Elucidating the Effects of a Cryptomeria fortunei Forest Environment on Overall Health Based on Open Field Testing of Mice

Abstract

In order to elucidate the impact of fortunei forest environment on overall health, the effect of the Cryptomeria fortunei forest environment on mice was examined. Using an OFT (Open Field Test), the behavior of mice in fortunei forest and in an indoor environment (used as a control) was analyzed, while minor changes in climate, oxygen, and suspended particulate matter were observed and recorded simultaneously. The results indicated that the two environments were significantly different in regard to relative humidity, wind speed, and the oxygen content of air, while there were no significant differences in temperature. Importantly, spontaneous activity behavioral indicators in mice were significantly different. Mice in the Cryptomeria fortunei environment (LS group) spent less time in the corners and near walls in comparison to mice in the indoor environment (CK group). Compared with indoor control mice, for the mice exposed to forest environments total distance traveled, central grid distance, frequency of movement through the central grid, frequency of standing, and body mass significantly increased; The number of fecal grains significantly decreased. The spontaneous activity behavioral indicators changed over time stages. In the early stages there were no differences, but after accumulation of environmental effects in the late stages, significant differences were evident. The above results showed that the Cryptomeria fortunei forest environment increased excitability and cognitive ability of mice, was able to effectively alleviate anxiety, and was able to emotionally relax and improve the appetite of the mice.

Nervonic acid reduces the cognitive and neurological disturbances induced by combined doses of D‐galactose/AlCl3 in mice

“…OFT is a method to evaluate the autonomous behavior of experimental animals in a strange environment (Knight et al, 2021 ; Wang et al, 2021 ). Briefly, a carton was prepared (length, width, and height were 30 cm), and a square area (both length and width were 15 cm) was determined in the center of the bottom.…”

Temporal Dynamics and Influencing Mechanism of Air Oxygen Content in Different Vegetation Types

“…There has been substantial evidence showing that breathing oxygen-rich air is beneficial to human health, such as improving respiratory diseases [3], delaying facial skin aging [4], improving arterial oxygenation, and enhancing human exercise capacity [5]. Furthermore, air oxygen content is also a critical component of forest therapy resources and must be considered when evaluating the factors and comprehensive benefits of forest therapy [6][7][8]. There is, however, an emphasis on negative air ion concentration, human comfort, forest microclimate, and airborne particle concentration as part of current research on forest therapy resources.…”

Simulation the potential distribution of Dendrolimus houi and its hosts, Pinus yunnanensis and Cryptomeria fortunei, under climate change in China

“…Pinus yunnanensis is the dominant native tree species in Yunnan, China, and is a significant part of Yunnan landscapes ( Tang et al., 2013 ). Cryptomeria fortunei is an economically important coniferous species distributed among the different regions south of the Yangtze River ( Wang et al., 2021 ).…”