wider row spacing configurations, spray penetration into the lower parts of the soybean canopy was limited due to denser canopy conditions and the effects of high wind speeds. Therefore, other advanced spray techniques, such as air-assisted spraying or using other mechanisms to expose lower parts of the canopy to the nozzles, may be needed to effectively overcome these limitations. Full article

Short-rotation sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) cultivation in the Western Forest-Steppe of Ukraine is often accompanied by increased phytopathogenic pressure and impaired rhizosphere functioning, creating a need for biological tools to stabilize the plant–soil system. This study evaluated the effects of arbuscular mycorrhiza and an antagonistic microbial consortium on pathogen pressure, rhizosphere activity, yield, and technological quality of sugar beet under different crop rotations. Field experiments were conducted in 2023–2025 using a three-factor design that included rotation, mycorrhizal inoculation, and microbial inoculation. The highest phytopathogenic pressure was recorded in the maize–soybean–sugar beet rotation, where the cumulative frequency of dominant pathogens reached 94.0% and the root rot severity index in the control was 28.6%. Arbuscular mycorrhiza reduced disease development by 14.6–16.4%, whereas the antagonistic consortium reduced it by 25.6–27.9% relative to the control. Their combined application was most effective, decreasing root rot severity to 9.6–17.1% and increasing root colonization, available phosphorus, and dehydrogenase activity in the rhizosphere. The highest yield (80.5 t/ha) and sugar content (18.5%) were obtained in the soybean–winter wheat–sugar beet rotation under combined inoculation. AMF can improve phosphorus acquisition and mycorrhiza-induced tolerance, whereas antagonistic fungi can directly suppress soil-borne pathogens through competition, antibiosis, and mycoparasitism, their combined use may provide complementary protection in disease-conducive rotations. Overall, integrating arbuscular mycorrhiza with antagonistic microorganisms is a promising approach for reducing pathogen pressure and improving sugar beet performance in short-rotation systems. Full article

Soybean root rot, primarily caused by Fusarium oxysporum, leads to severe root decay and substantial yield losses in Glycine max. This study screened ten entomopathogenic nematode-associated symbiotic bacteria for antagonistic activity against F. oxysporum. Among them, Xenorhabdus budapestensis XH-4 exhibited the strongest in vitro inhibition, suppressing mycelial growth by more than 73%. Antifungal activity was primarily attributed to extracellular metabolites, as both fermentation broth and cell-free culture supernatant were effective, whereas bacterial cell suspensions showed no significant inhibition. In greenhouse experiments, 40% (v/v) XH-4 reduced the disease index by 75–80%, comparable to the chemical fungicide metalaxyl–hymexazol. Genome mining revealed 20 biosynthetic gene clusters encoding diverse secondary metabolites, including fabclavine, fabclavine pyrrolizixenamide A, and putrebactin/avaroferrin, which likely underpin the strain antifungal efficacy. Additionally, XH-4 enhanced soybean antioxidant capacity and activated the phenylpropanoid pathway, indicating a dual mechanism involving direct antagonism and induced systemic resistance. These findings support the development of XH-4 as an environmentally friendly biofungicide for sustainable management of soybean root rot. Full article

The wheat–soybean double-cropping system enables the continuous production of preceding and succeeding crops within the same growing season, providing an important approach for improving arable land-use efficiency, increasing output per unit area, and optimizing cropping structure. In Liaoning Province, where thermal resources and the frost-free period are relatively limited, this system places high requirements on the growth duration, yield stability, and succession compatibility of the preceding wheat crop with the succeeding soybean crop. To identify spring wheat cultivars suitable for this system, field trials were conducted from 2021 to 2023, using three representative ecological regions of Liaoning Province. Ten widely grown spring wheat cultivars were evaluated for major agronomic traits, grain quality, and disease resistance, and their stability and system adaptability were analyzed using a mixed linear model, GGE biplot analysis, and TOPSIS. The results showed clear differences among cultivars in growth duration, wheat yield, and succeeding soybean yield. Liaochun 33 and Liaochun 18 had relatively short growth durations of 78–84 days and 79–83 days, respectively, and showed favorable performance in wheat yield, succeeding soybean yield, and stability. Combined with grain quality, disease resistance, and TOPSIS-based comprehensive evaluation, Liaochun 33 showed the best overall performance, while Liaochun 18 also exhibited strong system adaptability. Overall, cultivar selection for the wheat–soybean double-cropping system in Liaoning Province should shift from single wheat-yield evaluation to overall system-benefit evaluation. Liaochun 33 and Liaochun 18 can be recommended as preferred spring wheat cultivars for this cropping system. Full article