Fish oil consists of omega-3 fatty acids which play an important role in human health. Its susceptibility to oxidation causes considerable degradation during the processing and storage of food products. Accordingly, encapsulation of this ingredient through freeze drying was studied with the aim of protecting it against environmental conditions. Gum arabic (GA) was used as the wall material for fish oil nanoencapsulation where tween 80 was applied as the emulsifier. A water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion was prepared by sonication, containing 6% fish oil dispersed in aqueous solutions including 20% and 25% total wall material. The emulsion was sonicated at 24 kHz for 120 s. The emulsion was then freeze-dried and the nanocapsules were incorporated into probiotic fermented milk, with the effects of nanocapsules examined on the milk. The results showed that the nanoparticles encapsulated with 25% gum arabic and 4% emulsifier had the highest encapsulation efficiency (EE) (87.17%) and the lowest surface oil (31.66 mg/100 kg). Using nanoencapsulated fish oil in fermented milk significantly (p<0.05) increased the viability of Lactobacillus plantarum as well as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) contents. The fermented milk sample containing fish oil nanoencapsulated with 25% wall material and 4% emulsifier yielded the greatest probiotic bacterial count (8.41 Log CFU/mL) and the lowest peroxide value (0.57 mEq/kg). Moreover, this sample had the highest EPA and DHA contents. Utilizing this nanoencapsulated fish oil did not adversely affect fermented milk overall acceptance. Therefore, it can be used for fortification of low fat probiotic fermented milk.

Among cereals, barley is tolerant to high levels of salinity stress; however, its performance and global production are still dramatically affected by salinity. In this study, we evaluated the behavior of a set of advanced genotypes of barley with aim of assessing the physiological and molecular mechanisms involved in salinity tolerance. The experiment was conducted using a hydroponic system at optimal growing temperature and photoperiod conditions. The results of the analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed significant effects for salinity treatments and genotypes in terms of all measured traits. Salinity stress significantly increased the root and shoot Na+ contents and root-to-shoot Na⁺ and K⁺ translocations. In contrast, other physiological features, gas exchange-related traits, as well as root and shoot biomasses were significantly decreased due to salinity stress. Based on the results of the multi-trait genotype ideotype distance index (MGIDI) as a multiple-traits method, G12 and G14 were identified as the superior salt-tolerant advanced genotypes. In the molecular analysis, salinity stress significantly increased the mean relative expression of HvSOS1, HvSOS3, HvHKT2, HvHKT3, HvNHX1, and HvNHX3 genes by 12.87-, 3.16-, 3.65-, 2.54-, 2.19-, and 3.18-fold more than the control conditions, respectively. The results of heatmap-based correlation and principal component analysis (PCA) revealed a clear association pattern among measured traits and expression data. Indeed, these associations confirmed relationships between tolerance pathways and physiological functions. In conclusion, the genotype G14 (D10*2/4/Productive/3/Roho//Alger/Ceres362-1-1) responded well to salinity stress and showed a better expression pattern of studied genes than other genotypes. Hence, this promising genotype can be a candidate for further assessments before commercial introduction.

Genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI) analysis play a key role in any breeding program involving the development of new varieties for cultivation across various environments or in a specific region. The additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) method and the GGE biplot are the two main statistical tools that have emerged to analyze GEI in multi-environment trials (METs). The main goal of the present study was to identify the best-performing and stable barley genotypes for the warm regions of Iran. For this purpose, 18 new advanced barley genotypes were investigated in five warm locations in Iran during two cropping seasons (2021–2023). In all experiments, test genotypes were evaluated in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Based on results, grain yield was significantly dependent on environments (E), genotypes (G), and GEI. The GEI effect was further divided into three principal component axes (IPCAs). The AMMI method identified genotypes G3, G9, G10, and G14 as ideal genotypes due to their low IPCA scores and high performances. In the GGE biplot analysis, the initial two PCAs accounted for 49.36 % of the total variation of grain yield, including both G and GEI effects. Based on averaged two-year data, genotypes G3, G4, G10, and G14 showed particular adaptability in the Zabol and Moghan regions. Moreover, the ranking of test environments showed good discriminatory and representative abilities for the Zabol and Moghan regions, so these environments constituted a mega-environment in Iran's warm climate. The genotype ranking indicated G3, G10 and G14 genotypes as the superior genotypes with the highest grain yield and stability in different test environments. Moreover, these results were confirmed by the results obtained by WAASB and WAASBY biplots. In conclusion, genotypes G3, G10 and G14 can be suggested for commercial usage and cultivation in various regions in Iran's warm climate.

Rosa damascena Mill is a well-known species of the rose family. It is famous for its essential oil content. The aim of the present study was to assess the genetic diversity and population structure of a mini core collection of the Iranian Damask rose germplasm. This involved the use of universal rice primers (URP) and start codon targeted (SCoT) molecular markers. Fourteen URP and twelve SCoT primers amplified 268 and 216 loci, with an average of 19.21 and 18.18 polymorphic fragments per primer, respectively. The polymorphic information content for URR and SCoT primers ranged from 0.38 to 0.48 and 0.11 to 0.45, with the resolving power ranging from 8.75 to 13.05 and 9.9 to 14.59, respectively. Clustering was based on neighbor-joining (NJ). The mini core collection contained 40 accessions and was divided into three distinct clusters, centered on both markers and on the combination of data. Cluster analysis and principal coordinate analysis were consistent with genetic relationships derived by STRUCTURE analysis. The findings showed that patterns of grouping did not correlate with geographical origin. Both molecular markers demonstrated that the accessions were not genetically diverse as expected, thereby highlighting the possibility that gene flow occurred between populations.

Celiac patients must follow a strict gluten-free diet along the life that leads to many nutritional deficiencies. This study aimed to produce an all-in-one gluten-free cakemix based on quinoa flour for celiac patients and other gluten-sensitive people. Nine treatments were provided with quinoa flour (25, 27.5, and 30 of total formula), inulin as a prebiotic, fat replacer and natural sweetener (2.4, 3.2, and 4 of total formula). The content of oil was reduced using oil powder consisting of sunflower oil and wall materials (resistant starch and maltodextrin 50:50). Bacillus coagulans was added as a probiotic bacteria. A commercial cakemix was considered as a control sample. The nutritional and chemical properties of cake mixes (percentage of moisture, protein, mineral, carbohydrate, crude fiber, fat, and calorie) and physical and textural properties of cakes (springiness, specific volume, porosity, chewiness, browning reaction, moisture, and water activity) were tested. Data were analyzed by https://graphpad.ir/prism/software using one way analysis of variance (ANOVA). After sensory evaluation, the treatment number 5 was selected as the most acceptable cake among all treatments. Its amino acid profile, fatty acid profile, and peroxide index were determined. The minerals, protein, and fiber of quinoa cake mixes were significantly higher, and the fat, carbohydrate and calorie were lower than control. Addition of quinoa reduced springiness, specific volume, porosity, chewiness, and increased the browning reaction. But these changes did not have a very negative effect in general. The moisture, water activity, and bacteria count changes were followed during four days of cakes preservation in refrigerator. The reduction trend of quinoa cakes moisture and water activity was slower than control. The number of bacteria was enough to be considered as a probiotic product after 4 days. Quinoa flour could improve the nutritional and functional properties of gluten-free cake mixes.