Microbial Biotechnology最新文献

Outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) are extracellular nanostructures released from Gram-negative bacteria. Acinetobacter baumannii OMVs (AbOMVs) have been extensively studied and can thus be used as a model for understanding multiple aspects of OMV biology. In this systematic review, we comprehensively assess the relevant literature covering AbOMVs and present these studies in the context of OMV biology in general. An overview of current knowledge regarding AbOMV biogenesis is presented, focusing on the cellular, intrinsic and extracellular factors that induce AbOMV production. In addition, the components that form the AbOMVs, with an emphasis on protein content, are described. Different methodologies that have been used to isolate and purify the AbOMVs for different studies and applications are discussed. In addition, we provide a synthesis of the different roles played by AbOMVs in bacterial pathobiology, including the delivery of virulence factors, activation of immune response, gene transfer and antibiotic resistance. Finally, we detail the biotechnological applications that have employed AbOMVs, focusing on the development of AbOMV-based vaccines. Altogether, this systematic review offers a perspective of current knowledge of AbOMV and serves as a case study of Gram-negative OMVs in general.

Microbes are essential for sustaining life in our planet. Also, we use microbes for multiple processes like food fermentation, production of antibiotics and other drugs, biofuel production, biomining and so forth. However, this essential role is scarcely represented in commercial movies. Although films are an artistic recreation of reality, we must not forget that they fix in the public's imagination the cliché that ‘microbes are bad’. In this article, some commercial movies that depict the beneficial biotechnological use of microorganisms are discussed as tools to be used in education and to engage general audiences, countering germophobia, and encourage them in the path of ‘positive microbiology’.

Microbes are essential for sustaining life in our planet. Also, we use microbes for multiple processes like food fermentation, production of antibiotics and other drugs, biofuel production, biomining and so forth. However, this essential role is scarcely represented in commercial movies. Although films are an artistic recreation of reality, we must not forget that they fix in the public's imagination the cliché that ‘microbes are bad’. In this article, some commercial movies that depict the beneficial biotechnological use of microorganisms are discussed as tools to be used in education and to engage general audiences, countering germophobia, and encourage them in the path of ‘positive microbiology’.

In this millennium, Marburgvirus (MARV) outbreaks with very high mortality but still small case numbers (< 400) were observed with increasing frequency in Africa. Ecologists identified Egyptian Rousettus bats (ERB) as viral reservoir species causing occasional zoonotic spillover events, mostly in humans intruding into their cave habitats as miners or tourists. So far only short human-to-human transmission chains have been documented. ERB can be experimentally infected with MARV but show no clinical signs. MARV transmission is inefficient among adult bats and occurs mostly between older juvenile ERB. WHO has modified infection control measures, requiring a high level of personal protective equipment when treating Marburgvirus disease (MVD) patients or burying the dead. If patients are quickly identified and isolated after symptom onset and contacts traced and also isolated, epidemics can be controlled. Researchers explored a number of antivirals against MARV in non-human primate (NHP) MVD models. Compounds included galidesivir, an adenosine nucleoside analogue; favipiravir, a synthetic guanine base analog; remdesivir, an injectable; and obeldesivir, an oral prodrug which are intracellularly metabolised to an adenosine triphosphate nucleotide analog; small interfering RNA drugs that target short segments of the MARV nucleoprotein NP mRNA; and a human neutralising monoclonal antibody directed against MARV glycoprotein. All compounds mediated various levels of survival in challenged NHPs depending on dose and time of application. Various vaccine approaches (alphavirus replicons, adenovirus and vesicular stomatitis virus vectors, virus-like particles, recombinant proteins, DNA vaccines) were explored in NHPs and conferred various degrees of protection against lethal MARV challenge. DNA vaccines were well tolerated in humans but showed only low immunogenicity. The African CDC has attributed an upper tier risk attribution to MVD when comparing 18 pathogens. For the moment, the short human MARV infection chains make large international outbreaks unlikely, but viral genome analysis in future outbreaks for transmission mutants is warranted.

In this millennium, Marburgvirus (MARV) outbreaks with very high mortality but still small case numbers (< 400) were observed with increasing frequency in Africa. Ecologists identified Egyptian Rousettus bats (ERB) as viral reservoir species causing occasional zoonotic spillover events, mostly in humans intruding into their cave habitats as miners or tourists. So far only short human-to-human transmission chains have been documented. ERB can be experimentally infected with MARV but show no clinical signs. MARV transmission is inefficient among adult bats and occurs mostly between older juvenile ERB. WHO has modified infection control measures, requiring a high level of personal protective equipment when treating Marburgvirus disease (MVD) patients or burying the dead. If patients are quickly identified and isolated after symptom onset and contacts traced and also isolated, epidemics can be controlled. Researchers explored a number of antivirals against MARV in non-human primate (NHP) MVD models. Compounds included galidesivir, an adenosine nucleoside analogue; favipiravir, a synthetic guanine base analog; remdesivir, an injectable; and obeldesivir, an oral prodrug which are intracellularly metabolised to an adenosine triphosphate nucleotide analog; small interfering RNA drugs that target short segments of the MARV nucleoprotein NP mRNA; and a human neutralising monoclonal antibody directed against MARV glycoprotein. All compounds mediated various levels of survival in challenged NHPs depending on dose and time of application. Various vaccine approaches (alphavirus replicons, adenovirus and vesicular stomatitis virus vectors, virus-like particles, recombinant proteins, DNA vaccines) were explored in NHPs and conferred various degrees of protection against lethal MARV challenge. DNA vaccines were well tolerated in humans but showed only low immunogenicity. The African CDC has attributed an upper tier risk attribution to MVD when comparing 18 pathogens. For the moment, the short human MARV infection chains make large international outbreaks unlikely, but viral genome analysis in future outbreaks for transmission mutants is warranted.

This paper explores the potential of microbiology education at the secondary school level as a catalyst for enhancing both science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) literacy and essential 21st-century competencies. As an inherently interdisciplinary field, microbiology offers an effective platform to develop scientific and technological knowledge while cultivating broader competencies, such as emotional intelligence, creativity and critical thinking, as outlined by UNESCO (UNESCO, 2016). Scientific, societal and educational (SSE) challenges for the next decade are interlinked, and many of these trans-dimensional issues require a solid foundation in biology and microbiology. Thus, research and education must evolve in step with these trends. Despite growing advocacy for microbiology in high school curricula, a significant gap remains in understanding how its teaching aligns with these broader developmental goals. This disconnection is particularly evident in Europe, where STEM engagement among youth remains low. As an experimental and accessible science, microbiology offers unique pedagogical strategies that address not only the cognitive dimensions of STEM but also the skills and attitudes needed for a complex, digital and interdependent world. By integrating microbiology into secondary education, teachers can bridge the gap between scientific literacy and future readiness, empowering students to build a generation capable of shaping a sustainable and innovative future. In this discourse, we describe examples of topics and strategies that could be implemented at the secondary education level, as well as at other educational levels, including university.

Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC) and Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) are the predominant causes of bacterial sexually transmitted diseases. While nucleic acid amplification testing (NAATs), primarily polymerase chain reaction (PCR), is regarded as the gold standard for identifying these two pathogens, it usually takes a prolonged turnaround time and requires sophisticated equipment with considerable expense. In this study, we developed novel loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assays for rapid detection (< 30 min) of GC and CT in clinical urine and swab specimens. We analysed 208 clinical samples with three different pre-treatment techniques including heating inactivation, centrifugation, and DNA extraction. LAMP results were compared with clinical results from the FDA-approved BD ProbeTec ET assay. After heating inactivation, LAMP detected merely 41% and 65% of BD-identified GC- and CT-positive samples, respectively. Introducing centrifugation as an affordable and rapid pre-treatment step increased detection rates to 81% and 91% for GC and CT, respectively. DNA extraction further enhanced the detection rates to 96% and 95% for GC- and CT-LAMP, respectively. All these LAMP assays exhibited clinical specificity of ≥ 98%, underscoring the specificity of the chosen target genes (the porA pesudogene for GC and the ftsK gene for CT). Discrepant samples were verified by real-time PCR; results were consistent with our LAMP findings. The overall LAMP performance met the WHO criteria for sensitivity and specificity for GC/CT point-of-care testing.

The sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems is crucial to ensure food security for future generations, and the formulation of plant growth–promoting bacterial consortia has proven useful not only in sustainable agriculture but also in applications such as phytopathogen biocontrol, bioremediation of contaminated soils and waters, biofertilization, organic waste degradation, and the production of industrially relevant enzymes. In this work, we developed a mathematical model to quantify and identify antagonism-free consortia based on double-agar-layer assays with 20 and 33 bacterial strains from independent studies. Simultaneously, we implemented a graph-based geometric model to analyse their topological properties and defined an index to quantify feasible consortia. The proposed methods were experimentally validated, identifying 36,851 and 376,126 subsets of compatible strains, for 20 and 33 strains, respectively. These subsets have the potential to promote plant growth and other biotechnological functions, thus providing a scalable tool for the management of agricultural resources, environmental restoration, and the design of sustainable biotechnological practices.

This paper explores the potential of microbiology education at the secondary school level as a catalyst for enhancing both science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) literacy and essential 21st-century competencies. As an inherently interdisciplinary field, microbiology offers an effective platform to develop scientific and technological knowledge while cultivating broader competencies, such as emotional intelligence, creativity and critical thinking, as outlined by UNESCO (UNESCO, 2016). Scientific, societal and educational (SSE) challenges for the next decade are interlinked, and many of these trans-dimensional issues require a solid foundation in biology and microbiology. Thus, research and education must evolve in step with these trends. Despite growing advocacy for microbiology in high school curricula, a significant gap remains in understanding how its teaching aligns with these broader developmental goals. This disconnection is particularly evident in Europe, where STEM engagement among youth remains low. As an experimental and accessible science, microbiology offers unique pedagogical strategies that address not only the cognitive dimensions of STEM but also the skills and attitudes needed for a complex, digital and interdependent world. By integrating microbiology into secondary education, teachers can bridge the gap between scientific literacy and future readiness, empowering students to build a generation capable of shaping a sustainable and innovative future. In this discourse, we describe examples of topics and strategies that could be implemented at the secondary education level, as well as at other educational levels, including university.

The sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems is crucial to ensure food security for future generations, and the formulation of plant growth–promoting bacterial consortia has proven useful not only in sustainable agriculture but also in applications such as phytopathogen biocontrol, bioremediation of contaminated soils and waters, biofertilization, organic waste degradation, and the production of industrially relevant enzymes. In this work, we developed a mathematical model to quantify and identify antagonism-free consortia based on double-agar-layer assays with 20 and 33 bacterial strains from independent studies. Simultaneously, we implemented a graph-based geometric model to analyse their topological properties and defined an index to quantify feasible consortia. The proposed methods were experimentally validated, identifying 36,851 and 376,126 subsets of compatible strains, for 20 and 33 strains, respectively. These subsets have the potential to promote plant growth and other biotechnological functions, thus providing a scalable tool for the management of agricultural resources, environmental restoration, and the design of sustainable biotechnological practices.