Integration of Nitrogen and Biofertilizer on the Agronomic Efficiency and Quality of Shallot (Allium ascalonicum L.) Plant in the Rainy Season.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: In the rainy season farmers don't interest to cultivate shallot because in addition to providing a high dosage of fertilizer they are also sensitive to pathogenic attacks so they are afraid of crop failure and cause low shallot production. This study aimed to knew effect of agronomic component and quality of shallot under different concentrations of biofertilizer and Ammonium Sulphate (AS) fertilizer dose in the rainy season. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted in Cangkring, Srandakan, Bantul, Special Region of Yogyakarta Indonesia from August to October 2019. The study was arranged in RCBD factorial with three replications. The first factor was a various dose of ammonium sulphate (100, 200 and 300 kg ha-1). The second factor was various concentrations of biofertilizer (2, 3 and 4%), and control. The observed variables were the analysis of growth yield and quality component of shallot plant. The analyzed using analysis of variance at 5% of significance then continued by DMRT at 5% of significance. RESULTS: There was the interaction between the application of AS dosage and biofertilizer concentration on all of variable observations. There was a significant difference between treatment with control on all of the observation variables. CONCLUSION: The combination of AS fertilizer 200 kg ha-1 dose and 3% biofertilizer concentration increased agronomic efficiency, growth, bulbs yields, and quality of bulbs include provitamin A, oleoresin compounds.

Safety and Metabolism of Long-term Administration of NIAGEN (Nicotinamide Riboside Chloride) in a Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial of Healthy Overweight Adults.

Nicotinamide riboside (NR) is a newly discovered nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) precursor vitamin. A crystal form of NR chloride termed NIAGEN is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) for use in foods and the subject of two New Dietary Ingredient Notifications for use in dietary supplements. To evaluate the kinetics and dose-dependency of NR oral availability and safety in overweight, but otherwise healthy men and women, an 8-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted. Consumption of 100, 300 and 1000 mg NR dose-dependently and significantly increased whole blood NAD+ (i.e., 22%, 51% and 142%) and other NAD+ metabolites within 2 weeks. The increases were maintained throughout the remainder of the study. There were no reports of flushing and no significant differences in adverse events between the NR and placebo-treated groups or between groups at different NR doses. NR also did not elevate low density lipoprotein cholesterol or dysregulate 1-carbon metabolism. Together these data support the development of a tolerable upper intake limit for NR based on human data.

The development and release of maize fortified with provitamin A carotenoids in developing countries.

Micronutrient deficiencies have been identified as major public health problems affecting a large part of the world's population. Biofortification of staple crops like maize has been proposed as one of the most cost effective and feasible approaches to combat micronutrient deficiencies. Studies have shown that provitamin A from biofortified crops is highly bioavailable and has the capacity to improve vitamin A status of vulnerable groups. Most people in sub-Saharan Africa subsist on maize and many people may benefit from consumption of provitamin A carotenoid biofortified maize, especially women and children. With the exception of transgenic golden rice, biofortified crops have received considerable acceptance by most communities. Negative perceptions associated with yellow maize do not affect orange maize, which is, for example, well-liked in rural Zambia. With proper policy frameworks and full commercialization, provitamin A maize can address the problem of vitamin A deficiencies among poor nations with maize-based diets.

Non-Provitamin A and Provitamin A Carotenoids as Immunomodulators: Recommended Dietary Allowance, Therapeutic Index, or Personalized Nutrition?

Vegetables and fruits contain non-provitamin A (lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin) and provitamin A (ß-carotene, ß-cryptoxanthin, and α-carotene) carotenoids. Within these compounds, ß-carotene has been extensively studied for its health benefits, but its supplementation at doses higher than recommended intakes induces adverse effects. ß-Carotene is converted to retinoic acid (RA), a well-known immunomodulatory molecule. Human interventions suggest that ß-carotene and lycopene at pharmacological doses affect immune functions after a depletion period of low carotenoid diet. However, these effects appear unrelated to carotenoids and retinol levels in plasma. Local production of RA in the gut-associated lymphoid tissue, as well as the dependency of RA-induced effects on local inflammation, suggests that personalized nutrition/supplementation should be considered in the future. On the other hand, the differential effect of RA and lycopene on transforming growth factor-beta suggests that lycopene supplementation could improve immune functions without increasing risk for cancers. However, such preclinical evidence must be confirmed in human interventions before any recommendations can be made.

Efficacy of polymers from spontaneous carotenoid oxidation in reducing necrotic enteritis in broilers.

This study evaluated the preventive effect of the spontaneous oxidation of ß-carotene (OxC-beta) in broiler chickens with necrotic enteritis by Clostridium perfringens taking into consideration various parameters including clinical signs, body weight, intestinal lesion severity, and bacterial enumeration. The mean body weight of the OxC-beta treatment groups increased significantly (P < 0.05) compared to that of the C. perfringens challenge group. Intestinal lesion scores due to C. perfringens infection were significantly alleviated by OxC-beta treatment (P < 0.05), and the number of clostridial bacteria in intestine was reduced by OxC-beta in a dose-dependent manner. OxC-beta in feed contributes to the prevention of necrotic enteritis in commercial broiler chicken, and has a positive effect in improving productivity.

13C Natural Abundance of Serum Retinol Is a Novel Biomarker for Evaluating Provitamin A Carotenoid-Biofortified Maize Consumption in Male Mongolian Gerbils.

BACKGROUND: Crops such as maize, sorghum, and millet are being biofortified with provitamin A carotenoids to ensure adequate vitamin A (VA) intakes. VA assessment can be challenging because serum retinol concentrations are homeostatically controlled and more sensitive techniques are resource-intensive. OBJECTIVES: We investigated changes in serum retinol relative differences of isotope amount ratios of (13)C/(12)C (δ(13)C) caused by natural (13)C fractionation in C3 compared with C4 plants as a biomarker to detect provitamin A efficacy from biofortified (orange) maize and high-carotene carrots. METHODS: The design was a 2 × 2 × 2 maize (orange compared with white) by carrot (orange compared with white) by a VA fortificant (VA+ compared with VA-) in weanling male Mongolian gerbils (n = 55), which included a 14-d VA depletion period and a 62-d treatment period (1 baseline and 8 treatment groups; n = 5-7/group). Liver VA and serum retinol were quantified, purified by HPLC, and analyzed by GC combustion isotope ratio mass spectrometry for (13)C. RESULTS: Treatments affected liver VA concentrations (0.048 ± 0.039 to 0.79 ± 0.24 µmol/g; P < 0.0001) but not overall serum retinol concentrations (1.38 ± 0.22 µmol/L). Serum retinol and liver VA δ(13)C were significantly correlated (R(2) = 0.92; P < 0.0001). Serum retinol δ(13)C differentiated control groups that consumed white maize and white carrots (-27.1 ± 1.2 δ(13)C‰) from treated groups that consumed orange maize and white carrots (-21.6 ± 1.4 δ(13)C‰ P < 0.0001) and white maize and orange carrots (-30.6 ± 0.7 δ(13)C‰ P < 0.0001). A prediction model demonstrated the relative contribution of orange maize to total dietary VA for groups that consumed VA from mixed sources. CONCLUSIONS: Provitamin A efficacy and quantitative estimation of the relative contribution to dietary VA were demonstrated with the use of serum retinol δ(13)C. This method could be used for maize efficacy or effectiveness studies and with other C4 crops biofortified with provitamin A carotenoids (e.g., millet, sorghum). Advantages include no extrinsic tracer dose, 1 blood sample, and higher sensitivity than serum retinol concentrations alone.