Voltage-dependent conductance induced by hemocyanin in black lipid films

When hemocyanin is added to a black lipid film, the conductance increases in discrete steps. For negative potentials the single step conductance is constant, but for positive potentials the step conductance appears to decrease as the potential increases. At high positive potentials the conductance fluctuates between several levels. These data suggest that, in lipid membranes, hemocyanin conducts ions through discrete channels. The voltage-dependent conductance observed at high levels of conductance seems to be a consequence of the properties of the conductance of the single channel.     

Human urine: Epicatechin metabolites and antioxidant activity after cocoa beverage intake

Associations between cocoa consumption in humans, excreted metabolites and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) have been scarcely investigated. The aims of the study were to investigate the epicatechin (( ? )-Ec) metabolites excreted in urine samples after an intake of 40 g of cocoa powder along with the TAC of these urine samples and the relation between both the analyses. Each of the 21 volunteers received two interventions, one with a polyphenol-rich food (PRF) and one with a polyphenol-free food (PFF) in a randomized cross-over study. Urine samples were taken before and during 24 h at 0–6, 6–12 and 12–24 h periods after test intake. The excreted ( ? )-Ec metabolites and the TAC were determined in urine samples by LC-MS/MS and TEAC assay, respectively. The maximum excretion of ( ? )-Ec metabolites and the maximum TAC value were observed in urine samples excreted between 6 and 12 h after PRF consumption. Significance of TAC increase was found in urine samples excreted during 0–6 and 6–12 h (66.6 and 72.67%, respectively, with respect to the 0 h).     

The importance of naturally attenuated SARS-CoV-2in the fight against COVID-19

The current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is wreaking havoc throughout the world and has rapidly become a global health emergency. A central question concerning COVID-19 is why some individuals become sick and others not. Many have pointed already at variation in risk factors between individuals. However, the variable outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infections may, at least in part, be due also to differences between the viral subspecies with which individuals are infected. A more pertinent question is how we are to overcome the current pandemic. A vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 would offer significant relief, although vaccine developers have warned that design, testing and production of vaccines may take a year if not longer. Vaccines are based on a handful of different designs (i), but the earliest vaccines were based on the live, attenuated virus. As has been the case for other viruses during earlier pandemics, SARS-CoV-2 will mutate and may naturally attenuate over time (ii). What makes the current pandemic unique is that, thanks to state-of-the-art nucleic acid sequencing technologies, we can follow in detail how SARS-CoV-2 evolves while it spreads. We argue that knowledge of naturally emerging attenuated SARS-CoV-2 variants across the globe should be of key interest in our fight against the pandemic.     

Quantifying the effects of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) on deep organic C stocks using natural abundance 14C in three marginal soils

Perennial bioenergy crops have been shown to increase soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks, potentially offsetting anthropogenic C emissions. The effects of perennial bioenergy crops on SOC are typically assessed at shallow depths (<30 cm), but the deep root systems of these crops may also have substantial effects on SOC stocks at greater depths. We hypothesized that deep (>30 cm) SOC stocks would be greater under bioenergy crops relative to stocks under shallow‐rooted conventional crop cover. To test this, we sampled soils to between 1‐ and 3‐m depth at three sites in Oklahoma with 10‐ to 20‐year‐old switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) stands, and collected paired samples from nearby fields cultivated with shallow rooted annual crops. We measured root biomass, total organic C, ¹⁴C, ¹³C, and other soil properties in three replicate soil cores in each field and used a mixing model to estimate the proportion of recently fixed C under switchgrass based on ¹⁴C. The subsoil C stock under switchgrass (defined over 500–1500 kg/m² equivalent soil mass, approximately 30–100 cm depth) exceeded the subsoil stock in neighboring fields by 1.5 kg C/m² at a sandy loam site, 0.6 kg C/m² at a site with loam soils, and showed no significant difference at a third site with clay soils. Using the mixing model, we estimated that additional SOC introduced after switchgrass cultivation comprised 31% of the subsoil C stock at the sandy loam site, 22% at the loam site, and 0% at the clay site. These results suggest that switchgrass can contribute significantly to subsoil organic C—but also indicated that this effect varies across sites. Our analysis shows that agricultural strategies that emphasize deep‐rooted grass cultivars can increase soil C relative to conventional crops while expanding energy biomass production on marginal lands.     

Conventional single-chamber pacemakers versus transcatheter pacing systems in a “real world” cohort of patients: A comparative prospective single-center study

PurposeDespite the developments in conventional transvenous pacemakers (VVI-PM), the procedure is still associated with significant complications. Although there are no prospective clinical trials that compared VVI-PM with transcatheter pacemaker systems (TPS).MethodsThis is a prospective, observational, single-center study that included all patients with an indication for a single-chamber pacemaker implant within a 4-year period. All clinical, ECG and echocardiographic characteristics at implant, electrical parameters, associated complications and mortality were analyzed. A Cox survival model and a Bayesian cohort analysis were performed for differences in complication rates between groups.ResultsThere were 443 patients included (198 TPS and 245 VVI-PM). The mean age was 81.5 years (TPS group, 79.2 ± 6.6 years; VVI-PM group, 83.5 ± 8.9 years). There was a male predominance in TPS group (123, 62.1% vs. 67, 27.3%; p < 0.001). The presence of systolic dysfunction and renal insufficiency were more frequent in VVI-PM group than in TPS patients. Mean follow-up was 22.3 ± 15.9 months. In a multivariable paired data the TPS group presented fewer complications than VVI-PM group (HR = 0.39 [0.15–0.98], p-value 0.013), but major complications were not different (6, 3% vs 14, 5.6% respectively, p = 0.1761). There was no difference in the mortality rate between the groups. The TPS group had less risk than VVI-PM group to have a complication, with a 96% of probability.ConclusionsTPS patients had a lower overall complication rate than VVI-PM patients including matched-pair samples using a Bayesian analysis. These results confirm the safety profile of TPS in clinical practice.     

Ancient saltern metagenomics: tracking changes in microbes and their viruses from the underground to the surface

Microbial communities in hypersaline underground waters derive from ancient organisms trapped within the evaporitic salt crystals and are part of the poorly known subterranean biosphere. Here, we characterized the viral and prokaryotic assemblages present in the hypersaline springs that dissolve Triassic-Keuper evaporite rocks and feed the Añana Salt Valley (Araba/Alava, Basque Country, Spain). Four underground water samples (around 23% total salinity) with different levels of exposure to the open air were analysed by means of microscopy and metagenomics. Cells and viruses in the spring water had lower concentrations than what are normally found in hypersaline environments and seemed to be mostly inactive. Upon exposure to the open air, there was an increase in activity of both cells and viruses as well as a selection of phylotypes. The underground water was inhabited by a rich community harbouring a diverse set of genes coding for retinal binding proteins. A total of 35 viral contigs from 15 to 104 kb, representing partial or total viral genomes, were assembled and their evolutionary changes through the spring system were followed by SNP analysis and metagenomic island tracking. Overall, both the viral and the prokaryotic assemblages changed quickly upon exposure to the open air conditions.