Boron nanoparticles (BNs) have been used to enhance the quality of pomegranate fruits, but high sodium (Na + ) concentrations in the plant tissues cause oxidative stress and lessen the impact of BNs. The current study aims to study the mechanism of reducing Na + uptake by pomegranate trees through adding biochar rich in macronutrients (MNB) such as potassium (K) and calcium (Ca), which makes BNs spraying more effective in improving the fruit quality. Pomegranate trees planted in a sandy soil and irrigated with saline water (6.18 dS m 1 uptake sprayed with BNs (0, 25, 50, 100 mg L 1 ). MNB was added to the soil at the doses of 0 or 5 kg tree 1 ) were . A two- season field experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with five replications. In comparison to the control, MNB resulted in a 14 and 17% increase in soil organic carbon and CEC, respectively. MNB increased the soil’s available N, P, Ca, and K by 25, 23, 20, and 20%, and increased the uptake of these nutrients by 20, 40, 11, and 19% as compared with the control treatment. MNB and BNs significantly increased the fruit yield and quality compared to the control. MNB significantly increased the K + /Na and 59%, respectively, while significantly reducing the leaf-Na + + and Ca ++ /Na + ratios by 69 by 30%. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) were mitigated by MNB, which also strengthened antioxidant defences and increased the plant’s ability to produce chlorophyll. The foliar spray of BNs significantly increased the leaf-chlorophyll, soluble carbohydrates, relative water content, and proline in pomegranate plants. BNs and MNB significantly reduced the fruit cracking, and improved the quality characteristics, i.e., vitamin C, anthocyanin, and total sugar. The efficiency of BNs in decreasing the negative effects of salt stress on pomegranate productivity was improved by the soil application of MNB. The use of foliar spraying with BNs alone is not advised; instead, an integrated parenteral management strategy that relies on the addition of organic amendments, such as macronutrient-rich biochar, to the arid degraded soils, is required, especially under saline conditions.   

Banana is one of the plants with low salt tolerance and raising its ability to withstand salt stress contributes to increasing its production. Silicon (Si) is one of the important elements in increasing the salt stress resistance in plants. Therefore, Si-rich biochar has been suggested to improve the salt resistance of Williams (WL) and Grand Nain (GN) banana cultivars. Water salinity (tap water, 2, 4, and 6 dS m⁻¹) and Si-rich biochar with low (LSiB) or high rate (HSiB) in a pot experiment were studied. Si-rich biochar significantly mitigated the salt stress and improved the growth of WL and GN banana cultivars. Si-rich biochar was effective in enhancing chlorophyll, carotenoids, calcium (Ca⁺⁺) and potassium (K⁺) in banana leaves. HSiB was more effective than LSiB in mitigating the accumulation of sodium (Na⁺) in the plant leaves. HSiB raised the phenolic, carbohydrate, and proline in WL leaf tissues by 35, 49, and 14%, while these increases were 20%, 44%, and 21% in the case of GN cultivar. Banana leaves exposed to salt stress had higher levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), while Si-rich biochar reduced those levels. Antioxidant enzymes activity were raised by salt stress, and HSiB performed better than LSiB at boosting antioxidant enzyme activity. The production of osmo-protectants such as phenols, carbohydras, and proline were higher in the banana plants treated with HSiB compared to LSiB ones. Si-rich biochar mitigated the salt stress by increasing the uptake of Ca and K, improving the antioxidant defense, and enhancing the production of combatable solutes.

Saline agriculture offers promising opportunities for the production of halophytic forage crops under arid and semi-arid climatic conditions. The Mediterranean saltbush (Atriplex halimus L.), a halophytic forage plant that can withstand a variety of harsh climatic conditions, is affected by seasonal climate changes in terms of growth and productivity. The objective of the current study is to comprehend how climatic changes affect the Mediterranean saltbush’s growth and productivity in semi-arid environments. Plant samples were collected every 3 months from the Mediterranean saltbush cultivated on saline sandy loam soil (15 dS m⁻¹). Biomass yields, nutritional value, and biochemical components were recorded. The studied plant produced 8.55 Mg ha⁻¹ of dried stems and leaves yearly, with the leaves contributing 31% of the plant’s overall dry yield. The dried stems and leaves yield of the Mediterranean saltbush declined by 50 and 45% in the summer season compared to the spring. The summer leaves of the Mediterranean saltbush had higher concentrations of Na, K, and Cl than the winter leaves. In contrast to chlorophyll concentrations, which increased in the spring and decreased throughout the other growing seasons, proline concentrations in the leaf tissues changed throughout the year in the opposite direction. The Mediterranean saltbush reduced the chlorophyll and relative water content in the summer months and increased the leaf Na, K, Cl, and proline. The Mediterranean saltbush plants regulate the proline levels as well as some ions like Na, K, and Cl to achieve an osmotic adjustment in the leaf’s tissues. The Mediterranean saltbush plants can produce fodder that is high in protein, nutrients, and nutritional value under conditions of extremely salty soil and irrigation water. These results provide a good opportunity to exploit water and saline lands in the production of animal feed, which helps in implementing sustainable development plans in semi-arid regions.

Water scarcity imposes significant constraints on fruit production, especially in arid and semi-arid regions. Deficit water, as one of the policies used in enhancing water use efficiency, leads to growth reduction and adversely affects the quality of mango fruit yield. The current study aims to investigate the role of Azolla as a biofertilizer in mitigating the negative effects of water stress on mango (Mangifera indica L. cv. Eiwas). A field experiment consisting of 4 different treatments (2 irrigation regimes and 2 Azolla treatments) was conducted in a randomized complete block design with five replicates. Mango trees (12 years old) were irrigated at 80% of the available soil water (normal irrigation) or at 50% of the available soil water (deficit irrigation). Dried Azolla (0 or 5 t ha⁻¹) was added to the soil. Mango tree growth and fruit yield were significantly reduced due to the deficit irrigation. In the first year, deficit irrigation reduced the available soil nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) by 35, 23, and 20%, respectively, and by 39, 21, and 18% in the second year. The addition of Azolla alleviated water stress and increased nutrient availability and uptake. The addition of Azolla to water-stressed mango plants increased N, P, and K uptake by 25, 25, and 22%, respectively, in the first year and by 33, 22, and 23%, respectively, in the second year. Keeping soil moisture at 50% of the available soil water had a negative impact on mango fruit quality characteristics. Water stress reduced the total soluble solids, total sugar, vitamin C, and pulp by 18, 16, 14, and 8%, respectively (average of 2 years). The addition of Azolla to mango plants under deficit irrigation increased water use efficiency (WUE) by 30 and 27% in the first and second years, respectively, while these increases were 14 and 33% under normal irrigation. The mechanisms employed by Azolla to lessen the detrimental effects of water stress on mango trees in this study include increased leaf area, protection of photosynthesis pigments, and increased secretion of substances that aid in water stress resistance, such as proline. The use of Azolla as a dry manure in arid-degraded soil reduces water stress on mango trees while increasing yield and fruit quality.

Nutritional quality including gross chemical composition (moisture, protein, fat, and ash), mineral content, amino acid composition as well as fatty acid composition were investigated in ostrich meat and edible offal as well as characteristics of fat tissue. Ostrich (Struthio Camelus) meat and edible offal (liver, gizzard, and heart) had a considerable amount of protein (ranged from 16.54 to 20.80 % on wet wight basis), iron and zinc with low caloric value (ranged from 87.86 to 117.20 kcal/100g on wet basis) and sodium content (ranged from 57.85 to 90.01 mg/100g on wet weight basis). Methionine, lysin, and threonine were the predominant essential amino acids in ostrich meat and its giblets. The total essential amino acids were ranged from 37.15 to 47.20 g/ 100g crude protein. Moreover, alanine was the predominant non-essential amino acid followed by arginine in ostrich meat and its edible offal. On other hand, more than half of fatty acids in ostrich meat and most of its giblets are unsaturated fatty acids with discrimination of oleic and linoleic acids. Moreover, the total poly unsaturated fatty acids to saturated fatty acids ratio (P/S ratio) for ostrich meat was 0.53 and it agrees with recommendation of WHO in foods which was 0.4 to 0.5. The total lipids of ostrich meat and its edible offal fractionated to seven fractions while, its phospholipids fractionated to eight fractions. Moreover, ostrich fat tissue characteristics indicated its suitability for nutrition

The present study aimed to investigate the regulation of placentas and uterus remodeling and involvement of estradiol in gestational diabetes mellitus. To achieve this, we established in vitro and in vivo models for gestational diabetes mellitus placentas by culturing human placental choriocarcinoma cells (BeWo) under hyperglycemic concentration and treating pregnant rats with streptozotocin. We evaluated the expression of angiogenesis-related proteins. The expression of the anti-angiogenic factor, excess placental soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 was increased in our in vitro gestational diabetes mellitus model compared with the control. Moreover, the expressions of placental soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 and the von Willebrand factor were also significantly elevated in the placenta of streptozotocin-treated rats. These data indicate the disruption of angiogenesis in the gestational diabetes mellitus …

The present study investigated the anti‑melanogenic activity of 10 essential oils using the B16F10 cell model. Initially, a wide range of concentrations of these essential oils were screened in order to determine their toxicity levels. The assigned non‑toxic concentrations of the tested essential oils were then used to evaluate their effects on melanogenesis. The effects of the essential oils with potent anti‑melanogenic activity on cell proliferation, protection against H 2 O 2‑induced cell death and the expression of certain melanogenesis‑related genes, including MITF, tyrosinase, tyrosinase related protein (TRP)‑1 and TRP‑2 were also evaluated. The results revealed that the essential oils extracted from Citrus unshiu, Juniperus chinensis L., Zanthoxylum piperitum and Artemisia capillaris (A. capillaris) inhibited melanogenesis. However, among these four extracts, only A. capillaris extract enhanced cell proliferation …

Soil suitability assessment is critical for sustainable land use planning. The area east of Edfu in Aswan governorate is important for agriculture production. Therefore, this study aimed to determine, assess, and map the soil suitability for growing selected twenty crops in the study area using the ASLE program. Twenty sampling sites in east Edfu representing an area of 7166.52 ha were chosen for the current study. All sampled site coordinates were recorded using (GPS) and then plotted on a map using ArcGIS. Soil samples were collected from each site at a depth of 0–60 cm. Moreover, the soil physical and chemical characteristics (e.g., soil texture, soil depth, CaCO3, ECe and ESP) that are substantially related to the potential land use and their limitations were determined. Furthermore, the spatial distribution maps of soil suitability of all the selected crops were produced employing ArcGIS software. The results revealed that soils under study are characterized by a coarse texture, as the dominant texture classes were loamy sand and sandy loam. Concerning the soil depth, the soils of the investigated sites have a moderate limitation for agricultural land use. The lime content is less than 10% in most of the studied soil sites. Most of these soils have slight to moderate limitations for salinity. For soil sodicity (ESP), about 90 % of the total study area has an ESP value that is less than 15%. The results are also revealed, sunflower, watermelon, pepper, sorghum, maize, sugarbeet, potato, tomato, are suitable and moderately suitable crops for these soils.