Cancer Builds a Noxious Partnership with Psychologic Stress.

I was recently surprised to hear a medical doctor on a TV show refute the role of stress in cancer, assuming that "the whole population would have cancer if this was the case." This statement illustrates a long and winding road since Hippocrates suggested the potential relationship between cancer and psychologic disturbances. The 20th and 21st centuries have finally witnessed the evidence of how physical or psychosocial stress situations contribute to the development and progression of cancer, and it is now assumed that psychologic stress does affect multiple aspects of cancer such as angiogenesis, immunologic escape, invasion, and metastasis. The 2010 publication by Sloan and colleagues in Cancer Research achieved a mechanistic step toward the understanding of how physical distress enhances metastasis through perturbation of the tumor immune system and paves the way for future cancer research in psychoneuroimmunology. This Landmark commentary places this publication in the historical context of science, discusses major advances in the field, and asks questions to be answered while drawing perspectives on the key role of the peripheral and central nervous systems in cancer. See related article by Sloan and colleagues, Cancer Res 2010;70:7042-52.

[Interaction between central nervous system and immune system after ischemic stroke and its therapeutic significance of traditional Chinese medicine].

Ischemic stroke is divided into acute phase, subacute phase, and recovery phase, with different pathological and physiological characteristics manifested at each stage. Among them, immune and inflammatory reactions persist for several days and weeks after ischemia. Ischemic stroke not only triggers local inflammation in damaged brain regions but also induces a disorder in the immune system, thereby promoting neuroinflammation and exacerbating brain damage. Therefore, conducting an in-depth analysis of the interaction between the central nervous system and the immune system after ischemic stroke, intervening in the main factors of the interaction between them, blocking pathological cascades, and thereby reducing brain inflammation have become the treatment strategies for ischemic stroke. This study summarizes and sorts out the interaction pathways between the central nervous system and the immune system. The impact of the central nervous system on the immune system can be analyzed from the perspective of the autonomic nervous system, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis(HPA), and local inflammatory stimulation. The impact of the immune system on the central nervous system can be analyzed from the dynamic changes of immune cells. At the same time, the relevant progress in the prevention and treatment of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) is summarized, so as to provide new insights for the analysis of complex mechanisms of TCM in preventing and treating ischemic stroke.

Effects of andiroba oil (Carapa guianensis aublet) on the immune system in inflammation and wound healing: A scoping review.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Andiroba seed oil (Carapa guianensis Aubl.) is widely used by traditional populations in tropical countries, especially in the Brazilian Amazon, because of its anti-inflammatory, antirheumatic, antiseptic, healing and antipyretic properties, among others, which makes it useful for the treatment, mainly, of skin afflictions and wounds. AIM OF THE STUDY: To describe the modulation of the immune system by andiroba oil (Carapa guianensis Aubl.) in inflammation and wound healing. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A scoping review was performed, following the recommendations of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) and PRISMA for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). As inclusion criteria, in vitro, in vivo, ex vivo, and clinical studies were selected, in Portuguese, English, or Spanish, in thirteen databases of published studies, gray literature, and references of the included studies, which deal with immune modulation by andiroba oil in the context of the various therapeutic applications that make use of its anti-inflammatory and wound healing properties. The selection of information sources was carried out by two independent reviewers between November 2022 and January 2023. The process of data extraction and evidence analysis was conducted by four pairs of independent reviewers between January and February 2023. RESULTS: 22 sources of evidence were included in this scoping review, mostly scientific articles published between 2005 and 2021 with in vivo sampling. The evidence suggests that andiroba oil reduces inflammation and promotes the healing of wounds of multiple etiologies by reducing leukocyte infiltration, increasing phagocytic activity, enhancing interleukin and inflammatory cytokine activity, promoting fibroblast recovery, increasing growth factors, reducing apoptotic cells, promoting reepithelialization, as well as promoting angiogenesis, reducing edema, and stimulating the production of glucocorticoids that alleviate pain. Additionally, different formulations of the oil (such as nanoemulsions, films and gels) are more effective in modulating inflammation and wound healing compared to in natura oil. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence in the literature suggests that andiroba oil (Carapa guianensis Aubl.) has positive effects on immune modulation in inflammation and wound healing, which makes it a biocompound with high therapeutic potential.

Boswellic Acids: A Critical Appraisal of Their Therapeutic and Nutritional Benefits in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases.

BACKGROUND: In the last few decades, it has been largely perceived that the factors affecting the immune system and its varying pathways lead to the pathological progression of inflammation and inflammatory conditions. Chronic inflammation also contributes to common diseases, such as diabetes mellitus, ischemic heart disease, cancer, chronic renal inflammatory disease, non-alcoholic fatty hepat-ic disease, autoimmune diseases and neurodegenerative diseases. OBJECTIVE: Interestingly, plant sources and secondary metabolites from plants have been increasingly employed in managing acute and chronic inflammatory diseases for centuries. Boswellic acids are pentacyclic triterpenoidal moieties obtained from the oleo gum resin of different Boswellia species. METHODS: Detailed data was collected revealing the anti-inflammatory potential of Boswellic acids through various databases. RESULT: These are pharmacologically active agents that possess promising anti-inflammatory, anti-arthritic, antirheumatic, anti-diarrheal, anti-hyperlipidemic, anti-asthmatic, anti-cancer, and anti-microbial effects. CONCLUSION: Boswellic acids have been in use since ancient times primarily to treat acute and chronic inflammatory diseases. This review discusses the various mechanisms underlying the inflammatory process and the necessity of such natural products as a medication to treat inflammatory diseases. In addition, a discussion has also been extended to understand the primary targets involved in inflammation. The review further explores the therapeutic potential of boswellic acids in.

Emotional states predict cellular immune system activity under conditions of life as it is lived: A multivariate time-series analysis approach.

The relationship between emotional states and immune system activity is characterized by bidirectional influences; however, limited information is available regarding the temporal dynamics of these effects. The goal of this investigation was to examine how these psychoimmunological interdependencies unfold over time under conditions of "life as it is lived". For this purpose, three healthy women collected their entire urine over a period of approximately two months at 12-h intervals (8 am-8 pm, 8 pm-8 am), resulting in a total of 112 to 126 consecutive measurements per subject. In addition, among other regular psychological assessments, the subjects completed the EWL-60-S, an emotional state questionnaire, each morning and evening. To assess the extent of T-helper type 1 immune activation, the neopterin per creatinine concentration was measured in the urine samples using high-pressure liquid chromatography. The dynamic relationships between the time series of the six emotional states (performance-related activity, general inactivity, extraversion/introversion, general feeling of comfort, emotional irritation, anxiety/depressiveness) and urinary neopterin levels were estimated in vector-autoregressive models and evaluated using Granger-causality tests, impulse-response functions and forecast error variance decompositions. The findings showed that emotional states explained up to 20% of the variance of urinary neopterin per creatinine levels, whereby most of the effects occurred within a period of approximately three days. Across all subjects, increases in anxiety/depressiveness and extraversion led to increases in neopterin levels, while a general feeling of comfort led to decreases in neopterin. These results emphasize the importance of the interdependencies between emotional states and immune system activity and showcase the potential that intensive longitudinal study designs offer for psychoneuroimmunology.

[The consensus of Chinese experts on refined analysis of immune cell subsets in peripheral blood by multi-parameter flow cytometry].

The detection of immune cell subsets plays a very important role in the clinical diagnosis and treatment of various benign and malignant diseases and health management. In order to better carry out in-depth research on different functional immune cell subsets, establish reference intervals for clonality related indicators, establish special reference intervals for immune aging, individualized dynamic monitoring and treatment recovery, and discover the clinical significance of immune cells other than lymphocytes, it is urgent to analyze the peripheral blood immune cell subsets in a refined way. Multiparameter flow cytometry is an important technical method to detect immune cell subsets and evaluate immune function. In order to standardize the refined detection methods and protocols of peripheral blood immune cell subsets by flow cytometry, and further promote its application in clinical diagnosis and treatment of diseases and health management, Laboratory Medicine Committee of Chinese Association of Integrative Medicine (LMC-CAIM) organized experts to formulate this expert consensus.

Nutraceutical formulation for immune system modulation: Active constituents, in vitro antibacterial and immunomodulatory activity, and metabolomics analysis.

There is a large demand for nutraceuticals in the market and studies related to their action are needed. In this paper, the antimicrobial activity and the immunomodulatory effect of a nutraceutical formulation containing 14.39% of ascorbic acid, 7.17% of coenzyme Q10, 1.33% of Echinacea polyphenols, 0.99% of pine flavan-3-ols, 0.69% of resveratrol and 0.023% of Echinacea alkylamides were studied using in vitro assays and cell-based metabolomics. Chromatographic analysis allowed us to study the nutraceutical composition. The antibacterial activity was evaluated on S. aureus, K. pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa, E. coli, H. influenzae, S. pyogenes, S. pneumoniae and M. catarrhalis. The immunomodulatory activity was assessed on human macrophages and dendritic cells. The production of IL-1ß, IL-12p70, IL-10 and IL-8 was evaluated on culture medium by ELISA and the activation/maturation of dendritic cells with cytofluorimetric analysis. Treated and untreated macrophages and dendritic cell lysates were analysed by liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry, and results were compared using multivariate data analysis to identify biological markers related to the treatment with the food supplement. The food supplement decreased K. pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa, E. coli, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and M. catharralis growth, reduced the inflammatory response in macrophages exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and modulated the activation and maturation of the dendritic cells. Oxidized phospholipids were identified as the main biological markers of treated cell lysates, compared with controls.

A window into the human immune system: comprehensive characterization of the complexity of antibody complementary-determining regions in functional antibodies.

The human immune system uses antibodies to neutralize foreign antigens. They are composed of heavy and light chains, both with constant and variable regions. The variable region has six hypervariable loops, also known as complementary-determining regions (CDRs) that determine antibody diversity and antigen specificity. Knowledge of their significance, and certain residues present in these areas, is vital for antibody therapeutics development. This study includes an analysis of more than 11,000 human antibody sequences from the International Immunogenetics information system (IMGT). The analysis included parameters such as length distribution, overall amino acid diversity, amino acid frequency per CDR and residue position within antibody chains. Overall, our findings confirm existing knowledge, such as CDRH3's high length diversity and amino acid variability, increased aromatic residue usage, particularly tyrosine, charged and polar residues like aspartic acid, serine, and the flexible residue glycine. Specific residue positions within each CDR influence these occurrences, implying a unique amino acid type distribution pattern. We compared amino acid type usage in CDRs and non-CDR regions, both in globular and transmembrane proteins, which revealed distinguishing features, such as increased frequency of tyrosine, serine, aspartic acid, and arginine. These findings should prove useful for future optimization, improvement of affinity, synthetic antibody library design, or the creation of antibodies de-novo in silico.

Infections and Autoimmunity-The Immune System and Vitamin D: A Systematic Review.

Both 25-autoimmunity and(25(OH)D: calcifediol) and its active form, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D: calcitriol), play critical roles in protecting humans from invasive pathogens, reducing risks of autoimmunity, and maintaining health. Conversely, low 25(OH)D status increases susceptibility to infections and developing autoimmunity. This systematic review examines vitamin D's mechanisms and effects on enhancing innate and acquired immunity against microbes and preventing autoimmunity. The study evaluated the quality of evidence regarding biology, physiology, and aspects of human health on vitamin D related to infections and autoimmunity in peer-reviewed journal articles published in English. The search and analyses followed PRISMA guidelines. Data strongly suggested that maintaining serum 25(OH)D concentrations of more than 50 ng/mL is associated with significant risk reduction from viral and bacterial infections, sepsis, and autoimmunity. Most adequately powered, well-designed, randomized controlled trials with sufficient duration supported substantial benefits of vitamin D. Virtually all studies that failed to conclude benefits or were ambiguous had major study design errors. Treatment of vitamin D deficiency costs less than 0.01% of the cost of investigation of worsening comorbidities associated with hypovitaminosis D. Despite cost-benefits, the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency remains high worldwide. This was clear among those who died from COVID-19 in 2020/21-most had severe vitamin D deficiency. Yet, the lack of direction from health agencies and insurance companies on using vitamin D as an adjunct therapy is astonishing. Data confirmed that keeping an individual's serum 25(OH)D concentrations above 50 ng/mL (125 nmol/L) (and above 40 ng/mL in the population) reduces risks from community outbreaks, sepsis, and autoimmune disorders. Maintaining such concentrations in 97.5% of people is achievable through daily safe sun exposure (except in countries far from the equator during winter) or taking between 5000 and 8000 IU vitamin D supplements daily (average dose, for non-obese adults, ~70 to 90 IU/kg body weight). Those with gastrointestinal malabsorption, obesity, or on medications that increase the catabolism of vitamin D and a few other specific disorders require much higher intake. This systematic review evaluates non-classical actions of vitamin D, with particular emphasis on infection and autoimmunity related to the immune system.

An outlook on the target-based molecular mechanism of phytoconstituents as immunomodulators.

The immune system is one of the essential defense mechanisms. Immune system inadequacy increases the risk of infections and cancer diseases, whereas over-activation of the immune system causes allergies or autoimmune disorders. Immunomodulators have been used in the treatment of immune-related diseases. There is growing interest in using herbal medicines as multicomponent agents to modulate the complex immune system in immune-related diseases. Many therapeutic phytochemicals showed immunomodulatory effects by various mechanisms. This mechanism includes stimulation of lymphoid cell, phagocytosis, macrophage, and cellular immune function enhancement. In addition increased antigen-specific immunoglobulin production, total white cell count, and inhibition of TNF-α, IFN-γ, NF-kB, IL-2, IL-6, IL-1ß, and other cytokines that influenced the immune system. This review aims to overview, widely investigated plant-derived phytoconstituents by targeting cells to modulate cellular and humoral immunity in in vivo and in vitro. However, further high-quality research is needed to confirm the clinical efficacy of plant-based immunomodulators.

Multi-omics approaches in psychoneuroimmunology and health research: Conceptual considerations and methodological recommendations.

The field of psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) has grown substantially in both relevance and prominence over the past 40 years. Notwithstanding its impressive trajectory, a majority of PNI studies are still based on a relatively small number of analytes. To advance this work, we suggest that PNI, and health research in general, can benefit greatly from adopting a multi-omics approach, which involves integrating data across multiple biological levels (e.g., the genome, proteome, transcriptome, metabolome, lipidome, and microbiome/metagenome) to more comprehensively profile biological functions and relate these profiles to clinical and behavioral outcomes. To assist investigators in this endeavor, we provide an overview of multi-omics research, highlight recent landmark multi-omics studies investigating human health and disease risk, and discuss how multi-omics can be applied to better elucidate links between psychological, nervous system, and immune system activity. In doing so, we describe how to design high-quality multi-omics studies, decide which biological samples (e.g., blood, stool, urine, saliva, solid tissue) are most relevant, incorporate behavioral and wearable sensing data into multi-omics research, and understand key data quality, integration, analysis, and interpretation issues. PNI researchers are addressing some of the most interesting and important questions at the intersection of psychology, neuroscience, and immunology. Applying a multi-omics approach to this work will greatly expand the horizon of what is possible in PNI and has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of mind-body medicine.

Repurposing prokaryotic clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-Cas adaptive immune system to combat antimicrobial resistance.

Despite achieving unparalleled progress in the field of science and technology, the global health community is still threatened by the looming pressure of infectious diseases. One of the greatest challenges is the rise in infections by antibiotic-resistant microorganisms. The misuse of antibiotics has led to the present circumstances, and there is seemingly no solution. There is imminent pressure to develop new antibacterial therapies to curb the rise and spread of multidrug resistance. Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas, having immense potential as a gene-editing tool, has gained considerable attention as an alternative antibacterial therapy. Strategies, aiming to either eliminate pathogenic strains or to restore sensitivity to antibiotics, are the main focus of research. This review deals with the development of CRISPR-Cas antimicrobials and their delivery challenges.

Bacteria resistant to drugs have become a major global health problem. Infections caused by resistant bacteria have many social and economic consequences, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. The WHO has estimated that 10 million people will die every year due to drug resistance by 2050. Due to the lengthy amount of time and high costs of developing new drugs, we must explore alternatives. One such alternative includes clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas, a tool with the ability to edit the genetic material of bacteria. CRISPR-Cas can restore sensitivity to drugs as well as kill bacteria.

Maternal diet supplementation with high-docosahexaenoic-acid canola oil, along with arachidonic acid, promotes immune system development in allergy-prone BALB/c mouse offspring at 3 weeks of age.

PURPOSE: To study the effects of feeding docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, derived from novel canola oil), with same amount of arachidonic acid (ARA), supplemented diet to lactating dams on the immune system development of suckled offspring using a T helper type-2 (Th2)-dominant BALB/c mouse. METHODS: Dams received nutritionally complete control (no ARA or DHA) or DHA + ARA diet (1% DHA and 1% ARA of total fatty acids) from 5 days pre-parturition to the end of 3-week suckling period. After euthanization, relevant tissues were collected to study fatty acids, splenocyte phenotype and function (ex vivo cytokines with/without lipopolysaccharide (LPS, bacterial challenge) or phorbol myristate acetate + ionomycin (PMAi) stimulation). RESULTS: Feeding dams a DHA diet significantly increased the mammary gland milk phospholipid concentration of DHA and ARA. This resulted in 60% higher DHA levels in splenocyte phospholipids of the pups although ARA levels showed no difference. In dams fed DHA diet, significantly higher proportion of CD27+ cytotoxic T cell (CTL) and CXCR3+ CCR6- Th (enriched in Th1) were observed than control, but there were no differences in the splenocyte function upon PMAi (non-specific lymphocyte stimulant) stimulation. Pups from DHA-fed dams showed significantly higher IL-1ß, IFN-γ and TNF-α (inflammatory cytokines) by LPS-stimulated splenocytes. This may be due to higher proportion of CD86+ macrophages and B cells (all p's < 0.05) in these pups, which may influence T cell polarization. CONCLUSION: Plant-based source of DHA in maternal diet resulted in higher ex vivo production of inflammatory cytokines by splenocytes due to change in their phenotype, and this can skew T cell towards Th1 response in a Th2-dominant BALB/c mouse.

Evaluation of oxidized beta-carotene on sow and piglet immune systems, sow reproductive performance, and piglet growth.

This study aimed to determine if supplementation of oxidized-beta carotene (OxC-Beta) improved sow reproductive performance, litter growth performance, vitamin A status, and ability to alter immune cells abundance in sows and piglets, subsequent litter performance, and nursery growth performance. On approximately day 60 of gestation and through the lactation period, 194 sows (blocked by parity) were assigned to a common gestation diet or the common diet supplemented with 80 ppm oxidized beta-carotene (OxC-Beta, Aviagen, Ottawa, ON, Canada). A subset of sows (N = 54 per treatment) were sampled for blood and body weight recorded at the beginning of the study, farrowing, and weaning. A blood sample was taken from a subset of piglets at birth and weaning, and all piglet weights were recorded. Blood was analyzed for vitamin A as retinol concentrations and immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin M (IgG) levels were assessed from the sow's blood. Twelve pigs (N = 6 per treatment) were euthanized at birth and weaning. The livers were collected and analyzed for the Kupffer cell phagocytic activity through flow cytometry. Whole blood was analyzed via flow cytometry for cluster of differentiation (CD335, CD8, and CD4). Colostrum during farrowing and milk at weaning were analyzed for IgG and IgA concentrations. Data were analyzed via SAS 9.4 using MIXED and frequency procedures where appropriate. No differences (P > 0.05) between dietary treatments were observed in sow reproductive performance, feed intake, wean to estrus interval, or piglet growth performance. No differences (P > 0.05) were observed in the plasma or liver for vitamin A. No differences (P > 0.05) were observed in the composition of the colostrum or milk. No immunological differences (P > 0.05) were observed in the piglets' liver and blood or sow antibodies in colostrum and milk. The supplementation of OxC-Beta did (P < 0.05) decrease IgM and tended (P < 0.10) to decrease IgG in sow plasma. No differences (P > 0.05) were observed in the reproductive performance of subsequent litter information from the sows. Gilt litter weaning weight and feed intake were reduced (P < 0.05) compared to sow performance. In conclusion, the supplementation of OxC-Beta at 80 ppm from day 60 of gestation through lactation does not affect the reproductive performance of sows, litter growth performance, vitamin A status, piglet immune status, and antibodies or composition in colostrum and milk.

Beta-carotene is a known antioxidant found in most red and orange-pigmented vegetables and has been documented to have health benefits. However, beta-carotene has been reported to gain oxygen molecules spontaneously, thus oxidizing it. Oxidized beta-carotene has been recognized to provide potential health benefits to animals, although its functions are independent of beta-carotene. Sows in this study were supplemented with an oxidized beta-carotene product to evaluate whether the product could improve reproductive performance, including the number of piglets born alive, piglet birth weight, weaning weight, sow milk quality, and immune function of both the sow and piglets. There were no significant findings between the reproductive performance or difference in colostrum and milk composition of the control sows and the sows supplemented with the product. There was also no difference in piglet growth between the two groups. The product did not affect the measured immune functions of the piglets. However, immunoglobulin G tended to decrease with the use of the product, and there was a decrease in immunoglobulin M. Overall, supplementing the oxidized beta-carotene product did not affect the reproductive performance of sows or the growth performance of piglets.

Modulatory properties of curcumin in cancer: A narrative review on the role of interferons.

The immune network is an effective network of cell types and chemical compounds established to maintain the body's homeostasis from foreign threats and to prevent the risk of a wide range of diseases; hence, its proper functioning and balance are essential. A dysfunctional immune system can contribute to various disorders, including cancer. Therefore, there has been considerable interest in molecules that can modulate the immune network. Curcumin, the active ingredient of turmeric, is one of these herbal remedies with many beneficial effects, including modulation of immunity. Curcumin is beneficial in managing various chronic inflammatory conditions, improving brain function, lowering cardiovascular disease risk, prevention and management of dementia, and prevention of aging. Several clinical studies have supported this evidence, suggesting curcumin to have an immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory function; nevertheless, its mechanism of action is still not clear. In the current review, we aim to explore the modulatory function of curcumin through interferons in cancers.

[Vitamins and Immune System Health].

Keeping the immune system healthy forms an effective way to fight infections. Past experience has shown that, in addition to effective interventions including vaccination, drug therapy, and non-pharmaceutical intervention (NPI), dietary nutrition and mental health are also key factors in maintaining immune system health and combating emerging and sudden outbreaks of infections. As the main dietary nutrients, vitamins are active regulators of the immune response and exert a critical impact on the immunity of the human body. Vitamin deficiency causes increased levels of inflammation and decreased immunity, which usually starts in the oral tissues. Appropriate vitamin supplementation can help the body optimize immune function, enhance oral immunity, and reduce the negative impact of pathogen infection on the human body, which makes it a feasible, effective, and universally applicable anti-infection solution. This review focuses on the immunomodulatory effects of vitamin A, B, C, D, and E and proposes that an omics-based new systemic approach will lead to a breakthrough of the limitations in traditional single-factor single-pathway research and provide the direction for the basic and applied research of vitamin immune regulation and anti-infection in all aspects.

Effects of feeding a Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation product and ractopamine hydrochloride to finishing beef steers on growth performance, immune system, and muscle gene expression.

The objective of this study was to determine impacts on immune parameters, anti-oxidant capacity, and growth of finishing steers fed a Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation product (SCFP; NaturSafe; Diamond V, Cedar Rapids, IA) and ractopamine hydrochloride (RAC; Optaflexx; Elanco Animal Health, Greenfield, IN). Angus-crossbred steers (N = 288) from two sources were utilized in this 90-d study. Steers were blocked by source, stratified by initial body weight to pens of six steers, and pens randomly assigned to treatments (16 pens per treatment). Three treatments compared feeding no supplemental SCFP (control; CON) and supplemental SCFP for 57 d (SCFP57), and 29 d (SCFP29) before harvest. Supplementation of SCFP was 12 g per steer per d, and all steers were fed RAC at 300 mg per steer per d for 29 d before harvest. Blood samples were collected from3 steers per pen, and muscle samples were collected from 1 steer per pen at 57, 29 (start of RAC), and 13 (midRAC) days before harvest. Blood was analyzed from 2 steers per pen for ferric reducing anti-oxidant power (FRAP). Muscle gene expression of myokines, markers of anti-oxidant and growth signaling were assessed. Individual animal BW were also collected on 57, 29, 13, and 1 d before being harvested at a commercial facility (National Beef, Tama, IA). Data were analyzed using the Mixed procedure of SAS 9.4 (Cary, NC) with pen as the experimental unit. The model included fixed effects of treatment and group. Increased BW compared to CON was observed days -29, -13, and -1 in SCFP57 steers (P ≤ 0.05), with SCFP29 being intermediate days -13 and -1. Overall G:F was improved in SCFP29 and SCFP57 (P = 0.01). On day -29, FRAP was greater in SCFP57 than CON (P = 0.02). The percent of gamma delta T cells and natural killer cells in both SCFP29 and SCFP57 was greater than CON on day -13 (P = 0.02). There were no treatment × day effects for muscle gene expression measured (P ≥ 0.25). Interleukin 6 tended to decrease in SCFP29 and SCFP57 on day -13 (P = 0.10). No other treatment effects were observed for muscle gene expression. Muscle gene expression of interleukin 15 was increased (P = 0.01), and expression of interleukin 8 was decreased (P = 0.03) due to RAC feeding. Increased growth in SCFP-fed cattle may be related to changes in anti-oxidant capacity and the immune system.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation products (SCFP) can provide additional support for improved growth performance. This study investigated the effects of supplementing a SCFP (NaturSafe; Diamond V, Cedar Rapids, IA; 12 g per steer per d) for 29 (SCFP29) or 57 (SCFP57) d before harvest when also feeding ractopamine hydrochloride (RAC; 300 mg per steer per d; Optaflexx, Elanco Animal Health, Greenfield, IN) for 29 d before harvest. Compared to steers not fed SCFP (CON), SCFP29 and SCFP57 had improved gain:feed for the entire feeding period. Steers supplemented with SCFP had increased percentages of gamma delta T cells and natural killer cells 13 d before harvest compared to CON. Gene expression of cytokine and anti-oxidant signaling in muscle were changed in all treatments during RAC compared to before RAC. Improvements in growth during RAC with SCFP supplementation may be due to the changes in anti-oxidant and cytokine signaling in muscle.

Solanum nigrum Fruit Extract Modulates Immune System Activity of Mealworm Beetle, Tenebrio molitor L.

Here, we report the first evidence concerning the modulation of insect immune system activity after applying Solanum nigrum fruit extract (EXT). We focused on two main issues: (1) is EXT cytotoxic for Tenebrio molitor haemocytes? and (2) how EXT affects the basic immune mechanisms of T. molitor. The results indicate cytotoxic action of 0.01 and 0.1% EXT on beetle haemocytes. Both the injection of EXT and incubating haemocytes with the EXT solution on microscopic slides significantly increased the number of apoptotic cells. However, 24 h after injection of 0.1% EXT cytotoxic effect of the tested extract probably was masked by the increased number of circulating haemocytes. Application of 0.01 and 0.1% EXT led to impairment of the activity of basic immune mechanisms such as phenoloxidase activity and the lysozyme-like antimicrobial activity of T. molitor haemolymph. Moreover, the EXT elicited significant changes in the expression level of selected immune genes. However, some of the immunomodulatory effects of EXT were different in beetles with and without an activated immune system. The obtained results are an essential step toward a complete understanding of the EXT mode of action on the T. molitor physiology and its potential usage in pest control.

Immune System and Epidemics: The Role of African Indigenous Bioactive Substances.

With over 6 million coronavirus pandemic deaths, the African continent reported the lowest death rate despite having a high disease burden. The African community's resilience to the pandemic has been attributed to climate and weather conditions, herd immunity, repeated exposure to infectious organisms that help stimulate the immune system, and a disproportionately large youth population. In addition, functional foods, herbal remedies, and dietary supplements contain micronutrients and bioactive compounds that can help boost the immune system. This review identified significant traditional fermented foods and herbal remedies available within the African continent with the potential to boost the immune system in epidemics and pandemics. Methodology: Databases, such as PubMed, the Web of Science, and Scopus, were searched using relevant search terms to identify traditional African fermented foods and medicinal plants with immune-boosting or antiviral capabilities. Cereal-based fermented foods, meat-, and fish-based fermented foods, and dairy-based fermented foods containing antioxidants, immunomodulatory effects, probiotics, vitamins, and peptides were identified and discussed. In addition, nine herbal remedies and spices belonging to eight plant families have antioxidant, immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, and antiviral properties. Peptides, flavonoids, alkaloids, sterols, ascorbic acid, minerals, vitamins, and saponins are some of the bioactive compounds in the remedies. Bioactive compounds in food and plants significantly support the immune system and help increase resistance against infectious diseases. The variety of food and medicinal plants found on the African continent could play an essential role in providing community resilience against infectious diseases during epidemics and pandemics. The African continent should investigate nutritional, herbal, and environmental factors that support healthy living and longevity.