Biomolecules are composed primarily of the elements carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and phosphorus. The structured assembly of these elements forms the basis for proteins, nucleic acids and lipids. However, the recent discovery of a new bacterium, strain GFAJ-1 of the Halomonadaceae, has shaken the classic paradigms for the architecture of life. Mounting evidence supports the claim that these bacteria substitute arsenic for phosphorus in macromolecules. Herein, we provide a brief commentary and fuel the debate related to what may be a most unusual organism.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4030840 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biom2020282 | DOI Listing |
Sci Total Environ
January 2025
School of Earth System Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China.
The hydrodynamics, water temperature, and water quality model for the Dan River and Renzhuang Reservoir continuum were developed using field monitoring data and the Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC). An in-situ water discharge experiment enabled the calculation of water propagation time using a simulated flood progression method and the hydrodynamics module of EFDC. Based on these model results, degradation coefficients for chemical oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand, nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), fluoride, arsenic were determined, revealing significantly higher values when the wetland barrage was opening.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Environ Manage
January 2025
Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Agricultural Resources and Environment, Institute of Soil and Water Resources and Environmental Science, College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
Silicon (Si) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) increase plant resistance to various environmental stresses, including heavy metal (and metalloid) toxicity. Although Si and AMF each independently enhance plant tolerance, the nature of their interactions and their combined impacts on nutrient uptake, especially in the context of toxic elements such as arsenic (As), remains to be elucidated. This study investigated AMF-mediated regulation of plant nutrient uptake under As stress using rice, a model Si-accumulating plant.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPLoS One
December 2024
UMR DIADE, IRD, CIRAD, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France.
Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is a staple food for half of the world's population, and its biofortification is a key factor in fighting micronutrient malnutrition. However, harmful heavy metals tend to accumulate in rice grains due to soil and water contamination.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt Microbiol
December 2024
Department of Biological and Chemical Engineering, USCR Molecular Bacteriology and Genomics, National Institute of Applied Science and Technology, University of Carthage, 1080, Tunis Cedex, Tunisia.
This study re-evaluates Pseudofrankia strains, traditionally regarded as parasitic dwellers of actinorhizal root nodules due to their inability to fix nitrogen (Fix -) and/or nodulate (Nod -), as potential plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB). We compared plant growth-promoting traits (PGPTs) between Pseudofrankia strains, including one newly sequenced strain BMG5.37 in this study and typical (Fix + /Nod +) Frankia, Protofrankia, and Parafrankia, as well as non-frankia actinorhizal species Nocardia and Micromonospora, and the phytopathogenic Streptomyces.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChem Sci
November 2024
Faculty of Molecular Chemistry and Engineering, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Kyoto Institute of Technology Goshokaido-cho, Matsugasaki, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-0962 Japan
Stable planar dithienoarsinines were synthesized and structurally characterized. These compounds exhibit monomeric structures in the solution and solid states, avoiding dimerization, even in the absence of steric protection. They exhibited high global aromaticity with 14 or 22π-electron systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!