Ongoing challenges in the swine industry,such as reduced access to antibiotics and virus outbreaks(e.g.,porcine epidemic diarrhea virus,African swine fever virus),have prompted calls for innovative feed additives to s...Ongoing challenges in the swine industry,such as reduced access to antibiotics and virus outbreaks(e.g.,porcine epidemic diarrhea virus,African swine fever virus),have prompted calls for innovative feed additives to support pig production.Medium-chain fatty acids(MCFAs)and monoglycerides have emerged as a potential option due to key molecular features and versatile functions,including inhibitory activity against viral and bacterial pathogens.In this review,we summarize recent studies examining the potential of MCFAs and monoglycerides as feed additives to improve pig gut health and to mitigate feed pathogens.The molecular properties and biological functions of MCFAs and monoglycerides are first introduced along with an overview of intervention needs at different stages of pig production.The latest progress in testing MCFAs and monoglycerides as feed additives in pig diets is then presented,and their effects on a wide range of production issues,such as growth performance,pathogenic infections,and gut health,are covered.The utilization of MCFAs and monoglycerides together with other feed additives such as organic acids and probiotics is also described,along with advances in molecular encapsulation and delivery strategies.Finally,we discuss how MCFAs and monoglycerides demonstrate potential for feed pathogen mitigation to curb disease transmission.Looking forward,we envision that MCFAs and monoglycerides may become an important class of feed additives in pig production for gut health improvement and feed pathogen mitigation.展开更多
Background:The ongoing African swine fever virus(ASFv)epidemic has had a major impact on pig production globally and biosecurity efforts to curb ASFv infectivity and transmission are a high priority.It has been recent...Background:The ongoing African swine fever virus(ASFv)epidemic has had a major impact on pig production globally and biosecurity efforts to curb ASFv infectivity and transmission are a high priority.It has been recently identified that feed and feed ingredients,along with drinking water,can serve as transmission vehicles and might facilitate transboundary spread of ASFv.Thus,it is important to test the antiviral activity of regulatory compatible,antiviral feed additives that might inhibit ASFv infectivity in feed.One promising group of feed additive candidates includes medium-chain fatty acids(MCFA)and monoglyceride derivatives,which are known to disrupt the lipid membrane surrounding certain enveloped viruses and bacteria.Results:The antiviral activities of selected MCFA,namely caprylic,capric,and lauric acids,and a related monoglyceride,glycerol monolaurate(GML),to inhibit ASFv in liquid and feed conditions were investigated and suitable compounds and inclusion rates were identified that might be useful for mitigating ASFv in feed environments.Antiviral assays showed that all tested MCFA and GML inhibit ASFv.GML was more potent than MCFA because it worked at a lower concentration and inhibited ASFv due to direct virucidal activity along with one or more other antiviral mechanisms.Dose-dependent feed experiments further showed that sufficiently high GML doses can significantly reduce ASFv infectivity in feed in a linear manner in periods as short as 30 min,as determined by infectious viral titer measurements.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)experiments revealed that GML treatment also hinders antibody recognition of the membrane-associated ASFv p72 structural protein,which likely relates to protein conformational changes arising from viral membrane disruption.Conclusion:Together,the findings in this study indicate that MCFA and GML inhibit ASFv in liquid conditions and that GML is also able to reduce ASFv infectivity in feed,which may help to curb disease transmission.展开更多
Background:While feed components capable of modulating the immune system are highly sought after and marketed,often little evidence is available to support functional immune response claims.Thus,a high-throughput in v...Background:While feed components capable of modulating the immune system are highly sought after and marketed,often little evidence is available to support functional immune response claims.Thus,a high-throughput in vitro cell screening system was developed to test these compounds for innate immune signaling effects,using Saccharomyces cerevisiae and its cell wall components in addition to lauric acid and its esters as models in two separate experiments.This screening system utilized RAW 264.7 murine macrophages to assess live S.cerevisiae cells and S.cerevisiae-derived cell wall componentsβ-glucan,mannan,and zymosan(a crude cell wall preparation containing bothβ-glucan and mannan).D-mannose was also evaluated as the monomer of mannan.We also examined the effect of a saturated fatty acid(C12:0,lauric acid)and its esters(methyl laurate and glycerol monolaurate)on innate immune cell activation and cellular metabolism.RAW cells were transfected with a vector that drives expression of alkaline phosphatase upon promoter activation of nuclear factorκ-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells(NFκB),a major inflammatory/immune transcription factor.RAW cells were incubated with 0.01,0.1 or 1 mg/mL of yeast compounds alone or RAW cells were challenged with LPS and then incubated with yeast compounds.In a separate experiment,RAW cells were incubated with 0,0.5,2.5,12.5,62.5,and 312.5μmol/L of lauric acid,methyl laurate,or glycerol monolaurate alone,or RAW cells were challenged with LPS and then incubated with fatty acid treatments.Results:Treatment with zymosan orβ-glucan alone induced NFκB activation in a dose-dependent manner,whereas treatment with D-mannose,mannan,or live S.cerevisiae cells did not.Post-treatment with mannan after an LPS challenge decreased NFκB activation,suggesting that this treatment may ameliorate LPS-induced inflammation.Slight increases in NFκB activation were found when fatty acid treatments were applied in the absence of LPS,yet substantial reductions in NFκB activation were seen when treatments were applied following an LPS challenge.Conclusions:Overall,this cell screening system using RAW macrophages was effective,high-throughput,and sensitive to feed components combined with LPS challenges,indicating modulation of innate immune signaling in vitro.展开更多
Environmental stewardship is one of the main indicators of corporate performance and reputation among investors today. However, historical operational practices and accidents have created significant environmental lia...Environmental stewardship is one of the main indicators of corporate performance and reputation among investors today. However, historical operational practices and accidents have created significant environmental liabilities in the industrial sector, and now require significant investments for appropriate management and resolution. A strategic approach is imperative to assure that company’s financial resources are effectively allocated, and shareholders’ interests are protected. In addition, these liabilities must be appropriately and continuously reported, which require the use of robust forecasting techniques such as Monte Carlo Simulation. The present study results demonstrate that under an optimized strategic approach, liability management costs may be reduced in approximately 50%. In addition, the financial forecast under the selected approach may support appropriate reporting of company’s liabilities.展开更多
This article presents the results of a forensic investigation concerning the origin of hydrocarbons detected in the subsurface soil of the residential neighborhood Volta Grande IV, Volta Redonda, RJ, Brazil. Previous ...This article presents the results of a forensic investigation concerning the origin of hydrocarbons detected in the subsurface soil of the residential neighborhood Volta Grande IV, Volta Redonda, RJ, Brazil. Previous investigations identified several areas with concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) above the Brazilian regulatory standards of CONAMA 420/2009 within the study area. Concern was raised that these hydrocarbons might be derived from local steel mill wastes. This forensic investigation determined that the VOCs in the residential soil are associated with gasoline and possibly diesel fuel oil releases into the subsurface soils that are not associated with the steel mill waste. The PAHs in residential subsurface soil generally fell below background concentrations and are likely associated with regional soot. The PAHs in the three samples with concentrations above background (out of a total of thirty-six samples) exhibit compositional features similar to coal byproducts, such as tar and coke, possibly attributable to the steel mill operation. This work discusses the geoforensic data and chemical signatures that support these findings.展开更多
Background:Global health institutions have called for governments,international organisations and health practitioners to employ a human rights-based approach to infectious diseases.The motivation for a human rights a...Background:Global health institutions have called for governments,international organisations and health practitioners to employ a human rights-based approach to infectious diseases.The motivation for a human rights approach is clear:poverty and inequality create conditions for infectious diseases to thrive,and the diseases,in turn,interact with social-ecological systems to promulgate poverty,inequity and indignity.Governments and intergovernmental organisations should be concerned with the control and elimination of these diseases,as widespread infections delay economic growth and contribute to higher healthcare costs and slower processes for realising universal human rights.These social determinants and economic outcomes associated with infectious diseases should interest multinational companies,partly because they have bearing on corporate productivity and,increasingly,because new global norms impose on companies a responsibility to respect human rights,including the right to health.Methods:We reviewed historical and recent developments at the interface of infectious diseases,human rights and multinational corporations.Our investigation was supplemented with field-level insights at corporate capital projects that were developed in areas of high endemicity of infectious diseases,which embraced rights-based disease control strategies.Results:Experience and literature provide a longstanding business case and an emerging social responsibility case for corporations to apply a human rights approach to health programmes at global operations.Indeed,in an increasingly globalised and interconnected world,multinational corporations have an interest,and an important role to play,in advancing rights-based control strategies for infectious diseases.Conclusions:There are new opportunities for governments and international health agencies to enlist corporate business actors in disease control and elimination strategies.Guidance offered by the United Nations in 2011 that is widely embraced by companies,governments and civil society provides a roadmap for engaging business enterprises in rights-based disease management strategies to mitigate disease transmission rates and improve human welfare outcomes.展开更多
文摘Ongoing challenges in the swine industry,such as reduced access to antibiotics and virus outbreaks(e.g.,porcine epidemic diarrhea virus,African swine fever virus),have prompted calls for innovative feed additives to support pig production.Medium-chain fatty acids(MCFAs)and monoglycerides have emerged as a potential option due to key molecular features and versatile functions,including inhibitory activity against viral and bacterial pathogens.In this review,we summarize recent studies examining the potential of MCFAs and monoglycerides as feed additives to improve pig gut health and to mitigate feed pathogens.The molecular properties and biological functions of MCFAs and monoglycerides are first introduced along with an overview of intervention needs at different stages of pig production.The latest progress in testing MCFAs and monoglycerides as feed additives in pig diets is then presented,and their effects on a wide range of production issues,such as growth performance,pathogenic infections,and gut health,are covered.The utilization of MCFAs and monoglycerides together with other feed additives such as organic acids and probiotics is also described,along with advances in molecular encapsulation and delivery strategies.Finally,we discuss how MCFAs and monoglycerides demonstrate potential for feed pathogen mitigation to curb disease transmission.Looking forward,we envision that MCFAs and monoglycerides may become an important class of feed additives in pig production for gut health improvement and feed pathogen mitigation.
基金Natural Biologics Inc.provided funding to conduct the experiments in this study.J.A.J.acknowledges additional funding support from the National Research Foundation of Korea(NRF)grant funded by the Korean government(MSIT)(No.2020R1C1C1004385).
文摘Background:The ongoing African swine fever virus(ASFv)epidemic has had a major impact on pig production globally and biosecurity efforts to curb ASFv infectivity and transmission are a high priority.It has been recently identified that feed and feed ingredients,along with drinking water,can serve as transmission vehicles and might facilitate transboundary spread of ASFv.Thus,it is important to test the antiviral activity of regulatory compatible,antiviral feed additives that might inhibit ASFv infectivity in feed.One promising group of feed additive candidates includes medium-chain fatty acids(MCFA)and monoglyceride derivatives,which are known to disrupt the lipid membrane surrounding certain enveloped viruses and bacteria.Results:The antiviral activities of selected MCFA,namely caprylic,capric,and lauric acids,and a related monoglyceride,glycerol monolaurate(GML),to inhibit ASFv in liquid and feed conditions were investigated and suitable compounds and inclusion rates were identified that might be useful for mitigating ASFv in feed environments.Antiviral assays showed that all tested MCFA and GML inhibit ASFv.GML was more potent than MCFA because it worked at a lower concentration and inhibited ASFv due to direct virucidal activity along with one or more other antiviral mechanisms.Dose-dependent feed experiments further showed that sufficiently high GML doses can significantly reduce ASFv infectivity in feed in a linear manner in periods as short as 30 min,as determined by infectious viral titer measurements.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)experiments revealed that GML treatment also hinders antibody recognition of the membrane-associated ASFv p72 structural protein,which likely relates to protein conformational changes arising from viral membrane disruption.Conclusion:Together,the findings in this study indicate that MCFA and GML inhibit ASFv in liquid conditions and that GML is also able to reduce ASFv infectivity in feed,which may help to curb disease transmission.
基金This work is a contribution from the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station(Manhattan,KS),supported by USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture(Washington,DC)Hatch project 1018048by support from Cargill Animal Nutrition and Natural Biologics.
文摘Background:While feed components capable of modulating the immune system are highly sought after and marketed,often little evidence is available to support functional immune response claims.Thus,a high-throughput in vitro cell screening system was developed to test these compounds for innate immune signaling effects,using Saccharomyces cerevisiae and its cell wall components in addition to lauric acid and its esters as models in two separate experiments.This screening system utilized RAW 264.7 murine macrophages to assess live S.cerevisiae cells and S.cerevisiae-derived cell wall componentsβ-glucan,mannan,and zymosan(a crude cell wall preparation containing bothβ-glucan and mannan).D-mannose was also evaluated as the monomer of mannan.We also examined the effect of a saturated fatty acid(C12:0,lauric acid)and its esters(methyl laurate and glycerol monolaurate)on innate immune cell activation and cellular metabolism.RAW cells were transfected with a vector that drives expression of alkaline phosphatase upon promoter activation of nuclear factorκ-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells(NFκB),a major inflammatory/immune transcription factor.RAW cells were incubated with 0.01,0.1 or 1 mg/mL of yeast compounds alone or RAW cells were challenged with LPS and then incubated with yeast compounds.In a separate experiment,RAW cells were incubated with 0,0.5,2.5,12.5,62.5,and 312.5μmol/L of lauric acid,methyl laurate,or glycerol monolaurate alone,or RAW cells were challenged with LPS and then incubated with fatty acid treatments.Results:Treatment with zymosan orβ-glucan alone induced NFκB activation in a dose-dependent manner,whereas treatment with D-mannose,mannan,or live S.cerevisiae cells did not.Post-treatment with mannan after an LPS challenge decreased NFκB activation,suggesting that this treatment may ameliorate LPS-induced inflammation.Slight increases in NFκB activation were found when fatty acid treatments were applied in the absence of LPS,yet substantial reductions in NFκB activation were seen when treatments were applied following an LPS challenge.Conclusions:Overall,this cell screening system using RAW macrophages was effective,high-throughput,and sensitive to feed components combined with LPS challenges,indicating modulation of innate immune signaling in vitro.
文摘Environmental stewardship is one of the main indicators of corporate performance and reputation among investors today. However, historical operational practices and accidents have created significant environmental liabilities in the industrial sector, and now require significant investments for appropriate management and resolution. A strategic approach is imperative to assure that company’s financial resources are effectively allocated, and shareholders’ interests are protected. In addition, these liabilities must be appropriately and continuously reported, which require the use of robust forecasting techniques such as Monte Carlo Simulation. The present study results demonstrate that under an optimized strategic approach, liability management costs may be reduced in approximately 50%. In addition, the financial forecast under the selected approach may support appropriate reporting of company’s liabilities.
基金supported by CSN—Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional.
文摘This article presents the results of a forensic investigation concerning the origin of hydrocarbons detected in the subsurface soil of the residential neighborhood Volta Grande IV, Volta Redonda, RJ, Brazil. Previous investigations identified several areas with concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) above the Brazilian regulatory standards of CONAMA 420/2009 within the study area. Concern was raised that these hydrocarbons might be derived from local steel mill wastes. This forensic investigation determined that the VOCs in the residential soil are associated with gasoline and possibly diesel fuel oil releases into the subsurface soils that are not associated with the steel mill waste. The PAHs in residential subsurface soil generally fell below background concentrations and are likely associated with regional soot. The PAHs in the three samples with concentrations above background (out of a total of thirty-six samples) exhibit compositional features similar to coal byproducts, such as tar and coke, possibly attributable to the steel mill operation. This work discusses the geoforensic data and chemical signatures that support these findings.
基金Special thanks are addressed to Cynthia Donovan for insights into the role of agricultural economics in health considerations.KS is grateful to NewFields for a PhD fellowship,and to NomoGaia for funding research associated with this manuscript.
文摘Background:Global health institutions have called for governments,international organisations and health practitioners to employ a human rights-based approach to infectious diseases.The motivation for a human rights approach is clear:poverty and inequality create conditions for infectious diseases to thrive,and the diseases,in turn,interact with social-ecological systems to promulgate poverty,inequity and indignity.Governments and intergovernmental organisations should be concerned with the control and elimination of these diseases,as widespread infections delay economic growth and contribute to higher healthcare costs and slower processes for realising universal human rights.These social determinants and economic outcomes associated with infectious diseases should interest multinational companies,partly because they have bearing on corporate productivity and,increasingly,because new global norms impose on companies a responsibility to respect human rights,including the right to health.Methods:We reviewed historical and recent developments at the interface of infectious diseases,human rights and multinational corporations.Our investigation was supplemented with field-level insights at corporate capital projects that were developed in areas of high endemicity of infectious diseases,which embraced rights-based disease control strategies.Results:Experience and literature provide a longstanding business case and an emerging social responsibility case for corporations to apply a human rights approach to health programmes at global operations.Indeed,in an increasingly globalised and interconnected world,multinational corporations have an interest,and an important role to play,in advancing rights-based control strategies for infectious diseases.Conclusions:There are new opportunities for governments and international health agencies to enlist corporate business actors in disease control and elimination strategies.Guidance offered by the United Nations in 2011 that is widely embraced by companies,governments and civil society provides a roadmap for engaging business enterprises in rights-based disease management strategies to mitigate disease transmission rates and improve human welfare outcomes.
