Zahraniční migranti v Česku: Geografické a společenské aspekty hodnocení integrace

Přírodovědecká fakult

Development of compartmentalizes antibacterial systems based on immobilized alliinase

Multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacteria are one of the most significant threats to modern society. Antibiotics, in the past so effective against broad spectra of infections, are nowadays omnipresent and their widespread availability, misuse and gradual accumulation over time in the environment is the main reason behind the sudden increase of bacterial resistance. However, it has been shown that some natural antibacterial systems are designed in such a way that effectively prevents the development of bacterial resistance. One of the most known examples of such natural self-defence system is garlic plant, where highly potent but unstable compound allicin is formed enzymatically from inactive precursor (alliin) only when and where the inner cellular structure is compromised (e.g. soil pathogens, rodents). A very short half-time of allicin is the key to garlic’s success: bacteria do not have the necessary time to develop effective countermeasures, and therefore allicin remains ever-lasting natural bactericide for thousands of years compared to relatively stable antibiotics. In this study, we propose to employ encapsulation techniques (ionic cross-linking, spray drying) to develop polymer carrier where purified and stabilized enzyme (alliinase) and substrate (alliin) are physically separated in two different types of carriers. Additionally, we want to demonstrate the possibility to control the overall rate of enzymatic reaction and allicin generation via the cross-linking ratio (amount of cross-linker per polymer). Finally, the antibacterial effect of prepared carriers will be tested against common bacterial strains using the disc diffusion method and non-contact form of produced allicin in a volatil

Development of biomimetic surfaces with an antibacterial effect based on the structure of dragonfly wings

Antibiotics, in the past so effective against wide spectra of infections, are nowadays omnipresent and their widespread availability, misuse and gradual accumulation over time in the environment is the main reason behind the sudden increase of bacterial resistance. However, it has been shown that some natural surfaces (e.g., cicada wing) possess topography which renders their surface antibacterial and resistant to bacterial colonization without any active chemical substance. The mode of action is such, that adhered bacterium is exposed to shear stress between the cell wall and surface topography (e.g., an array of nanopillars) resulting in cell deformation, wall rupture, lysis, and death. Moreover, the mechanical nature of bacteria-surface interaction virtually eliminates the risk of the sudden emergence of bacterial resistance since the whole process depends solely on surface topography and mechanical properties of the bacterial cell. In this work, we propose to examine topographies of Czech domestic insects (e.g. dragonflies, damselflies, moths), test their antibacterial properties against model Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and replicate their topology using suitable techniques allowing the transfer of antibacterial topology into a larger scale. We believe that such materials have the potential to be the answer to increasing number of MDR bacteria and secondary infections

Prosecco DOC marketing strategies for Chinese market

Table S12. List of all genes within cluster 10. Average log2 transcriptions of individual probe sets under individual treatments are displayed as well as log2 FC of individual treatments against non-treated samples. Manufacturer annotation of individual IDs along with HarvEST annotation of individual AGIs is included. (XLSX 9 kb

Freezing avoidance by supercooling in Olea europaea cultivars: The role of apoplastic water, solute content and cell wall rigidity

Plants can avoid freezing damage by preventing extracellular ice formation below the equilibrium freezing temperature (supercooling). We used Olea europaea cultivars to assess which traits contribute to avoid ice nucleation at sub-zero temperatures. Seasonal leaf water relations, non-structural carbohydrates, nitrogen and tissue damage and ice nucleation temperatures in different plant parts were determined in five cultivars growing in the Patagonian cold desert. Ice seeding in roots occurred at higher temperatures than in stems and leaves. Leaves of cold acclimated cultivars supercooled down to -13°C, substantially lower than the minimum air temperatures observed in the study site. During winter, leaf ice nucleation and leaf freezing damage (LT50) occurred at similar temperatures, typical of plant tissues that supercool. Higher leaf density and cell wall rigidity were observed during winter, consistent with a substantial acclimation to sub-zero temperatures. Larger supercooling capacity and lower LT50 were observed in cold-acclimated cultivars with higher osmotically active solute content, higher tissue elastic adjustments and lower apoplastic water. Irreversible leaf damage was only observed in laboratory experiments at very low temperatures, but not in the field. A comparative analysis of closely related plants avoids phylogenetic independence bias in a comparative study of adaptations to survive low temperatures.Fil: Arias, Nadia Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; ArgentinaFil: Bucci, Sandra Janet. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; ArgentinaFil: Scholz, Fabian Gustavo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; ArgentinaFil: Goldstein, Guillermo Hernan. University of Miami; Estados Unidos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Making Waves:Collaboration in the time of SARS-CoV-2 - rapid development of an international co-operation and wastewater surveillance database to support public health decision-making

The presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater was first reported in March 2020. Over the subsequent months, the potential for wastewater surveillance to contribute to COVID-19 mitigation programmes has been the focus of intense national and international research activities, gaining the attention of policy makers and the public. As a new application of an established methodology, focused collaboration between public health practitioners and wastewater researchers is essential to developing a common understanding on how, when and where the outputs of this non-invasive community-level approach can deliver actionable outcomes for public health authorities. Within this context, the NORMAN SCORE “SARS-CoV-2 in sewage” database provides a platform for rapid, open access data sharing, validated by the uploading of 276 data sets from nine countries to-date. Through offering direct access to underpinning meta-data sets (and describing its use in data interpretation), the NORMAN SCORE database is a resource for the development of recommendations on minimum data requirements for wastewater pathogen surveillance. It is also a tool to engage public health practitioners in discussions on use of the approach, providing an opportunity to build mutual understanding of the demand and supply for data and facilitate the translation of this promising research application into public health practice.</p

Making waves: collaboration in the time of SARS-CoV-2 - rapid development of an international co-operation and wastewater surveillance database to support public health decision-making

The presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater was first reported in March 2020. Over the subsequent months, the potential for wastewater surveillance to contribute to COVID-19 mitigation programmes has been the focus of intense national and international research activities, gaining the attention of policy makers and the public. As a new application of an established methodology, focused collaboration between public health practitioners and wastewater researchers is essential to developing a common understanding on how, when and where the outputs of this non-invasive community-level approach can deliver actionable outcomes for public health authorities. Within this context, the NORMAN SCORE "SARS-CoV-2 in sewage" database provides a platform for rapid, open access data sharing, validated by the uploading of 276 data sets from nine countries to-date. Through offering direct access to underpinning meta-data sets (and describing its use in data interpretation), the NORMAN SCORE database is a resource for the development of recommendations on minimum data requirements for wastewater pathogen surveillance. It is also a tool to engage public health practitioners in discussions on use of the approach, providing an opportunity to build mutual understanding of the demand and supply for data and facilitate the translation of this promising research application into public health practice. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Transcriptional responses of winter barley to cold indicate nucleosome remodelling as a specific feature of crown tissues

We report a series of microarray-based comparisons of gene expression in the leaf and crown of the winter barley cultivar Luxor, following the exposure of young plants to various periods of low (above and below zero) temperatures. A transcriptomic analysis identified genes which were either expressed in both the leaf and crown, or specifically in one or the other. Among the former were genes responsible for calcium and abscisic acid signalling, polyamine synthesis, late embryogenesis abundant proteins and dehydrins. In the crown, the key organ for cereal overwintering, cold treatment induced transient changes in the transcription of nucleosome assembly genes, and especially H2A and HTA11, which have been implicated in cold sensing in Arabidopsis thaliana. In the leaf, various heat-shock proteins were induced. Differences in expression pattern between the crown and leaf were frequent for genes involved in certain pathways responsible for osmolyte production (sucrose and starch, raffinose, γ-aminobutyric acid metabolism), sugar signalling (trehalose metabolism) and secondary metabolism (lignin synthesis). The action of proteins with antifreeze activity, which were markedly induced during hardening, was demonstrated by a depression in the ice nucleation temperature