Chlorine disinfection to drinking water plays an important role in preventing and controlling waterborne disease outbreaks globally. Nevertheless, little is known about why it enriches the antibiotic ...resistance genes (ARGs) in bacteria after chlorination. Here, ARGs released from killed antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB), and culturable chlorine-injured bacteria produced in the chlorination process as the recipient, were investigated to determine their contribution to the horizontal transfer of ARGs during disinfection treatment. We discovered Escherichia coli, Salmonella aberdeen, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterococcus faecalis showed diverse resistance to sodium hypochlorite, and transferable RP4 could be released from killed sensitive donor consistently. Meanwhile, the survival of chlorine-tolerant injured bacteria with enhanced cell membrane permeabilisation and a strong oxidative stress-response demonstrated that a physiologically competent cell could be transferred by RP4 with an improved transformation frequency of up to 550 times compared with the corresponding untreated bacteria. Furthermore, the water quality factors involving chemical oxygen demand (COD
), ammonium nitrogen and metal ions (Ca
and K
) could significantly promote above transformation frequency of released RP4 into injured E. faecalis. Our findings demonstrated that the chlorination process promoted the horizontal transfer of plasmids by natural transformation, which resulted in the exchange of ARGs across bacterial genera and the emergence of new ARB, as well as the transfer of chlorine-injured opportunistic pathogen from non-ARB to ARB. Considering that the transfer elements were quite resistant to degradation through disinfection, this situation poses a potential risk to public health.
The emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance has posed a major threat to both human health and environmental ecosystem. Although the disinfection has been proved to be efficient to control the ...occurrence of pathogens, little effort is dedicated to revealing potential impacts of disinfection on transmission of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), particularly for free-living ARGs in final disinfected effluent of urban wastewater treatment plants (UWWTP). Here, we investigated the effects of chlorine disinfection on the occurrence and concentration of both extracellular ARGs (eARGs) and intracellular ARGs (iARGs) in a full-scale UWWTP over a year. We reported that the concentrations of both eARGs and iARGs would be increased by the disinfection with chlorine dioxide (ClO2). Specifically, chlorination preferentially increased the abundances of eARGs against macrolide (ermB), tetracycline (tetA, tetB and tetC), sulfonamide (sul1, sul2 and sul3), β-lactam (ampC), aminoglycosides (aph(2’)-Id), rifampicin (katG) and vancomycin (vanA) up to 3.8 folds. Similarly, the abundances of iARGs were also increased up to 7.8 folds after chlorination. In terms of correlation analyses, the abundance of Escherichia coli before chlorination showed a strong positive correlation with the total eARG concentration, while lower temperature and higher ammonium concentration were assumed to be associated with the concentration of iARGs. This study suggests the chlorine disinfection could increase the abundances of both iARGs and eARGs, thereby posing risk of the dissemination of antibiotic resistance in environments.
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•Impact of chlorination on eARGs pollution in UWWTPs were for the first time reported.•Chlorination disinfection enhanced both eARGs and iARGs pollution.•Extracellular tetM and sul1 were the most dominant eARGs in the final effluent.•E. coli showed a positive correlation with the total eARG concentration after chlorination.
Abstract
5-Methylfurfural (MF) is a very useful chemical. Selective hydrogenation of biomass platform molecule 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural (HMF) to MF using H
2
as the reducing agent is very ...attractive, but challenging because hydrogenation of C=O bond in HMF is more favourable than C–OH both kinetically and thermodynamically, and this route has not been realized. In this work, we prepare isolated single atomic catalysts (SACs) Pt
1
/Nb
2
O
5
-Ov, Pd
1
/Nb
2
O
5
-Ov, and Au
1
/Nb
2
O
5
-Ov, in which single metal atoms are supported on oxygen defective Nb
2
O
5
(Nb
2
O
5
-Ov). It is discovered that the SACs can efficiently catalyze the hydrogenation of HMF to MF using H
2
as the reducing agent with MF selectivity of >99% at complete conversion, while the selectivities of the metal nanocatalysts supported on Nb
2
O
5
are very poor. A combination of experimental and density function theory (DFT) studies show that the unique features of the SACs for the reaction result from the cooperation of the Nb and Pt sites near the interface in the Pt
1
/Nb
2
O
5
-Ov. The Pt atoms are responsible for the activation of H
2
and the Nb sites activate C-OH in the reaction. This work opens the way for producing MF by direct hydrogenation of biomass-derived HMF using H
2
as the reductant.
•We observed eARG and iARG pollution in tap water with an evident seasonal pattern.•Extracellular TetC had the highest median level in tap water.•sul1 and sul2 were the most abundant iARGs in tap ...water.•iARG classes were related to the specific physicochemical index of water quality.
Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) have gained global attention due to their public health threat. Extracelluar ARGs (eARGs) can result in the dissemination of antibiotic resistance via free-living ARGs in natural environments, where they promote ARB transmission in drinking water distribution systems. However, eARG pollution in tap water has not been well researched. In this study, concentrations of eARGs and intracellular ARGs (iARGs) in tap water, sampled at Tianjin, China, were investigated for one year. Fourteen eARG types were found at the highest concentration of 1.3 × 105 gene copies (GC)/L. TetC was detected in 66.7% of samples, followed by sul1, sul2, and qnrA with the same detection frequency of 41.7%. Fifteen iARGs (including tetA, tetB, tetM, tetQ, tetX, sul1, sul2, sul3, ermB, blaTEM, and qnrA) were continuously detected in all collected tap water samples with sul1 and sul2 the most abundant. Additionally, both eARG and iARG concentrations in tap water presented a seasonal pattern with most abundant prevalence in summer. The concentration of observed intracellular sulfonamide resistance genes showed a significantly positive correlation with total nitrogen concentrations. This study suggested that eARG and iARG pollution of drinking water systems pose a potential risk to human public health.
Metabolic engineering of Saccharomyces cerevisiae for high‐level production of aromatic chemicals has received increasing attention in recent years. Tyrosol production from glucose by S. cerevisiae ...is considered an environmentally sustainable and safe approach. However, the production of tyrosol and salidroside by engineered S. cerevisiae has been reported to be lower than 2 g/L to date. In this study, S. cerevisiae was engineered with a push‐pull‐restrain strategy to efficiently produce tyrosol and salidroside from glucose. The biosynthetic pathways of ethanol, phenylalanine, and tryptophan were restrained by disrupting PDC1, PHA2, and TRP3. Subsequently, tyrosol biosynthesis was enhanced with a metabolic pull strategy of introducing PcAAS and EcTyrAM53I/A354V. Moreover, a metabolic push strategy was implemented with the heterologous expression of phosphoketolase (Xfpk), and then erythrose 4‐phosphate was synthesized simultaneously by two pathways, the Xfpk‐based pathway and the pentose phosphate pathway, in S. cerevisiae. Furthermore, the heterologous expression of Xfpk alone in S. cerevisiae efficiently improved tyrosol production compared with the coexpression of Xfpk and phosphotransacetylase. Finally, the tyrosol yield increased by approximately 135‐folds, compared with that of parent strain. The total amount of tyrosol and salidroside with glucose fed‐batch fermentation was over 10 g/L and reached levels suitable for large‐scale production.
Highest production of tyrosol and salidroside, obtained via introducing the Xfpk‐based pathway into S. cerevisiae, can pave a green, efficient and sustainable way for large‐scale production of tyrosol and salidroside.
AbstractUnlike carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) bars and the maturely developed glass FRP (GFRP) bars, the long-term performance of the newly developed basalt-fiber reinforced polymer (BFRP) ...bars under severe environmental conditions remains unclear. This paper evaluates the residual tensile properties of unstressed and stressed BFRP bars exposed to four types of simulated harsh environments: alkaline solution, salt solution, acid solution, and de-ionized water at 25, 40, and 55°C. Microstructural analysis using scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) was also conducted to reveal the inherent degradation mechanism of BFRP bars in alkaline environment. The residual tensile strength of unstressed BFRP bars exposed to alkaline solution was used for long-term performance prediction based on Arrhenius theory. The results showed that the effect on the durability of BFRP bars exposed to acid, salt, and deionized water was less than that for bars exposed to alkaline solution. The effects of sustained stress on the degradation of BFRP bars were not obvious when the stress level was less than 20% of the ultimate strength, but if the stress exceeded this level, the degradation processes were accelerated. The predicted exposure time required for a reduction in strength of 50% at a mean annual temperature of 5.7°C in alkaline solution, which represents an area with a northern latitude of 50°, was estimated at approximately 16.1 years for the 6-mm BFRP bar.
Adaption to adverse environments plays an important role in bacterial survival and is receiving increasing globe attention now. Here, cultivable chlorine-injured Pseudomonas aeruginosa, produced on ...the chlorination process, was investigated about their resistance to antibiotics. Then, global transcriptional analyses, quantitative PCR (qPCR) validation and antioxidant enzymes measurement were performed to explore the underlying mechanisms. The results showed that chlorine injury enhanced antibiotic resistance in P. aeruginosa and cultivable chlorine-injured P. aeruginosa exposed to 4 mg/L sodium hypochlorite (half of the lethal dose) improved antibiotic resistance against ceftazidime, chloramphenicol and ampicillin by 1.4–5.6 fold. This increase in antibiotic resistance was not hereditable and over expression of the MexEF-OprN efflux pump resulting from oxidative stress contributed to it. These results demonstrate temporal physiological persistence to antibiotics in cultivable chlorine-injured pathogens, suggesting their survival from adverse environments with antibiotic exposure and thereby posing lasting hazards to human health.
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•Chlorine-injury increased antibiotic resistance in P. aeruginosa.•The mechanism of resistance was overexpression of MexEF-OprN.•This process may increase survival of pathogens in the water treatment system.
Abstract
We report detection results of nine millisecond pulsars (MSPs) at 8600 MHz using simultaneous 2250 and 8600 MHz observations conducted with the Shanghai Tian Ma Radio Telescope. Mainly ...benefiting from updated ephemerids with 2250 MHz observations, integrated profiles of all nine MSPs at 8600 MHz are successfully obtained by coherently adding multi-epoch (3–83 epochs) observation data spanning from 19–1210 days, which significantly increases the number of MSPs with published profiles (from 4 to 11) above 8000 MHz, as seven of our target MPSs had no related results previously. Combining our new flux density and pulse width measurements with previous low-frequency results, we study their integrated profile evolution and spectral behaviors in a wider frequency range. We find their component separations and pulse widths remain almost constant, which is consistent with previous findings. While dramatic evolution of integrated profiles exists at low frequencies, we observe a potential end of the related evolution around 5 GHz in eight MSPs. The spectra of four MSPs are found to deviate from a single power law, and we fit them with a broken power law. The change in the profile of PSR J1713+0747, which started around MJD 59320−59321, seems to be more prominent as the observation frequency increases. Compared with the effects of the interstellar medium, we prefer to explain this event as some changes in the magnetosphere. We also find its integrated profile possibly had not recovered to the pre-event state until MJD 59842–59857.
Nitrile hydratase (NHase) is an excellent biocatalyst for the synthesis of amide compounds and is composed of two heterologous subunits. However, the secretory expression of NHase has been difficult ...to achieve because of its complex expression mechanism. In this work, a novel fluorescent probe Rho‐IDA‐CoII was synthesized by a one‐pot method. Rho‐IDA‐CoII could specifically label His‐tagged proteins in vitro, such as for staining in‐gel, Western blot, and ELISA analysis. Furthermore, Rho‐IDA‐CoII combined with dot blots could quantitatively detect His‐tagged proteins at between 1–10 pmol and perform high‐throughput screening for the NHase signal peptide library. Recombinant Bacillus subtilis WB800/phoB‐HBA with the extracellular expression of NHase was screened (ca. 6500 clones). After optimization of fermentation conditions, the NHase activity in the culture supernatant reached 17.34±0.16 U/mL. This is the first time that secretory NHase has been expressed in B. subtilis successfully.
A novel fluorescent probe, Rho‐IDA‐CoII, which could be used to specifically label His‐tagged proteins in vitro, was synthesized by a one‐pot method. The recombinant that could secrete NHase HBA was screened from a signal peptide (SP) library (ca. 6500 clones) with Rho‐IDA‐CoII. This is the first time that secreted NHase has been expressed in Bacillus subtilis successfully.
Using
ab initio
quantum-transport simulations, we studied the intrinsic transfer characteristics and benchmarks of the ballistic performance of 5.1 nm double-gated Schottky-barrier field effect ...transistors (SBFETs) consisting of in-plane (IP) heterojunctions of metallic-phase (1T or 1T′) MTe
2
(M = Ti, Zr, Hf, Cr, Mo, W) and semiconducting-phase (2H) WSe
2
, WTe
2
and Janus WSeTe. The 2H-phase Janus WSeTe is a semiconductor with an indirect bandgap (1.26 eV), which is less than the bandgap of 2H-phase WSe
2
(1.64 eV) and is greater than the bandgap of 2H-phase WTe
2
(1.02 eV). The band alignments show that all IP 1T/2H contacts are Schottky-barrier contacts with the Fermi levels of 1T or 1T′ MTe
2
(M = Ti, Zr, Hf, Cr, Mo, W) located within the bandgaps of 2H WSe
2
, WTe
2
and Janus WSeTe. Although double-gated IP WSe
2
-SBFETs can satisfy the OFF current requirement, their ON currents all fall below the requirements of the high performance transistor outlined by the ITRS (International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors, 2013 version) for the production year 2028. Double-gated IP WTe
2
-SBFETs cannot overcome the short channel effect leading to minimum drain currents all beyond the OFF current requirement of ITRS (2013 version) for the production year 2028. Fortunately, double-gated IP WSeTe-SBFETs with 1T MoTe
2
or 1T′ WTe
2
electrodes can overcome the short channel effect and satisfy the requirements of the high-performance transistor outlined by the ITRS (2013 version) for the production year 2028.
Transfer characteristics and benchmarks of 5.1 nm double-gated SBFETs consisting of IP heterojunctions of the metallic-phase MTe
2
(M = Ti, Zr, Hf, Cr, Mo, W) and semiconducting-phase WSe
2
, WTe
2
and Janus WSeTe are studied in this paper.
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