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Abstract The claustrum is a brain structure that remains shrouded in mystery due to the limited understanding of its cellular structure, neural pathways, functionality and physiological aspects. Significant research has unveiled connections spanning from the claustrum to the entire cortex as well as subcortical areas. This widespread connectivity has led to speculations of its role in integrating information from different brain regions, possibly contributing to processes such as attention, consciousness, learning and memory. Our working hypothesis posits that claustrum neural activity contributes to the acquisition, consolidation and reconsolidation of long-term memories in mice. We found evidence in CF-1 mice of a decline in behavioral performance in an inhibitory avoidance task due to intra-claustral administration of 2% lidocaine immediately after a training session or memory recall. Nevertheless, this does not seem to be the case for the acquisition or retrieval of this type of memory, although its neural activity is significantly increased after training, evaluated through c-Fos expression. Moreover, inhibition of the claustrum’s synaptic activity appears to impair the consolidation but not acquisition or retrieval of an unconditioned memory formed in a nose-poke habituation task.

Artificial intelligence seems to be a new point of view to classical problems that, in the past, could not be understood in depth, leaving certain gaps in each knowledge area. As an example of this, maritime accidents are one of the most recognised international problems, with clear environmental and human life consequences. From the beginning, statistical studies have shown that not only the typical sampled variables must be considered but the accidents are related to human factors that, at the same time, are related to some variables like fatigue that cannot be easily sampled. In this research work, the use of machine learning algorithms on over 300 maritime accidents is proposed to identify the relationship between human factors and the main variables. The results showed that compliance with the minimum crew members and ship length are the two most relevant variables related to each accident for the Spanish Search and Rescue (SAR) region, as well as the characteristics of the ships. These accidents could be understood as three main groups of accidents related to the general tendency to not meet the minimum number of crew members and its difference in the year of construction of the ship. Finally, it was possible to use neural networks to model accidents with sufficient accuracy (determination factor higher than 0.60), which is particularly interesting in the context of a control system for maritime transport.

Plant microbiomes are known to serve several important functions for their host, and it is therefore important to understand their composition as well as the factors that may influence these microbial communities. The microbiome of Thalassia testudinum has only recently been explored, and studies to-date have primarily focused on characterizing the microbiome of plants in a single region. Here, we present the first characterization of the composition of the microbial communities of T. testudinum across a wide geographical range spanning three distinct regions with varying physicochemical conditions. We collected samples of leaves, roots, sediment, and water from six sites throughout the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico. We then analyzed these samples using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. We found that site and region can influence the microbial communities of T. testudinum, while maintaining a plant-associated core microbiome. A comprehensive comparison of available microbial community data from T. testudinum studies determined a core microbiome composed of 14 ASVs that consisted mostly of the family Rhodobacteraceae. The most abundant genera in the microbial communities included organisms with possible plant-beneficial functions, like plant-growth promoting taxa, disease suppressing taxa, and nitrogen fixers.

Este artículo reflexiona etnográficamente sobre cómo se aborda y concibe la vulnerabilidad material en las prácticas de sostenimiento comunitario de arquitecturas en conflicto. Nos apoyaremos en las teorías de mantenimiento, cuidado y reparación, para complementarlas/matizarlas a través de los aprendizajes cultivados durante el proceso de respuesta ante la quema de una biblioteca comunitaria en la periferia sur de Bogotá. Las prácticas colectivas de sostenimiento desplegadas para hacerse cargo del devenir de la arquitectura amenazada nos ayudan a traer al frente (I) ecologías de prácticas y de agencia distribuida; (II) temporalidades alternativas y futuros no previstos; y (III) respuestas creativas y generadoras ante el daño o el conflicto; así como también (IV) métodos tentativos y (V) métodos de “apertura” (o des-cajanegrización). A través de una etnografía del proceso de desmontaje problematizaremos los ecosistemas sociomateriales necesarios para sostener vidas ante un “mundo roto”.

Purpose: While tuberculosis remains a significant global health concern, prosthetic joint infections (PJIs) caused by members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex are exceptionally rare. Our objective is to perform a retrospective search of new cases of this disease and analyze all cases available in the literature of tuberculous PJIs, aiming to detect factors that may influence patient outcomes. Methods: The ESGIAI and ESGMYC study groups were used to collect information on non-published cases of tuberculous prosthetic joint infections (PJIs). Additionally, a literature review of all published cases of tuberculous PJIs was conducted. All identified cases in the retrospective study and in the literature review were merged and included in the statistical analysis, involving both univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: Fifteen previously unreported cases of tuberculous prosthetic joint infections (PJIs) from four countries were detailed. Among them, ten patients were female, with a median age of 76 years. The hip was affected in 13 cases. Seven patients experienced co-infection with another microorganism. Treatment approaches varied, with 13 patients undergoing implant removal, one treated with DAIR (debridement, antibiotics, and implant retention), and one case was treated with an unknown treatment method. All patients received antibiotic therapy and achieved a cure. The literature review that was conducted detected 155 published cases. Univariate analysis revealed a statistical significance for previous tuberculosis, joint, and no importance of surgery for cure. Conclusions: Tuberculous prosthetic joint infection (PJI) is a rare condition, typically presenting as a localized chronic infection. Antibiotic treatment is essential for the management of these patients, but neither surgical treatment nor duration of treatment seems to have importance in the outcome.

The striped venus clam (Chamelea gallina) is a relevant economic resource in the Adriatic Sea. This study explored the physiological status of C. gallina at four sites selected along a gradient from high to low incidence of recorded historical mortality events and low to high productivity in the Northwestern Adriatic Sea. Investigations were performed during the marine heatwave in 2022 (from July to November). The optimal temperature range for C. gallina was exceeded in July and September, exacerbating stress conditions and a poor nutritional status, particularly at the low productivity sites. Transcriptional profiles assessed in digestive glands showed that clams from the low productivity sites up-regulated transcripts related to feeding/digestive functions as a possible compensatory mechanism to withstand adverse environmental conditions. Clams from the high productivity sites, that in a previous study showed enrichment of health-promoting microbiome components, displayed a healthier metabolic makeup (IDH up-regulation) and induction of protective antioxidant and immune responses. These features are hallmarks of putative enhanced resilience of the species towards environmental stress. Despite the well-known high sensitivity of C. gallina to environmental variations and its narrow window of acclimatory potential, results highlight that local conditions may influence physiological plasticity of this clam species and shape either positively or negatively its response capabilities to environmental changes. The identification of health-promoting endogenous mechanisms both from the animal (this study) and from its associated microbiome may provide the foundation for developing novel tools and strategies to improve clam health and production in low productivity areas or under adverse environmental conditions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

To provide some glimpses on the possibility of shaping the human gut microbiome (GM) through probiotic exchange with natural ecosystems, here we explored the impact of 15 days of daily interaction with horses on the GM of 10 urban-living Italian children. Specifically, the children were in close contact with the horses in an "educational farm", where they spent almost 10 h/day interacting with the animals. The children's GM was assessed before and after the horse interaction using metabarcoding sequencing and shotgun metagenomics, along with the horses' skin, oral and fecal microbiomes. Targeted metabolomic analysis for GM-produced beneficial metabolites (i.e., short-chain fatty acids) in the children's feces was also performed. Interaction with horses facilitated the acquisition of health-related traits in the children's GM, such as increased diversity, enhanced butyrate production and an increase in several health-promoting species considered to be next-generation probiotics. Among these, the butyrate producers Facecalibacterium prausnitzii and F. duncaniae and a species belonging to the order Christensenellales. Interaction with horses was also associated with increased proportions of Eggerthella lenta , Gordonibacter pamelae and G. urolithinfaciens , GM components known to play a role in the bioconversion of dietary plant polyphenols into beneficial metabolites. Notably, no increase in potentially harmful traits, including toxin genes, was observed. Overall, our pilot study provides some insights on the existence of possible health-promoting exchanges between children and horses microbiomes. It lays the groundwork for an implemented and more systematic enrollment effort to explore the full complexity of human GM rewilding through exchange with natural ecosystems, aligning with the One Health approach., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

The use of marine mussels as biological models encompasses a broad range of research fields, in which the application of RNA analyses disclosed novel biomarkers of environmental stress and investigated biochemical mechanisms of action. Quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) is the gold standard for these studies, and despite its wide use and available protocols, it may be affected by technical flaws requiring reference gene data normalization. In this study, stability of housekeeping genes commonly employed as reference genes in qPCR analyses with Mytilus galloprovincialis was explored under field conditions. Mussels were collected from farms in the Northwestern Adriatic Sea. The sampling strategy considered latitudinal gradients of environmental parameters (proxied by location), gender, and their interactions with seasonality. Analyses of gene stability were performed using different algorithms. BestKeeper and geNorm agreed that combination of the ribosomal genes 18S ribosomal RNA (18S) and 28S ribosomal RNA (28S) was the best normalization strategy in the conditions tested, which agrees with available evidence. NormFinder provided different normalization strategies, involving combinations of tubulin (TUB)/28S (Gender/Season effect) or TUB/helicase (HEL) (Location/Season effect). Since NormFinder considers data grouping and computes both intra- and inter-group stability variations, it should work better with complex experimental designs and dataset structuring. Under the selected normalization strategies, expressions of the variable housekeeping genes actin (ACT) and elongation factor-1α (EF1) correlated with seasonal and latitudinal changes of abiotic environmental factors and mussel physiological status. Results point to consider ACT and EF1 expressions as molecular biomarkers of mussel general physiological status in field studies., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Despite their critical roles in marine ecosystems, only few studies have addressed the gut microbiome (GM) of cetaceans in a comprehensive way. Being long-living apex predators with a carnivorous diet but evolved from herbivorous ancestors, cetaceans are an ideal model for studying GM-host evolutionary drivers of symbiosis and represent a valuable proxy of overall marine ecosystem health. Here, we investigated the GM of eight different cetacean species, including both Odontocetes (toothed whales) and Mysticetes (baleen whales), by means of 16S rRNA-targeted amplicon sequencing. We collected faecal samples from free-ranging cetaceans circulating within the Pelagos Sanctuary (North-western Mediterranean Sea) and we also included publicly available cetacean gut microbiome sequences. Overall, we show a clear GM trajectory related to host phylogeny and taxonomy (i.e., phylosymbiosis), with remarkable GM variations which may reflect adaptations to different diets between baleen and toothed whales. While most samples were found to be infected by protozoan parasites of potential anthropic origin, we report that this phenomenon did not lead to severe GM dysbiosis. This study underlines the importance of both host phylogeny and diet in shaping the GM of cetaceans, highlighting the role of neutral processes as well as environmental factors in the establishment of this GM-host symbiosis. Furthermore, the presence of potentially human-derived protozoan parasites in faeces of free-ranging cetaceans emphasizes the importance of these animals as bioindicators of anthropic impact on marine ecosystems., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The microbiome plays a key role in the health of all metazoans. Whether and how the microbiome favors the adaptation processes of organisms to extreme conditions, such as those of Antarctica, which are incompatible with most metazoans, is still unknown. We investigated the microbiome of three endemic and widespread species of Antarctic polychaetes: Leitoscoloplos geminus , Aphelochaeta palmeri , and Aglaophamus trissophyllus . We report here that these invertebrates contain a stable bacterial core dominated by Meiothermus and Anoxybacillus , equipped with a versatile genetic makeup and a unique portfolio of proteins useful for coping with extremely cold conditions as revealed by pangenomic and metaproteomic analyses. The close phylosymbiosis between Meiothermus and Anoxybacillus and these Antarctic polychaetes indicates a connection with their hosts that started in the past to support holobiont adaptation to the Antarctic Ocean. The wide suite of bacterial cryoprotective proteins found in Antarctic polychaetes may be useful for the development of nature-based biotechnological applications.

Aiming to shed light on the biology of wild ruminants, we investigated the gut microbiome seasonal dynamics of the Alpine ibex ( Capra ibex ) from the Central Italian Alps. Feces were collected in spring, summer, and autumn during non-invasive sampling campaigns. Samples were analyzed by 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, shotgun metagenomics, as well as targeted and untargeted metabolomics. Our findings revealed season-specific compositional and functional profiles of the ibex gut microbiome that may allow the host to adapt to seasonal changes in available forage, by fine-tuning the holobiont catabolic layout to fully exploit the available food. Besides confirming the importance of the host-associated microbiome in providing the phenotypic plasticity needed to buffer dietary changes, we obtained species-level genome bins and identified minimal gut microbiome community modules of 11-14 interacting strains as a possible microbiome-based solution for the bioconversion of lignocellulose to high-value compounds, such as volatile fatty acids., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024 The Authors.)

This systematic review aimed to compile the available body of knowledge about microbiome-related nutritional interventions contributing to improve the chicken health and having an impact on the reduction of colonization by foodborne pathogens in the gut. Original research articles published between 2012 and 2022 were systematically searched in Scopus and PubMed. A total of 1,948 articles were retrieved and 140 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Overall, 73 papers described 99 interventions against colonization by Escherichia coli and related organisms; 10 papers described 15 interventions against Campylobacter spp.; 36 papers described 54 interventions against Salmonella; 40 papers described 54 interventions against Clostridium perfringens. A total of 197 microbiome-related interventions were identified as effective against one or more of the listed pathogens and included probiotics (n = 80), prebiotics (n = 23), phytobiotics (n = 25), synbiotics (n = 12), organic acids (n = 12), enzymes (n = 4), essential oils (n = 14) and combination of these (n = 27). The identified interventions were mostly administered in the feed (173/197) or through oral gavage (11/197), in the drinking water (7/197), in ovo (2/197), intra amniotic (2/197), in fresh or reused litter (1/197) or both in the feed and water (1/197). The interventions enhanced the beneficial microbial communities in the broiler gut as Lactic acid bacteria, mostly Lactobacillus spp., or modulated multiple microbial populations. The mechanisms promoting the fighting against colonization by foodborne pathogens included competitive exclusion, production of short chain fatty acids, decrease of gut pH, restoration of the microbiome after dysbiosis events, promotion of a more stable microbial ecology, expression of genes improving the integrity of intestinal mucosa, enhancing of mucin production and improvement of host immune response. All the studies extracted from the literature described in vivo trials but performed on a limited number of animals under experimental settings. Moreover, they detailed the effect of the intervention on the chicken gut without details on further impact on poultry meat safety., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Antimicrobial resistance has been identified as a major threat to global health. The pig food chain is considered an important source of antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs). However, there is still a lack of knowledge on the dispersion of ARGs in pig production system, including the external environment., Results: In the present study, we longitudinally followed one swine farm located in Italy from the weaning phase to the slaughterhouse to comprehensively assess the diversity of ARGs, their diffusion, and the bacteria associated with them. We obtained shotgun metagenomic sequences from 294 samples, including pig feces, farm environment, soil around the farm, wastewater, and slaughterhouse environment. We identified a total of 530 species-level genome bins (SGBs), which allowed us to assess the dispersion of microorganisms and their associated ARGs in the farm system. We identified 309 SGBs being shared between the animals gut microbiome, the internal and external farm environments. Specifically, these SGBs were characterized by a diverse and complex resistome, with ARGs active against 18 different classes of antibiotic compounds, well matching antibiotic use in the pig food chain in Europe., Conclusions: Collectively, our results highlight the urgency to implement more effective countermeasures to limit the dispersion of ARGs in the pig food systems and the relevance of metagenomics-based approaches to monitor the spread of ARGs for the safety of the farm working environment and the surrounding ecosystems., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

To investigate the possibility of phosphorus (P) recovery from marine sediment and explore the role of the carbon: nitrogen ratio in affecting the internal P release under anaerobic conditions, we experimented with the external addition of carbon (acetic acid and glucose) and ammonia nitrogen (NH 4 -N) to expose P release mechanisms. The 24-day anaerobic incubations were conducted with four different carbon: nitrogen dosing groups including no NH 4 -N addition and COD/N ratios of 100, 50, and 10. The P release showed that extra NH 4 -N loading significantly suppressed the decomposition of P (p < 0.05) from the marine sediment, the maximum P release was 4.07 mg/L and 7.14 mg/L in acetic acid- and glucose-fed systems, respectively, without extra NH 4 -N addition. Additionally, the results exhibited that the imbalance of carbon: nitrogen not only failed to induce the production of organic P mineralization enzyme (alkaline phosphatase) in the sediment but also suppressed its activity under anaerobic conditions. The highest enzyme activity was observed in the group without additional NH 4 -N dosage, with rates of 1046.4 mg/(kg∙h) in the acetic acid- and 967.8 mg/(kg∙h) in the glucose-fed system, respectively. Microbial data analysis indicated that a decrease in the abundance of P release-regulating bacteria, including polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (Rhodobacteraceae) and sulfate-reducing bacteria (Desulfosarcinaceae), was observed in the high NH 4 -N addition groups. The observed reduction in enzyme activity and suppression of microbial activity mentioned above could potentially account for the inhibited P decomposition in the presence of high NH 4 -N addition under anaerobic conditions. The produced P-enriched solution from the bioreactors may offer a promising source for future recovery endeavors., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Poultry farms are hotspots for the development and spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), due to high stocking densities and extensive use of antibiotics, posing a threat of spread and contagion to workers and the external environment. Here, we applied shotgun metagenome sequencing to characterize the gut microbiome and resistome of poultry, workers and their households - also including microbiomes from the internal and external farm environment - in three different farms in Italy during a complete rearing cycle. Our results highlighted a relevant overlap among the microbiomes of poultry, workers, and their families (gut and skin), with clinically relevant ARGs and associated mobile elements shared in both poultry and human samples. On a finer scale, the reconstruction of species-level genome bins (SGBs) allowed us to delineate the dynamics of microorganism and ARGs dispersion from farm systems. We found the associations with worker microbiomes representing the main route of ARGs dispersion from poultry to human populations. Collectively, our findings clearly demonstrate the urgent need to implement more effective procedures to counteract ARGs dispersion from poultry food systems and the relevance of metagenomics-based metacommunity approaches to monitor the ARGs dispersion process for the safety of the working environment on farms., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The human gut microbiome is losing biodiversity, due to the "microbiome modernization process" that occurs with urbanization. To keep track of it, here we applied shotgun metagenomics to the gut microbiome of the Baka, a group of forager-horticulturalists from Cameroon, who combine hunting and gathering with growing a few crops and working for neighboring Bantu-speaking farmers. We analyzed the gut microbiome of individuals with different access to and use of wild plant and processed foods, to explore the variation of their gut microbiome along the cline from hunter-gatherer to agricultural subsistence patterns. We found that 26 species-level genome bins from our cohort were pivotal for the degradation of the wild plant food substrates. These microbes include Old Friend species and are encoded for genes that are no longer present in industrialized gut microbiome. Our results highlight the potential relevance of these genes to human biology and health, in relation to lifestyle., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interest., (© 2024 The Author(s).)

ViromeScan is an innovative metagenomic analysis tool that allows characterizing the taxonomy of viral communities from raw data of metagenomics sequencing, efficiently denoising samples from reads of other microorganisms. This means that users can use the same shotgun metagenomic sequencing data to fully characterize complex microbial ecosystems, including bacteria and viruses. Here we describe the analysis procedure with some examples, illustrating the processes computed by ViromeScan from raw data to the final output., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)