The primary objective for deploying renewable energy in India is to advance economic development, improve energy security, improve access to energy, and mitigate climate change. Sustainable ...development is possible by use of sustainable energy and by ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for citizens. Strong government support and the increasingly opportune economic situation have pushed India to be one of the top leaders in the world’s most attractive renewable energy markets. The government has designed policies, programs, and a liberal environment to attract foreign investments to ramp up the country in the renewable energy market at a rapid rate. It is anticipated that the renewable energy sector can create a large number of domestic jobs over the following years. This paper aims to present significant achievements, prospects, projections, generation of electricity, as well as challenges and investment and employment opportunities due to the development of renewable energy in India. In this review, we have identified the various obstacles faced by the renewable sector. The recommendations based on the review outcomes will provide useful information for policymakers, innovators, project developers, investors, industries, associated stakeholders and departments, researchers, and scientists.
Diversity and applications of Bacillus bacteriocins Abriouel, Hikmate; Franz, Charles M.A.P; Omar, Nabil Ben ...
FEMS microbiology reviews,
2011, 20110101, January 2011, 2011-Jan, 2011-01-00, Letnik:
35, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Members of the genus Bacillus are known to produce a wide arsenal of antimicrobial substances, including peptide and lipopeptide antibiotics, and bacteriocins. Many of the Bacillus bacteriocins ...belong to the lantibiotics, a category of post-translationally modified peptides widely disseminated among different bacterial clades. Lantibiotics are among the best-characterized antimicrobial peptides at the levels of peptide structure, genetic determinants and biosynthesis mechanisms. Members of the genus Bacillus also produce many other nonmodified bacteriocins, some of which resemble the pediocin-like bacteriocins of the lactic acid bacteria (LAB), while others show completely novel peptide sequences. Bacillus bacteriocins are increasingly becoming more important due to their sometimes broader spectra of inhibition (as compared with most LAB bacteriocins), which may include Gram-negative bacteria, yeasts or fungi, in addition to Gram-positive species, some of which are known to be pathogenic to humans and/or animals. The present review provides a general overview of Bacillus bacteriocins, including primary structure, biochemical and genetic characterization, classification and potential applications in food preservation as natural preservatives and in human and animal health as alternatives to conventional antibiotics. Furthermore, it addresses their environmental applications, such as bioprotection against the pre- and post-harvest decay of vegetables, or as plant growth promoters.
The antibiotic resistances of 45 lactic acid bacteria strains belonging to the genera Lactobacillus, Streptococcus, Lactococcus, Pediococcus, and Leuconostoc were investigated. The objective was to ...determine antibiotic resistances and to verify these at the genetic level, as is currently suggested by the European "qualified presumption of safety" safety evaluation system for industrial starter strains. In addition, we sought to pinpoint possible problems in resistance determinations. Primers were used to PCR amplify genes involved in β-lactam antibiotic, chloramphenicol, tetracycline, and erythromycin resistance. The presence of ribosomal protection protein genes and the ermB gene was also determined by using a gene probe. Generally, the incidences of erythromycin, chloramphenicol, tetracycline, or β-lactam resistances in this study were low (<7%). In contrast, aminoglycoside (gentamicin and streptomycin) and ciprofloxacin resistances were higher than 70%, indicating that these may constitute intrinsic resistances. The genetic basis for ciprofloxacin resistance could not be verified, since no mutations typical of quinolone resistances were detected in the quinolone determining regions of the parC and gyrA genes. Some starter strains showed low-level ampicillin, penicillin, chloramphenicol, and tetracycline resistances, but no known resistance genes could be detected. Although some strains possessed the cat gene, none of these were phenotypically resistant to chloramphenicol. Using reverse transcription-PCR, these cat genes were shown to be silent under both inducing and noninducing conditions. Only Lactobacillus salivarius BFE 7441 possessed an ermB gene, which was encoded on the chromosome and which could not be transferred in filter-mating experiments. This study clearly demonstrates problems encountered with resistance testing, in that the breakpoint values are often inadequately identified, resistance genes may be present but silent, and the genetic basis and associated resistance mechanisms toward some antibiotics are still unknown.
This study aimed to evaluate the safety of raw vegetable products present on the German market regarding toxin-producing Bacillus cereus sensu lato (s.l.) group bacteria.
A total of 147 B. cereus ...s.l. group strains isolated from cucumbers, carrots, herbs, salad leaves and ready-to-eat mixed salad leaves were analyzed. Their toxinogenic potential was assessed by multiplex PCR targeting the hemolysin BL (hbl) component D (hblD), non-hemolytic enterotoxin (nhe) component A (nheA), cytotoxin K-2 (cytK-2) and the cereulide (ces) toxin genes. In addition, a serological test was used to detect Hbl and Nhe toxins. On the basis of PCR and serological results, none of the strains were positive for the cereulide protein/genes, while 91.2, 83.0 and 37.4% were positive for the Hbl, Nhe and CytK toxins or their genes, respectively. Numerous strains produced multiple toxins. Generally, strains showed resistance against the β-lactam antibiotics such as penicillin G and cefotaxim (100%), as well as amoxicillin/clavulanic acid combination and ampicillin (99.3%). Most strains were susceptible to ciprofloxacin (99.3%), chloramphenicol (98.6%), amikacin (98.0%), imipenem (93.9%), erythromycin (91.8%), gentamicin (88.4%), tetracycline (76.2%) and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole combination (52.4%). The genomes of eight selected strains were sequenced. The toxin gene profiles detected by PCR and serological test mostly agreed with those from whole-genome sequence data.
Our study showed that B. cereus s.l. strains encoding toxin genes occur in products sold on the German market and that these may pose a health risk to the consumer if present at elevated levels. Furthermore, a small percentage of these strains harbor antibiotic resistance genes. The presence of these bacteria in fresh produce should, therefore, be monitored to guarantee their safety.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The genus
comprises 261 species (at March 2020) that are extremely diverse at phenotypic, ecological and genotypic levels. This study evaluated the taxonomy of
and
on the basis of whole genome ...sequences. Parameters that were evaluated included core genome phylogeny, (conserved) pairwise average amino acid identity, clade-specific signature genes, physiological criteria and the ecology of the organisms. Based on this polyphasic approach, we propose reclassification of the genus
into 25 genera including the emended genus
, which includes host-adapted organisms that have been referred to as the
group,
and 23 novel genera for which the names
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
and
are proposed. We also propose to emend the description of the family
to include all genera that were previously included in families
and
. The generic term 'lactobacilli' will remain useful to designate all organisms that were classified as
until 2020. This reclassification reflects the phylogenetic position of the micro-organisms, and groups lactobacilli into robust clades with shared ecological and metabolic properties, as exemplified for the emended genus
encompassing species adapted to vertebrates (such as
,
,
,
,
and
) or invertebrates (such as
and
).
Spin glasses and complexity Stein, Daniel L; Stein, Daniel L; Newman, Charles M
2013., 20130115, 2013, Letnik:
4
eBook
Spin glasses are disordered magnetic systems that have led to the development of mathematical tools with an array of real-world applications, from airline scheduling to neural networks.Spin Glasses ...and Complexityoffers the most concise, engaging, and accessible introduction to the subject, fully explaining what spin glasses are, why they are important, and how they are opening up new ways of thinking about complexity.
This one-of-a-kind guide to spin glasses begins by explaining the fundamentals of order and symmetry in condensed matter physics and how spin glasses fit into--and modify--this framework. It then explores how spin-glass concepts and ideas have found applications in areas as diverse as computational complexity, biological and artificial neural networks, protein folding, immune response maturation, combinatorial optimization, and social network modeling.
Providing an essential overview of the history, science, and growing significance of this exciting field, Spin Glasses and Complexityalso features a forward-looking discussion of what spin glasses may teach us in the future about complex systems. This is a must-have book for students and practitioners in the natural and social sciences, with new material even for the experts.
African fermented foods and probiotics Franz, Charles M.A.P.; Huch, Melanie; Mathara, Julius Maina ...
International journal of food microbiology,
11/2014, Letnik:
190
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Africa has an age old history of production of traditional fermented foods and is perhaps the continent with the richest variety of lactic acid fermented foods. These foods have a large impact on the ...nutrition, health and socio-economy of the people of the continent, often plagued by war, drought, famine and disease. Sub-Saharan Africa is the world's region with the highest percentage of chronically malnourished people and high child mortality. Further developing of traditional fermented foods with added probiotic health features would be an important contribution towards reaching the UN Millennium Development Goals of eradication of poverty and hunger, reduction in child mortality rates and improvement of maternal health. Specific probiotic strains with documented health benefits are sparsely available in Africa and not affordable to the majority of the population. Furthermore, they are not used in food fermentations. If such probiotic products could be developed especially for household food preparation, such as cereal or milk foods, it could make a profound impact on the health and well-being of adults and children. Suitable strains need to be chosen and efforts are needed to produce strains to make products which will be available for clinical studies. This can gauge the impact of probiotics on consumers' nutrition and health, and increase the number of people who can benefit.
•Although prevalent in many countries, there is little use of probiotics in Africa.•High child mortality and incidence of diarrhea advocate use of probiotics in Africa.•Multifunctional strains developed for fermented foods as delivery vehicles.•A need for strain development clinical studies for probiotics in Africa exists.
Enterococci belong to the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and they are of importance in foods due to their involvement in food spoilage and fermentations, as well as their utilisation as probiotics in ...humans and slaughter animals. However, they are also important nosocomial pathogens that cause bacteraemia, endocarditis and other infections. Some strains are resistant to many antibiotics and possess virulence factors such as adhesins, invasins, pili and haemolysin. The role of enterococci in disease has raised questions on their safety for use in foods or as probiotics. Studies on the incidence of virulence traits among enterococcal strains isolated from food showed that some can harbour virulence traits, but it is also thought that virulence is not the result of the presence of specific virulence determinants alone, but is rather a more intricate process. Specific genetic lineages of hospital-adapted strains have emerged, such as
E. faecium clonal complex (CC) 17 and
E. faecalis CC2, CC9, CC28 and CC40, which are high risk enterococcal clonal complexes. These are characterised by the presence of antibiotic resistance determinants and/or virulence factors, often located on pathogenicity islands or plasmids. Mobile genetic elements thus are considered to play a major role in the establishment of problematic lineages. Although enterococci occur in high numbers in certain types of fermented cheeses and sausages, they are not deliberately added as starter cultures. Some
E. faecium and
E. faecalis strains are used as probiotics and are ingested in high numbers, generally in the form of pharmaceutical preparations. Such probiotics are administered to treat diarrhoea, antibiotic-associated diarrhoea or irritable bowel syndrome, to lower cholesterol levels or to improve host immunity. In animals, enterococcal probiotics are mainly used to treat or prevent diarrhoea, for immune stimulation or to improve growth. From a food microbiological point of view, the safety of the bacteria used as probiotics must be assured, and data on the major strains in use so far indicate that they are safe. The advantage of use of probiotics in slaughter animals, from a food microbiological point of view, lies in the reduction of zoonotic pathogens in the gastrointestinal tract of animals which prevents the transmission of these pathogens via food. The use of enterococcal probiotics should, in view of the development of problematic lineages and the potential for gene transfer in the gastrointestinal tract of both humans and animals, be carefully monitored, and the advantages of using these and new strains should be considered in a well contemplated risk/benefit analysis.
► The use of enterococci as probiotics has implications in terms of food safety. ► Enterococci may possess virulence factors or transferable antibiotic resistances. ► Current applications of enterococcal probiotics in humans include treatments for diarrhoea and IBD. ► Enterococcal probiotics are used for increasing growth and health. ► Mobile genetic elements influence diversity and hence strain safety.
Strong interactions in many-body quantum systems complicate the interpretation of charge transport in such materials. To shed light on this problem, we study transport in a clean quantum system: ...ultracold
Li in a two-dimensional (2D) optical lattice, a testing ground for strong interaction physics in the Fermi-Hubbard model. We determine the diffusion constant by measuring the relaxation of an imposed density modulation and modeling its decay hydrodynamically. The diffusion constant is converted to a resistivity using the Nernst-Einstein relation. That resistivity exhibits a linear temperature dependence and shows no evidence of saturation, two characteristic signatures of a bad metal. The techniques we develop here may be applied to measurements of other transport quantities, including the optical conductivity and thermopower.
Alcohol use has increased globally, with varying trends in different parts of the world. This study investigates gender, age, and geographical differences in the alcohol-attributable burden of ...disease from 2000 to 2016.
This comparative risk assessment study estimated the alcohol-attributable burden of disease. Population-attributable fractions (PAFs) were estimated by combining alcohol exposure data obtained from production and taxation statistics and from national surveys with corresponding relative risks obtained from meta-analyses and cohort studies. Mortality and morbidity data were obtained from the WHO Global Health Estimates, population data were obtained from the UN Population Division, and human development index (HDI) data were obtained from the UN Development Programme. Uncertainty intervals (UIs) were estimated using a Monte Carlo-like approach.
Globally, we estimated that there were 3·0 million (95% UI 2·6–3·6) alcohol-attributable deaths and 131·4 million (119·4–154·4) disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2016, corresponding to 5·3% (4·6–6·3) of all deaths and 5·0% (4·6–5·9) of all DALYs. Alcohol use was a major risk factor for communicable, maternal, perinatal, and nutritional diseases (PAF of 3·3% 1·9–5·6), non-communicable diseases (4·3% 3·6–5·1), and injury (17·7% 14·3–23·0) deaths. The alcohol-attributable burden of disease was higher among men than among women, and the alcohol-attributable age-standardised burden of disease was highest in the eastern Europe and western, southern, and central sub-Saharan Africa regions, and in countries with low HDIs. 52·4% of all alcohol-attributable deaths occurred in people younger than 60 years.
As a leading risk factor for the burden of disease, alcohol use disproportionately affects people in low HDI countries and young people. Given the variations in the alcohol-attributable burden of disease, cost-effective local and national policy measures that can reduce alcohol use and the resulting burden of disease are needed, especially in low-income and middle-income countries.
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