Identity of new media spaces

This paper has the goal to analyze influence that new media and technologies have made on the identity and quality of architectural space. In the present Information Age, digital technologies have crucially influenced and changed our reality, the way we behave, connect or communicate. Being part of the overall reality, architectural space is not an isolated category. It has also received and adopted the influence of new media and technologies. The way people communicate with space, due to new technologies, is now different. In some cases space is becoming an interface, a navigational environment waiting for the user to explore it. This paper analyzes the emerging new categories of space - new media spaces, qualities that such spaces possess and the identity they have developed

Principi i modaliteti primene novih medija u arhitekturi

The contemporary age is marked by the rapidly advanced digital revolution, unstoppable rise of computer technologies and omnipresence of technological advancements in all aspects of everyday life. In the information era, computer technologies have become pervasive, ubiquitous and dominant. Their hybridization with previously present media forms resulted in the emergence of a new and exuberant field of new media and technologies. New media is a hybrid field of computer based technological forms, which are used in contemporary practice, not only as tool, but also as an expressive medium. Because of the complex nature of new media, the field is extremely hybrid, positioned at the intersection of art, science and culture. Its emerged cultural paradigm is scientific culture, in which dominant characteristics are technological art and cultural forms, as well as information and techno society. In this overall context, architecture is not an isolated phenomenon. The new media have influenced the field of architecture too, offering new possibilities, features, design methodologies and principles for conceptualizing and developing architectural space. In architectural practice different modalities of the new media are being used. These modalities initiated the emergence of the field of new media architecture. The distinction of these state-of-the-art types of architectural space, together with the principles and concepts they rely on, were the main focus and main contribution of the research presented in this paper.Savremeno doba obeleženo je digitalnom revolucijom, rapidnim usponom računarskih tehnologija, kao i opštom tehnologizacijom svakodnevice. U informatičkoj eri, računarske tehnologije postale su dominantne, a uparene sa ranije prisutnim medijskim formama, oformile su bujno polje novih medija i tehnologija. Novi mediji predstavljaju hibridnu oblast računarski zasnovanih tehnoloških formi u kojima se tehnologije pojavljuju i u ulozi ekspresivnog medija. Zbog kompleksne prirode novih medija oblast predstavlja izrazito interdisciplinarno polje na preseku umetnosti, nauke i kulture, a kulturološka paradigma koju je ovo polje ustanovilo odlikuju izrazito naučna kultura, tehnologizovana umetnost i informaciono društvo. U ovakvoj situaciji, ni arhitektura nije izolovan fenomen, pa je prodor novih medija ustanovio nove pojave, postupke, kao i principe za konceptualizaciju i realizaciju prostora u arhitekturi. Pojava novih medija u arhitekturi podrazumeva njihove različite modalitete primene, koji su uslovili razvoj novih i specifičnih tipova prostora. Specificiranje tipova ovakvih prostora, zajedno sa principima i konceptima na kojima se zasnivaju, predmet je istraživanja koje je predstavljeno u radu koji sledi

Transcriptome analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa after MhqO dioxygenase treatment

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that can cause severe chronic infections due to its exceptional ability to form a biofilm. Regulation of biofilm formation is very sophisticated and involves multiple bacterial systems and regulatory pathways. We found an enzyme MhqO dioxygenase from Bacillus paralicheniformis ZP1, which was effective in the inhibition of biofilm formation and disruption of mature biofilm of P. aeruginosa. Our results suggest that MhqO exerts its effect at the adhesion level, preventing cells from attaching to the surface. We have also shown that the enzyme stimulates the rhamnolipids synthesis. To elucidate the mechanism of enzyme action, we analyzed the transcriptome of the P. aeruginosa PAO1 strain treated with MhqO. Since cell adhesion occurs at the beginning of the stationary phase growth, the PAO1 strain was treated with MhqO for four hours, followed by total RNA isolation and cDNA synthesis. Transcriptome sequencing was performed by Illumina NovaSeq 6000 and data were analyzed by Novogene Bioinformatics Technology Co., Ltd. (Beijing, China). Obtained data showed that 122 genes were up-regulated, 41 genes were down-regulated, and the expression of 5947 genes was not changed. Five genes whose expression was altered are directly related to biofilm formation. MhqO increased the expression of the RsmA post-transcriptional regulator in P. aeruginosa. Transcriptome data revealed that pili IV biosynthesis genes were up-regulated, which is in accordance with literature data that RsmA positively regulates these genes. The inhibition of cells’ attachment to the surface could be explained by these results. In addition, RsmA positively regulates rhamnolipid production but negatively regulates biofilm matrix synthesis, which was supported by expression levels in the sequenced transcriptome. Data obtained from transcriptome analysis suggest that P. aeruginosa treated with MhqO dioxygenase should be more sensitive to oxidative and osmotic stress, as well as to beta-lactam antibiotics. Our further investigations should confirm these effects at the phenotypic level as well.Book of abstract: 4th Belgrade Bioinformatics Conference, June 19-23, 202

NEW APPROACHES IN THE TREATMENT OF CHRONIC BACTERIAL INFECTIONS

The rapid emergence and spread of multidrug- resistant pathogens present a global healthcare challenge. One common cause of resistance and/or tolerance to antibiotics is biofilms, a complex communities of bacteria embedded in a self-produced matrix. Biofilm formation and maturation are regulated by quorum sensing, a cell density-dependent communication system that relies on the synthesis, diffusion, and detection of small signaling molecules - autoinducers (AIs). Quorum quenching (QQ) enzymes that cut Ais emerged as a promising strategy for persistent bacterial infections. However, a significant drawback for the use of QQ enzymes as therapeutics is their poor stability and efficacy in vivo. Since one of the major health issues linked to biofilm development is persistent wound infections, our goal was to improve enzyme properties by immobilizing it on a natural biopolymer to make it suitable for use as a wound dressing. The best candidate for immobilization was YtnP lactonase from Bacillus paralicheniformis ZP1, as in concentrations higher than 25 μg/mL it improved the survival of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1-infected zebrafish, rescuing 80% of embryos. When combined with tobramycin or gentamicin, the survival rate of zebrafish embryos increased to 100%. Purified YtnP lactonase at a concentration of 1 mg was immobilized on 10 mg of polymer disks by crosslinking with glutaraldehyde. Specific modifications of the polymer were also made to eliminate the use of glutaraldehyde, which is a skin irritant. In in vivo experiments on a murine chronic wound model, immobilized enzyme inhibited biofilm development, cleared already formed biofilms, and overall improved wound healing. These results provide a foundation for the development of advanced wound dressings that will prevent infection development in wounds and enable proper therapy for infected chronic wounds.Book of abstract: From biotechnology to human and planetary health XIII congress of microbiologists of Serbia with international participation Mikromed regio 5, ums series 24: 4th – 6th april 2024, Mona Plaza hotel, Belgrade, Serbi

Development of pcr-based identification of salmonella enterica serovars

The aim of the study was to evaluate and adapt the PCR-based protocol that utilizes the developed serotype-specific primers to identify Salmonella enterica species and its serotypes that are most frequently isolated from poultry samples in Vojvodina. Using the slide agglutination test, 64 and 33 out of 107 Salmonella isolates were identified as S. Infantis and S. Enteritidis, respectively, while ten isolates were identified as eight different Salmonella serovars. Using the same isolates, presence of 993-bp (bcfC gene), 636-bp (steB gene) and 293-bp (sdf locus) amplicons in multiplex PCR unambiguously identified 31 isolates as S. Enteritidis. Two isolates identified as Enteritidis in slide agglutination test were not identified as such in PCR-based approach since they both were missing 293bp long PCR product. Thirty-nine isolates produced a 727-bp amplicon in the specific simplex PCR, and thus were identified as S. Infantis. The greatest discrepancy in comparison to the results of conventional serotyping has been observed in the case of S. Infantis, since 25 more isolates were noted as S. Infantis by conventional serotyping. Seven isolates, with unexpected PCR profiles stayed unidentified by molecular typing, although they were serotyped as S. Typhimurium (1) and S. Infantis (6). S. Gallinarum serovar has to be additionally confirmed, since it shares the same PCR profile with S. Livingstone. Clearly, PCR-based identification has to be thoroughly checked, verified and adapted if it is to be applied as the routine identification protocol

Metagenomic analysis of soil microbial communities

Ramonda serbica i Ramonda nathaliae, retke biljke 'vaskrsnice' koje rastu na Balkanskom poluostrvu, u odgovoru na stres produkuju velike količine fenola. Bakterijske zajednice poreklom iz rizosfere ovih biljaka analizirane su metagenomskim pristupom. Fluorescentna 'in situ' hibridizacija (FISH) i DAPI bojenje pokazali su da u analiziranim zemljištima ima svega 5% metabolički aktivnih bakterija. Upotrebom prajmera specifičnih za bakterijsku DNK umnoženi su geni za 16S rDNK i konstruisane su dve genske biblioteke. Biblioteke su pretraživane uz pomoć RFLP metode. Od ukupno 192 klona dobijena iz uzorka rizosfere R. nathaliae identifikovano je 35 operativnih taksonomskih jedinica (OTJ), dok je iz uzorka rizosfere R. serbica dobijeno 13 OTJ od ukupno 80 klonova. Predstavnici svake OTJ su sekvencirani. Analizirane zajednice odlikuje veoma mali diverzitet i većina dobijenih sekvenci je pokazala malu sličnost sa DNK sekvencama do sada kultivisanih bakterija.Ramonda serbica and Ramonda nathaliae, rare resurrection plants growing in the Balkan Peninsula, produce a high amount of phenolic compounds as a response to stress. The composition and size of bacterial communities in two rhizosphere soil samples of these plants were analyzed using a metagenomic approach. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) experiments together with DAPI staining showed that the metabolically active bacteria represent only a small fraction, approximately 5%, of total soil bacteria. Using universal bacteria - specific primers 16S rDNA genes were amplified directly from metagenomic DNAs and two libraries were constructed. The Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RLFP) method was used in library screening. Amongst 192 clones, 35 unique operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were determined from the rhizosphere of R. nathaliae, and 13 OTUs out of 80 clones in total from the library of R. serbica. Representative clones from each OTU were sequenced. The majority of sequences from metagenomes showed very little similarity to any cultured bacteria. In conclusion, the bacterial communities in the studied soil samples showed quite poor diversity

Comparison of the release of selenium nanoparticles from poly (є-caprolactone) microparticles in four different degradation mediums

One of the most prominent properties of poly (є-caprolactone) (PCL) as a biodegradable polymer is slow degradation rate. Due to this advantage the PCL is often used in versatile systems for drug delivery or tissue engineering. When it comes to drug delivery systems, this property of PCL provides the slow release of encapsulated medicaments in order to avoid acute toxicity i.e. to enhance therapeutic efficiency, or protects medicaments from "aggressive" environment and ensures prolonged effect. Selenium nanoparticles (SeNp) recently gained attention as a potential candidate for cancer therapy and prevention with antibacterial properties as well. The major drawback of SeNp is substantial risk of toxicity. Degradation itself is a function of several material properties as well as the nature of surrounding medium. In this work it is examined the release of SeNp from PCL microparticles during the degradation in four different mediums: phosphate buffered saline (PBS), solution of lipase isolated from porcine pancreas in PBS, 0.1 M hydrochloric acid (HCL) and Psseudomonas aeruginosa cell free extract in PBS. The main idea was to compare the release of the selenium nanoparticles in physiological conditions (the first three medium) and in the pathological conditions (the fourth medium), respectively. Firstly, the PCL/SeNp were suspended in adequate medium and placed in water bath at 37 °C. At exact times, samples were collected and examined by different techniques: X-ray diffraction (XRD), inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The release of selenium nanoparticles in physiological conditions occurred in a very slow manner without burst release while in the presence of bacterial extract the release was much more pronounced, even after 24 h

Four Bacillus sp. soil isolates capable of degrading phenol, toluene, biphenyl, naphthalene and other aromatic compounds exhibit different aromatic catabolic potentials

Two novel Bacillus sp. were isolated from a soil sample from a bank of the Tamiš river in close proximity to a petrochemical facility. They were capable of utilizing a broad range of aromatic compounds as a sole source of carbon and energy (including phenol, benzene, toluene, biphenyl, naphthalene). The isolates were designated as Bacillus sp. TN41 and TN42, based on their 16S rDNA sequence. Their catabolic potential was compared to two Bacillus sp. strains (PS1 and PS11) isolated from the rhizosphere of the endemorelict plant Ramonda serbica. Specific activities of phenol hydroxylase, catechol 1,2-dioxygenase and catechol 2,3-dioxygenase were analyzed from crude cell extracts of the isolates, as well as the temperature and pH effects on enzyme activity. Although all four isolates had the ability to degrade a similar range of aromatic compounds, the specific activities of the enzymes indicative of aromatic compound catabolism of TN isolates were 2 to 90-fold lower compared to the PS isolates. Phenol hydroxylase and catechol dioxygenases exhibited broad temperature (10°C-80°C) and pH (4-9) activity ranges in all four Bacillus isolates. While phenol inhibited both phenol hydroxylase and catechol dioxygenases in the TN strains, it was an inducer for phenol hydroxylase in the PS strains

Drivers' Preference for the Color of LED Street Lighting

The purpose of this paper was to initiate broad research aimed to establish the preferred color of light of LEDs from a driver's point of view. Two street lighting installations (one with 3000 K and the other with 4000 K LEDs) were evaluated both objectively and subjectively. The objective evaluation, realized using a CCD camera, included detection of small targets and pedestrians. A slight advantage was identified for the 3000 K lighting installation regarding both types of target. As for subjective evaluation (realized through a questionnaire), the task of the participants (drivers) was to choose the more appropriate between the two lighting installations regarding six lighting parameters, as well as the overall visibility. The 3000 K LED installation was evaluated as a better solution for most analyzed parameters, as well as for the overall visibility. However, only the results regarding the color of the light (in favor of the 3000 K LEDs) and the detection of small light-colored obstacles (in favor of 4000 K LEDs) were convincing, which was confirmed by the statistical analysis. Due to the obtained mild preference for the 3000 K LEDs and several limitations/challenges of the conducted surveys, it was concluded that additional research is needed in order to decide on the preferred color of light of LEDs from a driver's perspective

Supplementary data for the article: Spasic, J.; Mandic, M.; Djokic, L.; Nikodinovic-Runic, J. Streptomyces Spp. in the Biocatalysis Toolbox. Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 2018, 102 (8), 3513–3536. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-018-8884-x

Supplementary material for: [https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-018-8884-x]Related to published version: [http://cherry.chem.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2115