Food Agricultural Sciences and Technology

Dietary sodium reduction through salt substitutes and enhancers: Types, applications and health implications

Alvina Rose — 2026-05-06

Sodium chloride (NaCl), commonly known as table salt, is an essential ingredient in the food industry that enhances flavor, creates texture and preserves food. On the other hand, consuming too much salt has been connected to several health problems, such as cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, bone demineralization and gastric cancers. Additionally, potential drawbacks related to impaired kidney function should be noted, particularly for individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD), as reduced renal filtration capacity can worsen electrolyte imbalance and increase the health risks associated with certain salt substitutes. With customers' growing awareness of nutrition and health issues, low-sodium food items are becoming more and more popular. This review explores various approaches to reducing sodium in foods through salt-replacement and enhancement strategies while maintaining desirable sensory and functional properties. A comprehensive review of existing studies was conducted to identify different salt substitutes and salt enhancers. Numerous sodium substitutes, such as potassium chloride, calcium chloride, magnesium chloride and magnesium sulfate, have been assessed for their sensory qualities and functional roles. Additionally, natural and chemical flavor enhancers were examined for their ability to compensate for the reduced saltiness perception. Among the evaluated substitutes, potassium chloride and calcium chloride were the most widely used salt replacers. Major research gaps include limited long-term toxicological evaluations, inconsistent sensory outcomes across matrices and insufficient studies on synergistic combinations of substitutes and enhancers. This review emphasizes that integrating partial mineral substitution with natural flavor enhancement is the most effective approach for developing healthier food products without compromising quality.

Development of a predictive model for northern corn leaf blight (NCLB) resistance in maize through SSR markers association and validation

Theerawut Wongwarat — 2026-05-06

Northern corn leaf blight (NCLB), caused by fungal pathogen Exserohilum turcicum, is a major foliar disease of maize, particularly under cool and humid conditions during the dry season (November-February) as observed at the Chai Nat Field Crops Research Center. Severe infections during the reproductive stage can significantly reduce grain yield. Although chemical fungicides are available, their environmental impact makes host plant resistance a sustainable solution. This study aimed to assess the association and predictive accuracy of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers for NCLB resistance, to support efficient selection of resistant genotypes in maize breeding programs. Three SSR markers, bnlg198, umc2038 and umc2210, were evaluated for their association with NCLB resistance in 280 sweet corn genotypes derived from two populations, namely CH66C1 and HX75C1. Chi-square test was initially used to perform single marker analysis in order to assess the association between each SSR marker and resistance to NCLB. Markers that showed significant associations were subsequently used to construct prediction models using regression analysis. Model performance was then evaluated using Adjusted $R^2$ , F-value and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Five-fold cross-validation was employed to estimate predictive reliability. All three markers, bnlg198, umc2038, and umc2210, were significantly associated with NCLB resistance. The model, including umc2038 and bnlg198, showed a positive correlation coefficient of 0.6, an adjusted $R^2$ of 0.57 and the highest F-value (36.4), indicating that these markers explained 57% of phenotypic variation. The model's predictive accuracy was classification as moderate to high with an area under the ROC (AUC) curve of 0.78. The best threshold identified was 0.51, yielding a true positive rate (TPR) of 0.88, indicating that the model could correctly classify 88% of resistant lines.

Greenhouse evaluation of in vitro-characterized plant growth-promoting Pseudomonas strains on the growth of Sorghum bicolor seedlings

Befekadu Teshome — 2026-05-06

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria play a vital role in sustainable agriculture by supporting plant development and stress resilience. This study investigated the effects of selected bacterial strains on the growth of Sorghum bicolor seedlings under controlled greenhouse conditions. Four elite in-vitro-characterized plant growth-promoting Pseudomonas strains were assessed for their potential to enhance biomass accumulation, root and shoot length, and leaf chlorophyll content of two local varieties (Zengada and Degalit) of Sorghum bicolor seedlings. The four-plant growth-promoting Pseudomonas strains included were P. extremorientalis, P. brenneri, P. simiae, and P. fluorescens. The greenhouse evaluation was conducted for 17 treatment groups, which were derived from the four Pseudomonas strains and one control. The bacterial treatments had significant effects on a greater number of parameters on Sorghum Zengada variety than the Sorghum Degalit variety. The treatments showed significant effects on the length of shoot and root, and leaf chlorophyll contents of both varieties. But they showed significant effects only on shoot dry weight and leaf width of Zengada variety (P < 0.05). Treatment BCD (A combination of P. extremorientalis, P. simiae, and P. fluorescens) showed a significant effect on Zengada sorghum’s shoot dry weight (3.83 ± 1.68 g) and leaf width (2.67 ± 0.49 cm) compared to the control with 1.12 ± 0.33 g and 1.27 ± 0.2 g, respectively. It also performed well in Degalit sorghum in terms of shoot length (86.3 ± 1.80 cm) compared to the control with 41.87 ± 5.51 cm, making it a strong candidate for bioinoculant development through field trials.

Development and characterization of a vegan, reduced-calorie chocolate ice cream based on cauliflower

Amit Cohen — 2026-05-06

The objective of this study was to develop and characterize ReCream, a novel vegan, reduced-calorie chocolate ice cream incorporating cauliflower as the primary ingredient (33% by weight). The aim was to design a nutritionally enhanced frozen dessert that complies with Israeli front-of-pack nutritional labeling regulations and avoids warning labels for high sugar or saturated fat. Physicochemical properties (°Brix, overrun, melting rate, and hardness) were evaluated and compared with a control formulation lacking cauliflower. ReCream exhibited higher soluble solids (p = 5.4 x 10^-5), reduced overrun (p = 0.019), and a slower melting rate (p = 0.017), while maintaining comparable hardness (p = 0.3). Sensory evaluation (n = 16) showed an average overall acceptability score of 4.1 out of 5, with 81% of panelists reporting no detectable cauliflower flavor. These results demonstrate that cauliflower can serve as a functional and sustainable base ingredient in vegan ice cream formulations, improving nutritional quality while maintaining desirable sensory characteristics.

Morphological and physiological responses of ornamental banana (Musa ornata Roxb.) to sodium azide mutagenesis

Nattapong Srisamoot — 2026-05-06

Induced mutagenesis represents a practical approach for generating genetic variability in ornamental bananas, where conventional breeding is constrained by sterility and parthenocarpy. This study evaluated the morphological and physiological responses of Musa ornata Roxb. plantlets to sodium azide (NaN₃) treatment under in vitro conditions. Uniform plantlets were exposed to NaN₃ concentrations ranging from 0.0 to 4.0 mM for 1 h, and survival rate, growth-related traits, photosynthetic pigment contents, and leaf color parameters were assessed after 16 weeks of culture. Survival rate declined in a clear concentration-dependent manner, allowing the estimation of LD₃₀ and LD₅₀ values at 1.13 and 2.08 mM, respectively. Among the evaluated traits, fresh weight showed a statistically significant increase at a low NaN₃ concentration (0.1 mM), whereas leaf number, pseudostem length, root traits, photosynthetic pigments, and leaf color parameters exhibited only numerical variation without consistent statistical significance. Chlorophyll and carotenoid contents, as well as CIELAB leaf color parameters, did not differ significantly among treatments. These results indicate that NaN₃ primarily affects M. ornata plantlets through concentration-dependent survival responses, while most morphological and physiological traits display descriptive variation at the in vitro stage. The study provides species-specific lethal dose reference values and baseline phenotypic screening information for the application of NaN₃ in ornamental banana mutation breeding. Further studies are required to determine the stability and breeding value of NaN₃-induced variations after the early screening stage.

Effect of vermicompost and organic fertilizer on the growth, yield, and quality of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.)

Yotsanon Sriwichan — 2026-05-06

This experiment aimed to investigate the effects of vermicompost and different rates of organic fertilizer on the growth, yield, and quality of organic lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). A Completely Randomized Design was employed with nine treatments, four replications, and ten plants per replication. The study was conducted from January to June 2023 at the nursery of the Landscape Management Division, Building and Facilities Office, Mahasarakham University. The results indicated that the application of vermicompost and organic fertilizer significantly increased soil nutrient availability, including nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, organic matter, and cation exchange capacity (CEC). Lettuce grown with the application of organic fertilizer at the rate of 38.7 g plant^-1 showed the largest improvement in growth and yield characteristics, including stem diameter, number of leaves, fresh weight, and dry weight. Furthermore, this treatment resulted in the highest levels of lettuce quality attributes, particularly total soluble solids and chlorophyll content.

Performance evaluation of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) varieties for grain yield and yield-related traits at Fogera district, northwestern Ethiopia

Alamir Ayenew Worku — 2026-05-06

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is a key oilseed and food crop in Ethiopia, but productivity remains below potential due to low-yielding varieties, suboptimal management, and environmental stresses. This study evaluated the performance of improved groundnut varieties in terms of phenology, growth, and yield traits to identify promising genotypes for northwestern Ethiopia. Field experiments were conducted in Fogera District during the 2022 and 2023 main cropping seasons using a randomized complete block design with three replications. Data on phenological, growth, and yield traits were analyzed using combined ANOVA, correlation analysis, and mean performance comparisons. Significant variation (P ≤ 0.01) was observed among varieties for most traits, including days to maturity, plant height, number of primary branches, seeds per pod, biomass yield, pod yield, harvest index, unshelled yield, and hundred-grain weight, while shelling percentage showed a non-significant difference. Pod yield ranged from 1,208.7 kg ha⁻¹ (Senaf) to 3,221.6 kg ha⁻¹ (Werer961), with Babile4 and BaHaGudo also showing above-average yields combined with high biomass. Harvest index varied from 28.1% (Bulki01) to 59.1% (Babile4). Correlation analysis indicated that days to maturity were positively associated with plant height and biomass yield but negatively correlated with harvest index, while pod yield was moderately correlated with harvest index and strongly with unshelled yield. The study revealed substantial genetic variability and identified Werer961, Babile2, and Derib as promising varieties for improving groundnut productivity in northwestern Ethiopia.