Characterizing Urban Household Waste Generation and Metabolism Considering Community Stratification in a Rapid Urbanizing Area of China

The relationship between social stratification and municipal solid waste generation remains uncertain under current rapid urbanization. Based on a multi-object spatial sampling technique, we selected 191 households in a rapidly urbanizing area of Xiamen, China. The selected communities were classified into three types: work-unit, transitional, and commercial communities in the context of housing policy reform in China. Field survey data were used to characterize household waste generation patterns considering community stratification. Our results revealed a disparity in waste generation profiles among different households. The three community types differed with respect to family income, living area, religious affiliation, and homeowner occupation. Income, family structure, and lifestyle caused significant differences in waste generation among work-unit, transitional, and commercial communities, respectively. Urban waste generation patterns are expected to evolve due to accelerating urbanization and associated community transition. A multi-scale integrated analysis of societal and ecosystem metabolism approach was applied to waste metabolism linking it to particular socioeconomic conditions that influence material flows and their evolution. Waste metabolism, both pace and density, was highest for family structure driven patterns, followed by lifestyle and income driven. The results will guide community-specific management policies in rapidly urbanizing areas

Transcriptome profiling reveals the underlying mechanism of grape post-harvest pathogen Penicillium olsonii against the metabolites of Bacillus velezensis

IntroductionPathogen infection influences the post-harvest shelf life of grape berries. In a preliminary study, metabolites produced by Bacillus velezensis significantly inhibited the growth of the grape postharvest pathogen Penicillium olsonii.MethodsTo investigate the mechanism of interaction between B. velezensis and P. olsonii, a draft genome was generated for P. olsonii WHG5 using the Illumina NovaSeq platform, and the transcriptomic changes in WHG5 were analyzed in response to the exposure to B. velezensis metabolites (10% v/v).ResultsThe expression levels of genes associated with sporulation, including GCY1, brlA, and abaA, were down-regulated compared with those of the control. In addition, spore deformation and abnormal swelling of the conidiophore were observed. The expression of crucial enzymes, including fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and mannitol-2-dehydrogenase, was down-regulated, indicating that the glycolytic pathway of WHG5 was adversely affected by B. velezensis metabolites. The KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed that glutathione metabolism and the antioxidant enzyme system were involved in the response to B. velezensis metabolites. The down-regulation of the pathogenesis-related genes, PG1 and POT1, suggested that B. velezensis metabolites decreased the pathogenicity of P. olsonii. B. velezensis metabolites disrupted the homeostasis of reactive oxygen species in P. olsonii by affecting glucose metabolism, resulting in spore deformation and disruption of growth. In addition, the expression of key pathogenesis-related genes was down-regulated, thereby reducing the pathogenicity of P. olsonii.DisscusionThis study provides insights into the responses of P. olsonii to B. velezensis metabolites and identifies potential target genes that may be useful in biocontrol strategies for the suppression of post-harvest spoilage in grapes

The goose genome sequence leads to insights into the evolution of waterfowl and susceptibility to fatty liver

BACKGROUND: Geese were domesticated over 6,000 years ago, making them one of the first domesticated poultry. Geese are capable of rapid growth, disease resistance, and high liver lipid storage capacity, and can be easily fed coarse fodder. Here, we sequence and analyze the whole-genome sequence of an economically important goose breed in China and compare it with that of terrestrial bird species. RESULTS: A draft sequence of the whole-goose genome was obtained by shotgun sequencing, and 16,150 protein-coding genes were predicted. Comparative genomics indicate that significant differences occur between the goose genome and that of other terrestrial bird species, particularly regarding major histocompatibility complex, Myxovirus resistance, Retinoic acid-inducible gene I, and other genes related to disease resistance in geese. In addition, analysis of transcriptome data further reveals a potential molecular mechanism involved in the susceptibility of geese to fatty liver disease and its associated symptoms, including high levels of unsaturated fatty acids and low levels of cholesterol. The results of this study show that deletion of the goose lep gene might be the result of positive selection, thus allowing the liver to adopt energy storage mechanisms for long-distance migration. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first report describing the complete goose genome sequence and contributes to genomic resources available for studying aquatic birds. The findings in this study are useful not only for genetic breeding programs, but also for studying lipid metabolism disorders. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13059-015-0652-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Unbalanced development characteristics and driving mechanisms of regional urban spatial form: a case study of Jiangsu Province, China

Unbalanced regional development is widespread, and the imbalance of regional development in developing countries with rapid urbanization is increasingly apparent. This threatens the sustainable development of the region. Promoting the coordinated development of the region has become a hot spot of scientific research and a major practical need. Taking 99 counties of Jiangsu Province China, a typical coastal plain region, as the basic research unit, this paper explores the unbalanced development characteristics of the regional urban spatial form using three indicators: urban spatial expansion size, development intensity, and distribution aggregation degree. Then, their driving mechanisms were evaluated using spatial autocorrelation analysis, Pearson correlation analysis, linear regression, and geographically weighted regression. Our results found that the areas with larger urban spatial expansion size and development intensity were mainly concentrated in southern Jiangsu, where there was a positive spatial correlation between them. We found no agglomeration phenomenon in urban spatial distribution aggregation degree. From the perspective of driving factors: economics was the main driving factor of urban spatial expansion size; urbanization level and urbanization quality were the main driving factors of urban spatial development intensity. Natural landform and urbanization level are the main driving factors of urban spatial distribution aggregation degree. Finally, we discussed the optimization strategy of regional coordinated development. The quality of urbanization development and regional integration should be promoted in Southern Jiangsu. The level of urbanization development should be improved relying on rapid transportation to develop along the axis in central Jiangsu. The economic size should be increased, focusing on the expansion of the urban agglomeration in northern Jiangsu. This study will enrich the perspective of research on the characteristics and mechanisms of regional urban spatial imbalance, and helps to optimize and regulate the imbalance of regional urban development from multiple perspectives

An Exposome Atlas of Serum Reveals the Risk of Chronic Diseases in the Chinese Population

Although adverse environmental exposures are considered a major cause of chronic diseases, current studies provide limited information on real-world chemical exposures and related risks. For this study, we collected serum samples from 5696 healthy people and patients, including those with 12 chronic diseases, in China and completed serum biomonitoring including 267 chemicals via gas and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Seventy-four highly frequently detected exposures were used for exposure characterization and risk analysis. The results show that region is the most critical factor influencing human exposure levels, followed by age. Organochlorine pesticides and perfluoroalkyl substances are associated with multiple chronic diseases, and some of them exceed safe ranges. Multi-exposure models reveal significant risk effects of exposure on hyperlipidemia, metabolic syndrome and hyperuricemia. Overall, this study provides a comprehensive human serum exposome atlas and disease risk information, which can guide subsequent in-depth cause-and-effect studies between environmental exposures and human health

Neuraminidase and Hemagglutinin Matching Patterns of a Highly Pathogenic Avian and Two Pandemic H1N1 Influenza A Viruses

BACKGROUND: Influenza A virus displays strong reassortment characteristics, which enable it to achieve adaptation in human infection. Surveying the reassortment and virulence of novel viruses is important in the prevention and control of an influenza pandemic. Meanwhile, studying the mechanism of reassortment may accelerate the development of anti-influenza strategies. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) matching patterns of two pandemic H1N1 viruses (the 1918 and current 2009 strains) and a highly pathogenic avian influenza A virus (H5N1) were studied using a pseudotyped particle (pp) system. Our data showed that four of the six chimeric HA/NA combinations could produce infectious pps, and that some of the chimeric pps had greater infectivity than did their ancestors, raising the possibility of reassortment among these viruses. The NA of H5N1 (A/Anhui/1/2005) could hardly reassort with the HAs of the two H1N1 viruses. Many biological characteristics of HA and NA, including infectivity, hemagglutinating ability, and NA activity, are dependent on their matching pattern. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our data suggest the existence of an interaction between HA and NA, and the HA NA matching pattern is critical for valid viral reassortment

Effects of coated sodium butyrate on the growth performance, serum biochemistry, antioxidant capacity, intestinal morphology, and intestinal microbiota of broiler chickens

IntroductionThis study examined the impact of adding coated sodium butyrate (CSB) to the diet on the growth performance, serum biochemistry, antioxidant capacity, intestinal morphology, and cecal microbiota of yellow-feathered broiler chickens.MethodsIn this study, 240 yellow-feathered broiler chickens at 26 days old were divided into two groups: the control group (CON group) received a standard diet, and the experimental group (CSB group) received a diet with 0.5 g/kg of a supplement called CSB. Each group had 6 replicates, with 20 chickens in each replicate, and the experiment lasted for 36 days.ResultsCompared to the CON group, the CSB group showed a slight but insignificant increase in average daily weight gain during the 26–62 day period, while feed intake significantly decreased. The CSB group exhibited significant increases in serum superoxide dismutase, catalase, and total antioxidant capacity. Additionally, the CSB group had significant increases in total protein and albumin content, as well as a significant decrease in blood ammonia levels. Compared to the CON group, the CSB group had significantly increased small intestine villus height and significantly decreased jejunal crypt depth. The abundance of Bacteroidetes and Bacteroides in the cecal microbiota of the CSB group was significantly higher than that of the CON group, while the abundance of Proteobacteria, Deferribacteres, and Epsilonbacteraeota was significantly lower than that of the CON group.ConclusionThese results suggest that adding CSB to the diet can improve the growth performance and antioxidant capacity of yellow-feathered broiler chickens while maintaining intestinal health