Newest publications
From farm to table: uncovering narratives of agency and responsibility for change among actors along agri-food value chains in Germany
(2025) Hector, Veronica; Friedrich, Jonathan; Schlaile, Michael P.; Panagiotou, Anna; Bieling, Claudia
Given the complex nature of agri-food value chains and related sustainability challenges, the question arises who has the agency and responsibility to address these challenges and facilitate systemic change. We address this question through a mixed method approach and examine experiences with agriculture among different actors along the agricultural value chains in Germany. Based on this, we explore how various actors make sense of current agri-food topics as well as of their perceived responsibility and agency to change practices. While our study shows weak signals for the favoring of collective and collaborative approaches to change, there is a dominant narrative of externalizing responsibility to other actors, mainly consumers, state actors, and to a lesser extent farmers; upstream market actors such as retailers are barely mentioned, indicating a lack of awareness of the power dynamics within agri-food systems. We discuss how these findings can inform appropriate governance mechanisms at different levels and future research to address the prospective responsibility of value chain actors and power dynamics within agri-food transitions.
Effect of thermal treatment on the extraction and antioxidant and antiglycation activities of (poly)phenols from Ribes magellanicum
(2025) Ávila, Felipe; Martinez, Natalia; Mora, Nicolás; Márquez, Katherine; Jiménez-Aspee, Felipe; Rupasinghe, H. P. Vasantha
Phenolic compounds have antiglycation activity, but the changes occurring during thermal treatment (TT) in these activities are not completely understood. The effects of the extraction conditions of (poly)phenols from Ribes magellanicum fruits, before and after TT, on their antioxidant and antiglycation effects were assessed. (Poly)phenol-enriched extracts (PEEs) from raw and TT (90 °C, 1 h) Ribes magellanicum were extracted using three solvent mixtures (ethanol/water/acetic acid) with increasing water content (0, 24, and 49%) and three solvent-to-solid ratios (5, 10, and 20 mL/g). PEEs of raw samples showed increased values of total (poly)phenols (TPC), TEAC, and FRAP and decreased IC50 values of fluorescent advanced glycation end products (AGEs) with increasing water content. An increase in TPC and FRAP values was observed for TT samples, but an increase in the IC50 values of fluorescent AGEs for PEEs with increasing water content was observed. Antiglycation activity (IC50 raw/IC50 TT) depended on the solvent-to-solid ratio and the extracting solvent. HPLC-DAD-MS analysis of raw and TT samples showed degradation of anthocyanins, flavonoid fragmentation, and oxidation as the main changes in the phenolic composition of TT samples. We show that TT affects the (poly)phenolic composition of R. magellanicum, producing a decrease in the antiglycation activity when extractions are performed with increasing water content, despite increasing TPC and FRAP activity.
Soil phosphorus status and P nutrition strategies of European beech forests on carbonate compared to silicate parent material
(2022) Prietzel, Jörg; Krüger, Jaane; Kaiser, Klaus; Amelung, Wulf; Bauke, Sara L.; Dippold, Michaela A.; Kandeler, Ellen; Klysubun, Wantana; Lewandowski, Hans; Löppmann, Sebastian; Luster, Jörg; Marhan, Sven; Puhlmann, Heike; Schmitt, Marius; Siegenthaler, Maja B.; Siemens, Jan; Spielvogel, Sandra; Willbold, Sabine; Wolff, Jan; Lang, Friederike
Sustainable forest management requires understanding of ecosystem phosphorus (P) cycling. Lang et al. (2017) [Biogeochemistry,https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-017-0375-0] introduced the concept of P-acquiring vs. P-recycling nutrition strategies for European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forests on silicate parent material, and demonstrated a change from P-acquiring to P-recycling nutrition from P-rich to P-poor sites. The present study extends this silicate rock-based assessment to forest sites with soils formed from carbonate bedrock. For all sites, it presents a large set of general soil and bedrock chemistry data. It thoroughly describes the soil P status and generates a comprehensive concept on forest ecosystem P nutrition covering the majority of Central European forest soils. For this purpose, an Ecosystem P Nutrition Index (ENIP) was developed, which enabled the comparison of forest P nutrition strategies at the carbonate sites in our study among each other and also with those of the silicate sites investigated by Lang et al. (2017). The P status of forest soils on carbonate substrates was characterized by low soil P stocks and a large fraction of organic Ca-bound P (probably largely Ca phytate) during early stages of pedogenesis. Soil P stocks, particularly those in the mineral soil and of inorganic P forms, including Al- and Fe-bound P, became more abundant with progressing pedogenesis and accumulation of carbonate rock dissolution residue. Phosphorus-rich impure, silicate-enriched carbonate bedrock promoted the accumulation of dissolution residue and supported larger soil P stocks, mainly bound to Fe and Al minerals. In carbonate-derived soils, only low P amounts were bioavailable during early stages of pedogenesis, and, similar to P-poor silicate sites, P nutrition of beech forests depended on tight (re)cycling of P bound in forest floor soil organic matter (SOM). In contrast to P-poor silicate sites, where the ecosystem P nutrition strategy is direct biotic recycling of SOM-bound organic P, recycling during early stages of pedogenesis on carbonate substrates also involves the dissolution of stable Ca-Porg precipitates formed from phosphate released during SOM decomposition. In contrast to silicate sites, progressing pedogenesis and accumulation of P-enriched carbonate bedrock dissolution residue at the carbonate sites promote again P-acquiring mechanisms for ecosystem P nutrition.
Environmental contamination with feces of free-roaming dogs and the risk of transmission of Echinococcus and Taenia species in urban regions of southeastern Iran
(2024) Shamsaddini, Saeedeh; Schneider, Carina; Dumendiak, Sonja; Aghassi, Hossein; Kamyabi, Hossein; Akhlaghi, Elham; Wassermann, Marion; Fasihi Harandi, Majid; Deplazes, Peter; Romig, Thomas
Background: Dogs are the most important definitive hosts of zoonotic taeniid helminths worldwide. Different Echinococcus and Taenia species of domestic and wild carnivores pose a potential risk to human population. High populations of free-roaming dogs (FRDs) in urban areas of Iran and widespread contamination of the environment with dog feces is a potential source of infecting people living in the urban regions with cystic echinococcosis (CE). Our knowledge on the risk of CE transmission in the urban settings in the endemic regions is limited. The present study surveyed the species and genotypes of E. granulosus sensu lato and other taeniids by examining feces of free-roaming dogs in the urban areas in the city of Kerman, southeastern Iran.
Methods: The city was divided into 100 consecutive blocks of which 25 blocks were randomly selected. Fecal samples of FRDs were counted, mapped and fresh samples were collected. Then Zinc chloride flotation, and sequential sieving was performed, and the samples were examined under an inverted microscope. Single individual taeniid eggs were isolated, partial nad1 gene was amplified and sequenced to identify species and genotypes.
Results: In total 5607 fecal samples of dogs were mapped and 83 fresh samples were collected. Taeniid eggs were detected in nine fecal samples (10.8%) from seven out of the 25 city blocks (28.0%). Echinococcus eggs were found in four samples (4.8%) from three city blocks, two samples containing E. granulosus sensu stricto (2.4%), two samples containing E. canadensis G6/7 (2.4%). In addition, three samples contained eggs of Taenia hydatigena (3.6%), and one sample of Taenia serialis (1.2%).
Conclusions: This study documented the potential risk of CE transmission to humans resulting from the feces of dogs roaming freely in urban areas.
Genomic evidence of positive selection highlights functional divergence associated with environmental resilience in central and West African indigenous cattle
(2026) Bitew, Mulusew Kassa; Paguem, Archile; Abanda, Babette; Achukwi, Daniel Mbunka; Manchang, Kingsley Tanyi; Preuß, Siegfried; Hanotte, Olivier; Senczuk, Gabriele; Renz, Alfons; Eisenbarth, Albert; Pilla, Fabio; Bitew, Mulusew Kassa; Department of Agriculture, Environmental and Food Sciences, University of Molise, Campobasso, Italy; Paguem, Archile; Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon; Abanda, Babette; Department of Comparative Zoology, Institute of Evolution and Ecology, University of Tübingen, 72076, Tübingen, Germany; Achukwi, Daniel Mbunka; TOZARD research laboratory, Bambili, Bamenda, Cameroon; Manchang, Kingsley Tanyi; Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon; Preuß, Siegfried; Institute of Animal Science, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany; Hanotte, Olivier; School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK; Senczuk, Gabriele; Department of Agriculture, Environmental and Food Sciences, University of Molise, Campobasso, Italy; Renz, Alfons; Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon; Eisenbarth, Albert; Department of Comparative Zoology, Institute of Evolution and Ecology, University of Tübingen, 72076, Tübingen, Germany; Pilla, Fabio; Department of Agriculture, Environmental and Food Sciences, University of Molise, Campobasso, Italy
African indigenous cattle harbor rich genetic diversity shaped by long-term adaptation to tropical climates and endemic diseases, notably trypanosomiasis. To investigate the genetic basis of natural disease resistance, we analyzed 33,147 SNPs in 1,047 individuals from 17 breeds using complementary selection scans (iHS, XP-EHH, and Rsb) in a multi-cohort framework. Fifteen pairwise comparisons across six breed groups enabled robust detection of recent positive selection, capturing both within-breed and breed-specific adaptive signals. We identified 229 selective regions, with 47 outlier SNPs consistently detected by multiple methods. Selection signals were enriched on chromosomes 5, 7, and 29, containing candidate genes such as ATF4, PKNOX2, DNAJB7, TEF, NFE2, and several SPINK and HOXC family members, many associated with immune function and trypanosome challenge response. These genomic regions represent promising targets for the development of breeding strategies aimed at enhancing disease resilience. By identifying genomic regions under selection, this study provides interesting insights for sustainable livestock improvement and conservation efforts in West and Central Africa. Our findings support the integration of indigenous genetic resources into breeding programs designed to optimize productivity while maintaining resilience to environmental and disease pressures.