ERA-CRISPR/Cas12a system: a rapid, highly sensitive and specific assay for Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Introduction: Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of human tuberculosis, poses a significant threat to global public health and imposes a considerable burden on the economy. However, existing laboratory diagnostic methods for M. tuberculosis are time-consuming and have limited sensitivity levels. Methods: The CRISPR/Cas system, commonly known as the "gene scissors", demonstrates remarkable specificity and efficient signal amplification capabilities. Enzymatic recombinase amplification (ERA) was utilized to rapidly amplify trace DNA fragments at a consistent temperature without relying on thermal cyclers. By integrating of CRISPR/Cas12a with ERA, we successfully developed an ERA-CRISPR/Cas12a detection system that enables rapid identification of M. tuberculosis. Results: The sensitivity of the ERA-CRISPR/Cas12a fluorescence and lateral flow systems was 9 copies/µL and 90 copies/µL, respectively. Simultaneously, the detection system exhibited no cross-reactivity with various of respiratory pathogens and non-tuberculosis mycobacteria, demonstrating a specificity of 100%. The positive concordance rate between the ERA-CRISPR/Cas12a fluorescence system and commercial qPCR was 100% in 60 clinical samples. Meanwhile, the lateral flow system showed a positive concordance rate of 93.8% when compared to commercial qPCR. Both methods demonstrated a negative concordance rate of 100%, and the test results can be obtained in 50 min at the earliest. Discussion: The ERA-CRISPR/Cas12a system offers a rapid, sensitive, and specific method that presents a novel approach to laboratory diagnosis of M. tuberculosis.

Treatability of odorous dioxanes/dioxolanes in source water: How does molecular flexibility and pre-oxidation affect odorant adsorption.

Odorous dioxanes and dioxolanes, a class of cyclic acetals often produced as byproducts in polyester resin manufacturing, are problematic in drinking water treatment due to their low odor thresholds and resistance to conventional treatment technology. Our research focuses on the removal of ten dioxane/dioxolane compounds through oxidation and adsorption processes, exploring the key molecular properties that govern the treatmentability. We discovered that both chlorination and permanganate oxidation were largely ineffective at degrading cyclic acetals, achieving less than 20% removal even at high applicable doses. Conversely, powdered activated carbon (PAC) adsorption proved to be a more effective method, with a removal of > 90% at a PAC dosage of 10 mg/L for seven out of ten compounds. The presence of natural organic matter (NOM) reduced PAC adsorbability for all odorants, but the deterioration level substantially varied and mostly affected by structural flexibility as indicated by the number of rotatable bonds. The results of both the experimental investigation and molecular simulation corroborated the hypothesis that more rotatable bonds (from one to three here) are indicative of greater structural flexibility, which in consequence determines the susceptibility of cyclic acetals to NOM competitive adsorption. Increased structural flexibility could facilitate greater entry into silt-like micropores or achieve preferential adsorption sites with more compatible morphology against NOM competition. When pre-oxidation (chlorination and permanganate oxidation) and adsorption were applied sequentially, additional low molecular weight NOM components produced by pre-oxidation resulted in intensified NOM competition and decreased odorant adsorbability. If this combination is inevitably required for algae and odorant control, it would be beneficial to utilize a wise screen for oxidants and a reduced oxidant dose (less than 2 mg/L) to mitigate the deterioration of odorant adsorption. This study elucidates the roles of structural flexibility in influencing the treatability of dioxanes and dioxolanes, extending beyond the solely well-established effects of hydrophobicity. It also presents rational practice guidelines for the combination of pre-oxidation and adsorption in addressing odor incidents associated with dioxane and dioxolane compounds.

From challenge to opportunity: Revolutionizing the monitoring of emerging contaminants in water with advanced sensors.

Emerging contaminants in water represent long-term and unpredictable threats to both environmental and human health due to their persistence and bioaccumulation. Current research predominantly focuses on their removal rather than sustained monitoring. This review comprehensively investigates advanced sensor technologies for detecting these contaminants in water, critically evaluating biosensors, optical sensors, electrochemical sensors, and nanomaterial sensors. Elucidating the operational principles, performance metrics such as detection thresholds, and the pros and cons of their practical applications, the review addresses a significant research gap in environmental monitoring. Moreover, it enhances understanding of sensor effectiveness, which in turn guides researchers in selecting the right sensor types for various environmental scenarios. Furthermore, by emphasizing the integration of nanotechnology and the standardization of evaluation protocols, it promotes the development of robust, deployable sensing solutions. Ultimately, this leads to the proposal of a strategic framework aimed at significantly improving the detection capabilities of emerging contaminants and supporting the preservation of environmental health.

Abundance, characteristics and ecological risks of microplastics from South Yellow Sea Mudflat.

Microplastic (MP) pollution in global marine environments has been extensively reported and attracted significant concerns, but MP distribution in mudflat has rarely been studied. In this paper, the abundance, features and ecological risk of MP in South Yellow Sea Mudflat were investigated comprehensively. MP were both detected in waters (5.4 ± 0.38-11.3 ± 0.78 items/L) and sediments (5.1 ± 0.36-10.1 ± 0.69 items/g) from South Yellow Sea Mudflat. There existed different MP abundance tendencies from sampling Group I (coastal estuary or port) and II (purely coastal mudflat), while MP abundance in water from Group II was lower than that from Group I generally, but MP abundance in sediment from Group I was lower than that from Group II generally. This suggested that MP abundance in mudflat water could be associated with frequent human activities significantly, and disturbance might not be beneficial to MP accumulation in sediments. Fragments, transparent, polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP) and polystyrene (PS) were major MP features in mudflat water and sediment, and maximum proportion of size of MP was 0.001-0.25 mm in both water and sediment. Furthermore, the primary risk assessment indicated that MP pollution load for mudflat was low level. However, potential MP ecological risk for mudflat could reach dangerous level to very dangerous level by calculating and evaluating polymer risk index (PRI) and potential ecological risk index (PERI), which could be caused by high proportions of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) with high hazard score. For the first time, reference data about MP pollution from South Yellow Sea Mudflat were supplied in this paper, which would be helpful for management and control of MP in mudflat.

Efficient, specific and direct detection of double-stranded DNA targets using Cas12f1 nucleases and engineered guide RNAs.

To address the limitations of the CRISPR/Cas12f1 system in clinical diagnostics, which require the complex preparation of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) or in vitro transcripts (RNA), we developed a fluorescent biosensor named PDTCTR (PAM-dependent dsDNA Target-activated Cas12f1 Trans Reporter). This innovative biosensor integrates Recombinase Polymerase Amplification (RPA) with the Cas12f_ge4.1 system, facilitating the direct detection of double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). PDTCTR represents a significant leap forward, exhibiting a detection sensitivity that is a hundredfold greater than the original Cas12f1 system. It demonstrates the capability to detect Mycoplasma pneumoniae (M. pneumoniae) and Hepatitis B virus (HBV) with excellent sensitivity of 10 copies per microliter (16.8 aM) and distinguishes single nucleotide variations (SNVs) with high precision, including the EGFR (L858R) mutations prevalent in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Clinical evaluations of PDTCTR have demonstrated its high sensitivity and specificity, with rates ranging from 93%-100% and 100%, respectively, highlighting its potential to revolutionize diagnostic approaches for infectious diseases and cancer-related SNVs.This research underscores the substantial advancements in CRISPR technology for clinical diagnostics and its promising future in early disease detection and personalized medicine.

Riddle of the Sphinx: Emerging role of circular RNAs in cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer is a prominent cause of cancer-related mortality among women, with recent attention directed toward exploring the involvement of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in this particular cancer. CircRNAs, characterized by a covalently closed loop structure, belong to a class of single-stranded non-coding RNA (ncRNA) molecules that play crucial roles in cancer development and progression through diverse mechanisms. The abnormal expression of circRNAs in vivo is significantly associated with the development of cervical cancer. Notably, circRNAs actively interact with miRNAs in cervical cancer, leading to the regulation of diverse signaling pathways, and they can contribute to cancer hallmarks such as self-sufficiency in growth signals, insensitivity to antigrowth signals, limitless proliferation, evading apoptosis, tissue invasion and metastasis, and sustained angiogenesis. Moreover, the distinctive biomedical attributes exhibited by circRNAs, including their abundance, conservation, and stability in body fluids, position them as promising biomarkers for various cancers. In this review, we elucidate the tremendous potential of circRNAs as diagnostic markers or therapeutic targets in cervical cancer by expounding upon their biogenesis, characteristics, functions, and databases, highlighting the novel advances in the signaling pathways associated with circRNAs in cervical cancer.

Manganese and iron oxides on pipe surface promote dissolved aluminum accumulation in drinking water distribution systems.

Aluminum-containing deposits are pervasive in drinking water distribution systems (DWDSs). However, the mechanisms driving dissolved Al transformation to pipe deposits remain elusive. This study investigated dissolved Al accumulation in DWDSs by batch experiments and long-term pipe experiments using actual finished water. PVC pipe experiments showed that dissolved Al hardly deposited on clean PVC pipe walls at alkaline pH. However, it could be substantially anchored by the pipe surface covered with Mn and Fe deposits formed from Mn(II) oxidation and Fe(III) precipitation. Batch experiments verified that the synthesized Mn and Fe oxides exhibited a strong capacity for dissolved Al uptake at pH 7.7 and 9.0 (dissolved Al was the dominant form). Biofilms on pipe walls also enhanced dissolved Al accumulation. Iron pipe experiments showed that corroded iron pipes with abundant iron corrosion products readily accumulated Al. Compared to chlorination and chloramination, non-disinfected conditions were more favorable for particulate Al deposition on iron pipe surface, probably due to Al immobilization by biofilms. In addition, continuous Al accumulation in iron pipes enhanced Fe release to pipe water. This study highlighted the important role of metal oxides in dissolved Al accumulation in DWDSs with abundant Mn and Fe solids, which provided new insights into deposit formation and control strategies.

Magnetic nanoparticles immobilized thrombin ligand fishing to screen thrombin inhibitors in natural products.

In this study, thrombin was immobilized with magnetic particles modified by glutaraldehyde. The changes in secondary structures of immobilized enzyme revealed an increment in conformational rigidity and stability, which can be reflected in temperature and pH stability as well as the tolerance of organic reagents. The optimal reutilization times of magnetic particle immobilized thrombin were 7 times, and the half-life of enzyme activity preserved at room temperature was 5 days, which was 2.5 times higher than that of free enzyme. Ligusticum chuanxiong and Anemarrhenae Rhizoma with high enzyme inhibitory activity were selected for primary screening, and six potential inhibitors of thrombin were identified by HPLC/MS. The results showed that three compounds in Anemarrhenae Rhizoma had better predictive thrombin inhibitory activity. Through the in vitro thrombin activity inhibition experiment, it was also verified that mangiferin and neo-mangiferin had an ideal thrombin activity inhibition effect, which was consistent with the results of molecular docking.

How aromatic dissolved organic matter differs in competitiveness against organic micropollutant adsorption.

Activated carbon is employed for the adsorption of organic micropollutants (OMPs) from water, typically present in concentrations ranging from ng L-1 to µg L-1. However, the efficacy of OMP removal is considerably deteriorated due to competitive adsorption from background dissolved organic matter (DOM), present at substantially higher concentrations in mg L-1. Interpreting the characteristics of competitive DOM is crucial in predicting OMP adsorption efficiencies across diverse natural waters. Molecular weight (MW), aromaticity, and polarity influence DOM competitiveness. Although the aromaticity-related metrics, such as UV254, of low MW DOM were proposed to correlate with DOM competitiveness, the method suffers from limitations in understanding the interplay of polarity and aromaticity in determining DOM competitiveness. Here, we elucidate the intricate influence of aromaticity and polarity in low MW DOM competition, spanning from a fraction level to a compound level, by employing direct sample injection liquid chromatography coupled with ultrahigh-resolution Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. Anion exchange resin pre-treatment eliminated 93% of UV254-active DOM, predominantly aromatic and polar DOM, and only minimally alleviated DOM competition. Molecular characterization revealed that nonpolar molecular formulas (constituting 26% PAC-adsorbable DOM) with medium aromaticity contributed more to the DOM competitiveness. Isomer-level analysis indicated that the competitiveness of highly aromatic LMW DOM compounds was strongly counterbalanced by increased polarity. Strong aromaticity-derived π-π interaction cannot facilitate the competitive adsorption of hydrophilic DOM compounds. Our results underscore the constraints of depending solely on aromaticity-based approaches as the exclusive interpretive measure for DOM competitiveness. In a broader context, this study demonstrates an effect-oriented DOM analysis, elucidating counterbalancing interactions of DOM molecular properties from fraction to compound level.

Ubiquitous occurrence of 1,4-dioxane in drinking water of China and its ecological and human health risk.

The occurrence and distribution of 1,4-dioxane was investigated in 280 source and finished drinking water samples from 31 Chinese cities, based on which its ecological and health risks were systematically evaluated. The findings demonstrated that 1,4-dioxane was detected in about 80.0 % samples with values ranging from n.d. to 7757 ng/L in source water and n.d. to 2918 ng/L in drinking water. 1,4-Dioxane showed limited removal efficiency using conventional coagulation-sedimentation-filtration processes (14 % ± 48 %), and a removal efficiency of 35 % ± 44 % using ozonation-biological activated carbon advanced treatment processes. Relatively higher concentrations, detection frequency and environmental risk were observed in Taihu Lake, Yellow River, Yangtze River, Zhujiang River, and Huaihe River mainly in the eastern and southern regions, where there are considerable industrial activities and comparatively high population densities. The widespread presence as by-products during manufacturing consumer products e.g., ethoxylated surfactants, suggested municipal wastewater discharges were the dominant source for the ubiquitous occurrence of 1,4-dioxane, while industrial activities, e.g. resin manufacturing, also contribute considerably to the elevated concentrations of 1,4-dioxane. The estimated risk quotients were in the range of <1.5 × 10-4 for ecological risk, <5.0 × 10-3 by oral exposure and < 5.0 × 10-2 by inhalation exposure for health risk, illustrating limited ecological harm to water environment or chronic toxicity to human health. For carcinogenic risk, 1,4-Dioxane presented a mean risk of 1.8 × 10-6 by oral exposure, which slightly surpassed the recommended acceptable levels of U.S. EPA (<10-6), and risk from inhalation exposure could be negligible. The pervasiveness in drinking water, low removal efficiencies during water treatment processes, and suspected health impacts, highlighted the necessity to set related water quality standards of 1,4-dioxane in order to improve water environment in China.

Hysteresis analysis reveals how phytoplankton assemblage shifts with the nutrient dynamics during and between precipitation patterns.

The escalation of global eutrophication has significantly increased due to the impact of climate change, particularly the increased frequency of extreme rainfall events. Predicting and managing eutrophication requires understanding the consequences of precipitation events on algal dynamics. Here, we assessed the influence of precipitation events throughout the year on nutrient and phytoplankton dynamics in a drinking water reservoir from January 2020 to January 2022. Four distinct precipitation patterns, namely early spring flood rain (THX), Plum rain (MY), Typhoon rain (TF), and Dry season (DS), were identified based on rainfall intensity, duration time, and cumulative rainfall. The study findings indicate that rainfall is the primary driver of algal dynamics by altering nutrient levels and TN:TP ratios during wet seasons, while water temperature becomes more critical during the Dry season. Combining precipitation characteristics with the lag periods between algal proliferation and rainfall occurrence is essential for accurately assessing the impact of rainfall on algal blooms. The highest algae proliferation occurred approximately 20 and 30 days after the peak rainfall during the MY and DS periods, respectively. This was influenced by the intensity and cumulative precipitation. The reservoir exhibited two distinct TN/TP ratio stages, with average values of 52 and 19, respectively. These stages were determined by various forms of nitrogen and phosphorus in rainfall-driven inflows and were associated with shifts from Bacillariophyta-dominated to Cyanophyta-dominated blooms during the MY and DS seasons. Our findings underscore the interconnected effects of nutrients, temperature, and hydrological conditions driven by diverse rainfall patterns in shaping algal dynamics. This study provides valuable insights into forecasting algal bloom risks in the context of climate change and developing sustainable strategies for lake or reservoir restoration.

Corroded iron pipe inhibits microbial-mediated Mn(II) oxidation and MnOx accumulation compared to PVC pipe.

MnOx deposits in distribution pipes can cause severe discoloration problems in drinking water. However, the impact of pipe materials on Mn(II) oxidation and MnOx accumulation remains unclear. This study investigated microbial-mediated Mn(II) oxidation and deposit formation through 300-day pipe loop experiments with corroded galvanized steel pipes (DN100) and new polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes (DN100). The results showed that influent Mn(II) was entirely oxidized within 48 h in the PVC pipes with biofilms in the absence of chlorine, while most influent Mn(II) remained unoxidized in the iron pipes. Dissolved oxygen (DO) monitoring showed that the DO in the PVC pipes was consistently higher than 8.0 mg/L, but that in the iron pipes dropped to 6.5 mg/L. Microbial analysis revealed that the abundance of potential Mn(II)-oxidizing bacteria in the low-DO iron pipes was less than that in the PVC pipes. Analysis of the Mn(II) concentration dynamics in different pipes revealed that the early Mn(II) disappearance in the iron pipes was contributed mainly to Mn(II) adsorption by iron corrosion products rather than microbial Mn(II) oxidation. When aeration was performed to increase the DO concentration to 8.0 mg/L in the iron pipes, complete Mn(II) oxidation occurred. This study provides insights into Mn(II) transformation in different pipes and highlights the critical role of DO in microbial Mn(II) oxidation in drinking water pipes.

Identification of odor-causing compounds in six species of odor-producing microalgae separated from drinking water source with distinct fishy odor: Insight into microalgae growth and odor characteristics.

Fishy odor, as an offensive and unpleasant odor, could occur in drinking water source with poor nutrition, it is usually considered to be associated with odor-producing microalgae. However, the specific relations among fishy odor, fishy odorants and responsible microalgae were not elucidated comprehensively. In this paper, the odor-causing compounds generated from six microalgae with fishy odor characteristic, isolated in drinking water source Tongyu River, were identified simultaneously. The sensory evaluation result indicated that Tongyu River was principally related to fishy odor (odor intensity 6.5-7.6). Correspondingly, seven, nine, seven, six, seven and seven olfactory detection peaks (ODP) were screened by combining data of GC/O/MS and GC/GC/TOFMS in Cyclotella, Cryptomonas ovate, Melosira, Dinobryon sp., Synedra and Ochromonas sp., which were isolated in Tongyu River and cultured in laboratory. Totally twenty odor-causing compounds, including hexanal, 2-hexenal, 3-hexen-1-ol, heptanal, 1-octen-3-one, 2,4-heptadienal, 2-tetradecanone, 3,5-octadien-2-one, octanal, 1-octen-3-ol, 2-octenal, nonanal, 2,4-octadienal, 2-nonenal, decanal, 2,6-nonadienal, 2-decenal, undecanal, 2,4-decadienal and dodecanal, were screened and identified in all isolated microalgae. Additionally, fishy odor intensity for all identified microalgae increased obviously as microalgae cell number increased and microalgae cell ruptured in cultivation cycles through pearson and spearman correlation analysis. For the first time, twenty odor-causing compounds associating with fishy odor were recognized from six isolated microalgae, which would provide more scientific basis and theoretical support for preventing and treating fishy odor episode of drinking water source.

Vision for the 12 LABOURS Digital Twin Platform.

Clinical translation of personalised computational physiology workflows and digital twins can revolutionise healthcare by providing a better understanding of an individual's physiological processes and any changes that could lead to serious health consequences. However, the lack of common infrastructure for developing these workflows and digital twins has hampered the realisation of this vision. The Auckland Bioengineering Institute's 12 LABOURS project aims to address these challenges by developing a Digital Twin Platform to enable researchers to develop and personalise computational physiology models to an individual's health data in clinical workflows. This will allow clinical trials to be more efficiently conducted to demonstrate the efficacy of these personalised clinical workflows. We present a demonstration of the platform's capabilities using publicly available data and an existing automated computational physiology workflow developed to assist clinicians with diagnosing and treating breast cancer. We also demonstrate how the platform facilitates the discovery and exploration of data and the presentation of workflow results as part of clinical reports through a web portal. Future developments will involve integrating the platform with health systems and remote-monitoring devices such as wearables and implantables to support home-based healthcare. Integrating outputs from multiple workflows that are applied to the same individual's health data will also enable the generation of their personalised digital twin.Clinical Relevance- The proposed 12 LABOURS Digital Twin Platform will enable researchers to 1) more efficiently conduct clinical trials to assess the efficacy of their computational physiology workflows and support the clinical translation of their research; 2) reuse primary and derived data from these workflows to generate novel workflows; and 3) generate personalised digital twins by integrating the outputs of different computational physiology workflows.

Unraveling the source-water fishy odor occurrence during low-temperature periods: Odorants identification, typical algae species and odor-producing potential.

In this study, odor characteristics and phytoplankton composition were systematically investigated in two winter periods in a reservoir with fishy odor in north China. Ten potential fishy odor-producing algae were isolated and odorant-producing potentials were evaluated. Olfactometry profile and odorant composition of water samples were analyzed using GC-Olfactometry combined with GC × GC-TOFMS. The results showed that 2,4-heptadienal and hexanal were major fishy odor contributors. The abundance of Uroglena sp., Synura sp. and Peridinium sp. was negatively correlated with total dissolved organic carbon, ammonia nitrogen, and nitrate, illustrating nutrient level might be major drivers for the succession of fishy odor-producing algae. Dinobryon sp. and Uroglena sp. made the greatest contribution to fishy odor, followed by Peridinium sp., Synura sp., and Ochromonas sp. Fishy odor in 2016 winter and the early of 2017 winter was mainly caused by Dinobryon sp., while Uroglena sp. contributes mostly in March in 2017 winter. This study demonstrates the main odorants and algae causing fishy odor in reservoir, which will provide a scientific basis for the management of seasonal fishy odor problems in water source.

Characteristics and potential human health risks of microplastics identified in typical clams from South Yellow Sea Mudflat.

The ingestion of clams (Meretrix) with microplastics (MP) contamination could pose potential risk to human health. The characteristics and potential risks of MP identified in wild-clam and farm-clam from South Yellow Sea Mudflat were studied comprehensively in this paper. The results indicated that MP were identified in both wild-clam (3.4-21.3 items/individual, 2.11-10.65 items/g) and farm-clam (1.3-20.8 items/individual, 0.62-8.67 items/g) among 21 sampling sites along South Yellow Sea Mudflat. The MP abundance of clams from marine estuarine or coast ports were significantly higher than those from purely marine coast mudflat, implying that environmental habitats played an important role on MP characteristics. MP abundance were significantly and positively related to shell length, shell height, shell width and soft tissue wet weight by Pearson test, suggesting the bigger the shell, there existed more MP abundance. Among MP in wild-clams and farm-clams, fragment, fiber were most abundant MP shapes, most MP's sizes were lower than 0.25 mm, the predominant colors were black, red, blue and transparent, chlorinated polyethylene (CPE) was the major polymer. Additionally, estimated dietary intake (EDI) of MP for adults via consumption of wild-clam and farm-clam were 1123.33 ± 399.97 and 795.07 ± 326.72 items/kg/year, respectively, suggesting EDI values of wild-clams were higher than those of farm-clams, and MP intake via wild-clam consumption were more than that via farm-clam consumption. The polymer risk indexes (PRI) of MP in total tissue and digestive system for wild-clam were 1297.8 ± 92.15 (hazard level: IV ~ V), 1038 ± 69.55 (IV ~ V), respectively, while PRI of MP in total tissue and digestive system for farm-clam were 979.92 ± 75.45 (III ~ IV), 735 ± 47.78 (III ~ IV), respectively, implying that PRI and hazard level of MP from wild-clam were higher than those from farm-clam, and the potential risks would decrease greatly when digestive systems of clams are removed during ingestion.

The adsorption of biogenetic odorants onto activated carbon: Adsorption characteristics and impacts of algal organic matter.

Powdered activated carbon (PAC) adsorption is regarded as an efficient method for removing odorants from drinking water. However, in eutrophic aquatic environments, the presence of algal organic matter (AOM) produced by cyanobacteria considerably impedes the adsorption of odorous compounds by activated carbon. This study focused on investigating the adsorption characteristics of three representative odorants: 2-methylisoborneol (2-MIB), ß-cyclocitral (ß-cyclo), and butyl sulfide (BS) by PAC and the effects of AOM on the PAC adsorption of odorants. The removal of the three odorants reached 83.5-97.5% at a PAC dosage of 10 mg/L after 12 h of exposure in a competition-free scenario. The adsorption kinetics demonstrated higher conformity (R2 > 0.9) with the pseudo-second-order model, whereas the adsorption capacity exhibited stronger conformity (R2 > 0.9) with the Freundlich model. The presence of AOM resulted in varying levels of competition for PAC for the adsorption of the three odorants. As the concentration of AOM increased from 0 to 5 mg C/L, the removal of 2-MIB was the most affected (from 83.5% to 10.0%), followed by ß-cyclo (from 86.6% to 55.0%), and BS (from 97.5% to 92.0%). The competitive adsorption of AOM at the molecular level was studied using density functional theory (DFT). The DFT results suggested that odorants with higher and more uniformly distributed electrostatic potentials exhibited a heightened affinity for PAC adsorption and a diminished susceptibility to disruption caused by AOM. This study provides valuable insights into the mitigation of odorous compounds during drinking water purification.

Unveiling the stealthy tactics: mycoplasma's immune evasion strategies.

Mycoplasmas, the smallest known self-replicating organisms, possess a simple structure, lack a cell wall, and have limited metabolic pathways. They are responsible for causing acute or chronic infections in humans and animals, with a significant number of species exhibiting pathogenicity. Although the innate and adaptive immune responses can effectively combat this pathogen, mycoplasmas are capable of persisting in the host, indicating that the immune system fails to eliminate them completely. Recent studies have shed light on the intricate and sophisticated defense mechanisms developed by mycoplasmas during their long-term co-evolution with the host. These evasion strategies encompass various tactics, including invasion, biofilm formation, and modulation of immune responses, such as inhibition of immune cell activity, suppression of immune cell function, and resistance against immune molecules. Additionally, antigen variation and molecular mimicry are also crucial immune evasion strategies. This review comprehensively summarizes the evasion mechanisms employed by mycoplasmas, providing valuable insights into the pathogenesis of mycoplasma infections.

MIB-derived odor management based upon hydraulic regulation in small drinking water reservoirs: Principle and application.

The musty odorant (2-methylisoborneol, MIB) is prevalent in source water reservoirs and has become one of the major challenges for drinking water quality. This study proposes an approach to control the growth of MIB-producing cyanobacteria in a small reservoir based on hydraulic regulation, according to the results of long-term field investigations, laboratory culture experiments, model construction, and field application. Field investigations found that longer hydraulic retention time (HRT) is a factor that triggers MIB episodes. The culture study revealed that the maximum cell density, growth rate of MIB-producing Planktothricoides raciborskii, and MIB concentration are determined by the HRT (R2= 0.94, p-value < 0.001) and can be minimized by decreasing the HRT to less than 10 d. On this basis, an HRT regulation model was constructed and validated by field investigation, and critical HRT values were evaluated for 14 cyanobacteria genera. By decreasing the HRT to 5.4 ± 0.8 d, which is lower than the critical value of 7.5 ∼ 15.0 d, an MIB episode was successfully terminated in ZXD Reservoir in 2021. The results suggest that the proposed principle can provide a scientific basis for HRT regulation, which has been proved to be effective and feasible. This approach avoids negative impacts on water quality, does not require extra investment in engineering infrastructure, and in some cases may be applied readily by changing existing operational procedures. Therefore, HRT-based regulation is a promising strategy targeting MIB control and possibly for other cyanobacterial-derived water quality problems in small reservoirs.

miRNA, lncRNA and circRNA: targeted molecules with therapeutic promises in Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection.

Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) is primarily recognized as a respiratory pathogen that causes community-acquired pneumonia, which can lead to acute upper and lower airway inflammation and extrapulmonary syndrome. Refractory pneumonia caused by MP can cause severe complications and even be life-threatening, particularly in infants and the elderly. It is well-known that non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) represented by miRNAs, lncRNAs and circRNAs have been manifested to be widely involved in the regulation of gene expression. Growing evidence indicates that these ncRNAs have distinct differentiated expression in MP infection and affect multiple biological processes, playing an indispensable role in the initiation and promotion of MP infection. However, the epigenetic mechanisms involved in the development of MP infection remain unclear. This article reviews the mechanisms by which miRNAs, lncRNAs, and circRNAs mediate MP infection, such as inflammatory responses, apoptosis and pulmonary fibrosis. Focusing on miRNAs, lncRNAs and circRNAs associated with MP infection could provide new insights into this disease's early diagnosis and therapeutic approaches.