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Thickness of the cotton fiber wall or fiber maturity is an important property affecting fiber quality, yield, and textile performance. Due to the complexity of within-sample variation, mean values alone are not sufficient to evaluate cotton maturity. Distributional parameters should be examined for accurately evaluating cotton maturity variations within a sample. However, maturity distributions have not been well characterized due to difficulties of determining maturity from individual fibers with lengthy and laborious microscopic techniques. Cottonscope was developed recently as an alternative for efficiently measuring fiber maturity by analyzing 20,000 snippets from a cotton sample. Thus, we investigated if Cottonscope enabled assessing maturity distributions as accurately as the microscopic method. Maturity distributions determined by Cottonscope were closer to normal distribution curves as compared with those determined by a microscopic method. By comparing maturity with chemical compositions of developing fibers at various stages, a new maturity threshold of the severely immature fibers was selected. Using this threshold, a distributional parameter, immature fiber content (IFC) was measured by both Cottonscope and microscopic methods from cotton reference materials composed of a broad maturity range. The Cottonscope IFC was strongly and significantly correlated with the IFC measured by the microscopic method. It also enabled distinguishing maturity variations from the cotton samples sharing an identical mean maturity. Therefore, the distributional parameter may be used to improve the ways of evaluating the within-sample maturity variation and detecting differences of fiber maturity distributions among cotton samples.Graphic abstract

The appropriate use of avocado seed waste after industrial processing could reduce the problem of overconsumption and food waste in accordance with the “zero waste” concept. The presented study evaluates the physicochemical and bioactive properties of avocado seed and its possible use in functional food design, for example, cereal snacks in the form of cookies. The profile of polyphenol and lutein content was determined by chromatographic methodology, and the phenolic compounds content and antioxidant properties of the avocado seed powder were determined using spectrophotometric methods. The chemical composition (content of protein, carbohydrates, fiber, fat) and physicochemical properties, i.e., water activity, water holding capacity, and solubility in water of avocado seed powder, were examined. According to the fiber content (21.6 g/100 g) and bioactive compounds present in the avocado seed powder (content of phenolic 62.1 mg GAE/1 g, antioxidant potential (122.4 mmol Trolox/100 g), and low solubility in water (16.2%), it could be considered a valuable additive to cereal snacks. Our designed cereal products with various amounts of added avocado seed powder (6%, 12%, and 18%) showed that 6% added powder promoted an almost five-fold increase in the polyphenol content and four-fold higher antioxidant potential of the snacks compared to the control samples. In addition, the lowest level addition of avocado seed powder increased the dietary fiber content of the product to 4%; hence, they adhered to the nutrition claim of “source of fiber” in accordance with Regulation (EC) No. 1924/2006.

Hemp ( Cannabis sativa L. ), an ancient crop, is a significant source of high-quality fiber that primarily caters to the textile industry worldwide. Fiber content is a crucial quantitative trait for evaluating fiber yield in hemp. Understanding the genetic mechanisms involved in hemp breeding is essential for improving yield. In this study, we developed 660 F1 plants from a cross between Jindao-15 (high fiber content fiber-use variety) and Fire No.1 (low fiber content fiber-use variety), and thirty plants each with high and low fiber content were selected from 305 monoecious plants of this population according to 5%-10% of population size for quantitative traits. The DNA from these plants was extracted to establish two bulk DNA pools and then subjected to the restriction digestion by the enzymes RsaI and HaeIII to obtain 314–364 bp digestion fragments and subjected to sequencing using specific length amplified fragment sequencing (SLAF-seq). Finally, we successfully developed 368,404 SLAF tags, which led to the detection of 25,133 high-quality SNPs. Combing with the resequencing results of parents, the SNPs of mixed pools were then subjected to the SNP-Index correlation algorithm, which revealed four candidate regions related to fiber content traits on Chromosome 1, with a length of 8.68 Mb and containing 389 annotated genes. The annotation information and the comparison results identified 15 genes that were highly likely to modulate the fiber content of hemp. Further, qPCR validation identified six genes (LOC115705530, LOC115705875, LOC115704794, LOC115705371, LOC115705688 and LOC115707511) that were highly positively correlated with influencing the hemp fiber content. These genes were involved in the transcription regulation, auxin and water transportion, one carbon and sugar metabolism. And non-synnoumous mutation SNPs which may play vital role in influencing the fiber content were detected in LOC115705875, LOC115704794, LOC115705688 and LOC115707511. Thus, our study highlights the importance of the combined use of SLAF-Seq and Bulked Segregant analysis (BSA) to locate genes related to hemp fiber content rapidly. Hence, our study provides novel mechanistic inputs for the fast identification of genes related to important agronomic traits of hemp and other crops catering to the textile industry.

The short fiber content (SFC) in raw cotton is an extremely important attribute in the modern cotton classification system, because of its impact on the quality of yarn manufacturing. However, the current SFC measuring methods are costly, time-consuming and tedious for accurate and quick testing. This study aimed to develop a new way to calculate a weight-based short fiber content (SFCw) from a dual-beard specimen via image-processing and bell-shaped fibrogram modeling techniques. A sample from a cotton sliver was clamped and combed in the opposite directions to form two tapered fringes, and then scanned on a desktop scanner to generate a dual-beard image (DBI). The grayscale values in each column of the DBI were accumulated to derive a bell-shaped fibrogram representing the fiber quantity distributions over the distance from the fibrogram center. Based on the fibrogram, a special hierarchical model was proposed to calculate SFCw in two different length limits—12.7 and 16 mm—defined respectively in the USA and China’s specifications. Fifteen samples were tested to compare the SFCw results from the DBIs to those from the Advanced Fiber Information System (AFIS PRO2). Significant correlations were found between the SFCw values from DBIs and AFIS. The regressive equations for SFCw prediction were validated with six additional samples. As shown in the Bland–Altman plots, a good agreement existed between the two sets of SFCw values, demonstrating the DBI’s potential to be an accurate, rapid and portable approach for measuring SFCw, and to transform the SFCw testing from a dedicated machine to an off-the-shelf scanner.

To produce an evener fiber assembly, it is important to understand fiber dynamic behavior during the drafting process. Drafting force and its variability is an alternative approach to understand the fiber’s velocity–friction characteristics, representing a combined effect of multiple fiber properties. In this study, online drafting force and its variability was measured with different break draft ratios and back roller gauges to analyze its effect on sliver short-term evenness. Drafting force variability well correlated with sliver evenness with correlation coefficient R2 = 0.81. The coefficient of variation (CV%) of drafting force was highest (2.3%) at low break draft 1.1–1.2, and then reduced gradually to its minimum value (1.5%) around a break draft of 1.6–1.7. The minimum variability of drafting force well corresponds with lower irregularity of sliver at certain break draft ratios. This indicates that a stable drafting force promises better fiber distribution along the sliver length. The variability of drafting force and sliver irregularity also increased as the back gauge increased from 43 to 51 mm. Furthermore, the impact of short fiber content on the drafting force was investigated at three back gauges. The increase in short fiber content gives higher magnitude of drafting force. Drafting force was also compared with the number of neps and change in fiber length in sliver for each break draft. Better nep opening and improved fiber lengths were also found around (1.6–1.7) break draft and follow the same trend of variability of drafting force as the break draft changed.

Calophyllum inophyllum is a superior choice for sustainable biodiesel production. This tree is highly productive, adaptable to various land types, and has a significant potential for carbon sequestration. This study aimed to determine carbon storage variation in biomass, litter, and soil among C. inophyllum provenances from eight islands in Indonesia; identify the best allometric model for estimating total plant biomass carbon stock; and assess the impact of soil physicochemical properties and litter fiber content on total carbon stock. Plant, litter and soil samples were purposively selected from a total of 32 sample points of 8 provenances. Analysis of variance was carried out to determine variations among provenances on carbon storage in plant biomass and its components (stems, branches, twigs, leaves, stumps, and roots), in litter, as well as in soil organic carbon. The best allometric equation was selected to estimate the total plant biomass carbon based on the value of coefficient determination (R 2 ) and RMSE (Root Mean Square Error). Redundancy Analysis (RDA) was carried out to determine the effect of the soil physicochemical properties and litter fiber content on total biomass carbon and total soil organic carbon followed by a partial analysis (Variation Partitioning Analysis). The results of this study showed that variations on carbon storage in plant biomass and its components, in litter, as well as in soil organic carbon were not significantly different among the provenances. The tBC averaged 13.46 tons ha −1 , the litter carbon 4.75 tons ha −1 , and tSOC 75.91 ton ha −1 with most biomass carbon stored in trunks (31.02%) and most of carbon stock was stored as tSOC (81%). Quadratic (tBC = 0,4172DBH 2 - 1,3433DBH + 2,3498) was the best allometric model for estimating carbon storage on plant biomass with diameter at breast height (DBH) as a predictor variable. Most of the variation in total carbon stock was influenced by soil chemical properties (76%) followed by soil physical properties (11%) and litter fiber content (5%). This study implies that the development of C. inophyllum in Indonesia for carbon storage may utilize seeds or planting materials from any origin, disregarding provenances. Applying organic and/or mineral nutrients (N, P, and K) will increase carbon stock in C. inophyllum plantations. This study underscores the significance of assessing C. inophyllum carbon stocks to enhance its role in establishing climate change policies and promoting sustainable resource management.

Bread is a widely consumed food that has often been used as a vehicle for functional ingredients such as dietary fibre. Fibre-rich breads have beneficial physiological effects on health, helping to combat chronic pathologies such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and certain types of colon cancer. The aim of this study is to evaluate the technological and nutritional effects of the inclusion of buckwheat hull particles (BH) at two addition levels (3 and 6%) and two particle sizes (fine, D50: 62.7 μm; coarse, D50: 307 μm) in a gluten-free (GF) bread formulation. A significant (p < 0.05) increase in the dough elastic modulus (G’) was observed for all doughs containing BH, from 712 Pa for a rice-based dough to 1027–3738 Pa for those containing BH. Compared to rice-based breads, those containing BH showed a significant (p < 0.05) increase in total dietary fibre content (from three to five times) and in antioxidant capacity (from 78 to 290 mg TE/100 g dw. in the ORAC test). Breads containing fine BH at a level of 3% had similar sensory properties to the rice-based bread, demonstrating that it is possible to improve the TDF content while maintaining the sensory quality of the GF bread.

Three-dimensional (3D) printing continuous carbon fiber-reinforced polylactic acid (PLA) composites offer excellent tensile mechanical properties. The present study aimed to research the effect of process parameters on the tensile mechanical properties of 3D printing composite specimens through a series of mechanical experiments. The main printing parameters, including layer height, extrusion width, printing temperature, and printing speed are changed to manufacture specimens based on the modified fused filament fabrication 3D printer, and the tensile mechanical properties of 3D printing continuous carbon fiber-reinforced PLA composites are presented. By comparing the outcomes of experiments, the results show that relative fiber content has a significant impact on mechanical properties and the ratio of carbon fibers in composites is influenced by layer height and extrusion width. The tensile mechanical properties of continuous carbon fiber-reinforced composites gradually decrease with an increase of layer height and extrusion width. In addition, printing temperature and speed also affect the fiber matrix interface, i.e., tensile mechanical properties increase as the printing temperature rises, while the tensile mechanical properties decrease when the printing speed increases. Furthermore, the strengthening mechanism on the tensile mechanical properties is that external loads subjected to the components can be transferred to the carbon fibers through the fiber-matrix interface. Additionally, SEM images suggest that the main weakness of continuous carbon fiber-reinforced 3D printing composites exists in the fiber-matrix interface, and the main failure is the pull-out of the fiber caused by the interface destruction.

Many previous studies on cotton maturity used a sole parameter to rank the maturity of a cotton sample containing a large number of fibers. In light of the complexity of maturity distributions, the sole-parameter approach does not appear to be reliable and rational for cotton maturity evaluation. More distributional parameters should be examined and included in the new classification methods. This paper (1) introduces important changes in the image-analysis algorithms for cotton cross-section measurements to enhance the consistency of fiber detections in order to reduce the bias on immature fibers, (2) investigates the characteristics and patterns of cotton maturity distributions, and (3) presents the experimental results on the cross-section images selected from seven cotton varieties that have a wide range of maturities. It is found that the skewness of a maturity distribution is an essential parameter for classifying the distribution pattern and that the dead fiber content and the mature fiber content are the important distributional parameters for assessing cotton maturity.

We used RAD (restriction-site-associated DNA) sequencing to detect genome-wide SNPs and construct a dense linkage map using an intercross F₂population in jute (Corchorus olitorius). The linkage map comprising a total of 503 RAD markers in seven linkage groups spanned 358.5 cM with an average marker interval of 0.72 cM and covered 87.0 % of the genome. Genome-wide segregation distortion of the mapped loci (34.4 %) was non-random across the linkage map, with a directional bias mostly towards the female genotypes. Jute had maximum syntenic relationships with cocoa (47.5 % homology) and diploid cotton (29.2 % homology). However, synteny and collinearity were not conserved. Histological fibre content (FC; total number of fibre cell bundles in a stem cross section) was positively correlated with fibre yield (FY), plant height (PH), root weight (RW) and stem-base diameter (SBD). Broad-sense heritability estimates were high for all traits, with FC and FY showing maximum heritability (~93 %). QTL mapping based on the F₂:₃phenotypes detected nine QTL across the two environments. The QTL for FC was coincident with one QTL each for FY, PH, RW and SBD on top of a single-SNP (C/T) marker at 40.2 cM on LG1, each accounting for ~7–11 % of the phenotypic variance. Two QTL linked in repulsion one each for PH and SBD, with varying degrees of overdominance, were associated with two single-SNP (C/T) markers on LG2, each accounting for ~17–18 % of the phenotypic variance. Few candidate genes were identified within the QTL regions. Our results would enable development of tools for marker-assisted selection in jute.