A comprehensive review of the current and future role of the microbiome in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is expected to become the second most common cause of cancer death in the USA by 2030, yet progress continues to lag behind that of other cancers, with only 9% of patients surviving beyond 5 years. Long-term survivorship of PDAC and improving survival has, until recently, escaped our understanding. One recent frontier in the cancer field is the microbiome. The microbiome collectively refers to the extensive community of bacteria and fungi that colonise us. It is estimated that there is one to ten prokaryotic cells for each human somatic cell, yet, the significance of this community in health and disease has, until recently, been overlooked. This review examines the role of the microbiome in PDAC and how it may alter survival outcomes. We evaluate the possibility of employing microbiomic signatures as biomarkers of PDAC. Ultimately this review analyses whether the microbiome may be amenable to targeting and consequently altering the natural history of PDAC

Early Diagnosis of Vegetation Health From High-Resolution Hyperspectral and Thermal Imagery: Lessons Learned From Empirical Relationships and Radiative Transfer Modelling

[Purpose of Review] We provide a comprehensive review of the empirical and modelling approaches used to quantify the radiation–vegetation interactions related to vegetation temperature, leaf optical properties linked to pigment absorption and chlorophyll fluorescence emission, and of their capability to monitor vegetation health. Part 1 provides an overview of the main physiological indicators (PIs) applied in remote sensing to detect alterations in plant functioning linked to vegetation diseases and decline processes. Part 2 reviews the recent advances in the development of quantitative methods to assess PI through hyperspectral and thermal images.[Recent Findings] In recent years, the availability of high-resolution hyperspectral and thermal images has increased due to the extraordinary progress made in sensor technology, including the miniaturization of advanced cameras designed for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems and lightweight aircrafts. This technological revolution has contributed to the wider use of hyperspectral imaging sensors by the scientific community and industry; it has led to better modelling and understanding of the sensitivity of different ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum to detect biophysical alterations used as early warning indicators of vegetation health.[Summary] The review deals with the capability of PIs such as vegetation temperature, chlorophyll fluorescence, photosynthetic energy downregulation and photosynthetic pigments detected through remote sensing to monitor the early responses of plants to different stressors. Various methods for the detection of PI alterations have recently been proposed and validated to monitor vegetation health. The greatest challenges for the remote sensing community today are (i) the availability of high spatial, spectral and temporal resolution image data; (ii) the empirical validation of radiation–vegetation interactions; (iii) the upscaling of physiological alterations from the leaf to the canopy, mainly in complex heterogeneous vegetation landscapes; and (iv) the temporal dynamics of the PIs and the interaction between physiological changes.The authors received funding provided by the FluorFLIGHT (GGR801) Marie Curie Fellowship, the QUERCUSAT and ESPECTRAMED projects (Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness), the Academy of Finland (grants 266152, 317387) and the European Research Council Synergy grant ERC-2013-SyG-610028 IMBALANCE-P.Peer reviewe

ASSESSING THE MAXIMUM LEVEL OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN GROCERY STORES: A COMPARISON BETWEEN SPAIN AND THE USA

The marketing literature has shown how certain grocery store attributes act as critical determinants in the differentiation of one store from another in consumer markets. From this introductory consideration, this work establishes the main factors that underlie these attributes in order to examine which of them present a greater influence on the maximum level of customer satisfaction. The study is performed in two countries from different continents, enabling the observation of differences not only between factor composition, but also their influence on customer satisfaction, depending on the focal country. To test the proposed analysis, we analyzed two different samples of customers that had completed purchases in grocery stores of Spain (Europe) and the United States (America). This work represents a useful contribution to the existing literature since it assesses differences in the main factors that contribute to customer satisfaction depending on the nationality of the customer. This work is especially useful to those grocery retailers that intend to operate in different continents, as it determines the main factors to take into consideration in order to successful launch a transnational grocery store

Comprehensive experimental fitness landscape and evolutionary network for small RNA

The origin of life is believed to have progressed through an RNA world, in which RNA acted as both genetic material and functional molecules. The structure of the evolutionary fitness landscape of RNA would determine natural selection for the first functional sequences. Fitness landscapes are the subject of much speculation, but their structure is essentially unknown. Here we describe a comprehensive map of a fitness landscape, exploring nearly all of sequence space, for short RNAs surviving selection in vitro. With the exception of a small evolutionary network, we find that fitness peaks are largely isolated from one another, highlighting the importance of historical contingency and indicating that natural selection would be constrained to local exploration in the RNA world.Templeton FoundationNational Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant GM068763)Harvard University (Foundational Questions in Evolutionary Biology Grant RFP-12-05

Using microbes to remove microplastics from wastewater and sewage sludge

Microplastics are a widespread form of plastic pollution. There is increasing evidence that they are a threat to human health and the environment. Microplastics in domestic and industrial wastewater become concentrated in sewage sludge during wastewater treatment processes. In 2020, water companies in England produced more than 800,000 tonnes of sewage sludge from urban wastewater. More than 90% of UK sewage sludge is spread on agricultural land as a fertilizer and soil conditioner. This provides a pathway for microplastics to enter the terrestrial environment. There is currently no UK legislation defining safe limits for microplastics in sludge and soils but future regulation is a possibility. There is currently no technology available to remove microplastics from wastewater treatment processes or the resulting sludge. Safe limits for microplastics in treated sewage sludge, soils and water bodies should be identified. This will require a survey of the extent of microplastic pollution throughout the UK, including concentration, identity and characteristics of microplastics in each environmental reservoir, and understanding how microplastics affect different living organisms. Microbes or fungi that break down plastic could be added to existing wastewater treatment process to remove microplastics and prevent their release into the environment. Alternatively, only the active enzymes (rather than the live microorganisms) could be added to the process. Currently, only polyester microplastics (11% of the total microplastic burden) could be treated in this way. Different microorganisms would have to be discovered or developed to tackle other common microplastic polymers such as polypropylene or polyethylene

An international assessment of the adoption of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS®) principles across colorectal units in 2019–2020

Aim: The Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS®) Society guidelines aim to standardize perioperative care in colorectal surgery via 25 principles. We aimed to assess the variation in uptake of these principles across an international network of colorectal units. Method: An online survey was circulated amongst European Society of Coloproctology members in 2019–2020. For each ERAS principle, respondents were asked to score how frequently the principle was implemented in their hospital, from 1 (‘rarely’) to 4 (‘always’). Respondents were also asked to recall whether practice had changed since 2017. Subgroup analyses based on hospital characteristics were conducted. Results: Of hospitals approached, 58% responded to the survey (195/335), with 296 individual responses (multiple responses were received from some hospitals). The majority were European (163/195, 83.6%). Overall, respondents indicated they ‘most often’ or ‘always’ adhered to most individual ERAS principles (18/25, 72%). Variability in the uptake of principles was reported, with universal uptake of some principles (e.g., prophylactic antibiotics; early mobilization) and inconsistency from ‘rarely’ to ‘always’ in others (e.g., no nasogastric intubation; no preoperative fasting and carbohydrate drinks). In alignment with 2018 ERAS guideline updates, adherence to principles for prehabilitation, managing anaemia and postoperative nutrition appears to have increased since 2017. Conclusions: Uptake of ERAS principles varied across hospitals, and not all 25 principles were equally adhered to. Whilst some principles exhibited a high level of acceptance, others had a wide variability in uptake indicative of controversy or barriers to uptake. Further research into specific principles is required to improve ERAS implementation