Engineering bionanoreactor in bacteria for efficient hydrogen production.

Hydrogen production through water splitting is a vital strategy for renewable and sustainable clean energy. In this study, we developed an approach integrating nanomaterial engineering and synthetic biology to establish a bionanoreactor system for efficient hydrogen production. The periplasmic space (20 to 30 nm) of an electroactive bacterium, MR-1, was engineered to serve as a bionanoreactor to enhance the interaction between electrons and protons, catalyzed by hydrogenases for hydrogen generation.

Rhodopsin-based light-harvesting system for sustainable synthetic biology.

Rhodopsins, a diverse class of light-sensitive proteins found in various life domains, have attracted considerable interest for their potential applications in sustainable synthetic biology. These proteins exhibit remarkable photochemical properties, undergoing conformational changes upon light absorption that drive a variety of biological processes. Exploiting rhodopsin's natural properties could pave the way for creating sustainable and energy-efficient technologies.

S-nitrosocysteamine-functionalised porous graphene oxide nanosheets as nitric oxide delivery vehicles for cardiovascular applications.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a key signalling molecule released by vascular endothelial cells that is essential for vascular health. Low NO bioactivity is associated with cardiovascular diseases, such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, and heart failure and NO donors are a mainstay of drug treatment. However, many NO donors are associated with the development of tolerance and adverse effects, so new formulations for controlled and targeted release of NO would be advantageous.

Engineering artificial photosynthesis based on rhodopsin for CO fixation.

Microbial rhodopsin, a significant contributor to sustaining life through light harvesting, holds untapped potential for carbon fixation. Here, we construct an artificial photosynthesis system which combines the proton-pumping ability of rhodopsin with an extracellular electron uptake mechanism, establishing a pathway to drive photoelectrosynthetic CO fixation by Ralstonia eutropha (also known as Cupriavidus necator) H16, a facultatively chemolithoautotrophic soil bacterium. R.

Deep insight into oriented propionate production from food waste: Microbiological interpretation and design practice.

Using mixed microbial cultures (MMCs) for oriented volatile fatty acids (VFAs) refining in an open environment is a typical challenge due to the microbial diversiform and the process complexity. Especially for carbohydrate-rich waste (such as food waste), butyrate-type fermentation is usually dominant in a single-stage MMCs anaerobic process, while the production of odd-carbon VFAs (such as propionate) is difficult although it plays a significant role in chemicals industries. In this study, firstly, we gave a new perspective on the rationality of the oriented propionate production using MMCs with lactate as feedstock by conducting in-depth microbial informatics and reaction analysis.

Artificial intelligence-aided rapid and accurate identification of clinical fungal infections by single-cell Raman spectroscopy.

Integrating artificial intelligence and new diagnostic platforms into routine clinical microbiology laboratory procedures has grown increasingly intriguing, holding promises of reducing turnaround time and cost and maximizing efficiency. At least one billion people are suffering from fungal infections, leading to over 1.6 million mortality every year.

Comprehensive Techno-environmental Evaluation of a Pilot-Scale PHA Production from Food Waste in China.

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), a biodegradable plastic that might replace petroleum-based plastics, can be recovered from organic waste using mixed microbial cultures (MMCs). Research in this field has been ongoing for about 25 years and is now in a critical commercialization period. However, few pilot-scale studies are available to analyze its technical feasibility and environmental impact.

Engineering a Rhodopsin-Based Photo-Electrosynthetic System in Bacteria for CO Fixation.

A key goal of synthetic biology is to engineer organisms that can use solar energy to convert CO to biomass, chemicals, and fuels. We engineered a light-dependent electron transfer chain by integrating rhodopsin and an electron donor to form a closed redox loop, which drives rhodopsin-dependent CO fixation. A light-driven proton pump comprising rhodopsin (GR) and its cofactor retinal have been assembled in () H16.

Pilot-scale fermentation of urban food waste for volatile fatty acids production: The importance of pH.

Here, a pilot-scale volatile fatty acids (VFAs) production system was established using food waste (FW) as feedstock under acidic conditions. The effects of pH (uncontrolled, 4.5, 5.

Reducing the effect of non-volatile fatty acids (non-VFAs) on polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) production from fermented thermal-hydrolyzed sludge.

Thermal-hydrolyzed sludge (THS) can be fermented to produce volatile fatty acids (VFAs) rich liquids. These fermentative liquids are considered as a potential feedstock for polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) production. However, the presence of high levels of non-VFAs organics supporting the growth response instead of PHA accumulation hindered an efficient culture selection in a feast and famine regime.

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) production from fermented thermal-hydrolyzed sludge by mixed microbial cultures: The link between phosphorus and PHA yields.

Production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from wastes has gained increasing attention for the related low costs and high environmental benefits. Phosphorus limitation is a potential strategy used to facilitate PHA production, yet excessive limitation was previously reported to cause negative effects. This study was the first to investigate the optimum phosphorus limitation for PHA accumulation from thermal-hydrolyzed sludge.

Effect of thermal hydrolysis pretreatment on volatile fatty acids production in sludge acidification and subsequent polyhydroxyalkanoates production.

The study compared the differences in VFAs production between raw sludge and thermal hydrolyzed sludge (TH-sludge) at different temperature (35 °C and 55 °C) in four semi-continuous acidification reactors. Optimal VFAs yield was obtained from TH-sludge at 35 °C (0.22 gVFA/gVS), 44.

Plant Cell Wall-Penetrable, Redox-Responsive Silica Nanoprobe for the Imaging of Starvation-Induced Vesicle Trafficking.

Autophagy is a self-protection process against reactive oxygen species (ROS). The intracellular level of ROS increased when cells were cultured under nutrient starvation. Antioxidants such as glutathione and ascorbic acid play an important role in ROS removal.

Differential in situ sensing of extra- and intracellular glutathione by a novel redox-responsive silica matrix-Au nanoprobe.

We synthesized a biothiol-sensitive nanoprobe by assembling gold nanoparticles with a novel redox-responsive silica (ReSi) matrix using dithiobis (succinimidyl propionate) and (3-aminopropyl) trimethoxysilane. Thin layer disulfide-bonded networks of the ReSi could differentially respond to extra- and intracellular glutathione in cancer cells within 30 min; furthermore, targeted cellular uptake could be monitored in situ by fluorescence recovery. Sigmoidal dose-response pattern of the nanoprobes presented in this study were attributed to the buried disulfide-linked 3D nanostructure of the ReSi nanoshell, optimized at an appropriate thickness, enabling not only buffering of small redox disturbances in the extracellular milieu but also the satisfied sensitivity for rapid redox sensing.