Algal-bacterial bioremediation of cyanide-containing wastewater in a continuous stirred photobioreactor.

This study reports the isolation and characterization of highly resistant bacterial and microalgal strains from an Egyptian wastewater treatment station to cyanide-containing compounds. The bacterial strain was identified as Bacillus licheniformis by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The isolate removed up to 1 g L potassium cyanide, 3 g L benzonitrile, and 1 g L sodium salicylate when incubated as 10% v/v in MSM at 30 ℃.

Polymerization potential of a bacterial CotA-laccase for β-naphthol: enzyme structure and comprehensive polymer characterization.

Introduction: Laccases are blue-multicopper containing enzymes that are known to play a role in the bioconversion of recalcitrant compounds. Their role in free radical polymerization of aromatic compounds for their valorization remains underexplored. In this study, we used a pBAD plasmid containing a previously characterized CotA laccase gene (abbreviated as -Lacc) from strain ATCC 9945a to express this enzyme and explore its biotransformation/polymerization potential on β-naphthol.

Prediction of response to sofosbuvir-based therapy using serum interleukin-12 and single nucleotide polymorphism of the interleukin 28B gene as predictive factors in HCV positive genotype-4 patients.

Some hepatitis-C virus patients have resistance to direct-acting-antivirals (DAAs). Genetic polymorphisms have been associated with drug resistance. This study aimed to evaluate the role of interleukin (IL)-28B gene polymorphism and IL-12 levels as predictors for a response to sofosbuvir/ribavirin (SOF/RBV) with (triple-therapy) or without (dual-therapy) Peg-alpha-interferon.

Spatiotemporal Analysis of the Water and Sediment Nile Microbial Community Along an Urban Metropolis.

Assessing microbial identity, diversity, and community structure could be a valuable tool for monitoring the impact of xenobiotics and anthropogenic inputs in rivers, especially in urban and industrial settings. Here, we characterize the Nile River microbial community in water and sediments in summer and winter at five locations that span its natural flow through the Cairo metropolis. 16S rRNA gene datasets were analyzed to identify the role played by sample type (sediment versus water), season, and location in shaping the community, as well as to predict functional potential of the Nile River microbiome.

Toxicomicrobiomics: The Human Microbiome vs. Pharmaceutical, Dietary, and Environmental Xenobiotics.

The harmful impact of xenobiotics on the environment and human health is being more widely recognized; yet, inter- and intraindividual genetic variations among humans modulate the extent of harm, mostly through modulating the outcome of xenobiotic metabolism and detoxification. As the Human Genome Project revealed that host genetic, epigenetic, and regulatory variations could not sufficiently explain the complexity of interindividual variability in xenobiotics metabolism, its sequel, the Human Microbiome Project, is investigating how this variability may be influenced by human-associated microbial communities. Xenobiotic-microbiome relationships are mutual and dynamic.

Hospital Microbiome Variations As Analyzed by High-Throughput Sequencing.

Hospital-acquired infections remain a serious threat to human life and are becoming a top public health issue. As the latest advances in sequencing technologies have allowed the unbiased identification of bacterial communities, we aimed to implement emerging omics technologies to characterize a hospital's microbiome at the center of Cairo, Egypt. To this end, we screened surfaces and inanimate objects in the hospital, focusing on bed sheets and door knobs, with additional screening for resistant microbes and resistance genes.

Drug pharmacomicrobiomics and toxicomicrobiomics: from scattered reports to systematic studies of drug-microbiome interactions.

Pharmacomicrobiomics and toxicomicrobiomics study how variations within the human microbiome (the combination of human-associated microbial communities and their genomes) affect drug disposition, action, and toxicity. These emerging fields, interconnecting microbiology, bioinformatics, systems pharmacology, and toxicology, complement pharmacogenomics and toxicogenomics, expanding the scope of precision medicine. Areas covered: This article reviews some of the most recently reported pharmacomicrobiomic and toxicomicrobiomic interactions.

The Nile River Microbiome Reveals a Remarkably Stable Community Between Wet and Dry Seasons, and Sampling Sites, in a Large Urban Metropolis (Cairo, Egypt).

World freshwater supplies are in need of microbiome diversity analyses as a first step to future ecological studies, and to monitor water safety and quality. The Nile is a major north-flowing river in Africa that displays both spatial and temporal variations in its water quality. Here, we present the first microbiome analysis of the Nile River water in two seasons: (1) summer representing the wet season, and (2) winter representing the dry season, as sampled around Cairo, the capital of Egypt.