Encyclopedia
Scholarly Community
Encyclopedia
Entry
Video
Image
Journal
Book
News
About
Entry
Entry
Video
Image
Log in/Sign up
Submit
Entry
Video
Image
Subject:
All Disciplines
Arts & Humanities
Biology & Life Sciences
Business & Economics
Chemistry & Materials Science
Computer Science & Mathematics
Engineering
Environmental & Earth Sciences
Medicine & Pharmacology
Physical Sciences
Public Health & Healthcare
Social Sciences
Sort:
Hottest
Latest
Alphabetical (A-Z)
Alphabetical (Z-A)
Type:
All
Topic Review
Biography
Topic Review
The Plethora of Microbes with Anti-Inflammatory Activities
Inflammation, which has important functions in human defense systems and in maintaining the dynamic homeostasis of the body, has become a major risk factor for the progression of many chronic diseases. Although the applied medical products alleviate the general status, they still exert adverse effects in the long term. For this reason, the solution should be sought in more harmless and affordable agents. Microorganisms offer a wide range of active substances with anti-inflammatory properties. They confer important advantages such as their renewable and inexhaustible nature.
161
21 Mar 2024
Topic Review
The Microbiota in Long COVID
Long COVID has emerged as a huge threat to human health and economy globally. The human microbiota plays an important role in health and disease, participating in the modulation of innate and adaptive immune responses. Thus, multiple studies have found that the nasopharyngeal microbiota is altered in COVID-19 patients, with these changes associated with the onset and/or severity of the disease. However, little is known about the involvement of the microbiota in the pathogenesis of long COVID.
240
21 Mar 2024
Topic Review
The Composition and Structure of Silk Fibroin
Silk fibroin is the principal component of raw silk and represents an extensively studied and utilized biopolymer. Silk fibroin is composed by three chains, light, heavy, and P25 protein. Heavy chain is rigorously organized in redundant aminoacidic sequences rich in glycine and alanine, secondary structure is organized in anti-parallel β-sheets that in turn form β-crystallites stacked in nano-fibrils. Those peculiar fibroin’s structural and compositional elements are crucial to determine the excellent physical properties, such as strength and toughness. Besides these characteristics, the processability and biocompatibility have attracted significant attention for the fabrication of several biomaterials suitable in many fields of application.
555
20 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Peer Reviewed
Techniques for Theoretical Prediction of Immunogenic Peptides
Small peptides are an important component of the vertebrate immune system. They are important molecules for distinguishing proteins that originate in the host from proteins derived from a pathogenic organism, such as a virus or bacterium. Consequently, these peptides are central for the vertebrate host response to intracellular and extracellular pathogens. Computational models for prediction of these peptides have been based on a narrow sample of data with an emphasis on the position and chemical properties of the amino acids. In past literature, this approach has resulted in higher predictability than models that rely on the geometrical arrangement of atoms. However, protein structure data from experiment and theory are a source for building models at scale, and, therefore, knowledge on the role of small peptides and their immunogenicity in the vertebrate immune system. The following sections introduce procedures that contribute to theoretical prediction of peptides and their role in immunogenicity. Lastly, deep learning is discussed as it applies to immunogenetics and the acceleration of knowledge by a capability for modeling the complexity of natural phenomena.
394
20 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Major Mycotoxins in Animal Feed
Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by fungi especially those belonging to the genus Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium. Mycotoxin contamination can occur in all agricultural commodities in the field and/or during storage, if conditions are favourable to fungal growth. Regarding animal feed, five mycotoxins (aflatoxins, deoxynivalenol, zearalenone, fumonisins and ochratoxin A) are covered by the EU legislation (regulation or recommendation). Transgressions of these limits are rarely observed in official monitoring programs. However, low level contamination by Fusarium toxins is very common (e.g., deoxynivalenol - DON - is typically found in more than 50% of the samples) and co-contamination is frequently observed. Multi-mycotoxin studies reported 75%–100% of the samples to contain more than one mycotoxin which could impact animal health at already low doses.
168
20 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Types and General Role of Organic Amendments
Salinity and metal stress are significant abiotic factors that negatively influence plant growth and development. These factors lead to diminished agricultural yields on a global scale. Organic amendments have emerged as a potential solution for mitigating the adverse effects of salinity and metal stress on plants. When plants experience these stresses, they produce reactive oxygen species, which can impair protein synthesis and damage cellular membranes. Organic amendments, including biochar, vermicompost, green manure, and farmyard manure, have been shown to facilitate soil nitrogen uptake, an essential component for protein synthesis, and enhance various plant processes such as metabolism, protein accumulation, and antioxidant activities. Researchers have observed that the application of organic amendments improves plant stress tolerance, plant growth, and yield.
309
19 Mar 2024
Topic Review
In Vitro Growth of Human Follicles
Ovarian tissue cryopreservation is gaining importance as a successful method to restore fertility to girls and young women at high risk of sterility. However, there are concerns regarding the safety of transplantation after ovarian tissue cryopreservation due to the high risk of reintroducing cancer cells and causing disease recurrence. In these cases, the development of culture systems that support oocyte development from the primordial follicle stage is required.
187
19 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Functional Foods and Beverages with Promising Gut-Health-Related Outcomes
The notion of food as medicine can be traced back thousands of years, when the use of plants, herbs, and foods to treat disease and restore health was commonplace. Today, it is well understood that diet interacts with human physiology and health. Healthy dietary patterns that favour plant-based foods have been shown to offset the risk of chronic disease. Furthermore, components of plant-based diets have been shown to influence human physiology via effects on the gut microbiome. The innovation opportunity to design functional foods to support a resilient gut microbiota with a view to safeguarding against wider pathologies associated with gut dysbiosis extends the concept of functional foods into a new sphere. Bioactive food ingredients, through their interactions with the gut microbiota, may contribute to microbiota resilience, thus supporting the body’s adaptive capacity.
78
19 Mar 2024
Topic Review
SARS-CoV-2 and Other Respiratory Viruses in Olfactory Pathophysiology
Acute respiratory viruses (ARVs) are the leading cause of diseases in humans worldwide. High-risk individuals, including children and the elderly, could potentially develop severe illnesses that could result in hospitalization or death in the worst case. The most common ARVs are the Human respiratory syncytial virus, Human Metapneumovirus, Human Parainfluenza Virus, rhinovirus, coronaviruses (including SARS and MERS CoV), adenoviruses, Human Bocavirus, enterovirus (-D68 and 71), and influenza viruses. The olfactory deficits due to ARV infection are a common symptom among patients.
114
18 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Long Non-Coding RNAs in Neurodegenerative Diseases
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are novel genetic biomarkers that can be used as exclusionary tools specific to Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs). These historical biomarkers have been there for years, so a change in the approach is necessary to better diagnose and treat these NDDs.
123
18 Mar 2024
Page
of
1746
Featured Entry Collections
>>
Featured Books
>>
Encyclopedia of Social Sciences
Chief Editor:
Michael McAleer
Encyclopedia of COVID-19
Chief Editor:
Stephen Bustin
Encyclopedia of Fungi
Chief Editor:
Luis V. Lopez-Llorca
Encyclopedia of Digital Society, Industry 5.0 and Smart City
Chief Editor:
Sandro Serpa
Entry
Video
Image
Journal
Book
News
About
Log in/Sign up
New Entry
New Video
New Images
About
Terms and Conditions
Privacy Policy
Advisory Board
Contact
Partner
Video Production Service
Feedback
Top
Feedback
×
Help Center
Browse our user manual, common Q&A, author guidelines, etc.
Rate your experience
Let us know your experience and what we could improve.
Report an error
Is something wrong? Please let us know!
Other feedback
Other feedback you would like to report.
×
Did you find what you were looking for?
Love
Like
Neutral
Dislike
Hate
0
/500
Email
Do you agree to share your valuable feedback publicly on
Encyclopedia
’s homepage?
Yes, I agree. Encyclopedia can post it.
No, I do not agree. I would not like to post my testimonial.
Webpage
Upload a screenshot
(Max file size 2MB)
Submit
Back
Close
×