Fabrication and optimization of bioelectrochemical system using tetracycline-degrading bacterial strains for antibiotic wastewater treatment.

In this study, a microbial fuel cell was constructed using Raoultella sp. XY-1 to efficiently degrade tetracycline (TC) and assess the effectiveness of the electrochemical system. The degradation rate reached 83.2 ± 1.8 % during the 7-day period, in which the system contained 30 mg/L TC, and the degradation pathway and intermediates were identified. Low concentrations of TC enhanced anodic biofilm power production, while high concentrations of TC decreased the electrochemical activity of the biofilm, extracellular polymeric substances, and enzymatic activities associated with electron transfer. Introducing electrogenic bacteria improved power generation efficiency. A three-strain hybrid system was fabricated using Castellaniella sp. A3, Castellaniella sp. A5 and Raoultella sp. XY-1, leading to the enhanced TC degradation rate of 90.4 % and the increased maximum output voltage from 200 to 265 mV. This study presents a strategy utilizing tetracycline-degrading bacteria as bioanodes for TC removal, while incorporating electrogenic bacteria to enhance electricity generation.

Screening and Identification of Soil Selenium-Enriched Strains and Application in Auricularia auricula.

Selenium (Se) is an essential trace element for human physiological metabolism. The application of organic Se as a source to cultivate Se-rich plants for micronutrient supplementation has been receiving increasing attention. In our study, a bacterial strain named H1 was isolated from the soil in Heilongjiang Province, China, and under optimal culture conditions, the unit Se content could reach 3000 µg·g-1 and its 16S ribosomal DNA sequence seemed to be a new molecular record of an Enterobacter species. After the domestication of Se tolerance and Se-rich experiments, H1 can be used as a Se source for cultivation of Se-rich Auricularia auricula. The results showed that soluble protein, soluble sugar, free amino acid and vitamin C contents in Auricularia auricula were notably increased by 28.7%, 21.8%, 32.5% and 39.2% under the treatment of Se concentration of 0.24 mg·kg-1, respectively. These findings enhance our understanding that H1 is more conducive to Se uptake and nutrient accumulation.

Elucidating the impacts of cobalt (II) ions on extracellular electron transfer and pollutant degradation by anodic biofilms in bioelectrochemical systems during industrial wastewater treatment.

Electrogenic biofilms in bioelectrochemical systems (BES) are critical in wastewater treatment. Industrial effluents often contain cobalt (Co2+); however, its impact on biofilms is unknown. This study investigated how increasing Co2+ concentrations (0-30 mg/L) affect BES biofilm community dynamics, extracellular polymeric substances, microbial metabolism, electron transfer gene expression, and electrochemical performance. The research revealed that as Co2+ concentrations increased, power generation progressively declined, from 345.43 ± 4.07 mW/m2 at 0 mg/L to 160.51 ± 0.86 mW/m2 at 30 mg/L Co2+. However, 5 mg/L Co2+ had less effect. The Co2+ removal efficiency in the reactors fed with 5 and 10 mg/L concentrations exceeded 99% and 94%, respectively. However, at 20 and 30 mg/L, the removal efficiency decreased substantially, likely because of reduced biofilm viability. FTIR indicated the participation of biofilm functional groups in Co2+ uptake. XPS revealed Co2+ presence in biofilms as CoO and Co(OH)2, indicating precipitation also aided removal. Cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy tests revealed that 5 mg/L Co2+ had little impact on the electrocatalytic activity, while higher concentrations impaired it. Furthermore, at a concentration of 5 mg/L Co2+, there was an increase in the proportion of the genus Anaeromusa-Anaeroarcus, while the genus Geobacter declined at all tested Co2+ concentrations. Additionally, higher concentrations of Co2+ suppressed the expression of extracellular electron transfer genes but increased the expression of Co2+-resistance genes. Overall, this study establishes how Co2+ impacts electrogenic biofilm composition, function, and treatment efficacy, laying the groundwork for the optimized application of BES in remediating Co2+-contaminated wastewater.

Exploration of the Vermiculite-Induced Bacterial Community and Co-Network Successions during Sludge-Waste Mushroom Co-Composting.

Vermiculite is a clay mineral with unique physical properties that plays a significant role in plant cultivation, soil remediation, and solid waste management. In this research, we first explored how vermiculite-to-microbe interactions evolved during sludge-waste mushroom residue co-composting. Vermiculite's addition had a substantial impact on the microbial α and ß diversities, significantly changed the microbial community pattern, and strengthened the composting nutrient circulation through the formation of more specialist and generalist species. The microbial community characteristics exhibited common co-networks for resisting composting environment stresses. Vermiculite contributed to enhancing the keystone taxa Proteobacteria and Actinobacteriota and caused the ecological function network to diversify in the warming and maturation phases, with more complexity and tightness in the thermophilic phase (with super-generalist species existing). The enhanced microbial interactions induced by vermiculite possessed a greater capacity to facilitate the metabolisms of carbohydrates and amino acids and cellulolysis, thereby promoting composting humification, and nitrogen retention in the final compost and composting maturity. These findings are helpful for us to understand the biological process mechanisms of the effect of vermiculite additives on composting and contribute to the establishment of a theoretical framework for enhancing the microbial interactions in composting systems by adding vermiculite in practical applications.

Chalcone-derivative L6H21 attenuates the OVA-induced asthma by targeting MD2.

Asthma represents a significant global challenge that affects individuals across all age groups and imposes substantial social and economic burden. Due to heterogeneity of the disease, not all patients obtain benefit with current treatments. The objective of this study was to explore the impact of MD2 on the progression of asthma using L6H21, a novel MD2 inhibitor, to identify potential targets and drug candidates for asthma treatment. To establish an asthma-related murine model and evaluate the effects of L6H21, ovalbumin (OVA) was used to sensitize and challenge mice. Pathological changes were examined with various staining techniques, such as H&E staining, glycogen staining, and Masson staining. Inflammatory cell infiltration and excessive cytokine secretion were evaluated by analyzing BALF cell count, RT-PCR, and ELISA. The TLR4/MD2 complex formation, as well as the activation of the MAPK and NF-кB pathways, was examined using western blot and co-IP. Treatment with L6H21 demonstrated alleviation of increased airway resistance, lung tissue injury, inflammatory cell infiltration and excessive cytokine secretion triggered by OVA. In addition, it also ameliorated mucus production and collagen deposition. In the L6H21 treatment group, inhibition of MAPK and NF-кB activation was observed, along with the disruption of TLR4/MD2 complex formation, in contrast to the model group. Thus, L6H21 effectively reduced the formation of the MD2 and TLR4 complex induced by OVA in a dose-dependent manner. This reduction resulted in the attenuation of MAPKs/NF-κB activation, enhanced suppression of inflammatory factor secretion, reduced excessive recruitment of inflammatory cells, and ultimately mitigated airway damage. MD2 emerges as a crucial target for asthma treatment, and L6H21, as an MD2 inhibitor, shows promise as a potential drug candidate for the treatment of asthma.

Extracellular proteins enhance Cupriavidus pauculus nickel tolerance and cell aggregate formation.

Heavy metal-resistant bacteria secrete extracellular proteins (e-PNs). However, the role of e-PNs in heavy metal resistance remains elusive. Here Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy implied that N-H, C = O and NH2-R played a crucial role in the adsorption and resistance of Ni2+ in the model organism Cuprividus pauculus 1490 (C. pauculus). Proteinase K treatment reduced Ni2+ resistance of C. pauculus underlining the essential role of e-PNs. Further three-dimension excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy analysis demonstrated that tryptophan proteins as part of the e-PNs increased significantly with Ni2+ treatment. Proteomic and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction data indicated that major changes were induced in the metabolism of C. pauculus in response to Ni2+. Among those lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis, general secretion pathways, Ni2+-affiliated transporters and multidrug efflux play an essential role in Ni2+ resistance. Altogether the results provide a conceptual model for comprehending how e-PNs contribute to bacterial resistance and adsorption of Ni2+.

Research on strain aging behavior of ultra-high strength dual-phase steel.

The bake hardening value is one of the vital strength indexes of dual-phase steel, representing the strengthening ability of materials after pre-strain and baking, playing an important role in vehicle safety and lightweight design. Studying and improving the strain aging mechanism of dual-phase steel helps one to understand the material characteristics and enhances its utilization value. However, the ultra-high strength dual-phase steel is often prone to fracture outside the gauge length of a tensile specimen of the bake hardening value test. No suitable theory explains the fundamental law of dislocation pinning during the saturation stage at present. This paper used FEA, DIC, SEM, TEM, internal friction, and metallographic methods to study the strain aging behavior of dual-phase steels under different pre-strain, bake time, and bake temperature conditions. The results show that the fracture outside the gauge length is related to factors such as the uneven distribution of pre-strain and the ultra-high upper yield strength. The rolling pin shape tensile specimen testing has successfully solved this testing problem. The measured results at the saturation stage of dislocation pinning are in good agreement with the fitting results of the dislocation pinning strengthen mechanism based on the probability event quantization assumption.

Effects of single and combined contamination of total petroleum hydrocarbons and heavy metals on soil microecosystems: Insights into bacterial diversity, assembly, and ecological function.

Deciphering the impact of single and combined contamination of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) and heavy metals on soil microecosystems is essential for the remediation of contaminated habitats, yet it remains incompletely understood. In this study, we employed high-throughput sequencing to investigate the impact of single TPH contamination, single metal contamination, and their co-contamination on soil microbial diversity, assembly mechanisms, composition, ecological function, and resistome. Our results revealed that contamination led to a reduction in alpha diversity, with single contamination displaying lower diversity compared to co-contamination, depending on the concentration of pollutants. Community beta diversity was primarily driven by turnover rather than nestedness, and narrower ecological niches were detected under pollution conditions. The neutral community model suggested that homogenizing dispersal played a significant role in the community assembly process under single TPH or co-contamination, while homogeneous selection dominated under heavy metals pollution. Procrustes analysis demonstrated a correlation between community composition and functional divergence, while Mantel tests linked this divergence to concentrations of Cr, Cr6+, Pb, and TPH. Interestingly, soils co-polluted with TPH and heavy metals exhibited similar genera, community functions, and resistomes as soils contaminated with only metals, highlighting the significant impact of heavy metals. Ecological functions related to carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and sulfur (S) cycles were enhanced under TPH pollution but impaired under heavy metals stress. These findings enhance our understanding of soil microecosystems subjected to TPH, heavy metals, and their co-contamination, and carry significant implications for environmental microecology and pollutant risk assessment.

Microbial extracellular polymeric substances alleviate cadmium toxicity in rice (Oryza sativa L.) by regulating cadmium uptake, subcellular distribution and triggering the expression of stress-related genes.

Cadmium (Cd) accumulation in crops causes potential risks to human health. Microbial extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) are a complex mixture of biopolymers that can bind various heavy metals. The present work examined the alleviating effects of EPS on Cd toxicity in rice and its detoxification mechanism. The 100 µM Cd stress hampered the overall plant growth and development, damaged the ultrastructures of both leaf and root cells, and caused severe lipid peroxidation in rice plants. However, applying EPS at a concentration of 100 mg/L during Cd stress resulted in increased biomass, reduced Cd accumulation and transport, and minimized the oxidative damage. EPS application also enhanced Cd retention in the shoot cell walls and root vacuoles, and actively altered the expression of genes involved in cell wall formation, antioxidant defense systems, transcription factors, and hormone metabolism. These findings provide new insights into EPS-mediated mitigation of Cd stress in plants and help us to develop strategies to improve crop yield in Cd-contaminated soils in the future.

Enlarging the substrate binding pocket of penicillin G acylase from Achromobacter sp. for highly efficient biosynthesis of ß-lactam antibiotics.

Penicillin G acylase (PGA) is a key biocatalyst for the enzymatic production of ß-lactam antibiotics, which can not only catalyze the synthesis of ß-lactam antibiotics but also catalyze the hydrolysis of the products to prepare semi-synthetic antibiotic intermediates. However, the high hydrolysis and low synthesis activities of natural PGAs severely hinder their industrial application. In this study, a combinatorial directed evolution strategy was employed to obtain new PGAs with outstanding performances. The best mutant ßF24G/ßW154G was obtained from the PGA of Achromobacter sp., which exhibited approximately a 129.62-fold and a 52.55-fold increase in specific activity and synthesis/hydrolysis ratio, respectively, compared to the wild-type AsPGA. Thereafter, this mutant was used to synthesize amoxicillin, cefadroxil, and ampicillin; all conversions > 99% were accomplished in 90-135 min with almost no secondary hydrolysis byproducts produced in the reaction. Molecular dynamics simulation and substrate pocket calculation revealed that substitution of the smallest glycine residue at ßF24 and ßW154 expanded the binding pocket, thereby facilitating the entry and release of substrates and products. Therefore, this novel mutant is a promising catalyst for the large-scale production of ß-lactam antibiotics.

Heterotrophic anodic denitrification coupled with cathodic metals recovery from on-site smelting wastewater with a bioelectrochemical system inoculated with mixed Castellaniella species.

Although Castellaniella species are crucial for denitrification, there is no report on their capacity to carry out denitrification and anode respiration simultaneously in a bioelectrochemical system (BES). Herein, the ability of a mixed inoculum of electricigenic Castellaniella species to perform simultaneous denitrification and anode respiration coupled with cathodic metals recovery was investigated in a BES. Results showed that 500 mg/L NO3--N significantly decreased power generation, whereas 100 and 250 mg/L NO3--N had a lesser impact. The single-chamber MFCs (SCMFCs) fed with 100 and 250 mg/L NO3--N concentrations achieved a removal efficiency higher than 90% in all cycles. In contrast, the removal efficiency in the SCMFCs declined dramatically at 500 mg/L NO3--N, which might be attributable to decreased microbial viability as revealed by SEM and CLSM. EPS protein content and enzymatic activities of the biofilms decreased significantly at this concentration. Cyclic voltammetry results revealed that the 500 mg/L NO3--N concentration decreased the redox activities of anodic biofilms, while electrochemical impedance spectroscopy showed that the internal resistance of the SCMFCs at this concentration increased significantly. In addition, BES inoculated with the Castellaniella species was able to simultaneously perform heterotrophic anodic denitrification and cathodic metals recovery from real wastewater. The BES attained Cu2+, Hg2+, Pb2+, and Zn2+ removal efficiencies of 99.86 ± 0.10%, 99.98 ± 0.014%, 99.98 ± 0.01%, and 99.17 ± 0.30%, respectively, from the real wastewater. Cu2+ was bio-electrochemically reduced to Cu0 and Cu2O, whereas Hg0 and HgO constituted the Hg species recovered via bioelectrochemical reduction and chemical deposition, respectively. Furthermore, Pb2+ and Zn2+ were bio-electrochemically reduced to Pb0 and Zn0, respectively. Over 89% of NO3--N was removed from the BES anolyte during the recovery of the metals. This research reveals promising denitrifying exoelectrogens for enhanced power generation, NO3--N removal, and heavy metals recovery in BES.

Antimony oxidation and whole genome sequencing of Phytobacter sp. X4 isolated from contaminated soil near a flotation site.

The conversion of the more toxic Sb(III) into less toxic Sb(V) is an effective strategy for the treatment of antimony-contaminated sites. In this study, a strain, Phytobacter sp. X4, which can tolerate high concentrations of antimony and can use nitrate as an electron acceptor for Sb(III) oxidation under anaerobic conditions, was isolated from the deep soil of an antimony mine flotation tailing. Unlike other antimony oxidizing bacteria, X4 oxidized better under high Sb(III) concentration, and the oxidation efficiency of 10 mM Sb(III) reached the maximum at 110 h with 61.8 %. Kinetic study showed X4 yielded a Vmax of 1.093 µM∙min-1 and a Km of 718.2 µM. The genome of Phytobacter sp. X4 consists of a complete circular chromosome and two plasmids. In addition, X4 had more metal(loid)s resistance genes and highly expressed genes than other Phytobacter spp., reflecting its stronger adaptive advantage in harsh survival environments. We also analyzed the origin and evolution of arsB, arsC, and arsH, which may have been transferred horizontally from other species. iscR and arsH may have an important contribution to Sb(III) oxidation. Thus, Phytobacter sp. X4 has a good ability to remediate high antimony-contaminated sites and can be applied to an anaerobic environment.

Sequence and structure-guided discovery of a novel NADH-dependent 7ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase for efficient biosynthesis of ursodeoxycholic acid.

7ß-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (7ß-HSDHs) have attracted increasing attention due to their crucial roles in the biosynthesis of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA). However, most published 7ß-HSDHs are strictly NADPH-dependent oxidoreductases with poor activity and low productivity. Compared with NADPH, NADH is more stable and cheaper, making it the more popular cofactor for industrial applications of dehydrogenases. Herein, by using a sequence and structure-guided genome mining approach based on the structural information of conserved cofactor-binding motifs, we uncovered a novel NADH-dependent 7ß-HSDH (Cle7ß-HSDH). The Cle7ß-HSDH was overexpressed, purified, and characterized. It exhibited high specific activity (9.6 U/mg), good pH stability and thermostability, significant methanol tolerance, and showed excellent catalytic efficiencies (kcat/Km) towards 7-oxo-lithocholic acid (7-oxo-LCA) and NADH (70.8 mM-1s-1 and 31.8 mM-1s-1, respectively). Molecular docking and mutational analyses revealed that Asp42 could play a considerable role in NADH binding and recognition. Coupling with a glucose dehydrogenase for NADH regeneration, up to 20 mM 7-oxo-LCA could be completely transformed to UDCA within 90 min by Cle7ß-HSDH. This study provides an efficient approach for mining promising enzymes from genomic databases for cost-effective biotechnological applications.

Hydrophilicity-Based Engineering of the Active Pocket of D-Amino Acid Oxidase Leading to Highly Improved Specificity toward D-Glufosinate.

Due to its stringent stereospecificity, D-amino acid oxidase (DAAO) has made it very easy to synthesize L-amino acids. However, the low activity of the wild-type enzyme toward unnatural substrates, such as D-glufosinate (D-PPT), restricts its application. In this study, DAAO from Rhodotorula gracilis (RgDAAO) was directly evolved using a hydrophilicity-substitution saturation mutagenesis strategy, yielding a mutant with significantly increased catalytic activity against D-PPT. The mutant displays distinct catalytic properties toward hydrophilic substrates as compared to numerous WT-DAAOs. The analysis of homology modeling and molecular dynamic simulation suggest that the extended reaction pocket with greater hydrophilicity was the reason for the enhanced activity. The current study established an enzymatic synthetic route to L-PPT, an excellent herbicide, with high efficiency, and the proposed strategy provides a new viewpoint on enzyme engineering for the biosynthesis of unnatural amino acids.

Evaluation of fungal community assembly and function during food waste composting with Aneurinibacillus sp. LD3 inoculant.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the fungal community assembly and function during food waste composting with Aneurinibacillus sp. LD3 (LD3) inoculant. Inoculation reduced the content of total organic carbon, moisture content, nitrate nitrogen, and nitrite nitrogen. The LD3 inoculant was able to drive the changes in the assembly of the fungal community. In particular, inoculation with LD3 not only increased the relative abundance of Ascomycota and Trichocomaceae_unclassified for lignocellulose degradation at the mesophilic and cooling stages but also reduced the relative abundances of the opportunistic human pathogen Candida. Saprotroph was the predominant fungal trophic mode in composting, and inoculation with LD3 has a better inactivation effect on animal and plant pathogenic fungi during composting. Furthermore, the variation of the fungal community after inoculation with LD3 was the largest explained by temperature (30.64%). These results implied that LD3 significantly regulated fungal composition and function of food waste composting.

Exploring the dynamic of microbial community and metabolic function in food waste composting amended with traditional Chinese medicine residues.

The aim of this study was to explore the dynamic of microbial community and metabolic function in food waste composting amended with traditional Chinese medicine residues (TCMRs). Results suggested that TCMRs addition at up to 10% leads to a higher peak temperature (60.5 °C), germination index (GI) value (119.26%), and a greater reduction in total organic carbon (TOC) content (8.08%). 10% TCMRs significantly induced the fluctuation of bacterial community composition, as well as the fungal community in the thermophilic phase. The addition of 10% TCMRs enhanced the abundance of bacterial genera such as Acetobacter, Bacillus, and Brevundimonas, as well as fungal genera such as Chaetomium, Thermascus, and Coprinopsis, which accelerated lignocellulose degradation and humification degree. Conversely, the growth of Lactobacillus and Pseudomonas was inhibited by 10% TCMRs to weaken the acidic environment and reduce nitrogen loss. Metabolic function analysis revealed that 10% TCMRs promoted the metabolism of carbohydrate and amino acid, especially citrate cycle, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, and cysteine and methionine metabolism. Redundancy analysis showed that the carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratio was the most significant environmental factor influencing the dynamic of bacterial and fungal communities.

Isolation and characterization of a novel thermotolerant alkali lignin-degrading bacterium Aneurinibacillus sp. LD3 and its application in food waste composting.

The aim of this study was to isolate thermotolerant alkali lignin-degrading bacteria and to investigate their degradation characteristics and application in food waste composting. Two thermotolerant alkali lignin-degrading bacteria isolates were identified as Bacillus sp. LD2 (LD2) and a novel species Aneurinibacillus sp. LD3 (LD3). Compared with strain LD2, LD3 had a higher alkali lignin degradation rate (61.28%) and ligninolytic enzyme activities, and the maximum lignin peroxidase, laccase, and manganese peroxidase activities were 3117.25, 1484.5, and 1770.75 U L-1, respectively. GC-MS analysis revealed that low-molecular-weight compounds such as 4'-hydroxy-3'-methoxy acetophenone, vanillic acid, 1-(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl), benzoic acid, and octadecanoic acid were formed in the degradation of alkali lignin by LD3, indicating the cleavage of ß-aryl ether, Cα-Cß bonds, and aromatic rings in lignin. Composting results showed that inoculating LD3 improved the degradation of organic matter by 20.11% and reduced the carbon-to-nitrogen (C/N) ratio (15.66). Additionally, a higher decrease in the content of lignocellulose was observed in the LD treatment. FTIR and 3D-EEM spectra analysis indicated that inoculating LD3 promoted the decomposition of easily available organic substances and lignocellulose and the formation of aromatic structures and humic acid-like substances. In brief, the thermotolerant lignin-degrading bacterium Aneurinibacillus sp. LD3 is effective in degrading lignin and improving the quality of composting.

Effect of nickel (II) on the performance of anodic electroactive biofilms in bioelectrochemical systems.

The impact of nickel (Ni2+) on the performance of anodic electroactive biofilms (EABs) in the bioelectrochemical system (BES) was investigated in this study. Although it has been reported that Ni2+ influences microorganisms in a number of ways, it is unknown how its presence in the anode of a BES affects extracellular electron transfer (EET) of EABs, microbial viability, and the bacterial community. Results revealed that the addition of Ni2+ decreased power output from 673.24 ± 12.40 mW/m2 at 0 mg/L to 179.26 ± 9.05 mW/m2 at 80 mg/L. The metal and chemical oxygen demand removal efficiencies of the microbial fuel cells (MFCs) declined as Ni2+ concentration increased, which could be attributed to decreased microbial viability as revealed by SEM and CLSM. FTIR analysis revealed the involvement of various microbial biofilm functional groups, including hydroxyl, amides, methyl, amine, and carboxyl, in the uptake of Ni2+. The presence of Ni2+ on the anodic biofilms was confirmed by SEM-EDS and XPS analyses. CV demonstrated that the electron transfer performance of the anodic biofilms was negatively correlated with the various Ni2+ concentrations. EIS showed that the internal resistance of the MFCs increased with increasing Ni2+ concentration, resulting in a decrease in power output. High-throughput sequencing results revealed a decrease in Geobacter and an increase in Desulfovibrio in response to Ni2+ concentrations of 10, 20, 40, and 80 mg/L. Furthermore, the various Ni2+ concentrations decreased the expression of EET-related genes. The Ni2+-fed MFCs had a higher abundance of the nikR gene than the control group, which was important for Ni2+ resistance. This work advances our understanding of Ni2+ inhibition on EABs, as well as the concurrent removal of organic matter and Ni2+ from wastewater.

Aqueous Extract of Guava (Psidium guajava L.) Leaf Ameliorates Hyperglycemia by Promoting Hepatic Glycogen Synthesis and Modulating Gut Microbiota.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a major global health concern. Psidium guajava L. (guava) is widely used for food as well as a folk medicine. Previous studies have shown its anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the underlying mechanisms remains to be elusive. In this study, we assessed the potential therapeutic effects of aqueous extract of guava leaves (GvAEx) on T2DM and explored their potential mechanisms in vivo and in vitro. GvAEx was gavage administered for 12 weeks in diabetic db/db mice. Our results have demonstrated that GvAEx significantly lowered fasting plasma glucose levels (p < 0.01) and improved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity (p < 0.01, p < 0.05, respectively). Additionally, GvAEx increased hepatic glycogen accumulation, glucose uptake and decreased the mRNA expression levels of gluconeogenic genes. Furthermore, GvAEx-treatment caused higher glucose transporter 2 (GLUT2) expression in the membrane in hepatocytes. Notably, for the first time, we have elaborated the possible mechanism of the hypoglycemic effect of GvAEx from the perspective of intestinal microbiota. GvAEx has significantly changed the composition of microbiota and increased short chain fatty acid (SCFA) -producing Lachnospiraceae family and Akkermansia genus in the gut. Taken together, GvAEx could alleviate hyperglycemia and insulin resistance of T2DM by regulating glucose metabolism in the liver and restoring the gut microbiota. Thus, GvAEx has the potential for drug development against T2DM.

Insight into the microbial mechanisms for the improvement of composting efficiency driven by Aneurinibacillus sp. LD3.

This work explored the microbial mechanisms for the improvement of composting efficiency driven by thermotolerant lignin-degrading bacterium Aneurinibacillus sp. LD3 (LD3). Results showed that LD3 inoculant prolonged the thermophilic period by 4 days, improved the final content of humic acid, total phosphorus (TP), nitrogen, potassium and seed germination index. Inoculating LD3 enhanced the relative abundance of thermotolerant and phosphate-solubilizing microbes including the phyla of Proteobacteria, Bacteroidota, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteriota, and the genus of Bacillus, Thermoactinomyces, and Pseudomonas. Metabolic function analysis showed that sequences involved in carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism were boosted, while sequences associated with human disease were reduced after inoculating LD3. Spearman correlation analysis revealed that Aneurinibacillus has a significant positive correlation with temperature, TP, Bacillus, and Thermoactinomyces. This study provides useful information for understanding the microbial mechanisms of LD3 promoting composting efficiency, and reveals the tremendous potential of LD3 in the resource utilization of organic solid wastes.