Molecular de-extinction could offer avenues for drug discovery by reintroducing bioactive molecules that are no longer encoded by extant organisms. To prospect for antimicrobial peptides encrypted ...within extinct and extant human proteins, we introduce the panCleave random forest model for proteome-wide cleavage site prediction. Our model outperformed multiple protease-specific cleavage site classifiers for three modern human caspases, despite its pan-protease design. Antimicrobial activity was observed in vitro for modern and archaic protein fragments identified with panCleave. Lead peptides showed resistance to proteolysis and exhibited variable membrane permeabilization. Additionally, representative modern and archaic protein fragments showed anti-infective efficacy against A. baumannii in both a skin abscess infection model and a preclinical murine thigh infection model. These results suggest that machine-learning-based encrypted peptide prospection can identify stable, nontoxic peptide antibiotics. Moreover, we establish molecular de-extinction through paleoproteome mining as a framework for antibacterial drug discovery.
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•Machine learning guides bioinspired prospection for encrypted antimicrobial peptides•Modern and extinct human proteins harbor antimicrobial subsequences•Archaic encrypted peptides display in vitro and in vivo activities with low host toxicity•Paleoproteome mining offers a framework for antibiotic discovery
Maasch and Torres et al. described a machine learning model that identifies antimicrobial peptides within extinct human proteins. Molecular de-extinction shows promise in drug discovery by reintroducing unique antimicrobials with anti-infective efficacy in preclinical mouse models. This study demonstrates the potential of paleoproteome mining as a framework for drug discovery.
•New data on Hg in tissues of green turtles from the South Atlantic Ocean.•A nonlethal/noninvasive method is assessed for Hg monitoring in sea turtles.•We found positive correlations between Hg in ...muscle and scutes, liver and kidney.
The green sea turtles are facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild and the impacts of heavy metals contamination contributes with the decline of their populations. It is very important to assess noninvasive and nonlethal methods for monitoring Hg contamination in sea turtles. Thus, Hg concentrations were measured in keratinized fragments (scutes) and internal tissues of green sea turtles from the Ceará coast to test the usefulness of scutes as a monitoring subject for sea turtles. A significantly positive correlation was found between Hg concentrations in muscle and scutes, which demonstrate that scutes can be used as a predictive matrix of Hg concentration in muscle tissue of green sea turtles.
The environment receives about 2.7 kg.ha-1 annually of pesticides, used in crop production. Pesticides may have a negative impact on environmental biodiversity and potentially induce physiological ...effects on non-target species. Advances in technology and nanocarrier systems for agrochemicals led to new alternatives to minimize these impacts, such as nanopesticides, considered more efficient, safe and sustainable. However, it is important to evaluate the risk potential, action and toxicity of nanopesticides in aquatic and terrestrial organisms. This study aims to evaluate genotoxic and hematological biomarkers in bullfrog tadpoles (Lithobates catesbeianus) submitted to acute exposure (48 h) to pyrethrum extract (PYR) and solid lipid nanoparticles loaded with PYR. Results showed increased number of leukocytes during acute exposure, specifically eosinophils in nanoparticle-exposed groups, and basophil in PYR-exposed group. Hematological analysis showed that PYR encapsulated in nanoparticles significantly increased the erythrocyte number compared to the other exposed groups. Data from the comet assay indicated an increase in frequency of the classes that correspond to more severe DNA damages in exposed groups, being that the PYR-exposed group showed a high frequency of class-4 DNA damage. Moreover, erythrocyte nuclear abnormalities were triggered by short-time exposure in all treatments, which showed effects significantly higher than the control group. These results showed genotoxic responses in tadpoles, which could trigger cell death pathways. Concluding, these analyses are important for applications in assessment of contaminated aquatic environments and their biomonitoring, which will evaluate the potential toxicity of xenobiotics, for example, the nanoparticles and pyrethrum extract in frog species. However, further studies are needed to better understand the effects of nanopesticides and botanical insecticides on non-target organisms, in order to contribute to regulatory aspects of future uses for these systems.
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The use of nanoencapsulation of botanical compounds it is extremely important aiming applications in pest control, however before its use the study of toxicity in non-target organisms are crucial.
Postmortem examination of 7 neonates with congenital Zika virus infection in Brazil revealed microcephaly, ventriculomegaly, dystrophic calcifications, and severe cortical neuronal depletion in all ...and arthrogryposis in 6. Other findings were leptomeningeal and brain parenchymal inflammation and pulmonary hypoplasia and lymphocytic infiltration in liver and lungs. Findings confirmed virus neurotropism and multiple organ infection.
•This paper presents a system for detecting faults and tears on buried anchor rods.•A high frequency connector was designed to match a portable VNA with the anchor rod.•A set of 14 anchor rods were ...buried in the test field to provide measurements.•A logistic regression obtained a mean accuracy of 98.26% in the classification task.•The proposed system has proved to be feasible and reliable for field applications.
This paper presents a field application system for detecting structural faults on anchor rods of cable-stayed towers of power transmission lines, based on a nondestructive technique using frequency domain reflectometry analysis. A specific high frequency connector was designed to interface a portable vector network analyzer and the buried rods in the test field. The soil electric permittivity was modeled using a full-wave electromagnetic simulation software and measurements. A machine learning structure was developed for the measured S11-parameter signals from the distinct buried rods to binary classify them as normal or faulty. An accuracy greater than 98% was achieved by characterizing the system as reliable and feasible for a novel predictive maintenance process for ground-anchored metallic rods.
Proteins are inherently unstable, which limits their use as therapeutic agents. However, the use of biocompatible cosolvents or surfactants can help to circumvent this problem through the ...stabilization of intramolecular and solvent-mediated interactions. Ionic liquids (ILs) have been known to act as cosolvents or surface-active compounds. In the presence of proteins, ILs can have a beneficial effect on their refolding, shelf life, stability, and enzymatic activities. In the work described herein, we used small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) to monitor the aggregation of different concentrations of ILs with protein models, lysozyme (Lys) and bovine serum albumin (BSA), and fluorescence microscopy to assess micelle formation of fluorinated ILs (FILs) with Lys. Furthermore, coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CG-MD) simulations provided a better understanding of Lys-FIL interactions. The results showed that the proteins maintain their globular structures in the presence of FILs, with signs of partial unfolding for Lys and compaction for BSA with increased flexibility at higher FIL concentrations. Lys was encapsulated by FIL, thus reinforcing the potential of ILs to be used in the formulation of protein-based pharmaceuticals.
Structural faults on anchor rods due to corrosive processes are among the major natural causes worldwide for the collapse of guyed towers. As such towers are widely used on both power transmission ...lines and antenna systems, their collapse may cause unexpected interruptions of telecommunications and power delivery services. Despite being of utmost importance, underground corrosion monitoring is still a technological challenge, because it is a highly nonlinear problem, influenced by several soil characteristics and its complex iterations with the metallic structure of the rods. Some techniques have already been proposed to locate such faults; however, either they require previous knowledge about the medium or they need the interpretation of the acquired signal by a human specialist. These requirements make it difficult to use such solutions in automatic monitoring as well as to make their integration with Internet of Things (IoT) systems. In this article, a novel technique is proposed to automatically locate structural faults on anchor rods, based on a two-step machine learning (ML) solution. The system is fed by a vector composed of frequency-domain samples of the input impedance electromagnetic (EM) signals measured on the rods through a dedicated designed connector. Experimental results have demonstrated that the proposed combination of EM signal acquisition and ML data processing was able to perform the fault location on anchor rods accurately and with a total independence of any additional human analysis.
The aim of this study was to isolate and identify an indigenous yeast from cashew apple juice (CAJ) and then use it in the production of first- and second-generation ethanol, using CAJ and the ...enzymatic hydrolysate of cashew apple bagasse (MCAB-OH), respectively. The isolated yeast was identified as belonging to the genus
Hanseniaspora
. Afterward, the effect of the medium initial pH on the production of ethanol from CAJ was evaluated in the range of 3.0 to 5.5, with its maximum ethanol production of 42 g L
−1
and
Y
P/S
of 0.44 g g
−1
and 96 % efficiency. The effect of temperature (28–38 °C) on ethanol production was evaluated in a synthetic medium, and no difference in ethanol production in the temperature range evaluated (28–36 °C) was observed. At 32 °C, the yield, concentration, efficiency, and productivity of ethanol when using the CAJ medium were higher when compared to the results achieved for the synthetic medium. Regarding second-generation ethanol, the results showed that the yeast produced 24.37 g L
−1
of ethanol with an efficiency of 80.23 % and a productivity of 4.87 g L
−1
h
−1
at 5 h. Therefore,
Hanseniaspora
sp., isolated from CAJ, is a promising microorganism for the production of first- and second-generation ethanol.
Exposure to pesticides and consumption of high-fat diets are widespread in society. Reports have shown that exposure to glyphosate and a high-fat diet can cause gastrointestinal disorders and ...increase susceptibility to obesity. Thus, this study evaluated the impacts of perinatal exposure to glyphosate followed by consumption of a high-fat diet in adulthood on the histology and morphometry of jejunums and enteric nervous system of C57BL/6 mice.
After mating, 20 C57BL/6 female mice were separated into a control group (CG) and a glyphosate group (GLY) that received water with 0.5% glyphosate. After the lactation period, some male offspring were randomly separated into CG-SD and GLY-SD (standard diet) groups or CG-HD and GLY-HD (high-fat diet) groups. After 12 weeks, jejunum samples were collected and submitted to histological analysis.
Indirect exposure to glyphosate changed the morphometry of the intestinal wall, increased the proportion of intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) and goblet cells, and altered the area occupied by collagen fibers. The hyperlipidemic diet hypertrophied the jejunal total wall, total muscular and submucosal layers, decreased IELs, and increased the proportion of goblet cells. GLY-HD mice had shallower crypts, shorter villi, and less goblet cells and IELs than mice from GLY-SD group. GLY-HD also showed an increased number of neurons in myenteric and submucosal plexuses. Groups exposed to glyphosate and/or fed a high-fat diet had atrophied submucosal neurons.
This study suggests that perinatal glyphosate exposure combined with a high-fat diet in adulthood increases the risk of jejunum inflammation and dysfunction.
•Perinatal exposure to glyphosate changed the morphometry, goblet cells and collagen fibers in the jejunum of mice.•Hyperlipidic diet hypertrophied the muscular and submucosa layers, and changed the proportion of cells.•Perinatal glyphosate exposure combined with a high-fat diet in adulthood (GLY-HD) altered myenteric and submucosal neurons.•GLY-HD mice had shallower crypts, shorter villi, and less goblet cells and intraepithelial lymphocytes.•Perinatal glyphosate exposure combined with a high-fat diet in adulthood might increase the risk of jejunum inflammation.
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