Bacterial wilt of ginger, caused by Ralstonia solanacearum (RS), significantly impacts ginger production. Probiotics, such as antagonistic bacteria, offer a safe and effective approach to disease control.

Fish processing by-products represent a valuable and sustainable source of collagen for biomedical and functional applications. In the present study, collagen was extracted from the scales of red mullet (Mullus barbatus), gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata), and European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) using a green extraction approach based on a natural deep eutectic solvent (NADES) system composed of citric acid, xylitol, and water. The extracted collagens were comprehensively characterized by SDS-PAGE, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. The results confirmed the presence of Type I collagen and demonstrated that the characteristic triple-helical structure and molecular organization were preserved throughout the extraction process. To preliminarily evaluate their potential as matrices for incorporating bioactive compounds, collagen matrices were combined with Zingiber officinale (ginger) extract at different ratios. The resulting combinations were evaluated for antioxidant, antimicrobial, and cytocompatibility properties. Antioxidant activity increased significantly with increasing ginger concentration, with the highest radical scavenging activity observed in combinations containing the greatest proportion of ginger extract. Similarly, antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was enhanced by ginger incorporation, with stronger inhibition observed against the Gram-positive bacterium. Cytocompatibility studies performed on human dermal fibroblast (HDFa) cells revealed that selected collagen-ginger combinations maintained high cell viability and did not induce substantial membrane damage, nuclear abnormalities, apoptosis, or necrosis at appropriate concentrations. Overall, the findings demonstrate that fish scale-derived collagen obtained through a sustainable NADES-based extraction process possesses favorable structural and biological properties and may serve as a potential carrier matrix for plant-derived bioactive compounds. These findings provide preliminary evidence supporting the future development of environmentally friendly functional biomaterials with prospective applications in pharmaceutical, biomedical, and tissue engineering fields.

Zingiber rhizoma praeparatum (ZRP), a processed product made by stir-frying dried ginger, is applied as a meridian-warming hemostatic agent for disorders of the lower digestive tract and abnormal uterine bleeding. This study aimed to characterize the phytochemistry of ZRP and identify active ingredients related to its therapeutic effects. Multiple chromatographic techniques were employed to investigate the constituents of ZRP. H2O2-induced HUVECs were used to assess the vascular protective effects and elucidate the mechanisms of the representative components. Four new diarylheptanoids were separated and purified from ZRP, and their structures were identified using HR-MS, NMR, and ECD calculations. Furthermore, six representative compounds were selected using integrated PCA and OPLS-DA strategies exhibited cytoprotective effects against oxidative damage and promoted tube formation in vitro. Diarylheptanoids and gingerols are candidate active constituents of ZRP for the treatment of hemorrhagic disorders, potentially via activation of the Nrf-2/HO-1 signaling pathway and upregulation of VEGF in damaged HUVECs.

In ovo administration of bioactive nutrients can mitigate poor hatchability, suboptimal growth, and weak innate immunity in broiler chicks. This study evaluated the effect of in ovo administration of ethanolic sweet orange peel extract (ESOPE), ginger extract (EGE) and their equal combinations (BLD) on egg hatchability, post-hatch growth performance, apparent nutrient digestibility and health status of broiler chickens. A total of 900 fertile Cobb 500 broiler eggs (58 ± 2 g) were randomly allocated to five treatments consisting of 180 eggs with six replicates of 30 eggs each. The treatments were: un-injected eggs (UIE), eggs injected at day 6 with 0.02 mL distilled water (DW), ESOPE, EGE and an equal blend of ESOPE and EGE (BLD). Egg incubation was maintained at 37.8 °C and a relative humidity of 60%. Parameters including incubation variables, Tona chick quality scores, post hatch growth performance, nutrient digestibility, haematological and serum indices, gut morphometry and caecal microflora were measured and analyzed using one-way analysis of variance in a completely randomized design. Means were separated using Tukey's test at p < 0.05. Hatchability was significantly higher (p < 0.05) in the ESOPE group compared to the DW group. In ovo injection of eggs with ESOPE also improved (p < 0.05) chick weight and hatch yield compared to UIE and DW groups. At the finisher phase, Hatchlings from ESOPE had improved (p < 0.05) weight gain and feed conversion ratio compared with the UIE group. Dry matter digestibility improved in all extract groups when compared with DW group. The BLD group recorded increased (p < 0.05) duodenal and jejunal villi height compared to the UIE group and achieved complete suppression of caecal Staphylococcus aureus compared to other treatment. In conclusion, in ovo injection with these extracts, especially ESOPE at 0.02 mL per egg improved hatchability and growth performance of broiler chickens. Future studies should employ a dose-response design (0.02, 0.04, and 0.06 mL) to identify the precise threshold for optimal embryonic development.

In this study, green-synthesized silver nanoparticles derived from Zingiber officinale (G-AgNPs) were investigated as potential modulators of transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2), a host-associated protease involved in viral entry mechanisms. Before nanoparticle synthesis, the phytochemical composition of ginger extract was analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with photodiode array detection. Silver nanoparticles were synthesized using aqueous ginger extract as a reducing and stabilizing agent. The nanoparticles were characterized by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis.), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta potential analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The synthesized silver nanoparticles exhibited a face-centered cubic (fcc) crystalline structure, nanoscale particle size distribution, and moderate colloidal stability. Transmission electron microscopy revealed predominantly quasi-spherical nanoparticles with an average diameter of 10.61 ± 1.31 nm, while X-ray diffraction indicated an average crystallite size of 15.28 ± 5.48 nm. Biological evaluation demonstrated robust, broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, with distinct susceptibility profiles. Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) values were 3.125 µg/mL and 12.5 µg/mL, and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) values were 6.25 µg/mL and 25.0 µg/mL, respectively. Cell culture assays confirmed high cytocompatibility with L929 fibroblasts at all tested concentrations. In a fluorometric enzyme assay, the silver nanoparticles inhibited TMPRSS2 activity in a concentration-dependent manner, achieving 51.24% inhibition at 100 µg/mL and an estimated IC50 of 40.06 µg/mL. Although the inhibitory activity was lower than that of Camostat, the findings suggest that ginger-mediated silver nanoparticles represent promising plant-based nano-bioactive systems for further investigation of TMPRSS2 modulation.

Microbial fermentation of plant-derived materials is increasingly recognized as a strategy to enhance biological activity through phytochemical bioconversion. In this study, we investigated the antibiofilm effects of fermented Zingiber officinale rhizome extract against major periodontal pathogens and examined the underlying mechanisms. Ginger extract fermented with plant-derived lactic acid bacteria showed significantly greater inhibition of biofilm formation by Porphyromonas gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans than non-fermented extract. The inhibitory activity increased with fermentation time, resulting in approximately 60-70% reduction in biofilm formation at higher concentrations. Chromatographic analysis revealed decreased 6-gingerol and increased 6-shogaol levels after fermentation, suggesting bioconversion of 6-gingerol to 6-shogaol. Direct treatment with 6-shogaol inhibited biofilm formation in a dose-dependent manner in all tested pathogens. Quantitative PCR analysis further showed that 6-shogaol significantly downregulated the quorum sensing-related gene luxS and multiple adhesion- and virulence-associated genes, including flp, fimA, mfa1, radD, fadA, ltxA, and rgpB. These findings indicate that lactic acid bacterial fermentation enhances the antibiofilm activity of ginger extract through increased 6-shogaol production, highlighting its potential as a natural anti-biofilm and anti-virulence agent for periodontal disease prevention and management.

Cadmium (Cd) is a highly toxic heavy metal that accumulates in the kidney, causing oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, and renal dysfunction. Ginger (Zingiber officinale) possesses antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, but comparative studies evaluating pre-treatment versus post-treatment regimens against cadmium nephrotoxicity remain limited. This study investigated the nephroprotective effects of aqueous Z. officinale rhizome extract in a comparative pre- and post-treatment design using histopathological, immunohistochemical, and molecular approaches. Thirty adult male Wistar rats were divided into five groups (n = 6): Control, CdCl2 (5 mg/kg), Ginger alone (300 mg/kg), CdCl2 + Ginger post-treatment, and Ginger pre-treatment + CdCl2. Treatments were administered orally for six weeks after two weeks of acclimatization. Acute toxicity of the extract was evaluated using the Lorke method. Assessments included body weight, kidney morphometry, serum kidney function parameters, serum cadmium levels, relative gene expression of NF-κB and Nrf2, quantitative histopathology (H&E), and caspase-3 immunohistochemistry. Phytochemical profiling of the extract was performed using GC-MS and HPLC-DAD. The aqueous ginger extract showed high safety (LD50 > 5000 mg/kg). Cadmium exposure significantly reduced body weight gain, elevated serum creatinine and cadmium levels, upregulated NF-κB and Nrf2 expression, induced glomerular collapse and tubular damage, and increased caspase-3 expression (p < 0.05). Both pre- and post-treatment with ginger significantly improved body weight gain, reduced serum cadmium concentration, attenuated histopathological lesions, lowered caspase-3 immunoexpression, and modulated NF-κB and Nrf2 gene expression toward control levels. Notably, pre-treatment showed superior histological protection, unlike in other parameters. Aqueous Z. officinale rhizome extract effectively ameliorates cadmium-induced renal dysfunction through antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and metal-chelating mechanisms. Pre-treatment offered better structural protection, while both regimens provided significant functional and molecular benefits. These findings support ginger as a promising natural agent for mitigating heavy metal nephrotoxicity.

Cell death plays a critical role in maintaining cellular homeostasis. The accurate evaluation of cell death is essential to determine the efficacy of a drug. Understanding the extent of cell death helps assess the potency of the chosen drug, which is a critical aspect of drug discovery research. The traditional method of verifying drug efficacy manually by observing the cells after drug application is time-consuming, labour-intensive, and prone to human error, highlighting the need for more precise and automated approaches. We introduce here the relevance of detecting paraptosis - a novel, non-apoptotic form of programmed cell death characterised by extensive cytoplasmic vacuolation. Non-small cell lung cancer cells (A549) treated with ginger extract (GE), which is known to induce paraptosis, were used as the model system for this study. The rate of cell death induced by GE is found to increase in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The cytoplasmic vacuolation is due to dilation of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) with excessive ER stress and downregulation of Alix, a paraptosis marker. In this work, we propose an automated solution that exploits recent advances in artificial intelligence to effectively segment and isolate individual cells, and to quantify their textural, morphological, and statistical characteristics. These are then used by a machine learning classifier to predict the cell death score. Such a score can be used effectively for drug screening. The suggested framework integrates Mask R-CNN for cell segmentation and an XGBoost classifier for evaluating the segmented areas. Therefore, this automated system can be a valuable tool to assess the degree of vacuolation formed while screening for paraptosis-inducing drugs, thereby providing insights into the level of cytotoxicity. The approach has the potential to enhance the scalability and robustness of automated drug screening and possible biomedical image analysis to a great extent.

Wound repair has always been a hot topic in medical research, but at present, many studies focus on expensive synthetic chemical materials, and little attention is paid to green and healthy foodborne materials, which leads to the abuse and resistance of some drugs and waste of valuable medical resources. Therefore, we used a traditional Chinese medicine ginger with medicinal and edible properties for wound regeneration and repair and used a simple preparation procedure to prepare the extract, which was verified in vitro to have good cytocompatibility, biological activity, and antioxidant and angiogenetic effects. In addition, it promotes granulation tissue regeneration, collagen deposition, blood vessel growth and regulation of inflammatory factors in the body. These results indicate the potential of ginger extract (Ginger E) to accelerate wound regeneration through its good antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects and also open up a new path for the application of more foodborne materials in the development of regenerative medicine.

Plants synthesize compounds that interact with animal nervous systems to avoid predation, but the behavioral effects and underlying mechanisms of commonly encountered plant natural products remain understudied. We tested whether cannabis, ginger root, pepper tree, saffron, and tobacco extracts elicit chemotaxis responses in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans . We found that tobacco extract repels C. elegans , whereas the other tested plant extracts did not have a significant effect on behavior. These experiments were conducted in an undergraduate laboratory course, providing both research training and new insights into plant-animal interactions.

Plant-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) have shown numerous health benefits, including modulation of the human gut microbiota. Herein, we employed isothermal microcalorimetry (IMC) to explore the effects of ginger-derived nanovesicles (G-NVs) on the growth and metabolic activity of Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron (Bt), a dominant saccharolytic commensal with promising next-generation probiotic potential. Bt was exposed to either G-NVs or the ginger extract separated from G-NVs (G-CTL) in defined media under anaerobic conditions. Both ginger samples enhanced bacterial specific growth rate and maximum metabolic activity, inducing the latter earlier. However, higher biomass production and greater secretion of acetic, succinic and propionic acids occurred only in response to the G-CTL. Complete sugar depletion and unchanged free amino acid levels indicated preferential carbohydrate utilisation by Bt. Overall, these findings revealed that Bt's metabolic state is shaped by both G-NVs and G-CTL, yet through distinct mechanisms, with G-NVs inducing rapid stimulation without increasing total metabolic output and G-CTL providing a sustained, dose-dependent effect. To our knowledge, this is the first study applying IMC to monitor in real-time the impact of EVs on microbial growth and metabolism, underscoring IMC's utility for mechanistic studies of EV-microbe interactions. Furthermore, this research sets the ground for innovative strategies in nutraceutical and microbiome-targeted therapy development.

Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fillets, like many fish products, are highly perishable and require effective natural preservation strategies. This study compared the preservative efficacy of nanoemulsions derived from ginger (Zingiber officinale) essential oil (GEO-NE) and crude aqueous extract (GE-NE), both formulated using ultrasonic homogenization. The nanoemulsions were first characterized for particle size distribution via dynamic light scattering (DLS), chemical composition via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and in vitro antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) and Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922). The optimal formulation (GEO-NE1) and GE-NE were then applied as coatings to tilapia fillets, which were stored at 4 °C and evaluated over 14 days for microbial (mesophilic and psychrotrophic counts) and chemical (total volatile basic nitrogen [TVB-N] and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances [TBARS]) changes. Characterization revealed that GEO-NE was stable and monodisperse with a uniform particle diameter of 123.9 nm, whereas GE-NE was unstable and polydisperse (particle sizes ranging from 100.8 nm to > 5000 nm). GC-MS identified Sabinene (13.30%), E-Citral (11.47%), Z-Citral (10.70%), and Camphene (9.93%) as key GEO compounds. GEO-NE1 demonstrated potent antimicrobial activity (MIC/MBC: 125 µg/mL vs. S. aureus, 250 µg/mL vs. E. coli), whereas GE-NE was significantly weaker (MIC/MBC: 1000 µg/mL for both). During storage, GEO-NE1 significantly suppressed microbial growth, maintaining mesophilic counts at 6.78 log10 CFU/g by day 14 compared to the control (8.86 log10 CFU/g), and inhibited chemical spoilage, with final TVB-N and TBARS values of 26.8 mg/100 g and 0.16 mg MDA/kg, respectively, significantly lower than controls (44.6 mg/100 g and 0.48 mg MDA/kg). GE-NE showed only a minor effect (e.g., 7.42 log10 CFU/g mesophilic count) but was far less effective. These findings confirm the functional superiority of the stable GEO-NE and highlight the importance of physical stability in preservative nanoemulsions.