Aspergillus flavus is among the most resilient fungi, causing significant losses in the quantity and quality of agricultural food commodities. It often produces aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), a Class 1 human carcinogen that poses a serious threat to human and animal health. The present study investigated the potential of a chemically characterized essential oil-based formulation, ZTC (a synergistic mixture of Zingiber officinale (ZOEO), Trachyspermum ammi (TAEO), and Coleus aromaticus (CEO)) against the growth and aflatoxin B1 production by the toxigenic species Aspergillus flavus. The ZTC formulation demonstrated in vitro and in situ antifungal effects (0.4 μL/mL) and aflatoxin inhibition (0.3 μL/mL) against A. flavus. At the cellular level, ZTC disrupted ergosterol biosynthesis, compromised membrane integrity, impaired mitochondrial potential, and altered redox homeostasis. Integrated transcriptomic and biochemical analyses indicated coordinated downregulation of glycolysis, the TCA cycle, ATP production, and sterol and fatty acid biosynthesis. This led to energy deficiency, membrane destabilization, induction of oxidative stress, and inhibition of aflatoxin B1 biosynthesis by suppressing gene expression and disrupting key enzymes, thereby reducing AFB1 at sublethal concentrations. The findings highlight the multi-target mechanism of action of the developed formulation, ZTC, against fungal growth and aflatoxin B1 contamination, and recommend it as a promising candidate for eco-friendly and sustainable antifungal agents.

CRISPR technology, which is derived from the bacterial adaptive immune system, has transformed traditional genetic engineering techniques, made strain engineering significantly easier, and become a very versatile genome editing system that allows for precise, programmable modifications to a wide range of microbial genomes. The economies of fermentation-based manufacturing are changing because of its quick acceptance in both academic and industry labs. CRISPR processes have been used to modify industrially significant bacteria, including the lactic acid producers, Clostridium spp., Escherichia coli, and Corynebacterium glutamicum, in order to increase the yields of bioethanol, butanol, succinic acid, acetone, and polyhydroxyalkanoate precursors. CRISPR-mediated promoter engineering and single-step multiplex editing have improved inhibitor tolerance, raised ethanol titers, and allowed for the de novo synthesis of terpenoids, flavonoids, and recombinant vaccines in yeasts, especially Saccharomyces cerevisiae and emerging non-conventional species. While enzyme and biopharmaceutical manufacturing use CRISPR for quick strain optimization and glyco-engineering, food and beverage fermentations benefit from starter-culture customization for aroma, texture, and probiotic functionality. Off-target effects, cytotoxicity linked to Cas9, inefficient delivery in specific microorganisms, and regulatory ambiguities in commercial fermentation settings are some of the main challenges. This review provides an industry-specific summary of CRISPR–Cas9 applications in microbial fermentation and highlights technical developments, persisting challenges, and industrial advancements.

Microbial food spoilage caused by food-borne bacteria, molds, and associated toxic chemicals significantly alters the nutritional quality of food products and makes them unpalatable to the consumer. In view of potential adverse effects (resistance development, residual toxicity, and negative effects on consumer health) of some of the currently used preservative agents and consumer preferences towards safe, minimally processed, and chemical-free products, food industries are looking for natural alternatives to the chemical preservatives. In this context, essential oils (EOs) showed broad-range antimicrobial effectiveness, low toxicity, and diverse mechanisms of action, and could be considered promising natural plant-based antimicrobials. The existing technical barriers related to the screening of plants, extraction methods, characterization, dose optimization, and unpredicted mechanism of toxicity in the food system, could be overcome using recent scientific and technological advancements, especially bioinformatics, nanotechnology, and mathematical approaches. The review focused on the potential antimicrobial efficacy of EOs against food-borne microbes and the role of recent scientific technology and social networking platform in addressing the major obstacles with EOs-based antimicrobial agents. In addition, a detailed mechanistic understanding of the antimicrobial efficacy of EOs, safety profile, and risk assessment using bioinformatics approaches are summarized to explore their potential application as food preservatives.

The present investigation explored the antifungal effectiveness of Trachyspermum ammi essential oil (TAEO) against Aspergillus flavus, aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) contamination, and its mechanism of action using biochemical and computational approaches. The GC-MS result revealed the chemical diversity of TAEO with the highest percentage of gamma-terpinene (39 %). The TAEO exhibited minimum inhibitory concentration against A. flavus growth (0.5 mu L/mL) and AFB1 (0.4 mu L/mL) with radical scavenging activity (IC50 = 2.13 mu L/mL). The mechanism of action of TAEO was associated with the alteration in plasma membrane functioning, antioxidative defense, and carbon source catabolism. The molecular dynamic result shows the multi-regime binding of gamma-terpinene with the target proteins (Nor1, Omt1, and Vbs) of AFB1 biosynthesis. Furthermore, TAEO exhibited remarkable in-situ protection of Sorghum bicolor seed samples against A. flavus and AFB1 contamination and protected the nutritional deterioration. Hence, the study recommends TAEO as a natural antifungal agent for food protection against A. flavus mediated biodeterioration.

The utilization of perovskite and crystalline-silicon (c-Si) light absorbers in multijunction solar cells presents an exciting opportunity to surpass the efficiency limit of the industry's leading single-junction c-Si solar cells. In this work, we used the Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator (SCAPS-1D) to simulate a monolithic tandem junction solar cell. The solar cell consists of two types of materials: low bandgap and high bandgap. These are layers of perovskites and Si, divided by a window layer of zinc oxide (ZnO), a buffer layer of cadmium sulfide (CdS), a recombination layer of Spiro-MeOTAD/silicon, and a heavily doped back surface field layer formed from n++Si to prevent recombination at the back surface. The impact of di fferent series and shunt resistances, as well as perovskite layer thickness and bandgap, on solar cells' photovoltaic performance has been investigated.

Nowadays, biopeptides have gained considerable interest by the food industries, given their potent biological effect on health. BPs, when released from the sequence of their precursors by proteolytic enzymes, improved the various physiological functions of the body. Diabetic and hypertension are the two most common life-threatening diseases linked to dietary patterns. Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) (hypertension-responsible glycoprotein) and dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) (proline-specific dimeric aminopeptidase) have been widely used as molecular target sites of action of bioactive compounds possessing antihypertensive and antidiabetic effects. Although, BPs possess considerable biological properties (antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiviral, immunomodulating, antiproliferative, antidiabetic, and antihypertensive effects), most of them possess inherent lacunae such as toxicity, allergenicity, bitterness, and lack of detailed mechanistic investigation, limiting their commercial application. The present review provides an overview on various sources of bioactive peptides, conventional and modern methods of extraction, and challenges that need to be addressed before its commercial application. In addition, bioinformatics' role in exploring the functional properties of biopeptides (ACE and DPP-IV inhibitory effects) toxicity, the target site of action with special reference to plant-based peptides, and recent burgeoning proficiencies in biopeptide research have been discussed.

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), a potent natural group 1 carcinogen produced by Aspergillus flavus is considered an un-avoidable toxic contaminant of herbal raw materials, which often deteriorates their active ingredients making them less effective and hazardous during their formulation in herbal drugs. The present investigation reports the antifungal (0.5 mu l/ml) and AFB1 inhibitory (0.4 mu l/ml) effects of the developed formulation CIM based on a mixture of essential oils (Carum carvi, and Illicium verum), and methyl anthranilate using mathematical modeling. The insight into the mechanism of action has also been explored using biochemical, molecular docking, and RT-PCR. Further, the nanoencapsulation of CIM (Ne-CIM) was prepared using a green facile synthesis of chitosan-based nanomatrix and characterized by Dynamic light scattering (DLS), Fourier transform-infrared, (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD). The in-situ results showed that at MIC doses Ne-CIM effectively controls the A. flavus (81.25-89.57 %), AFB1 contamination (100 %), and protects the active ingredients deterioration of Piper nigrum, P. longum, Andrographis paniculata, Silybum marianum, and Withania somnifera caused by toxigenic species of A. flavus without affecting their sensory properties. Hence, Ne-CIM could be used as a green chemical agent to protect the biodeterioration of active ingredients of herbal raw materials caused by toxigenic species of A. flavus.

Bioinformatics has been established as a multidisciplinary research area bringing about a paradigm shift in the discipline of biological researches. In silico resources made biologists to treat the huge and heterogeneous amount of bio-digital data in rapid mode to predict models for real-life applications. Its application in the biomedical field has been well explored; however, the significance of computational studies has remained underappreciated in food and nutritional sciences, despite their data-rich attributes. In the present study, a broader framework of bioinformatics in food sciences was discussed, especially plant-based databases, third-generation sequencing, genome assembly, and annotation. In addition, its role in the elucidation of the probable mechanism of action against foodborne microbes, recent advances, associated challenges, and future perspectives have also been discussed.

Herbal raw materials have been widely utilized around the world since antiquity, especially for primary health care. They have been acknowledged for their superior therapeutic value over contemporary medications. The diverse indigenous systems of medicine in India such as Siddha, Ayurveda, Unani, and Allopathy employ many herbal formulations to cure different types of diseases. Herbal raw materials are important as traditional remedies and as trade commodities that satisfy the needs of far-flung markets. During postharvest storage, the raw materials of herbal drugs are prone to contamination by different microorganisms and their associated toxic chemicals that deteriorate the active principles of drugs and make them unsafe for consumption. Nanoencapsulated plant essential oils (EOs) could be used as a green preservative agent for herbal raw materials against the microbes and their associated toxins. The present chapter deals with the therapeutic efficacy of herbal raw materials, possible toxic contaminants, and their management by using nanoencapsulated plant EOs. In addition, it also highlights the current challenges and future perspectives that lie in the use of herbal raw materials in the global market.

Essential oils (EOs) are complex mixtures of volatile secondary metabolites extracted from different parts of aromatic plants such as leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds. They are also referred to as aromatic oils. In general, EOs are cocktail of different low-molecular-weight compounds, such as flavonoids, terpenoids, terpenes, and phenylpropanoids. They represent a diverse class of stereochemistry that results in a range of medicinal properties, viz., antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral effects. Additionally, Eos are biodegradable and hardly affect non-targeted species, which can be beneficial in delaying the development of resistance. EOs have been used for a long time in various areas such as food, medicine, cosmetics, and aromatherapy. However, due to certain limitations associated with them such as high volatility, intense aroma, and chemotypic variation, etc., they were replaced by chemical alternatives that were more efficient and better in terms of bioactivity. However, in view of green consumerism and the increased negative concerns (non-biodegradability and the adverse effects of their by-products on the environment and human health) associated with the indiscriminate use of synthetic chemicals, industries are looking toward green chemicals as a preferred alternative to synthetic ones.

The study reported the antimicrobial efficacy of chemically characterized Coleus aromaticus essential oil (CEO) against food-borne bacteria, molds (Aspergillus flavus), aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and explored its mechanism of action using biochemical and molecular simulation approaches. The chemical profile of CEO was explored by Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis, which revealed thymol (46.0%) as the major compound. The minimum inhibitory concentration values of CEO for bacterial species Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, Bacillus cereus, and Shigella flexneri was found to be 0.9 mu l/ml, 0.7 mu l/ml, 0.16 mu l/ml, and 0.12 mu l/ml respectively. The MIC value for A. flavus and AFB1 contamination was 0.6 mu l/ml. The DPPH radical scavenging activity of CEO was recorded with IC50 0.32 mu l/ml. Biochemical and computational approaches (docking and dynamics simu-lation) have been performed to explore the multi-faceted antimicrobial inhibitory effects of CEO at the molecular level, which shows the impairment in membrane functioning, leakage of cellular contents, release of 260-nm absorbing materials, antioxidative defense, carbon catabolism and vital genes (7AP3, Nor1, Omt1, and Vbs). The findings indicated that CEO could be used as natural antimicrobial agents against food-spoilage bacteria, A. flavus and AFB1 contamination to extend the shelf-life of food product and prevention of food-borne diseases.

Botanical pesticides have been used for the control of agricultural pests since antiquity, especially in biodiversity-rich countries. However, so far very limited products based on botanicals are commercially available due to lack of practical evidence, availability of raw materials at affordable prices, chemical standardization, the molecular mechanism of action, and strict legislation. The recent reports on the negative effects of currently used synthetic insecticides, and antimicrobial agents on health and the environment, revitalize the interest of agri-food industries towards the development of plant-based pesticidal agents for the sustainable management of storage pests. The current advancement in science and technology could overcome the limitations of botanicals, thus, in the past few years, insecticidal and antimicrobial properties of botanicals have been widely explored as a potential eco-friendly alternative to synthetic pesticides. In the present review, we summarise the potential of botanicals against insect pests and microbial contamination of stored food grain. Further, the elucidation of the probable mechanism of toxicity, safety profile, and ecological risk assessment has been explored using computation tools. In addition, current existing limitations and the need for further research to develop eco-friendly plant-based pesticides for sustainable management of stored food grain and their shelved products have been discussed.

The chitosan nanomatrix incorporated with Cymbopogon citratus essential oil (Ne-CcEO) possess enhanced efficacy against the food-borne molds and aflatoxin B-1 production compared to free essential oil. The CcEO was encapsulated inside the chitosan nanomatrix with an average size 147.41 +/- 16.18 nm and characterized by Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction assay. The encapsulation efficiency and loading capacity were ranged between (41.68-76.78%) and (5.3-8.80%). The biochemical and in-silico analysis results revealed the interference in functioning of membrane integrity, mitochondria) membrane potential, antioxidant defense, carbon source metabolism, methylglyoxal, and laeA gene in response to treatment of Ne-CcEO (0.5 mu l/ml). In addition, Ne-CcEO significantly protects the deterioration of Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br. seed samples by A. fiavus, aflatoxin B-1 contamination, and lipid peroxidation. The Ne-CcEO could be considered as promising antifungal additives for the control of food-borne molds and aflatoxin B-1 contamination in the food system.

Over the past few centuries, the rhizosphere has been drawn the attention of the scientific community because of its dynamic structure and function. It is a narrow-zoned vital space that holds the complex ecosystem comprising diverse microbes including fungi, bacteria, protists, nematodes and invertebrates. It is one of the most dynamic interfaces between the plants and its surrounding soil ecosystem. But still there are many knowledge gaps present in the mechanistic understandings of the rhizosphere functioning. Therefore, to untangle the complexity of the rhizo-microbiome interface, an integrated ‘multi-omics’ approach can be applied to demystify the complex ‘rhizosphere-specific data.’ The concomitant advent of omics technologies has a great impact on agriculture for the development of crops with the help of their rhizo-microbiome. Thus, the regime of omics technologies with the tandem of computer-aided approaches will render the opportunity of understanding the true sovereignty of the rhizosphere and its microbiome.

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is one of the most toxic fungal secondary metabolites associated with Aspergillus flavus contaminated food products. Although a range of synthetic chemicals has been used to control molds contamination, most of them possess a risk to the health and environment. The study reports the efficacy of nanoencapsulated plant-based synergistic antifungal formulation (Ne-CGT) as a green chemical agent against Aspergillus flavus and AFB1 contamination. The antifungal formulation (CGT) was prepared using the mathematical model based on different proportions of plant compounds (citral (C), geraniol (G), and terpineol (T)) and encapsulated inside the chitosan. Ne-CGT exhibited enhanced antifungal and AFB1 activity (0.15 μl/ml) compared to its free form CGT (0.3 μl/ml). Toxicity mechanism was related with impairment in functioning in the cell membrane (ergosterol and ion leakage), biochemical perturbance (mitochondrial membrane potential, enzyme activity Superoxide dismutase (SOD), Catalase (CAT), Glutathione reductase (GR), and carbon source metabolism), and functioning of aflatoxin biosynthesis gene Ver-1 and Nor-1. In addition, Ne-CGT effectively preserves the nutrition properties (lipid peroxidation, total carbohydrate, and crude protein) of Sorghum bicolor seed. The quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) approach revealed the favorable safety profile and ecological acceptability of Ne-CGT. Hence, the study recommends its application as a plant-based antifungal agent to manage the growth of fungal and AFB1 contamination in agricultural food products.

The present chapter provides an overview of the journey of food from hunger satisfaction to health-promoting agents. The inherent components of food such as carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, lipids, antioxidants, and minerals are required for the normal physiological functioning of the body parts. In the modern era of the 21st century, the lifestyle and eating habits of people have been changed drastically. The change in eating habits and unhealthy diet leads to the emergence of modern diseases such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cancer, allergies, and cardiovascular diseases throughout the world. In view of the increase in life expectancy, side effects of modern-day drugs during their prolonged uses, the use of functional and nutraceutical food as a preventive step to control such diseases would be preferred. The present chapter highlights the role of foods and their bioactive components in human health, associated challenges, and future research perspectives. In addition, the role of science and technological applications especially waste-recycling approaches, nanotechnology, bioinformatics, toxicity prediction tools for the sustainable uses of functional and nutraceutical food, and the need for coordinated regulatory framework are discussed.

Plant Pathology is the science of studying plant diseases that renders the disease-management answers to the farmers. It ameliorates the disease-management approaches to attain food security and food safety for the world. Phytopathogens, with their rapid dispersibility and adaptiveness in variable domains, overcome all the active sources of disease management. The practices of monoculturing and intensive inputs of agrochemicals serve as the selection pressures for the pathogen's adaptation and evolution. Therefore with the understanding of the dynamic nature of the plant diseases, the outsmart management approach must be in line with the environmental-acceptability and circumstances prevailing in the agriculture field and markets. The approaches of sustainable intensification with modern technical advancements offered new opportunities in the form of an integrated systems-based viewpoint for disease management. They unlash the molecular premises of the plant immunity by discovering some novel insights into the host–pathogen interactions. For the future aspects of plant pathology, more integrated management strategies are needed to increase the resilience of the crops against phytopathogens.