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Ichthyophthirius multifiliis , a ciliated parasite causing ichthyophthiriasis (white spot disease) in freshwater fishes, results in significant economic loss to the aquaculture sector. One of the important predisposing factors for ichthyophthiriasis is low water temperature (i.e., below 20°C), which affects the health and makes freshwater fishes more susceptible to parasitic infections. During ichthyophthiriasis, fishes are stressed and acute immune reactions are compromised, which enables the aquatic bacterial pathogens to simultaneously infect the host and increase the severity of disease. In the present work, we aimed to understand the parasite–bacteria co-infection mechanism in fish. Later, Curcuma longa (turmeric) essential oil was used as a promising management strategy to improve immunity and control co-infections in fish. A natural outbreak of I. multifiliis was reported (validated by 16S rRNA PCR and sequencing method) in Pangasianodon hypophthalmus from a culture facility of ICAR-CIFRI, India. The fish showed clinical signs including hemorrhage, ulcer, discoloration, and redness in the body surface. Further microbiological analysis revealed that Aeromonas hydrophila was associated (validated by 16S rRNA PCR and sequencing method) with the infection and mortality of P. hypophthalmus , confirmed by hemolysin and survival assay. This created a scenario of co-infections, where both infectious agents are active together, causing ichthyophthiriasis and motile Aeromonas septicemia (MAS) in P. hypophthalmus . Interestingly, turmeric oil supplementation induced protective immunity in P. hypophthalmus against the co-infection condition. The study showed that P. hypophthalmus fingerlings supplemented with turmeric oil, at an optimum concentration (10 ppm), exhibited significantly increased survival against co-infection. The optimum concentration induced anti-stress and antioxidative response in fingerlings, marked by a significant decrease in cortisol and elevated levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in treated animals as compared with the controls. Furthermore, the study indicated that supplementation of turmeric oil increases both non-specific and specific immune response, and significantly higher values of immune genes (interleukin-1β, transferrin, and C3), HSP70, HSP90, and IgM were observed in P. hypophthalmus treatment groups. Our findings suggest that C. longa (turmeric) oil modulates stress, antioxidant, and immunological responses, probably contributing to enhanced protection in P. hypophthalmus . Hence, the application of turmeric oil treatment in aquaculture might become a management strategy to control co-infections in fishes. However, this hypothesis needs further validation.

The effect of the supplementation of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a component of the neuroendocrine cascade involved in stress alleviation, was studied in broiler chickens in a heat stress model. In a 42-day feeding trial, 300 male and 300 female broiler chickens were equally distributed in an environmentally controlled and an open house (OH) according to a 2 × 2 × 3 factorial design. The diet was either devoid of GABA (0 mg/kg) or was supplemented with 60 or 120 mg/kg GABA. Zootechnical performances (1–42 days), expression of mRNA for genes coding for inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-8, TNF-α) in the spleen (24 days), oxidative regulators (Nrf-2, superoxide dismutase) in the liver (24 days) and arterial blood gas concentrations (24 days) were assessed. Whole genome sequencing of the caecal microbiome was performed for the male birds (42 days). Supplementation of GABA improved ( P < 0.01) body weight and feed conversion ratio irrespective of sex and housing conditions, expression of IL-1β and IL-8 and Nrf-2 gene. GABA decreased ( P < 0.05) malondialdehyde and increased ( P < 0.05) glutathione peroxidase activities in serum. GABA decreased circulatory corticosterone concertation (P < 0.05). While both housing conditions benefitted from GABA, its effects were more pronounced in OH (house effect P < 0.05). GABA supplementation modulated caecal microbiota composition by increasing the relative abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Alistipes and Bacteroides, particularly in the OH environment. Overall, this study concludes that 60 mg/kg GABA supplementation improves growth performance, stress resilience and microbial composition in broiler chickens, with variable effects depending on housing conditions.

Due to climate change in recent years, there has been an increasing water deficit during the winter wheat sowing period. This study evaluated six Croatian winter wheat varieties’ physiological, biochemical, and molecular responses under two drought stress levels at the germination/seedling growth stage. Lipid peroxidation was mainly induced under both drought stress treatments, while the antioxidative response was variety-specific. The most significant role in the antioxidative response had glutathione along with the ascorbate-glutathione pathway. Under drought stress, wheat seedlings responded in proline accumulation that was correlated with the P5CS gene expression. Expression of genes encoding dehydrins (DHN5, WZY2) was highly induced under the drought stress in all varieties, while genes encoding transcription factors were differentially regulated. Expression of DREB1 was upregulated under severe drought stress in most varieties, while the expression of WRKY2 was downregulated or revealed control levels. Different mechanisms were shown to contribute to the drought tolerance in different varieties, which was mainly associated with osmotic adjustment and dehydrins expression. Identifying different mechanisms in drought stress response would advance our understanding of the complex strategies contributing to wheat tolerance to drought in the early growth stage and could contribute to variety selection useful for developing new drought-tolerant varieties.

A clear understanding of the physiological and biochemical adaptations to water limitation in upland and aerobic rice can help to identify the mechanisms underlying their tolerance to low water availability. In this study, three indica rice varieties-IR64 (lowland), Apo (aerobic), and UPL Ri-7 (upland)-, that are characterized by contrasting levels of drought tolerance, were exposed to drought at the vegetative stage. Drought-induced changes in biomass, leaf metabolites and oxidative stress markers/enzyme activities were analyzed in each variety at multiple time points. The two drought-tolerant varieties, Apo and UPL Ri-7 displayed a reduced water use in contrast to the susceptible variety IR64 that displayed high water consumption and consequent strong leaf dehydration upon drought treatment. A sugar-mediated osmotic acclimation in UPL Ri-7 and a strong antioxidative response in Apo were both effective in limiting the drought-induced biomass loss in these two varieties, while biomass loss was high in IR64, also after recovery. A qualitative comparison of these results with the ones of a similar experiment conducted in the field at the reproductive stage showed that only Apo, which also in this stage showed the highest antioxidant power, was able to maintain a stable grain yield under stress. Our results show that different metabolic and antioxidant adaptations confer drought tolerance to aerobic and upland rice varieties in the vegetative stage. The effectiveness of these adaptations differs between developmental stages. Unraveling the genetic control of these mechanisms might be exploited in breeding for new rice varieties adapted to water-limited environments.

The impacts of oregano essential oil and sodium butyrate on the growth performance, hematological, biochemical, immunological, antioxidative, and gene expression profiles of Nile tilapia ( Oreochromis niloticus ) fingerlings were examined in this study. One hundred eighty healthy fingerlings (16.00 ± 2.00 g) were acclimated and accidentally divided into three groups, each further split into three replicates. The groups were fed a basal diet (control) or diets supplemented with 0.5% and 1% oregano essential oil and sodium butyrate for eight weeks (The feed additives were administered continuously throughout an 8-week trial period, simulating a practical feeding strategy that would be feasible during high-risk periods (e.g., post-handling stress, seasonal disease outbreaks). Fish fed the supplemented diets demonstrated significantly greater growth performance, with the oregano 1% + sodium butyrate 1% group achieving the highest final body weight (36.91 ± 0.66 g) and lowest feed conversion ratio (1.32 ± 0.04). Hematological indices, including RBC count, Hb, and PCV, were substantially improved. Biochemical analysis revealed reduced ALT, AST, urea, and creatinine levels alongside elevated total protein and globulin concentrations in treated groups. Immunological and antioxidative parameters, such as WBC count, phagocytic activity, SOD, and GPX, showed significant enhancements, particularly in the oregano 1% + sodium butyrate 1% group. Gene expression analysis exposed upregulation of immune-related (TNF-α, IL-1β) and antioxidative (SOD, GPX) genes in supplemented groups, highlighting their role in enhancing health and stress responses. Post Aeromonas hydrophila infection, the supplemented groups exhibited improved immunity, antioxidative status, and survival. These findings suggest that dietary supplementation with oregano essential oil and sodium butyrate, particularly at 1% inclusion, effectively enhances growth, health status, immunity, and gene expression in Nile tilapia.

Zinc insufficiency is a nutritional trouble worldwide, especially in developing countries. In the current study, an experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of supplementation of MS media culture with different concentrations of ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) (0, 10, 20, 40, 80, and 160 ppm) on growth, nutrient uptake, and some physiological parameters of 7-days-old mung bean seedlings. ZnO NPs enhanced the Zn concentration of mung bean from 106.41 in control to more than 4600 µg/g dry weight in 80 and 160 ppm ZnO NPs treated seedlings. Our results showed that ZnO NPs in the concentration range from 10 to 20 ppm had a positive influence on growth parameters and photosynthetic pigments. Higher levels of ZnO NPs negatively affected seedling’s growth by triggering oxidative stress which in turn caused enhancing antioxidative response in seedlings including polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase activity as well as phenolic compounds and anthocyanine contents. Considering the positive effects of ZnO NPs treatment on mungbean seedlings growth, micronutrents, protein and shoot phenolics content, 20 ppm is recommended as the optimal concentration for biofortification. Our findings confirm the capability of ZnO NPs in the remarkable increase of Zn content of mungbean seedlings which can be an efficient way for plant biofortification and dealing with environmental stress.

Chlorpyrifos (CPF) is an insecticide that is commonly applied in the agriculture sector. However, little is known about the protective role of Spirulina platensis (SP) and/or β-glucan (BG) on African catfish exposed to chronic CPF toxicity. The fish (95 ± 5 g, initial weight) were assigned to 5 fiberglass tanks (500 L, 50 fish/tank) where the 1st and 2nd fed the basal diet, while the 3rd, 4th, and 5th fed diets with SP, BG, and SP+BG at 0.5%, respectively. Fish in 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th groups were exposed to CPF at a dose of 1.5 mg/L and fed the respective diets for 60 days. In comparison with the control group, CPF-exposed fish exhibited significantly lower ( P  ≤ 0.05) body weights, feed intake, red blood cells count, hemoglobin concentration, packed cell volume (PCV) (%), lymphocytes, monocytes, phagocytic activity, and phagocytic index, while feed conversion ratio, white blood cell count, and neutrophils count were significantly increased. Fish exposed to CPF also revealed a significant elevation in aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoproteins (LDL), very-low-density lipoproteins (vLDL), glucose concentration, urea, and creatinine as well as low total proteins, albumin, globulins, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) concentration. Fish exposed to CPF also exhibited a high concentration of malondialdehyde while glutathione content, glutathione peroxidase, and catalase activities were significantly decreased in the liver, gills, brain, and intestine tissues. Moreover, exposure to CPF resulted in higher transcription of cytochrome P450 ( CYP1A-P450 ) gene expression than the 1st group. Histopathological investigations revealed various degrees of pathological lesions in different organs like the liver, kidney, brain, spleen, and intestine tissues. Interestingly, dietary SP supplementation either alone or combined with BG significantly ameliorated the alterations mitigated by CPF-induced organ injuries and genotoxicity. Therefore, it could be concluded that SP or/and BG are able to induce the protective consequences on health status, immunity, and antioxidative response of African catfish exposed to CPF.

Polystyrene is an inert polymer; however, sublethal effects have been observed in aquatic organisms exposed to microparticles of this plastic. Information on microplastic-related oxidative stress and related antioxidative responses as adverse effects and the underlying mechanisms of toxicity are limited. Daphnids are key contributors in aquatic ecosystems, linking primary producers to consumers and predators, facilitating energy transfer and thus being considered an ideal bioindicator organism to study the adverse effects of polystyrene fragments on the oxidative stress status and subsequent enzymatic antioxidant response. In the present study, neonates (≤ 24 h) and adult daphnids were acutely exposed to polystyrene fragments sieved to three size factions (< 25 µm, 45—63 µm, and 100—500 µm), and adverse effects were evaluated after 24 and 48 h. In adults, larger particles elicited reactive oxygen species by 61%, which was met with elevated superoxide dismutase (17%) and catalase activities (98%), restoring redox homeostasis within 48 h. However, in neonates, the reactive oxygen species increased with exposure to all polystyrene sizes within 24 h, and homeostasis was regained within 48 h without eliciting the enzymatic antioxidant defense. The adverse effects were associated with size fractions that were too large to be consumed, suggesting that leached additives may be involved. Further studies are needed to determine whether nonenzymatic antioxidants were responsible for neutralizing excess reactive oxygen species in neonates.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD/emphysema) is a life-threatening disorder and there are few effective therapies. Cigarette smoke-induced oxidative stress, airway inflammation, and apoptosis of lung cells have been reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of COPD/emphysema and lead to alveolar septal destruction. Here we show that the expression level of FCH and double SH3 domains 1 (FCHSD1) was drastically increased in mice in response to elastase instillation, an experimental model of COPD. FCHSD1 is a member of the F-BAR family with two SH3 domains. We found that Fchsd1 knockout (Fchsd1 −/−) mice were protected against airspace enlargement induced by elastase. Elastase-instilled lungs of Fchsd1 −/− mice showed reduced inflammation and apoptosis compared with WT mice. We also found that elastase-induced reduction of Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) levels, a histone deacetylase reported to protect against emphysema, was attenuated in the lungs of Fchsd1 −/− mice. Furthermore, FCHSD1 deficiency enhanced nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-like 2 (NRF2), a redox-sensitive transcription factor, following H₂O₂ stimulation. Conversely, Fchsd1 overexpression inhibited NRF2 nuclear translocation and increased the reduction of SIRT1 levels. Notably, FCHSD1 interacted with NRF2 and SNX9. Our results show that FCHSD1 forms a multicomplex with NRF2 and SNX9 in the cytosol that prevents NRF2 from translocating to the nucleus. We propose that FCHSD1 promotes initiation of emphysema development by inhibiting nuclear translocation of NRF2, which leads to down-regulation of SIRT1.

Fucoidan is a rich source of medicinally active immunostimulants that possess various pharmacological properties. This study examined the potential impact of fucoidan on the hematic indicators and antioxidative responses of Nile tilapia fed diets contaminated with aflatoxin B 1 (AFB 1 ). Fish (60 ± 6.1 g) were allocated to five groups; the first (control) and second groups were fed 0% or 1% fucoidan–supplemented diets without AFB 1 contamination, while the third, fourth, and fifth groups were fed diets contaminated with AFB 1 and supplemented with 0%, 0.5%, and 1% fucoidan, respectively. After 30 days, fish fed AFB 1 showed high ALT, AST, ALP, cholesterol, urea, and creatinine levels; furthermore, total blood protein and tissue (liver, kidney, and gill) glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) activity significantly ( P  ≤ 0.05) decreased in fish fed AFB 1 , while tissue malondialdehyde significantly increased ( P  ≤ 0.05). Interestingly, fish fed fucoidan showed decreased ALT, AST, ALP, cholesterol, urea, and creatinine, as well as increased blood protein, GSH, GPx, SOD, and CAT activity. The results suggested that fucoidan is capable of inducing protective activity against AFB 1 toxicity in Nile tilapia by enhancing the serum biochemical and tissue antioxidant responses of fish.