Donkey-like kirkovirus is associated with diarrhea in piglets.

Kirkovirus (kirV), a seemingly novel virus family, has been found in horses and donkeys. The study's objectives are to investigate the presence of the virus in swine. In this study, donkey-like kirV was detected in rectal swabs of piglets with diarrhea, and the positive rate was found to be 100% (149/149). However, this virus was detected in only one of 261 clinically healthy piglets, which suggested a strong relationship between the kirV and the diarrheic disease. We obtained the whole-genome sequences of three kirVs (Cj-D5, Cj-D32, and Cj-D43), with a length of 3750 nucleotides (nt) and sharing 99.9% nt identity with donkey kirVs. Furthermore, the three viruses shared 88.5-100% and 23-51% of the Rep protein sequence, similar to available reference strains of Kirkoviridae and Circoviridae, respectively. Moreover, like horse and donkey kirVs, the RCR domain and P-loop NTPase domains of Rep protein and nonanucleotide motif (CAATATTAC) of the three viruses were similar to those of Circoviruses and Cycloviruses. Phylogenetic analysis showed that these viruses could be grouped with members in the proposed family Kirkoviridae. This is the first report to describe that kirV can circulate in piglets with diarrhea, and future studies are needed to determine the pathogenesis of this virus.

Identification of neuropathogenic Varicellovirus equidalpha1 as a potential cause of respiratory disease outbreaks among horses in North Xinjiang, China, from 2021-2023.

BACKGROUND: Varicellovirus equidalpha1 (formerly Equid alphaherpesvirus 1, EqAHV-1) is among the most important viruses responsible for respiratory disease outbreaks among horses throughout the world. No reports to date have detailed the association between EqAHV-1 and respiratory disease among horses in China. This study described one such outbreak among a population of horses in north Xinjiang that occurred from April 2021 - May 2023. RESULTS: qPCR revealed that EqAHV-1 was detectable in all samples and this virus was identified as a possible source of respiratory disease, although a limited subset of these samples were also positive for EqAHV-2, EqAHV-4, and EqAHV-5. In total, three EqAHV-1 strains responsible for causing respiratory illness in horses were isolated successfully, and full-length ORF33 sequence comparisonsand phylogenetic analyses indicated that these isolates may have originated from EqAHV-1 strains detected in Yili horse abortions. ORF30 sequence data additionally suggested that these strains were neuropathic, as evidenced by the presence of a guanine residue at nucleotide position 2254 corresponding to the aspartic acid present at position 752 in the DNA polymerase encoded by this virus. CONCLUSION: This study is the first report of an outbreak of respiratory disease among horses in China caused by EqAHV-1. ORF30 sequence characterization revealed that these EqAHV-1 strains harbored a neuropathogenic genotype. Given the detection of this virus in horses suffering from respiratory disease, concern is warranted with respect to this neuropathogenic EqAHV-1 outbreak.

Abortion storm of Yili horses is associated with Equus caballus papillomavirus 2 variant infection.

Nine different species of Equus caballus papillomavirus (EcPV) and three bovine papillomaviruses (BPVs) have been reported to infect horses. However, there are few descriptions of such infections in China. In our pioneer study on Chinese horses, we identified EcPV-2 in the nasal swabs (4/230, 1.7%) of Yili horses, and the semen (3/18, 16.7%) of thoroughbred horses. This indicated that EcPV is indeed hosted by horses in China, and that EcPV-2 might be transmitted though breeding. Further detection of EcPVs in the lung tissues of aborted fetuses of Yili horses, which were originally negative for equid herpes viruses, demonstrated EcPV-2 positivity in 19 of 50 samples, thereby indicating that EcPV-2 may be a new pathogen responsible for causing abortion. Thereafter, sequence analyses of the L1 genes of 26 EcPV-2 in China were performed, indicating that EcPV-2, which primarily infects horses in China, shared 98.3-99.9% nt identity with the published sequences for EcPV-2. These observations indicated that EcPV-2 identified in the current study were highly similar variants of the previously identified strains of EcPV-2. Phylogenetic analysis based on L1 gene sequences from GenBank showed that the EcPV-2 found in Chinese horses was closely related to and clustered together with an already known EcPV-2a lineage. Our study provides the first evidence related to EcPV-2 infection in Chinese horses, which can serve as a causative agent for Yili horse abortions, and may thus lay the foundation for a systematic and detailed epidemiological study of this infection in Chinese horses.

Structural, functional properties of protein and characteristics of tofu from small-seeded soybeans grown in the Loess Plateau of China.

The structural, functional properties of protein isolated from small-seeded soybeans were investigated and characteristics of tofu were studied. Small-seeded soybean protein had obvious α', α, ß, acidic and basic subunits bands and two endothermic peaks (76.02-76.63℃ and 91.94-94.25℃). Small-seeded black soybean protein isolates (SBSPI) had more ß-sheet (31.90-33.54%) structure, while small-seeded yellow soybean protein isolates (SYSPI) had more α-helix (18.89-20.72%) structure. SYSPI had higher fluorescence intensity (839.10-847.80) than SBSPI (482.70-565.10). SBSPI exhibited higher surface hydrophobicity (939.51-1252.75) and water absorption capacity (8.07-8.50 g/g). Tofu made from small-seeded yellow soybeans had higher yield (549.46-560.23 g/100 g soybean) and was brighter (L*, 74.61-77.48) and more yellowish (b*, 14.83-14.95) in color. Tofu made from Fugu small-seeded black soybean (FGSBS) had the highest hardness (178.52 g), adhesiveness (-25.77 g.sec), chewiness (87.45 g) and resilience (0.26), signifying a more compact structure.

Physicochemical, Structural Structural and Functional Properties of Non-Waxy and Waxy Proso Millet Protein.

The physicochemical, structural and functional properties of proso millet protein from waxy and non-waxy proso millet were investigated. The secondary structures of proso millet proteins consisted mainly of a ß-sheet and ɑ-helix. The two diffraction peaks of proso millet protein appeared at around 9° and 20°. The solubility of non-waxy proso millet protein was higher than that of waxy proso millet protein at different pH values. Non-waxy proso millet protein had a relatively better emulsion stability index (ESI), whereas waxy proso millet protein had a better emulsification activity index (EAI). Non-waxy proso millet protein showed a higher maximum denaturation temperature (Td) and enthalpy change (ΔH) than its waxy counterpart, indicating a more ordered conformation. Waxy proso millet exhibited higher surface hydrophobicity and oil absorption capacity (OAC) than non-waxy proso millet, suggesting that the former may have potential applications as a functional ingredient in the food industry. There was no significant difference in the intrinsic fluorescence spectra of different waxy and non-waxy proso millet proteins at pH 7.0.