Water productivity of milk produced in three different dairy production systems in Southern Brazil.

Water is a crucial resource to produce dairy milk and studies are required to identify opportunities for improvements in water management. This study evaluates the water productivity of milk (WPMilk) produced on 67 farms located in southern Brazil and the influence of dairy cattle production systems (pasture-based, 57 farms; semi-confined, 7 farms; confinement, 3 farms) on water productivity. Indirect and direct water flows were taken into account and the dairy milk was the output.

Metadata harmonization-Standards are the key for a better usage of omics data for integrative microbiome analysis.

Background: Tremendous amounts of data generated from microbiome research studies during the last decades require not only standards for sampling and preparation of omics data but also clear concepts of how the metadata is prepared to ensure re-use for integrative and interdisciplinary microbiome analysis.

Results: In this Commentary, we present our views on the key issues related to the current system for metadata submission in omics research, and propose the development of a global metadata system. Such a system should be easy to use, clearly structured in a hierarchical way, and should be compatible with all existing microbiome data repositories, following common standards for minimal required information and common ontology.

Nettle, a Long-Known Fiber Plant with New Perspectives.

The stinging nettle L. is a perennial crop with low fertilizer and pesticide requirements, well adapted to a wide range of environmental conditions. It has been successfully grown in most European climatic zones while also promoting local flora and fauna diversity.

Effects of increasing air temperature on skin and respiration heat loss from dairy cows at different relative humidity and air velocity levels.

The focus of this study was to identify the effects of increasing ambient temperature (T) at different relative humidity (RH) and air velocity (AV) levels on heat loss from the skin surface and through respiration of dairy cows. Twenty Holstein dairy cows with an average parity of 2.0 ± 0.

Hydrothermal carbonization as an alternative sanitation technology: process optimization and development of low-cost reactor.

The provision of safe sanitation services is essential for human well-being and environmental integrity, but it is often lacking in less developed communities with insufficient financial and technical resources. Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) has been suggested as an alternative sanitation technology, producing value-added products from faecal waste. We evaluated the HTC technology for raw human waste treatment in terms of resource recovery.

Bacterial-fungal interactions under agricultural settings: from physical to chemical interactions.

Bacteria and fungi are dominant members of environmental microbiomes. Various bacterial-fungal interactions (BFIs) and their mutual regulation are important factors for ecosystem functioning and health. Such interactions can be highly dynamic, and often require spatiotemporally resolved assessments to understand the interplay which ranges from antagonism to mutualism.

High-pressure processing treatment of beef burgers: Effect on Escherichia coli O157 inactivation evaluated by plate count and PMA-qPCR.

Propidium monoazide coupled to real time PCR (PMA-qPCR) is a novel methodology proposed for the quantification of viable bacteria in food after microbial inactivation treatments. The aim of this work was to assess the effectiveness of different pressure levels on the lethality of a pool of Escherichia coli O157 strains in beef burgers by plate count and PMA-qPCR using uidA as target gene. Also, the effect on native microbiota counts, E.

The Brassica napus seed microbiota is cultivar-specific and transmitted via paternal breeding lines.

Seed microbiota influence germination and plant health and have the potential to improve crop performance, but the factors that determine their structure and functions are still not fully understood. Here, we analysed the impact of plant-related and external factors on seed endophyte communities of 10 different oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) cultivars from 26 field sites across Europe.

An approach for monitoring temperature on fruit surface by means of thermal point cloud.

Heat and excessive solar radiation can produce abiotic stresses during apple maturation, resulting fruit quality. Therefore, the monitoring of temperature on fruit surface (FST) over the growing period can allow to identify thresholds, above of which several physiological disorders such as sunburn may occur in apple. The current approaches neglect spatial variation of FST and have reduced repeatability, resulting in unreliable predictions.

Insights into the microbiome assembly during different growth stages and storage of strawberry plants.

Background: Microbiome assembly was identified as an important factor for plant growth and health, but this process is largely unknown, especially for the fruit microbiome. Therefore, we analyzed strawberry plants of two cultivars by focusing on microbiome tracking during the different growth stages and storage using amplicon sequencing, qPCR, and microscopic approaches.

Results: Strawberry plants carried a highly diverse microbiome, therein the bacterial families Sphingomonadaceae (25%), Pseudomonadaceae (17%), and Burkholderiaceae (11%); and the fungal family Mycosphaerella (45%) were most abundant.

Chemical and Enzymatic Synthesis of Biobased Xylo-Oligosaccharides and Fermentable Sugars from Wheat Straw for Food Applications.

Xylo-oligosaccharides are sugar oligomers with 2~7 xylose units considered non-digestible fibers that can be produced from biodegradable and low-cost biomass like wheat straw. An integrated approach consisting of hydrothermal pretreatment, alkaline treatment, enzymatic treatment and the combinations thereof was applied to overcome the recalcitrance structure of the wheat straw and allow selective fractioning into fermentable sugars and xylo-oligosaccharides. The hydrolysates and processed solids were chemically characterized by High-performance liquid chromatography and Ion chromatography, and the results were expressed as function of the severity factor and statistically interpreted.

The plant microbiota signature of the Anthropocene as a challenge for microbiome research.

Background: One promise of the recently presented microbiome definition suggested that, in combination with unifying concepts and standards, microbiome research could be important for solving new challenges associated with anthropogenic-driven changes in various microbiota. With this commentary we want to further elaborate this suggestion, because we noticed specific signatures in microbiota affected by the Anthropocene.

Results: Here, we discuss this based on a review of available literature and our own research targeting exemplarily the plant microbiome.

The Fungal Microbiome of Wheat Flour Includes Potential Mycotoxin Producers.

Consumers are increasingly demanding higher quality and safety standards for the products they consume, and one of this is wheat flour, the basis of a wide variety of processed products. This major component in the diet of many communities can be contaminated by microorganisms before the grain harvest, or during the grain storage right before processing. These microorganisms include several fungal species, many of which produce mycotoxins, secondary metabolites that can cause severe acute and chronic disorders.

The microbiome and resistome of apple fruits alter in the post-harvest period.

Background: A detailed understanding of antimicrobial resistance trends among all human-related environments is key to combat global health threats. In food science, however, the resistome is still little considered. Here, we studied the apple microbiome and resistome from different cultivars (Royal Gala and Braeburn) and sources (freshly harvested in South Africa and exported apples in Austrian supermarkets) by metagenomic approaches, genome reconstruction and isolate sequencing.

Effects of treating Prosopis juliflora pods with multienzyme, with and without bacterial cultures on in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD), fermentation kinetics, and performance of growing pigs.

This study was conducted to determine the effects of treating Prosopis juliflora pods with multienzyme and bacterial cultures on in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD), fermentation kinetics, and performance of growing pigs. Experiment one consisted of a pepsin-pancreatine hydrolysis method to simulate, in vitro, the pig digestive system and was followed by in vitro gas production to assess fermentation kinetics. Samples of ground Prosopis pod meal (GPPM) were allocated to four treatments with three replicates each.

Factors affecting consumer choice of novel non-thermally processed fruit and vegetables products: Evidence from a 4-country study in Europe.

A wide variety of novel non-thermal processing technologies (NTPTs) are under development to meet the increasing consumer demand for high-quality fruit and vegetable (F&V) products. Understanding consumers' needs and possible barriers to acceptance of these technologies is however essential to assess the commercial feasibility of mildly processed F&Vs. Situated within this context, and extending previous work on the topic, in this paper we present results from a large-scale choice-based conjoint analysis consumer survey to investigate consumers' choice behavior towards NTPT-processed F&V products in four European countries - Denmark, Italy, Serbia, and Spain, using three model products - orange juice, iceberg salad, and cherry tomatoes respectively processed via three NTPT - mild processing, novel washing, and active packaging, compared to three conventional processing techniques - pasteurization, conventional washing, and conventional packaging, respectively.

Establishment of the basidiomycete Fomes fomentarius for the production of composite materials.

Background: Filamentous fungi of the phylum Basidiomycota are considered as an attractive source for the biotechnological production of composite materials. The ability of many basidiomycetes to accept residual lignocellulosic plant biomass from agriculture and forestry such as straw, shives and sawdust as substrates and to bind and glue together these otherwise loose but reinforcing substrate particles into their mycelial network, makes them ideal candidates to produce biological composites to replace petroleum-based synthetic plastics and foams in the near future.

Results: Here, we describe for the first time the application potential of the tinder fungus Fomes fomentarius for lab-scale production of mycelium composites.

Phage Genome Diversity in a Biogas-Producing Microbiome Analyzed by Illumina and Nanopore GridION Sequencing.

The microbial biogas network is complex and intertwined, and therefore relatively stable in its overall functionality. However, if key functional groups of microorganisms are affected by biotic or abiotic factors, the entire efficacy may be impaired. Bacteriophages are hypothesized to alter the steering process of the microbial network.

Correction to: Dominant physical mechanisms governing the forced-convective cooling process of white mushrooms ().

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s13197-020-04402-9.].

Identification of Volatile Organic Compounds Emitted by Two Beneficial Endophytic Strains from Olive Roots.

The production of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) represents a promising strategy of plant-beneficial bacteria to control soil-borne phytopathogens. sp. PICF6 and PICF7 are two indigenous inhabitants of olive roots displaying effective biological control against Additionally, strain PICF7 is able to promote the growth of barley and , VOCs being involved in the growth of the latter species.

Contrasting effects of genotype and root size on the fungal and bacterial communities associated with apple rootstocks.

The endophytic microbiome of plants is believed to have a significant impact on its physiology and disease resistance, however, the role of host genotype in determining the composition of the endophytic microbiome of apple root systems remains an open question that has important implications for defining breeding objectives. In the current study, the bacterial and fungal microbiota associated with four different apple rootstocks planted in April, 2018 in the same soil environment and harvested in May, 2019 were evaluated to determine the role of genotype on the composition of both the bacterial and fungal communities. Results demonstrated a clear impact of genotype and root size on microbial composition and diversity.

Comparison of nitrogen losses from different manure treatment and application management systems in China.

There is a worldwide focus on reducing the environmental impacts of livestock manure management. In China, there are different manure treatment and application modes, including complete treatment to remove nitrogen (N) for direct discharge into watercourses. But we lack a systematic quantitative comparison of the environmental losses that occur from different management modes.

Color analysis of horticultural produces using hue spectra fingerprinting.

Color has great importance in agriculture due to its relationship with plant pigments and therefore, plant development and biochemical changes. Due to the trichromatic vision, instruments equipped with CCD or CMOS sensor represent color with the mixture of red, green and blue signals. These values are often transformed into HSL (hue, saturation, luminance) color space.

Ag-YOLO: A Real-Time Low-Cost Detector for Precise Spraying With Case Study of Palms.

To date, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, have been widely used in precision agriculture (PA) for crop monitoring and crop spraying, allowing farmers to increase the efficiency of the farming process, meanwhile reducing environmental impact. However, to spray pesticides effectively and safely to the trees in small fields or rugged environments, such as mountain areas, is still an open question. To bridge this gap, in this study, an onboard computer vision (CV) component for UAVs is developed.