Phitsanulok University

The global shift toward antibiotic-free poultry production has created an urgent need for sustainable feed additives that promote gut health and productivity. This study aimed to develop and evaluate a novel double-layered microencapsulated phytosynbiotic (DMP) comprising Tiliacora triandra extract, probiotics, and cereal by-products using lyophilization. In Experiment 1, we investigated the effects of cell wall materials (corn, defatted rice bran, and wheat bran) and different particle sizes (0.6 and 1.0 mm) on the physicochemical characteristics and probiotic encapsulation efficiency. Results revealed that wheat bran, particularly at the smaller particle size of 0.6 mm, enhanced probiotic viability, probiotic stability under simulated gastrointestinal and thermal conditions, and nutrient retention. Compared with other materials, wheat bran also provided superior powder flowability, lower density, and favorable color attributes. In Experiment 2, we assessed the influence of probiotic strains (P. acidilactici, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum TISTR 926, and Streptococcus thermophilus TISTR 894) on functional properties of the DMP. All strains exhibited high encapsulation efficiency and stability during gastrointestinal simulation, thermal exposure, and storage. However, P. acidilactici had superior fermentation kinetics and produced greater levels of beneficial short-chain fatty acids, especially acetic and butyric acids. Antibacterial activity was strain-dependent, with notable inhibitory effects against Gram-positive pathogens, primarily through bacteriostatic mechanisms. Overall, these findings confirm that the developed DMP formulations effectively stabilize probiotics and bioactive phytochemicals, offering a promising strategy for enhancing gut health and performance in antibiotic-free broiler production systems.

The genus Curcuma (Zingiberaceae) is a diverse group of plants widely distributed across tropical Asia, with several new species recently described in Thailand. This study documents and clarifies the taxonomic status of a new species, Curcuma nivea Saensouk, P.Saensouk & Boonma sp. nov., discovered in eastern Thailand, and evaluates its horticultural potential. Morphological comparisons were conducted with closely related species in the Curcuma subgenus Hitcheniopsis (Baker) K. Schum., focusing on diagnostic vegetative and floral traits. Curcuma nivea is characterized by its compact habit and white flowers marked with two reddish lines at the base of the labellum, lacking the yellow blotch typical of related species. Additionally, it shows the absence of both epigynous glands and anther spurs, consistent with subgeneric features. Its distinctive morphology and attractive floral display have led to its cultivation as an ornamental pot plant. The discovery of C. nivea contributes to the growing documentation of Curcuma diversity in Thailand and underscores the significance of ongoing botanical exploration and conservation. Furthermore, its compact form and unique floral traits highlight its promise for use in ornamental horticulture and breeding programs.

Our work highlights important disparities in sun protective behaviors and skin cancer awareness/knowledge gaps between Inuit Indigenous vs. general Canadian populations. Our work identifies multiple concerns and lack of sun protection that could lead to preventable death and suffering from skin cancers in this emerging at-risk population.

Equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) has been shown to improve reproductive performance in cattle by stimulating terminal follicular growth. This study was designed to assess the effects of 400 IU of eCG on TFG and its consequences for luteal development in indigenous cows undergoing ovulation synchronization. Specifically, we investigated the follicular and luteal dynamics following eCG treatment using structural markers (follicular and luteal diameters and luteal area) and functional markers (P4 profiles and luteal blood perfusion) to evaluate CL development. A total of twelve cows were assigned into two groups: an untreated control group and an eCG-treated group (n = 6 in each). Ultrasonography was used to scan the ovaries and monitor the development of TFG and ovulation from day 0 to ovulation. The diameter in TFG was measured daily, and the terminal follicle (TF) was identified as the preovulatory follicle throughout the study period. Ovulation was defined by the disappearance of the TF. Following ovulation, the progression of CL development in both groups was observed on days 5-6, and the mid-stage CL was identified between days 9 and 12 post-ovulation. The results indicated a faster increase in the terminal follicular diameter (TFD). From day 4 to ovulation, the eCG-treated group showed a significantly greater terminal follicular growth rate (TFGR) compared to that in the untreated control group. This enhanced follicular growth in the eCG-treated group was associated with more robust CL blood perfusion and maturation. The Doppler imaging assessments revealed a significant increase in the blood perfusion within the CL, which corresponded with the accelerated TFG. Pearson's correlation analysis showed strong positive relationships between follicular growth, luteal function, and CL blood perfusion, underscoring the interconnectivity of these processes. In conclusion, our results highlighted the key role that eCG administration has in TFG and CL development and function in White Lamphun cattle.

Abstract. Saensouk P, Saensouk S, Boonma T, Oo WP, Htet NM, Maknoi C, Bongcheewin B, Htway NN, Minn HM. 2025. Two new records of Boesenbergia Kuntze (Zingiberaceae: Zingibereae) for the Flora of Myanmar. Biodiversitas 26: 480-489. This study reported two new records of Boesenbergia for Myanmar: Boesenbergia meghalayensis Aishwarya & M.Sabu, found in Yangon Region, and B. siphonantha (King ex Baker) M.Sabu, Prasanthk. & Škorni?k., found in Kayin State and Mon State. The study aimed to confirm the presence of these species in Myanmar through comprehensive taxonomic analysis based on morphological observations of living specimens collected from their natural habitats. Additionally, to expand the known distribution of Boesenbergia and support ongoing efforts to document the region's rich botanical diversity. Morphological characteristics were analyzed using specimens from natural habitats and compared with taxonomic literature and herbarium records. This study confirmed the presence of B. meghalayensis in Yangon Region and B. siphonantha in Kayin and Mon States as new records for Myanmar, along with verifying B. plicata in the Bago Region. These findings expand the distribution of Boesenbergia in Myanmar, providing an updated checklist and emphasizing the importance of taxonomic research for conservation and preserving the country’s plant diversity.

Educational timetabling plays an important role in providing academic activities under limited time and resources. It determines the effective utilisation of teachers' and students' hours with no conflicts on resource constraints and individual preferences. Manually solving large-scale timetabling problems is time consuming and extremely difficult to find a good feasible solution. This paper presents the first application of discrete moth flame optimisation (MFO) for solving university course scheduling problems. A novel automated MFO-based timetabling (AMFOT) tool was programmed and tested using six case studies obtained from a collaborating university in Thailand. The computational experiments confirmed that all timetables generated by the proposed AMFOT tool were feasible as they satisfied all hard constraints. The timetables obtained from the proposed MFO method were better than those obtained from another computational intelligence based algorithm. In four out of six cases (66.67%), the best timetables were created by using the proposed MFO method.

The success of semen cryopreservation relies on several aspects, including breed, age, season, collection method, extender composition, cooling rate, equilibration period, freezing rate, and thawing rate. This study aimed to investigate the effects of cooling and equilibration duration, as well as the addition of antioxidants to the semen extender, on the cryopreservation of swamp buffalo semen. Semen collected from swamp buffalo bulls was subjected to four different conditions: (T1) 2-h cooling and 2-h equilibration, (T2) 1.5-h cooling and 1.5-h equilibration, (T3) 1-h cooling and 1-h equilibration, and (T4) 0.5-h cooling and 0.5-h equilibration. Spermatozoa motility was evaluated using a computer-assisted semen analyzer. Moreover, this study also investigated the effect of antioxidant supplementation during cryopreservation using tris-citrate egg yolk extenders enriched with various antioxidants: Control (Con), 1 mM melatonin (ML), 0.5 mM gamma-oryzanol (GO), 10 μM canthaxanthin (CX), 1 mM melatonin + 0.5 mM gamma-oryzanol (ML + GO), and 1 mM melatonin + 10 μM canthaxanthin (ML + CX). Results showed that the (T1) 2-h cooling and 2-h equilibration and (T2) 1.5-h cooling and 1.5-h equilibration groups achieved higher progressive motility than the (T3) 1-h cooling and 1-h equilibration and (T4) 0.5-h cooling and 0.5-h equilibration groups. The ML-treated group exhibited superior progressive motility and total motility. The optimal approach for cryopreserving swamp buffalo bull semen involves a 1.5-h cooling period followed by a 1.5-h equilibration period, with the incorporation of ML into the semen extender.

This study purposed to investigate knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) and to explore its influencing factors of rational drug use among people reside in Phetchabun, a province of Thailand. A cross-sectional study was conducted through an online survey using a set of questionnaire distributed from April to June 2023. Descriptive statistics were used in analysis results while chi-square test was carried out to examine the influencing factors. The results showed that 44.39%, 40.01%, and 55.85% of the participants had a moderate level of knowledge, attitude, and practice respectively. Practice level was a significant related to gender (p=0.001), age (p=0.001), marital status (p=0.003), education status (p=0.001), profession (p=0.001), monthly income (p=0.001), residence area (p=0.001), knowledge (p=0.001) and attitude (p=0.001). The findings identified that rational drug use literacy was influenced by individuals’ health literacy. Useful information, positive attitude, and awareness of harmful outcomes towards irrational drug use could be promoted.

A traditional Chinese multi-herbal extract was discovered to produce antioxidant and anti-aging effects. 2 Benjakul (BJK), a Thai herbal remedy, is a common treatment for inflammation and cancer in Thai traditional medicine and it is included on the National Lists of Essential Medicines. BJK comprises five medicinal plants including Piper retrofractum Vahl. (Pr), Piper sarmentosum Roxb. (Ps), Piper interuptum Opiz. (Pi), Plumbago indica L. (Pn), and Zingiber officinale Rosc. (Zo). BJK has been reported to be used as anticancer remedies in Thai traditional medicine. It has been used as the initial medication to reduce pain and manage patients' symptoms prior to the administration of other treatments. 4, 5 Previous reports have indicated that the herbal remedy and its individual plant components exhibit cytotoxic effects against cancer cells 6 antiallergic 7 and anti-inflammatory effects. [7] [8] [9] [10] In addition, isolated compounds from BJK have shown cytotoxic activity on breast cancer cells, 11 and large and small cell lung cancer cells. 12, 13 It has been demonstrated that plant extracts and plant-derived compounds exhibit anticancer properties by activating the apoptotic pathway. [14] [15] [16] [17] Some specific plant components in the BJK formulation caused cell death by apoptotic signalling. [18] [19] [20] [21] At present, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is increasingly being used in the fields of food science, [22] [23] [24] medicine and health, [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] and natural products. 30 Recently, NMR was used to analyze the Chinese herbal medicine, Sophora flavescens, and two novel chemical compounds were identified. 31 In addition, a previous study used NMR-based metabolomics to identify changes in the metabolic profile of a local cultivar of Andrographis paniculata during its growth period. 32

Background: Clavicle radiogrammetry test related to chest radiography has been found to be useful in evaluation of osteoporosis. The diagnosis of osteoporosis was based on the measurement of bone mineral density (BMD) with dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate bone mass measurement using clavicle radiograms to differentiate the goal standards related to the dual energy x-ray absorptiometry methods. Materials and methods: The population sample consisted of a 100 healthy Thai adult volunteers, (50 women, 50 men) aged from 24 to 76 years. The study subjects were divided as normal bone mass group, T-score ≥ -1.0 and the low bone mass group, T-score ≤ -1.0. Subsequently, posteroanterior (PA) chest radiographs were taken. Measurements of the clavicle radiograms were evaluated, and the images at the midshaft of both clavicles were calculated. An independent t-test was used to examine the differences between the normal and the low bone mass of each gender and two separate BMD sites. The confidence interval was 95% at level of significance 0.05. Pearson’s correlation was used to measure the strength and direction of linear relationship between the bone mass measurement using the dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) test and clavicle radiogrammetry test. Results: The results showed 18 women and 28 men maintained a normal BMD, while 32 women and 22 men had low bone mass density. The average clavicle thickness measurements of the normal bone mass of the women group were lower than the normal bone mass measurements of men. Conversely, the low bone groups of women measurements were higher than low bone mass in the men’s group. A greater diminishing of cortical thickness of clavicle was found in the low bone mass than normal group for both genders. The average cortical thickness of clavicle in the low bone mass of women decreased by 17.8% (5.31 mm/6.46 mm) compared to normal women, while in men, which were fewer, 16.13% (7.07 mm/8.43 mm) between groups, respectively. The average measurements of the clavicle periosteal width and combined cortical thickness of clavicle showed a positive correlation with BMD, whereas, the clavicle endosteal width showed a negative correlation with BMD. Conclusion: Using the radiogrammetric method to measure the clavicle cortex thickness on the chest x-ray images showed a gradual thinning of the cortex with aging. By comparison, the measurements of clavicle cortex thickness showed a moderate relationship with BMD performed by DEXA in the assessment of osteoporosis.