By means of biorefinery, biogas production through anaerobic digestion is one of the most common treatments of wastewater in the palm oil industry. After biogas production, the treated palm oil mill effluent (POME) is generally discharged into the environment. However, certain level of hazardous compounds still exists in the treated wastewater, which can lead to the pollution of water bodies. In this study, we have investigated the dynamics of volatile organic acids dwelling in consecutive POME treatment lagoons as well as identified, and categorized, microbial species responsible for the treatment process. Bacteria and methanogens, both hydrogenotrophic and acetoclastic, related to methane production were identified using mcrA and 16S rRNA genes specific primers. Two hydrogenotrophic methanogens, Methanoculleus marisnigri and Methanoculleus chikugoensis, were found abundant in accordance with high formate concentration throughout the process of anaerobic digestion. This study has also isolated eight consortia of microbes that yielded different methane productions by utilizing formate as the substrate in the synthetic medium. The consortia of a group, containing M. marisnigri, M. chikugoensis, uncultured bacteria, Aminobacterium sp., and Ruminobacillus xylanolyticum, produced the highest methane yield of 259 mL/g COD after 25 days of incubation in the laboratory. The findings from this study are contributing to optimize and increase biogas production in POME, which will allow higher efficiency in palm oil mill wastewater treatment.
Aim of the studyBiliary atresia (BA) is an uncommon disorder of the liver and bile ducts affecting infants and is characterized by progressive fibrosclerosing obstruction of the extrahepatic biliary tree leading to end-stage liver failure. The purpose of this study was to determine serum glypican-3 (GPC3) levels and liver stiffness in children with BA and the correlation of glypican-3 with clinical parameters.Material and methodsSeventy-five post-Kasai BA patients and 28 healthy age-matched controls were registered. Serum GPC3 levels were examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Liver stiffness measurement was analyzed by transient elastography.ResultsBA patients had significantly greater serum GPC3 and liver stiffness values than controls (p < 0.001). Serum GPC3 and liver stiffness values were significantly higher in jaundiced BA patients than in non-jaundiced BA patients (p < 0.001). Additionally, serum glypican-3 was associated with liver stiffness and serum total bilirubin (p < 0.001, respectively).ConclusionsElevated serum GPC3 levels were associated with hepatic dysfunction and the severity of BA. As a result, serum GPC3 and liver stiffness might serve as biomarkers reflecting the deterioration of hepatic function and the outcome in post-Kasai BA.
BackgroundAlu is one of the non-autonomous element retrotransposons, constituting nearly 11% of the human DNA. Methylation changes of the Alu element can cause genomic instability, a hallmark of cancer development, ultimately leading to the development of cancer. Epigenetic factors may induce the aberrant methylation of Alu and also oxidative stress. However, current knowledge of Alu methylation and oxidative stress is limited. There are few studies that have evaluated Alu methylation and oxidative stress on musculoskeletal tumor progression. Therefore, the present study evaluated the status of Alu methylation in musculoskeletal (MS) tumor, adjacent tissues, and blood leukocytes from MS tumor subjects, as well as unaffected participants. Moreover, we also investigated the oxidative stress status in MS tumor subjects and the control participants and determined the correlation between Alu methylation in MS tumors and that in blood leukocytes.MethodsMusculoskeletal tumors from musculoskeletal tumor patients (n = 40) were compared to adjacent tissues (n = 40). The blood leukocytes from musculoskeletal tumor patients were compared to the blood leukocytes from controls (n = 107). Alu methylation status was analyzed using quantitative combined bisulfite restriction analysis (COBRA). In addition, 8–hydroxy 2′–deoxyguanosine (8–OHdG) values were determined using enzyme—linked immunosorbent assay.ResultsAlu methylation values in MS tumors were statistically significantly higher than those in adjacent tissues (P = 0.035). Similarly, Alu methylation statuses in the blood leukocytes of MS tumor subjects were statistically greater than those of control participants (P < 0.001). Moreover, there was a positive association between Alu methylation levels in MS tumors and blood leukocytes (r = 0.765, P < 0.001). In addition, the highest tertile was significantly associated with the risk of MS tumors (OR = 14.17, 95% CI [5.08–39.51]; P < 0.001). The 8-OHdG values in MS tumors were statistically higher than in adjacent tissues (P < 0.001) and circulating 8-OHdG levels were substantially greater in MS tumor subjects than in the control participants (P < 0.001).DiscussionThese findings suggest that Alu methylation in blood leukocytes and plasma 8-OHdG might represent non-invasive biomarkers to help diagnose MS tumors. Therefore, Alu hypermethylation and high oxidative stress might be involved in the pathogenesis of the musculoskeletal tumors.
Summary
Anaerobic digestion is one of the most efficient methods for pig manure management. In this study, methane measurement of a liquid fraction obtained from 0.1 mm sieve mesh filtration and raw pig manure was conducted, and the corresponding dynamic evolution of metabolites and microbial community structure was investigated. The results showed that the liquid fraction filtered through a 0.1 mm sieve mesh gave a maximum methane production yield of 468.13 mL‐CH4/g‐VSadded, 4.50‐times higher than raw pig slurry after 60 days. This result indicates that the 0.1 mm sieve filtration effectively provided an appropriate concentration of biodegradable compounds for high methane production in the slurry. Interestingly, the filtrates from 0.1 mm sieve mesh initially produced a high amount of volatile fatty acid, which later considerably decreased the concentrations of acetic and butyric acids on the day when the methane concentration increased. The metabolite results were consistent with the microbial community analysis, which revealed an increase in the populations of acid‐producing bacteria and archaea in the filtrates from 0.1 mm sieve mesh samples as compared to the non‐filtered samples. These findings indicate that the filtrates from a 0.1 mm sieve mesh sample contained a greater proportion of cooperative producers of acid and methane than the non‐filtered samples. In addition, the techno‐economic analysis demonstrated that this method would be economically viable when applied to a large‐scale system (100 tons of pig slurry) since it can yield a substantial profit margin of 1,847,723 $/year and a return on investment of 25%.
Microbial production of hydrogen (future ideal fuel and important gas for industries) under anoxic conditions has limited ATP availability and low efficiency. We engineered E. coli K12 to acquire a flavin-based electron bifurcation (FBEB) system, a bioenergetic route typically found in strict anaerobes, which uses NADH to generate low potential reduced ferredoxin and high potential butyryl-CoA. The oxygen-tolerant FBEB-E. coli showed higher H2 and succinate production (2-4 folds), lower cellular reduction potentials, greater accumulation of cellular reductants and various metabolites, including ATP (up to a 7-fold increase). It could better tolerate prolonged and recycled usage of the engineered cell for H2 and succinate production than the native strain. FBEB-E. coli could also use various substrates such as formate, D-glucose and food waste for H2 and succinate production. This is a promising pathway to sustainable H2 and succinate production. This work also demonstrates that E. coli with an extra electron bifurcation system is a robust synthetic biology host.
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