Microbial electrosynthesis of butyrate from carbon dioxide

This work proves for the first time the bioelectrochemical production of butyrate from CO2 as a sole carbon source. The highest concentration of butyrate achieved was 20.2 mMC, with a maximum butyrate production rate of 1.82 mMC d(-1). The electrochemical characterisation demonstrated that the CO2 reduction to butyrate was hydrogen driven. Production of ethanol and butanol was also observed opening up the potential for biofuel production

La Cátedra de Promoción de la Salud como centro difusión de recursos documentales en promoción de la Salud

Introducción: La Cátedra de promoción de la Salud de la Universitat de Girona promueve el estudio, la formación y la divulgación en la promoción de la salud mediante la organización de actividades, el trabajo en red y la difusión científica en el ámbito nacional e internacional. En su catálogo de servicio se encuentran actividades de formación, investigación, difusión y transferencia del conocimiento y publicaciones. Ésta última tiene como objetivo actualizar la formación de los profesionales, transferir conocimientos en salud a la comunidad, facilitar el acceso a las fuentes de información difundir nuevas perspectivas en promoción de la salud y construir un fórum de referencia para el intercambio de reflexiones y experiencias. Material y método: Creación del fondo documental que ha sido transferido a la Biblioteca de la Universitat de Girona, siendo consultable electrónicamente. Diseño de un boletín electrónico BepSALUT para promover la comunicación intersectorial en promoción de la salud, difundir perspectivas en el ámbito nacional e internacional y constituir un fórum de referencia para el intercambio de experiencias. Creación de una línea de publicaciones propias. Resultados: El fondo documental dispone de más de 3.000 documentos, procedentes de diferentes instituciones y organismos. Se han publicado 13 números de BepSALUT, han colaborado más de 50 expertos, dispone de más de 280 suscripciones y 1.000 lectores. El número de publicación de libros propios asciende a un total de 12, que en formato electrónico tienen acceso gratuito. Conclusiones: El fondo documental de la Cátedra de Promoción y el BepSALUT se han convertido en instrumentos facilitadores de nuevas perspectivas, avances, recursos y experiencias y facilitan la transferencia de conocimientos. El acceso a todas las publicaciones de la Cátedra de Promoción de la Salud es abierto para que todas las universidades puedan acceder y participar

Bio-electrorecycling of carbon dioxide into bioplastics

The rise of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and the accumulation of non-biodegradable plastics in the environment are leading to an environmental crisis. Thus, the bio-electro recycling of recalcitrant CO2 as feedstock to produce bioplastics could be an interesting solution to explore. In this work, a bioelectrochemical reactor was used to carry out microbial electrosynthesis (MES) of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) from CO2 and then, those VFAs were used to produce polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) by using a pre-selected mixed microbial culture (MMC). During MES (cathode potential at -0.8 V vs. SHE), CO2 fixation efficiency, i.e. carbon (C) transferred to final products was of 73% C-CO2, with a final values of 43.7 and 103 mmol of C produced for acetate and butyrate. The VFAs obtained were extracted and concentrated by liquid membrane extraction getting a broth with a C concentration of approximately 400 mmol C L-1 (approximate to 65% butyrate), to be used as feeding for PHA producing bacteria. During the PHA accumulation a maximum of 74.4 +/- 0 g PHA per 100 g VSS was obtained with a PHA yield (Y-tot) of 0.77 +/- 0.18 mmol C-PHA mmol(-1) C-fed. The process efficiency calculated taking into account the PHA yield on C inlet as CO2 was of 0.50 +/- 0.07 mmol C-PHA mmol(-1) C-CO2. In terms of C conversion, 0.41 kg of carbon as PHA were obtained per 1 kg of carbon as C-CO2 inlet to the entire system. These results establish a sustainable way to convert a greenhouse gas as CO2 into environmental friendly bioplastics

Ephrin-B2 reverse signaling regulates progression and lymph node metastasis of oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a common malignant tumor of the head and neck and frequently metastasizes to cervical lymph nodes. Aggressive local invasion and metastasis of OSCC are significant factors for poor prognosis. In this study, we investigated whether ephrin-B2 expressed in OSCC contributed to tumor progression and lymph node metastasis. Clinical specimens from patients with OSCC had robust ephrin-B2-positive tumor cells and ephrin-B2 protein level was associated with clinical stage, lymph node metastasis, and poor survival outcomes. We also determined that ephrin-B2 protein level was increased in OSCC cell lines compared to normal human oral keratinocytes and that its levels were associated with the migratory and invasive potential of OSCC cell lines. Transfection of an EFNB2-specific small interfering RNA (siRNA) into SAS-L1 cells significantly reduced proliferation, attachment, migration, and invasion through phosphorylation of the epidermal growth factor receptor, FAK, ERK1/2, p38, AKT, and JNK1/2 pathways. Furthermore, knockdown of EFNB2 significantly suppressed adhesion and transmigration of SAS-L1 cells toward human lymphatic endothelial cells. In addition, the growth rate of tumor xenografts and cervical lymph node metastases of OSCC were suppressed by local injection of EFNB2 siRNA. These results suggest that ephrin-B2 overexpression and activation of the ephrin-B2 reverse signaling pathway in tumor microenvironment in OSCC facilitates progression and lymph node metastasis via enhancement of malignant potential and interaction with surrounding cells