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PeerJ 2024Conventional biofilters, which rely on bacterial activity, face challenges in eliminating hydrophobic compounds, such as aromatic compounds. This is due to the low... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
BACKGROUND
Conventional biofilters, which rely on bacterial activity, face challenges in eliminating hydrophobic compounds, such as aromatic compounds. This is due to the low solubility of these compounds in water, which makes them difficult to absorb by bacterial biofilms. Furthermore, biofilter operational stability is often hampered by acidification and drying out of the filter bed.
METHODS
Two bioreactors, a bacterial biofilter (B-BF) and a fungal-bacterial coupled biofilter (F&B-BF) were inoculated with activated sludge from the secondary sedimentation tank of the Sinopec Yangzi Petrochemical Company wastewater treatment plant located in Nanjing, China. For approximately 6 months of operation, a F&B-BF was more effective than a B-BF in eliminating a gas-phase mixture containing benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and -xylene (BTE-X).
RESULTS
After operating for four months, the F&B-BF showed higher removal efficiencies for toluene (T), ethylbenzene (E), benzene (B), and -X (-Xylene), at 96.9%, 92.6%, 83.9%, and 83.8%, respectively, compared to those of the B-BF (90.1%, 78.7%, 64.8%, and 59.3%). The degradation activity order for B-BF and F&B-BF was T > E > B > -X. Similarly, the rates of mineralization for BTE-X in the F&B-BF were 74.9%, 66.5%, 55.3%, and 45.1%, respectively, which were higher than those in the B-BF (56.5%, 50.8%, 43.8%, and 30.5%). Additionally, the F&B-BF (2 days) exhibited faster recovery rates than the B-BF (5 days).
CONCLUSIONS
It was found that a starvation protocol was beneficial for the stable operation of both the B-BF and F&B-BF. Community structure analysis showed that the bacterial genus and the fungal genus were both important in the degradation of BTE-X. The fungal-bacterial consortia can enhance the biofiltration removal of BTE-X vapors.
Topics: Xylenes; Filtration; Fungi; Benzene Derivatives; Bioreactors; Bacteria; Biodegradation, Environmental; Toluene; Benzene; China; Biofilms
PubMed: 38903883
DOI: 10.7717/peerj.17452 -
Allergologie Select 2024None.
None.
PubMed: 38756207
DOI: 10.5414/ALX02444E -
Journal of Fungi (Basel, Switzerland) Mar 2024, a perennial herbaceous plant found in southwest China, has the potential to be used in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Endophytic fungi that reside within...
, a perennial herbaceous plant found in southwest China, has the potential to be used in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Endophytic fungi that reside within medicinal herbs play an important ecological role in their host plants and can serve as a valuable source for identifying active components. However, little is known about the diversity, and structure of endophytic fungi in . In this study, we investigated the community structure and diversity of endophytic fungi in the leaves, stems, and roots of at both 1- and 2-year-growth stages using a modern culture-independent method using both culture-independent (high-throughput sequencing, HTS) and culture-based methods. Using HTS, our results revealed that the richness and diversity of endophytic fungi in varied depending on the organs and growth stages. Specifically, stems and leaves exhibited significantly higher diversity compared to roots. Additionally, the highest diversity of endophytic fungi was observed in the stems of the 2-year-old plants. At the genus level, , , and were the most abundant endophytic fungi in 1-year-old samples, while , , and were prevalent in 2-year-old samples. A total of 55 endophytic fungal strains belonging to two phyla and 24 genera were isolated from 150 plant tissue segments using culture-based methods. The anti-acetylcholinesterase activity of these isolates was evaluated in vitro and five of them, PCAM010, PCBM027, LP41, SR60, and SM81, showed strong activity (>50% inhibition rate). These findings will serve as a theoretical basis and practical guide for comprehending the structural composition, biological diversity and bioactivity of endophytic fungi in .
PubMed: 38535204
DOI: 10.3390/jof10030195 -
PloS One 2024Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal human motor neuron disease leading to muscle atrophy and paralysis. Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) are...
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal human motor neuron disease leading to muscle atrophy and paralysis. Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) are associated with familial ALS (fALS). The SOD1 mutants in ALS have a toxic-gain of function by destabilizing the functional SOD1 homodimer, consequently inducing fibril-like aggregation with a cytotoxic non-native trimer intermediate. Therefore, reducing SOD1 oligomerization via chemical modulators is an optimal therapy in ALS. Here, we report the discovery of Phialomustin-B, an unsaturated secondary metabolite from the endophytic fungus Phialophora mustea, as a modulator of SOD1 aggregation. The crystal structure of the SOD1-Phialomustin complex refined to 1.90 Å resolution demonstrated for the first time that the ligand binds to the dimer interface and the lateral region near the electrostatic loop. The aggregation analyses of SOD1WT and the disease mutant SOD1A4V revealed that Phialomustin-B reduces cytotoxic trimerization. We propose that Phialomustin-B is a potent lead molecule with therapeutic potential in fALS.
Topics: Humans; Superoxide Dismutase-1; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis; Cytoskeleton; Muscular Atrophy
PubMed: 38446760
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298196 -
Journal of Fungi (Basel, Switzerland) Jan 2024This study used the ITS approach based on Illumina MiSeq sequencing to assess the endosphere and rhizosphere fungal communities in healthy and diseased faba bean plants....
This study used the ITS approach based on Illumina MiSeq sequencing to assess the endosphere and rhizosphere fungal communities in healthy and diseased faba bean plants. The findings indicate that the most predominant phyla in all samples were Ascomycota (49.89-99.56%) and Basidiomycota (0.33-25.78%). In healthy endosphere samples, Glomeromycota (0.08-1.17%) was the only predominant phylum. In diseased endosphere samples, Olpidiomycota (0.04-1.75%) was the only predominant phylum. At the genus level, (0.47-35.21%) was more abundant in rhizosphere soil, while (3.48-91.16%) was predominant in the endosphere roots of faba bean plants. Significant differences were observed in the alpha diversity of rhizosphere samples from different germplasm resources ( < 0.05). The fungal community structures were clearly distinguished between rhizosphere and endosphere samples and between healthy and diseased endosphere samples ( < 0.05). was significantly enriched in diseased endosphere samples, whereas was enriched in healthy endosphere samples. and were enriched in diseased rhizosphere samples, while was enriched in healthy rhizosphere samples. Diseased samples displayed more strongly correlated genera than healthy samples. Saprotrophs accounted for a larger proportion of the fungal microbes in rhizosphere soil than in endosphere roots. This study provides a better understanding of the composition and diversity of fungal communities in the rhizosphere and endosphere of faba bean plants as well as a theoretical guidance for future research on the prevention or control of faba bean root rot disease.
PubMed: 38276030
DOI: 10.3390/jof10010084 -
Frontiers in Plant Science 2023Brown Stem Rot (BSR), caused by the soil borne fungal pathogen , can reduce soybean yields by as much as 38%. Previous allelism studies identified three Resistant to...
Brown Stem Rot (BSR), caused by the soil borne fungal pathogen , can reduce soybean yields by as much as 38%. Previous allelism studies identified three Resistant to brown stem Rot genes (, and ), all mapping to large, overlapping regions on soybean chromosome 16. However, recent fine-mapping and genome wide association studies (GWAS) suggest , and are alleles of a single locus. To address this conflict, we characterized the locus using the Williams82 reference genome (Wm82.a4.v1). We identified 120 Receptor-Like Proteins (RLPs), with hallmarks of disease resistance receptor-like proteins (RLPs), which formed five distinct clusters. We developed virus induced gene silencing (VIGS) constructs to target each of the clusters, hypothesizing that silencing the correct RLP cluster would result in a loss of resistance phenotype. The VIGS constructs were tested against resistant genotypes L78-4094 (), PI 437833 (), or PI 437970 (, infected with or mock infected. No loss of resistance phenotype was observed. We then developed VIGS constructs targeting two RLP clusters with a single construct. Construct B1a/B2 silenced resistance in L78-4094, confirming at least two genes confer -mediated resistance to . Failure of B1a/B2 to silence resistance in PI 437833 and PI 437970 suggests additional genes confer BSR resistance in these lines. To identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) responding to silencing, we conducted RNA-seq of leaf, stem and root samples from B1a/B2 and empty vector control plants infected with or mock infected. B1a/B2 silencing induced DEGs associated with cell wall biogenesis, lipid oxidation, the unfolded protein response and iron homeostasis and repressed numerous DEGs involved in defense and defense signaling. These findings will improve integration of resistance into elite germplasm and provide novel insights into fungal disease resistance.
PubMed: 38259908
DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1292605