scholarly journals Serial horizontal transfer of vitamin-biosynthetic genes enables the establishment of new nutritional symbionts in aphids’ di-symbiotic systems

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro Manzano-Marín ◽  
Armelle Coeur d’acier ◽  
Anne-Laure Clamens ◽  
Céline Orvain ◽  
Corinne Cruaud ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Essential Amino Acids ◽  
B Vitamins ◽  
Restricted Diet ◽  
Symbiotic System ◽  
Biosynthetic Genes ◽  
Obligate Symbiont ◽  
Related Bacterium ◽  
B Vitamin

ABSTRACTMany insects with a nutrient-restricted diet depend on obligate mutualistic bacteria for the provisioning of essential nutrients lacking from their food source, namely essential amino acids and B vitamins. Most aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae), whose diet consists of phloem, rely on the bacterial endosymbiont Buchnera for the supply of the aforementioned compounds. However, in some aphid lineages Buchnera have lost the capability of producing these nutrients and thus the symbiotic consortium has accommodated an extra bacterial partner to supplement Buchnera’s deficiencies. In this work, we explore the di-symbiotic nutritional endosymbiosis of a group of Cinara aphids which has been found to harbour both Buchnera and an Erwinia-related symbiont. Using fluorescence in situ hybridisation, we have located this symbiont to the bacteriome where it inhabits its own bacteriocytes. Through whole-genome sequencing of the endosymbionts of 9 species of Erwinia-associated Cinara aphids, we have found that Ewrinia genomes are highly syntenic and all show significant genome reduction. Additionally, Erwinia symbionts display phylogenetic congruency with Buchnera, suggesting long-term co-divergence. Most significantly, we found that not only is Erwinia capable of complementing Buchnera’s auxotrophies, but that the genes involved in the biosynthesis of two B vitamins have actually been horizontally acquired from a Sodalis-related bacterium. Finally, this B-vitamin biosynthetic genes have been further transferred to a new Hamiltonella co-obligate symbiont in a specific Cinara lineage, thus displaying a tri-symbiotic system. These results highlight the important role horizontal gene transfer plays in the establishment of new obligate nutritional symbionts.

scholarly journals Serial horizontal transfer of vitamin-biosynthetic genes enables the establishment of new nutritional symbionts in aphids’ di-symbiotic systems

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 259-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro Manzano-Marı́n ◽  
Armelle Coeur d’acier ◽  
Anne-Laure Clamens ◽  
Céline Orvain ◽  
Corinne Cruaud ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
In Situ Hybridisation ◽  
Essential Amino Acids ◽  
Aphid Species ◽  
Fluorescence In Situ Hybridisation ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Buchnera Aphidicola ◽  
Biosynthetic Genes ◽  
Obligate Symbiont

Abstract Many insects depend on obligate mutualistic bacteria to provide essential nutrients lacking from their diet. Most aphids, whose diet consists of phloem, rely on the bacterial endosymbiont Buchnera aphidicola to supply essential amino acids and B vitamins. However, in some aphid species, provision of these nutrients is partitioned between Buchnera and a younger bacterial partner, whose identity varies across aphid lineages. Little is known about the origin and the evolutionary stability of these di-symbiotic systems. It is also unclear whether the novel symbionts merely compensate for losses in Buchnera or carry new nutritional functions. Using whole-genome endosymbiont sequences of nine Cinara aphids that harbour an Erwinia-related symbiont to complement Buchnera, we show that the Erwinia association arose from a single event of symbiont lifestyle shift, from a free-living to an obligate intracellular one. This event resulted in drastic genome reduction, long-term genome stasis, and co-divergence with aphids. Fluorescence in situ hybridisation reveals that Erwinia inhabits its own bacteriocytes near Buchnera’s. Altogether these results depict a scenario for the establishment of Erwinia as an obligate symbiont that mirrors Buchnera’s. Additionally, we found that the Erwinia vitamin-biosynthetic genes not only compensate for Buchnera’s deficiencies, but also provide a new nutritional function; whose genes have been horizontally acquired from a Sodalis-related bacterium. A subset of these genes have been subsequently transferred to a new Hamiltonella co-obligate symbiont in one specific Cinara lineage. These results show that the establishment and dynamics of multi-partner endosymbioses can be mediated by lateral gene transfers between co-ocurring symbionts.

One year B-vitamins increases serum and whole blood folate forms and lowers plasma homocysteine in older Germans

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne H. Kirsch ◽  
Wolfgang Herrmann ◽  
Vera Kruse ◽  
Rudolf Eckert ◽  
Stefan Gräber ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vitamin D ◽  
Whole Blood ◽  
Baseline Level ◽  
Plasma Homocysteine ◽  
B Vitamins ◽  
Vitamin Supplementation ◽  
Baseline Serum ◽  
One Year ◽  
B Vitamin

AbstractWe aimed to study the effect of long-term supplementation of B-vitamins on folate forms in serum and whole blood (WB) in elderly German subjects.59 participants (mean age 67 years) were randomized to daily receive either vitamin DB-vitamins supplementation for 6 months led to higher concentrations of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-methylTHF) in serum (mean 49.1 vs. 19.6 nmol/L) and WB (1332 vs. 616 nmol/L). Also non-methyl-folate concentrations in serum and WB were higher after 6 months with B-vitamins supplementation. Unmetabolized folic acid (UFA) increased after supplementation. tHcy concentration was lowered after 1 year of B-vitamin supplementation (mean 13.1 vs. 9.6 μmol/L). A stronger reduction of tHcy after 1 year was found in participants who had baseline level >12.5 μmol/L (mean 17.0 vs. 11.9 μmol/L) compared to those with baseline tHcy lower than this limit (mean 9.1 vs. 7.4 μmol/L). In contrast, the increases in serum and WB 5-methylTHF were comparable between the two groups.One year B-vitamins supplementation increased the levels of 5-methylTHF and non-methyl-folate in serum and WB, normalized tHcy, but caused an increase in the number of cases with detectable UFA in serum. Lowering of tHcy was predicted by baseline tHcy, but not by baseline serum or WB 5-methylTHF.

scholarly journals Effect of long-term nutraceutical and dietary supplement use on cognition in the elderly: a 10-year systematic review of randomised controlled trials

2018 ◽  
Vol 119 (3) ◽  
pp. 280-298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan M. D’Cunha ◽  
Ekavi N. Georgousopoulou ◽  
Lakshika Dadigamuwage ◽  
Jane Kellett ◽  
Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Cognitive Decline ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Cognitive Change ◽  
B Vitamins ◽  
Controlled Trials ◽  
Supplement Use ◽  
Cognitive Benefits ◽  
B Vitamin

AbstractNutraceuticals have generated interest as a way to mitigate the cognitive decline in older adults. The aim of this systematic review was to determine the evidence for these claims from the scientific literature in randomised, double-blinded, controlled trials (duration: ≥1 year; participants: n≥100; age(mean): ≥65 years). Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, we searched four electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL and Web of Science) and identified twenty-five studies published between the 15·June·2006 and 14·June·2016. Interventions included B-vitamins, n-3 fatty acids, antioxidant vitamins and herbs. Of the B-vitamin studies, four found benefits to cognition with supplementation. The first of these B-vitamin studies, in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (n 266; duration=2 years), included benefit to executive function (P=0·015) and improvements in the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) among participants with baseline homocysteine above 11·3 µmol/l (P<0·001). In the same sample, the second study found cognitive benefits of B-vitamins dependent on the higher baseline plasma n-3 fatty acid status. The third B-vitamin study (n 900; duration=2 years) reported improved performance in immediate (P=0·046) and delayed recall (P=0·013), whereas the fourth study (n 856; duration=2 years) reported slower rate of cognitive decline in the MMSE (P=0·05). One study investigating DHA treatment (n 402; duration=1·5 years) revealed the slower rate of cognitive change in apoE e4 non-carriers (P=0·03). As only five included studies revealed notable benefits, presently based on the specific compounds explored here, there is not compelling evidence to support the use nutraceuticals to improve cognition in the elderly. Future long-term trials of nutraceuticals should investigate interactions with lifestyle, blood biomarkers and genetic risk factors.

scholarly journals Global soil moisture data derived through machine learning trained with in-situ measurements

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sungmin O. ◽  
Rene Orth
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Temporal Dynamics ◽  
Soil Moisture Data ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Global Soil

AbstractWhile soil moisture information is essential for a wide range of hydrologic and climate applications, spatially-continuous soil moisture data is only available from satellite observations or model simulations. Here we present a global, long-term dataset of soil moisture derived through machine learning trained with in-situ measurements, SoMo.ml. We train a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model to extrapolate daily soil moisture dynamics in space and in time, based on in-situ data collected from more than 1,000 stations across the globe. SoMo.ml provides multi-layer soil moisture data (0–10 cm, 10–30 cm, and 30–50 cm) at 0.25° spatial and daily temporal resolution over the period 2000–2019. The performance of the resulting dataset is evaluated through cross validation and inter-comparison with existing soil moisture datasets. SoMo.ml performs especially well in terms of temporal dynamics, making it particularly useful for applications requiring time-varying soil moisture, such as anomaly detection and memory analyses. SoMo.ml complements the existing suite of modelled and satellite-based datasets given its distinct derivation, to support large-scale hydrological, meteorological, and ecological analyses.

scholarly journals A Study of UVER in Santiago, Chile Based on Long-Term In Situ Measurements (Five Years) and Empirical Modelling

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 368
Author(s):  
Lisdelys González-Rodríguez ◽  
Amauri Pereira de Oliveira ◽  
Lien Rodríguez-López ◽  
Jorge Rosas ◽  
David Contreras ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Solar Spectrum ◽  
Sun Exposure ◽  
Great Accuracy ◽  
In Situ Measurements ◽  
Uv Index ◽  
Empirical Modelling ◽  
The People

Ultraviolet radiation is a highly energetic component of the solar spectrum that needs to be monitored because is harmful to life on Earth, especially in areas where the ozone layer has been depleted, like Chile. This work is the first to address the long-term (five-year) behaviour of ultraviolet erythemal radiation (UVER) in Santiago, Chile (33.5° S, 70.7° W, 500 m) using in situ measurements and empirical modelling. Observations indicate that to alert the people on the risks of UVER overexposure, it is necessary to use, in addition to the currently available UV index (UVI), three more erythema indices: standard erythemal doses (SEDs), minimum erythemal doses (MEDs), and sun exposure time (tery). The combination of UVI, SEDs, MEDs, and tery shows that in Santiago, individuals with skin types III and IV are exposed to harmfully high UVER doses for 46% of the time that UVI indicates is safe. Empirical models predicted hourly and daily values UVER in Santiago with great accuracy and can be applied to other Chilean urban areas with similar climate. This research inspires future advances in reconstructing large datasets to analyse the UVER in Central Chile, its trends, and its changes.

scholarly journals In-Situ Annealed Ti3C2Tx MXene Based All-Solid-State Flexible Zn-Ion Hybrid Micro Supercapacitor Array with Enhanced Stability

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
La Li ◽  
Weijia Liu ◽  
Kai Jiang ◽  
Di Chen ◽  
Fengyu Qu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Energy ◽  
High Rate ◽  
High Energy Density ◽  
Electrochemical Performances ◽  
Integrated Electronics ◽  
Long Term Stability ◽  
Hybrid Supercapacitors ◽  
Portable Electronics

AbstractZn-ion hybrid supercapacitors (SCs) are considered as promising energy storage owing to their high energy density compared to traditional SCs. How to realize the miniaturization, patterning, and flexibility of the Zn-ion SCs without affecting the electrochemical performances has special meanings for expanding their applications in wearable integrated electronics. Ti3C2Tx cathode with outstanding conductivity, unique lamellar structure and good mechanical flexibility has been demonstrated tremendous potential in the design of Zn-ion SCs, but achieving long cycling stability and high rate stability is still big challenges. Here, we proposed a facile laser writing approach to fabricate patterned Ti3C2Tx-based Zn-ion micro-supercapacitors (MSCs), followed by the in-situ anneal treatment of the assembled MSCs to improve the long-term stability, which exhibits 80% of the capacitance retention even after 50,000 charge/discharge cycles and superior rate stability. The influence of the cathode thickness on the electrochemical performance of the MSCs is also studied. When the thickness reaches 0.851 µm the maximum areal capacitance of 72.02 mF cm−2 at scan rate of 10 mV s−1, which is 1.77 times higher than that with a thickness of 0.329 µm (35.6 mF cm−2). Moreover, the fabricated Ti3C2Tx based Zn-ion MSCs have excellent flexibility, a digital timer can be driven by the single device even under bending state, a flexible LED displayer of “TiC” logo also can be easily lighted by the MSC arrays under twisting, crimping, and winding conditions, demonstrating the scalable fabrication and application of the fabricated MSCs in portable electronics.

scholarly journals Poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(1,3-trimethylene carbonate) Copolymers for the Formulation of In Situ Forming Depot Long-Acting Injectables

Pharmaceutics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 605
Author(s):  
Marie-Emérentienne Cagnon ◽  
Silvio Curia ◽  
Juliette Serindoux ◽  
Jean-Manuel Cros ◽  
Feifei Ng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ethylene Glycol ◽  
Surface Erosion ◽  
Sustained Delivery ◽  
Trimethylene Carbonate ◽  
Poly Ethylene Glycol ◽  
In Situ Forming ◽  
Poly Ethylene ◽  
Long Acting

This article describes the utilization of (methoxy)poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(1,3-trimethylene carbonate) ((m)PEG–PTMC) diblock and triblock copolymers for the formulation of in situ forming depot long-acting injectables by solvent exchange. The results shown in this manuscript demonstrate that it is possible to achieve long-term drug deliveries from suspension formulations prepared with these copolymers, with release durations up to several months in vitro. The utilization of copolymers with different PEG and PTMC molecular weights affords to modulate the release profile and duration. A pharmacokinetic study in rats with meloxicam confirmed the feasibility of achieving at least 28 days of sustained delivery by using this technology while showing good local tolerability in the subcutaneous environment. The characterization of the depots at the end of the in vivo study suggests that the rapid phase exchange upon administration and the surface erosion of the resulting depots are driving the delivery kinetics from suspension formulations. Due to the widely accepted utilization of meloxicam as an analgesic drug for animal care, the results shown in this article are of special interest for the development of veterinary products aiming at a very long-term sustained delivery of this therapeutic molecule.

In Situ Tests on Creep Behavior of Rock Mass with Joint or Shearing Zone in Foundation of Large-Scale Hydroelectric Projects

2004 ◽  
Vol 261-263 ◽  
pp. 1097-1102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Liu ◽  
Xia Ting Feng ◽  
Xiu Li Ding ◽  
Huo Ming Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Rock Mass ◽  
Creep Behavior ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Time Dependent ◽  
Three Gorges Project ◽  
Three Gorges ◽  
The Three Gorges ◽  
The Three Gorges Project

The time-dependent behavior of rock mass, which is generally governed by joints and shearing zones, is of great significance for engineering design and prediction of long-term deformation and stability. In situ creep test is a more effective method than laboratory test in characterizing the creep behavior of rock mass with joint or shearing zone due to the complexity of field conditions. A series of in situ creep tests on granite with joint at the shiplock area of the Three-Gorges Project and basalt with shearing zone at the right abutment of the Xiluodu Project were performed in this study. Based on the test results, the stress-displacement-time responses of the joints and basalt are analyzed, and their time-dependent constitutive model and model coefficients are given, which is crucial for the design to prevent the creep deformations of rock masses from causing the failure of the operation of the shiplock gate at the Three-Gorges Project and long-term stability of the Xiluodu arc dam.

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