Magnesium and Vascular Calcification in Chronic Kidney Disease: Current Insights.

Magnesium (Mg) plays crucial roles in multiple essential biological processes. As the kidneys are the primary organ responsible for maintaining the blood concentration of Mg, people with chronic kidney disease (CKD) may develop disturbances in Mg. While both hyper- and hypomagnesemia may lead to adverse effects, the consequences associated with hypomagnesemia are often more severe and lasting. Importantly, observational studies have shown that CKD patients with hypomagnesemia have greater vascular calcification. Vascular calcification is accelerated and contributes to a high mortality rate in the CKD population. Both in vitro and animal studies have demonstrated that Mg protects against vascular calcification via several potential mechanisms, such as inhibiting the formation of both hydroxyapatite and pathogenic calciprotein particles as well as limiting osteogenic differentiation, a process in which vascular smooth muscle cells in the media layer of the arteries transform into bone-like cells. These preclinical findings have led to several important clinical trials that have investigated the effects of Mg supplementation on vascular calcification in people with CKD. Interestingly, two major clinical studies produced contradictory findings, resulting in a state of equipoise. This narrative review provides an overview of our current knowledge in the renal handling of Mg in health and CKD and the underlying mechanisms by which Mg may protect against vascular calcification. Lastly, we evaluate the strength of evidence from clinical studies on the efficacy of Mg supplementation and discuss future research directions.

Comparative genomics of the plant-growth promoting bacterium Sphingobium sp. strain AEW4 isolated from the rhizosphere of the beachgrass Ammophila breviligulata.

BACKGROUND: The genus Sphingobium within the class Alpha-proteobacteria contains a small number of plant-growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), although it is mostly comprised of organisms that play an important role in biodegradation and bioremediation in sediments and sandy soils. A Sphingobium sp. isolate was obtained from the rhizosphere of the beachgrass Ammophila breviligulata with a variety of plant growth-promoting properties and designated as Sphingobium sp. strain AEW4. RESULTS: Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene as well as full genome nucleotide and amino acid identities revealed that this isolate is most similar to Sphingobium xenophagum and Sphingobium hydrophobicum. Comparative genomics analyses indicate that the genome of strain AEW4 contains unique features that explain its relationship with a plant host as a PGPR, including pathways involved in monosaccharide utilization, fermentation pathways, iron sequestration, and resistance to osmotic stress. Many of these unique features are not broadly distributed across the genus. In addition, pathways involved in the metabolism of salicylate and catechol, phenyl acetate degradation, and DNA repair were also identified in this organism but not in most closely related organisms. CONCLUSION: The genome of Sphingobium sp. strain AEW4 contains a number of distinctive features that are crucial to explain its role as a plant-growth promoting rhizobacterium, and comparative genomics analyses support its classification as a relevant Sphingobium strain involved in plant growth promotion of beachgrass and other plants.

Characterization of Biofilm Formation by Mycobacterium chimaera on Medical Device Materials.

Non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are widespread in the environment and are a public health concern due to their resistance to antimicrobial agents. The colonization of surgical heater-cooler devices (HCDs) by the slow-growing NTM species Mycobacterium chimaera has recently been linked to multiple invasive infections in patients worldwide. The resistance of M. chimaera to antimicrobials may be aided by a protective biofilm matrix of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). This study explored the hypothesis that M. chimaera can form biofilms on medically relevant materials. Several M. chimaera strains, including two HCD isolates, were used to inoculate a panel of medical device materials. M. chimaera colonization of the surfaces was monitored for 6 weeks. M. chimaera formed a robust biofilm at the air-liquid interface of borosilicate glass tubes, which increased in mass over time. M. chimaera was observed by 3D Laser Scanning Microscopy to have motility during colonization, and form biofilms on stainless steel, titanium, silicone and polystyrene surfaces during the first week of inoculation. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of M. chimaera biofilms after 4 weeks of inoculation showed that M. chimaera cells were enclosed entirely in extracellular material, while cryo-preserved SEM samples further revealed that an ultrastructural component of the EPS matrix was a tangled mesh of 3D fiber-like projections connecting cells. Considering that slow-growing M. chimaera typically has culture times on the order of weeks, the microscopically observed ability to rapidly colonize stainless steel and titanium surfaces in as little as 24 h after inoculation is uncharacteristic. The insights that this study provides into M. chimaera colonization and biofilm formation of medical device materials are a significant advance in our fundamental understanding of M. chimaera surface interactions and have important implications for research into novel antimicrobial materials, designs and other approaches to help reduce the risk of infection.

Draft Genome Sequence of the Plant Growth-Promoting Sphingobium sp. Strain AEW4, Isolated from the Rhizosphere of the Beachgrass Ammophila breviligulata.

Sphingobium sp. strain AEW4 is a novel isolate from rhizosphere soil attached to the root of the American beachgrass Ammophila breviligulata The genomic sequence consisted of 4,678,518 bp and 4,428 protein-coding sequences. Here we report the draft genome sequence of this strain and some initial insights on its plant growth-promoting capabilities.