Genetic Engineering of Streptomyces ghanaensis ATCC14672 for Improved Production of Moenomycins

Streptomycetes are soil-dwelling multicellular microorganisms famous for their unprecedented ability to synthesize numerous bioactive natural products (NPs). In addition to their rich arsenal of secondary metabolites, Streptomyces are characterized by complex morphological differentiation. Mostly, industrial production of NPs is done by submerged fermentation, where streptomycetes grow as a vegetative mycelium forming pellets. Often, suboptimal growth peculiarities are the major bottleneck for industrial exploitation. In this work, we employed genetic engineering approaches to improve the production of moenomycins (Mm) in Streptomyces ghanaensis, the only known natural direct inhibitors of bacterial peptidoglycan glycosyltransferses. We showed that in vivo elimination of binding sites for the pleiotropic regulator AdpA in the oriC region strongly influences growth and positively correlates with Mm accumulation. Additionally, a marker- and “scar”-less deletion of moeH5, encoding an amidotransferase from the Mm gene cluster, significantly narrows down the Mm production spectrum. Strikingly, antibiotic titers were strongly enhanced by the elimination of the pleiotropic regulatory gene wblA, involved in the late steps of morphogenesis. Altogether, we generated Mm overproducers with optimized growth parameters, which are useful for further genome engineering and chemoenzymatic generation of novel Mm derivatives. Analogously, such a scheme can be applied to other Streptomyces spp.

Sliding Mode Control of a Nonlinear Wave Energy Converter Model

The most accurate wave energy converter models for heaving point absorbers include nonlinearities, which increase as resonance is achieved to maximize the energy capture. Over the power production spectrum and within the physical limits of the devices, the efficiency of wave energy converters can be enhanced by employing a control scheme that accounts for these nonlinearities. This paper proposes a sliding mode control for a heaving point absorber that includes the nonlinear effects of the dynamic and static Froude-Krylov forces. The sliding mode controller tracks a reference velocity that matches the phase of the excitation force to ensure higher energy absorption. This control algorithm is tested in regular linear waves and is compared to a complex-conjugate control and a nonlinear variation of the complex-conjugate control. The results show that the sliding mode control successfully tracks the reference and keeps the device displacement bounded while absorbing more energy than the other control strategies. Furthermore, due to the robustness of the control law, it can also accommodate disturbances and uncertainties in the dynamic model of the wave energy converter.

EFFECT OF ERYTHROPOIETIN ON CYTOKINE PRODUCTION BY STEM CELLS

Erythropoietin (EPO) is mainly used to stimulate erythropoiesis. Its cytoprotective effects upon other cells of the human body and animals were recently shown, in particular, anti-apoptotic effect was observed. EPO effect upon the cells is mediated by interaction with erythropoietin receptor, with a complex forming a heterodimeric bond with β-common chain (CD131). In the present work, we studied the changes in erythropoietin receptor expression, and production spectrum of biologically active molecules in bone marrow mononuclear cells (BM-MNC) of patients with coronary heart disease. The flow cytometric assays showed that short-term incubation of BM-MNC with erythropoietin caused increased expression of the erythropoietin receptors on hematopoietic stem cells and tended to reduce the number of endothelial progenitor cells carrying the erythropoietin receptors. Solid-phase enzyme immunoassay in conditioned media from BM-MNC revealed that long-term (72 hours) exposure of BM-MNC to erythropoietin promoted increased production of IL-1β, PDGF-AB, and Epo, if compared to the basal production level (p < 0.05). Short-term incubation of BM-MNC with erythropoietin (60 minutes) caused a significant increase in the IL-1β, PDGF-AB and CXCL-12 / SDF-1α production levels, as well as significant reduction in the IL-10 production levels compared to the basal levels (p < 0.05).

Desempenho inicial de arroz irrigado decorrentes da aplicação de fertilizantes na seletividade de herbicidas

O arroz, alimento apreciado na mesa do consumidor em todo mundo, possui amplo espectro produtivo no Brasil, devido às condições ideais de clima e solo encontrados no país, as quais possibilitam produção tanto em terras altas como em terras baixas, garantindo o abastecimento do mercado interno e externo. O presente estudo objetivou avaliar os efeitos decorrentes da aplicação de fertilizantes no desempenho inicial da cultura do arroz irrigado e na seletividade a herbicidas. O experimento foi conduzido em casa de vegetação, nas dependências da Faculdade de agronomia Eliseu Maciel – IES, Cidade (UF). O delineamento utilizado foi inteiramente casualizado, disposto em esquema fatorial (3 x 3) + 1, com 4 repetições, onde o fator A corresponde aos fertilizantes (Biozyme TF®, GreenFactor® e Pilatus®) e o fator B aos herbicidas (cialofope-butil, bispiribaque-sódico e profoxidim) registrados para a cultura do arroz irrigado, além do tratamento controle, sem aplicação de fertilizante e sem aplicação de herbicidas. Avaliou-se o comprimento de parte aérea aos 7 e 21 dias após (DAH), massa da matéria seca aos 21 DAH, fitotoxicidade aos 7, 14 e 21 DAH e teor de clorofila através de leituras com clorofilômetro. A partir dos resultados obtidos, observou-se que a aplicação dos fertilizantes não influenciou no desenvolvimento inicial da cultura do arroz e na seletividade dos herbicidas aplicados. Em relação à avaliação de fitotoxicidade, o profoxidim causou os maiores índices.Performance irrigated rice initial resulting from fertilizer application in herbicide selectivityAbstract: Rice, food enjoyed at the dinner table in the world, has extensive production spectrum in Brazil, due to the ideal conditions of climate and soil found in the country, which enable production of both upland and lowland, ensuring market supply internal and external. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the application of fertilizers in the initial performance of irrigated rice and selectivity to herbicides. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse on the premises of Agronomy Faculty Eliseu Maciel - IES, City (UF). The design was completely randomized, arranged in a factorial scheme (3 x 3) + 1, with 4 replications, where factor A corresponds to fertilizers (Biozyme TF®, GreenFactor® and Pilatus®) and factor B herbicide (cyhalofop butyl, bispyribac-sodium and profoxidim) registered for irrigated rice in addition to the control treatment without fertilizer application and without application of herbicides. We evaluated the shoot length at 7 and 21 days (DAH), dry matter to 21 DAH, phytotoxicity at 7, 14 and 21 DAH and chlorophyll content through readings with chlorophyll. From the results, it was observed that the application of fertilizers did not affect the early development of rice cultivation and selectivity of herbicides applied. Regarding the assessment of phytotoxicity, the profoxidim caused the highest rates.

Better reservoir visualisation

Santos, a significant Australian energy company, sponsors open source software to improve 3D reservoir visualisation. The software, TurboVNC, allows users of standard laptops to connect to servers running Paradigm exploration and production software from any network location. Performance, collaboration and data management benefits are coupled with capital and operational savings of $2.5 million AUD. Santos’s TurboVNC project won the global Innovator of the Year award (2011) with Red Hat, suppliers of Linux, the server operating system. Beyond these immediate benefits, the real value of thin client application delivery is the ability to centralise data in one large database. This facilitates consistent data standards and quality procedures to be applied. New insights and value can be derived from the consolidated big data gathered from the full exploration and production spectrum. The hypothesis is that access to larger, integrated data sets can result in better reservoir models, reduced uncertainty and optimised production.