The promoting effect of byproducts from Irpex lacteus on subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis of bio-pretreated cornstalks

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Irpex lacteus</it>, a versatile lignin-degrading fungus with various extracellular enzymes, has been widely used for biological pretreatment. However, most studies have focused on the change of substrate structure after biological pretreatment, and the effect of these changes on the enzymatic hydrolysis, but the effect of byproducts from biological pretreatment process on subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis is not well understood.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We developed a biological pretreatment process with <it>I. lacteus </it>that can produce stimulatory byproducts that enhance the enzymatic hydrolysis of cornstalks.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The maximum hydrolysis yield of glucan (82%) was obtained after pretreatment for 28 days. The maximum reducing sugar yield decreased from 313.5 to 200.1 mg/g raw cornstalks after water-soluble byproducts of biological pretreatment were removed from pretreated cornstalks. The effect of byproducts on enzymatic hydrolysis was also investigated. We found that the hydrolysis efficiency of commercial cellulase preparation on cornstalks could be improved by water extracts from bio-pretreated cornstalks with hydrolytic enzyme activity and iron-reducing activity.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The key finding suggested that byproducts from biological pretreatment play important roles in enhancing downstream hydrolysis, which might be attributable to hydrolytic enzymes and iron-reducing compounds produced by <it>I. lacteus</it>.</p

How Can the European Federation for Colposcopy Promote High Quality Colposcopy Throughout Europe?

Since its inception in 1998, the European Federation for Colposcopy (EFC) now comprises 26 member societies. Its principle aim is to promote high quality colposcopy throughout Europe with special emphasis on training, education and treatment. This review summarises EFC’s activities and achievements to date

A synthetic antibiotic class with a deeply-optimized design for overcoming bacterial resistance

Abstract The lack of new drugs that are effective against antibiotic-resistant bacteria has caused increasing concern in global public health. Based on this study, we report development of a modified antimicrobial drug through structure-based drug design (SBDD) and modular synthesis. The optimal modified compound, F8, was identified, which demonstrated in vitro and in vivo broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against drug-resistant bacteria and effectively mitigated the development of resistance. F8 exhibits significant bactericidal activity against bacteria resistant to antibiotics such as methicillin, polymyxin B, florfenicol (FLO), doxycycline, ampicillin and sulfamethoxazole. In a mouse model of drug-resistant bacteremia, F8 was found to increase survival and significantly reduce bacterial load in infected mice. Multi-omics analysis (transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics) have indicated that ornithine carbamoyl transferase (arcB) is a antimicrobial target of F8. Further molecular docking, Isothermal Titration Calorimetry (ITC), and Differential Scanning Fluorimetry (DSF) studies verified arcB as a effective target for F8. Finally, mechanistic studies suggest that F8 competitively binds to arcB, disrupting the bacterial cell membrane and inducing a certain degree of oxidative damage. Here, we report F8 as a promising candidate drug for the development of antibiotic formulations to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria-associated infections

The DNA methylation profile of non-coding RNAs improves prognosis prediction for pancreatic adenocarcinoma

Abstract Background Compelling lines of evidence indicate that DNA methylation of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) plays critical roles in various tumour progression. In addition, the differential methylation of ncRNAs can predict prognosis of patients. However, little is known about the clear relationship between DNA methylation profile of ncRNAs and the prognosis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAC) patients. Methods The data of DNA methylation, RNA-seq, miRNA-seq and clinical features of PAC patients were collected from TCGA database. The DNA methylation profile was obtained using the Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip array. LASSO regression was performed to construct two methylation-based classifiers. The risk score of methylation-based classifiers was calculated for each patient, and the accuracy of the classifiers in predicting overall survival (OS) was examined by ROC curve analysis. In addition, Cox regression models were utilized to assess whether clinical variables and the classifiers were independent prognostic factors for OS. The targets of miRNA and the genes co-expressed with lncRNA were identified with DIANA microT-CDS and the Multi-Experiment Matrix (MEM), respectively. Moreover, DAVID Bioinformatics Resources were applied to analyse the functional enrichment of these targets and co-expressed genes. Results A total of 4004 CpG sites of miRNA and 11,259 CpG sites of lncRNA were screened. Among these CpG sites, 8 CpG sites of miRNA and 7 CpG sites of lncRNA were found with regression coefficients. By multiplying the sum of methylation degrees of the selected CpGs with these coefficients, two methylation-based classifiers were constructed. The classifiers have shown good performance in predicting the survival rate of PAC patients at varying follow-up times. Interestingly, both of these two classifiers were predominant and independent factors for OS. Furthermore, functional enrichment analysis demonstrated that aberrantly methylated miRNAs and lncRNAs are related to calcium ion transmembrane transport and MAPK, Ras and calcium signalling pathways. Conclusion In the present study, we identified two methylation-based classifiers of ncRNA associated with OS in PAC patients through a comprehensive analysis of miRNA and lncRNA profiles. We are the first group to demonstrate a relationship between the aberrant DNA methylation of ncRNAs and the prognosis of PAC, and this relationship would contribute to individualized PAC therapy

Regional plots of the two loci associated with telomere length.

<p>Results are shown for the 12q13.13 (a) and 5p15.33 (b) regions. Top, −log₁₀<i>P</i> values are shown for SNPs for the region 350 kb on either side of the marker SNPs. <i>P</i>_GWAS is for results obtained from the discovery stage and is shown for genotyped (circle). <i>P</i>_{GWAS-Rep1-Rep2} is for results obtained from the combination of the initial and replication study data (diamond). The marker SNP is shown in purple, and the <i>r</i>² values of the other SNPs are indicated by color. The genes within the relevant regions are annotated and shown as arrows.</p

Z-score based meta-analysis results for GWAS and replication studies for two leading SNPs on 5p15.33 and 12q13.13.

<p>Note: In each panel, markers (SNP) are given along with chromosomal (CHR) and base pair (BP) positions.</p><p>A1, minor allele. SE, standard error. Beta coefficients based on z-scores.</p><p><i>P</i>het: p-values for the heterogeneity test.</p