Biogeochemical Budgets of Nutrients and Metabolism in the Curonian Lagoon (South East Baltic Sea): Spatial and Temporal Variations

Estuaries are biogeochemical reactors able to modulate the transfer of energy and matter from the watershed to the coastal zones and to retain or remove large amounts of terrestrially generated nutrients. However, they may switch from nutrient sink to source depending upon interannual variability of the nutrient supply and internal processes driving whole system metabolism (e.g., net autotrophic or heterotrophic). We tested this hypothesis in the Curonian Lagoon, a hypertrophic estuary located in the south east Baltic Sea, following the budget approach developed in the Land-Ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone (LOICZ) project. Annual budgets for nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and silica (Si) were calculated for the 2013–2015 period. The lagoon was divided in a flushed, nutrient loaded area, and in a confined, less loaded area. The lagoon was always a sink for dissolved inorganic Si and P whereas it was a N sink in the confined area, dominated by denitrification, and a N source in the flushed area, due to dinitrogen (N2) fixation. The net ecosystem metabolism (NEM) indicated that the Curonian Lagoon was mainly autotrophic because of high primary production rates. In this turbid system, low N:P ratio, high summer temperatures, and calm weather conditions support high production of N2-fixing cyanobacteria, suppressing the estuarine N-sink role.

Effects of Different Methionine Levels in Low Protein Diets on Production Performance, Reproductive System, Metabolism, and Gut Microbiota in Laying Hens

This study investigated the effects of different levels of methionine (Met) in a low protein diet on the production performance, reproductive system, metabolism, and gut microbial composition of laying hens to reveal the underlying molecular mechanism of Met in a low protein diet on the host metabolism and gut microbial composition and function of hens. A total of 360 healthy 38-week-old Peking Pink laying hens with similar body conditions and egg production (EP) were randomly divided into four groups with nine replicates per treatment and 10 hens per replicate. The hens in each treatment group were fed low protein diets containing different levels of Met (0.25, 0.31, 0.38, and 0.47%, respectively) for 12 weeks. Feed and water were provided ad libitum throughout the trial period. The results showed that, compared with the 0.25% Met group, the final body weight (FBW), average daily gain (ADG), EP, egg weight (EW), and average daily feed intake (ADFI) in the other groups were significantly increased and feed egg ratio (FER) was decreased. Meanwhile, the EW and yield of abdominal fat (AFY) in the 0.47% Met group were higher than those in other groups. The triglyceride (TG), estradiol (E2), total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), and immunoglobulin A (IgA) in the 0.38 and 0.47% Met groups were higher than those in other groups. In addition, 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that there was no difference in the Sobs index, ACE index, and Shannon index among all groups. However, it is worth noting that feeding low protein diets with Met changed the gut microbial composition (e.g., the supplementation of Met increased the level of Lactobacillus and decreased the proportion of Faecalibacterium). Also, our results showed that the changes in gut microbial composition induced by the diets with different levels of Met were closely related to the changes of key parameters: ADFI, EW, FBW, TG, EM, EP, ADG, FER, and uric acid (UA). Our results highlight the role of adding an appropriate amount of Met to the low protein diet in laying hens, which could improve the gut microbial composition, production performance, reproductive system, and nutrient metabolism of laying hens. In conclusion, this study suggested that when the Met level was 0.38%, the production performance of the laying hens was pretty good.

Gene Expression Meta-Analysis of Major Depressive Disorder and Its Relationship with Alzheimer’s Disease

Introduction: Major depressive disorder (MDD) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are often co-existing in the elderly and have been suggested to share common pathological and physiological links. Understanding the connections between these two diseases could benefit for revealing new possible strategies of early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention. Methods: we conducted a meta-analysis to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in MDD microarray datasets including 180 MDD and 281 control prefrontal cortex of brain samples. Using identified DEGs, we performed gene ontology (GO), pathway and protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis. Results: We identified 1400 DEGs, of which 846 were upregulated and 554 was downregulated in MDD. 198 DEGs were found over-lapping between AD and MDD compared with the previous study on AD. The over-lapping DEGs were particularly enriched in the protein binding of gene ontology and Signal Transduction, Immune System, Metabolism of proteins as for pathways. CDC42 was the most important gene in PPI network which had the most connections with other genes.Conclusion: Our study shows that MDD and AD share significant common DEGs and pathways and add some new potential perspectives to the comprehensive neurobiologic model between MDD and the development of AD.

Emergy-Based Evaluation on the Systemic Sustainability of Rural Ecosystem under China Poverty Alleviation and Rural Revitalization: A Case of the Village in North China

A number of new rural management models have emerged to solve the problems of economic backwardness, insufficient resource utilization, and technical shortages in rural areas in the context of poverty alleviation to the rural revitalization strategy in China. However, the influence of new rural management model under all countermeasures for rural sustainable development with a comprehensive perspective is lacking. Therefore, exploring whether the new rural management model meets the requirements of sustainable development is an urgent issue. From the theory of system metabolism and emergy accounting method, this study classified the government funds for poverty alleviation measures as import resources, and analyzed the metabolic structure, efficiency, and the rural development factors of Chehe Village before and after poverty alleviation measures are carried out (the year of 2012 and 2019) to verify whether the new model was sustainable. According to the results of this study, the new management model of Chehe Village declined the rural system sustainability with the emergy sustainability index decreasing from 1.96 in 2012 to 0.32 in 2019. With the development of economy, the system metabolic efficiency of Chehe Village promoted and the metabolic structure became more reasonable manifesting in the decline of emergy use per unit GDP and the increase of emergy exchange rate. Moreover, production and livelihood had been highly valued in Chehe Village. In conclusion, it is feasible to add countermeasures of poverty alleviation and rural revitalization into the village system metabolism. The new management model of Chehe Village needs to change exogenous force into endogenous force to meet the requirements of rural sustainable development.

ANALISA CEMARAN LOGAM BERAT (Pb, Cd, Zn) PADA MAKANAN DAN MINUMAN KEMASAN KALENG DENGAN MENGGUNAKAN METODE Spektrofotometri Serapan Atom (SSA)

Makanan dan minuman yang dikemas dalam kaleng memiliki kemungkinan untuk terkontaminasi logam berat yang berasal dari komponen penyusun kaleng. Kontaminasi logam berat bisa menyebabkan keracunan dan berbahaya bila masuk ke dalam system metabolism tubuh dengan jumlah yang melebihi batas yang telah ditetapkan dalam SNI dan BPOM. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisa Timbal (Pb), Kadmium (Cd) dan seng (Zn) pada sarden, kornet, susu kaleng, sari buah, minuman berkarbonasi. pengambilan sampel dilakukan di dua lokasi berbeda yaitu pasar modern dan pasar tradisional, dengan tujuan agar dapat membandingkan perbedaan pada pasar modern dan pada pasar tradisional.Serapan logam diukur dengan menggunakan spektofotometri serapan atom (SSA) pada gelombang yang spesifik. Hasil penelitian adalah kadar cadmium (Cd) tidak teridentifikasi, kadar logam Timbal (Pb) pada sampel makanan dan minuman kaleng adalah 0.01 mg/kg, 0.018 mg/kg, 0.026 mg/kg, 0.012 mg/kg, 0.027 mg/kg, 0.027 mg/kg, 0.018 mg/kg, 0.015 mg/kg, 0.024 mg/kg dan 0.019 mg/kg, sementara itu cemaran Zn adalah 0.188 mg/kg, 0.169 mg/kg, 0.193 mg/kg, 0.184 mg/kg, 0.129 mg/kg, 0.105 mg/kg, 0.107 mg/kg, 0.098 mg/kg, 0.176 mg/kg, 0.152 mg/kg. Semua sampel makanan dan minuman kaleng tidak ada yang melebihi batas maksimum cemaran yang telah di tetap kan dalam SNI dan Badan Pengawas Obat dan Makanan. Kadar cemaran logam berat Pb dan Zn pada sampel makanan dan minuman kaleng dari pasar tradisional lebih tinggi daripada sampel makanan dan minuman kaleng dari pasar modern Kata kunci : Makanan-Minuman Kemasan Kaleng, SSA, Timbal, kadmium, seng

A model-based approach to measuring denitrification and greenhouse gas production in lakes

An existing whole-system model based on changes in dissolved N₂ concentration was modified for lentic systems. Field validations carried out at Christie Lake in Dundas, ON and Turtle Pond in Stoney Creek, ON (Canada). New model inputs included air temperature, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity, wind velocity, and Schmidt number. Mont Carlo analysis was integrated into the model to better constrain error in model estimates of denitrification, whole-system metabolism, and greenhouse gas production. Denitrification rates ranged from -419-4415 µmol N.m-².h-¹ in Christie Lake and from 10-74 µmol N.m-².h-¹ in Turtle Pond. N₂O production ranged from 915-10,635 nmol N.m-².h-¹ in Christie Lake and from -344-131 nmol N.m-².h-¹ in Turtle Pond. The whole-system model allows for the examination of biogeochemical processes at ecologically significant temporal and spatial scales.

A model-based approach to measuring denitrification and greenhouse gas production in lakes

An existing whole-system model based on changes in dissolved N₂ concentration was modified for lentic systems. Field validations carried out at Christie Lake in Dundas, ON and Turtle Pond in Stoney Creek, ON (Canada). New model inputs included air temperature, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity, wind velocity, and Schmidt number. Mont Carlo analysis was integrated into the model to better constrain error in model estimates of denitrification, whole-system metabolism, and greenhouse gas production. Denitrification rates ranged from -419-4415 µmol N.m-².h-¹ in Christie Lake and from 10-74 µmol N.m-².h-¹ in Turtle Pond. N₂O production ranged from 915-10,635 nmol N.m-².h-¹ in Christie Lake and from -344-131 nmol N.m-².h-¹ in Turtle Pond. The whole-system model allows for the examination of biogeochemical processes at ecologically significant temporal and spatial scales.

Metabolism of Innate Immune Cells in Cancer

Cancer cells possess specific metabolic requirements for their survival, proliferation, and progression. Within a shared microenvironment, immune cells depend on competing metabolic pathways for their development and effector function. As a result, local acidification, hypoxia, and nutrient depletion in the tumor microenvironment can alter the antitumor immune response and even promote resistance to immunotherapies such as immune checkpoint blockade and adoptive cell transfer. Although T cells are the primary effectors of the antitumor response, growing evidence demonstrates that innate immune cells are critical to successful tumor clearance. This review aims to summarize current research related to the innate immune system, metabolism, and cancer. We first discuss the specific metabolic requirements of innate immune cells for immune activation and suppression and conclude by highlighting ongoing clinical applications of these findings.

Immuno-metabolic interfaces in cardiac disease and failure

The interplay between the cardiovascular system, metabolism, and inflammation plays a central role in the pathophysiology of a wide spectrum of cardiovascular diseases, including heart failure. Here, we provide an overview of the fundamental aspects of the interrelation between inflammation and metabolism, ranging from the role of metabolism in immune cell function to the processes how inflammation modulates systemic and cardiac metabolism. Furthermore, we discuss how disruption of this immuno-metabolic interface is involved in the development and progression of cardiovascular disease, with a special focus on heart failure. Finally, we present new technologies and therapeutic approaches that have recently emerged and hold promise for the future of cardiovascular medicine.

Maternal Microbiome and Infections in Pregnancy

Pregnancy induces unique changes in maternal immune responses and metabolism. Drastic physiologic adaptations, in an intricately coordinated fashion, allow the maternal body to support the healthy growth of the fetus. The gut microbiome plays a central role in the regulation of the immune system, metabolism, and resistance to infections. Studies have reported changes in the maternal microbiome in the gut, vagina, and oral cavity during pregnancy; it remains unclear whether/how these changes might be related to maternal immune responses, metabolism, and susceptibility to infections during pregnancy. Our understanding of the concerted adaption of these different aspects of the human physiology to promote a successful pregnant remains limited. Here, we provide a comprehensive documentation and discussion of changes in the maternal microbiome in the gut, oral cavity, and vagina during pregnancy, metabolic changes and complications in the mother and newborn that may be, in part, driven by maternal gut dysbiosis, and, lastly, common infections in pregnancy. This review aims to shed light on how dysregulation of the maternal microbiome may underlie obstetrical metabolic complications and infections.