Natural Extracellular Electron Transfer Between Semiconducting Minerals and Electroactive Bacterial Communities Occurred on the Rock Varnish

Rock varnish is a thin coating enriched with manganese (Mn) and iron (Fe) oxides. The mineral composition and formation of rock varnish elicit considerable attention from geologists and microbiologists. However, limited research has been devoted to the semiconducting properties of these Fe/Mn oxides in varnish and relatively little attention is paid to the mineral–microbe interaction under sunlight. In this study, the mineral composition and the bacterial communities on varnish from the Gobi Desert in Xinjiang, China were analyzed. Results of principal components analysis and t-test indicated that more electroactive genera such as Acinetobacter, Staphylococcus, Dietzia, and Pseudomonas gathered on varnish bacterial communities than on substrate rock and surrounding soils. We then explored the culture of varnish, substrate and soil samples in media and the extracellular electron transfer (EET) between bacterial communities and mineral electrodes under light/dark conditions for the first time. Orthogonal electrochemical experiments demonstrated that the most remarkable photocurrent density of 6.1 ± 0.4 μA/cm2 was observed between varnish electrode and varnish microflora. Finally, based on Raman and 16S rRNA gene–sequencing results, coculture system of birnessite and Pseudomonas (the major Mn oxide and a common electroactive bacterium in varnish) was established to study underlying mechanism. A steadily growing photocurrent (205 μA at 100 h) under light was observed with a stable birnessite after 110 h. However, only 47 μA was generated in the dark control and birnessite was reduced to Mn2+ in 13 h, suggesting that birnessite helped deliver electrons instead of serving as an electron acceptor under light. Our study demonstrated that electroactive bacterial communities were positively correlated with Fe/Mn semiconducting minerals in varnish, and diversified EET process occurred on varnish under sunlight. Overall, these phenomena may influence bacterial–community structure in natural environments over time

Microbial fuel cells using natural pyrrhotite as the cathodic heterogeneous Fenton catalyst towards the degradation of biorefractory organics in landfill leachate

An investigation aimed at checking the integration of cathodic pyrrhotite Fenton's reaction with anodic microbial respiration for the enhancement of MFC performance and treatment of a real landfill leachate was carried out. The MFC equipped with a pyrrhotite-coated graphite-cathode generated the maximum power density of 4.2 W/m3 that was 133% higher than graphite-cathode. Concomitantly, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) showed that the polarization resistance of pyrrhotite-cathode (92 Ω) was much lower than the graphite-cathode (1057 Ω), indicating that the cathodic overpotential was significantly lowered, probably due to the occurrence of pyrrhotite Fenton's reaction. The in situ generation of Fenton's reagents (Fe2+ and H2O2) at the pyrrhotite-cathode was demonstrated by the cyclic voltammetry measurement. Besides, reactive oxygen species produced from the pyrrhotite Fenton's reaction were detected and demonstrated to be vital to the enhancement of MFC power output. Further, the effectiveness of this system was examined by treating an old-aged landfill leachate. 77% of color and 78% of COD were removed from the original leachate, indicating that the pyrrhotite not only acted as a cost-effective cathodic catalyst for MFCs in power generation, but also extended the practical merits of traditional MFCs towards advanced oxidation of biorefractory pollutants. Keywords: Cathode, Pyrrhotite, Microbial fuel cell, Bioelectrochemical, Fento

(±)Equol inhibits invasion in prostate cancer DU145 cells possibly via down-regulation of matrix metalloproteinase-9, matrix metalloproteinase-2 and urokinase-type plasminogen activator by antioxidant activity

Exposure to soy isoflavones has been associated with low mortality of prostate cancer. In this study, we examined the effects of (+/-)equol and two representative isoflavones, daidzein and genistein, on migration and invasion in human prostate cancer DU145 cells. First of all, the three regents did not show significant growth inhibitive effect in DU145 cells until the treatments last for 72 h. Treatment with 5 mu M, 10 mu M, 50 mu M (+/-)equol, 0.5 mu M, 1 mu M, 5 mu M daidzein and genistein for 24 h decreased cell migration and invasion significantly. (+/-)equol activated phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome ten at protein level but not mRNA level, which activated antioxidants, including superoxide dismutase and nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2. A reduction of malondialdehyde concentration, the product of lipid per-oxidation, was observed as well. Moreover, matrix metalloproteinase-2, matrix metalloproteinase-9, and urokinase-type plasminogen activator, the crucial members in metastasis, were down-regulated. Overall, our data indicate that (+/-)equol, daidzein and genistein may have significant anti-invasion effect in DU145 cells (in vitro). The effects induced by (+/-)equol may relate to its anti-oxidant effect mediated by phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome ten.http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000306387800011&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=8e1609b174ce4e31116a60747a720701Nutrition & DieteticsSCI(E)PubMed15ARTICLE161-675

Treatment of municipal landfill leachate with organically modified bentonite

Landfill leachate is one of the most difficult effluents with which to deal from an environmental perspective because of its concentration and complex composition, including refractory and toxic components such as heavy metals or xenobiotic organic compounds. The objective of the present study was to use organically modified bentonite (OMB) to dispose of landfill leachate >10 y old. The OMB was synthesized using a new method, which removed four steps (filtering, washing, drying, and grinding) from the traditional process. After treatment using OMB, the chemical oxygen demand concentration (COD concentration, an index of the organic pollutants in the landfill leachate, was determined using the potassium dichromate method) of the landfill leachate sample decreased from 2400 to 245 mg/L in 5 h, i.e. the organic pollutants reduction efficiency was as high as 90%. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry results indicated that most of the organic compounds were removed during the process. The modified and unmodified bentonite contained in the OMB deal with the hydrophobic and hydrophilic organic pollutants, respectively, resulting in significant degradation of the leachate. The study results have provided a new cost-effective method for treatment of landfill leachate

Cr(VI) reduction at rutile-catalyzed cathode in microbial fuel cells

Cathodic reduction of hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) and simultaneous power generation were successfully achieved in a microbial fuel cell (MFC) containing a novel rutile-coated cathode. The selected rutile was previously characterized to be sensitive to visible light and capable of both non-photo- and photocatalysis. In the MFCs containing rutile-coated cathode, Cr(VI) was rapidly reduced in the cathode chamber in presence and absence of light irradiation; and the rate of Cr(VI) reduction under light irradiation was substantially higher than that in the dark. Under light irradiation, 97% of Cr(VI) (initial concentration 26 mg/L) was reduced within 26 h, which was 1.6× faster than that in the dark controls in which only background non-photocatalysis occurred. The maximal potential generated under light irradiation was 0.80 vs. 0.55 V in the dark controls. These results indicate that photocatalysis at the rutile-coated cathode in the MFCs might have lowered the cathodic overpotential, and enhanced electron transfer from the cathode to Cr(VI) for its reduction. In addition, photoexcited electrons generated during the cathode photocatalysis might also have contributed to the higher Cr(VI) reduction rates when under light irradiation. This work assessed natural rutile as a novel cathodic catalyst for MFCs in power generation; particularly it extended the practical merits of conventional MFCs to cathodic reduction of environmental contaminants such as Cr(VI). Keywords: Cr(VI), Hexavalent chromium, Microbial fuel cell, MFC, Rutile, Semiconducto

Improving the performance of Mach-Zehnder interferometer with the dispersion response of the add-drop ring resonator

We use the add-drop ring resonator (ADRR) to produce the normal and anomalous dispersion simultaneously and apply these two dispersion responses to enhance the sensitivity of the Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI). To estimate the sensing ability of the ADRR assisted MZI, the dispersion sensitivity of the structure is theoretically and experimentally demonstrated. For two equal amplitude coupling coefficients, a 19.2-fold increase in the dispersion sensitivity is experimentally achieved, a little lower than 19.5-fold predicted in theory. This value can be futher increased by minimizing the attenuation or by choosing different amplitude coupling coefficient settings at different coupling regions. To acquire better dispersion sensitivity, only output port one should be utilized at the over-coupling region, and two output ports should be adopted at the under-coupling region