Activity

Anaerobic digestion (AD) systems with high substrate concentrations are characterized by high viscosity, which affects material and energy transfer efficiencies, thereby influencing methane production efficiency. In this study, adding granular activated carbon (GAC) and increasing the temperature decreased the viscosity by 4.56-10.19% and 27.13-28.85%, respectively, and improved AD efficiency. Adding GAC and increasing the temperature enhanced the methane yields by 34.37-38.15% and 25.60-28.31%, respectively. Distance-based redundancy analysis showed that the viscosity, temperature, and GAC had the greatest effects on the composition of the microbial community. The dominant bacteria in the medium-temperature AD system at the phylum level belonged to Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Euryarchaeota. In addition to the dominant bacteria in the medium-temperature AD system, the thermophilic phylum Thermotogae was abundant in the high-temperature AD system. Moreover, the relative abundance of Euryarchaeota, which contained most of the methanogens, was higher in the high-temperature AD system than in the medium-temperature AD system.In this study, the seed endosphere of a bacterial wilt tolerant chilli cv. Firingi Jolokia was explored in order to find effective agents for bacterial wilt disease biocontrol. A total of 32 endophytic bacteria were isolated from freshly collected seeds and six isolates were selected based on R. solanacearum inhibition assay. These isolates were identified as Bacillus subtilis (KJ-2), Bacillus velezensis (KJ-4), Leuconostoc mesenteroides (KP-1), Lactococcus lactis (LB-3), Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (WK-2), and Bacillus subtilis (WK-3) by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. In the in planta R. solanacearum inhibition assay carried out by seedling root bacterization method, Bacillus subtilis (KJ-2) exhibited highest biocontrol efficacy of 86.6 % on 7th day post R. solanacearum inoculation and a minimum biocontrol efficacy of 52.9 % was noted for Leuconostoc mesenteroides (KP-1). GC-HRMS analysis detected several known antimicrobial compounds in the extract of the culture supernatant of Bacillus subtilis (KJ-2); which may contribute to inhibition of R. solanacearum. In the growth promotion assay conducted using these isolates, only two of them namely Bacillus subtilis (KJ-2) and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (WK-2) showed growth promotion in true leafed tomato plants. All the selected seed endophytic isolates were able to control bacterial wilt of tomato at the seedling stage and Bacillus subtilis (KJ-2) was found to be most effective in controlling the disease. The results of the present study highlighted that seed endosphere of bacterial wilt tolerant cultivar is a rich source of R. solanacearum antagonizing bacterial isolates.Botrytis cinerea is a plant pathogen causing the gray mold disease in a plethora of host plants. The control of the disease is based mostly on chemical pesticides, which are responsible for environmental pollution, while they also pose risks for human health. Furthermore, B. cinerea resistant isolates have been identified against many fungicide groups, making the control of this disease challenging. The application of biocontrol agents can be a possible solution, but requires deep understanding of the molecular mechanisms in order to be effective. In this study, we investigated the multitrophic interactions between the biocontrol agent Bacillus subtilis MBI 600, a new commercialized biopesticide, the pathogen B. cinerea and their plant host. Our analysis showed that this biocontrol agent reduced B. cinerea mycelial growth in vitro, and was able to suppress the disease incidence on cucumber plants. Moreover, treatment with B. subtilis led to induction of genes involved in plant immunity. RNA-seq analysis of B. cinerea transcriptome upon exposure to bacterial secretome, showed that genes coding for MFS and ABC transporters were highly induced. Deletion of the Bcmfs1 MFS transporter gene, using a CRISP/Cas9 editing method, affected its virulence and the tolerance of B. cinerea to bacterial secondary metabolites. These findings suggest that specific detoxification transporters are involved in these interactions, with crucial role in different aspects of B. GS-4997 cinerea physiology.Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is an independent risk factor for hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Effects of OSA on the autonomic nervous system may mediate this association. We performed a systematic literature review to determine the profile of autonomic function associated with OSA. Three electronic databases were searched for studies of OSA patients aged ≥18 years in which autonomic function was assessed. Studies comparing patients with and without OSA, or examining the association of OSA severity with changes in autonomic function were included. Seventy-one studies met the inclusion criteria and autonomic function has been assessed using a range of techniques. The profile of autonomic function found in OSA include increased sympathetic activity, reduced parasympathetic activity and less consistently found low heart rate variability. Altered autonomic function in OSA may explain the pathophysiology of increased cardiovascular risk. Evidence from intervention studies is required to determine if treatment improves autonomic function associated with OSA.Trichloropropyl phosphate (TCPP) as a widely used typical chlorinated organophosphate flame retardant has received significant attention because of its widespread presence in water and negative effects on human health. In this study, a ball-milling method was used to prepare a magnetic powdered carbon adsorbent (PC/nano-Fe3O4 composite) for TCPP removal via adsorption and catalytic degradation. The effect of Fe3O4 content on TCPP adsorption and degradation performance by PC/nano-Fe3O4 composite was investigated. The PC/nano-Fe3O4 composite prepared by high Fe3O4 content (25%) was not favorable for TCPP adsorption and degradation. However, the PC/Fe3O4 containing low Fe3O4 content (10%) had insufficient magnetic separation ability from water. The synthesized PC/nano-Fe3O4 composite with a Fe3O4/PC mass ratio of 1/5 exhibited a maximum adsorption capacity of 2682.1 μg/g as well as a complete TCPP degradation within 3 h in a Fenton-like system. Moreover, the possible break sites of TCPP and its degradation pathway were proposed based on theoretical calculation and experimental analysis.