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Abstract The escalating atmospheric CO2 concentration has become a global concern due to its substantial influence on climate change, emphasizing the necessity of carbon capture to achieve carbon neutrality. Adsorption-based CO2 separation is a promising approach for carbon capture, highlighting the importance of developing solid porous materials as effective adsorbents. Among these porous materials, zeolites stand out as promising adsorbents due to their extensively tunable adsorption/separation properties, superior structural stability, non-toxicity, and cost-effectiveness. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the mechanisms, strategies, and prospects for zeolite development in separating CO2 from critical scenarios, encompassing flue gas (CO2/N2), natural/bio/landfill gases (CO2/CH4), and air, respectively. This review outlines general mechanisms for CO2 separation using zeolites, discusses specific strategies for zeolite development, and concludes with a summary of current findings and an outlook for future research.

The silicifying peptide R5 (H‐SSKKSGSYSGSKGSKRRIL‐OH) derived from diatoms is extensively investigated, but the mechanism underlying silica synthesis by R5 or R5‐alike peptides is still poorly understood, limiting the design of silicifying peptides Herein, machine learning techniques are used to design peptides with silicifying functionality. Utilizing a comprehensive dataset of peptides and their corresponding silicification outcomes, a deep learning model based on antimicrobial peptide migration learning is created. This model exhibits the remarkable capability to accurately predict peptide sequences with a high potential for facilitating silica formation. A selection of artificially designed peptides can catalyze the biomimetic synthesis of nanosilica, some of which demonstrate better catalytic activity with a wider pH range and faster reaction rate compared with the peptide R5. Additionally, the designed peptide is used to wrap the model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum with nanosilica coatings, resulting in a significant enhancement in the UV resistance of cells. The new silicified peptides are highly significant for advancing the understanding of the silica synthesis mechanism in diatoms, and the encapsulation of P. tricornutum has potential benefits in the development of new biosensors.

Summary: A major obstacle to exploiting industrial flue gas for microalgae cultivation is the unfavorable acidic environment. We previously identified three upregulated genes in the low-pH-adapted model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum: ferredoxin (PtFDX), cation/proton antiporter (PtCPA), and HCO3− transporter (PtSCL4-2). Here, we individually overexpressed these genes in P. tricornutum to investigate their respective roles in resisting acidic stress (pH 5.0). The genetic modifications enabled positive growths of transgenic strains under acidic stress that completely inhibited the growth of the wild-type strain. Physiological studies indicated improved photosynthesis and reduced oxidative stress in the transgenic strains. Transcriptomes of the PtCPA- and PtSCL4-2-overexpressing transgenics showed widespread upregulation of various transmembrane transporters, which could help counteract excessive external protons. This work highlights ion/electron carrier genes’ role in enhancing diatom resistance to acidic stress, providing insights into phytoplankton adaptation to ocean acidification and a strategy for biological carbon capture and industrial flue gas CO2 utilization.

Prochlorococcus, a cyanobacteria genus of the smallest and most abundant oceanic phototrophs, encompasses ecotype strains adapted to high-light (HL) and low-light (LL) niches. To elucidate the adaptive evolution of this genus, we analyzed 40 Prochlorococcus marinus ORFeomes, including two cornerstone strains, MED4 and NATL1A. Employing deep learning with robust statistical methods, we detected new protein family distributions in the strains and identified key genes differentiating the HL and LL strains. The HL strains harbor genes (ABC-2 transporters) related to stress resistance, such as DNA repair and RNA processing, while the LL strains exhibit unique chlorophyll adaptations (ion transport proteins, HEAT repeats). Additionally, we report the finding of variable, depth-dependent endogenous viral elements in the 40 strains. To generate biological resources to experimentally study the HL and LL adaptations, we constructed the ORFeomes of two representative strains, MED4 and NATL1A synthetically, covering 99% of the annotated protein-coding sequences of the two species, totaling 3976 cloned, sequence-verified open reading frames (ORFs). These comparative genomic analyses, paired with MED4 and NATL1A ORFeomes, will facilitate future genotype-to-phenotype mappings and the systems biology exploration of Prochlorococcus ecology.

Microalgae are unicellular photosynthetic microorganisms that play a vital role in primary production and have diverse applications in various industries. They have high photosynthetic and metabolic capacities and can produce a variety of valuable metabolites, such as lipids, carbohydrates, pigments, and proteins. However, practical applications of microalgae are limited to high-value products due to the high production costs. Algal biotechnology faces challenges such as low energy utilization efficiency and product yield that are currently inadequate to fulfill commercial production. To overcome these challenges, emerging technologies have shown promise to achieve higher production efficiency, including molecular manipulation of photosynthetic efficiency and metabolic activities. Here, we provided an overview of the importance, diversity, and photosynthesis of microalgae, as well as strategies for enhancing their photosynthetic efficiency. We discussed various approaches for improving microalgal photosynthesis, including strain selection and optimization, rational genetic modification, and innovative technologies such as spectral recomposition of light, nanomaterials, advanced cultivation systems, and symbiotic systems. Additionally, we summarized metabolic engineering strategies that focus on optimizing the synthesis of value-added metabolites, such as pigments, long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, starch, proteins, and hydrogen in microalgae. By concentrating on improving photosynthetic efficiency and the synthesis of bioactive metabolites, this review provided valuable insights into enhancing microalgae production yields. Overcoming limitations in microalgae production costs can lead to broader applications in various industries. Furthermore, we highlight the potential of these strategies in increasing the efficiency of microalgae as a sustainable source for high-value products.

Abstract Background Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is an extremely rare, aggressive tumor with few effective therapeutic options or drugs. Mitotane (Mtn), which is the only authorized therapeutic drug, came out in 1970 and is still the only first-line treatment for ACC in spite of serious adverse reaction and a high recurrence rate. Methods By in silico analysis of the ACC dataset in the cancer genome atlas (TCGA), we determined that high expression levels of cyclin-dependent kinase-1 (CDK1) were significantly related to the adverse clinical outcomes of ACC. In vitro and in vivo experiments were performed to evaluate the role of CDK1 in ACC progression through gain and loss of function assays in ACC cells. CDK1 inhibitors were screened to identify potential candidates for the treatment of ACC. RNA sequencing, co-immunoprecipitation, and immunofluorescence assays were used to elucidate the mechanism. Results Overexpression of CDK1 in ACC cell lines promoted proliferation and induced the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), whereas knockdown of CDK1 expression inhibited growth of ACC cell lines. The CDK1 inhibitor, cucurbitacin E (CurE), had the best inhibitory effect with good time-and dose-dependent activity both in vitro and in vivo. CurE had a greater inhibitory effect on ACC xenografts in nude mice than mitotane, without obvious adverse effects. Most importantly, combined treatment with CurE and mitotane almost totally eliminated ACC tumors. With respect to mechanism, CDK1 facilitated the EMT of ACC cells via Slug and Twist and locked ACC cells into the G2/M checkpoint through interaction with UBE2C and AURKA/B. CDK1 also regulated pyroptosis, apoptosis, and necroptosis (PANoptosis) of ACC cells through binding with the PANoptosome in a ZBP1-dependent way. Conclusions CDK1 could be exploited as an essential therapeutic target of ACC via regulating the EMT, the G2/M checkpoint, and PANoptosis. Thus, CurE may be a potential candidate drug for ACC therapy with good safety and efficacy, which will meet the great need of patients with ACC.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common and the second most fatal cancer. In recent years, more attention has been directed toward the role of gut microbiota in the initiation and development of CRC. Some bacterial species, such as Fusobacterium nucleatum, Escherichia coli, Bacteroides fragilis, Enterococcus faecalis, and Salmonella sp. have been associated with CRC, based upon sequencing studies in CRC patients and functional studies in cell culture and animal models. These bacteria can cause host DNA damage by genotoxic substances, including colibactin secreted by pks + Escherichia coli, B. fragilis toxin (BFT) produced by Bacteroides fragilis, and typhoid toxin (TT) from Salmonella. These bacteria can also indirectly promote CRC by influencing host-signaling pathways, such as E-cadherin/β-catenin, TLR4/MYD88/NF-κB, and SMO/RAS/p38 MAPK. Moreover, some of these bacteria can contribute to CRC progression by helping tumor cells to evade the immune response by suppressing immune cell function, creating a pro-inflammatory environment, or influencing the autophagy process. Treatments with the classical antibacterial drugs, metronidazole or erythromycin, the antibacterial active ingredients, M13@ Ag (electrostatically assembled from inorganic silver nanoparticles and the protein capsid of bacteriophage M13), berberine, and zerumbone, were found to inhibit tumorigenic bacteria to different degrees. In this review, we described progress in elucidating the tumorigenic mechanisms of several CRC-associated bacteria, as well as progress in developing effective antibacterial therapies. Specific bacteria have been shown to be active in the oncogenesis and progression of CRC, and some antibacterial compounds have shown therapeutic potential in bacteria-induced CRC. These bacteria may be useful as biomarkers or therapeutic targets for CRC.

Intelligent fault diagnosis (IFD) is essential for preventative maintenance (PM) in Industry 4.0. Data-driven approaches have been widely accepted for IFD in smart manufacturing, and various deep learning (DL) models have been developed for different datasets and scenarios. However, an automatic and unified DL framework for developing IFD applications is still required. Hence, this work proposes an efficient framework integrating popular convolutional neural networks (CNNs) for IFD based on time-series data by leveraging automated machine learning (AutoML) and image-like data fusion. After normalisation, uniaxial or triaxial signals are reconstructed into -channel pseudo-images to satisfy the input requirements for CNNs and achieve data-level fusion simultaneously. Then, the model training, hyperparameter optimisation, and evaluation can be taken automatically based on AutoML. Finally, the selected model can be deployed on a cloud server or an edge device (via tiny machine learning). The proposed framework and method were validated via two case studies, demonstrating the framework’s availability for the automatic development of IFD applications and the effectiveness of the proposed data-level fusion method.

Peony seed meal (PSM) is the by-product obtained from peony seeds after oil extraction. In this study, PSM was incorporated into traditional koji-making, and its impacts on koji enzyme activities and flavor compounds in final products were investigated. In the process of koji fermentation, the optimal addition ratio of PSM to soybean was determined as 7:3. Under this ratio, the maximum enzyme activities of neutral protease, amylase, and glucoamylase were 1177.85, 686.58, and 1564.36 U/g, respectively, and the koji obtained was subjected to maturation. During post-fermentation, changes in the fermentation characteristics of the paste samples were monitored, and it was found that compared to the soybean paste without PSM, the enzyme activities maintained at a relatively good level. The PSM soybean paste contained a total of 80 flavor compounds and 11 key flavor compounds (OAV ≥ 1), including ethyl isovalerate, isovaleric acid, hexanal, phenylacetaldehyde, 3-Methyl-1-butanol 4-heptanone, 2-pentylfuran, methanethiol ester caproate, isoamyl acetate, 3-methyl-4-heptanone, and isovaleraldehyde. These findings could be used to improve the quality of traditional fermented paste, enrich its flavor, and simultaneously promote PSM as a valuable resource for fermented foods.

Exosomes are cell-derived nanovesicles with diameters from 30 to 150 nm, released upon fusion of multivesicular bodies with the cell surface. They can transport nucleic acids, proteins, and lipids for intercellular communication and activate signaling pathways in target cells. In cancers, exosomes may participate in growth and metastasis of tumors by regulating the immune response, blocking the epithelial–mesenchymal transition, and promoting angiogenesis. They are also involved in the development of resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs. Exosomes in liquid biopsies can be used as non-invasive biomarkers for early detection and diagnosis of cancers. Because of their amphipathic structure, exosomes are natural drug delivery vehicles for cancer therapy.

Apolipoprotein C1 (APOC1) has been found to play an essential part in proliferation and metastasis of numerous cancers, but related mechanism has not been elucidated, especially its function and role in tumor immunity. Through systematic pan-cancer analysis, we identified that APOC1 was closely associated with the infiltration of various immune cells in multiple cancers. Besides, APOC1 was significantly co-expressed with the immune checkpoints, major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules, chemokines and other immune-related genes. Furthermore, single-cell sequencing analysis suggested that the vast majority of APOC1 was expressed in macrophages or tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). Additionally, the expression of APOC1 was significantly related to the prognosis of different cancers. Since APOC1 was most significantly abnormally expressed in renal cell cancer (RCC), subsequent experiments were carried out in RCC to explore the role of APOC1 in tumor immunity. The expression of APOC1 was significantly elevated in the tumor and serum of RCC patients. Besides, APOC1 was mainly expressed in the macrophage and it was closely related to the immune cell infiltration of RCC. Co-culture with RCC cells could induce the generation of TAMs with M2 phenotype which be blocked by silencing APOC1. The expression of APOC1 was elevated in the M2 or TAMs and APOC1 promoted M2 polarization of macrophages through interacting with CD163 and CD206. Furthermore, macrophages overexpressing APOC1 promoted the metastasis of RCC cells via secreting CCL5. Together, these data indicate that APOC1 is an immunological biomarker which regulates macrophage polarization and promotes tumor metastasis.

Microalgae have drawn much attention for their potential applications as a sustainable source for developing bioactive compounds, functional foods, feeds, and biofuels. Diatoms, as one major group of microalgae with high yields and strong adaptability to the environment, have shown advantages in developing photosynthetic cell factories to produce value-added compounds, including heterologous bioactive products. However, the commercialization of diatoms has encountered several obstacles that limit the potential mass production, such as the limitation of algal productivity and low photosynthetic efficiency. In recent years, systems and synthetic biology have dramatically improved the efficiency of diatom cell factories. In this review, we discussed first the genome sequencing and genome-scale metabolic models (GEMs) of diatoms. Then, approaches to optimizing photosynthetic efficiency are introduced with a focus on the enhancement of biomass productivity in diatoms. We also reviewed genome engineering technologies, including CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) gene-editing to produce bioactive compounds in diatoms. Finally, we summarized the recent progress on the diatom cell factory for producing heterologous compounds through genome engineering to introduce foreign genes into host diatoms. This review also pinpointed the bottlenecks in algal engineering development and provided critical insights into the future direction of algal production.

Abstract Background Diatoms, which can accumulate large amounts of carotenoids, are a major group of microalgae and the dominant primary producer in marine environments. Phaeodactylum tricornutum, a model diatom species, acquires little silicon for its growth although silicon is known to contribute to gene regulation and play an important role in diatom intracellular metabolism. In this study, we explored the effects of artificial high-silicate medium (i.e. 3.0 mM sodium metasilicate) and LED illumination conditions on the growth rate and pigment accumulation in P. tricornutum, which is the only known species so far that can grow without silicate. It’s well known that light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as novel illuminants are emerging to be superior monochromatic light sources for algal cultivation with defined and efficient red and blue lights. Results Firstly, we cultivated P. tricornutum in a synthetic medium supplemented with either 0.3 mM or 3.0 mM silicate. The morphology and size of diatom cells were examined: the proportion of the oval and triradiate cells decreased while the fusiform cells increased with more silicate addition in high-silicate medium; the average length of fusiform cells also slightly changed from 14.33 µm in 0.3 mM silicate medium to 12.20 µm in 3.0 mM silicate medium. Then we cultivated P. tricornutum under various intensities of red light in combination with the two different levels of silicate in the medium. Higher biomass productivity also achieved in 3.0 mM silicate medium than in 0.3 mM silicate medium under red LED light irradiation at 128 μmol/m2/s or higher light intensity. Increasing silicate reversed the down-regulation of fucoxanthin and chlorophyll a under high red-light illumination (i.e. 255 μmol/m2/s). When doubling the light intensity, fucoxanthin content decreased under red light but increased under combined red and blue (50:50) lights while chlorophyll a content reduced under both conditions. Fucoxanthin accumulation and biomass productivity increased with enhanced red and blue (50:50) lights. Conclusion High-silicate medium and blue light increased biomass and fucoxanthin production in P. tricornutum under high light conditions and this strategy may be beneficial for large-scale production of fucoxanthin in diatoms.

Bioplastics, which are plastic materials produced from renewable bio-based feedstocks, have been investigated for their potential as an attractive alternative to petroleum-based plastics. Despite the harmful effects of plastic accumulation in the environment, bioplastic production is still underdeveloped. Recent advances in strain development, genome sequencing, and editing technologies have accelerated research efforts toward bioplastic production and helped to advance its goal of replacing conventional plastics. In this review, we highlight bioengineering approaches, new advancements, and related challenges in the bioproduction and biodegradation of plastics. We cover different types of polymers, including polylactic acid (PLA) and polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs and PHBs) produced by bacterial, microalgal, and plant species naturally as well as through genetic engineering. Moreover, we provide detailed information on pathways that produce PHAs and PHBs in bacteria. Lastly, we present the prospect of using large-scale genome engineering to enhance strains and develop microalgae as a sustainable production platform.

Summary: Diatoms are a major group of microalgae that initiate biofouling by surface colonization of human-made underwater structures; however, the involved regulatory pathways remain uncharacterized. Here, we describe a protocol for identifying and validating regulatory genes involved in the morphology shift of the model diatom species Phaeodactylum tricornutum during surface colonization. We also provide a workflow for characterizing biofouling transformants. By using this protocol, gene targets such as GPCR signaling genes could be identified and manipulated to turn off diatom biofouling.For complete information on the generation and use of this protocol, please refer to Fu et al. (2020).

With the continuous development of industry, the massive emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) has become a global challenge that cannot be ignored due to its nature as the primary driver of global climate change and environmental crisis. Carbon neutrality is proposed as a global initiative to mitigate climate change. As a developing industrial country, China provides about one-third of global carbon emissions and has set a carbon-neutral goal by 2060. To achieve this goal, continuous efforts across the country are required. In this review, Zhejiang Province, one of the most developed regions in China, is set as a model for analysis. We first summarize the current situation of carbon emission in Zhejiang Province. Then, corresponding sustainable approaches such as ecological and industrial solutions for the reduction of future carbon emissions are introduced for Zhejiang Province. We also provide a direction for the realization of carbon neutrality, focusing on the most promising solutions for Zhejiang Province.

The rheological properties of the CO2 hydrate slurry are experimentally investigated by using a new flow loop with an inner diameter of 50 mm. The pressure drops of the CO2 hydrate slurry are measured experimentally under the volumetric hydrate fraction, ranging from 1.4 to 17.2 vol%, and the shear rate ranging from 40 to 590 s−1. Using the capillary method, the rheology of the CO2 hydrate slurry is analyzed based on pressure drop. The CO2 hydrate slurry is identified as a power-law fluid and exhibits strong shear-thickening behavior. The increase in the volumetric hydrate concentration not only ascends the apparent viscosity, but also makes the non-Newtonian behavior of the hydrate slurry become more obvious. The non-Newtonian index and the consistence factor of fluid increase exponentially with the volumetric hydrate concentration increasing. A Herschel–Bulkley-type rheological model of the CO2 hydrate slurry is correlated from experimental data. The developed model performs the average discrepancy of less than 16.3% within the range of the experiment.

Change detection (CD) is one of the most important topics in remote sensing. In this paper, we propose a novel higher-order clique conditional random field model to unsupervised CD for remote sensing images (termed HOC2RF), by defining a higher-order clique potential. The clique potential, constructed based on a well-designed higher-order clique of image objects, takes the interaction between the neighboring objects in both feature and location spaces into account. HOC2RF consists of five principle steps: (1) Two difference images with complementary change information are produced by change vector analysis and using the spectral correlation mapper, which describe changes from the perspective of the vector magnitude and angle, respectively. (2) The fuzzy partition matrix of each difference image is calculated by fuzzy clustering, and the fused partition matrix is obtained by fusing the calculated partition matrices with evidence theory. (3) An object-level map is created by segmenting the difference images with an adaptive morphological reconstruction based watershed algorithm. (4) The energy function of the proposed HOC2RF, composed of unary, pairwise, and higher-order clique potentials, is computed based on the difference images, the fusion partition matrix, and the object-level map. (5) The energy function is minimized by the graph cut algorithm to achieve the binary CD map. The proposed HOC2RF CD approach combines the complementary change information extracted from the perspectives of vector magnitude and angle, and synthetically exploits the pixel-level and object-level spatial correlation of images. The main contributions of this article include: (1) proposing the idea of using the interaction between neighboring objects in both feature and location spaces to enhance the CD performance; and (2) presenting a method to construct a higher-order clique of objects, developing a higher-order clique potential function, and proposing a novel CD method HOC2RF. In the experiments on three real remote sensing images, the Kappa coefficient/overall accuracy values of the proposed HOC2RF are 0.9655/0.9967, 0.9518/0.9910, and 0.7845/0.9651, respectively, which are superior to some state-of-the-art CD methods. The experimental results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Background: Treatment of unruptured vertebral artery aneurysm involving posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) is challenging. The experience of pipeline embolization device (PED) therapy for these lesions is still limited.Objective: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of the PED for unruptured vertebral artery aneurysm involving PICA.Methods: Thirty-two patients with unruptured vertebral artery aneurysm involving PICA underwent treatment with PED were retrospectively identified. Procedure-related complications, PICA patency, clinical, and angiographic outcomes were analyzed.Results: Thirty-two aneurysms were successfully treated without any procedure-related complications. Images were available in 30 patients (93.8%) during a period of 3–26 months follow-up (average 8.4 months), which confirmed complete occlusion in 17 patients (56.5%), near-complete occlusion in 9 patients (30%), and incomplete occlusion in one patient (3.3%). Parent artery occlusion (PAO) was occurred in 3 patients (10%). Twenty-eight of 30 PICA remained patent. The two occlusions of PICA were secondary to PAO. At a mean of 20.7 months (range 7–50 months) clinical follow-up, all the patients achieved a favorable outcome without any new neurological deficit.Conclusion: PED seems to be a safe and effective alternative endovascular option for patients with unruptured vertebral artery aneurysm involving PICA.

Summary: The activities of microalgae support nutrient cycling that helps to sustain aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Most microalgal species, especially those from the subtropics, are genomically uncharacterized. Here we report the isolation and genomic characterization of 22 microalgal species from subtropical coastal regions belonging to multiple clades and three from temperate areas. Halotolerant strains including Halamphora, Dunaliella, Nannochloris, and Chloroidium comprised the majority of these isolates. The subtropical-based microalgae contained arrays of methyltransferase, pyridine nucleotide-disulfide oxidoreductase, abhydrolase, cystathionine synthase, and small-molecule transporter domains present at high relative abundance. We found that genes for sulfate transport, sulfotransferase, and glutathione S-transferase activities were especially abundant in subtropical, coastal microalgal species and halophytic species in general. Our metabolomics analyses indicate lineage- and habitat-specific sets of biomolecules implicated in niche-specific biological processes. This work effectively expands the collection of available microalgal genomes by ∼50%, and the generated resources provide perspectives for studying halophyte adaptive traits. : Global Nutrient Cycle; Algology; Genomics; Metabolomics Subject Areas: Global Nutrient Cycle, Algology, Genomics, Metabolomics

Summary: Surface colonization allows diatoms, a dominant group of phytoplankton in oceans, to adapt to harsh marine environments while mediating biofoulings to human-made underwater facilities. The regulatory pathways underlying diatom surface colonization, which involves morphotype switching in some species, remain mostly unknown. Here, we describe the identification of 61 signaling genes, including G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and protein kinases, which are differentially regulated during surface colonization in the model diatom species, Phaeodactylum tricornutum. We show that the transformation of P. tricornutum with constructs expressing individual GPCR genes induces cells to adopt the surface colonization morphology. P. tricornutum cells transformed to express GPCR1A display 30% more resistance to UV light exposure than their non-biofouling wild-type counterparts, consistent with increased silicification of cell walls associated with the oval biofouling morphotype. Our results provide a mechanistic definition of morphological shifts during surface colonization and identify candidate target proteins for the screening of eco-friendly, anti-biofouling molecules.

Abstract Background Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common, malignant, and lethal primary brain tumor in adults accounting for about 50% of all gliomas. Up to now, the chemotherapy approaches for GBM were limited. 3-O-acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid (AKBA), the major active ingredient of the gum resin from Boswellia serrata and Boswellia carteri Birdw., was reported to inhibit the growth of many types of cancer cells; however, the underlying mechanism of its anticancer effects are still unclear. Methods The effects of AKBA on cell viability and its cytotoxicity were determined using CCK8 and LDH kits respectively. The EdU-DNA synthesis assay was used to evaluate inhibition of cell proliferation by AKBA. The role of AKBA in glioblastoma cell functions such as migration/invasion, and colony formation was evaluated using transwell chambers and soft agar, respectively. Flow cytometry and western blotting were used to detect AKBA-induced apoptosis. Potential mechanisms of AKBA action were explored by RNA sequencing and the identified hub genes were validated by real-time quantitative PCR and western blotting. Finally, the in vivo anti-tumor activity of AKBA was evaluated against a human glioblastoma cell line, U87-MG, in a xenograft mouse model. Results AKBA inhibited cell proliferation, caused the release of LDH, decreased DNA synthesis, and inhibited the migration, invasion, and colony formation of U251 and U87-MG human glioblastoma cell lines. AKBA increased apoptosis as well as the activity of caspase 3/7 and the protein expression of cleaved-caspase 3 and cleaved PARP, while decreasing mitochondrial membrane potential. RNA-sequencing analyses showed that AKBA suppressed the expression of pRB, FOXM1, Aurora A, PLK1, CDC25C, p-CDK1, cyclinB1, Aurora B, and TOP2A while increasing the expression of p21 and GADD45A. These findings were validated by qRT-PCR and western blotting. The data are consistent with a mechanism in which AKBA arrested the cell cycle in glioblastoma cells at the G2/M phase by regulating the p21/FOXM1/cyclin B1 pathway, inhibited mitosis by downregulating the Aurora B/TOP2A pathway, and induced mitochondrial-dependent apoptosis. Oral administration of AKBA (100 mg/kg) significantly suppressed the tumorigenicity of U87-MG cells in a xenograft mouse model. Conclusions Taken together, these results suggest that AKBA (molecular weight, 512.7 Da) might be a promising chemotherapy drug in the treatment of GBM.

Abstract Background miR-29c has been associated with the progression of many cancers. However, the function and mechanism of miR-29c have not been well investigated in breast cancers. Methods Real-time quantitative PCR was used to assess expression of miR-29c and DNMT3B mRNA. Western blot and immunochemistry were used to examine the expression of DNA methyltransferase 3B (DNMT3B) protein in breast cancer cells and tissues. The functional roles of miR-29c in breast cancer cells such as proliferation, migration, invasion, colony formation, and 3D growth were evaluated using MTT, transwell chambers, soft agar, and 3D Matrigel culture, respectively. In addition, the luciferase reporter assay was used to check if miR-29c binds the 3′UTR of DNMT3B. The effects of miR-29c on the DNMT3B/TIMP3/STAT1/FOXO1 pathway were also examined using Western blot and methyl-specific qPCR. The specific inhibitor of STAT1, fludarabine, was used to further check the mechanism of miR-29c function in breast cancer cells. Studies on cell functions were carried out in DNMT3B siRNA cell lines. Results The expression of miR-29c was decreased with the progression of breast cancers and was closely associated with an overall survival rate of patients. Overexpression of miR-29c inhibited the proliferation, migration, invasion, colony formation, and growth in 3D Matrigel while knockdown of miR-29c promoted these processes in breast cancer cells. In addition, miR-29c was found to bind 3′UTR of DNMT3B and inhibits the expression of DNMT3B, which was elevated in breast cancers. Moreover, the protein level of TIMP3 was reduced whereas methylation of TIMP3 was increased in miR-29c knockdown cells compared to control. On the contrary, the protein level of TIMP3 was increased whereas methylation of TIMP3 was reduced in miR-29c-overexpressing cells compared to control. Knockdown of DNMT3B reduced the proliferation, migration, and invasion of breast cancer cell lines. Finally, our results showed that miR-29c exerted its function in breast cancers by regulating the TIMP3/STAT1/FOXO1 pathway. Conclusion The results suggest that miR-29c plays a significant role in suppressing the progression of breast cancers and that miR-29c may be used as a biomarker of breast cancers.

The data presented in this article are related to the research article entitled “Sugar-stimulated CO2 sequestration by the green microalga Chlorella vulgaris” (Fu et al., 2019) [1]. The data describe a rational design and scale-up of LED-based photobioreactors for producing value-added algal biomass while removing waste CO2 from flu gases from power plants. The dataset were created from growth rate experiments for biomass production including direct biomass productivity data, PBR size and setup parameters, medium composition as well as indirect energy cost and overhead in Iceland. A complete economic analysis is formed through a cost breakdown as well as PBR scalability predictions.

Marine diatoms have recently gained much attention as they are expected to be a promising resource for sustainable production of bioactive compounds such as carotenoids and biofuels as a future clean energy solution. To develop photosynthetic cell factories, it is important to improve diatoms for value-added products. In this study, we utilized UVC radiation to induce mutations in the marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum and screened strains with enhanced accumulation of neutral lipids and carotenoids. Adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) was also used in parallel to develop altered phenotypic and biological functions in P. tricornutum and it was reported for the first time that ALE was successfully applied on diatoms for the enhancement of growth performance and productivity of value-added carotenoids to date. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was utilized to study the composition of major pigments in the wild type P. tricornutum, UV mutants and ALE strains. UVC radiated strains exhibited higher accumulation of fucoxanthin as well as neutral lipids compared to their wild type counterpart. In addition to UV mutagenesis, P. tricornutum strains developed by ALE also yielded enhanced biomass production and fucoxanthin accumulation under combined red and blue light. In short, both UV mutagenesis and ALE appeared as an effective approach to developing desired phenotypes in the marine diatoms via electromagnetic radiation-induced oxidative stress.

To investigate the phenomic and genomic traits that allow green algae to survive in deserts, we characterized a ubiquitous species, Chloroidium sp. UTEX 3007, which we isolated from multiple locations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Metabolomic analyses of Chloroidium sp. UTEX 3007 indicated that the alga accumulates a broad range of carbon sources, including several desiccation tolerance-promoting sugars and unusually large stores of palmitate. Growth assays revealed capacities to grow in salinities from zero to 60 g/L and to grow heterotrophically on >40 distinct carbon sources. Assembly and annotation of genomic reads yielded a 52.5 Mbp genome with 8153 functionally annotated genes. Comparison with other sequenced green algae revealed unique protein families involved in osmotic stress tolerance and saccharide metabolism that support phenomic studies. Our results reveal the robust and flexible biology utilized by a green alga to successfully inhabit a desert coastline.

Diatoms are a major group of unicellular algae that are rich in lipids and carotenoids. However, sustained research efforts are needed to improve the strain performance for high product yields towards commercialization. In this study, we generated a number of mutants of the model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum, a cosmopolitan species that has also been found in Nordic region, using the chemical mutagens ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) and N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (NTG). We found that both chlorophyll a and neutral lipids had a significant correlation with carotenoid content and these correlations were better during exponential growth than in the stationary growth phase. Then, we studied P. tricornutum common metabolic pathways and analyzed correlated enzymatic reactions between fucoxanthin synthesis and pigmentation or lipid metabolism through a genome-scale metabolic model. The integration of the computational results with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry data revealed key compounds underlying the correlative metabolic pathways. Approximately 1000 strains were screened using fluorescence-based high-throughput method and five mutants selected had 33% or higher total carotenoids than the wild type, in which four strains remained stable in the long term and the top mutant exhibited an increase of 69.3% in fucoxanthin content compared to the wild type. The platform described in this study may be applied to the screening of other high performing diatom strains for industrial applications.

With the advent of modern biotechnology, microorganisms from diverse lineages have been used to produce bio-based feedstocks and bioactive compounds. Many of these compounds are currently commodities of interest, in a variety of markets and their utility warrants investigation into improving their production through strain development. In this review, we address the issue of strain improvement in a group of organisms with strong potential to be productive “cell factories”: the photosynthetic microalgae. Microalgae are a diverse group of phytoplankton, involving polyphyletic lineage such as green algae and diatoms that are commonly used in the industry. The photosynthetic microalgae have been under intense investigation recently for their ability to produce commercial compounds using only light, CO2, and basic nutrients. However, their strain improvement is still a relatively recent area of work that is under development. Importantly, it is only through appropriate engineering methods that we may see the full biotechnological potential of microalgae come to fruition. Thus, in this review, we address past and present endeavors towards the aim of creating productive algal cell factories and describe possible advantageous future directions for the field.