Biorecovery of cobalt and nickel using biomass-free culture supernatants from <i>Aspergillus niger</i>

In this research, the capabilities of culture supernatants generated by the oxalate-producing fungus Aspergillus niger for the bioprecipitation and biorecovery of cobalt and nickel were investigated, as was the influence of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) on these processes. The removal of cobalt from solution was &gt;90% for all tested Co concentrations: maximal nickel recovery was &gt;80%. Energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDXA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed the formation of cobalt and nickel oxalate. In a mixture of cobalt and nickel, cobalt oxalate appeared to predominate precipitation and was dependent on the mixture ratios of the two metals. The presence of EPS together with oxalate in solution decreased the recovery of nickel but did not influence the recovery of cobalt. Concentrations of extracellular protein showed a significant decrease after precipitation while no significant difference was found for extracellular polysaccharide concentrations before and after oxalate precipitation. These results showed that extracellular protein rather than extracellular polysaccharide played a more important role in influencing the biorecovery of metal oxalates from solution. Excitation–emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy showed that aromatic protein-like and hydrophobic acid-like substances from the EPS complexed with cobalt but did not for nickel. The humic acid-like substances from the EPS showed a higher affinity for cobalt than for nickel

Submission of Evidence on Online Violence Against Women to the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences, Dr Dubravka Šimonović

Figure S1. B3GALNT2 levels determined by W.B. and ROC curve. a–c Relative mRNA expression of B3GALNT2 in HCC tumor tissues and normal liver tissues obtained from GSE76427, GSE36376, and TCGA-LIHC datasets. d Western blot analysis of B3GALNT2 levels in 24 pairs of HCC tissues. T HCC tumor tissue, N adjacent non-tumor tissue. e ROC curve analysis of the sensitivity and specificity for the predictive value of TNM model, B3GALNT2 expression, and the combination model. (TIFF 546 kb

Structural phase transition and material properties of few-layer monochalcogenides

GeSe and SnSe monochalcogenide monolayers and bilayers undergo a two-dimensional phase transition from a rectangular unit cell to a square unit cell at a temperature $T_c$ well below the melting point. Its consequences on material properties are studied within the framework of Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics and density-functional theory. No in-gap states develop as the structural transition takes place, so that these phase-change materials remain semiconducting below and above $T_c$. As the in-plane lattice transforms from a rectangle onto a square at $T_c$, the electronic, spin, optical, and piezo-electric properties dramatically depart from earlier predictions. Indeed, the $Y-$ and $X-$points in the Brillouin zone become effectively equivalent at $T_c$, leading to a symmetric electronic structure. The spin polarization at the conduction valley edge vanishes, and the hole conductivity must display an anomalous thermal increase at $T_c$. The linear optical absorption band edge must change its polarization as well, making this structural and electronic evolution verifiable by optical means. Much excitement has been drawn by theoretical predictions of giant piezo-electricity and ferroelectricity in these materials, and we estimate a pyroelectric response of about $3\times 10^{-12}$ $C/K m$ here. These results uncover the fundamental role of temperature as a control knob for the physical properties of few-layer group-IV monochalcogenidesComment: Supplementary information included. Published versio

Molecular insights into functional differences between mcr-3- and mcr-1-mediated colistin resistance

The global emergence of plasmid-mediated colistin resistance genes mcr-1 and mcr-3 has threatened the role of the “last resort” drug colistin in the defense against infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. However, functional differences between these two genes in mediating colistin resistance remains poorly understood. Protein sequence alignment of MCR-3 and MCR-1 was therefore conducted in Clustal Omega to identify sequence divergence. The molecular recognition of lipid A head group phosphatidylethanolamine and MCR-3 enzyme was studied by homology modeling and molecular docking, with the catalytic mechanism of MCR-3 also being explored. Thr277 in MCR-3 was validated as the key amino acid residue responsible for the catalytic reaction using site-directed mutagenesis and was shown to act as a nucleophile. Lipid A modification induced by the MCR-3 and MCR-1 enzymes was confirmed by electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Far-UV circular dichroism spectra of the MCR-3 and MCR-1 enzymes suggested that MCR-3 was more thermostable than MCR-1, with a melting temperature of 66.19°C compared with 61.14°C for MCR-1. These data provided molecular insight into the functional differences between mcr-3 and mcr-1 in conferring colistin resistance

The effects of dietary fiber level on nutrient digestibility in growing pigs

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of total dietary fiber level on nutrient digestibility and the relationship between apparent total tract digestibility of total dietary fiber, and soluble dietary fiber, insoluble dietary fiber and available energy. Sugar beet pulp was as the only fiber source. The experiment was designed as a 6 × 6 Latin square with an adaptation period of 7 d followed by a 5-d total collection of feces and urine. Feed intake tended to decrease (P =0.10) as total dietary fiber level increased. The apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter, crude protein and gross energy decreased (P <0.01) when total dietary fiber increased but the digestibility of soluble dietary fiber and insoluble dietary fiber increased (P <0.01). The digestible energy and metabolizable energy content of diets decreased (P <0.01) as the total dietary fiber increased

Unshifted Metastable He I* Mini-Broad Absorption Line System in the Narrow Line Type 1 Quasar SDSS J080248.18++551328.9

We report the identification of an unusual absorption line system in the quasar SDSS J080248.18$+$551328.9 and present a detailed study of the system, incorporating follow-up optical and NIR spectroscopy. A few tens of absorption lines are detected, including He I*, Fe II* and Ni II* that arise from metastable or excited levels, as well as resonant lines in Mg I, Mg II, Fe II, Mn II, and Ca II. All of the isolated absorption lines show the same profile of width $\Delta v\sim 1,500$km s$^{-1}$ centered at a common redshift as that of the quasar emission lines, such as [O II], [S II], and hydrogen Paschen and Balmer series. With narrow Balmer lines, strong optical Fe II multiplets, and weak [O III] doublets, its emission line spectrum is typical for that of a narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy (NLS1). We have derived reliable measurements of the gas-phase column densities of the absorbing ions/levels. Photoionization modeling indicates that the absorber has a density of $n_{\rm H} \sim (1.0-2.5)\times 10^5~ {\rm cm}^{-3}$ and a column density of $N_{\rm H} \sim (1.0-3.2)\times 10^{21} \sim {\rm cm}^{-2}$, and is located at $R\sim100-250$ pc from the central super-massive black hole. The location of the absorber, the symmetric profile of the absorption lines, and the coincidence of the absorption and emission line centroid jointly suggest that the absorption gas is originated from the host galaxy and is plausibly accelerated by stellar processes, such as stellar winds \zhy{and/or} supernova explosions. The implications for the detection of such a peculiar absorption line system in an NLS1 are discussed in the context of co-evolution between super-massive black hole growth and host galaxy build-up.Comment: 28 pages, 16 figures; accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journa

Investigation of extractable materials from biochar

Biochar has been used to improve soil productivity and has been a subject of discussion since 1804. However, research and development of biochar for environmental purposes on a global scale are a recent development. Due to the increase of its uses and interest in biochar as soil amendment, there is a need to understand the intrinsic chemistry of biochar to understand how this might affect its action in the soil. In this work two principal topics were addressed: 1) Investigation of volatile organic compounds in biochar that has been derived from various biomasses and the effect of different temperatures of pyrolysis 2) Identification of some chemical structures of biochar. GC-MS analysis identified 60 extractable organic compounds. With respect to pyrolysis temperature, GC-MS results of Green Waste chars and Sucrose chars shows that extractable organic compounds changed their proportions with differing pyrolysis temperatures. MALDI-TOF and high resolution mass spectrometry results suggested that the characteristic ions for biochar that appear in MALDI-TOF spectra with m/z values of 301,317, 413,429 and 453 are plasticizers whereas 685/ 701 are ions, [M+Na] ⁺/ [M+K] ⁺ respectively that are intrinsic to biochar

Impact of high glucose on functions of cytotoxic T lymphocytes

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) are major players to eliminate aberrant cells such as tumor cells and infected cells. To kill their target cells, CTLs employ in most cases two mechanisms: cytotoxic protein containing lytic granules (LG) and Fas/FasL pathway. High levels of blood glucose, also termed hyperglycemia, is a typical symptom of diabetes mellitus. Although it is known that CTLs are involved in development of diabetes, to date, however, the functional impact of high glucose on CTLs and the corresponding mechanisms remain largely elusive. To address this question, primary human CD8+ T cells were used, which were stimulated by CD3/CD28 beads and cultured in medium containing either high glucose (HG, 25 mM) or normal glucose (NG, 5.6 mM). I found that expression of cytotoxic proteins including perforin, granzyme A, granzyme B and FasL and LGs release remained unchanged in HG-cultured CTLs. Interestingly, TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) was upregulated in CTLs by HG. With flow cytometry and inhibitors, I have identified that ROS and the PI3K-Akt-NFκB axis play an important role in the HG-induced TRAIL expression. In addition, TRAIL expressing CTLs can induce apoptosis of insulin-producing beta cells, which is significantly higher in the case of HG-CTLs compared to their counterparts cultured in NG. Further investigation shows that both metformin and vitamin D can reduce HG-enhanced expression of TRAIL in CTLs and coherently protect beta cells from TRAIL-mediated apoptosis by HG-cultured CTLs. This effect of metformin and vitamin D on down-regulation of TRAIL is also confirmed in CTLs isolated from patients with diabetes. Thus, this work reveals an antigen-independent pathway regulated by HG to modulate CTL killing efficiency, suggesting a novel mechanism of CTL involvement in progression of diabetes and proposing a combination of metformin and vitamin D as a potentially promising strategy to protect beta cells of diabetic patients.Zytotoxische T-Lymphozyten (CTLs) spielen eine wichtige Rolle bei der Eliminierung abweichender Zellen wie Tumorzellen und infizierter Zellen. Um ihre Zielzellen abzutöten, wenden CTLs in den meisten Fällen zwei Mechanismen an: zytotoxisches Protein, das lytische Granula (LG) enthält, und den Fas/FasL-Weg. Hohe Blutzuckerwerte, auch Hyperglykämie genannt, sind ein typisches Symptom von Diabetes mellitus. Obwohl bekannt ist, dass CTLs an der Entwicklung von Diabetes beteiligt sind, bleiben die funktionellen Auswirkungen hoher Glukose auf CTLs und die entsprechenden Mechanismen bis heute weitgehend unklar. Um diese Frage zu beantworten, wurden primäre menschliche CD8+ T-Zellen verwendet, die durch CD3/CD28-Kügelchen stimuliert und in Medium kultiviert wurden, das entweder hohe Glukose (HG, 25 mM) oder normale Glukose (NG, 5,6 mM) enthielt. Ich fand heraus, dass die Expression von zytotoxischen Proteinen, einschließlich Perforin, Granzym A, Granzym B und FasL und LGs-Freisetzung, in HG-kultivierten CTLs unverändert blieb. Interessanterweise wurde TNF-verwandter Apoptose-induzierender Ligand (TRAIL) in CTLs durch HG hochreguliert. Mit Durchflusszytometrie und Inhibitoren habe ich identifiziert, dass ROS und die PI3K-Akt-NFκB-Achse eine wichtige Rolle bei der HGinduzierten TRAIL-Expression spielen. Darüber hinaus können TRAIL-exprimierende CTLs die Apoptose insulinproduzierender Betazellen induzieren, die im Fall von HGCTLs signifikant höher ist als bei ihren in NG kultivierten Gegenstücken. Weitere Untersuchungen zeigen, dass sowohl Metformin als auch Vitamin D die HG-verstärkte Expression von TRAIL in CTLs reduzieren und Betazellen kohärent vor TRAIL vermittelter Apoptose durch HG-kultivierte CTLs schützen können. Diese Wirkung von Metformin und Vitamin D auf die Herunterregulierung von TRAIL wird auch in CTLs bestätigt, die aus Patienten mit Diabetes isoliert wurden. Somit enthüllt diese Arbeit einen Antigen-unabhängigen Weg, der durch HG reguliert wird, um die CTLAbtötungseffizienz zu modulieren, was auf einen neuen Mechanismus der CTLBeteiligung am Fortschreiten von Diabetes hindeutet und eine Kombination aus Metformin und Vitamin D als potenziell vielversprechende Strategie zum Schutz von Betazellen von Diabetikern vorschlägt Patienten