Influent Wastewater Microbiota and Temperature Influence Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor Microbial Community

Sustainable municipal wastewater recovery scenarios highlight benefits of anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBRs). However, influences of continuous seeding by influent wastewater and temperature on attached-growth AnMBRs are not well understood. In this study, four bench-scale AnMBR operated at 10 and 25 °C were fed synthetic (SPE) and then real (PE) primary effluent municipal wastewater. Illumina sequencing revealed different bacterial communities in each AnMBR in response to temperature and bioreactor configuration, whereas differences were not observed in archaeal communities. Activity assays revealed hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis was the dominant methanogenic pathway at 10 °C. The significant relative abundance of Methanosaeta at 10 °C concomitant with low acetoclastic methanogenic activity may indicate possible Methanosaeta-Geobacter direct interspecies electron transfer. When AnMBR feed was changed to PE, continual seeding with wastewater microbiota caused AnMBR microbial communities to shift, becoming more similar to PE microbiota. Therefore, influent wastewater microbiota, temperature and reactor configuration influenced the AnMBR microbial community

Precision laser range finder system design for Advanced Technology Laboratory applications

Preliminary system design of a pulsed precision ruby laser rangefinder system is presented which has a potential range resolution of 0.4 cm when atmospheric effects are negligible. The system being proposed for flight testing on the advanced technology laboratory (ATL) consists of a modelocked ruby laser transmitter, course and vernier rangefinder receivers, optical beacon retroreflector tracking system, and a network of ATL tracking retroreflectors. Performance calculations indicate that spacecraft to ground ranging accuracies of 1 to 2 cm are possible

Self-efficacy and social support as mediators of mental health among abused women.

Supportive counseling and facilitated referrals to support organizations have shown positive effects on mental health and coping with domestic and family violence. However, the reasons why and how such effects are significant remain unknown. The current paper used data from a randomized controlled trial of a psychosocial intervention implemented in Nepal among 140 abused pregnant women. The hypothesized mediating effects of self-efficacy and social support on mental health and quality of life of abused pregnant women were tested using serial mediation analyses. Significance of parameter estimates and bias-corrected 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the indirect effects were generated using bootstrapping. The postintervention changes in self-efficacy and social support were found to have significant mediating effects on the relationship between the intervention and changes in both mental health and quality of life of participants post intervention. The positive effects on outcomes were seen at follow-up as well, though to a lesser extent. Further interventions should focus on enhancing abused women's self-efficacy and social support to ensure their positive mental health and better lives

Removal of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in an Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor Treating Primary Clarifier Effluent at 20 °C

Anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBR) play a key role in future plans for sustainable wastewater treatment and resource recovery because they have no energy-intensive oxygen transfer requirements and can produce biomethane for renewable energy. Recent research results show that they can meet relatively stringent discharge limits with respect to BOD5 and TSS when treating municipal wastewater primary effluent. Sustainable used water recovery plans should also consider removal of unregulated pollutants. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) represent an important emerging contaminant due to public health concerns surrounding the spread of infections resistant to common antibiotics. Conventional activated sludge processes have demonstrated mixed results regarding ARG removal. The objective of this research was to determine the impact of an AnMBR on ARG removal when treating municipal primary clarifier effluent at 20 °C. AnMBR treatment resulted in 3.3 to 3.6 log reduction of ARG and the horizontal gene transfer determinate, intI1, copies in filtrate. Membrane treatment significantly decreased the total biomass as indicated by a decrease in 16S rRNA gene concentration. Microbial community analysis via Illumina sequencing revealed that the relative abundance of putative pathogens was higher in membrane filtrate compared to primary effluent although the overall bacterial 16S rRNA gene concentrations was lower in filtrate. Membrane treatment also substantially reduced microbial diversity in filtrate compared to anaerobic reactor contents

The biomedical use of silk: past, present, future

Humans have long appreciated silk for its lustrous appeal and remarkable physical properties, yet as the mysteries of silk are unraveled, it becomes clear that this outstanding biopolymer is more than a high-tech fiber. This progress report provides a critical but detailed insight into the biomedical use of silk. This journey begins with a historical perspective of silk and its uses, including the long-standing desire to reverse engineer silk. Selected silk structure-function relationships are then examined to appreciate past and current silk challenges. From this, biocompatibility and biodegradation are reviewed with a specific focus of silk performance in humans. The current clinical uses of silk (e.g., sutures, surgical meshes, and fabrics) are discussed, as well as clinical trials (e.g., wound healing, tissue engineering) and emerging biomedical applications of silk across selected formats, such as silk solution, films, scaffolds, electrospun materials, hydrogels, and particles. The journey finishes with a look at the roadmap of next-generation recombinant silks, especially the development pipeline of this new industry for clinical use

Improving Influenza and Tdap Vaccination during Pregnancy: A Cluster-randomized Trial of a Multi-component Antenatal Vaccine Promotion Package in Late Influenza Season

Background Evidence-based interventions to improve influenza vaccine coverage among pregnant women are needed, particularly among those who remain unvaccinated late into the influenza season. Improving rates of antenatal tetanus, diphtheria and acellular pertussis (Tdap) vaccination is also needed

Factors Governing Pasting Properties of Waxy Wheat Flours

Citation: Purna, S. K. G., Shi, Y. C., Guan, L., Wilson, J. D., & Graybosch, R. A. (2015). Factors Governing Pasting Properties of Waxy Wheat Flours. Cereal Chemistry, 92(5), 529-535. doi:10.1094/cchem-10-14-0209-rWaxy wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) contains endosperm starch lacking in amylose. To realize the full potential of waxy wheat, the pasting properties of hard waxy wheat flours as well as factors governing the pasting properties were investigated and compared with normal and partial waxy wheat flours. Starches isolated from six hard waxy wheat flours had similar pasting properties, yet their corresponding flours had very different pasting properties. The differences in pasting properties were narrowed after endogenous alpha-amylase activity in waxy wheat flours was inhibited by silver nitrate. Upon treatment with protease, the extent of protein digestibility influenced the viscosity profile in waxy wheat flours. Waxy wheat starch granules swelled extensively when heated in water and exhibited a high peak viscosity, but they fragmented at high temperatures, resulting in more rapid breakdown in viscosity. The extensively swelled and fragmented waxy wheat starch granules were more susceptible to a-amylase degradation than normal wheat starch. A combination of endogenous a-amylase activity and protein matrix contributed to a large variation in pasting properties of waxy wheat flours

Journalism and the Invasion of Grenada 30 Years On: A Retrospective

The 1983 United States-led invasion of Grenada represents an important case study of journalism in the front line because it marked a changing point in the relationship between journalists and the US administration. The exclusion of news organisations and independent journalists at the time can be conceived of as a test in trying new forms of information management. The tensions experienced between journalists, government and military officers signalled the need to design alternative solutions to the problem of information coverage in wartime