Jie Zhang

Microalgae are huge natural sources of high-value compounds with health-promoting properties. The carotenoids derived from microalgae have significant antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, which allow them to provide health benefits. In this article, the bioactivities of microalgal carotenoids are reviewed. Emphasis is placed on astaxanthin, a ketocarotenoid with extraordinary potential for protecting against a wide range of diseases.

Abstract African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a large, double-stranded DNA virus and the sole member of the Asfarviridae family. ASFV infects domestic pigs, wild boars, warthogs, and bush pigs, as well as soft ticks ( Ornithodoros erraticus ), which likely act as a vector. The major target is swine monocyte-macrophage cells. The virus can cause high fever, haemorrhagic lesions, cyanosis, anorexia, and even fatalities in domestic pigs. Currently, there is no vaccine and effective disease control strategies against its spread are culling infected pigs and maintaining high biosecurity standards. African swine fever (ASF) spread to Europe from Africa in the middle of the 20 th century, and later also to South America and the Caribbean. Since then, ASF has spread more widely and thus is still a great challenge for swine breeding. The genome of ASFV ranges in length from about 170 to 193 kbp depending on the isolate and contains between 150 and 167 open reading frames (ORFs). The ASFV genome encodes 150 to 200 proteins, around 50 of them structural. The roles of virus structural proteins in viral infection have been described. These proteins, such as pp220, pp62, p72, p54, p30, and CD2v, serve as the major component of virus particles and have roles in attachment, entry, and replication. All studies on ASFV proteins lay a good foundation upon which to clarify the infection mechanism and develop vaccines and diagnosis methods. In this paper, the roles of ASFV structural proteins in viral infection are reviewed.

Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1), a group 1 carcinogen, is a risk factor to be monitored in milk. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of AFM1 in milk in Xinjiang, China, and to assess the risk of exposure for milk consumers in different age-sex groups. A total of 259 milk samples including pasteurized milk (93 samples), extended-shelf-life (ESL) milk (96), and raw donkey milk (70) were collected in Xinjiang from January to March in 2022. The AFM1 content of the milk samples was detected using a validated ELISA method. Of the 259 total samples analyzed for AFM1, 84 (32.4%) samples were contaminated at levels greater than the detection limit of 5 ng/L, with the maximum level of 16.5 ng/L. The positive rates of AFM1 in pasteurized milk and ESL milk were 43.0% (n = 40) and 45.8% (n = 44), respectively, and AFM1 was undetectable in donkey milk. The estimated daily intakes of AFM1 in each age group were lower than the hazard limits and were similar between male and female milk consumers. Therefore, the AFM1 contamination of milk in Xinjiang is low but still needs to be continuously monitored considering that children are susceptible to AFM1.