Xanthine Oxidase Inhibitory Activity and Chemical Composition of Pistacia chinensis Leaf Essential Oil.

Gout is a common metabolic disease caused by abnormal purine metabolism that promotes the formation and deposition of monosodium urate crystals within joints that causes acute arthritis and can seriously affect the daily life of patients. Pistacia chinensis is one of the traditional medicinal plants of the Anacardiaceae family, and there have been many studies on its biological activity, including anti-inflammatory, antidepressant, antibacterial, antioxidant, and hypoglycemic activities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antigout effect of P. chinensis leaf essential oil and its constituents through xanthine oxidase inhibition. Leaf essential oil showed good xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity for both substrates, hypoxanthine and xanthine. Six fractions were obtained from open column chromatography, and fraction E1 exhibited the best activity. The constituents of leaf essential oil and fraction E1 were analyzed by GC-MS. The main constituents of both leaf essential oil and fraction E1 were limonene and 3-carene; limonene showed a higher inhibitory effect on xanthine oxidase. Based on the enzyme kinetic investigation, limonene was the mixed-type inhibitor against xanthine oxidase. The results revealed that Pistacia chinensis leaf essential oil and limonene have the potential to act as natural remedies for the treatment of gout.

Application of condensed molasses fermentation solubles and lactic acid bacteria in corn silage production.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to investigate the application of two lactic acid bacteria and dry condensed molasses fermentation solubles (CMS) in the making and preservation of corn silage. Forage corn materials are divided into eight treatment groups as follows: (i) control, (ii) B2 (Lactobacillus plantarum B2, 1 × 109 cfu kg-1 ), (iii) LAS (Lactobacillus buchneri 40788, 3 × 108 cfu kg-1 ), (iv) B2 + LAS, (v) CMS (35 g kg-1 , fresh weight), (vi) B2 + CMS, (vii) LAS + CMS and (viii) B2 + LAS + CMS. The silage composition and aerobic stability are determined after ensiling for 90 days. Furthermore, the digestibility of the silage product and gas production are evaluated using a trotro digestion procedure. RESULTS: The assay results indicate that the CMS supplementation and B2 inoculation significantly increased lactic acid concentration (P < 0.01). However, they also reduced the content of acetic acid and silage pH at the initial fermentation stage. The CMS supplemented with B2 (B2 + CMS) showed an improvement in the quality of silage, but a significant decrease in aerobic stability (P < 0.01). The B2 + LAS + CMS treatment yielded an increase in acetic acid production during the late fermentation period and is able to extend the aerobic stability of corn silage. Furthermore, this study shows that CMS supplementation alone can significantly improve the digestibility of the in vitro dry matter (P < 0.01) and the microbial protein synthesis efficiency (P = 0.01). In addition, the CMS supplementation is beneficial for enhancing the aerobic stability of corn silage. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the combination of CMS supplementation and a suitable inoculation lactic acid bacterial strain can be highly promising for enhancing the higher quality and stability of corn silage. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Application of Zearalenone (ZEN)-Detoxifying Bacillus in Animal Feed Decontamination through Fermentation.

Zearalenone (ZEN) is an estrogenic mycotoxin which can cause loss in animal production. The aim of this study was to screen Bacillus strains for their ZEN detoxification capability and use a fermentation process to validate their potential application in the feed industry. In the high-level ZEN-contaminated maize (5 mg·kg-1) fermentation test, B2 strain exhibited the highest detoxification rate, removing 56% of the ZEN. However, B2 strain was not the strain with the highest ZEN detoxification in the culturing media. When B2 grew in TSB medium with ZEN, it had higher bacterial numbers, lactic acid, acetic acid, total volatile fatty acids, and ammonia nitrogen. The ZEN-contaminated maize fermented by B2 strain had better fermentation characteristics (lactic acid > 110 mmol·L-1; acetic acid < 20 mmol·L-1; pH < 4.5) than ZEN-free maize. Furthermore, B2 also had detoxification capabilities toward aflatoxins B1, deoxynivalenol, fumonisin B1, and T2 toxin. Our study demonstrated differences in screening outcome between bacterial culturing conditions and the maize fermentation process. This is important for the feed industry to consider when choosing a proper method to screen candidate isolates for the pretreatment of ZEN-contaminated maize. It appears that using the fermentation process to address the ZEN-contaminated maize problem in animal feed is a reliable choice.