Growth and metabolic performance of house fly and black soldier fly larvae differ across densities and waste-based growth substrates.

Large scale production of insect larvae is considered a sustainable way to upcycle various organic waste- and by-products into more valuable food and feed products. The sustainability of insect larvae production depends on the substrates and species being used, but comparative studies that include both growth and efficiency are lacking. Here we compare larval fitness, including survival, development time, weight, substrate conversion efficiency, substrate reduction, and metabolic parameters across different combinations of densities and waste- and by-product-based substrates on the two fly species, the house fly (Musca domestica) and the black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens).

Variations in Kojic Acid Production and Corn Infection Among Isolates Suggest a Potential Role as a Virulence Factor.

Kojic acid is a secondary metabolite with strong chelating and antioxidant properties produced by and . Although antioxidants and chelators are important virulence factors for plant pathogens, the ecological role of kojic acid remains unclear. We previously observed a greater gene expression of antioxidants, especially kojic acid, by non-aflatoxigenic when co-cultured with aflatoxigenic Aflatoxin production was also reduced.

Generation of induced pluripotent stem cell lines TRNDi037-A and TRNDi038-A from two patients with Alagille syndrome carrying heterozygous JAG1 mutations.

Human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines TRNDi037-A and TRNDi038-A were generated from the lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCL) of two patients with different heterozygous JAG1 variants resulting in Alagille syndrome (ALGS). ALGS is a rare genetic disease of haploinsufficiency that affects the formation of the bile duct, in addition to other symptoms. These ALGS iPSC lines can be used to model ALGS and aid in the identification of therapeutics to treat patients with ALGS.

Microbiome selection and evolution within wild and domesticated plants.

Microbes are ubiquitously found across plant surfaces and even within their cells, forming the plant microbiome. Many of these microbes contribute to the functioning of the host and consequently affect its fitness. Therefore, in many contexts, including microbiome effects enables a better understanding of the phenotype of the plant rather than considering the genome alone.