Results from this study suggest that several underlying foundational neurocognitive abilities are related to core speech perception outcomes after implantation in older adults. Implications of these findings for explaining individual differences and variability and predicting speech recognition outcomes after implantation are discussed.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are used in lignocellulosic biomass (LCB) pretreatment because of their ability to disrupt the extensive hydrogen-bonding network in cellulose and hemicellulose, and thereby decrease LCB recalcitrance to subsequent enzymatic degradation. However, this approach necessitates the development of cellulases and hemicellulases that can tolerate ∼20% (w/v) IL, an amount that either co-precipitates with the sugar polymers after the initial pretreatment or is typically used in single-pot biomass deconstructions. By investigating the secretomes from 4 marine-derived fungal endophytes, we identified a β-xylosidase derived from Trichoderma harzianum as the most promising in terms of tolerating 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium-dimethyl phosphate (EMIM-DMP), an IL. When tested with p-nitrophenyl-β-d-xyloside, this extracellular xylosidase retained ∼50% activity even in 1.2 mol·L (20% w/v) EMIM-DMP after incubation for 48 h. When tested on the natural substrate xylobiose, there was ∼85% of the initial activity in 1.2 mol·L EMIM-DMP after incubation for 9 h and ∼80% after incubation for 48 h. Despite previous findings associating thermostability and IL tolerance, our findings related to the mesophilic T. harzianum β-xylosidase(s) emphasize the need to include the marine habitat in the bioprospecting dragnet for identification of new IL-tolerant LCB-degrading enzymes.