Carotenoids, ergosterol and tocopherols in fresh and preserved herbage and their transfer to bovine milk fat and adipose tissues: A review

Abstract The requirements of cattle for the fat-soluble vitamins A, D and E, their provitamins and some carotenoids have increased under conditions of intensive husbandry with insufficient provision of fresh forage, their cheapest natural source. Moreover, bovine milk fat and adipose tissues participate in the intake of these micronutrients by humans. Four major carotenoids occurring in forage crops are lutein, all-trans-β-carotene, zeaxanthin and epilutein. Fresh forage is their richest source. Losses are significantly higher in hay as compared with silage, particularly if prepared from unwilted herbage. Maize silage is a poor source of carotenoids as compared with ensiled grasses and legumes. Ergosterol contents in forages increase under environmental conditions favourable for the growing of moulds, particularly at higher humidity and lower temperatures. Credible data on changes of ergosterol during herbage preservation, particularly drying and ensiling, have been lacking. Alpha-tocopherol is the most important among eight related compounds marked as vitamin E. It is vulnerable to oxidation and herbage ensiling is thus a safer preservation method than haymaking. As with carotenoids, maize silage is a poor source of α-tocopherol. Overall, information on factors affecting the content of ergosterol and tocopherols in fresh herbage, on changes during forage preservation and on transfer to bovine fats has been much more limited than data for β-carotene

Mycoremediation of Flotation Tailings with Agaricus bisporus

Due to their enzymatic and bioaccumulation faculties the use of macromycetes for the decontamination of polluted matrices seems reasonable for bioremediation. For this reason, the aim of our study was to evaluate the mycoremediation ability of Agaricus bisporus cultivated on compost mixed with flotation tailings in different quantities (1, 5, 10, 15, and 20% addition). The biomass of the fruit bodies and the content of 51 major and trace elements were determined. Cultivation of A. bisporus in compost moderately polluted with flotation tailings yielded significantly lower (the first flush) and higher (the second flush) biomass of fruit bodies, compared with the control treatment. The presence of toxic trace elements did not cause any visible adverse symptoms for A. bisporus. Increasing the addition of flotation tailings to the compost induced an elevated level of most determined elements. A significant increase in rare earth elements (both flushes) and platinum group elements (first flush only) was observed. The opposite situation was recorded for major essential elements, except for Na and Mg in A. bisporus from the second flush under the most enriched compost (20%). Nevertheless, calculated bioaccumulation factor values showed a selective accumulation capacity—limited for toxic elements (except for Ag, As, and Cd) and the effective accumulation of B, Cu, K, and Se. The obtained results confirmed that A. bisporus can be used for practical application in mycoremediation in the industry although this must be preceded by larger-scale tests. This application seems to be the most favorable for media contaminated with selected elements, whose absorption by fruiting bodies is the most efficient

Influence of Iron Addition (Alone or with Calcium) to Elements Biofortification and Antioxidants in Pholiota nameko

Mushrooms supplementation with iron (Fe) is usually limited, and therefore it would be beneficial to search for other vital elements able to improve the process. The aim of this study was to verify a possible interaction between Fe and calcium (Ca) to estimate the role of the addition of the latter metal to stimulate Fe accumulation in Pholiota nameko. Additionally, an analysis of phenolic compounds and low molecular weight organic acids (LMWOAs) was performed. The increase of Fe concentration in the substrate caused a significantly higher accumulation of this metal in P. nameko. The addition of Ca (5 or 10 mM) stimulated Fe accumulation, just as Fe concentration in the substrate stimulated Ca accumulation, which pointed to a synergism between these metals. The obtained results show that the presence of Fe in the substrate may also promote K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, and S accumulation. In contrast, the addition of Ca stimulates and/or inhibits their content in fruit bodies. The phenolic and organic acids profile was poor. Only gallic, 4-hydroxybenzoic, sinapic and syringic acids (phenolics), as well as citric and succinic acids (LMWOAs), were quantified in some combinations in P. nameko fruiting bodies

Levels of platinum group elements and rare-earth elements in wild mushroom species growing in Poland

<p>Due to limited data-describing abilities of mushrooms to accumulate platinum group elements (PGEs) and rare-earth elements (REEs), the aim of this study was to determine, by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry followed by microwave-assisted sample digestion by nitric acid, the content of these elements in 20 mushroom species (10 above ground and 10 growing on wood), mostly edible, collected near a busy trunk road. The highest content of PGEs in above-ground mushroom species was observed in <i>Lepista gilva</i> and <i>Suillus bovinus</i> fruit bodies (0.38 ± 0.05 and 0.37 ± 0.03 mg kg⁻¹ DW, respectively), while in mushrooms growing on wood, the highest content was observed in <i>Pleurotus ostreatus</i> (0.35 ± 0.04 mg kg⁻¹ DW). The mean content of PGEs for both these groups was 0.23 ± 0.08 and 0.26 ± 0.07 mg kg⁻¹ DW, respectively. The highest content of REEs in <i>Suillus luteus</i> and <i>Tricholoma equestra</i> was 5.03 ± 0.50 and 2.18 ± 0.56 mg kg⁻¹ DW, respectively, but within mushrooms growing on wood in <i>Ganoderma applanatum</i> fruiting bodies it was 4.19 ± 0.78 mg kg⁻¹ DW. Mean contents of REEs were 1.39 ± 1.21 and 1.61 ± 0.97 mg kg⁻¹ DW in above-ground species and species growing on wood, respectively. Generally, the group of mushroom species growing on wood was capable of slightly higher accumulation of both REEs and PGEs. No limits have been established for both the groups until now.</p

Influence of Iron Addition (Alone or with Calcium) to Elements Biofortification and Antioxidants in <i>Pholiota nameko</i>

Mushrooms supplementation with iron (Fe) is usually limited, and therefore it would be beneficial to search for other vital elements able to improve the process. The aim of this study was to verify a possible interaction between Fe and calcium (Ca) to estimate the role of the addition of the latter metal to stimulate Fe accumulation in Pholiota nameko. Additionally, an analysis of phenolic compounds and low molecular weight organic acids (LMWOAs) was performed. The increase of Fe concentration in the substrate caused a significantly higher accumulation of this metal in P. nameko. The addition of Ca (5 or 10 mM) stimulated Fe accumulation, just as Fe concentration in the substrate stimulated Ca accumulation, which pointed to a synergism between these metals. The obtained results show that the presence of Fe in the substrate may also promote K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, and S accumulation. In contrast, the addition of Ca stimulates and/or inhibits their content in fruit bodies. The phenolic and organic acids profile was poor. Only gallic, 4-hydroxybenzoic, sinapic and syringic acids (phenolics), as well as citric and succinic acids (LMWOAs), were quantified in some combinations in P. nameko fruiting bodies