Unravelling the attributes of novel cyanobacteria Jacksonvillea sp. ISTCYN1 by draft genome sequencing.

Filamentous cyanobacteria, Jacksonvillea sp. ISTCYN1 was isolated from agriculture field and cultured in BG-11 medium. This study, report the genome sequence of cyanobacteria Jacksonvillea thatto the best of our knowledgeis the firstgenome sequenceof thisgenus. The 5.7 MB draft genome sequence of this cyanobacterium contains 5134 protein-coding genes. The phylogenetic tree was constructed based on genome and Desertifilum sp. IPPAS B-1220 validated the closest relationship with Jacksonvillea sp. ISTCYN1. The growth of strain ISTCYN1 has been reported in the presence of different types of plastic when used as a sole carbon source. SEM analysis revealed biofilm formation by cyanobacterial strain ISTCYN1 on the surface of high and low-density polyethylene and polypropylene. In the presence of these plastics, EPS production has also been reported by this strain. Whole genome sequence analysis reveals the presence of many genes involved in biofilm formation. The presence of key enzymes responsible for plastic degradation laccase, esterase, lipase, thioesterase, and peroxidase have been predicted in the genome analysis. Genome analysis also provides insight into the genes involved in biotin biosynthetic pathways. Furthermore, the presence of many selenoproteins reveals the selenium acquisition by this cyanobacterium.

Degradation and detoxification of phenanthrene by actinobacterium Zhihengliuella sp. ISTPL4.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are universal environmental contaminants of great concern with regard to their potential exposure and deleterious effect on human health. The current study is the first report of phenanthrene degradation by a psychrotolerant (15 °C), halophilic (5% NaCl), and alkalophilic (pH 8) bacterial strain Zhihengliuella sp. ISTPL4, isolated from the sediment sample of the Pangong Lake, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Degradation studies revealed that the optimum specific growth rate was observed at 250 ppm of phenanthrene with 81% and 87% removal of phenanthrene in 72 h and 168 h, respectively. During the degradation of phenanthrene; 9,10-dihydrophenanthrene; 1-phenanthrenecarboxylic acid; and phthalic acid were detected as intermediates. Whole-genome sequencing of strain ISTPL4 has predicted phenanthrene; 9,10-monooxygense; and epoxide hydrolase B that are involved in the phenanthrene metabolism. Phenanthrene cytotoxicity was evaluated with human hepatic carcinoma cell line (HepG2) and it was observed that the cytotoxicity decreased with increased duration of bacterial incubation and maximum cell viability was observed at 168 h (89.92%). Our results suggest, Zhihengliuella sp. ISTPL4 may promise a great potential for environmental remediation applications.

High-mobility group box 1 protein (HMGB1) gene polymorphisms and cancer susceptibility: A comprehensive meta-analysis.

AIM: The role of HMGB1 polymorphisms in cancer predisposition remains unclear. This meta-analysis was performed assess four HMGB1 polymorphisms (rs1045411, rs2249825, rs1360485 and rs1412125) in cancer risk. METHODS: We searched published studies till January 2018 from EMBASE, PubMed, Google scholar, and Cochrane library. Thereafter, the statistical software "R" was used to calculate Pooled Odds Ratios (OR), and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for assessment of association between different HMGB1 polymorphisms and cancer risk. RESULT: In this meta-analysis we used eight studies totaling 7017 subjects. HMGB1 rs1045411 polymorphism in recessive model (OR 1.4159, 95% CI 0.9197-2.1798, P = 0.1142) and homozygous model (OR 1.4157, 95% CI 0.8711-2.3006, P = 0.1606) emerged as a risk factor for cancer development. Dominant model in rs2249825 polymorphism (OR: 0.8954) and rs1412125 polymorphism (OR: 0.9029) emerged as protective factors. Statistical significance was not achieved for any genetic model. Begg's test and Egger's test for all analysis suggested no publication bias. CONCLUSION: This is the first meta-analysis exploring the association of four HMGB1 polymorphisms with cancer. Although polymorphism rs1045411 emerged as a risk candidate, additional studies are suggested to confirm these findings.

Meta-analysis of mitochondrial T16189C polymorphism for cancer and Type 2 diabetes risk.

AIM: Whereas many previous studies have revealed that mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) polymorphism T16189C is associated with the risk of cancer and Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), there are others that have disputed the same. As a result, clarity on the role of mitochondrial T16189C in these disorders is missing. The aim of this study is to evaluate the association of T16189C polymorphism with the risk of cancer and T2DM development by pooling all case-control studies available. METHODS: Published studies till November 2017 were searched from PubMed, Google scholar, Google and EMBASE and isolated a total of 36 studies having 44,203 subjects (20,439 cases and 23,764 controls) based on strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. We used the statistical software "R" to calculate the Pooled Odds Ratios and 95% confidence intervals to evaluate the association of T16189C polymorphism with a possible risk towards cancer and T2DM development. RESULT: From the meta-analysis, we obtained Pooled Odds Ratios using Random effect model for cancer (OR: 1.20, 95% CI: 0.96-1.49, P = 0.104) and for T2DM (OR: 1.22, 95% CI: 1.09-1.36, P = 0.0004). In the subgroup analysis with Random effect model, we found that both Asians and Caucasians were at a statistically significant risk (OR: 1.25, P < 0.0001 and OR: 1.20, P < 0.0001, respectively) for the development of T2DM, whereas, a statistically non-significant risk (OR: 1.28 P = 0.1965 and OR: 1.16, P = 0.1148) emerged for the development of cancer. There was no evidence of a significant publication bias (Egger's and Begg's test) in this meta-analysis. Further sensitivity analysis also demonstrated that our meta-analysis was relatively stable and credible. CONCLUSION: Individuals with 'C' allele at position 16,189 within the mitochondrial D-loop are seemingly at a higher risk of developing T2DM and cancer. However, before arriving at generalizations, it would be pertinent to conduct similar studies in different populations with larger numbers to corroborate these results, especially in cancer.