Biochar as a Biocompatible Mild Anti‐Inflammatory Supplement for Animal Feed and Agricultural Fields

Abstract

Biochar is an organic material and high in carbon content, besides its use for energy purposes, it is also a material that serves the purpose of improving soil fertility, organic matter content of soils and removing heavy metals from water and soil. This study aims to investigate the antimicrobial effects of biochar whose beneficial effects on agricultural productivity has been proven by different studies. Scientific literature concerning the antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral effects of the apricot seed and olive seed biochar is limited. Biochar applications may help to alter the microbial diversity by modifying biological environment either in agriculture or in animal husbandry. Moreover, biochar has been used in animal husbandry to improve animal health especially by regulating the intestinal flora and inflammation in the intestines. Hence, in our study, we investigated the effect of biochar on the growth of Aspergillus niger, Cryphonectria parasitica, Phytophthora cinnamomi, Plenodomus tracheiphilus, Enterococcus casseliflavus, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli and two different bacteriophage strains. Biochar did not have any direct effect on the growth of either Gram‐positive or Gram‐negative bacteria, bacteriophages, and fungi. In order to test their direct effects on the immune cells, mammalian macrophages were used and biochar directly reduced the inflammatory cytokine levels produced by the in vitro activated macrophages.

Fungal-Mediated Silver Nanoparticle and Biochar Synergy against Colorectal Cancer Cells and Pathogenic Bacteria

“…In this study, a combination of 6 μg/mL AgNPs with different concentrations of biochar was made to assess its activity against colorectal cancer cell lines as well as against pathogenic bacteria. Our results showed that biochar had no effect on the growth of either Gram-positive or Gram-negative bacteria, suggested that biochar may have an indirect antimicrobial effect, via altering some bacteria’s metabolic processes [ 28 , 30 , 31 ]. In contrast, AgNPs suppressed the growth of S. epidermidis , S. aureus , E. coli , P. aeruginosa and P. aeruginosa ATCC 10145.…”

Biochar for agronomy, animal farming, anaerobic digestion, composting, water treatment, soil remediation, construction, energy storage, and carbon sequestration: a review

“…Feed-grade biochar is primarily added to feed at a rate of 0.1–4.0% of the daily feed intake (Man et al 2021 ; O’Toole et al 2016 ). As shown in Table 5 , adding biochar to feed has the potential to increase feed intake and weight gain (Mirheidari et al 2020 ; Sivilai et al 2018 ); improve animal health (Bolan et al 2021 ; Yıldızlı et al 2021 ); facilitate toxin and contaminant detoxification, increase nutrient intake, decrease antibiotic residues, and decrease enteric methane release (Man et al 2021 ; Schmidt et al 2019b ; Toth et al 2016 ).…”

Apricot Kernel: Bioactivity, Characterization, Applications, and Health Attributes

“…Due to increasing awareness of people toward natural ingredients, apricots and their by-products are attractive to various industries and fields of research. As a result, the apricot kernel helps in boosting skin health, improving metabolism, enhancing vision, reducing the risk of diabetes, and maintaining digestive functioning [ 88 ]. Therefore, it is well known across the globe to produce various cosmetics (face masks, scrubs, creams, lotions) and food (snacks, oatmeal, muffins, scones, salads, vegan, and animal cruelty-free personal grooming items).…”