Consumer preference for raw milk cheese is continually growing, owing to its more intense and varied flavor than pasteurized milk cheese. Flavor development in raw milk cheese is mainly governed by ...its naturally existing microbial community, which also contributes to the inhibition of food-borne pathogenic bacterial growth. Lactic acid bacteria, the dominant indigenous microorganisms of raw milk cheese, produce pathogen-inhibiting substances such as bacteriocin, organic acids, and hydrogen peroxide, and it is possible to manufacture cheese with desirable microbiological qualities. Nonetheless, outbreaks of food-borne illnesses have been linked to the consumption of raw milk cheese, and concerns have been raised regarding the microbiological safety of cheese manufactured from raw milk. Consequently, efficient and accurate methods for detecting contaminated bacterial pathogens in raw milk cheese have been promptly developed, including conventional plating, PCR-based technology, and immunoassay-integrated methods. The microbiological risk of the cheese can be reduced by proper ripening processing. However, additionally, hygiene in the environments for milk production and cheesemaking and the post-manufacturing stage needs to be constantly microbiologically monitored.
•Raw milk cheese contains indigenous microbiota, contributing to flavor development.•The microbial community also plays a role in controlling the growth of food-borne bacterial pathogens.•Pathogenic bacteria could be present in raw milk cheese, possibly causing food-borne illness.•The microbiological risk of raw milk cheese can be reduced by appropriate aging and hygiene management.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a type of joint disease associated with wear and tear, inflammation, and aging. Mechanical stress along with synovial inflammation promotes the degradation of the extracellular ...matrix in the cartilage, leading to the breakdown of joint cartilage. The nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) transcription factor has long been recognized as a disease-contributing factor and, thus, has become a therapeutic target for OA. Because NF-κB is a versatile and multi-functional transcription factor involved in various biological processes, a comprehensive understanding of the functions or regulation of NF-κB in the OA pathology will aid in the development of targeted therapeutic strategies to protect the cartilage from OA damage and reduce the risk of potential side-effects. In this review, we discuss the roles of NF-κB in OA chondrocytes and related signaling pathways, including recent findings, to better understand pathological cartilage remodeling and provide potential therapeutic targets that can interfere with NF-κB signaling for OA treatment.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Integrated electronic circuitries with pressure sensors have been extensively researched as a key component for emerging electronics applications such as electronic skins and health-monitoring ...devices. Although existing pressure sensors display high sensitivities, they can only be used for specific purposes due to the narrow range of detectable pressure (under tens of kPa) and the difficulty of forming highly integrated arrays. However, it is essential to develop tactile pressure sensors with a wide pressure range in order to use them for diverse application areas including medical diagnosis, robotics or automotive electronics. Here we report an unconventional approach for fabricating fully integrated active-matrix arrays of pressure-sensitive graphene transistors with air-dielectric layers simply formed by folding two opposing panels. Furthermore, this realizes a wide tactile pressure sensing range from 250 Pa to ∼3 MPa. Additionally, fabrication of pressure sensor arrays and transparent pressure sensors are demonstrated, suggesting their substantial promise as next-generation electronics.
Abstract
Memory T cells contribute to rapid viral clearance during re-infection, but the longevity and differentiation of SARS-CoV-2-specific memory T cells remain unclear. Here we conduct ex vivo ...assays to evaluate SARS-CoV-2-specific CD4
+
and CD8
+
T cell responses in COVID-19 convalescent patients up to 317 days post-symptom onset (DPSO), and find that memory T cell responses are maintained during the study period regardless of the severity of COVID-19. In particular, we observe sustained polyfunctionality and proliferation capacity of SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells. Among SARS-CoV-2-specific CD4
+
and CD8
+
T cells detected by activation-induced markers, the proportion of stem cell-like memory T (T
SCM
) cells is increased, peaking at approximately 120 DPSO. Development of T
SCM
cells is confirmed by SARS-CoV-2-specific MHC-I multimer staining. Considering the self-renewal capacity and multipotency of T
SCM
cells, our data suggest that SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells are long-lasting after recovery from COVID-19, thus support the feasibility of effective vaccination programs as a measure for COVID-19 control.
The maintenance of bacterial membrane fluidity plays an important role in a variety of cell physiological functions such as nutrient transport, protection from external adverse environments, and cell ...morphology. The fluidity of membranes is modified in response to several environmental cues, enabling bacterial survival in otherwise unfavorable conditions. Many foodborne bacterial pathogens are able to survive a variety of food preservation treatments used to prevent microbial contamination. These pathogens are able to successfully exploit membrane fluidity-related adaptation strategies under unfavorable conditions, resulting in food hygiene failures. Factors involved in food preservation include pH, temperature, osmotic stress, antimicrobial agents, and high pressure. The fluidity of bacterial membrane lipid bilayer is altered mainly via the adjustment of membrane fatty acid composition. Under undesirable conditions, Gram-negative bacteria alter their membrane fluidity primarily by regulating the ratio of unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) to saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and, to a lesser extent, the levels of cyclopropane fatty acids (CFAs), or by cis/trans isomerization. Gram-positive bacteria typically alter their membrane fluidity with changes in fatty acyl chain length or by forming branched-chain fatty acids (BCFAs), besides changes to the ratio of UFA to SFA. This review encompasses various modulators of membrane fluidity, particularly with respect to foodborne pathogens, which often survive even the hostile environments associated with food processing.
•Bacteria modulate membrane fluidity by changing phospholipid bilayer fatty acids.•Most foodborne bacteria survive adverse environments by membrane phase conversion.•Membrane fluidity is affected by the ratio of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids.•Synthesis of cyclopropane and branched fatty acids changes membrane fluidity.•Fatty acid cis/trans isomerization also modulates membrane properties.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
The skin is the largest organ of the human body and the one mostly exposed to outdoor contaminants. To evaluate the biological mechanisms underlying skin damage caused by fine particulate matter (PM
...2.5
), we analyzed the effects of PM
2.5
on cultured human keratinocytes and the skin of experimental animals. PM
2.5
was applied to human HaCaT keratinocytes at 50 µg/mL for 24 h and to mouse skin at 100 µg/mL for 7 days. The results indicate that PM
2.5
induced oxidative stress by generating reactive oxygen species both in vitro and in vivo, which led to DNA damage, lipid peroxidation, and protein carbonylation. As a result, PM
2.5
induced endoplasmic reticulum stress, mitochondrial swelling, and autophagy, and caused apoptosis in HaCaT cells and mouse skin tissue. The PM
2.5
-induced cell damage was attenuated by antioxidant
N
-acetyl cysteine, confirming that PM
2.5
cellular toxicity was due to oxidative stress. These findings contribute to understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms triggered in the skin by PM
2.5
, among which oxidative stress may play a major role.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Broad host-range mini-Tn7 vectors facilitate integration of single-copy genes into bacterial chromosomes at a neutral, naturally evolved site. Here we present a protocol for employing the mini-Tn7 ...system in bacteria with single attTn7 sites, using the example Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The procedure involves, first, cloning of the genes of interest into an appropriate mini-Tn7 vector; second, co-transfer of the recombinant mini-Tn7 vector and a helper plasmid encoding the Tn7 site-specific transposition pathway into P. aeruginosa by either transformation or conjugation, followed by selection of insertion-containing strains; third, PCR verification of mini-Tn7 insertions; and last, optional Flp-mediated excision of the antibiotic-resistance selection marker present on the chromosomally integrated mini-Tn7 element. From start to verification of the insertion events, the procedure takes as little as 4 d and is very efficient, yielding several thousand transformants per microgram of input DNA or conjugation mixture. In contrast to existing chromosome integration systems, which are mostly based on species-specific phage or more-or-less randomly integrating transposons, the mini-Tn7 system is characterized by its ready adaptability to various bacterial hosts, its site specificity and its efficiency. Vectors have been developed for gene complementation, construction of gene fusions, regulated gene expression and reporter gene tagging.
We analyzed reports for 59,073 contacts of 5,706 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) index patients reported in South Korea during January 20-March 27, 2020. Of 10,592 household contacts, 11.8% had ...COVID-19. Of 48,481 nonhousehold contacts, 1.9% had COVID-19. Use of personal protective measures and social distancing reduces the likelihood of transmission.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, ODKLJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
A rapid microcentrifuge-based method is described for preparation of
Pseudomonas aeruginosa electrocompetent cells with up to 10,000-fold increased transformation efficiencies over existing ...procedures. This increased efficiency now enables the use of transformation for all applications requiring DNA transfer. These include transfer of chromosomal mutations marked with antibiotic resistance genes between
P. aeruginosa strains, which solves the riddle of not having an efficient and reliable transduction procedure for this bacterium. Not surprisingly, the method also allows for very efficient transformation with replicative plasmids, with transformation efficiencies ranging from 10
7 to >
10
11 transformants per microgram of DNA. Lastly, with efficiencies of up to >
10
3 transformants per microgram of DNA the method replaces in most instances conjugation for the transfer of non-replicative plasmids used in gene replacement, site-specific gene integration and transposon mutagenesis experiments.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
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