Broccoli sprouts are an excellent source of health-promoting phytochemicals such as vitamins, glucosinolates, and phenolics. The study aimed to investigate in vitro antioxidant, antiproliferative, apoptotic, and antibacterial activities of broccoli sprouts. Five-day-old sprouts extracted by 70% ethanol showed significant antioxidant activities, analyzed to be 68.8 μmol Trolox equivalent (TE)/g dry weight by 2,2′-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic (ABTS) assay, 91% scavenging by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay, 1.81 absorbance by reducing power assay, and high phenolic contents by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Thereafter, sprout extract indicated considerable antiproliferative activities towards A549 (lung carcinoma cells), HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma cells), and Caco-2 (colorectal adenocarcinoma cells) using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, with IC₅₀ values of 0.117, 0.168 and 0.189 mg/mL for 48 h, respectively. Furthermore, flow cytometry confirmed that Caco-2 cells underwent apoptosis by an increase of cell percentage in subG1 phase to 31.3%, and a loss of mitochondrial membrane potential to 19.3% after 48 h of treatment. Afterward, the extract exhibited notable antibacterial capacities against Bacillus subtilis and Salmonella Typhimurium with minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) values of 0.39 and 0.78 mg/mL, appropriately, along with abilities against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli with an MIC value of 1.56 mg/mL. Thus, broccoli sprouts were confirmed as a potential food source for consumers’ selection and functional food industry.

Acerola fruit is known to have a high vitamin C concentration. Polyphenolics are also natural oxidants occurring in plants. Understanding changes of these components during storage conditions and processing steps become important. Results of this research showed that there was significant difference in vitamin C and total polyphenolic concentration and three popular varieties of acerola fruits from Tien Giang province. Concentrations of both vitamin C and polyphenolics reduced rapidly during storage at room temperature. After three days, vitamin C reduced about 40% whereas total polyphenolics reduced about 70%. The losses at refrigerated temperature after 3 days were less than 15% and less than 30%, for vitamin C and total polyphenolics, respectively. Frozen storage of the fruit maintained quite well vitamin C and polyphenolics. Acerola pomace juice was concentrated before spray drying and, at the same vacuum pressure, temperatures influenced significantly the retention of vitamin C and total polyphenolics. Optimization of spray drying conditioners including inlet hot air temperatures and added ratio of maltodextrin (drying carrier) was also carried out to obtain high recovery of dry matter, total polyphenolics and vitamin C.

This study examines the factors affecting coffee value and yield among farming households in Vietnam’s Central Highlands. Utilizing data from the Vietnam Household Agriculture Research Survey and applying ordinary least squares regression, we examine how key variables such as Arabica cultivation, organic certification, input costs, labor, household characteristics, infrastructure access, and climate resilience impact coffee productivity and profitability. The results indicate that increasing the proportion of Arabica coffee significantly enhances both coffee value and yield. Efficient management of economic inputs, particularly irrigation and pesticide use, is found to be crucial in boosting productivity. Household characteristics, including education level and social organization membership, also positively impact coffee yield and profitability, reflecting the role of knowledge dissemination and community engagement.Conversely, high labor costs and remote farm locations negatively affect coffee productivity, while drought events significantly reduce coffee value, highlighting the vulnerability of coffee production to climate change. The findings provide empirical support for policy interventions aimed at strengthening Vietnam’s coffee sector through infrastructure investment, climate adaptation strategies, and the promotion of diversified coffee varieties. Additionally, the study underscores the importance of balancing economic inputs with sustainable farming practices to enhance both environmental and financial resilience. Key words: Coffee production; Arabica; organic certification; agricultural inputs; climate resilience.

This study described the isolation and characterization of Bacillus subtilis targeted at enhanced protease production. A strong correlation was observed between the precise bandwidth technique (CBW) and the apparent zone diameter (CZD) method on skim milk agar plates, which indicated their interchangeability for shortening isolation time and improving cost efficiency. Based on the CBW, we selected the top-performing strain, designated N30, for further characterization. Phylogenetic analysis showed that N30 is closely related to commercial natto isolates. Morphological and genetic analyses confirmed the identity of N30 as Bacillus subtilis, and we named this isolate Bacillus subtilis N30. The growth curve of B. subtilis N30 in nutrient broth showed maximum protease activity (2.72 Units/mL) during the late exponential phase at 18 h of incubation. Protease production required 8.4% db (dried basic) soymilk (ratio of 1:10 (w/w) of soybean to water) supplemented with 0.5% maltose and 0.5% malt extract as carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively. Our results indicate that B. subtilis N30 has strong potential for biotechnological applications in the food industry and contributes to understanding its role in food processing, while offering avenues for enhancing food safety, quality, and nutritional value through microbial biotechnology.