Biocementation beyond the Petri dish, scaling up to 900 L batches and a meter-scale column.

Microbial-induced calcite precipitation (MICP), which leverages ureolytic microorganisms, has received significant attention during the past decade as a promising method for sustainable building and geoenvironmental applications. However, transitioning from lab-scale experimentation to volumes suitable for practical use poses challenges. This study addresses these obstacles by screening and analyzing over 50 strains sourced from (i) a natural environment in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland; (ii) microorganism banks; and (iii) an industry-scale bioreactor.

Distribution and quantification of antibiotic resistance genes in a large subalpine lake (Lugano Lake) and tributary rivers.

Objectives: Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are causing increasing problems, especially in clinical settings. Nowadays, they are considered important environmental contaminants, but little is known about their fate in the environment or how they affect natural microbial populations. In the environment, especially in water affected by anthropic activities such as discharge of hospital, urban, and industrial wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and agricultural runoff, antibiotic determinants may become part of the environmental gene pool, spread horizontally, and be ingested by humans and animals via contaminated food and drinking water.

Fungal communities on alpine cheese rinds in Southern Switzerland.

Background: The biodiversity of the mycobiota of soft cheese rinds such as Brie or Camembert has been extensively studied, but scant information is available on the fungi colonizing the rinds of cheese produced in the Southern Switzerland Alps. This study aimed at exploring the fungal communities present on rinds of cheese matured in five cellars in Southern Switzerland and to evaluate their composition with regards to temperature, relative humidity, type of cheese, as well as microenvironmental and geographic factors. We used macro- and microscopical morphology, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry, and sequencing to characterize the fungal communities of the cheeses, and compared them with metabarcoding targeting the ITS region.

Long-term quality-of-life assessment of gastrointestinal symptoms before and after laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication.

Purpose: This was a prospective quality-of-life (QoL) assessment of gastrointestinal symptoms before laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication and during the 6-year postoperative follow-up.

Methods: Over a 15-month period, 35 consecutive patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) underwent surgery after failure of medical treatment with proton pump inhibitors. QoL was assessed using the Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index (GIQLI) preoperatively, and at 3, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72 months postoperatively.

Peritoneovenous shunt as a bridge to liver transplantation.

Intractable ascites carries great morbidity. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of peritoneovenous shunt (PVS) in patients listed for liver transplantation (LT). Between January 1999 and January 2004, PVS was inserted in 36 (30 males and 6 females) cirrhotic patients, 50.