Novel essential role of ethanol oxidation genes at low temperature revealed by transcriptome analysis in the antarctic bacterium pseudomonas extremaustralis

Temperature is one of the most important factors for bacterial growth and development. Cold environments are widely distributed on earth, and psychrotolerant and psychrophilic microorganisms have developed different adaptation strategies to cope with the stress derived from low temperatures. Pseudomonas extremaustralis is an Antarctic bacterium able to grow under low temperatures and to produce high amounts of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). In this work, we analyzed the genome-wide transcriptome by RNA deepsequencing technology of early exponential cultures of P. extremaustralis growing in LB (Luria Broth) supplemented with sodium octanoate to favor PHA accumulation at 8°C and 30°C. We found that genes involved in primary metabolism, including tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) related genes, as well as cytochromes and amino acid metabolism coding genes, were repressed at low temperature. Among up-regulated genes, those coding for transcriptional regulatory and signal transduction proteins were over-represented at cold conditions. Remarkably, we found that genes involved in ethanol oxidation, exaA, exaB and exaC, encoding a pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ)-dependent ethanol dehydrogenase, the cytochrome c550 and an aldehyde dehydrogenase respectively, were up-regulated. Along with RNA-seq experiments, analysis of mutant strains for pqqB (PQQ biosynthesis protein B) and exaA were carried out. We found that the exaA and pqqB genes are essential for growth under low temperature in LB supplemented with sodium octanoate. Additionally, prosaniline assay measurements showed the presence of alcohol dehydrogenase activity at both 8°C and 30°C, while the activity was abolished in a pqqB mutant strain. These results together with the detection of ethanol by gas chromatography in P. extremaustralis cultures grown at 8°C support the conclusion that this pathway is important under cold conditions. The obtained results have led to the identification of novel components involved in cold adaptation mechanisms in this bacterium, suggesting for the first time a role of the ethanol oxidation pathway for bacterial growth at low temperatures.Fil: Tribelli, Paula Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Solar Venero, Esmeralda Clara. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Ricardi, Martiniano María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias; ArgentinaFil: Gómez Lozano, Maria. Technical University of Denmark; DinamarcaFil: Raiger Iustman, Laura Judith. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Molin, Søren. Technical University of Denmark; DinamarcaFil: López, Nancy Irene. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentin

Garantías y derechos laborales para los trabajadores sexuales en Colombia

Debido al incremento y correlativamente a esto la falta de regulación normativa que ha surgido en los últimos años respecto al desarrollo de actividades sexuales en Colombia, en especial el modelaje webcam, que a causa de la pandemia de la Covid-19 aumento el consumo y desarrollo de la misma, es importante enmarcar dentro de una relación laboral dicha actividad, con el fin de promover y reconocer la protección de los derechos y garantías derivados de una relación laboral en Colombia.Due to the increase and correlatively with this, the lack of normative regulation that has emerged in recent years regarding the development of sexual activities in Colombia, especially webcam modeling, which, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, increased consumption and development of the same, it is important to frame this activity within an employment relationship, in order to promote and recognize the protection of the rights and guarantees derived from an employment relationship in Colombia

Análisis crítico de las normas jurídicas que regulan las cuencas y microcuencas hídricas

Tras una recopilación de las normas que constituyen los ejes de la legislación ambiental, tales como el Decreto 2811 de 1974, la Constitución Política colombiana de 1991 y la Ley 99 de 1993, entre otras, se logran identificar tres paradigmas epistemológicos en los cuales se pueden clasificar cada una de estas normas: uno basado en criterios teleológicos de carácter sanitario y sesgo ingenieril, preponderante en la primera mitad del siglo XX; el segundo, acá llamado conservacionismo utilitario, evidenciado a partir de la segunda mitad del siglo XX, y el tercero, que concibe la naturaleza de manera sistémica, en busca de poder abarcar la complejidad del ciclo hidrológico, el cual se desarrolla en las primeras décadas de siglo XXI. En la actualidad, los paradigmas predominantes en las normas jurídicas vigentes que regulan las microcuencas hídricas son los dos últimos. Con todo y lo positivo que esto representa para la protección de los diferentes recursos, la realidad de las microcuencas de Valle de Aburrá es que ya están tan intervenidas que no se considera posible llevarlas a un escenario de restauración teniendo en cuenta el contexto urbano en el que están inmersos estas cuencas hídricas. De la misma forma, al existir una multiplicidad de normas vigentes que responden a paradigmas opuestos, se evidencia un desorden normativo que resta eficacia en su aplicación y limita una adecuada gestión del recurso hídrico. Lo cual se evidencia en el estado actual de degradación de las cuencas y microcuencas del Valle de Aburrá

Fundamentalism, Argumentative Strategies, and Emotions: A Perspective from Higher-Order Cognition

This paper examines the problem of fundamentalism from the point of view of higher-order cognition; that is, of cognitive systems composed by more than one human being. It is proposed that second-order brains work well if 1) they are diverse; that is, it contains diverse perspectives and heuristics; and 2) if they have cohesion, that is if the different parts listen to each other. Fundamentalism is characterized by the idea of authoritarianism in authors such as Robert Altemeyer or Theodor Adorno, by theories of authoritarian and democratic cognition in Solomon Schimmel and Humberto Maturana, and by the idea of political foundations and moral emotions of Johnathan Haidt. Fundamentalism is understood as an active effort that involves feelings such as hate, of evading to participate in the World Brain, namely, the higher-order system that gathers to all human beings.Se examina el problema del fundamentalismo desde el punto de vista de la cognición de segundo orden, es decir, los sistemas compuestos por más de un solo individuo. Se propone que estos sistemas funcionan bien si 1) son diversos, es decir, recogen en sí diversas perspectivas y heurísticas; y 2) tienen cohesión, es decir, las diferentes partes que los componen se escuchan entre sí. El fundamentalismo se caracteriza tanto desde el punto de vista del autoritarismo en autores como Robert Altemeyer y Teodoro Adorno, como desde teorías de la cognición autoritaria y democrática, como la de Solomon Schimmel y Humberto Maturana, como de los fundamentos de la política y emociones morales de Johnatan Haidt. Este se entenderá como un esfuerzo activo, que incluye sentimientos como el odio, de no participar en el cerebro mundial, entendido como un sistema de segundo orden que incluye a todos los seres humanos

RGL2 controls flower development, ovule number and fertility in Arabidopsis

[EN] DELLA proteins are a group of plant specific GRAS proteins of transcriptional regulators that have a key role in gibberellin (GA) signaling. In Arabidopsis, the DELLA family is formed by five members. The complexity of this gene family raises the question on whether single DELLA proteins have specific or overlapping functions in the control of several GA-dependent developmental processes. To better understand the roles played by RGL2, one of the DELLA proteins in Arabidopsis, two transgenic lines that express fusion proteins of Venus-RGL2 and a dominant version of RGL2, YPet-rgl2A17, were generated by recombineering strategy using a genomic clone that contained the RGL2 gene. The dominant YPet-rg12 Delta 17 protein is not degraded by GAs, and therefore it blocks the RGL2-dependent GA signaling and hence RGL2-dependent development. The RGL2 role in seed germination was further confirmed using these genetic tools, while new functions of RGL2 in plant development were uncovered. RGL2 has a clear function in the regulation of flower development, particularly stamen growth and anther dehiscence, which has a great impact in fertility. Moreover, the increased ovule number in the YPet-rg12 Delta 17 line points out the role of RGL2 in the determination of ovule number.We wish to thank Ms. J. Yun,M.A. Argomániz for technical assistance, and the IBMCP microscopy facility. Edit Syndicate (http://www.editsyndicate.com/) provided proofreading of the manuscript. This work was supported by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness-FEDER [BI02011-26302 and BI02014-55946] and Generalitat Valenciana [ACOMP/2013/048 and ACOMP/2014/106] to M.A.P-A. and National Science Foundation [MCB-0923727] to J.M.A. MAP-A. received a fellowship of the 'Salvador de Madariaga' program from Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.Gómez Jiménez, MD.; Fuster Almunia, C.; Ocaña-Cuesta, J.; Alonso, J.; Perez Amador, MA. (2019). RGL2 controls flower development, ovule number and fertility in Arabidopsis. Plant Science. 281:82-92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plantsci.2019.01.014S829228

Occurrence of antibiotics and bacterial resistance in wastewater and sea water from the Antarctic

The potential presence of introduced antibiotics in the aquatic environment is a hot topic of concern, particularly in the Antarctic, a highly vulnerable area protected under the Madrid protocol. The increasing presence of human population, especially during summer, might led to the appearance of pharmaceuticals in wastewater. The previous discovery of Escherichia coli strains resistant to antibiotics in sea water and wastewater collected in King George Island motivated our investigation on antibiotics occurrence in these samples. The application of a multi-residue LCMS/MS method for 20 antibiotics, revealed the presence of 8 compounds in treated wastewater, mainly the quinolones ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin (92% and 54% of the samples analyzed, average concentrations 0.89 μg/L and 0.75 μg/L, respectively) and the macrolides azithromycin and clarithromycin (15% positive samples, and average concentrations near 0.4 μg/L), and erythromycin (38% positive samples, average concentration 0.003 μg/L). Metronidazole and clindamycin were found in one sample, at 0.17 and 0.1 μg/L, respectively; and trimethoprim in two samples, at 0.001 μg/L. Analysis of sea water collected near the outfall of the wastewater discharges also showed the sporadic presence of 3 antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, clindamycin, trimethoprim) at low ng/L level, illustrating the impact of pharmaceuticals consumption and the poor removal of these compounds in conventional WWTPs. The most widespread antibiotic in sea water was ciprofloxacin, which was found in 15 out of 34 sea water samples analyzed, at concentrations ranging from 4 to 218 ng/L. Bacteria resistance was observed for some antibiotics identified in the samples (e.g. trimetropim and nalidixic acid –a first generation quinolone). However, resistance to some groups of antibiotics could not be correlated to their presence in the water samples due to analytical limitations (penicillins, tetraciclines). On the contrary, for some groups of antibiotics detected in samples (macrolides), the antibacterial activity against E. Coli was not investigated because these antibiotics do not include this bacterial species in their spectrum of activity. Our preliminary data demonstrate that antibiotics occurrence in the Antarctic aquatic environment is an issue that needs to be properly addressed. Periodical monitoring of water samples and the implementation of additional treatments in the WWTPs are recommended as a first step to prevent potential problems related to the presence of antibiotics and other emerging contaminants in the near future in Antarctica

Bacterioplankton dynamics driven by interannual and spatial variation in diatom and dinoflagellate spring bloom communities in the Baltic Sea

In parts of the Baltic Sea, the phytoplankton spring bloom communities, commonly dominated by diatoms, are shifting toward the co‐occurrence of diatoms and dinoflagellates. Although phytoplankton are known to shape the composition and function of associated bacterioplankton communities, the potential bacterial responses to such a decrease of diatoms are unknown. Here we explored the changes in bacterial communities and heterotrophic production during the spring bloom in four consecutive spring blooms across several sub‐basins of the Baltic Sea and related them to changes in environmental variables and in phytoplankton community structure. The taxonomic structure of bacterioplankton assemblages was partially explained by salinity and temperature but also linked to the phytoplankton community. Higher carbon biomass of the diatoms Achnanthes taeniata, Skeletonema marinoi, Thalassiosira levanderi, and Chaetoceros spp. was associated with more diverse bacterial communities dominated by copiotrophic bacteria (Flavobacteriia, Gammaproteobacteria, and Betaproteobacteria) and higher bacterial production. During dinoflagellate dominance, bacterial production was low and bacterial communities were dominated by Alphaproteobacteria, mainly SAR11. Our results suggest that increases in dinoflagellate abundance during the spring bloom will largely affect the structuring and functioning of the associated bacterial communities. This could decrease pelagic remineralization of organic matter and possibly affect the bacterial grazers communities.Academy of Finland | Ref. 292711Agencia Estatal de Investigación | Ref. RTI2018-099740-J-I00Walter ja Andrée de Nottbeckin Säätiö | Ref. 25916

XBP-1 regulation of arachidonic acid and glicerolipids metabolism in renal epithelial cells under osmotic stress

Hyperosmolarity is a key controversial signal for renal cells. Under physiological conditions, it induces renal celldifferentiation and maturation of urine concentrating system. However, abrupt changes in environmental osmolarity may also induce cell stress that can lead to death. To adapt and survive in such adverse conditions, renal cells implement differentosmoprotective mechanisms that includes both the upregulation of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression and prostaglandins(PGs) synthesis from arachidonic acid (AA), and a coordinated increase in phospholipids (PL) and triacylglycerides (TAG)biosynthesis. We previously shown that hyperosmolarity induces ER stress and activates the unfolded protein response (UPR)in Madyn Darby Canine Kidney Cells (MDCK) through IRE1α-XBP1s pathway, and that XBP1s modulates lipid synthesisregulating lipogenic enzymes expression. In the present work we evaluated how XBP1s modulates phospholipase A2(PLA2)/COX-2/PGs pathway and its relationship with lipid synthesis induction under osmotic stress. MDCK cells weresubjected to hyperosmolarity (298-512 mOsm/kg H2O) for different periods of time (0, 12, 24 and 48 h) and treated withdifferent PLA2 (cPLA2, iPLA2 and sPLA2) and IRE1α inhibitors. RT-PCR studies showed that hyperosmolarity increasedcPLA2 expression at 24 and 48 h but did not upregulate iPLA2 expression. Inhibition of cPLA2 but not iPLA2 nor sPLA2prevented hyperosmolarity-induced lipid synthesis and lipid droplets accumulation. Furthermore, IRE1α RNase activityinhibition was accompanied by a decrease in cPLA2 and COX-2 but not in iPLA2 expression evaluated by RT-PCR. Instead,western blot analysis showed a significant increase in COX-2 protein levels when xbp1 (u) splicing was blocked by IRE1αinhibitor. Our findings suggest that the UPR modulates glycerolipids metabolism under osmotic stress by regulatingcPLA2/COX-2/PGs axis.Fil: Parra, Leandro Gastón. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas "Prof. Alejandro C. Paladini". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Cátedra de Biología Celular y Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Casali, Cecilia Irene. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Cátedra de Biología Celular y Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas "Prof. Alejandro C. Paladini". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Erjavec, Luciana Cecilia. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Cátedra de Biología Celular y Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas "Prof. Alejandro C. Paladini". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Morel Gómez, Emanuel Dario. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas "Prof. Alejandro C. Paladini". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Cátedra de Biología Celular y Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Setton, Clara Patricia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas "Prof. Alejandro C. Paladini". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez, Maria del Carmen. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas "Prof. Alejandro C. Paladini". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Química y Físico-Química Biológicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas. Cátedra de Biología Celular y Molecular; ArgentinaLVII Annual Meeting of the Argentine Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Research and XVI Annual Meeting of the Argentinean Society for General MicrobiologyVirtualArgentinaSociedad Argentina de Investigación Bioquímica y Biología MolecularAsociación Civil de Microbiología Genera

Producción de microorganismos probióticos como aditivo para alimentos concentrados para ganado vacuno.

Por años, las industrias y los laboratorios de investigación han buscado las aplicaciones de los organismos probióticos en animales. El uso de los probióticos como alternativa natural para mejorar el funcionamiento del metabolismo animal; ha demostrado resultados muy interesantes. Modernas granjas utilizan dietas alimenticias (a base probióticos) que disminuyen el estrés, aumentan la microflora intestinal, lo que conlleva al animal a aumentar su resistencia a las infecciones (sistema inmunológico). Mejorar la salud animal, rendimiento en peso y funcionamiento metabólico, ha sido siempre la meta para los productores de ganado de carne y leche. Por esta razón el actual estudio fue concebido para evaluar el microencapsulamiento de microorganismos prebióticos (Lactobacillus Thuringenesis y Bifidobacterium Pseudulongum) por los métodos de Emulsión y Extrusión. para obtener un alimento para levante de becerros, que ofrecería no solamente las ventajas de un suplemento de la alta calidad, sino también un producto con las ventajas de tener probióticos incorporados

Evaluación de etiquetas de alimentos dirigidos a población vegetariana en Colombia

Introduction: Foods marketed for the vegetarian population should provide the micronutrients that they are not taking for having removed the animal source products from their diets. The nutritional composition and other information necessary for making a proper selection of this type of products should be provided in the food labeling aimed for this population. Objective: To evaluate the labeling of foods marketed for the vegetarian population in Colombia. Materials and methods: Vegetarian meat-analog products, cheese substitutes, vegetable drinks and vegetable ice creams were purchased to estimate the compliance of the labeling items, analyze their declared nutritional composition and evaluate their nutrient profile. A product from each category was studied by means of physicochemical analysis methods, in order to contrast the results with the information reported in the nutritional labeling. Results: 167 products were analyzed. It was found that 27% of the products did not comply to the basic regulatory guidelines of the labeling. In addition, 16.8% of these did not provide data on the intake of nutrients. In the composition, great differences were observed in the nutritional content of equivalent product categories. These foods were characterized by low values of calcium and iron and high values of sodium. Regarding the physicochemical contrast, there are variations greater than 50% from the information declared on the labels of several nutrients. Most vegetable drinks and ice creams were classified as unhealthy. Conclusions: It is necessary to improve the nutritional composition of the products aimed at the vegetarian population, providing a greater amount of nutrients that are critical among this population.Introducción: Los alimentos que se comercializan para población vegetariana deben proporcionar los micronutrientes que se están dejando de consumir por eliminar de la dieta los productos de origen animal. En el etiquetado de alimentos dirigidos a esta población debe mostrarse claramente su composición nutricional y otro tipo de información necesaria para una adecuada selección de este tipo de productos. Objetivo: Evaluar el etiquetado de alimentos comercializados para población vegetariana en Colombia. Materiales y métodos: Se adquirieron productos vegetarianos de análogos cárnicos, sustitutos de quesos, bebidas vegetales y helados vegetales para estimar el cumplimiento de los ítems del etiquetado, analizar la composición nutricional declarada y evaluar el perfil de nutrientes. Se estudió un producto de cada categoría por análisis fisicoquímico, a fin de contrastar la información con lo reportado en el etiquetado nutricional. Resultados: Se analizaron 167 productos. Se encontró que el 27% de los productos no cumplió con los lineamientos básicos normativos del etiquetado, además, un 16,8% de estos no arrojaron datos de aporte de nutrientes. En la composición se observaron grandes diferencias en el aporte nutricional en una misma categoría de producto. Estos alimentos se caracterizaron por bajos aportes de calcio y hierro, y altos de sodio. Respecto al contraste fisicoquímico, hay variaciones superiores al 50% de lo declarado en la etiqueta de varios nutrientes. La mayoría de las bebidas y helados vegetales fueron clasificados como poco saludables. Conclusiones: Se requiere mejorar la composición nutricional de los productos dirigidos para población vegetariana proporcionando mayor cantidad de nutrientes que son críticos en esta población