Bis-3-chloropiperidines: a novel motif for anthelmintic drug design.

Parasites account for huge economic losses by infecting agriculturally important plants and animals. Furthermore, morbidity and death caused by parasites affect a large part of the world population, especially in economically weak regions. Anthelmintic drugs to tackle this challenge remain scarce and their efficiency becomes increasingly endangered by the advent of drug resistance development.

Simulation of the biocide distribution in soil using PELMO coupled with COMLEAM.

Biocides, applied in building materials as antimicrobial protectants, can be leached out by rain, presenting substantial environmental risks as confirmed by studies on aquatic environments. However, these biocides are consistently released throughout the year in a diluted form, posing unique challenges for the prediction of transport, transformation, and ecotoxicity assessment in soil. To address this challenge, we combined COMLEAM, which predicts leaching from facades into the soil, with the FOCUS PELMO pesticide model to predict biocide distribution in soil.

High-Throughput Effect-Directed Analysis of Androgenic Compounds in Hospital Wastewater: Identifying Effect Drivers through Non-Target Screening Supported by Toxicity Prediction.

The increasing number of contaminants released into the environment necessitates innovative strategies for their detection and identification, particularly in complex environmental matrices like hospital wastewater. Hospital effluents contain both natural and synthetic hormones that might significantly contribute to endocrine disruption in aquatic ecosystems. In this study, HT-EDA has been implemented to identify the main effect-drivers (testosterone, androsterone and norgestrel) from hospital effluent using microplate fractionation, the AR-CALUX bioassay and an efficient data processing workflow.

Boosting Vaccine Research: The 16-Year Journey of TRANSVAC Vaccine Infrastructure.

TRANSVAC represents a long-running effort to accelerate the development of novel vaccines by integrating institutions from across Europe under a single collaborative framework. This initiative has empowered the global vaccine community since 2009 including contributing toward the development and optimization of vaccine candidates as well as the provision of new adjuvants, research protocols, and technologies. Scientific services were provided in support of 88 different vaccine development projects, and 400 professionals attended TRANSVAC training events on various vaccine-related topics.

The interaction networks of small rubber particle proteins in the latex of reveal diverse functions in stress responses and secondary metabolism.

The Russian dandelion () is a promising source of natural rubber (NR). The synthesis of NR takes place on the surface of organelles known as rubber particles, which are found in latex - the cytoplasm of specialized cells known as laticifers. As well as the enzymes directly responsible for NR synthesis, the rubber particles also contain small rubber particle proteins (SRPPs), the most abundant of which are SRPP3, 4 and 5.

Acanthocephalans as pollutant sinks? Higher pollutant accumulation in parasites may relieve their crustacean host.

Increasing chemical pollution calls for a closer look at ecologically highly relevant host-parasite interactions to understand the persistence of organisms and populations in a polluted environment. The impact of chemical exposure within the host-parasite interactions - particularly the distinctive bioaccumulation behavior of organic micropollutants - can substantially influence the persistence of a species. This significance has been emphasized by previous research showing a higher tolerance of Gammarus roeselii (Amphipoda, Crustacea) infected with acanthocephalans during acute exposure to a pyrethroid.

Bioconversion efficiency and chemical composition of Hermetia illucens larvae fed spent mushroom substrates.

Spent mushroom substrate (SMS) is a by-product remaining after harvesting mushrooms. We evaluated the effect of substituting chicken feed with 0-100% of Pleurotus eryngii and Lentinula edodes SMS at different stocking densities (200-1000 larvae/box) on development, composition, and substrate reduction of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae. Although the survival rate was not significantly different, feeding pure SMS led to a low growth rate.

Beyond the field: How pesticide drift endangers biodiversity.

Airborne pesticide drift poses a substantial environmental threat in agriculture, affecting ecosystems far from the application sites. This process, in which up to 25% of applied pesticides are carried by air currents, can transport chemicals over hundreds or even thousands of kilometers. Drift rates peak during the summer months, reaching as high as 60%, and are influenced by various factors, including wind speed, temperature, humidity, and soil type.

Re-identification of anonymised MRI head images with publicly available software: investigation of the current risk to patient privacy.

Background: Facial recognition software (FRS) has historically been perceived as lacking the capability to identify individuals from cross-sectional medical images. Utilising such data for identification purposes was considered infeasible due to the substantial computational power and specialised technical expertise it would require. However, recent advancements in accessible artificial intelligence-based (AI-based) software and open-source tools have made these applications widely available and easy to use, raising new privacy concerns.

Sufficiency health-wise: sustainable paths towards planetary and public health.

Planet Earth is threatened by the human population. Energy and resource use are far beyond the planet's carrying capacity. Planetary Health suggests an alternative idea of prosperity as the best possible human health for all within planetary boundaries.

Toward harnessing biodiversity-ecosystem function relationships in fungi.

Fungi are crucial for terrestrial ecosystems, yet the role of fungal diversity in ecosystem functions remains unclear. We synthesize fungal biodiversity and ecosystem function (BEF) relationships, focusing on plant biomass production, carbon storage, decomposition, and pathogen or parasite resistance. The observed BEF relationships for these ecosystem functions vary in strength and direction, complicating generalizations.

Research note: Effect of a biotechnologically produced Pleurotus sapidus mycelium on expression of genes involved in protein synthesis and degradation in breast muscle of broilers.

Recently, feeding a fungal mycelium from Pleurotus sapidus was found to reduce relative breast muscle weight of broilers. The present study tested the hypothesis that dietary inclusion of P. sapidus mycelium modulates the expression of genes involved in protein anabolic and protein catabolic pathways in breast muscle of broilers.

Downstream effects of the pandemic? Spatiotemporal trends of quaternary ammonium compounds in suspended particulate matter of German rivers.

During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the preventive use of antimicrobials such as quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) surged worldwide. As cationic and surface-active biocides, QACs are only partly removed during wastewater treatment and may cause adverse ecological effects in the downstream environment. To understand the environmental consequences of increased disinfectant use during the pandemic, we investigated spatiotemporal QAC concentration trends in the suspended particulate matter (SPM) of three diverse German rivers.

The Toxin Diversity, Cytotoxicity, and Enzymatic Activity of Cape Cobra () Venom.

"True" cobras (genus ) are among the venomous snakes most frequently involved in snakebite accidents in Africa and Asia. The Cape cobra () is one of the African cobras of highest medical importance, but much remains to be learned about its venom. Here, we used a shotgun proteomics approach to better understand the qualitative composition of venom and tested its cytotoxicity and protease activity as well as its effect on intracellular Ca release and NO synthesis.

Intraspecific venom variation in the Iberian asp viper (Vipera aspis zinnikeri) across natural and intensive agricultural habitats.

Snake venom composition varies at different levels. To date, comparative venom studies have seldom taken into account the role of habitat type in the occurrence of snake venom variation. Here we investigated the presence of venom variation across different populations of the Iberian asp viper (Vipera aspis zinnikeri) inhabiting two contrasting habitats: natural vs.

Turning trash into treasure: microbiome and biodegradation of industrial side streams.

Unlabelled: Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) have attracted attention due to their ability to upcycle various biological side streams into valuable biomass, such as proteins, lipids, and chitin. In this study, we investigated the impact of high-fiber diets on larval growth performance and the shift of microbes in the gut. We tested empty fruit bunches (EFB), potato pulp (PP), and cottonseed press cake (CPC), with chicken feed (CF) used as a control diet.

Non-extractable residues of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in soil.

PER: and polyfluoroalkyl substances have gained increased attention due to their persistence, ubiquitous presence in the environment, and toxicity. We hypothesised that the formation of non-extractable residues [NER] occurs in soils and contributes to the overall persistence of these priority pollutants, and that NER formation is controlled by temperature. To test these hypotheses, we used C-labelled perfluorooctanoic acid [PFOA] as target compound, added it to two arable soils (Cambisol, Luvisol), and incubated them at 10 °C and 20 °C in the dark.

Conformational variability in the D2 loop of Apical Membrane antigen 1.

Apical Membrane Antigen 1 (AMA1) plays a vital role in the invasion of the host erythrocyte by the malaria parasite, . It is thus an important target for vaccine and anti-malaria therapeutic strategies that block the invasion process. AMA1, present on the surface of the parasite, interacts with RON2, a component of the parasite's rhoptry neck (RON) protein complex, which is transferred to the erythrocyte membrane during invasion.

Pleiotropically activation of azaphilone biosynthesis by overexpressing a pathway-specific transcription factor in marine-derived Aspergillus terreus RA2905.

The genome sequencing of Aspergillus terreus reveals that the vast number of predicted biosynthetic gene clusters have not reflected by the metabolic profile observed under conventional culture conditions. In this study, a silent azaphilone biosynthetic gene cluster was activated by overexpressing a pathway-specific transcription factor gene2642 in marine-derived fungus A. terreus RA2905.

Bifunctional Sesquiterpene/Diterpene Synthase Agr2 from Gives Rise to the Novel Diterpene Cyclocybene.

is a model mushroom belonging to the fungal phylum Basidiomycota. Among others, is known for its diverse terpenome, containing various volatile and nonvolatile terpenes and terpenoids. Here, we deepen the knowledge on their biosynthetic pathways by studying the terpene synthase Agr2 in detail.

Enlightening the toxinological dark matter of spider venom enzymes.

Spiders produce highly adapted venoms featuring a complex mixture of biomolecules used mainly for hunting and defense. The most prominent components are peptidic neurotoxins, a major focus of research and drug development, whereas venom enzymes have been largely neglected. Nevertheless, investigation of venom enzymes not only reveals insights into their biological functions, but also provides templates for future industrial applications.

Comparative venom analysis between melanistic and normally coloured phenotypes of the common adder ().

Snake venom is an ecologically relevant functional trait directly linked with a snake's fitness and survival, facilitating predation and defence. Snake venom variation occurs at all taxonomic levels, but the study at the intraspecific level is still in its early stages. The common adder () exhibits considerable variation in colour phenotypes across its distribution range.