Metagenomic profiling of microbial metal interaction in Red Sea deep-anoxic brine pools

Extreme environmental conditions induce evolution of microbiomes and shape microbial abundance. Different geochemical studies reported high metal abundance in Red Sea deep-anoxic brine pools, especially in Atlantis II Deep, which has the highest metals content. Brine pools show wide diversity of biologically essential and non-essential metals. Several metals known for their toxicity to biological life were detected in these pools. Yet, previous microbiome analyses of the pools demonstrated vast microbiological diversity. In this study, we compare metal-resistant prokaryotic microbiomes in different metal-rich brine water samples from Atlantis II lower convective layer (ATII-LCL), Atlantis II upper convective layer (ATII-UCL), Discovery Deep (DD) and Kebrit Deep (KD). Moreover, we investigate genome evolution of microbial communities in response to such excessive metal abundance. Using 16S rRNA pyrotags and shot-gun 454-pyrosequencing, we perform a comparative analyses of (i)-taxonomic assignment of operational taxonomic units to major bacterial and archaeal groups and (ii)-metal resistant protein-coding genes, of the microbial communities and metagenomes. The ATII-LCL, ATII-UCL, DD and KD brine pools metagenomes protein-coding genes involved in microbial-metal interaction and resistances were assessed for abundance and diversity. We report specific microbial richness of these three brine pools. Functional analyses of the metagenomes revealed different metal resistance mechanisms and different modes of mutual interaction between dissolved metals/sediments and microbial communities. This was supported by the strong correlation between specific high metal/s concentration in selected brine water, where; metal resistance, enrichment of metals metabolism and transport were revealed. As expected, ATII-LCL showed the highest relative abundance of genes involved in microbial-metal interaction. Additionally, we report significant abundance of peroxidases-encoding genes, mainly in ATII-LCL, and we hypothesize that generation of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) occurs through interaction of pyrite deposits. Moreover, we suggest that genus Paenibacillus, which is highly abundant in ATII-LCL has a role in increasing concentration of dissolved iron in brine water. DD and KD showed relatively lower enrichment of genes involved in microbial-metal interaction. However, geochemistry of these environments together with unique microbial abundance give an inference about mechanisms of microbial metal interaction and metabolism taking place there. Eventually, we successfully identified free living metal-resistant prokaryotic communities, showed how prokaryotes tolerate and induce changes to the surrounding environment, and highlighted how geochemical conditions affected microbial abundance and induced evolution of microbiomes in brine pools

Metabolomics in Neonatology

Throughout recent decades, the incidence of preterm birth has risen worldwide, and although the majority of preterm neonates now survive infancy, many suffer from debilitating morbidities in the short term and/or increased disease risks in the long term. Traditional diagnostic biomarkers suffer from considerable confounders, limiting their use in the early identification of diseases. There is a need to develop novel biomarkers that can identify, in real time, the evolution of organ dysfunction in an early diagnostic, monitoring, and prognostic fashion. Use of “omics,” particularly metabolomics, may provide valuable information regarding functional pathways underlying different pathologies and prediction of clinical outcomes. The emerging knowledge generated by the application of metabolomics in neonatology provides new insights that can help to identify markers of early diagnosis, disease progression, response to treatment, and new therapeutic targets. In this chapter, we review the current knowledge of different metabolomics technologies in neonatal‐perinatal medicine, including biomarker discovery, defining as yet unrecognized biologic therapeutic targets, and linking of metabolomics to relevant standard indices and long‐term outcomes

Approximate solution of a flow over a ramp for large Froude number

AbstractAn approximate method is presented to solve the problem of steady free-surface flow of an ideal fluid over a semi-infinite ramp in the bottom. Schwartz-Christoffel transformation is used to map the region of flow, in the complex potential-plane, onto the upper half-plane. The Hilbert transformation as well as the perturbation technique are used as a basis for the approximate solution of the problem for large Froude number and small inclination angle of the ramp. General equations, in integral form, for any order of approximation are obtained. Solution up to first-order approximation is discussed and illustrated.Elevation of the free-surface for different ramp heights, different inclination angles of the ramp and different Froude numbers are plotted. An approximate formula of maximum elevation of the free-surface in terms of the ramp heights and its inclination angle is found

Cross-sectional imaging of sinus of Valsalva aneurysms: lessons learned

Sinus of Valsalva aneurysm, dilatation of one or more of the aortic sinuses, is a rare but important aortic root defect, which can be a cause of some serious cardiac sequels. The purpose of this article is to review the etiopathogenesis, relevant anatomy, clinical manifestations, potential complications, multimodality imaging features, and management of this rare but important entity of sinus of Valsalva

Endogenous aldehyde accumulation generates genotoxicity and exhaled biomarkers in esophageal adenocarcinoma.

Volatile aldehydes are enriched in esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) patients' breath and could improve early diagnosis, however the mechanisms of their production are unknown. Here, we show that weak aldehyde detoxification characterizes EAC, which is sufficient to cause endogenous aldehyde accumulation in vitro. Two aldehyde groups are significantly enriched in EAC biopsies and adjacent tissue: (i) short-chain alkanals, and (ii) medium-chain alkanals, including decanal. The short-chain alkanals form DNA-adducts, which demonstrates genotoxicity and confirms inadequate detoxification. Metformin, a putative aldehyde scavenger, reduces this toxicity. Tissue and breath concentrations of the medium-chain alkanal decanal are correlated, and increased decanal is linked to reduced ALDH3A2 expression, TP53 deletion, and adverse clinical features. Thus, we present a model for increased exhaled aldehydes based on endogenous accumulation from reduced detoxification, which also causes therapeutically actionable genotoxicity. These results support EAC early diagnosis trials using exhaled aldehyde analysis

Co-evolution of NK receptors and HLA ligands in humans is driven by reproduction.

Allogeneic individuals co-exist during pregnancy in eutherian mammals. Maternal and fetal cells intermingle at the site of placental attachment in the uterus, where the arteries are remodeled to supply the fetus with oxygen and nutrients. This access by placental cells to the maternal supply line determines the growth and birth weight of the baby and is subject to stabilizing selection. Invading placental trophoblast cells express human leukocyte antigen class I ligands (HLA-E, HLA-G, and HLA-C) for receptors on maternal uterine natural killer (NK) and myelomonocytic cells, CD94/NKG2, leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor (LILR), and killer immunoglobulin receptor (KIR). Of these, only the KIR/HLA-C system is highly polymorphic. Different combinations of maternal KIR and fetal HLA-C variants are correlated with low birth weight and pre-eclampsia or high birth weight and obstructed labor, the two extremes of the obstetric dilemma. This situation has arisen because of the evolution of bipedalism and subsequently, in the last million years, larger brains. At this point, the human system began to reach a balance between KIR A and KIR B haplotypes and C1 and C2 epitopes of HLA-C alleles that reflects a functional compromise between the competing demands of immunity and reproduction.We are grateful for financial support from Centre for Trophoblast Research, University of Cambridge, King's College, Cambridge, and the Wellcome Trust.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/imr.1232

Public Painting - Malerei und Handlung

Das Magazin "Public Painting – Malerei und Handlung" versammelt künstlerischen Projekte, die auf unterschiedliche Weise Verhältnisse von Malerei zum öffentlichen Raum reflektieren, und Verhältnisse thematisieren, die im öffentlichen Raum ausagiert werden. Die Beiträge entstanden als Resultat der Kooperation des kunstwissenschaftlichen Seminars "Malerei als Handlung" von Anne Röhl und des kunstpraktischen Seminars "public painting" von Sebastian Freytag während des Sommersemesters 2021 an der Universität Siegen. Unter dem Titel "public painting" wurden Schnittstellen von malerischer Praxis und öffentlichen Raum diskutiert. Die Studierenden des Seminars "Malerei als Handlung" haben sich wiederum damit beschäftigt, wie die Gattung Malerei im Verlauf des 20. Jahrhunderts durch die Abkehr von traditionellen Entstehungsprozessen und Malhandlungen befragt wurde und skulptural und/oder performativ wird. Daneben widmeten sich die Studierenden des kunsthistorischen Seminars der schriftlichen Auseinandersetzung mit den künstlerischen Resultaten des kunstpraktischen Seminars. Die Auseinandersetzung mit dem öffentlichen Raum stellte im Sommersemester 2021 eine besondere Herausforderung dar, da er pandemiebedingt nur eingeschränkt nutzbar war. Die künstlerischen Ergebnisse dokumentieren somit auch diese Zeit

Thiopurine monotherapy is effective in ulcerative colitis but significantly less so in Crohn’s disease: long-term outcomes for 11 928 patients in the UK inflammatory bowel disease bioresource

Objective: Thiopurines are widely used as maintenance therapy in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) but the evidence base for their use is sparse and their role increasingly questioned. Using the largest series reported to date, we assessed the long-term effectiveness of thiopurines in ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD), including their impact on need for surgery. Design: Outcomes were assessed in 11 928 patients (4968 UC, 6960 CD) in the UK IBD BioResource initiated on thiopurine monotherapy with the intention of maintaining medically induced remission. Effectiveness was assessed retrospectively using patient-level data and a definition that required avoidance of escalation to biological therapy or surgery while on thiopurines. Analyses included overall effectiveness, time-to-event analysis for treatment escalation and comparison of surgery rates in patients tolerant or intolerant of thiopurines. Results: Using 68 132 patient-years of exposure, thiopurine monotherapy appeared effective for the duration of treatment in 2617/4968 (52.7%) patients with UC compared with 2378/6960 (34.2%) patients with CD (p<0.0001). This difference was corroborated in a multivariable analysis: after adjusting for variables including treatment era, thiopurine monotherapy was less effective in CD than UC (OR 0.47, 95% CI 0.43 to 0.51, p<0.0001). Thiopurine intolerance was associated with increased risk of surgery in UC (HR 2.44, p<0.0001); with a more modest impact on need for surgery in CD (HR=1.23, p=0.0015). Conclusion: Thiopurine monotherapy is an effective long-term treatment for UC but significantly less effective in CD