Abstract Much research has been carried out on the bacterial bioremediation of soil contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons and toxic metals but much less is known about the potential of fungi in sites that are co-contaminated with both classes of pollutants. This article documents the roles of fungi in soil polluted with both petroleum hydrocarbons and toxic metals as well as the mechanisms involved

Abstract Reactive Black 5 (RB5) is a typical refractory azo dye. Widespread utilization of RB5 has caused a variety of environmental and health problems. The enzymatic degradation of RB5 can be a promising solution due to its superiority as an eco-friendly and cost-competitive process. Bacterial CotA-laccase shows great application prospect to eliminate hazardous dyes from wastewater. However, efficient

Abstract Phyllosticta citricarpa, Elsinoë fawcettii, Elsinoë australis, and Pseudocercospora angolensis are major pathogens of citrus crops worldwide and can cause non-characteristic symptoms that may lead to confusion regarding the causative agent. These fungi are subject to international phytosanitary regulations, and testing on fruits or leaves requires accurate and easy-to-use tools. New multiplex

Adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) has been used to study and solve pressing questions about evolution, especially for the study of the development of mutations that confer increased fitness during evolutionary processes. In this contribution, we investigated how the evolutionary process conducted with the PTS− mutant of Escherichia coli PB11 in three parallel batch cultures allowed the restoration

Abstract Bacteriophage-based methods for the rapid detection of viable Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) in veterinary specimens are a recent addition to the Johne’s disease diagnostic toolbox. Here, we report the use of D29 mycobacteriophage-coated tosylactivated paramagnetic beads to capture and concentrate MAP cells from samples (termed phagomagnetic separation, PhMS) and then naturally

The gut microbiota, including both bacterial and fungal communities, plays vital roles in the gut homeostasis of animals, and antibiotics can lead to disorders of these microbial communities. The use of anthelmintic treatment to control parasitic infection has long been a standard practice, although its impact on the gut microbiota of healthy sika deer is relatively unknown. This study used next-generation

Abstract Actinoplanes sp. SE50/110 is the industrially relevant producer of acarbose, which is used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus. Recent studies elucidated the expression dynamics in Actinoplanes sp. SE50/110 during growth. From these data, we obtained a large genomic region (ACSP50_3900 to ACSP50_3950) containing 51 genes, of which 39 are transcribed in the same manner. These co-regulated

Abstract Lovastatin, and its semisynthetic derivative simvastatine, has great medical and economic importance, besides great potential for other uses. In the last years, a deeper and more complex view of secondary metabolism regulation has emerged, with the incorporation of cluster-specific and global transcription factors, and their relation to signaling cascades, as well as the new level of epigenetic

Abstract The macrolactone rapamycin (RAP) presents a broad range of bioactivities, but its clinical applications are compromised due to the poor water solubility and low bioavailability, which could probably be overcome by glycosylation. In this study, we tested a set of promiscuous glycosyltransferases (GTs) to modify rapamycin with four different sugar donors. BsGT-1 displayed the best glycosylation

Abstract Thermal activity and stability are important characteristics for proteases applied in the detergent, pharmaceutical, food, and other green industries. With the intent to discover thermostable novel proteases, we constructed a fosmid metagenomic library from marine sediments in the East China Sea and isolated a clone endowed with high proteolytic activity from this library. Sequence analysis

The balance of protein, carbohydrate, and fat affect the composition and functions of the gut microbiota. The complexities involved thereof require insights into the roles and impacts of individual dietary components due to the difficulty of defining such in a group of others. Peptides and proteins from several animal and plant sources have been widely explored in relation to the gut microbiome modulation

Abstract In light of emerging antibiotic resistance, bacterial cell wall lytic enzymes are promising antimicrobial agents that degrade bacterial peptidoglycan while specifically recognizing the target bacterium. The efficacy of lytic enzymes against several multi-drug-resistant pathogens infecting humans has led to many efforts focused on in vivo therapeutic applications. However, the potential for

Abstract Synthetic biology provides powerful tools and novel strategies for designing and modifying microorganisms to function as cell factories for biomanufacturing, which is a promising approach for realizing chemical production in a green and sustainable manner. Recent advances in genetic component design and genome engineering have enabled significant progresses in the field of synthetic biology

Microalgae started receiving attention as producers of third generation of biofuel, but they are rich in many bioactive compounds. Indeed, they produce many molecules endowed with benefic effects on human health which are highly requested in the market. Thus, it would be important to fractionate algal biomass into its several high-value compounds: this represents the basis of the microalgal biorefinery

As natural metabolites, organic acids have been widely applied in food, pharmaceutical, and bio-based materials industries. Particularly, the short-chain organic acids, including C2, C3, C4, C5, and C6 organic acids, are necessary intermediate metabolites in cells and are also alternatives to some commercial chemical products. As the necessary metabolites in cells, most major short-chain organic acids

Abstract The acetic acid bacterium (AAB) Gluconobacter oxydans incompletely oxidizes a wide variety of carbohydrates and is therefore used industrially for oxidative biotransformations. For G. oxydans, no system was available that allows regulatable plasmid-based expression. We found that the l-arabinose-inducible PBAD promoter and the transcriptional regulator AraC from Escherichia coli MC4100 performed

Abstract Tolypocladium guangdongense is a high-value edible fungus with various medicinal and food safety properties. However, its evolutionary and genetic information is still limited. Mitochondrial genomes are potential models for molecular evolution and phylogenetic studies. In this study, we sequenced the complete mitogenome of T. guangdongense, demonstrating circular sequence of 46,102 bp, containing

Abstract Although the genome of the Streptomyces model strain S. coelicolor was sequenced nearly two decades ago, the function of many annotated genes has not been verified, including that of gene sco1979, which was predicted to encode a transcriptional regulator of the xenobiotic response element (XRE) family. In this study, we showed that SCO1979 represses its own transcription and that deletion

Abstract The polyene macrolide rimocidin, produced by Streptomyces rimosus M527, was found to be highly effective against a broad range of fungal plant pathogens. Current understanding of the regulatory mechanism of rimocidin biosynthesis and morphological differentiation in S. rimosus M527 is limited. NsdA is considered a negative regulator involved in morphological differentiation and biosynthesis

Abstract Helicobacter pylori, a member of Epsilonproteobacteria, is a Gram-negative microaerophilic bacterium that colonizes gastric mucosa of about 50% of the human population. Although most infections caused by H. pylori are asymptomatic, the microorganism is strongly associated with serious diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract such as chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer, duodenal ulcer, and

Abstract Propionic acid, a widely used food preservative and intermediate in the manufacture of various chemicals, is currently produced from petroleum-based chemicals, raising concerns about its long-term sustainability. A key way to make propionic acid more sustainable is through fermentation of low-cost renewable and inedible sugar sources, such as lignocellulosic biomass. To this end, we utilized

Abstract The activities and transmissions of microorganisms are closely related to human, and all kinds of diseases caused by pathogenic microorganisms have attracted attention in the world and brought many challenges to human health and public health. The traditional microbial detection technologies have characteristics of longer detection cycle and complicated processes, therefore, which can no longer

Abstract Due to the high mortality rate and an increase in breast cancer incidence, it has been challenging for researchers to come across an effective chemotherapeutic strategy with minimum side effects. Therefore, the need for the development of effective chemotherapeutic drugs is still on the verge. Consequently, we approached a new mechanism to address this issue. The naturally available peptide

Mycelial adhesion affects cell growth and the production of water-soluble extracellular yellow pigment (EYP) in submerged fermentation with Monascus ruber CGMCC 10910. Two nitrates, NaNO3 and KNO3, were used as nitrogen sources for mitigating mycelial adhesion and improving the production of EYP in this study. The results showed that the adhesion of mycelia in the fermentation broth significantly decreased

Abstract Several quorum sensing systems occurring in Bacillus subtilis, e.g. Rap-Phr systems, were reported to interact with major regulatory proteins, such as ComA, DegU, and Spo0A, in order to regulate competence, sporulation, and synthesis of secondary metabolites. In this study, we characterized a novel Rap-Phr system, RapA4-PhrA4, in Bacillus velezensis NAU-B3. We found that the rapA4 and phrA4

Abstract Mercury (Hg) is a highly toxic metal with no known biological function, and it can be highly bioavailable in terrestrial ecosystems. Although fungi are important contributors to a number of soil processes including plant nutrient uptake and decomposition, little is known about the effect of Hg on fungi. Fungi accumulate the largest amount of Hg and are the organisms capable of the highest

Abstract Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) is a molecule with the chemical formula C10H9NO2, with a demonstrated presence in various environments and organisms, and with a biological function in several of these organisms, most notably in plants where it acts as a growth hormone. The existence of microorganisms with the ability to catabolize or assimilate IAA has long been recognized. To date, two sets of

Abstract Lipoxygenases (LOXs) are a family of non-heme iron oxidoreductases, which catalyze the addition of oxygen into polyunsaturated fatty acids. They have applications in the food and medical industries. In most studies, the soluble expression of LOXs in microbes requires low temperature (< 20 °C), which increases the cost and fermentation time. Achievement of soluble expression in elevated temperatures

Abstract The reversible hydrolytic property of glycosyl hydrolases (GHs) as well as their acceptance of aglycones other than water has provided the abilities of GHs in synthesizing glycosides. Together with desirable physiochemical properties of glycosides and their high commercial values, research interests have been aroused to investigate the synthetic other than the hydrolytic properties of GHs

Plasma-functionalized liquids (PFL) emerge as an effective sanitizer with great potential to be against a variety of microorganisms but their applications on seafood products are limited. In the current study, the physicochemical properties of plasma-functionalized water (PFW) and plasma-functionalized buffer (PFB), and their antimicrobial activities on grass carp, were investigated under different

Wheat seedlings are significantly impacted by the presence of bacteria. However, bacteria are unavoidably growing together with wheat. The study aimed to reveal wheat photosynthesis, phyllosphere bacterial community composition, and a shift in the bacterial community following different density treatments in a closed artificial ecosystem. Here, we report the relationship between photosynthesis and

Overproduction of recombinant secretory proteins triggers numerous physiological perturbations. Depending on a given heterologous protein characteristics, the producer cell is faced with different challenges which lead to varying responses in terms of its physiology and the target protein production rate. In the present study, we used steady-state-maintained Yarrowia lipolytica cells to investigate

Abstract The commercial reality of microalgal biotechnology for the production of individual bioactives is constrained by the high cost of production and requires a biorefinery approach. In this investigation, we examined the influence of different nutrient deprivation (nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), sulphur (S) and manganese (Mn)) on growth, chlorophyll a (Chl a), biohydrogen (H2) and fatty acid profiles

Abstract Agrobacterium tumefaciens synthesizes polyphosphate (polyP) in the form of one or two polyP granules per cell during growth. The A. tumefaciens genome codes for two polyphosphate kinase genes, ppk1AT and ppk2AT, of which only ppk1AT is essential for polyP granule formation in vivo. Biochemical characterization of the purified PPK1AT and PPK2AT proteins revealed a higher substrate specificity

Abstract Immobilizarion of PGPR for agricultural applications aims to provide temporary physical protection from stressful environmental conditions and the gradual release of cells for successful root colonization, release the cells gradually. In this work, we immobilized Bradyrhizobium sp. SEMIA6144 or Azospirillum brasilense Az39 cells in 2% alginate beads prepared by ionic gelation process, and

Abstract Photosynthetic microorganisms convert carbon dioxide and solar radiation into interesting bioactive compounds not yet entirely explored. Several species of microalgae are known to be rich in colored high-valuable components that, although remarkable, are poorly explored as natural sources of pigments for cosmetics. Pigments associated to photosynthetic activity include chlorophyll, β-carotene

Abstract In this study, K. oxytoca KMS004 (ΔadhE Δpta-ackA) was further reengineered by the deletion of frdABCD and pflB genes to divert carbon flux through D-(−)-lactate production. During fermentation of high glucose concentration, the resulted strain named K. oxytoca KIS004 showed poor in growth and glucose consumption due to its insufficient capacity to generate acetyl-CoA for biosynthesis. Evolutionary

Abstract Salmonella spp. can cause animal and human salmonellosis. In this study, we established a simple method to detect all Salmonella species by amplifying a specific region within the flgE gene encoding the flagellar hook protein. Our preliminary sequence analysis among flagella-associated genes of Salmonella revealed that although Salmonella Gallinarum and Salmonella Pullorum are lacking flagella

Bacillus cereus 905, one of the plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPRs), is capable of colonizing wheat roots in a large population size. From previous studies, we learned that the sodA2-encoding manganese-containing superoxide dismutase (MnSOD2) is important for B. cereus 905 to survive in wheat rhizosphere. In this investigation, we demonstrated that deletion of the recA gene, which codes for

Huperzine A (Hup A) is an important drug for treating Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mainly extracted from the Huperzia serrata (Thunb.) Trevis. (Lycopodiaceae) (HS). Nevertheless, the content of Hup A in HS is very low of 0.007% with growing circle of 8 to 10 years, and the chemical synthesis of Hup A still has some insurmountable limitations in the industrialized production. So, the available resources

Woody biomass represents an important source of carbon on earth, and its global recycling is highly dependent on Agaricomycetes fungi. White-rot Basidiomycetes are a very important group in this regard, as they possess a large and diverse enzymatic repertoire for biomass decomposition. Among these enzymes, the recently discovered lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) have revolutionized biomass

The human body is almost always facing the oxidative stress caused by foodborne aldehydes such as glyoxal (GO) and methylglyoxal (MGO), 4-hydroxyhexenal (HHE), and 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE). When these aldehydes build up, they can cause a range of harm. However, a probiotic, Clostridium butyricum, can increase nuclear factor erythroid-2 related factor 2 (Nrf2) and may have the potential to relieve oxidative

The existence of taste and odour (T&O) in drinking water is one of the principal causes of consumer complaints and is commonly related to algae growth. Numerous studies have confirmed the existence of algal blooms emerging specifically in low-temperature periods, herein referred to as "cold algae"; these include chrysophytes, cryptophytes, dinoflagellates and diatoms. In addition, the adaption mechanisms

In the present study, immunoglobulin Y (IgY) antibodies were raised in hens against the surface staphylococcal protein A (SpA) of Staphylococcus aureus. Anti-SpA IgY were tested in vitro for diagnostic applications, bacteriostatic, and biofilm inhibition effects. A specific and sensitive immunocapture PCR (IPCR) was developed to detect S. aureus from food, clinical, and environmental samples. Anti-SpA

Temporal regulation of global gene expression in the caeca of chickens infected with Salmonella Typhimurium has not been investigated previously. In this study, we performed the transcriptome analysis of the caeca of Salmonella Typhimurium challenged chicks to understand the regulation of the mucosal immune system in a temporal manner. The Salmonella infection resulted in the activation of the caecal

Lactic acid (LA) is chemically synthesized or fermentatively produced using glucose as substrate, mainly using lactic acid bacteria. Polylactic acid is used as a biodegradable bioplastic for packaging materials, medical materials, and filaments for 3D printers. In this study, we aimed to construct a LA-tolerant yeast to reduce the neutralization cost in LA production. The pHLA2-51 strain was obtained

Following publication of the original article (Kher et al. 2020), the authors identified following mistake in the author affiliation.

In the original publication of the article, it was published under the title ‘Applied microbiology and biotechnology uncovering the biosynthetic pathway of polysaccharide-based microbial flocculant in Agrobacterium tumefaciens F2’.

Abstract Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms contribute heavily to chronic lung infection in cystic fibrosis patients, leading to morbidity and mortality. Nitric oxide (NO) has been shown to disperse P. aeruginosa biofilms in vitro, ex vivo and in clinical trials as a promising anti-biofilm agent. Traditional NO donors such as sodium nitroprusside (SNP) have been extensively employed in different studies