Studies on the biodegradation of natural and synthetic polyethylene by Pseudomonas (spp)

The current article makes a comparative analysis between the biodegradation of natural and synthetic polyethylene by three different species of Pseudomonas. The three Pseudomonas spp. (P1, P2, and P3) were indigenous to locations: (1) domestic waste disposal site dumped with household garbage and vegetable waste; (2) soil from textile effluents drainage site; and (3) soil dumped with sewage sludge, respectively. The ability of these species in degrading natural and synthetic polyethylene was investigated. Pure culture shake-flask incubation for 8 weeks was performed for the purpose of biodegradation. The natural or biodegradable polyethylene used in the study was disposable plastic bags containing 6% vegetable starch. The initial and final dry weights of plastic bags before and after incubation in the culture medium were compared and the percentage of degradation was calculated. Among all the treatments, Pseudomonas sp. from sewage sludge dump (P1) was found to degrade polyethylene efficiently with 46.2% for natural and 29.1% for synthetic polyethylene. In contrast, Pseudomonas sp. from household garbage dump (P2) gave the lowest biodegradability of 31.4% and 16.3% for natural and synthetic polyethylene, respectively. However, Pseudomonas sp. isolated from textile effluents drainage site gave an intermediate biodegradability of 39.7% and 19.6% for natural and synthetic polyethylene, respectively. Overall, natural polyethylene gave a rapid biodegradation within the same duration than the synthetic ones. The active enzymes produced by the bacteria caused mechanical denting and weight loss in polyethylene. @ JASE

The Role and Therapeutic Potential of miRNAs in Colorectal Liver Metastasis

poster abstractColorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common malignancy worldwide. Liver metastasis occurs in 60% of CRC patients and responds poorly to the available treatments making it the major cause of their mortality. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are highly conserved, endogenously encoded small, non-coding RNA molecules that regulate global gene expression. The role of microRNAs in cancer pathogenesis, including CRC, has been well documented. However, in-depth miRNA expression analysis on a large cohort of CRC tumors is needed to identify the clinically relevant miRNAs and explore their potential to target liver metastases. To this purpose, we analyzed miRNA expression data of 406 CRC tumors from the publicly available colorectal cancer genome sequencing project and identified 58 miRNAs that were significantly downregulated. 10 miRNAs were selected for further analyses that were either known to target genes in cellular pathways or located within the commonly lost chromosomal loci associated with CRC liver metastases. Of these 10 miRNAs, miR-132, miR-378f, miR-605 and miR-1976 showed significant downregulation with >2 fold change (p>0.05) in primary and CRC liver metastasis tissues and in CRC cell lines. To investigate their anti-tumorigenic and metastatic properties, we transfected 3 different CRC cell lines (SW620, HCT-116 and CT-26) with miR-mimics and subjected them to cell proliferation, apoptosis and cell transformation assays. Ectopic expression of miR-378f, -605 and -1976 suppressed CRC cell proliferation, anchorage independent growth, migration and invasion and induced apoptosis. Interestingly, CRC patients with high miR-378f and miR-1976 had better survival compared to low expressing patients (p<0.044). Our in vitro data suggest the anti-tumorigenic/metastatic properties of miR-378f, -605 and -1976 in CRC. Further understanding of their functions and in vivo therapeutic evaluations may help in developing novel therapeutic strategies for this malignancy

Studies on the biodegradation of natural and synthetic polyethylene by Pseudomonas (spp)

The current article makes a comparative analysis between the biodegradation of natural and synthetic polyethylene by three different species of Pseudomonas. The three Pseudomonas spp. (P1, P2, and P3) were indigenous to locations: (1) domestic waste disposal site dumped with household garbage and vegetable waste; (2) soil from textile effluents drainage site; and (3) soil dumped with sewage sludge, respectively. The ability of these species in degrading natural and synthetic polyethylene was investigated. Pure culture shake-flask incubation for 8 weeks was performed for the purpose of biodegradation. The natural or biodegradable polyethylene used in the study was disposable plastic bags containing 6% vegetable starch. The initial and final dry weights of plastic bags before and after incubation in the culture medium were compared and the percentage of degradation was calculated. Among all the treatments, Pseudomonas sp. from sewage sludge dump (P1) was found to degrade polyethylene efficiently with 46.2% for natural and 29.1% for synthetic polyethylene. In contrast, Pseudomonas sp. from household garbage dump (P2) gave the lowest biodegradability of 31.4% and 16.3% for natural and synthetic polyethylene, respectively. However, Pseudomonas sp. isolated from textile effluents drainage site gave an intermediate biodegradability of 39.7% and 19.6% for natural and synthetic polyethylene, respectively. Overall, natural polyethylene gave a rapid biodegradation within the same duration than the synthetic ones. The active enzymes produced by the bacteria caused mechanical denting and weight loss in polyethylene. @ JASE