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The current in vitro study aimed to investigate the effects of a processed sugarcane extract on the viability of avian Eimeria sporozoites. Treatments were applied to hatched sporozoites: 1) without additives (no-treatment control); 2) with ethanol; 3) with salinomycin; 4) with Polygain™. All treatments were incubated in RPMI media containing live sporozoites at 37 °C for 14 h and then the number of viable sporozoites were counted. Compared to the no-treatment control, Polygain™ decreased (P < 0.001) the counts of E. maxima, E. acervulina, E. bruneti, and E. mitis sporozoites to a level similar to salinomycin (P > 0.05). In conclusion, Polygain™ could be a potential candidate as an anticoccidial agent.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Cheese microbiota and metabolites and their inter-relationships that underpin specific cheese quality attributes remain poorly understood. Here we report that multi-omics and integrative data analysis (multiple co-inertia analysis, MCIA) can be used to gain deeper insights into these relationships and identify microbiota and metabolite fingerprints that could be used to monitor product quality and authenticity. Our study into different brands of artisanal and industrial cheddar cheeses showed that Streptococcus, Lactococcus and Lactobacillus were the dominant taxa with overall microbial community structures differing not only between industrial and artisanal cheeses but also among different cheese brands. Metabolome analysis also revealed qualitative and semi-quantitative differences in metabolites between different cheeses. This also included the presence of two compounds (3-hydroxy propanoic acid and O-methoxycatechol-O-sulphate) in artisanal cheese that have not been previously reported in any type of cheese. Integrative analysis of multi-omics datasets revealed that highly similar cheeses, identical in age and appearance, could be distinctively clustered according to cheese type and brand. Furthermore, the analysis detected strong relationships, some previously unknown, which existed between the cheese microbiota and metabolome, and uncovered specific taxa and metabolites that contributed to these relationships. These results highlight the potential of this approach for identifying product specific microbe/metabolite signatures that could be used to monitor and control cheese quality and product authenticity.

Cheese maturation and flavor development results from complex interactions between milk substrates, cheese microbiota and their metabolites. In this study, bacterial 16S rRNA-gene sequencing, untargeted metabolomics (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry) and data integration analyses were used to characterize and differentiate commercial Cheddar cheeses of varying maturity made by the same and different manufacturers. Microbiota and metabolite compositions varied between cheeses of different ages and brands, and could be used to distinguish the cheeses. Individual amino acids and carboxylic acids were positively correlated with the ripening age for some brands. Integration and Random Forest analyses revealed numerous associations between specific bacteria and metabolites including a previously undescribed positive correlation between Thermus and phenylalanine and a negative correlation between Streptococcus and cholesterol. Together these results suggest that multi-omics analyses has the potential to be used for better understanding the relationships between cheese microbiota and metabolites during ripening and for discovering biomarkers for validating cheese age and brand authenticity.

We investigated the effects of postharvest application of carbon disulphide (CS2) in various concentrations (0, 15, 25, 35, 45 and 55 ml m-3) and with different exposure duration (24, 48, 72 and 96 h) on breaking of dormancy and sprouting of potato (Solanum tuberosum L., cv. Marfona) minitubers of two ages (freshly harvested and one week after harvest) and two weight classes (1.5 and 12 g). In comparison with the control minitubers, CS2 treated minitubers showed significantly shorter dormancy and better sprouting. More rotting and weaker responses were observed in freshly harvested treated minitubers compared with minitubers treated one week after harvest. The number of sprouts per minituber and their length were significantly enhanced by treating minitubers with CS2 compared with the untreated control minitubers, but there were strong interactions with minituber weight. Results showed that duration of CS2 treatment was more important than concentration and longer duration of CS2 treatment exhibited a stronger action on breaking dormancy and sprouting of potato minitubers than shorter treatments. But, when longer duration was accompanied with higher concentration, treatment with CS2 led to formation of needle sprouts, which are undesirable as they do not produce vigorous stems

Responses to prolonged low-temperature treatment of imbibed seeds (vernalization) were examined in barley (Hordeum vulgare). These occurred in two phases: the perception of prolonged cold, which occurred gradually at low temperatures, and the acceleration of reproductive development, which occurred after vernalization. Expression of the VERNALIZATION1 gene (HvVRN1) increased gradually in germinating seedlings during vernalization, both at the shoot apex and in the developing leaves. This occurred in darkness, independently of VERNALIZATION2 (HvVRN2), consistent with the hypothesis that expression of HvVRN1 is induced by prolonged cold independently of daylength flowering-response pathways. After vernalization, expression of HvVRN1 was maintained in the shoot apex and leaves. This was associated with accelerated inflorescence initiation and with down-regulation of HvVRN2 in the leaves. The largest determinant of HvVRN1 expression levels in vernalized plants was the length of seed vernalization treatment. Daylength did not influence HvVRN1 expression levels in shoot apices and typically did not affect expression in leaves. In the leaves of plants that had experienced a saturating seed vernalization treatment, expression of HvVRN1 was higher in long days, however. HvFT1 was expressed in the leaves of these plants in long days, which might account for the elevated HvVRN1 expression. Long-day up-regulation of HvVRN1 was not required for inflorescence initiation, but might accelerate subsequent stages of inflorescence development. Similar responses to seed vernalization were also observed in wheat (Triticum aestivum). These data support the hypothesis that VRN1 is induced by cold during winter to promote spring flowering in vernalization-responsive cereals.

Responses to prolonged low-temperature treatment of imbibed seeds (vernalization) were examined in barley (Hordeum vulgare). These occurred in two phases: the perception of prolonged cold, which occurred gradually at low temperatures, and the acceleration of reproductive development, which occurred after vernalization. Expression of the VERNALIZATION1 gene (HvVRN1) increased gradually in germinating seedlings during vernalization, both at the shoot apex and in the developing leaves. This occurred in darkness, independently of VERNALIZATION2 (HvVRN2), consistent with the hypothesis that expression of HvVRN1 is induced by prolonged cold independently of daylength flowering-response pathways. After vernalization, expression of HvVRN1 was maintained in the shoot apex and leaves. This was associated with accelerated inflorescence initiation and with down-regulation of HvVRN2 in the leaves. The largest determinant of HvVRN1 expression levels in vernalized plants was the length of seed vernalization treatment. Daylength did not influence HvVRN1 expression levels in shoot apices and typically did not affect expression in leaves. In the leaves of plants that had experienced a saturating seed vernalization treatment, expression of HvVRN1 was higher in long days, however. HvFT1 was expressed in the leaves of these plants in long days, which might account for the elevated HvVRN1 expression. Long-day up-regulation of HvVRN1 was not required for inflorescence initiation, but might accelerate subsequent stages of inflorescence development. Similar responses to seed vernalization were also observed in wheat (Triticum aestivum). These data support the hypothesis that VRN1 is induced by cold during winter to promote spring flowering in vernalization-responsive cereals.