A Review of the Use of Native and Engineered Probiotics for Colorectal Cancer Therapy.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a serious global health concern, and researchers have been investigating different strategies to prevent, treat, or support conventional therapies for CRC. This review article comprehensively covers CRC therapy involving wild-type bacteria, including probiotics and oncolytic bacteria as well as genetically modified bacteria. Given the close relationship between CRC and the gut microbiota, it is crucial to compile and present a comprehensive overview of bacterial therapies used in the context of colorectal cancer. It is evident that the use of native and engineered probiotics for colorectal cancer therapy necessitates research focused on enhancing the therapeutic properties of probiotic strains.. Genetically engineered probiotics might be designed to produce particular molecules or to target cancer cells more effectively and cure CRC patients.

Gender, culture, and migration: A qualitative study of the socioeconomic challenges facing Afghan women refugees in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

The research explores Afghan refugee women's challenges in accessing education, employment, and legal rights in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It seeks to inform policy changes to improve their socioeconomic circumstances and mitigate these hardships. The study employs qualitative methodologies, utilizing interviews, observation, and document analysis to capture rich, in-depth narratives from three Afghan refugee women. Each narrative provides unique insights into the women's struggles with education, employment, and securing legal rights. The research highlights challenges from forced migration, gender inequality, cultural norms, and socioeconomic marginalization, causing a holistic crisis for Afghan refugee women in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. These issues hinder access to education, employment, financial vulnerabilities, and legal uncertainties. The study suggests a comprehensive, multi-pronged approach to policy changes, including education reform for refugee girls, gender-responsive recruitment practices, and legal reforms to secure refugees' rights. It emphasizes gender-responsive support services and involves Afghan refugee women in policy development processes, leveraging their experiences for more effective and inclusive policies.

La recherche explore les difficultés rencontrées par les femmes réfugiées afghanes pour accéder à l'éducation, à l'emploi et aux droits légaux à Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, au Pakistan. Il cherche à éclairer les changements politiques pour améliorer leur situation socio-économique et atténuer ces difficultés. L'étude utilise des méthodologies qualitatives, utilisant des entretiens, des observations et des analyses de documents pour recueillir des récits riches et approfondis de trois femmes réfugiées afghanes. Chaque récit fournit un aperçu unique des luttes des femmes en matière d'éducation, d'emploi et d'obtention de leurs droits légaux. La recherche met en évidence les défis liés à la migration forcée, à l'inégalité entre les sexes, aux normes culturelles et à la marginalisation socio-économique, provoquant une crise holistique pour les femmes réfugiées afghanes à Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, au Pakistan. Ces problèmes entravent l'accès à l'éducation, à l'emploi, souffrent de vulnérabilités financières et d'incertitudes juridiques. L'étude suggère une approche globale et multidimensionnelle des changements politiques, y compris une réforme de l'éducation pour les filles réfugiées, des pratiques de recrutement sensibles au genre et des réformes juridiques pour garantir les droits des réfugiés. Il met l'accent sur les services de soutien sensibles au genre et implique les femmes réfugiées afghanes dans les processus d'élaboration des politiques, en tirant parti de leurs expériences pour des politiques plus efficaces et inclusives.

Evaluation of aerobic biodegradation of phenanthrene using Pseudomonas turukhanskensis: an optimized study.

The ability of Pseudomonas turukhanskensis GEEL-01 to degrade the phenanthrene (PHE) was optimized by response surface methodology (RSM). Three factors as independent variables (including temperature, pH, and inoculum) were studied at 600 mg/L PHE where the highest growth of P. turukhanskensis GEEL-01 was observed. The optimum operating conditions were evaluated through the fit summary analysis, model summary statistics, fit statistics, ANOVA analysis, and model graphs. The degradation of PHE was monitored by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and the metabolites were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The results showed that the correlation among independent variables with experimental and predicted responses was significant (p < 0.0001). The optimal temperature, pH, and inoculum were 30 ℃, 8, and 6 mL respectively. The HPLC peaks exhibited a reduction in PHE concentration from 600 mg/L to 4.97 mg/L with 99% degradation efficiency. The GC-MS peaks indicated that the major end products of PHE degradation were 1-Hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid, salicylic acid, phthalic acid, and catechol. This study demonstrated that the optimized parameters by RSM for P. turukhanskensis GEEL-01 could degrade PHE by phthalic and salicylic acid pathways.

Application of biochar in microbial fuel cells: Characteristic performances, electron-transfer mechanism, and environmental and economic assessments.

Biochar is a by-product of thermochemical conversion of biomass or other carbonaceous materials. Recently, it has garnered extensive attention for its high application potential in microbial fuel cell (MFC) systems owing to its high conductivity and low cost. However, the effects of biochar on MFC system performance have not been comprehensively reviewed, thereby necessitating the evaluation of the efficacy of biochar application in MFCs. In this review, biochar characteristics were outlined based on recent publications. Subsequently, various applications of biochar in the MFC systems and their probable processes were summarized. Finally, proposals for future applications of biochar in MFCs were explored along with its perspectives and an environmental evaluation in the context of a circular economy. The purpose of this review is to gain comprehensive insights into the application of biochar in the MFC systems, offering important viewpoints on the effective and steady utilization of biochar in MFCs for practical application.

Two-stage microbial fuel cell (MFC) and membrane bioreactor (MBR) system for enhancing wastewater treatment and resource recovery based on MFC as a biosensor.

Lack of process control between the two stages of a combined microbial fuel cell-membrane bioreactor (MFC-MBR) system limits its application in wastewater treatment due to membrane fouling and high energy consumption. In this study, a two-stage MFC-MBR integrated system was established to investigate the impact of incorporating process control on petroleum refinery wastewater treatment. The results showed that chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal exhibits a linear relationship with the MFC voltage output (R2 = 0.9821); therefore, the MFC was used as a biosensor to control the combined system. The removal efficiencies of COD, ammonium nitrogen (NH4+-N), and total nitrogen (TN) were 96.3%, 92.4%, and 86.6%, respectively, in the MFC-MBR biosensor, whereas those in the control system were 74.7%, 71.2%, and 64.7% respectively. Furthermore，using the biosensor control system yielded a 50% reduction in the transmembrane pressure (1.01 kPa day-1) and decreased membrane fouling in wastewater treatment. The maximum energy recovery of the biosensor system (0.00258 kWh m-3) was five times higher than that of the control system, as determined by calculating the mass balance of the system. Thus, this study indicates that using the MFC as a biosensor for process control in an MFC-MBR system can improve overall system performance.

Feed-additive Limosilactobacillus fermentum GR-3 reduces arsenic accumulation in Procambarus clarkii.

Procambarus clarkii (crayfish) accumulates a high concentration of Arsenic (As) from the aquatic environment and causes considerable human health risks. In this study, Limosilactobacillus fermentum GR-3 strain was isolated from "Jiangshui" and applied for As(III) adsorption and antioxidant abilities. Strain GR-3 removed 50.67% of 50 mg/L As(III) and exhibited the high antioxidant potential of DPPH (1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) (87.63%) and hydroxyl radical (74.51%) scavenging rate in vitro. P. clarkii was feed with strain GR-3, the results showed that As(III) concentration reduced, and residual level in hepatopancreas was decreased by 36%, compared to As(III)-exposed group (control). Gut microbial sequencing showed that strain GR-3 restores gut microbiota dysbiosis caused by As(III) exposure. Further application in the field scale was performed and revealed a decrease in As(III) accumulation and increasing 50% aquaculture production of the total output. In summary, feed-additive probiotic is recommended as a novel strategy to minimize aquaculture foods toxicity and safe human health.

First report on molecular surveillance based on duplex detection of Anaplasma marginale and Theileria annulata in dairy cattle from Punjab, Pakistan.

Theileriosis and anaplasmosis are important tick-borne hemoparasites of bovines. The first surveillance study aimed to assess the suitability of duplex PCR for simultaneous detection of Theileria annulata and Anaplasma marginale field infections in Jhang and Rawalpindi districts of Punjab, Pakistan. Cattle blood samples (n = 480) were collected from selected union councils of all tehsils using a multistage sampling technique. The sampling unit consisted of asymptomatic cattle belonging to either age, sex, and breed. Epidemiological data related to host, area, management, and season were collected using a questionnaire. Based on duplex PCR, the overall prevalence of the two concurrent tick-borne pathogens was 19.79% (95/480). Chi-square analysis indicated that age, breed, tick infestation, history of tick-borne diseases, frequency of acaricidial application, and season were significantly associated with tick-borne pathogens. Phylogenetic analysis of A. marginale and T. annulata isolates based on msp1ß and cytochrome b genes, respectively, revealed that nucleotide sequences acquired from these two pathogens are novel, grouped separately from different countries. All our A. marginale isolates showed 88.2 to 80.5% similarity with isolates from Egypt, Israel, Mexico, and lesser homology with South African isolates. Similarly, the phylogenetic tree based on cytochrome b partial sequences of T. annulata revealed that our sequences are closer to those from India and Iran. Based on this first study on concomitant detection of tick-borne pathogens, it can be concluded that mixed infections are endemic in the study districts and mPCR is suitable for detecting concurrent field infections. Simultaneous infections should be considered while performing surveillance and chemotherapeutic trials for better prevention and control of tick-borne diseases.

A copper-specific microbial fuel cell biosensor based on riboflavin biosynthesis of engineered Escherichia coli.

Copper pollution poses a serious threat to the aquatic environment; however, in situ analytical methods for copper monitoring are still scarce. In the current study, Escherichia coli Rosetta was genetically modified to express OprF and ribB with promoter Pt7 and PcusC , respectively, which could synthesize porin and senses Cu2+ to produce riboflavin. The cell membrane permeability of this engineered strain was increased and its riboflavin production (1.45-3.56 µM) was positively correlated to Cu2+ (0-0.5 mM). The biosynthetic strain was then employed in microbial fuel cell (MFC) based biosensor. Under optimal operating parameters of pH 7.1 and 37°C, the maximum voltage (248, 295, 333, 352, and 407 mV) of the constructed MFC biosensor showed a linear correlation with Cu2+ concentration (0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 mM, respectively; R2 = 0.977). The continuous mode testing demonstrated that the MFC biosensor specifically senses Cu2+ with calculated detection limit of 28 µM, which conforms to the common Cu2+ safety standard (32 µM). The results obtained with the developed biosensor system were consistent with the existing analytical methods such as colorimetry, flame atomic absorption spectrometry, and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. In conclusion, this MFC-based biosensor overcomes the signal conversion and transmission problems of conventional approaches, providing a fast and economic analytical alternative for in situ monitoring of Cu2+ in water.

Metatranscriptomic analysis reveals active microbes and genes responded to short-term Cr(VI) stress.

Heavy metals have been severely polluting the environment. However, the response mechanism of microbial communities to short-term heavy metals stress remains unclear. In this study, metagenomics (MG) and metatranscriptomics (MT) was performed to observe the microbial response to short-term Cr(VI) stress. MG data showed that 99.1% of species were similar in the control and Cr(VI) treated groups. However, MT data demonstrated that 83% of the microbes were active in which 58.7% increased, while the relative abundance of 41.3% decreased after short-term Cr(VI) incubation. The MT results also revealed 9% of microbes were dormant in samples. Genes associated with oxidative stress, Cr(VI) transport, resistance, and reduction, as well as genes with unknown functions were 2-10 times upregulated after Cr(VI) treatment. To further confirm the function of unknown genes, two genes (314 and 494) were selected to detect the Cr(VI) resistance and reduction ability. The results showed that these genes significantly increased the Cr(VI) remediation ability of Escherichia coli. MT results also revealed an increase in the expression of some rare genera (at least two times) after Cr(VI) treatment, indicating these rare species played a crucial role in microbial response to short-term Cr(VI) stress. In summary, MT is an efficient way to understand the role of active and dormant microbes in specific environmental conditions.

Enhancement pattern of differentiated and undifferentiated gastric carcinoma on multiphasic contrast-enhanced computed tomography.

PURPOSE: To study the enhancement pattern of differentiated and undifferentiated gastric carcinoma on multiphasic contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Seventy patients with biopsy-proven gastric cancer underwent multiphasic contrast-enhanced CT. The CT protocol include plain, arterial, portal venous, and hepatic venous phase. Tumour size, location, peak-enhancement characteristics, and staging were evaluated. RESULTS: The peak-enhancement type was 'arterial' in 20 out of 28 within the differentiated-type GCAs and 'portalvenous' in 37 out of 42 within the undifferentiated-type GCAs (c2 statistic with Yates correction = 23.3981, p < 0.00001). The maximum attenuation value was statistically significant for the arterial phase between differentiated and undifferentiated GCAs (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Assessing peak-enhancement in a multiphasic CT can help identify the histological subcategory of gastric carcinomas that has prognostic significance. Arterial phase peak-enhancement is frequently seen in differentiated carcinomas whereas venous phase peak-enhancement is seen in undifferentiated carcinomas.

Anaerobic membrane bioreactors for treatment of emerging contaminants: A review.

Emerging contaminants (ECs) are synthetic organic chemicals that released into the environment, which pose a serious threat to the ecosystem and human health. Due to the high costs of physicochemical methods and the possibility of secondary pollution, and conventional biological treatment techniques are not efficient to remove ECs. Thus, there is a need to develop novel technologies to treat ECs. Anaerobic digestion (AD) is reported to degrade most ECs. Anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) is an upgraded AD technology that has high system stability and microbial community abundance. The biogas production and EC biodegradation efficiency in the AnMBR system are markedly higher than those in the traditional AD system. In recent years, AnMBR is widely used to remove environmental ECs. This review analyzes the feasibility and challenges of AnMBR in the treatment of ECs and provides useful insights for improving the performance and efficiency of AnMBR to treat ECs.

An endophytic isolate of the fungus Yarrowia lipolytica produces metabolites that ameliorate the negative impact of salt stress on the physiology of maize.

BACKGROUND: To combat salinity, plants need easily accessible, safe and sustainable mechanisms for optimum growth. Recently, endophytes proved to be the promising candidates that helped the host plant to thrive under stress conditions. Therefore, the aim was to discover endophytic strain(s) and their mechanism of action to alleviate salt stress in maize. RESULTS: Keeping the diverse role of endophytes in view, 9 endophytic fungi from the spines of Euphorbia milli L. were isolated. Among the isolated fungal isolates, isolate FH1 was selected for further study on the basis of high antioxidant activity and capability to produce high indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), indole-3-acetamide (IAM), phenol and flavonoid contents. The 18S rDNA sequence homology and phylogenetic analysis of the fungal isolate FH1 revealed to be Yarrowia lipolytica. Furthermore, the inoculation of Y. lipolytica FH1 had significantly promoted plant growth attributes in treated maize as compared to positive (salt stress) and negative (salt stress free) controls. Likewise, differences in chlorophyll, carotenes, electrolyte leakage, leaf relative water, peroxidase, catalase, ABA, IAA and proline contents were observed between treated maize and controls. Interestingly, Y. lipolytica FH1 inoculated plants showed lower endogenous ABA and higher endogenous IAA contents. CONCLUSION: From the results, we have concluded that Y. lipolytica inoculation has promoted the growth of maize plants through controlled metabolism and hormonal secretions (ABA and IAA) under salinity stress. Because of the fact, Y. lipolytica can be tried as an eco-friendly bio-fertilizer to achieve optimum crop productivity under saline conditions.

Alcohol ethoxylate degradation of activated sludge is enhanced by bioaugmentation with Pseudomonas sp. LZ-B.

An effective bioaugmentation strategy was developed for the removal of alcohol ethoxylates (AEs) from municipal wastewater. An AE-degrading strain, Pseudomonas sp. LZ-B, was isolated from an activated sludge. Strain LZ-B was able to degrade 96.8% of 200 mg/L C12E4 (Brij 30) within 24 h and showed significant biomass increase and removal of total oxygen concentration (TOC). The optimal degradation temperature and pH value were 37 °C and 6.0, respectively. The strain demonstrated greater potential to degrade five different molecular weight AEs within 5 days. HPLC-MS/MS analysis demonstrated that the major metabolites obtained were polyethylene glycol (PEG) and carboxylated AE chains. Activated sludge has a low ability to remove AEs. After inoculation of strain LZ-B into the activated sludge reactor, Strain LZ-B successfully colonized the activated sludge, and AE removal efficiency increased to more than 95% when the hydraulic retention time (HRT) was 10 h. After strain LZ-B cleaved the AE chains, the sludge microbial communities easily removed PEG fragments to facilitate complete biodegradation of AEs. This is the first report describing bioaugmentation to increase AE degradation in an activated sludge system.

Heavy metals interact with the microbial community and affect biogas production in anaerobic digestion: A review.

Heavy metals (HMs), which accumulate in digestion substrates, such as plant residues and livestock manure, can affect biogas yields during anaerobic digestion (AD). Low concentration of Cu2+ (0-100 mg/L), Fe2+ (50-4000 mg/L), Ni2+ (0.8-50 mg/L), Cd2+ (0.1-0.3 mg/L), and Zn2+ (0-5 mg/kg) promote biogas production, while high concentrations inhibit AD. Trace amounts of HMs are necessary for the activity of some enzymes. For example, Cu2+ and Cd2+ serve as cofactors in the catalytic center of cellulase and stimulate enzyme activity. High contents of Cd2+ and Cu2+ inhibit enzyme activity by disrupting protein structures. Trace amounts of HMs stimulate the growth and activity of methanogens, while high levels have toxic effects on methanogens. HMs affect the hydrolysis, acidification, and other biochemical reactions of organics in AD by changing the enzyme structure and they also impact methanogen growth. A better understanding of the impact of HMs on AD can provide valuable insights for improving the digestion of poultry manure and plant residues contaminated with HMs, as well as help mitigate HMs pollution. Although several studies have been conducted in this field, few comprehensive reviews have examined the effect of many common HMs on AD. This review summarizes the effects of HMs on the biogas production efficiency of AD and also discusses the effects of HMs on the activities of enzymes and microbial communities.

A Novel Early Warning System Based on a Sediment Microbial Fuel Cell for In Situ and Real Time Hexavalent Chromium Detection in Industrial Wastewater.

Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a well-known toxic heavy metal in industrial wastewater, but in situ and real time monitoring cannot be achieved by current methods used during industrial wastewater treatment processes. In this study, a Sediment Microbial Fuel Cell (SMFC) was used as a biosensor for in situ real-time monitoring of Cr(VI), which was the organic substrate is oxidized in the anode and Cr(VI) is reduced at the cathode simultaneously. The pH 6.4 and temperature 25 °C were optimal conditions for the operation. Under the optimal conditions, linearity (R² = 0.9935) of the generated voltage was observed in the Cr(VI) concentration range from 0.2 to 0.7 mg/L. The system showed high specificity for Cr(VI), as other co-existing ions such as Cu2+, Zn2+, and Pb2+ did not interfere with Cr(VI) detection. In addition, when the sediment MFC-based biosensor was applied for measuring Cr(VI) in actual wastewater samples, a low deviation (<8%) was obtained, which indicated its potential as a reliable biosensor device. MiSeq sequencing results showed that electrochemically active bacteria (Geobacter and Pseudomonas) were enriched at least two-fold on the biofilm of the anode in the biosensor as compared to the SMFC without Cr(VI). Cyclic voltammetry curves indicated that a pair of oxidation/reduction peaks appeared at -111 mV and 581 mV, respectively. These results demonstrated that the proposed sediment microbial fuel cell-based biosensor can be applied as an early warning device for real time in situ detection of Cr(VI) in industrial wastewaters.

Evaluation of antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of Bergenia ciliata Sternb (Rhizome) crude extract and fractions.

Biologically, screening of medicinal plants extracts have been since pre-historic to determine the antioxidants and antimicrobial profile. The present study was aimed to investigate and evaluate crude extract and different fractions of Bergenia ciliata Sternb (rhizome) for bioactivity which is most considerable medicinal plants. The chloroform fraction was found to be highly anti-oxidative with the IC50 value (4.15±0.82) as compare to ethyl acetate and n-hexane fraction. In addition, neither crude extract nor any fraction showed inhibition against fungal strains, i.e. Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus niger. Furthermore, the crude extract and fractions of B. ciliata (rhizome) exhibiting promising activities against Bacillus atrophoeus, Bacillus subtilis, Kleibsiella pneumonia and Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains. In summary, B. ciliata is recommended as a source of bioactive compounds which might be used against oxidative stress and drug resistance bacteria.

A review on epidemiology, global prevalence and economical losses of fasciolosis in ruminants.

Fasciolosis is an important plant borne trematode zoonosis in ruminants caused by the Fasciola hepatica and Fasciola gigentica, It is classified as a neglected tropical disease and found in more than 50 countries especially where sheep and cattle are reared. Fasciolosis is a serious animal health problems in many rural and urban areas of world, causing significant financial losses due to decrease in production and viscera condemnation in animals. Accurate diagnosis of fasciolosis is always remained a challenging task for the field practitioners. There is no comprehensive summary on the occurrence and distribution of the infection at international level. Therefore, we intended to provide a complete overview on the prevalence and epidemiology of fasciolosis in farm animals from a global prospective. It includes to map the global distribution of fasciolosis in different areas of the world to identify the endemic regions which may be a source of potential disease outbreak. The financial liability related to fasciolosis on the livestock production has also been addressed. For this purpose, the published data during 2000-2015 (15 years) on fasciolosis was reviewed and collected by electronic literature search of four databases including Google, PubMed, Science Direct, and Web of Science. Data presented are contemplated to enhance our current understanding of the parasite's geographical distribution, host range, and economic losses. Information provided would be useful for the application of more effective control strategies against fasciolosis in different geo-economics regions of the world.

Enhancing biomass conservation and enzymatic hydrolysis of sweet sorghum bagasse by combining pretreatment with ensiling and NaOH.

Lignocellulosic pretreatment is an important stage in biomass utilization, which usually requires high input. In this study, a low-cost method using combined ensiling and NaOH was developed for lignocellulosic pretreatment. Sweet sorghum bagasse (SSB) was ensiled for 21 days and then treated with diluted NaOH (0%, 1%, and 2%) for fermentation. The results showed that the application of Lactobacillus plantarum (L) reduced fermentation losses of the silages, mainly low water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) and ammonia nitrogen loss. Meanwhile, the application of Lactobacillus plantarum and ensiling enzyme (LE) promoted lignocellulosic degradation, as evidenced by low neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), lignin (ADL), and hemicellulosic (HC) contents. The dominant bacterial genera were Lactobacillus, uncultured_bacterium_f_Enterobacteriaceae, and Pantoea after silage, which corresponded to the higher lactic acid and acetic contents and lower pH. The reducing sugar yields of SSB increased after combined pretreatment of silage and NaOH and were further enhanced by the 2% NaOH application, as evidenced by the high reducing sugar yield and microstructure damage, especially in the L-2% NaOH group and the LE-2% NaOH group, in which the reducing sugar yields were 87.99 and 94.45%, respectively, compared with those of the no additive control (CK)-0 NaOH group. Therefore, this study provides an effective method for SSB pretreatment to enhance biomass conservation.

Rectal Bleed in a Child With Abernathy Malformation- Endovascular Management.

Abernathy malformations are congenital extrahepatic porto-systemic shunts which allow splanchnic circulation to bypass the metabolic screen of the liver and drain directly into the systemic circulation. The resulting metabolic abnormalities have a multitude of implications ranging from hyperammonaemia, hepatic encephalopathy, to pulmonary hypoxemia. The shunt also causes anatomical implications in the form of varices. Interventional radiology plays the central role in this era of minimal invasive surgeries from establishing diagnosis to therapeutic interventional management. The holistic approach provided through interventional radiology reduces intraprocedural time as well as hospital stay. We describe a very rare case of peripheral congenital porto-systemic shunt communicating Inferior mesenteric vein and internal iliac vein with rectal bleed with complete management at the department of interventional radiology.