Diversity and physiology of abundant Rhodoferax species in global wastewater treatment systems.

Wastewater treatment plants rely on complex microbial communities for bioconversion and removal of pollutants, but many process-critical species are still poorly investigated. One of these genera is Rhodoferax, an abundant core genus in wastewater treatment plants across the world. The genus has been associated with many metabolic traits such as iron reduction and oxidation and denitrification.

Fluorescently probing anaerobic digester sludge: Measuring single-cell anabolic activity in methanogens (Methanosarcina and Methanothermobacter) with deuterium-labeled Raman analysis.

This study addresses the challenge of obtaining in situ information on substrate utilization rates for individual microbial species in complex microbial communities such as anaerobic digester sludge. To overcome this hurdle, a novel approach combining doubly-labelled deuterium, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and Raman microspectroscopy was developed. The method enables quantitative determination of anabolic heavy hydrogen incorporation into FISH-targeted, exemplified by methanogenic cells from the genera Methanosarcina and Methanothermobacter.

Microbial extracellular polymeric substances in the environment, technology and medicine.

Microbial biofilms exhibit a self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), including polysaccharides, proteins, extracellular DNA and lipids. EPS promote interactions of the biofilm with other cells and sorption of organics, metals and chemical pollutants, and they facilitate cell adhesion at interfaces and ensure matrix cohesion. EPS have roles in various natural environments, such as soils, sediments and marine habitats.

The predicted secreted proteome of activated sludge microorganisms indicates distinct nutrient niches.

In wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), complex microbial communities process diverse chemical compounds from sewage. Secreted proteins are critical because many are the first to interact with or degrade external (macro)molecules. To better understand microbial functions in WWTPs, we predicted secreted proteomes of WWTP microbiota from more than 1,000 high-quality metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) from 23 Danish WWTPs with biological nutrient removal.

Rethinking characterization, application, and importance of extracellular polymeric substances in water technologies.

Biofilms play important roles in water technologies such as membrane treatments and activated sludge. The extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) are key components of biofilms. However, the precise nature of these substances and how they influence biofilm formation and behavior remain critical knowledge gaps.

Microbial core communities in activated sludge plants are strongly affected by immigration and geography.

Background: The microbiota in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and incoming wastewater is critical for the treatment process, the preservation of natural ecosystems and human health, and for the recovery of resources and achievement of sustainability goals. Both core species and conditionally rare and abundant taxa (CRAT) are considered process-critical but little is known about identity as well as true functional and ecological importance. Here, we present a comprehensive investigation of the microbiota of 84 municipal activated sludge (AS) plants with nutrient removal treating ~ 70% of all wastewater within a confined geographical area, Denmark (43,000 km).

Growth of complete ammonia oxidizers on guanidine.

Guanidine is a chemically stable nitrogen compound that is excreted in human urine and is widely used in manufacturing of plastics, as a flame retardant and as a component of propellants, and is well known as a protein denaturant in biochemistry. Guanidine occurs widely in nature and is used by several microorganisms as a nitrogen source, but microorganisms growing on guanidine as the only substrate have not yet been identified. Here we show that the complete ammonia oxidizer (comammox) Nitrospira inopinata and probably most other comammox microorganisms can grow on guanidine as the sole source of energy, reductant and nitrogen.

MiDAS 5: Global diversity of bacteria and archaea in anaerobic digesters.

Anaerobic digestion of organic waste into methane and carbon dioxide (biogas) is carried out by complex microbial communities. Here, we use full-length 16S rRNA gene sequencing of 285 full-scale anaerobic digesters (ADs) to expand our knowledge about diversity and function of the bacteria and archaea in ADs worldwide. The sequences are processed into full-length 16S rRNA amplicon sequence variants (FL-ASVs) and are used to expand the MiDAS 4 database for bacteria and archaea in wastewater treatment systems, creating MiDAS 5.

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Slipping rib syndrome (SRS) is a possibly lesser known but not rare condition associated with severe pain in the lower part of the thorax and/or upper abdomen. SRS is caused by an anatomical variant where typical costa 9 collides with costa 8 resulting in neuralgic pain. Surgery with reconstruction of the rib curvature has few recurrences.

Global abundance patterns, diversity, and ecology of Patescibacteria in wastewater treatment plants.

Background: Microorganisms are responsible for nutrient removal and resource recovery in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), and their diversity is often studied by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. However, this approach underestimates the abundance and diversity of Patescibacteria due to the low coverage of commonly used PCR primers for this highly divergent bacterial phylum. Therefore, our current understanding of the global diversity, distribution, and ecological role of Patescibacteria in WWTPs is very incomplete.

Percutaneous Coronary Intervention Versus Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting in Patients With Left Main Disease With and Without Diabetes: Findings From a Pooled Analysis of 4 Randomized Clinical Trials.

Background: Diabetes may be associated with differential outcomes in patients undergoing left main coronary revascularization with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). The aim of this study was to investigate outcomes in patients with left main disease with and without diabetes randomized to PCI versus CABG.

Methods: Individual patient data were pooled from 4 trials (SYNTAX [Synergy Between PCI With Taxus and Cardiac Surgery], PRECOMBAT [Premier of Randomized Comparison of Bypass Surgery Versus Angioplasty Using Sirolimus-Eluting Stent in Patients With Left Main Coronary Artery Disease], NOBLE [Nordic-Baltic-British Left Main Revascularisation Study], and EXCEL [Evaluation of XIENCE Versus Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery for Effectiveness of Left Main Revascularization]) that randomized patients with left main disease to PCI or CABG.

Amplicon-guided isolation and cultivation of previously uncultured microbial species from activated sludge.

Biological wastewater treatment relies on complex microbial communities that assimilate nutrients and break down pollutants in the wastewater. Knowledge about the physiology and metabolism of bacteria in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) may therefore be used to improve the efficacy and economy of wastewater treatment. Our current knowledge is largely based on 16S rRNA gene amplicon profiling, fluorescence hybridization studies, and predictions based on metagenome-assembled genomes.

A comprehensive overview of the Chloroflexota community in wastewater treatment plants worldwide.

Chloroflexota are often abundant members of the biomass in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) worldwide, typically with a filamentous morphology, forming the backbones of the activated sludge floc. However, their overgrowth can often cause operational issues connected to poor settling or foaming, impairing effluent quality and increasing operational costs. Despite their importance, few Chloroflexota genera have been characterized so far.

Candidate biomarkers of antibiotic resistance for the monitoring of wastewater and the downstream environment.

Urban wastewater treatment plants (UWTPs) are essential for reducing the pollutants load and protecting water bodies. However, wastewater catchment areas and UWTPs emit continuously antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), with recognized impacts on the downstream environments. Recently, the European Commission recommended to monitor antibiotic resistance in UWTPs serving more than 100 000 population equivalents.

Nitrous oxide emissions from two full-scale membrane-aerated biofilm reactors.

The upcoming change of legislation in some European countries where wastewater treatment facilities will start to be taxed based on direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will force water utilities to take a closer look at nitrous oxide (NO) production. In this study, we report for the first time NO emissions from two full-scale size membrane aerated biofilm reactors (MABR) (R1, R2) from two different manufacturers treating municipal wastewater. NO was monitored continuously for 12 months in both the MABR exhaust gas and liquid phase.

Primary settling changes the microbial community of influent wastewater to wastewater treatment plants.

The continuous immigration of bacteria in influent wastewater strongly impacts the microbial community of activated sludge (AS) in wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), both in terms of species composition and their abundance. Therefore, it is of interest to elucidate the route of immigrating bacteria into the biological tanks, including the effect of primary settlers. These are commonly used pretreatment units that can possibly selectively increase or reduce the relative abundance of certain bacteria.

Improved description of terrestrial habitat types by including microbial communities as indicators.

Soils host diverse communities of microorganisms essential for ecosystem functions and soil health. Despite their importance, microorganisms are not covered by legislation protecting biodiversity or habitats, such as the Habitats Directive. Advances in molecular methods have caused breakthroughs in microbial community analysis, and recent studies have shown that parts of the communities are habitat-specific.

Toward a Universal Unit for Quantification of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Environmental Samples.

Surveillance of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) has been increasingly conducted in environmental sectors to complement the surveys in human and animal sectors under the "One-Health" framework. However, there are substantial challenges in comparing and synthesizing the results of multiple studies that employ different test methods and approaches in bioinformatic analysis. In this article, we consider the commonly used quantification units (ARG copy per cell, ARG copy per genome, ARG density, ARG copy per 16S rRNA gene, RPKM, coverage, PPM, etc.

Percutaneous Coronary Intervention vs Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery for Left Main Disease in Patients With and Without Acute Coronary Syndromes: A Pooled Analysis of 4 Randomized Clinical Trials.

Importance: Patients with left main coronary artery disease presenting with an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) represent a high-risk and understudied subgroup of patients with atherosclerosis.

Objective: To assess clinical outcomes after PCI vs CABG in patients with left main disease with vs without ACS.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Data were pooled from 4 trials comparing PCI with drug-eluting stents vs CABG in patients with left main disease who were considered equally suitable candidates for either strategy (SYNTAX, PRECOMBAT, NOBLE, and EXCEL).

Myocardial perfusion imaging by O-HO positron emission tomography predicts clinical revascularization procedures in symptomatic patients with previous coronary artery bypass graft.

Aims: We wanted to assess if O-HO myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) in a clinical setting can predict referral to coronary artery catheterization [coronary angiography (CAG)], execution of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), and post-PCI angina relief for patients with angina and previous coronary artery bypass graft (CABG).

Methods And Results: We analysed 172 symptomatic CABG patients referred for O-HO positron emission tomography (PET) MPI at Aarhus University Hospital Department of Nuclear Medicine & PET Centre, of which five did not complete the scan. In total, 145 (87%) enrolled patients had an abnormal MPI.

Fast DNA-analyses for surveillance of microbial communities in full-scale deammonification tanks: Potential for control and troubleshooting.

The partial nitritation/anammox process is a popular process for sidestream nitrogen removal, but the process is sensitive to disturbances and requires extensive surveillance and monitoring for optimal performance. We followed two parallel sidestream full-scale deammonification reactors treating digester centrate for a year with high time-resolution of both online sensor data and microbial community as measured by Nanopore DNA sequencing. DNA surveillance revealed system disturbances and allowed for detection of process and equipment upsets, and it facilitated remediating operational actions.

CRISPR-Cas phage defense systems and prophages in Candidatus Accumulibacter.

Candidatus Accumulibacter plays a major role in enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) from wastewater. Although bacteriophages have been shown to represent fatal threats to Ca. Accumulibacter organisms and thus interfere with the stability of the EBPR process, little is known about the ability of different Ca.

Closed genomes uncover a saltwater species of Candidatus Electronema and shed new light on the boundary between marine and freshwater cable bacteria.

Cable bacteria of the Desulfobulbaceae family are centimeter-long filamentous bacteria, which are capable of conducting long-distance electron transfer. Currently, all cable bacteria are classified into two candidate genera: Candidatus Electronema, typically found in freshwater environments, and Candidatus Electrothrix, typically found in saltwater environments. This taxonomic framework is based on both 16S rRNA gene sequences and metagenome-assembled genome (MAG) phylogenies.