Frontiers in Microbiology

Optimizing the fermentation process of microorganisms with exceptional bioflocculant-producing capabilities is crucial for the production of bioflocculants. The application of bioflocculants to various pollutants highlights their significant advantages in water treatment. Therefore, the culture conditions of Bacillus subtilis 35A with exceptional bioflocculant-producing capabilities were optimized. The bioflocculant (MBF) was obtained by alcohol percipitation from the fermentation supernatant, and its physicochemical properties were analyzed to explore its application in the treatment of dyes, heavy metal ions, and organic wastewater...

BACKGROUND: Stroke is a devastating disease and ranks as the second leading cause of death and disability globally. Several studies have shown that preceding infection (PI) of upper respiratory tract are strongly associated with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). However, the clinical implications and underlying pathological mechanisms remain unclear. METHODS: In this study, 16S rRNA gene sequencing was employed to compare the structural characteristics of oropharyngeal and gut microbiota in AIS patients with or without PI and normal controls (NCs; 30 cases each), and systemic inflammatory markers were detected to explore the relationship between upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) and subsequent stroke severity and functional outcome and the potential mechanism...

INTRODUCTION: Endosymbiotic bacteria in the genus Wolbachia have evolved numerous strategies for manipulating host reproduction in order to promote their own transmission. This includes the feminization of males into functional females, a well-studied phenotype in the isopod Armadillidium vulgare . Despite an early description of this phenotype in isopods and the development of an evolutionary model of host sex determination in the presence of Wolbachia , the underlying genetic mechanisms remain elusive...

Bacterial exopolysaccharides (EPS) have emerged as one of the key players in the field of heavy metal-contaminated environmental bioremediation. This study aimed to characterize and evaluate the metal biosorption potential of EPS produced by a novel Psychrobacillus strain, NEAU-3TGS, isolated from an iron ore deposit at Tamra iron mine, northern Tunisia. Genomic and pan-genomic analysis of NEAU-3TGS bacterium with nine validated published Psychrobacillus species was also performed. The results showed that the NEAU-3TGS genome (4...

INTRODUCTION: Accumulating evidence has supported that gut microbiota and metabolite profiles play indispensable roles in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer (CRC), which ranks as the third most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. However, alterations in tumoral or circulating microbiomes in CRC remain incompletely understood. It has been well-documented that tissue or serum microbiomes with low microbial biomass could be screened by use of 2bRAD sequencing for microbiome (2bRAD-M) at the species resolution...

INTRODUCTION: Observational studies suggest associations between gut microbiota and polymyositis (PM) and dermatomyositis (DM), but causal relationships are unclear. We investigate the causal effects of gut microbiota on PM and DM, providing insights hoping to provide insights for future treatment and prevention. METHODS: Summary statistics of gut microbiota were obtained from a multi-ethnic Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS) meta-analysis, including 119 taxa from 18,340 Europeans...

Cirrhosis, a pathological stage that develops from various chronic liver diseases, is characterized by liver fibrosis, pseudolobular formation, and chronic inflammation. When it progresses to the decompensated phase, the mortality rate of cirrhosis can reach 80%. The role of gut microbiota in the progression of liver diseases has received significant attention. Numerous studies have shown that regulating gut microbiota has significant therapeutic effects on preventing and reversing liver cirrhosis. This article reviewed the mechanisms by which gut microbiota influence liver cirrhosis, explaining the effective therapeutic effects of traditional Chinese medicine...

Gegen Qinlian Decoction (GGQLT) is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine that has been reported to have a significant therapeutic effect in the management of type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In this study, we constructed a T2DM rat model by feeding a high-fat diet and injecting streptozotocin (STZ) and tested the effects of feeding GGQLT and fecal transplantation on the physiological indices, microbiota, and metabolism of rats. The results showed that the administration of GGQLT can significantly improve the growth performance of rats and has a remarkable antihyperlipidemic effect...

BACKGROUND: Xiaojin Pill (XJP) is a traditional Chinese medicine prescribed for treating benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). It has been proven to have multiple effects, such as regulating sex hormone levels, exhibiting anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and anti-platelet aggregation properties, and improving immunity. However, the material basis of XJP's therapeutic effect on BPH and its metabolic process in vivo remains to be clarified. At the same time, many microorganisms that exist in the urogenital tract, including those related to BPH, can also affect the health of the host...

The successful evolution of KPC-2 in bacteria has limited the clinical practice of carbapenems. This dilemma deteriorated the prognosis of associated infections and hence attracted increasing attention from researchers to explore alternative therapeutic options. Here, the enzyme inhibition assay was first performed to screen for a potent KPC-2 inhibitor. The synergistic effect of the candidate with carbapenems was further confirmed by checkboard minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) assay, time-killing assay, disk diffusion method, and live/dead bacteria staining analysis...

INTRODUCTION: The relationships among microelements and soil microbial communities are essential for understanding the maintenance of soil's ecological functions and their effects on fruit quality in orchards. However, these relationships have not been adequately studied, despite the importance of microelements for the growth of microorganisms and plants. METHODS: To address this research gap, we investigated the relationships among microelements (K, Ca, Na, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn, and Cu), the diversity and composition of soil microbiomes, and fruit quality in loquat orchards...

The gut microbiota is widely regarded as a "metabolic organ" that could generate myriad metabolites to regulate human metabolism. As the microbiota metabolites, bile acids (BAs) have recently been identified as the critical endocrine molecules that mediate the cross-talk between the host and intestinal microbiota. This study provided a comprehensive insight into the gut microbiota and BA research through bibliometric analysis from 2003 to 2022. The publications on this subject showed a dramatic upward trend...

Kombucha, a fermented tea prepared with a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY), offers a unique and unpredictable home-brewed fermentation process. Therefore, the need for a controlled kombucha fermentation process has become evident, which requiring a thorough understanding of the microbial composition and its relationship with the metabolites produced. In this study, we investigated the dynamics of microbial communities and metabolites over a 12-day fermentation period of a conventional kombucha-making process...

Thermodynamics has predicted many different kinds of microbial metabolism by determining which pairs of electron acceptors and donors will react to produce an exergonic reaction (a negative net change in Gibbs free energy). In energy-limited environments, such as the deep subsurface, such an approach can reveal the potential for unexpected or counter-intuitive energy sources for microbial metabolism. Up until recently, these thermodynamic calculations have been carried out with the assumption that chemical species appearing on the reactant and product side of a reaction formula have a constant concentration, and thus do not count towards net concentration changes and the overall direction of the reaction...

BACKGROUND: Numerous studies have confirmed that gut microbiota plays a crucial role in the progression of cirrhosis. However, the contribution of gut fungi in cirrhosis is often overlooked due to the relatively low abundance. METHODS: We employed 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing, internal transcribed spacer sequencing, and untargeted metabolomics techniques to investigate the composition and interaction of gut bacteria, fungi, and metabolites in cirrhotic patients...

Global climate change poses a significant threat to plant growth and crop yield and is exacerbated by environmental factors, such as drought, salinity, greenhouse gasses, and extreme temperatures. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) help plants withstand drought. However, the mechanisms underlying PGPR-plant interactions remain unclear. Thus, this study aimed to isolate PGPR, Bacillus megaterium strains CACC109 and CACC119, from a ginseng field and investigate the mechanisms underlying PGPR-stimulated tolerance to drought stress by evaluating their plant growth-promoting activities and effects on rice growth and stress tolerance through in vitro assays, pot experiments, and physiological and molecular analyses...

INTRODUCTION: Following acute enterovirus (EV) infection, outcomes vary based on factors like the immune response, viral cell entry receptor expression levels, tissue tropism, and genetic factors of both the host and virus. While most individuals exhibit mild, self-limited symptoms, others may suffer severe complications or prolonged infections that can lead to autoimmune disorders. METHODS: To elucidate host responses to EV infection, we performed whole exome sequencing on blood samples from both infected and uninfected individuals...

INTRODUCTION: The ability to produce biosurfactants plays a meaningful role in the bioavailability of crude oil hydrocarbons and the bioremediation efficiency of crude oil-degrading bacteria. This study aimed to characterize the produced biosurfactants by Pseudomonas oryzihabitans during the biodegradation of crude oil hydrocarbons. METHODS: The biosurfactants were isolated and then characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), liquid chromatography-mass-spectrometry (LC-MS), and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) analyses...

Microorganisms in lakes are sensitive to salinity fluctuations. Despite extensive prior research on bacterial communities, our understanding of their characteristics and assembly mechanisms in lakes, especially in desert lakes with different salinities. To address this issue, we collected three samples from freshwater lakes, six from brackish lakes, and five from salt lakes in the Badanjilin Desert. The 16S rRNA gene sequencing was applied to investigate the bacterial interactions with rising salinity, community coexistence patterns, and assembly mechanisms...

The process of formation of aromatic components for agarwood in Aquilaria sinensis is closely related to endophytic fungi and the result of complex multiple long-term joint interactions with them. However, the interactions between the aromatic components and endophytic fungi remain unclear during the formation of agarwood. In this study, precise mixed solution of hormones, inorganic salts, and fungi was used to induce its formation in A. sinensis , and sample blocks of wood were collected at different times after inoculation...