The Effects of the Marine-Derived Polysaccharides Laminarin and Chitosan on Aspects of Colonic Health in Pigs Challenged with Dextran Sodium Sulphate.

This study examined the effects of dietary supplementation with laminarin or chitosan on colonic health in pigs challenged with dextran sodium sulphate (DSS). Weaned pigs were assigned to: (1) a basal diet (n = 22); (2) a basal diet + laminarin (n = 10); and (3) a basal diet + chitosan (n = 10). On d35, the basal group was split, creating four groups: (1) the basal diet (control); (2) the basal diet + DSS; (3) the basal diet + laminarin + DSS; and (4) the basal diet + chitosan + DSS.

Microbial Population Changes in Decaying Result in Macroalgal-Polysaccharide-Degrading Bacteria with Potential Applicability in Enzyme-Assisted Extraction Technologies.

Seaweeds are of significant interest in the food, pharmaceutical, and agricultural industries as they contain several commercially relevant bioactive compounds. Current extraction methods for macroalgal-derived metabolites are, however, problematic due to the complexity of the algal cell wall which hinders extraction efficiencies. The use of advanced extraction methods, such as enzyme-assisted extraction (EAE), which involve the application of commercial algal cell wall degrading enzymes to hydrolyze the cell wall carbohydrate network, are becoming more popular.

Diverse and Abundant Secondary Metabolism Biosynthetic Gene Clusters in the Genomes of Marine Sponge Derived Streptomyces spp. Isolates.

The genus produces secondary metabolic compounds that are rich in biological activity. Many of these compounds are genetically encoded by large secondary metabolism biosynthetic gene clusters (smBGCs) such as polyketide synthases (PKS) and non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS) which are modular and can be highly repetitive. Due to the repeats, these gene clusters can be difficult to resolve using short read next generation datasets and are often quite poorly predicted using standard approaches.

Draft Genome Sequence of the Antimycin-Producing Bacterium sp. Strain SM8, Isolated from the Marine Sponge .

sp. strain SM8, isolated from , possesses antifungal and antibacterial activities and inhibits the calcineurin pathway in yeast. The draft genome sequence is 7,145,211 bp, containing 5,929 predicted coding sequences.

Draft Genome Sequence of CA-3, a Bacterium Capable of Styrene Degradation and Medium-Chain-Length Polyhydroxyalkanoate Synthesis.

strain CA-3 is an industrial bioreactor isolate capable of synthesizing biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoate polymers via the metabolism of styrene and other unrelated carbon sources. The pathways involved are subject to regulation by global cellular processes. The draft genome sequence is 6,177,154 bp long and contains 5,608 predicted coding sequences.

Metabolomic profiling and genomic study of a marine sponge-associated Streptomyces sp.

Metabolomics and genomics are two complementary platforms for analyzing an organism as they provide information on the phenotype and genotype, respectively. These two techniques were applied in the dereplication and identification of bioactive compounds from a Streptomyces sp. (SM8) isolated from the sponge Haliclona simulans from Irish waters.

Aquimarina amphilecti sp. nov., isolated from the sponge Amphilectus fucorum.

A Gram-stain-negative, rod-shaped, orange-coloured, catalase- and oxidase-positive, non-motile bacterium, designated strain 92V(T), was isolated from the marine sponge Amphilectus fucorum, collected from Lough Hyne, County Cork, Ireland. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that strain 92V(T) clustered with members of the family Flavobacteriaceae, the closest member being Aquimarina latercula NCIMB 1399(T), with a gene sequence similarity of 97.5%.

A high-throughput screen to identify novel calcineurin inhibitors.

Calcineurin is a eukaryotic protein phosphatase important for many signalling and developmental processes in cells. Inhibitors of this enzyme are used clinically and there is interest in identifying novel inhibitors for therapeutic applications. This report describes a high-throughput assay that can be used to screen natural or chemical libraries of compounds to identify new calcineurin inhibitors.