Predictive growth kinetic parameters and modelled probabilities of deoxynivalenol production by Fusarium graminearum on wheat during simulated storing conditions.

AIMS: Mathematical models were employed to predict the growth kinetic parameters of Fusarium graminearum and the accumulation of deoxynivalenol (DON) during wheat storage as a function of different moisture contents (MCs) and temperatures. METHODS AND RESULTS: The colony counting method was used to quantify F. graminearum growth under different environmental conditions, and kinetic and probability models were developed to describe the effect of different MCs and temperatures on fungal growth and DON production during wheat storage. Among the employed secondary models (Arrhenius-Davey, Gibson and Cardinal), the general polynomial best predicted the fungal growth rate under varying temperature and MC during wheat storage. According to the logistic model, DON contamination was correctly predicted in 96.5% of cases. CONCLUSIONS: The maximum growth rate of fungi was 0.4889 ± 0.092 Log CFU g-1  day-1 at 25°C and 30% moisture according to the polynomial model. At below 17°C and ≤15% moisture, no fungal growth was observed. The probability model of toxin production showed no toxin production at less than 15% moisture (aw ≤0.76) and below 15°C. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This is the first application of a probability model of DON production during wheat storage, providing a reference for preventing fungal growth and mycotoxin accumulation by F. graminearum during wheat storage and guaranteeing food product safety.

In-situ stabilization of Cd by sepiolite co-applied with organic amendments in contaminated soils.

Field experiments was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of sepiolite (S), sepiolite + fungi residues (SFR) and sepiolite + vermicompost (SVC) on in situ immobilization remediation of Cd contaminated soils. The results showed that treatments of S, SFR and SVC decreased soil Cd availability by 15.2-47.8%, 17.5-44.9% and 13.2-44.9%, respectively, when compared with the control groups. Moreover, the content of Cd in edible parts of Lactuca sativa L., Cichorium endivia L. and Brassica campestris L. was experienced a decrease of 15.9-41.9%, 1.6-38.0% and 29.0-37.4% reduction, respectively, under the amended soil. The improvement of soil fertility was obtained under addition of SVC and SFR, while the amounts of available P, K, organic matter, microbial carbon, microbial nitrogen and dehydrogenase activity were increased by 9.6-68.2%, 1.2-28.3%, 37.5-70.5%, 4.1-121.0%, 220-640% and 6.8-56.8%, respectively, in contrast to CK. Moreover, high-throughput sequencing analysis showed that the combined treated soils got higher values of alpha diversity indices, Chao1, ACE and Shannon. The number of dominant phyla (Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, Crenarchaeota) and genera (Aquicella, Lysobacter, Candidatus Nitrososphaera, Sphingopyxis, Mesorhizobium) were enhanced. Therefore, the use of sepiolite and organic amendments could be an adequate strategy to immobilization remediation of Cd-contaminated soils.

Detoxification of Ochratoxin A by a novel Aspergillus oryzae strain and optimization of its biodegradation.

The mycotoxin Ochratoxin A (OTA) causes serious health risks and is found in food products throughout the world. The most promising method to detoxify this compound is biodegradation. In this study, Aspergillus oryzae strain M30011 was isolated and characterized based on its considerable capacity to degrade OTA. The degradation product (compound I) of A. oryzae-treated OTA was isolated, and its toxicity response was also evaluated. Furthermore, the relationships between three key cultivation condition factors affecting the OTA degradation rate were examined using the response surface methodology (RSM). Compound I was identified as ochratoxin α (C11H9O5Cl), and the toxicity response experiments indicated that A. oryzae detoxified OTA to a great extent. A maximum degradation rate of 94% was observed after 72h. This study demonstrates the potential for using A. oryzae to detoxify OTA and suggests that it could be applied in the food industry to improve food safety and quality.

Derivation and validation of soil cadmium thresholds for the safe farmland production of vegetables in high geological background area.

Excessive dietary intake of cadmium (Cd) poses toxicity risks to human health, and it is therefore essential to establish accurate and regionally appropriate soil Cd thresholds that ensure the safety of agricultural products grown in different areas. This study investigated the differences in the Cd accumulation in 32 vegetable varieties and found that the Cd content ranged from 0.01 to 0.24 mg·kg-1, and decreased in the order of stem and bulb vegetables > leafy vegetables > solanaceous crops > bean cultivars. A correlation analysis and structural equation model showed that pH, soil organic matter, and the cation exchange capacity had significant effects on Cd accumulation in the vegetables and explained 72.1 % of the variance. In addition, species sensitivity distribution (SSD) curves showed that stem and bulb vegetables were more sensitive to Cd than other types of vegetables. Using the Burr Type III function for curve fitting, we derived Cd thresholds of 6.66, 4.15, and 1.57 mg·kg-1 for vegetable soils. These thresholds will ensure that 20 %, 50 %, and 95 % of these vegetable varieties were risk-free, respectively. The predicted threshold of soil Cd was more than twice that of China's current National Soil Quality Standard (GB 15618-2018) for Cd values. Therefore, soil scenarios and cultivars should be considered comprehensively when determining farmland soil thresholds. The present results provide a new model for setting soil Cd criteria in high geological background areas.

Thiol-functionalized montmorillonite prepared by one-step mechanochemical grafting and its adsorption performance for mercury and methylmercury.

The preparation of low-cost and highly efficient functional materials for the cleanup of mercury-contaminated water by adsorption in an environmentally friendly way is of great significance. In this study, thiol-functionalized montmorillonite (BSH-MMT) was prepared by a novel one-step mechanochemical grafting method and applied to aqueous Hg2+ and CH3Hg+ adsorption. Characterization results showed that thiol groups were successfully grafted by chemical bonding with Si-OH or broken SiO bonds. The maximum adsorption capacities of BSH-MMT for Hg2+ and CH3Hg+ were 104.79 mg g-1 and 39.27 mg g-1, which were approximately seven- and nine-fold that of pristine MMT, respectively. Adsorption kinetics and isotherm fitting indicated that Hg2+ adsorbs heterogeneously, while CH3Hg+ proceeds through monolayer adsorption, both with chemical adsorption as the rate-limiting step. BSH-MMT maintained high adsorption performance over a wide pH range and in the presence of humic acid because of the high affinity of thiol groups toward mercury. The primary adsorption mechanism of thiol-ligand complexation was confirmed by the results of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray absorption spectra, in which a complex structure of bis-coordinated S-Hg-S (2.30 Å distance) was observed. These results demonstrated that mechanochemical grafting is a promising one-step method to prepare thiol-functionalized montmorillonite for effective cleanup of Hg2+/CH3Hg+ contamination in water.

[Structural Characteristics of Micro-nano Particle Size Biochar and Its Adsorption Mechanism for Cd2].

The aim of this study was to investigate the structural characteristics of biochar with different micro/nano particle sizes and its effect on the adsorption performance of Cd2+. Corn stalk biochar with different particle sizes (180-250 µm, 50-75 µm, and ≤ 20 µm, denoted as BC-1, BC-2, and BC-3, respectively) were prepared using the sieving and ball milling method. The structural properties of different particle sizes of biochar were analyzed via elemental analysis, laser particle size analysis, SEM, BET, FTIR, and XPS. Additionally, the adsorption mechanisms of Cd2+ by three particle sizes of biochar under initial Cd2+ concentrations, adsorption times, and pH conditions were comparatively studied using static adsorption experiments. The results showed that with the decrease in particle size, the pH and zeta potential of biochar were reduced; the aromaticity and polarity decreased; the specific surface area and pore volume increased; and the intensity of the characteristic peaks containing OH, C[FY=,1]C/C[FY=,1]O, and C-O groups increased. The adsorption kinetics of Cd2+ with different particle diameters of biochar were in accordance with the pseudo-secondary kinetic model, with chemisorption dominating. The equilibrium times were in the decreasing order of BC-1 (540 min)>BC-2 (360 min)>BC-3 (80 min). The Langmuir model could better fit the adsorption isotherm process of Cd2+ on biochar of different particle sizes (R2>0.97), and the maximum adsorption capacity of Cd2+ increased with the decrease in particle size, which was expressed as BC-3 (74.43 mg·g-1)>BC-2 (45.71 mg·g-1)>BC-1 (44.59 mg·g-1). The main mechanisms of Cd2+adsorption by biochar were electrostatic attraction, surface complexation, and cation-π interaction.

Soil aggregate-associated mercury (Hg) and organic carbon distribution and microbial community characteristics under typical farmland-use types.

In order to get insight into the distribution characteristics of mercury (Hg) and organic carbon in soil aggregates, and the diversity and composition of soil microbial community under different farmland-use types (soil form three adjacent cultivation systems, i.e., corn, vegetable, and rice fields, named as CFS, VFS, and RFS), a field investigation close to Wanshan Hg mining area was conducted. Results indicated that soil total Hg (0-20 cm) presented in decreasing order of RFS (5.27 mg kg-1) > VFS (4.32 mg kg-1) > CFS (2.21 mg kg-1), implying soils from rice field with higher ability of Hg accumulation. Soil aggregate-associated Hg and organic carbon enriched with the decrease of particle size under all farmland-use types, with the maximum at microaggregates (<0.053 mm). Due to the mass ratio of soil aggregates fraction, soil aggregate-associated Hg and organic carbon mainly distributed in >2 mm particles for RFS, whereas 0.25-2 mm particles for CFS and VFS. Furthermore, 16S rRNA results revealed the obvious differences in RFS and dry land soils (CFS and VFS), such as the observed species and unique OUTs, Shannon index, relative abundance at phylum and genus, which implied the diversity and composition of soil microbial community were greatly affected by farmland-use types. Spearman correlation and RDA results suggested farmland-use types, pH and total Hg were main drives for differences in soil microbial community. These findings provide evidence that farmland-use type is an important factor that affects soil total Hg accumulation, soil aggregate-associated Hg and organic carbon distribution, as well as the indigenous microbial community profiles.

Engineering a carboxypeptidase from Aspergillus niger M00988 by mutation to increase its ability in high Fischer ratio oligopeptide preparation.

High Fischer ratio oligopeptides have better conditioning effects on chronic diseases caused by long-term sub-health. At present, the enzymatic method for producing high Fischer ratio oligopeptides has a low yield, complicated purification, and a high cost. The use of exopeptidases with specific catalytic activity for aromatic amino acids in the preparation of high Fischer ratio oligopeptides is an important means to solve this problem. The carboxypeptidase from Aspergillus niger M00988 was cloned, which has good specificity for hydrophobic amino acids. Mutations at important substrate binding sites 135, 160, and 206 were performed to study important factors affecting the enzyme-specific recognition of aromatic groups. The results showed that the steric hindrance of amino acid residues at position 135 and the effects of positions 160 and 206 on the binding force of the enzyme to the substrate have important effects on the specific recognition of aromatic groups by the enzyme. Therefore, the S135 G, Y160S, and Y206S mutant enzymes have good application prospects in the preparation of high Fischer ratio oligopeptides with Chlorella powder. The obtained oligopeptides' Fischer ratio reached 31.45, 38.42, and 36.54, respectively. Compared with the original enzyme, the Fischer ratio increased by 2.58 %, 25.31 %, and 19.18 %, respectively.

[Effects of straw incorporation on rice carbon sequestration characteristics and grain yield formation].

A field experiment was conducted to study the effects of straw incorporation on rice dry matter accumulation and transportation, rice carbon sequestration and grain yield formation. The experiment included four levels of straw incorporation: 0 (control), 4000, 6000 and 8000 kg · hm(-2). Hybrid rice cultivar Zhongzheyou 1 was used in this experiment. The results showed that the average rice dry matter accumulation amount of the three straw incorporation treatments was increased by 63.03 g · m(-2) compared with the control, and that of straw incorporation of 6000 kg · hm(-2) showed the most favorable result, which was 154.40 g · m(-2) higher than the control. Effects of straw incorporation on rice dry matter accumulation showed the best performance from the maximum tillering stage to the full heading stage, and the dry matter accumulation at this stage was 71.25 g · m(-2) higher than the control. Compared with the control, the average dry matter exportation rate and apparent transformation rate from rice stem and leaf in the straw incorporation treatments were increased by 4.2% and 3.7%, respectively. The highest dry matter exportation rate and apparent transformation rate from rice stem and leaf were observed in the straw incorporation treatment of 6000 kg · hm(-2), which were increased by 12.8% and 11.1% compared to the control, respectively. The average rice carbon sequestration from the straw incorporation treatments was increased by 55.38 g · m(-2) compared with the control, and straw incorporation of 6000 kg · hm(-2) performed best with an increase of 17.8% compared with the control. Straw incorporation played a positive role in regulating the carbon sequestration of stem and leaf at the early growth stage and carbon sequestration of spike at the late growth stage. The average grain yield from the straw incorporation treatments was increased by 794.59 kg · hm(-2) (9.5% higher) compared with the control. Rice grain yields from the straw incorporation treatments of 6000 and 4000 kg · hm(-2) were significantly higher than the control, while rice grain yield from the straw incorporation treatment of 8000 kg · hm(-2) did not show a significant increase compared to the control. The rice grain yield was closely related to the yield components, and the increase of effective panicles may be the main reason for the higher grain yields in the straw incorporation treatments. Effective panicles in the straw incorporation treatments was averagely 8.41 spikes · m(-2) more than the control.