Malnutrition affects up to one billion people in the world and is a major cause of mortality. In many cases, malnutrition is associated with diarrhoea and intestinal inflammation, further contributing to morbidity and death. The mechanisms by which unbalanced dietary nutrients affect intestinal homeostasis are largely unknown. Here we report that deficiency in murine angiotensin I converting enzyme (peptidyl-dipeptidase A) 2 (Ace2), which encodes a key regulatory enzyme of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS), results in highly increased susceptibility to intestinal inflammation induced by epithelial damage. The RAS is known to be involved in acute lung failure, cardiovascular functions and SARS infections. Mechanistically, ACE2 has a RAS-independent function, regulating intestinal amino acid homeostasis, expression of antimicrobial peptides, and the ecology of the gut microbiome. Transplantation of the altered microbiota from Ace2 mutant mice into germ-free wild-type hosts was able to transmit the increased propensity to develop severe colitis. ACE2-dependent changes in epithelial immunity and the gut microbiota can be directly regulated by the dietary amino acid tryptophan. Our results identify ACE2 as a key regulator of dietary amino acid homeostasis, innate immunity, gut microbial ecology, and transmissible susceptibility to colitis. These results provide a molecular explanation for how amino acid malnutrition can cause intestinal inflammation and diarrhoea. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature11228Posted at the Zurich Open Repository and Archive, University of Zurich ZORA URL: https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-65968 Originally published at: Hashimoto, Tatsuo; Perlot, Thomas; Rehman, Ateequr; Trichereau, Jean; Ishiguro, Hiroaki; Paolino, Magdalena; Sigl, Verena; Hanada, Toshikatsu; Hanada, Reiko; Lipinski, Simone; Wild, Birgit; Camargo, Simone M R; Singer, Dustin; Richter, Andreas; Kuba, Keiji; Fukamizu, Akiyoshi; Schreiber, Stefan; Clevers, Hans; Verrey, Francois; Rosenstiel, Philip; Penninger, Josef M (2012 Supplementary Fig. 4), indicating that these effects are independent of the classical RAS system. Whether ACE inhibition might alter the phenotype of Agtr1a -/-Ace2 -/y mice needs to be further examined. In addition to cleaving AngII, ACE2 exhibits catalytic activity towards a second peptide system, Apelin 15 .However, DSS-induced colitis was not altered in mice carrying genetic mutations in Apelin ( Supplementary Fig. 5) or its receptor Apj (Supplementary Fig. 6). Thus, the catalytic activity of ACE2, essential for its function in the RAS and Apelin cleavage, has no overt role in DSS-induced intestinal inflammation.It had been reported that the RAS can control immune functions 16 . However, in unchallenged Ace2 mutant mice, we did not observe any apparent differences in immune cell populations of the colon and small intestine (insert: "not shown"?). Fig. 10a,b) nor did it affect apoptosis rates of intestinal epithelial cells ( Supplementary Fig. 10a,c).ACE levels were slightly, albeit not significa...
Summary Carbon (C) metabolism is at the core of ecosystem function. Decomposers play a critical role in this metabolism as they drive soil C cycle by mineralizing organic matter to CO2. Their growth depends on the carbon‐use efficiency (CUE), defined as the ratio of growth over C uptake. By definition, high CUE promotes growth and possibly C stabilization in soils, while low CUE favors respiration. Despite the importance of this variable, flexibility in CUE for terrestrial decomposers is still poorly characterized and is not represented in most biogeochemical models. Here, we synthesize the theoretical and empirical basis of changes in CUE across aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, highlighting common patterns and hypothesizing changes in CUE under future climates. Both theoretical considerations and empirical evidence from aquatic organisms indicate that CUE decreases as temperature increases and nutrient availability decreases. More limited evidence shows a similar sensitivity of CUE to temperature and nutrient availability in terrestrial decomposers. Increasing CUE with improved nutrient availability might explain observed declines in respiration from fertilized stands, while decreased CUE with increasing temperature and plant C : N ratios might decrease soil C storage. Current biogeochemical models could be improved by accounting for these CUE responses along environmental and stoichiometric gradients.
Genes of archaea encoding homologues of ammonia monooxygenases have been found on a widespread basis and in large amounts in almost all terrestrial and marine environments, indicating that ammonia oxidizing archaea (AOA) might play a major role in nitrification on Earth. However, only one pure isolate of this group from a marine environment has so far been obtained, demonstrating archaeal ammonia oxidation coupled with autotrophic growth similar to the bacterial counterparts. Here we describe the cultivation and isolation of an AOA from soil. It grows on ammonia or urea as an energy source and is capable of using higher ammonia concentrations than the marine isolate, Nitrosopumilus maritimus. Surprisingly, although it is able to grow chemolithoautotrophically, considerable growth rates of this strain are obtained only upon addition of low amounts of pyruvate or when grown in coculture with bacteria. Our findings expand the recognized metabolic spectrum of AOA and help explain controversial results obtained in the past on the activity and carbon assimilation of these globally distributed organisms.amoA | physiology | Thaumarchaeota | nitrite | NanoSIMS
The current carbon supply status of temperate forest trees was assessed by analysing the seasonal variation of nonstructural carbohydrate (NSC) concentrations in leaves, branch wood and stem sapwood of 10 tree species (six deciduous broad-leafed, one deciduous conifer and three evergreen conifer trees) in a temperate forest that is approximately 100 years old. In addition, all woody tissue was analysed for lipids (acylglycerols). The major NSC fractions were starch, sucrose, glucose and fructose, with other carbohydrates (e.g. raffinose and stachyose) and sugar alcohols (cyclitols and sorbitol) playing only a minor quantitative role. The radial distribution of NSC within entire stem cores, assessed here for the first time in a direct interspecific comparison, revealed large differences in the size of the active sapwood fraction among the species, reflecting the specific wood anatomy (ring-porous versus diffuse-porous xylem). The mean minimum NSC concentrations in branch wood during the growing season was 55% of maximum, and even high NSC concentrations were maintained during times of extensive fruit production in masting Fagus sylvestris . The NSC in stem sapwood varied very little throughout the season (cross species mean never below 67% of maximum), and the small reductions observed were not significant for any of the investigated species. Although some species contained substantial quantities of lipids in woody tissues ('fat trees'; Tilia , Pinus , Picea , Larix ), the lipid pools did not vary significantly across the growing season in any species. On average, the carbon stores of deciduous trees would permit to replace the whole leave canopy four times. These data imply that there is not a lot of leeway for a further stimulation of growth by ongoing atmospheric CO 2 enrichment. The classical view that deciduous trees rely more on C-reserves than evergreen trees, seems unwarranted or has lost its justification due to the greater than 30% increase in atmospheric CO 2 concentrations over the last 150 years.
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