Complete Genome Sequence of Pelosinus fermentans JBW45, a Member of a Remarkably Competitive Group of Negativicutes in the Firmicutes Phylum.

The genome of Pelosinus fermentans JBW45, isolated from a chromium-contaminated site in Hanford, Washington, USA, has been completed with PacBio sequencing. Nine copies of the rRNA gene operon and multiple transposase genes with identical sequences resulted in breaks in the original draft genome and may suggest genomic instability of JBW45

A Streamlined Strategy for Biohydrogen Production with Halanaerobium hydrogeniformans, an Alkaliphilic Bacterium

Biofuels are anticipated to enable a shift from fossil fuels for renewable transportation and manufacturing fuels, with biohydrogen considered attractive since it could offer the largest reduction of global carbon budgets. Currently, lignocellulosic biohydrogen production remains inefficient with pretreatments that are heavily fossil fuel-dependent. However, bacteria using alkali-treated biomass could streamline biofuel production while reducing costs and fossil fuel needs. An alkaliphilic bacterium, Halanaerobium hydrogeniformans, is described that is capable of biohydrogen production at levels rivaling neutrophilic strains, but at pH 11 and hypersaline conditions. H. hydrogeniformans ferments a variety of 5- and 6-carbon sugars derived from hemicellulose and cellulose including cellobiose, and forms the end products hydrogen, acetate, and formate. Further, it can also produce biohydrogen from switchgrass and straw pretreated at temperatures far lower than any previously reported and in solutions compatible with growth. Hence, this bacterium can potentially increase the efficiency and efficacy of biohydrogen production from renewable biomass resources

Structural equation model for estimating risk factors in type 2 diabetes mellitus in a Middle Eastern setting: evidence from the STEPS Qatar.

AIMS: Understanding type 2 diabetes mellitus is critical for designing effective diabetes prevention policies in Qatar and the Middle East. METHODS: Using the Qatar 2012 WHO STEPwise approach to surveillance survey, a subsample of 1224 Qatari participants aged 18-64 years was selected. Subjects had their fasting blood glucose levels tested, had not been diagnosed with or treated for diabetes, had a fasting time >12 hours and were not pregnant. We applied a hypothesized structural equation model (SEM) to assess sociodemographic, behavioral, anthropometric and metabolic variables affecting persons with type 2 diabetes mellitus. RESULTS: There is a direct effect of triglyceride levels (0.336) and body mass index (BMI) (0.164) on diabetes status. We also found that physical activity levels negatively affect BMI (-0.148) and positively affect high-density lipoprotein (HDL) (0.106); sociodemographic background negatively affects diet (-0.522) and BMI (-0.352); HDL positively affects total cholesterol (0.230) and has a negative effect on BMI (-0.108), triglycerides (-0.128) and waist circumference (-0.104). Diet has a positive effect on triglycerides (0.281) while family history of diabetes negatively affects total cholesterol (-0.104). BMI has a positive effect on waist circumference (0.788) and mediates the effects of physical activity over diabetes status (-0.028). BMI also mediates the effects that sociodemographic factors (-0.058) and physical activity (-0.024) have on diabetes status. BMI and HDL (-0.002) together mediate the effect of physical activity on diabetes status and similarly HDL and tryglycerides (-0.005) also mediate the effect of physical activity on diabetes status. Finally diet and tryglycerides mediate the effects that sociodemographic factors have on diabetes status (-0.049). CONCLUSIONS: This study's main finding is that triglyceride levels and BMI are the main variables directly affecting diabetes status in the Qatari population

Vitamin D Deficiency: At Risk Patient Populations and Potential Drug Interactions

Vitamin D is known to play an essential role in calcium homeostasis; however, excessive amounts can have harmful effects. Calcium and vitamin D levels are known to be influenced by drug interactions and pathology ranging from of cancer to cardiovascular disease. Vitamin D supplementation has become widespread, and it is important for clinicians to understand the way that certain conditions and medications interact with vitamin D and calcium homeostasis. The purpose of this review is to outline the benefits and adverse effects of vitamin D and how its levels are affected by certain pathologic and pharmacologic interactions

Kawasaki Disease Shock Syndrome vs Classical Kawasaki Disease: A Meta-analysis and Comparison With SARS-CoV-2 Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: The emergence of increasing reports worldwide of a severe inflammatory process and shock in pediatric patients resembling Kawasaki disease (KD) and more specifically Kawasaki disease shock syndrome (KDSS), prompted us to explore KDSS in a preamble of a systematic comparison between the two conditions. METHODS: We completed a systematic review of KDSS and performed a meta-analysis comparison between reported KDSS cases and KD controls. RESULTS: A total of ten case-control series were included in the meta-analysis. KDSS patients were older (38.4 ± 30.6 vs. 21.9±19.5 months; P<0.001) compared to standard KD with equal sex distribution and completeness of clinical diagnostic criteria. KDSS present higher CRP (59.4±29.2 mg/dL vs. 20.8±14.8 mg/dL; p<0.001), lower albumin (2.7±0.5 g/dL vs. 3.3±0.5 g/dL; p<0.01), and lower platelets (255±149 109/L vs. 394±132 109/L; p<0.001) but only borderline higher WBC's (p=0.06). Differences in ALT, AST and ESR were non-significant. The odds of IVIG resistance (44.4% vs. 9.6%; (p<0.001) and the hospital length of stay (10.9±5.8 vs. 5.0±3.0 days; p<0.001) were higher in KDSS as were the odds of coronary artery abnormalities (33.9% vs. 8.6%; p<0.001). CONCLUSION: This first meta-analysis on KDSS versus KD represents a basis for future works on KDSS and opens the opportunity for future multicenter studies in the search of causal relationships between presenting elements and the eventual complications of KDSS. The similarities between SARS-CoV-2 multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and KDSS open new horizons to the understanding of the etiology and pathophysiology related to KDSS

Associations of sNfL with clinico-radiological measures in a large MS population

Esclerosi múltiple; Cadena lleugera de neurofilaments sèricsEsclerosis múltiple; Cadena ligera de neurofilamentos séricosMultiple sclerosis; Serum neurofilament light chainObjective Evaluation of serum neurofilament light chain (sNfL), measured using high-throughput assays on widely accessible platforms in large, real-world MS populations, is a critical step for sNfL to be utilized in clinical practice. Methods Multiple Sclerosis Partners Advancing Technology and Health Solutions (MS PATHS) is a network of healthcare institutions in the United States and Europe collecting standardized clinical/imaging data and biospecimens during routine clinic visits. sNfL was measured in 6974 MS and 201 healthy control (HC) participants, using a high-throughput, scalable immunoassay. Results Elevated sNfL levels for age (sNfL-E) were found in 1238 MS participants (17.8%). Factors associated with sNfL-E included male sex, younger age, progressive disease subtype, diabetes mellitus, impaired renal function, and active smoking. Higher body mass index (BMI) was associated with lower odds of elevated sNfL. Active treatment with disease-modifying therapy was associated with lower odds of sNfL-E. MS participants with sNfL-E exhibited worse neurological function (patient-reported disability, walking speed, manual dexterity, and cognitive processing speed), lower brain parenchymal fraction, and higher T2 lesion volume. Longitudinal analyses revealed accelerated short-term rates of whole brain atrophy in sNfL-E participants and higher odds of new T2 lesion development, although both MS participants with or without sNfL-E exhibited faster rates of whole brain atrophy compared to HC. Findings were consistent in analyses examining age-normative sNfL Z-scores as a continuous variable. Interpretation Elevated sNfL is associated with clinical disability, inflammatory disease activity, and whole brain atrophy in MS, but interpretation needs to account for comorbidities including impaired renal function, diabetes, and smoking.Study funding was provided from the National Institutes of Health (K23NS117883 to E.S.S.; K01MH121582 to K.C.F.; U01NS111678 to P.A.C.), National Multiple Sclerosis Society (RG-1904-33834 to E.S.S.; RG-1904-33800 to P.A.C.), and Biogen

Expression profiling of hypothetical genes in Desulfovibrio vulgaris leads to improved functional annotation

Hypothetical (HyP) and conserved HyP genes account for >30% of sequenced bacterial genomes. For the sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough, 347 of the 3634 genes were annotated as conserved HyP (9.5%) along with 887 HyP genes (24.4%). Given the large fraction of the genome, it is plausible that some of these genes serve critical cellular roles. The study goals were to determine which genes were expressed and provide a more functionally based annotation. To accomplish this, expression profiles of 1234 HyP and conserved genes were used from transcriptomic datasets of 11 environmental stresses, complemented with shotgun LC–MS/MS and AMT tag proteomic data. Genes were divided into putatively polycistronic operons and those predicted to be monocistronic, then classified by basal expression levels and grouped according to changes in expression for one or multiple stresses. One thousand two hundred and twelve of these genes were transcribed with 786 producing detectable proteins. There was no evidence for expression of 17 predicted genes. Except for the latter, monocistronic gene annotation was expanded using the above criteria along with matching Clusters of Orthologous Groups. Polycistronic genes were annotated in the same manner with inferences from their proximity to more confidently annotated genes. Two targeted deletion mutants were used as test cases to determine the relevance of the inferred functional annotations

Characterization of subsurface media from locations up- and down-gradient of a uranium-contaminated aquifer.

The processing of sediment to accurately characterize the spatially-resolved depth profiles of geophysical and geochemical properties along with signatures of microbial density and activity remains a challenge especially in complex contaminated areas. This study processed cores from two sediment boreholes from background and contaminated core sediments and surrounding groundwater. Fresh core sediments were compared by depth to capture the changes in sediment structure, sediment minerals, biomass, and pore water geochemistry in terms of major and trace elements including pollutants, cations, anions, and organic acids. Soil porewater samples were matched to groundwater level, flow rate, and preferential flows and compared to homogenized groundwater-only samples from neighboring monitoring wells. Groundwater analysis of nearby wells only revealed high sulfate and nitrate concentrations while the same analysis using sediment pore water samples with depth was able to suggest areas high in sulfate- and nitrate-reducing bacteria based on their decreased concentration and production of reduced by-products that could not be seen in the groundwater samples. Positive correlations among porewater content, total organic carbon, trace metals and clay minerals revealed a more complicated relationship among contaminant, sediment texture, groundwater table, and biomass. The fluctuating capillary interface had high concentrations of Fe and Mn-oxides combined with trace elements including U, Th, Sr, Ba, Cu, and Co. This suggests the mobility of potentially hazardous elements, sediment structure, and biogeochemical factors are all linked together to impact microbial communities, emphasizing that solid interfaces play an important role in determining the abundance of bacteria in the sediments

NuSTAR Observations of Candidate Subparsec Supermassive Black Holes

We present analysis of NuSTAR X-ray observations of three AGN that were identified as candidate subparsec binary supermassive black hole (SMBH) systems in the Catalina Real-Time Transient Survey based on apparent periodicity in their optical light curves. Simulations predict that close-separation accreting SMBH binaries will have different X-ray spectra than single accreting SMBHs. We previously observed these AGN with Chandra and found no differences between their low energy X-ray properties and the larger AGN population. However some models predict differences to be more prominent at energies higher than probed by Chandra. We find that even at the higher energies probed by NuSTAR, the spectra of these AGN are indistinguishable from the larger AGN population. This could rule out models predicting large differences in the X-ray spectra in the NuSTAR bands. Alternatively, it might mean that these three AGN are not binary SMBHs