Efficient quantification of somatic coliphages in water: Development and validation of the Enumera® Rapid kit.

The integration of somatic coliphage analysis into water quality regulations has driven the development of more streamlined, easier, and faster detection methods. These include the Bluephage method, initially designed for the qualitative assessment of coliphages in 100 mL water samples. In the present study this technique was adapted for quantitative analysis using the most probable number method, enabling quantification of somatic coliphages in 100 mL water samples within 6.

A stem cell activation state coupling spermatogenesis with social interactions in Drosophila males.

Reproduction is paramount to animals. For it to be successful, a coordination of social behavior, physiology, and gamete production is necessary. How are social cues perceived and how do they affect physiology and gametogenesis? While females, ranging from insects to mammals, have provided multiple insights about this coordination, its existence remains largely unknown in males.

Impacts of a newly formed lava delta on the marine environment: Lava-induced upwelling and abrupt chlorophyll depletion during the Tajogaite eruption (La Palma, 2021).

The 2021 Tajogaite eruption in La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain) emitted vast volumes of lava during 85 days, which reached the ocean in several occasions at the western flank of the island. Most of these flows merged to create a primary lava delta, covering an area of 48 ha, with an additional 30 ha underwater. Here we characterize the effects of the lava-seawater interaction on the surrounding marine environment.

Unveiling the inherent physical-chemical dynamics: Direct measurements of hydrothermal fluid flow, heat, and nutrient outflow at the Tagoro submarine volcano (Canary Islands, Spain).

Tagoro is one of the few submarine volcanoes in the world that has been monitored since its early eruptive stage in 2011 to present day. After six multidisciplinary oceanographic cruises conducted between 2014 and 2023 to gather a comprehensive dataset of georeferenced video-imagery and in situ measurements of hydrothermal flow velocities and hydrothermal fluid samples, we provide a robust characterization of the ongoing hydrothermal fluid velocity, heat flux, and nutrient release, along with an accurate delimitation of the hydrothermal field area. Our results reveal that Tagoro hydrothermal system extends from the main hydrothermal crater up to the summit, covering an area of 7600 m.

Comparison of methods for the enumeration of coliphages in 100 mL water samples.

In the last decade coliphages have been included in many water quality regulations as viral faecal indicators. However, the standardised methods used to detect and quantify coliphages differ in bacterial host strains, culture media and techniques. In this comparative study, 100 mL samples of mineral drinking water, river water and wastewater were analysed with International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard methods, with United States-Environmental Protection Agency (U.

Bacteriophages in sewage: abundance, roles, and applications.

The raw sewage that flows through sewage systems contains a complex microbial community whose main source is the human gut microbiome, with bacteriophages being as abundant as bacteria or even more so. Phages that infect common strains of the human gut bacteriome and transient bacterial pathogens have been isolated in raw sewage, as have other phages corresponding to non-sewage inputs. Although human gut phages do not seem to replicate during their transit through the sewers, they predominate at the entrance of wastewater treatment plants, inside which the dominant populations of bacteria and phages undergo a swift change.

Directed evolution of unspecific peroxygenase in organic solvents.

Fungal unspecific peroxygenases (UPOs) are efficient biocatalysts that insert oxygen atoms into nonactivated C-H bonds with high selectivity. Many oxyfunctionalization reactions catalyzed by UPOs are favored in organic solvents, a milieu in which their enzymatic activity is drastically reduced. Using as departure point the UPO secretion mutant from Agrocybe aegerita (PaDa-I variant), in the current study we have improved its activity in organic solvents by directed evolution.

Exploring the Role of Phenylalanine Residues in Modulating the Flexibility and Topography of the Active Site in the Peroxygenase Variant PaDa-I.

Unspecific peroxygenases (UPOs) are fungal heme-thiolate enzymes able to catalyze a wide range of oxidation reactions, such as peroxidase-like, catalase-like, haloperoxidase-like, and, most interestingly, cytochrome P450-like. One of the most outstanding properties of these enzymes is the ability to catalyze the oxidation a wide range of organic substrates (both aromatic and aliphatic) through cytochrome P450-like reactions (the so-called peroxygenase activity), which involves the insertion of an oxygen atom from hydrogen peroxide. To catalyze this reaction, the substrate must access a channel connecting the bulk solution to the heme group.

F-specific coliphage detection by the Bluephage method.

F-specific coliphages have been proposed as viral indicators of fecal pollution. These intestinal phages infect cells through the F-pili of the host strains used for their detection, Escherichia. coli HS/FAmp in the US-EPA standard method and Salmonella enterica WG49 in the ISO method.

Review: Indicator bacteriophages in sludge, biosolids, sediments and soils.

Solid or semisolid matrices polluted with fecal remnants can be highly loaded with pathogens, especially viruses, and play a substantial role in the persistence and dispersion of pathogens in the water cycle. Water quality regulations and guidelines are increasingly including bacteriophages infecting enteric bacteria as indicators of fecal and/or viral pollution. However, more data are needed about viral indicators in contaminated solids to develop effective sanitation strategies for the management of raw and treated sludge, fecal sludge, manures and slurries.

Dynamics of crAssphage as a human source tracking marker in potentially faecally polluted environments.

Recent studies have shown that crAssphage is abundant in human faecal samples worldwide. It has thus been postulated as a potential microbial source tracking (MST) marker to detect human faecal pollution in water. However, an effective implementation of crAssphage in water management strategies will depend on an understanding of its environmental dynamics.

New approach for the simultaneous detection of somatic coliphages and F-specific RNA coliphages as indicators of fecal pollution.

Two groups of coliphages have been recently included in different water management policies as indicators of viral fecal pollution in water and food: somatic coliphages, which infect E. coli through cell wall receptors, and F-specific RNA coliphages, which infect through the F-pili. Somatic coliphages are more abundant in fecally contaminated waters, except reclaimed waters, those disinfected by UV irradiation, and some groundwater samples that show a higher level of F-specific coliphages.

Shuffling the Neutral Drift of Unspecific Peroxygenase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Unspecific peroxygenase (UPO) is a highly promiscuous biocatalyst, and its selective mono(per)oxygenase activity makes it useful for many synthetic chemistry applications. Among the broad repertory of library creation methods for directed enzyme evolution, genetic drift allows neutral mutations to be accumulated gradually within a polymorphic network of variants. In this study, we conducted a campaign of genetic drift with UPO in , so that neutral mutations were simply added and recombined With low mutational loading and an activity threshold of 45% of the parent's native function, mutant libraries enriched in folded active UPO variants were generated.

Directed -in vitro- evolution of Precambrian and extant Rubiscos.

Rubisco is an ancient, catalytically conserved yet slow enzyme, which plays a central role in the biosphere's carbon cycle. The design of Rubiscos to increase agricultural productivity has hitherto relied on the use of in vivo selection systems, precluding the exploration of biochemical traits that are not wired to cell survival. We present a directed -in vitro- evolution platform that extracts the enzyme from its biological context to provide a new avenue for Rubisco engineering.

Extraction and RT-qPCR detection of enteroviruses from solid environmental matrixes: Method decision tree for different sample types and viral concentrations.

Quantitative RT-PCR methods (RT-qPCR) are becoming increasingly desirable for the detection of enteric viruses in solid environmental matrixes such as sediments, soils and sewage sludge. However, effective methodologies that allow the extraction of high quality RNA ready for molecular quantification continue to be evaluated. In the present study, four different methods for enterovirus extraction from solid environmental matrixes were compared in terms of viral recovery and inhibitor removal.

Microcosms for evaluating microbial indicator persistence and mobilization in fluvial sediments during rainfall events.

Mediterranean rivers, which are subject to long, dry periods and heavy rainfall events, could be particularly useful for understanding future climate scenarios. This study generated microcosms that mimicked riverbank sediment resuspension into the water of a typical Mediterranean river as a consequence of heavy rainfall. The mobilization and inactivation of six fecal pollution indicators and microbial source tracking markers were evaluated.

Mobilisation of microbial indicators, microbial source tracking markers and pathogens after rainfall events.

Climate change is expected to affect the Mediterranean region by causing an increase in the number of heavy rainfall events. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of extreme river flow variations due to rainfall on the persistence and mobilisation of various microorganisms. These included faecal pollution indicators (Escherichia coli (EC), somatic coliphages (SOMCPH) and sulphite reducing clostridia spores (SRC)), microbial source tracking indicators (Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron GA17 strain phages (GA17PH) and sorbitol fermenting bifidobacteria (SFBIF)), and two pathogens (Salmonella spp and Enterovirus).

The occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes in a Mediterranean river and their persistence in the riverbed sediment.

The spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the environment is a serious concern. Bacterial ARGs can spread via different mobile genetic elements as phage particles, which thereby emerge as novel vectors for environmental dissemination. To assess how climate events, such as heavy rains or water scarcity, could affect the spread of ARGs, it is necessary to know their prevalence and abundance in aquatic environments as well as the potential reservoirs from which they could become mobile.

Modification of the peroxygenative:peroxidative activity ratio in the unspecific peroxygenase from Agrocybe aegerita by structure-guided evolution.

Unspecific peroxygenase (UPO) is a heme-thiolate peroxidase capable of performing with high-selectivity C-H oxyfunctionalizations of great interest in organic synthesis through its peroxygenative activity. However, the convergence of such activity with an unwanted peroxidative activity encumbers practical applications. In this study, we have modified the peroxygenative:peroxidative activity ratio (P:p ratio) of UPO from Agrocybe aegerita by structure-guided evolution.

Assessing the usefulness of clostridia spores for evaluating sewage sludge hygienization.

The capability of clostridia spores to act as pathogen indicators in sewage sludge treatment was investigated. Sulfite-reducing clostridia and E. coli levels were monitored during waste activated sludge pre-treatments (alkali and ultrasound) and its subsequent mesophilic anaerobic digestion.

Somatic coliphages as surrogates for enteroviruses in sludge hygienization treatments.

Conventional bacterial indicators present serious drawbacks giving information about viral pathogens persistence during sludge hygienization treatments. This calls for the search of alternative viral indicators. Somatic coliphages' (SOMCPH) ability for acting as surrogates for enteroviruses was assessed in 47 sludge samples subjected to novel treatment processes.

Beyond the outer limits of nature by directed evolution.

For more than thirty years, biotechnology has borne witness to the power of directed evolution in designing molecules of industrial relevance. While scientists all over the world discuss the future of molecular evolution, dozens of laboratory-designed products are being released with improved characteristics in terms of turnover rates, substrate scope, catalytic promiscuity or stability. In this review we aim to present the most recent advances in this fascinating research field that are allowing us to surpass the limits of nature and apply newly gained attributes to a range of applications, from gene therapy to novel green processes.

Effect of ultrasound, low-temperature thermal and alkali pre-treatments on waste activated sludge rheology, hygienization and methane potential.

Waste activated sludge is slower to biodegrade under anaerobic conditions than is primary sludge due to the glycan strands present in microbial cell walls. The use of pre-treatments may help to disrupt cell membranes and improve waste activated sludge biodegradability. In the present study, the effect of ultrasound, low-temperature thermal and alkali pre-treatments on the rheology, hygienization and biodegradability of waste activated sludge was evaluated.

[Effectiveness of a nursing intervention on patient anxiety before transfusion of packed red blood cells].

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of an educational intervention regarding anxiety and satisfaction in patients requiring a red blood cell transfusion.

Method: Randomised, controlled, single-blind clinical trial in patients requiring a packed red blood cell transfusion.

Sample Size: alpha=.