Natural transformation of antibiotic resistance genes and the enhanced adaptability in bacterial biofilm under antibiotic and heavy metal stresses.

Bacterial biofilms are hotspots for the natural transformation of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Antibiotics and heavy metals at the sub-minimal inhibitory concentrations (sub-MICs) are ubiquitous in water environments, but their impact on the ARG dissemination via natural transformation in biofilms and the biofilm development remains poorly understood. This study found that the individual stressors including tetracycline, sulfamethoxazole, and Zn at the sub-MIC levels, significantly enhanced ARG transformation.

Multidimensional Engineering of MG1655 for the Efficient Biosynthesis of Difucosyllactose.

Difucosyllactose (DFL), a representative bisfucosylated oligosaccharide found in human milk, has garnered significant attention due to its immense health benefits. To date, several plasmid-based engineered strains have been established for DFL synthesis. However, these strains face challenges such as antibiotic dependence and plasmid instability, which limit their commercial application in the food industry.

Evaluating the efficacy of vatiquinone in preclinical models of Leigh syndrome and GPX4 deficiency.

Background: Genetic mitochondrial diseases are a major challenge in modern medicine. These impact ~ 1:4,000 individuals and there are currently no effective therapies. Leigh syndrome is the most common pediatric presentation of mitochondrial disease.

Differential insights into the distribution characteristics of bacterial communities and their response to typical pollutants in the sediment and soil of large drinking water reservoir.

In this study, a large drinking water reservoir (Fengshuba Reservoir) was chosen as a representative case, and the bacterial communities in the sediments and soils of Water-level fluctuating zone (WLFZ) as well as their responses to heavy metals (HMs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were systematically investigated. The results indicated that the abundance and diversity of the bacterial community obviously changed with seasonal hydrological variations in sediments, and the absolute abundance and composition of bacteria community differed significantly between the sediment phase and soil phase. Bacteria with the ability to degrade pollutants rapidly proliferate and gain ascendancy in the soil phase, with Burkholderia-Caballeronia-Paraburkholderia (B-C-P) and Bradyrhizobium forming the core of the largest community.

Structure-Based Design of "Head-to-Tail" Macrocyclic PROTACs.

Macrocyclization is a compelling strategy for conventional drug design for improving biological activity, target specificity, and metabolic stability, but it was rarely applied to the design of PROTACs possibly due to the mechanism and structural complexity. Herein, we report the rational design of the first series of "Head-to-Tail" macrocyclic PROTACs. The resulting molecule exhibited pronounced Brd4 protein degradation with low nM DC values while almost totally dismissing the "hook effect", which is a general character and common concern of a PROTAC, in multiple cancer cell lines.

Targeting host integrated stress response: lead discovery of flavonoid compounds active against coronaviruses PEDV and PDCoV.

Viral infections trigger the integrated stress response (ISR) in eukaryotic cells that leads to the activation of eIF2α kinases, the elevation of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2α (eIF2α) phosphorylation, and thereby the shutdown of global protein synthesis that viruses rely on to replicate. Coronaviruses and other viruses have evolved various subversion mechanisms to counteract the antiviral ISR. These intricate host-virus interactions may be exploited by pharmacologically activating the host ISR for the development of host-directed antivirals (HDAs), an increasingly relevant area of research.

Platelet-mimicking nanoparticles loaded with diallyl trisulfide for Mitigating Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in rats.

Hydrogen sulfide (HS) shows promise in treating myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI), but the challenge of controlled and sustained release hinders its clinical utility. In this study, we developed a platelet membrane-encapsulated mesoporous silica nanoparticle loaded with the HS donor diallyl trisulfide (PM-MSN-DATS). PM-MSN-DATS demonstrated optimal encapsulation efficiency and drug-loading content.

Hypo-osmolarity promotes naive pluripotency by reshaping cytoskeleton and increasing chromatin accessibility.

Introduction: Cell fate determination and transition are of paramount importance in biology and medicine. Naive pluripotency could be achieved by reprogramming differentiated cells. However, the mechanism is less clear.

Eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases with overall gastrointestinal tract causing liver abscess in an older patient: a case report and literature review.

Background: Eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases are the rare gastrointestinal disorders. To our knowledge, there have been no reports of eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases with overall gastrointestinal tract involvement causing liver abscess in an older patient.

Case Presentation: We report a 68-year-old man with eosinophilic gastrointestinal disease with overall gastrointestinal tract involvement.

Magnetic MgFeO@BC Derived from Rice Husk as Peroxymonosulfate Activator for Sulfamethoxazole Degradation: Performance and Reaction Mechanism.

Heterogeneous Mg-Fe oxide/biochar (MgFeO@BC) nanocomposites were synthesized by a co-precipitation method and used as biochar-based catalysts to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for sulfamethoxazole (SMX) removal. The optimal conditions for SMX degradation were examined as follows: pH 7.0, MgFeO@BC of 0.

Peroxymonosulfate Activation by Rice-Husk-Derived Biochar (RBC) for the Degradation of Sulfamethoxazole: The Key Role of Hydroxyl Groups.

In this work, rice-husk-derived biochar (RBC) was synthesized by using simple one-step pyrolysis strategies and served as catalysts to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for degrading sulfamethoxazole (SMX). When the annealing temperature (T) = 800 °C, RBC exhibits the typical hardwood structure with several micropores and mesoporous. Furthermore, RBC obtains more defect sites than RBC, RBC, and RBC.

Peroxymonosulfate Activation by Fe@N Co-Doped Biochar for the Degradation of Sulfamethoxazole: The Key Role of Pyrrolic N.

In this study, Fe, N co-doped biochar (Fe@N co-doped BC) was synthesized by the carbonization-pyrolysis method and used as a carbocatalyst to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for sulfamethoxazole (SMX) removal. In the Fe@N co-doped BC/PMS system, the degradation efficiency of SMX (10.0 mg·L) was 90.

Sub-Lexical Processing of Chinese-English Bilinguals: An ERP Analysis.

Previous research has established that bilinguals automatically activate lexical items in both of their languages in a nonselectivemanner, even when processing linguistic information in the second language (L2) alone. However, whether this co-activation extends to the sub-lexical level remains debated. In this study, we investigate whether bilinguals access sub-lexical information while processing in their L2.

Modifying MSCs-derived EVs with esterase-responsive and charge-reversal cationic polymers enhances bone regeneration.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for the treatment of bone defects have been widely reported as a cell-free therapy because of their appropriate stability and biocompatibility. However, EV isolation is expensive and time-consuming. We developed a method of modifying EVs derived from bone marrow MSCs (BMSCs) via the cationic polymer (ERP) with characteristics of charge reversal and esterase response (ERP-EVs).

Effect of fibroblasts small- conductance Ca -activated potassium channel subtype 2 (SK2) on myocardial fibrosis in pressure overload mouse.

Studies have shown that Small conductance Ca2 + -activated K+ (SK) channel are expressed in fibroblasts. We aimed to determine the expression of SK2 channels in cardiac fibroblasts during myocardial hypertrophy and investigate its relationship with fibrotic remodeling. Myocardial hypertrophy and fibrotic remodeling induced by transverse aortic constriction (TAC) were assessed by echocardiography, Masson's trichrome staining and Western blot.

A new paradigm for generating high-quality cardiac pacemaker cells from mouse pluripotent stem cells.

Cardiac biological pacing (BP) is one of the future directions for bradyarrhythmias intervention. Currently, cardiac pacemaker cells (PCs) used for cardiac BP are mainly derived from pluripotent stem cells (PSCs). However, the production of high-quality cardiac PCs from PSCs remains a challenge.

Human milk oligosaccharides in preventing food allergy: A review through gut microbiota and immune regulation.

Food allergy (FA) has increasingly attracted global attention in past decades. However, the mechanism and effect of FA are complex and varied, rendering it hard to prevention and management. Most of the allergens identified so far are macromolecular proteins in food and may have potential cross-reactions.

Distribution characteristics and risk assessment of fluoride in surface water of urban typical rivers.

Recent research on fluoride in water primarily focuses on groundwater; however, the potential environmental risks of fluoride in urban rivers should not be overlooked. In 2023, this study collected 135 surface water samples from the Ershibu River in Hefei, China, during various flood periods. Through descriptive statistical analysis, correlation analysis, principal component analysis-multiple linear regression (PCA-MLR) modeling, hazard quotient (HQ) assessment, and Monte Carlo simulation analysis, the spatial and temporal distribution, potential sources, and health risks of fluoride were investigated.