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Global climate change has significantly reduced the yield of many crops due to various abiotic stressors. These stressors include water-related issues such as drought and flooding, thermal changes like extremely low and high temperatures, salinity, and adverse soil pH conditions including alkalinity and acidity. Biostimulants have emerged as promising and effective tools for mitigating the damage caused by these abiotic stressors in plants, ultimately enhancing both the quantity and quality of crops. Biostimulants are naturally derived substances that include humic acid, protein hydrolysates, nitrogenous compounds, seaweed extracts, beneficial bacteria, and molds. Even at low concentrations, biostimulants play a critical role in activating important plant enzymes, inducing antioxidant defenses, improving water relations and photosynthetic activity, stimulating hormone-like activities (particularly auxins, gibberellins, and cytokinins), and modulating root system development. This review discusses the physiological effects of microbial biostimulants on the quality and productivity of fruit crops, as well as their experimental applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 outbreak was a serious challenge for countries around the globe. With the objective of mitigating the spread of the virus, both national and international health organizations swiftly enacted quarantine measures across numerous cities around the globe. This presented a unique chance to evaluate the consequences of human actions on the quality of the air. This study aimed to investigate airborne microbial levels in different outdoor locations in Al-Madinah City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), during the COVID-19 pandemic by comparing lockdown against non-lockdown conditions. Twelve outdoor locations were investigated in terms of microbial total counts using the open plate method during and after the COVID-19 lockdown. Environmental factors that could affect the airborne microbial load, including humidity, temperature and wind speed, were recorded during the assessment. The means of the total colony-forming units (CFU) for each cubic meter (m³) of air were calculated. Lockdown restrictions caused significant decreases in the biological contaminants in all locations compared with the numbers after the pandemic. Gram-positive bacteria represented most of the samples, with fewer fungal strains detected. The outdoor average total bacterial counts ranged between 0.00±0.00-8337.50±248.98 CFU/m³, compared with 2903.75±407.60-19722.50±475.03 CFU/m³ after the pandemic. The mean concentrations of total fungi were lower than those of bacteria and ranged between 0.00±0.00-143.75±131.75 CFU/m³ during the COVID-19 lockdown and were elevated after the lockdown to reach 28.75±49.80-776.25±298.78 CFU/m³. Based on the available data, there are no studies comparing outdoor microbial counts during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, this research offers additional perspectives on the air quality experienced amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent implementation of lockdown measures and could serve as a valuable resource for monitoring and implementing measures to control air pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laccases are versatile biocatalysts that are prominent for industrial purposes due to their extensive substrate specificity. Therefore, this research investigated producing laccase from Physisporinus vitreus via liquid fermentation. The results revealed that veratryl alcohol (4mM) was the most effective inducer 7500U/L. On the other hand, Zn ions inhibited laccase production. The optimum carbon and nitrogen sources were glucose and tryptone by 5200 and 3300 U/L, respectively. Moreover, solvents exhibited various impacts on the enzyme activity at three different solvent concentrations (5%, 10% and 20%), however, it showed a highest activity at 5% of the investigated solvent. Ferric ions inhibited the enzyme activity. In addition, the enzyme has a high ability to decolorize azo dyes when using syringaldehyde as a mediator. The purified laccase from Physisporinus vitreus is a promising substance to be used for industrial and environmental applications due to its stability under harsh conditions and efficiency in decolorization of dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coconut oil is eatable oil with many nutritional and cosmetic applications. In this investigation coconut oil was subjected to 0 to 5 L/min of ozone for 3 h and the chemical composition of both crude and ozonized oil was valued via Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS). Some biological tests were done including antibacterial action versus Helicobacter pylori, anti-biofilm activity versus H. pylori, anti-hemolytic activity in the existence of H. pylori, anti-Alzheimer action, and cytotoxic effect towards A-413 cancer cell line to determine the activity of coconut oil and upon exposure to ozone. Fifteen compounds were detected in the coconut oil crude and ozonized oils where the fatty acid esters were the most common molecules in crude coconut oil, whereas alkenes were the most predominant compounds in ozonized coconut oil. A slight elevation of antibacterial action towards H. pylori from 23.0 ± 0.1 to 28.2 ± 0.5 mm was displayed upon exposure of the coconut oil to ozone. Both crude and ozonized coconut oil showed a bactericidal effect with MICs = 62.5 ± 0.1, 125.0 ± 0.2 µg/mL and MBCs = 15.62 ± 0.2, 31.25 0.2 µg/mL for crude and ozonized oil, respectively. A significant elevation in anti-biofilm activity was found upon using 25% of MBCs of ozonized oil relative to crude oil. A dramatic rise was observed in anti-hemolytic activity upon using 25 and 75% of MICs of ozonized oil relative to crude one. A notable elevation of anti-Alzheimer impact was evident upon exposing coconut oil to ozone. Besides, the cytotoxic impact towards A-431 cells was slightly increased after exposing the oil to ozone. The current results suggest a new technique to expose coconut oil to ozone to improve some of its in vitro pharmaceutical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black seed has been applied for several decades to cure an extensive variety of illnesses and ailments. In this report, the chemical profile of both crude and ozonized black seed oil was assessed after the oil was exposed to 0 to 5 L/minute of ozone for four hours. The in vitro effects of black seed oil following being exposed to ozone including antimicrobial properties versus Bacillus cereus (ATCC11778), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC6538), Escherichia coli (ATCC8739), Salmonella typhi (ATCC 6539), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC13883), Candida albicans (ATCC10221), and Aspergillus niger (ATCC16888). Besides, antioxidant effects, anti-inflammatory capacity, and antineoplastic function versus HCT cells were assessed. The chemical profile of ozonized black seed oil showed elevation of essential molecules of oil as well as presence of some characteristic molecules to both forms of oil. Besides, it could be noticed that exposing of oil to ozone improves its antimicrobial activity towards all tested microbes except for C. albicans. Both forms of oil showed no activity towards A. niger. Black seed oil exposed to ozone showed a promising antioxidant capacity with IC50 of 2.93 ± 0.2 µg/ml. A dramatic improvement in anti-inflammatory impact of ozonized oil as well as its antitumor capacity towards HCT cells could be seen in the laboratory outcomes. The current findings point to a novel method for enhancing some of the in vitro medicinal uses of black seed oil by exposing it to ozone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An experiment was conducted to assess the response of chicks to in-ovo injection of Bacillus subtilis (probiotic), raffinose (prebiotic), and their combinations. The study used 1,500 embryonated eggs allotted to 10 groups/ 6 replicates (150 eggs/group). The experimental treatments were: 1) un-injected control (NC); 2) sham (sterile distilled water) (PC); 3) probiotic 4 × 105CFU/egg (LBS); 4) probiotic 4 × 106CFU/egg (HBS); 5) prebiotic 2 mg/egg (LR); (6 prebiotic 3 mg/egg (HR); 7) probiotic 4 × 105CFU + prebiotic 2 mg/egg (LBS+LR); 8) probiotic 4 × 105CFU + prebiotic 3 mg/egg (LBS+HR); 9) probiotic 4 × 106CFU + prebiotic 2 mg/egg (HBS+LR); and 10) probiotic 4 × 106CFU + prebiotic 3 mg/egg (HBS+HR). Results showed that in-ovo inclusion of Bacillus subtilis , prebiotic, and their combinations improved hatchability, yolk-free chick weight, and chick weight compared to the control group. Moreover, the in-ovo treatment reduced residual yolk weight on the day of hatch compared to the control group. Different levels of in-ovo B. subtilis alone or combined with raffinose significantly (P ≤ 0.001) reduced total bacterial count and total yeast and mold count compared to the negative control group. Total coliform and E. coli decreased significantly (P ≤ 0.001) in groups treated with probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics with different doses during incubation compared to those in the control. Clostridium spp. was not detected in the groups injected with B. subtilis alone or combined with raffinose. In-ovo probiotics and synbiotics (LBS+LR & LBS+HR) significantly (P ≤ 0.001) increased ileal villus length compared to other groups. In-ovo treatment increased mRNA expression of JAM-2 compared to the control group. The fold change significantly increased in group LBS+HR for genes MUC-2, OCLN, VEGF, SGLT-1 , and EAAT-3 compared to the negative control. In conclusion, in-ovo injection of a low dose of B. subtilis plus a high or low dose of raffinose can positively affect hatching traits, cecal microbial populations, intestinal histomorphometry, nutrient transport- and intestinal function-related genes, and chick quality of newly hatched broiler chicks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neisseria meningitidis is a human-restricted bacterium that can invade the bloodstream and cross the blood-brain barrier resulting in life-threatening sepsis and meningitis. Meningococci express a cytoplasmic peroxiredoxin-glutaredoxin (Prx5-Grx) hybrid protein that has also been identified on the bacterial surface. Here, recombinant Prx5-Grx was confirmed as a plasminogen (Plg)-binding protein, in an interaction which could be inhibited by the lysine analogue ε-aminocapronic acid. rPrx5-Grx derivatives bearing a substituted C-terminal lysine residue (rPrx5-GrxK244A), but not the active site cysteine residue (rPrx5-GrxC185A) or the sub-terminal rPrx5-GrxK230A lysine residue, exhibited significantly reduced Plg-binding. The absence of Prx5-Grx did not significantly reduce the ability of whole meningococcal cells to bind Plg, but under hydrogen peroxide-mediated oxidative stress, the N. meningitidis Δ pxn5-grx mutant survived significantly better than the wild-type or complemented strains. Significantly, using human whole blood as a model of meningococcal bacteremia, it was found that the N. meningitidis Δ pxn5-grx mutant had a survival defect compared with the parental or complemented strain, confirming an important role for Prx5-Grx in meningococcal pathogenesis. • Meningococcal Prx5-Grx interacts with plasminogen via a C-terminal lysine residue. • Loss of Prx5-Grx does not reduce the ability of meningococci to bind Plg. • Loss of Prx5-Grx enhances meningococcal survival under oxidative stress. • Loss of Prx5-Grx results in a survival defect in human whole blood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]