The Ability of Basalt to Leach Nutrients and Support Growth of Cupriavidus metallidurans CH34 Depends on Basalt Composition and Element Release

The influence of different rock mineralogical compositions on element leaching and bio-weathering processes is poorly understood. Here, the role of basalt composition on nutrient leaching (calcium, iron, phosphorus or magnesium) and subsequent support of Cupriavidus metallidurans CH34 growth was evaluated. Seven different basalts were examined. In iron-limiting media, growth could be restored for all basalts tested, while only two basalts could restore growth in magnesium-limiting medium. Only for magnesium growth complementation was correlated with the composition of the basalts tested. Our results showed that basalt composition can affect leaching and availability of different elements, in turn, affecting bacterial growth.     

Late‐moulting Black‐necked Grebes Podiceps nigricollis show greater body mass in the face of failing food supply

From August to December, thousands of Black‐necked Grebes Podiceps nigricollis concentrate during the flightless moult period in salt ponds in the Odiel Marshes, southern Spain, where they feed on the brine shrimp Artemia parthenogenetica. We predicted that because Black‐necked Grebes moulted in a food‐rich, predator‐free environment, there would be no net loss of body mass caused by the use of fat stored to meet energy needs during remigial feather replacement (as is the case for some other diving waterbirds). However, because the food resource disappears in winter, we predicted that grebes moulting later in the season would put on more body mass prior to moult because of the increasing risk of an Artemia population crash before the moult period is completed. Body mass determinations of thousands of birds captured during 2000–2010 showed that grebes in active wing‐moult showed greater mass with date of capture. Early‐moulting grebes were significantly lighter at all stages than late‐moulting birds. Grebes captured with new feathers post‐moult were significantly lighter than those in moult. This is the first study to support the hypothesis that individual waterbirds adopt different strategies in body mass accumulation according to timing of moult: early‐season grebes were able to acquire an excess of energy over expenditure and accumulate fat stores while moulting. Delayed moulters acquired greater fat stores in advance of moult to contribute to energy expenditure for feather replacement and retained extra stores later, most likely as a bet hedge against the increasing probability of failing food supply and higher thermoregulatory demands late in the season. An alternative hypothesis, that mass change is affected by a trophically transmitted cestode using brine shrimps as an intermediate host and Black‐necked Grebes as final host, was not supported by the data.     

Single‐Crystalline Ultrathin Co3O4 Nanosheets with Massive Vacancy Defects for Enhanced Electrocatalysis

The role of vacancy defects is demonstrated to be positive in various energy‐related processes. However, introducing vacancy defects into single‐crystalline nanostructures with given facets and studying their defect effect on electrocatalytic properties remains a great challenge. Here this study deliberately introduces oxygen defects into single‐crystalline ultrathin Co₃O₄ nanosheets with O‐terminated {111} facets by mild solvothermal reduction using ethylene glycol under alkaline condition. As‐prepared defect‐rich Co₃O₄ nanosheets show a low overpotential of 220 mV with a small Tafel slope of 49.1 mV dec^?1 for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), which is among the best Co‐based OER catalysts to date and even more active than the state‐of‐the‐art IrO₂ catalyst. Such vacancy defects are formed by balancing with reducing environments under solvothermal conditions, but are surprisingly stable even after 1000 cycles of scanning under OER working conditions. Density functional theory plus U calculation attributes the enhanced performance to the oxygen vacancies and consequently exposed second‐layered Co metal sites, which leads to the lowered OER activation energy of 2.26 eV and improved electrical conductivity. This mild solvothermal reduction concept opens a new door for the understanding and future designing of advanced defect‐based electrocatalysts.     

Ubiquitin crosstalk connecting cellular processes

Cullin 4 (Cul4), a member of the evolutionally conserved cullin protein family, serves as a scaffold to assemble multisubunit ubiquitin E3 ligase complexes. Cul4 interacts with the Ring finger-containing protein ROC1 through its C-terminal cullin domain and with substrate recruiting subunit(s) through its N-terminus. Previous studies have demonstrated that Cul4 E3 ligase ubiquitylates key regulators in cell cycle control and mediates their degradation through the proteasomal pathway, thus contributing to genome stability. Recent studies from several groups have revealed that Cul4 E3 ligase can target histones for ubiquitylation, and importantly, ubiquitylation of histones may facilitate the cellular response to DNA damage. Therefore, histone ubiquitylation by Cul4 E3 ligase constitutes a novel mechanism through which Cul4 regulates chromatin function and maintains genomic integrity. We outline these studies and suggest that histone ubiquitylation might play important roles in Cul4-regualted chromatin function including the cellular response to DNA damage and heterochromatin gene silencing.     

Minor effect of depletion of resident macrophages from peritoneal cavity on resistance of common carp Cyprinus carpio to blood flagellates

Carp Cyprinus carpio macrophages were depleted by intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of clodronate-liposomes for the in vivo study of the effect of macrophage depletion on the resistance of carp to infection with blood flagellate parasites. Clodronate released inside the cell induces apoptosis of (murine) macrophages. Following i.p. injection of carp with liposomes alone, but not with Trypanoplasma borreli, neutrophilic granulocytes rapidly migrated from the head kidney to the peritoneal cavity. The majority of liposomes in the peritoneal cavity were not taken up by newly arrived neutrophilic granulocytes, however, but by resident macrophages. After 2 i.p. injections of clodronate-liposomes, the percentage of macrophages present in the peritoneal cavity was significantly reduced, as evaluated by flow cytometry. Macrophage-depleted carp that were infected i.p. with T. borreli suffered from high mortality. However, these fish did not show lethal parasitaemia but did show clear bacteraemia. Macrophage-depleted carp that were infected i.p. with Trypanosoma carassii showed a minor increase in parasitaemia. In addition, macrophage-depleted carp, immune to T. borreli as a result of having survived a prior infection, remained immune to i.p. reinfection with T. borreli. Succesful depletion of peritoneal macrophages seemed to have a minor effect on the resistance of carp against blood flagellates. However, carp macrophages are essential as a first line of defence against (bacterial) infection.     

Diversity and trait composition of moths respond to land-use intensification in grasslands: generalists replace specialists

Grasslands belong to the ecologically most relevant habitats in cultural landscapes, but also provide high economic value when used as meadows or pastures. Land-use intensification in grasslands negatively affects plant diversity as well as arthropod communities that depend on plants as food source and habitat, with important consequences for the provision and resilience of ecosystem functioning. In this study, we sampled grassland moth species and investigated whether species composition, diversity and life-history trait characteristics of moth communities respond to the type and intensity of land use, comparing 26 sites in three different regions of Germany. Consistent across the three regions, we found that pastures grazed by cattle, horses or sheep harbour fundamentally different moth communities than meadows (mown and fertilized grasslands). Overall land-use intensity (LUI)—i.e., grazing intensity, amount of fertilizer applied and mowing frequency taken together—significantly reduced abundance and species richness as well as diversity. Some 27.6% of the species showed significant negative responses to LUI. A shift towards generalist life-history traits was observed: in frequently mown and fertilized meadows, rare specialist species were replaced by ubiquist species, i.e., highly reproductive habitat generalists. These results show the sensitivity of moths, an important group of arthropod herbivores and pollinators, to land use change in grassland ecosystems. The functional homogenization of life-history traits in plants along land-use gradients is mirrored by their herbivore consumers, leaving high-intensity grasslands less diverse and potentially less resilient to environmental disturbances.     

Job strain and tobacco smoking: an individual-participant data meta-analysis of 166,130 adults in 15 European studies

Background

Tobacco smoking is a major contributor to the public health burden and healthcare costs worldwide, but the determinants of smoking behaviours are poorly understood. We conducted a large individual-participant meta-analysis to examine the extent to which work-related stress, operationalised as job strain, is associated with tobacco smoking in working adults.

Methodology and Principal Findings

We analysed cross-sectional data from 15 European studies comprising 166 130 participants. Longitudinal data from six studies were used. Job strain and smoking were self-reported. Smoking was harmonised into three categories never, ex- and current. We modelled the cross-sectional associations using logistic regression and the results pooled in random effects meta-analyses. Mixed effects logistic regression was used to examine longitudinal associations. Of the 166 130 participants, 17% reported job strain, 42% were never smokers, 33% ex-smokers and 25% current smokers. In the analyses of the cross-sectional data, current smokers had higher odds of job strain than never-smokers (age, sex and socioeconomic position-adjusted odds ratio: 1.11, 95% confidence interval: 1.03, 1.18). Current smokers with job strain smoked, on average, three cigarettes per week more than current smokers without job strain. In the analyses of longitudinal data (1 to 9 years of follow-up), there was no clear evidence for longitudinal associations between job strain and taking up or quitting smoking.

Conclusions

Our findings show that smokers are slightly more likely than non-smokers to report work-related stress. In addition, smokers who reported work stress smoked, on average, slightly more cigarettes than stress-free smokers.     

Genome annotation and antimicrobial properties of Bacillus toyonensis VU‐DES13, isolated from the Folsomia candida gut

Antibiotic resistance necessitates the search for new bioactive compounds with novel mechanisms of action. Natural products derived from bacteria and fungi are widely used in the field of medicine and new environments can be explored as sources of antimicrobials. Bacteria associated with springtails have shown high inhibitory activity against pathogens. Here, we characterized a bacterial strain with high potential for antimicrobial activity, isolated from the gut of the springtail Folsomia candida Willem (Collembola: Isotomidae). The strain was characterized using the ‘analytical profile index’ and the ‘minimal inhibitory concentration’ assay to test for antibiotic resistance. Agar overlay and agar disk diffusion assays were used to test the inhibitory activity of the strain and its extract against a variety of pathogens, and reporter assays were used to investigate the mode of action. High‐performance liquid chromatography was used to analyze and fractionate the extract of bacterial culture, followed by additional assays on the fractions. The genome of the strain was screened for presence of antibiotic resistance genes and secondary metabolite gene clusters. The isolate was identified as Bacillus toyonensis Jiménez et al., but it displayed differences in metabolic profile when compared to the type species. The isolate was highly resistant to penicillin and inhibited the growth of a variety of pathogenic microorganisms. Genome analysis revealed an enrichment of resistance genes for β‐lactam antibiotics compared to the type isolate. Also, secondary metabolite clusters involved in the production of siderophores, bacteriocins, and nonribosomal peptide synthetases were identified. In conclusion, a unique Bacillus strain was isolated from the gut of F. candida, for which we provide evidence of inhibitory activity against an array of pathogens. This, coupled with high resistance to penicillin as substantiated by the presence of resistance genes, points to the potential of B. toyonensis VU‐DES13 to provide a new source of antimicrobial compounds.     

Cloning of Petunia hybrida chloroplast DNA sequences capable of autonomous replication in yeast

Summary Sequences from Petunia hybrida chloroplast DNA which have the property to promote autonomous replication in Saccharomyces cerevisiae were cloned in vector YIp5. Seven cloned chloroplast DNA fragments are localized at one of two different sites on the chloroplast genome. One site, arsA was mapped on a 1.8 Kb fragment at position 27.0–28.8 Kb on the P. hybrida chloroplast genome. The plasmids containing this arsA are stable both in yeast and E. coli. The other site, arsB, was shown to be very unstable and is located either in the small single copy region close to the inverted repeat or just in the inverted repeat. The functioning of these sequences as a possible origin of replication in vivo is discussed.     

Moderate plant–soil feedbacks have small effects on the biodiversity–productivity relationship: A field experiment

Plant–soil feedback (PSF) has gained attention as a mechanism promoting plant growth and coexistence. However, most PSF research has measured monoculture growth in greenhouse conditions. Translating PSFs into effects on plant growth in field communities remains an important frontier for PSF research. Using a 4‐year, factorial field experiment in Jena, Germany, we measured the growth of nine grassland species on soils conditioned by each of the target species (i.e., 72 PSFs). Plant community models were parameterized with or without these PSF effects, and model predictions were compared to plant biomass production in diversity–productivity experiments. Plants created soils that changed subsequent plant biomass by 40%. However, because they were both positive and negative, the average PSF effect was 14% less growth on “home” than on “away” soils. Nine‐species plant communities produced 29 to 37% more biomass for polycultures than for monocultures due primarily to selection effects. With or without PSF, plant community models predicted 28%–29% more biomass for polycultures than for monocultures, again due primarily to selection effects. Synthesis: Despite causing 40% changes in plant biomass, PSFs had little effect on model predictions of plant community biomass across a range of species richness. While somewhat surprising, a lack of a PSF effect was appropriate in this site because species richness effects in this study were caused by selection effects and not complementarity effects (PSFs are a complementarity mechanism). Our plant community models helped us describe several reasons that even large PSF may not affect plant productivity. Notably, we found that dominant species demonstrated small PSF, suggesting there may be selective pressure for plants to create neutral PSF. Broadly, testing PSFs in plant communities in field conditions provided a more realistic understanding of how PSFs affect plant growth in communities in the context of other species traits.