Species -shared and -unique gyral peaks on human and macaque brains.

Cortical folding is an important feature of primate brains that plays a crucial role in various cognitive and behavioral processes. Extensive research has revealed both similarities and differences in folding morphology and brain function among primates including macaque and human. The folding morphology is the basis of brain function, making cross-species studies on folding morphology important for understanding brain function and species evolution. However, prior studies on cross-species folding morphology mainly focused on partial regions of the cortex instead of the entire brain. Previously, our research defined a whole-brain landmark based on folding morphology: the gyral peak. It was found to exist stably across individuals and ages in both human and macaque brains. Shared and unique gyral peaks in human and macaque are identified in this study, and their similarities and differences in spatial distribution, anatomical morphology, and functional connectivity were also dicussed.

Raising serum uric acid with a uricase inhibitor worsens PKD in rat and mouse models.

Humans are predisposed to gout because they lack uricase that converts uric acid to allantoin. Rodents have uricase, resulting in low basal serum uric acid. A uricase inhibitor raises serum uric acid in rodents. There were 2 aims of the study in polycystic kidney disease (PKD): 1) to determine whether increasing serum uric acid with the uricase inhibitor, oxonic acid, resulted in faster cyst growth and 2) to determine whether treatment with the xanthine oxidase inhibitor, oxypurinol, reduced the cyst growth caused by oxonic acid. Orthologous models of human PKD were used: PCK rats, a polycystic kidney and hepatic disease 1 (Pkhd1) gene model of autosomal recessive PKD (ARPKD) and Pkd1RC/RC mice, a hypomorphic Pkd1 gene model. In PCK rats and Pkd1RC/RC mice, oxonic acid resulted in a significant increase in serum uric acid, kidney weight and cyst index. Mechanisms of increased cyst growth that were investigated were pro-inflammatory cytokines, the inflammasome and crystal deposition in the kidney. Oxonic acid resulted in an increase in pro-inflammatory cytokines in the serum and kidney in Pkd1RC/RC mice. Oxonic acid did not cause activation of the inflammasome or uric acid crystal deposition in the kidney. In Pkd1RC/RC male and female mice analyzed together, oxypurinol decreased the oxonic acid-induced increase in cyst index. In summary, increasing serum uric acid by inhibiting uricase with oxonic acid results in an increase in kidney weight and cyst index in PCK rats and Pkd1RC/RC mice. The effect is independent of inflammasome activation or crystal deposition in the kidney.

The individual difference of motor imagery ability evoked by visual stimulus and its personality manifestation.

Motor imagery has been commonly studied as a means of motor rehabilitation but, the individual differences limit its practical application. Visually evoked motor imagery has been widely highlighted by researchers because of its vivid stimulus. However, this modality is still not applicable to all persons. In this study, we studied the different performances of the visually evoked motor imagery between subjects and tried to explore the personality manifestation which can result in this performance. We found that conscientiousness and openness have negative connections with the performance of visually evoked motor imagery. To compare with spontaneous motor imagery, the visually evoked motor imagery reflects less personality difference between subjects with good and bad performances on motor imagery. This indicate that visually stimulus may increase the pervasive application of motor imagery. This study may provide benefits to predict the rehabilitation effect and to rapidly select the suitable motor rehabilitation methods.

To risk or not: The impact of socioeconomic status on preschoolers' risky decision-making for gains and losses.

Disparities in socioeconomic status (SES) may affect individuals' risk preferences, which have important developmental consequences across the lifespan. Yet, previous research has shown inconsistent associations between SES and risky decision-making, and little is known about how this link develops from a young age. The current research is among the first to examine how SES influences preschoolers' risky decisions in both gain and loss frames. Across two studies, children aged 5 to 6 years (total N = 309, 154 boys) were asked to choose between certain and risky options. The risky option was more advantageous, equal to, or less advantageous than the certain option. Study 1 revealed that in the loss frame, high-SES children (n = 84, 44 boys) chose more risky options and were more sensitive to the expected value compared to low-SES children (n = 78, 42 boys), especially when the risk was more advantageous. However, this SES difference was not significant in the gain frame. Supporting the potential causal link between SES and risky decision-making, Study 2 further found that experimentally increasing low-SES children's (n = 68, 30 boys) status by providing additional resources increased their risk-seeking behavior in the loss frame. Overall, our findings suggest an interaction between environmental cues (gain vs. loss) and early life circumstances (SES) in shaping children's risk preferences. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: This research is among the first to examine how school backgrounds and experimentally manipulated SES influence preschoolers' risk preferences in gain and loss frames. Children were more risk-seeking for losses than for gains; this framing effect was stronger in higher-SES than lower-SES children. Lower-SES children exhibited fewer risk-seeking behaviors and decreased sensitivity to the expected value of options for losses, but not for gains. A temporary boost in SES increased children's risk-seeking behavior, but not sensitivity to expected values.

Brain Structural Connectivity Guided Vision Transformers for Identification of Functional Connectivity Characteristics in Preterm Neonates.

Preterm birth is the leading cause of death in children under five years old, and is associated with a wide sequence of complications in both short and long term. In view of rapid neurodevelopment during the neonatal period, preterm neonates may exhibit considerable functional alterations compared to term ones. However, the identified functional alterations in previous studies merely achieve moderate classification performance, while more accurate functional characteristics with satisfying discrimination ability for better diagnosis and therapeutic treatment is underexplored. To address this problem, we propose a novel brain structural connectivity (SC) guided Vision Transformer (SCG-ViT) to identify functional connectivity (FC) differences among three neonatal groups: preterm, preterm with early postnatal experience, and term. Particularly, inspired by the neuroscience-derived information, a novel patch token of SC/FC matrix is defined, and the SC matrix is then adopted as an effective mask into the ViT model to screen out input FC patch embeddings with weaker SC, and to focus on stronger ones for better classification and identification of FC differences among the three groups. The experimental results on multi-modal MRI data of 437 neonatal brains from publicly released Developing Human Connectome Project (dHCP) demonstrate that SCG-ViT achieves superior classification ability compared to baseline models, and successfully identifies holistically different FC patterns among the three groups. Moreover, these different FCs are significantly correlated with the differential gene expressions of the three groups. In summary, SCG-ViT provides a powerfully brain-guided pipeline of adopting large-scale and data-intensive deep learning models for medical imaging-based diagnosis.

A novel process for efficient utilization of bamboo fiber resource in dissolving pulp production by fiber fractionation: Laboratory study and mill trials.

The rational use of bamboo to make dissolving pulp can offer up new opportunities for cellulose production, alleviating wood scarcity. Bamboo contains a high content of non-fiber cells, which presents technical challenges in dissolving pulp production by the conventional process. In this study, a process concept of separating hemicelluloses is presented by fiber fractionation and purification for cleaner production of bamboo dissolving pulp: bamboo kraft pulp was fractionated into long-fiber and short-fiber fractions. The cellulose-rich long-fiber fraction was converted to dissolving pulp by further purification treatment with acid hydrolysis and cold caustic extraction. The hemicellulose-rich short-fiber fraction was used for papermaking. The laboratory results were confirmed by those from mill trials. The combined pulp yield (dissolving pulp + paper-grade pulp) reached 49 %, which was significantly higher than that of the conventional pre-hydrolysis kraft pulping process. Furthermore, the quality of dissolving pulp was higher due to inherently higher cellulose content of long-fiber fraction.

Intra-annual stem radial growth of Qinghai spruce and its environmental drivers in the Qilian Mountains, northwestern China.

Tree stem radial growth could be used to estimate forest productivity, which plays a dominant role in the carbon sink of terrestrial ecosystems. However, it is still obscure how intra-annual stem radial growth is regulated by environmental variables. Here, we monitored Qinghai spruce stem radial growth over seven years and analyzed the environmental drivers of the intra-annual stem radial changes in the Qilian Mountains at low (2700 m) and high altitudes (3200 m). We found that stem radial growth initiated when the daily mean minimum air temperature reached 1.6oC, while the cessation of stem growth was unrelated to temperatures and water conditions. Initiations of stem growth at 2700 m were significantly earlier than that at 3200 m. Maximum growth rates were observed before the summer solstice at low altitude, whereas at high altitude, the majority of them occurred after the summer solstice. Most variability in annual stem increment (AI) can be explained by the rate (Rm) than by the duration of stem growth (∆t), and 78.9 % and 69.6 % of the variability in AI were attributable to Rm for the lower and upper site, respectively. Structural equation modeling revealed that precipitation (P) could both directly positively influence stem radial increment (SRI) and indirectly positively influence SRI through influencing relative humidity (RH), but the positive effect of P on SRI was higher at low altitude than at high altitude. Daily minimum air temperature (Tmin) was also the main direct diver of SRI, and the positive effect of Tmin on SRI was higher at high altitude than at low altitude. Considering the trends in climate warming and humidification over the past decades, climate changes would result in earlier initiation of Qinghai spruce stem growth and promote the growth through positive response to increased precipitation in low altitude and through elevated temperature in high altitude, respectively.

Pollinator peaking earlier than flowering is more detrimental to plant fecundity.

Climate change has caused asynchronous phenological shifts between most plants and their pollinators, resulting in an earlier or later appearance of peak flowering relative to peak pollinator abundance. The fitness impact of these two mismatch patterns may not be simply equivalent, but the information has so far been limited. To explore how differently plant fitness responds to the distinct mismatch patterns, we conducted a seed-setting comparative study at the individual level in an alpine grassland community in the Qilian Mountains of China. By monitoring flowering abundance and insect visits, we measured the phenological matching relationship between plants and their key pollinators, and evaluated the impact of mismatches on plant productivity. We found that the pattern of "pollinator peaks earlier" accounted for a relatively high proportion in the natural community, with a significantly stronger fitness impact on plants than that of the "flower peaks earlier" pattern. The asymmetry in the fitness impacts between phenological mismatch patterns is related to the length of flowering period. Specially, the shorter the flowering duration, the greater the difference in influence between the two patterns. Our results suggest that plants with shorter flowering periods may be confronted with more severe pollination limitations if climate warming cause insects to forage further ahead. Therefore, the asymmetric effects of phenological mismatch patterns should be considered in phenological models to improve the predictive performance of plant responses to climate change.

Species -Shared and -Unique Gyral Peaks on Human and Macaque Brains.

Cortical folding is an important feature of primate brains that plays a crucial role in various cognitive and behavioral processes. Extensive research has revealed both similarities and differences in folding morphology and brain function among primates including macaque and human. The folding morphology is the basis of brain function, making cross-species studies on folding morphology important for understanding brain function and species evolution. However, prior studies on cross-species folding morphology mainly focused on partial regions of the cortex instead of the entire brain. Previously, we defined a whole-brain landmark based on folding morphology: the gyral peak. It was found to exist stably across individuals and ages in both human and macaque brains. In this study, we identified shared and unique gyral peaks in human and macaque, and investigated the similarities and differences in the spatial distribution, anatomical morphology, and functional connectivity of them.

A Soft, Adhesive Self-Healing Naked-Eye Strain/Stress Visualization Patch.

Learning about the strain/stress distribution in a material is essential to achieve its mechanical stability and proper functionality. Conventional techniques such as universal testing machines only apply to static samples with standardized geometry in laboratory environment. Soft mechanical sensors based on stretchable conductors, carbon-filled composites, or conductive gels possess better adaptability, but still face challenges from complicated fabrication process, dependence on extra readout device, and limited strain/stress mapping ability. Inspired by the camouflage mechanism of cuttlefish and chameleons, here an innovative responsive hydrogel containing light-scattering "mechano-iridophores" is developed. Force induced reversible phase separation manipulates the dynamic generation of mechano-iridophores, serving as optical indicators of local deformation. Patch-shaped mechanical sensors made from the responsive hydrogel feature fast response time (<0.4 s), high spatial resolution (≈100 µm), and wide dynamic ranges (e.g., 10-150% strain). The intrinsic adhesiveness and self-healing material capability of sensing patches also ensure their excellent applicability and robustness. This combination of chemical and optical properties allows strain/stress distributions in target samples to be directly identified by naked eyes or smartphone apps, which is not yet achieved. The great advantages above are ideal for developing the next-generation mechanical sensors toward material studies, damage diagnosis, risk prediction, and smart devices.

Fifty years of change in the lower tree line in an arid coniferous forest in the Qilian Mountains, northwestern China.

Tree line areas exhibited significant changes in response to climate change, including upward migration. Lower tree line dynamics are rarely studied, but as unique features in arid and semi-arid areas, they may influence forest distribution. Here, eight lower tree line plots in a Picea crassifolia Kom. (Qinghai spruce) forest in the arid and semi-arid Qilian Mountains of northwestern China were used to determine changes in tree line location and relationships with meteorological factors during 1968-2018. The results showed that the lower tree line descended by an average of 9.82 m during 1968 to 2018, and exhibited almost no change after 2008. The change in the lower tree line was significantly correlated with the annual average temperature (°C) and annual precipitation (mm) and may be affected by human activities. In the past 50 years, the lower tree line in arid areas exhibited a downward trend. Our findings indicate that the movement of the lower tree line is also an important aspect of climatic changes in coniferous forest distribution in arid and semi-arid mountains.

Synthesis and Characterization of Organo-Soluble Polyimides Based on Polycondensation Chemistry of Fluorene-Containing Dianhydride and Amide-Bridged Diamines with Good Optical Transparency and Glass Transition Temperatures over 400 °C.

Polymeric optical films with light colors, good optical transparency and high thermal resistance have gained increasing attention in advanced optoelectronic areas in recent years. However, it is somewhat inter-conflicting for achieving the good optical properties to the conventional thermal resistant polymers, such as the standard aromatic polyimide (PI) films, which are well known for the excellent combined properties and also the deep colors. In this work, a series of wholly aromatic PI films were prepared via the polycondensation chemistry of one fluorene-containing dianhydride, 9,9-bis(3,4-dicarboxyphenyl)fluorene dianhydride (FDAn) and several aromatic diamines with amide linkages in the main chain, including 9,9-bis [4-(4-aminobenzamide)phenyl]fluorene (FDAADA), 2,2'-bis(trifluoromethyl)-4,4'-bis[4-(4-aminobenzamide)] biphenyl (ABTFMB), and 2,2'-bis(trifluoromethyl)-4,4'-bis[4-(4-amino-3-methyl)benzamide] biphenyl (MABTFMB). The derived FLPI-1 (FDAn-FDAADA), FLPI-2 (FDAn-ABTFMB) and FLPI-3 (FDAn-MABTFMB) resins showed good solubility in the polar aprotic solvents, such as N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP), N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). The solution-processing FDAn-PI films exhibited good optical transmittance over 80.0% at a wavelength of 500 nm (T500), yellow indices (b*) in the range of 1.01-5.20, and haze values lower than 1.0%. In addition, the FDAn-PI films showed low optical retardance with optical retardation (Rth) values in the range of 31.7-390.6 nm. At the same time, the FDAn-PI films exhibited extremely high glass transition temperatures (Tg) over 420 °C according to dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) tests. The FDAn-PI films showed good dimensional stability at elevated temperatures with linear coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) in the range of (31.8-45.8) × 10-6/K.

Metformin does not slow cyst growth in the PCK rat model of polycystic kidney disease.

Metformin (MET) has the potential to activate p-AMPK and block mTORC1-induced proliferation of tubular cells in PKD kidneys. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of MET on cyst growth, kidney function, AMPK and mTOR signaling, and lactate levels in male PCK rats, a Pkhd1 gene mutation model of human autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (ARPKD). MET 300 mg/kg/day IP from days 28 to 84 of age resulted in a mean serum metformin level that was 10 times the upper limit of therapeutic, no effect on cyst indices, nephrotoxicity, and increased serum lactate. MET 150 mg/kg resulted in a therapeutic serum metformin level but had no effect on kidney weight, cyst indices, kidney function, or mTOR and autophagy proteins. In summary, a standard dose of MET was ineffective in reducing PKD, did not activate p-AMPK or suppress mTOR and the higher dose resulted in increased lactate levels and nephrotoxicity. In conclusion, the study dampens enthusiasm for human studies of MET in PKD. Doubling the metformin dose resulted in a 10-fold increase in mean blood levels and toxicity suggesting that the dosage range between therapeutic and toxic is narrow.

Design, Synthesis and Properties of Semi-Alicyclic Colorless and Transparent Polyimide Films with High Glass Transition Temperatures and Low Retardation for Potential Applications in Flexible Electronics.

Polyimide (PI) optical films with high glass transition temperatures (high-Tg), high optical transparency, and low optical retardations (low-Rth) are highly desired in advanced optoelectronic applications. However, the standard PI films usually suffer from deep colors, high optical anisotropies and limited Tg values. In the current work, a series of semi-alicyclic colorless and transparent PI (CPI) films were developed from hydrogenated pyromellitic dianhydride stereoisomers, 1S,2R,4S,5R-hydrogenated pyromellitic dianhydride and 1R,2S,4S,5R-hydrogenated pyromellitic dianhydride, and fluorene-containing diamines, including 9,9-bis(4-aminophenyl)fluorene and 9,9-bis(3-fluoro-4-aminophenyl)fluorene, respectively. The derived CPI films showed Tg values higher than 420 °C according to differential scanning calorimetry measurements. In addition, the fluorene-based CPI film showed optical transmittances higher than 80% at the wavelength of 400 nm, with yellow indices in the range of 0.60~1.01 and haze values below 3.0%. The CPI films showed average refractive indices from 1.5407 to 1.6309, extremely low birefringence at the level of minus fourth power of ten, and further exhibited quite low optical retardations below 10 nm.

Acute limb ischemia caused by floating thrombus in the aorta: a case report and literature review.

This report presents a patient with rheumatoid arthritis and COVID-19 infection one month earlier who experienced embolic episodes resulting in acute lower-limb ischemia from an unusual source. The blood flow was successfully restored by femoropopliteal thromboembolectomy. In determining the source of the embolism, the patient underwent electrocardiogram, transthoracic echocardiogram, and aortic CTA. The latter revealed a large, pedunculated, and mobile thrombus arising from the aortic arch and the descending thoracic aorta. Considering the patient's general health condition, we performed anticoagulation of the floating thrombus in the aortic lumen. The mechanism of aortic floating thrombosis exhibits considerable complexity. There are no standardized treatment protocols or clinical guidelines, and its treatment mainly includes open surgery, aortic endoluminal stent -graft insertion and pharmacological anticoagulation. Treatment strategy should be based on the cause of the disease and the patient's physical condition.

Mesenchymal Stem Cells Delivered Locally to Ischemia-Reperfused Kidneys via Injectable Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogels Decrease Extracellular Matrix Remodeling 1 Month after Injury in Male Mice.

The translation of stem cell therapies has been hindered by low cell survival and retention rates. Injectable hydrogels enable the site-specific delivery of therapeutic cargo, including cells, to overcome these challenges. We hypothesized that delivery of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) via shear-thinning and injectable hyaluronic acid (HA) hydrogels would mitigate renal damage following ischemia-reperfusion acute kidney injury. Acute kidney injury (AKI) was induced in mice by bilateral or unilateral ischemia-reperfusion kidney injury. Three days later, mice were treated with MSCs either suspended in media injected intravenously via the tail vein, or injected under the capsule of the left kidney, or MSCs suspended in HA injected under the capsule of the left kidney. Serial measurements of serum and urine biomarkers of renal function and injury, as well as transcutaneous glomerular filtration rate (tGFR) were performed. In vivo optical imaging showed that MSCs localized to both kidneys in a sustained manner after bilateral ischemia and remained within the ipsilateral treated kidney after unilateral ischemic AKI. One month after injury, MSC/HA treatment significantly reduced urinary NGAL compared to controls; it did not significantly reduce markers of fibrosis compared to untreated controls. An analysis of kidney proteomes revealed decreased extracellular matrix remodeling and high overlap with sham proteomes in MSC/HA-treated animals. Hydrogel-assisted MSC delivery shows promise as a therapeutic treatment following acute kidney injury.

Preparation and Characterization of Light-Colored Polyimide Nanocomposite Films Derived from a Fluoro-Containing Semi-Alicyclic Polyimide Matrix and Colloidal Silica with Enhanced High-Temperature Dimensionally Stability.

Light-colored and transparent polyimide (PI) films with good high-temperature dimensional stability are highly desired for advanced optoelectronic applications. However, in practice, the simultaneous achievement of good optical and thermal properties in one PI film is usually difficult due to the inter-conflicting molecular design of the polymers. In the present work, a series of PI-SiO2 nanocomposite films (ABTFCPI) were developed based on the PI matrix derived from hydrogenated pyromellitic anhydride (HPMDA) and an aromatic diamine containing benzanilide and trifluoromethyl substituents in the structure, 2,2'-bis(trifluoromethyl)-4,4'-bis [4-(4-aminobenzamide)]biphenyl (ABTFMB). The inorganic SiO2 fillers were incorporated into the nanocomposite films in the form of colloidal nanoparticles dispersed in the good solvent of N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) for the PI matrix. The derived ABTFCPI nanocomposite films showed good film-forming ability, flexible and tough nature, good optical transparency, and good thermal properties with loading amounts of SiO2 up to 30 wt% in the system. The ABTFCPI-30 film with a SiO2 content of 30 wt% in the film showed an optical transmittance of 79.6% at the wavelength of 400 nm (T400) with a thickness of 25 µm, yellow index (b*) of 2.15, and 5% weight loss temperatures (T5%) of 491 °C, which are all comparable to those the pristine ABTFCPI-0 matrix without filler (T400 = 81.8%; b* = 1.77; T5% = 492 °C). Meanwhile, the ABTFCPI-30 film exhibited obviously enhanced high-temperature dimensional stability with linear coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) of 25.4 × 10-6/K in the temperature range of 50 to 250 °C, which is much lower than that of the AMTFCPI-0 film (CTE = 32.7 × 10-6/K).

IL-6 mediates the hepatic acute phase response after prerenal azotemia in a clinically defined murine model.

Prerenal azotemia (PRA) is a major cause of acute kidney injury and uncommonly studied in preclinical models. We sought to develop and characterize a novel model of PRA that meets the clinical definition: acute loss of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) that returns to baseline with resuscitation. Adult male C57BL/6J wild-type (WT) and IL-6-/- mice were studied. Intraperitoneal furosemide (4 mg) or vehicle was administered at time = 0 and 3 h to induce PRA from volume loss. Resuscitation began at 6 h with 1 mL intraperitoneal saline for four times for 36 h. Six hours after furosemide administration, measured glomerular filtration rate was 25% of baseline and returned to baseline after saline resuscitation at 48 h. After 6 h of PRA, plasma interleukin (IL)-6 was significantly increased, kidney and liver histology were normal, kidney and liver lactate were normal, and kidney injury molecule-1 immunofluorescence was negative. There were 327 differentially regulated genes upregulated in the liver, and the acute phase response was the most significantly upregulated pathway; 84 of the upregulated genes (25%) were suppressed in IL-6-/- mice, and the acute phase response was the most significantly suppressed pathway. Significantly upregulated genes and their proteins were also investigated and included serum amyloid A2, serum amyloid A1, lipocalin 2, chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 1, and haptoglobin; hepatic gene expression and plasma protein levels were all increased in wild-type PRA and were all reduced in IL-6-/- PRA. This work demonstrates previously unknown systemic effects of PRA that includes IL-6-mediated upregulation of the hepatic acute phase response.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Prerenal azotemia (PRA) accounts for a third of acute kidney injury (AKI) cases yet is rarely studied in preclinical models. We developed a clinically defined murine model of prerenal azotemia characterized by a 75% decrease in measured glomerular filtration rate (GFR), return of measured glomerular filtration rate to baseline with resuscitation, and absent tubular injury. Numerous systemic effects were observed, such as increased plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) and upregulation of the hepatic acute phase response.

Metagenomic insights into genetic factors driving bacterial niche differentiation between bulk and rhizosphere soils.

Cellular motility is crucial for effective colonization of the rhizosphere, but it is not yet clear whether bacterial motility is particularly linked to other genetic traits. Here, we applied genome-resolved metagenomics and phylogenomics to investigate the ecological significance of cellular motility for niche differentiation and the links between the genetic makeup of motile bacteria and rhizosphere colonization within a four-decade maize field experiment. Indeed, highly diverse sets of genes encoding cellular motility, including chemotaxis, flagellar assembly and motility proteins, and utilization of polymeric carbon were the important predictors of bacterial niche differentiation between bulk and rhizosphere soils. This is well exemplified by metagenome-assembled genomes encoding high motility capacity (hmc_MAGs). Their collective abundance was, on average, sixfold higher in rhizosphere soil than in bulk soil. All bulk-soil-derived MAGs showed low motility capacities (lmc). The hmc_MAGs were highly enriched in beneficial traits involved in carbohydrate utilization, assimilatory (nasA) and dissimilatory (nirBD) nitrate reduction, inorganic phosphate solubilization (gcd), and organic phosphate mineralization (phoD). Belonging to the families Sphingomonadaceae, Burkholderiaceae and Steroidobacteraceae, the hmc_MAGs showed a ninefold greater enrichment in these traits than proteobacterial lmc_MAGs and a twofold greater enrichment than 264 genomes publicly available for the above three families, thereby substantiating that a specific rhizosphere effect acted on the microbes represented by the hmc_MAGs. The particular link between the genetic capacities for high cellular motility and increased carbohydrate depolymerization as the key determinant for plant-selected rhizosphere colonization was further substantiated by the analysis of public bulk-rhizosphere soil metagenomes retrieved from wheat and cucumber field sites.

Enzymatic treatment processes for the production of cellulose nanomaterials: A review.

Cellulose nanomaterials have attracted much attention in recent years because of their unique properties. Commercial or semi-commercial production of nanocellulose has been reported in recent years. Mechanical treatments for nanocellulose production are viable but highly energy-intensive. Chemical processes are well reported; however, these chemical processes are not only costly, but also cause environmental concerns and end-use related challenges. This review summarizes recent researches on enzymatic treatment of cellulose fibers for the production of cellulose nanomaterials, with focus on novel enzymatic processes with xylanase and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMO) to enhance the efficacy of cellulase. Different enzymes are discussed, including endoglucanase, exoglucanase and xylanase, as well as LPMO, with emphasis on the accessibility and hydrolytic specificity of LPMO enzymes to cellulose fiber structures. LPMO acts in a synergistic way with cellulase to cause significant physical and chemical changes to the cellulose fiber cell-wall structures, which facilitate the nano-fibrillation of the fibers.