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Background Recent evidence implicates microbial sulfidogenesis as a potential trigger of colorectal cancer (CRC), highlighting the need for comprehensive knowledge of sulfur metabolism within the human gut. Microbial sulfidogenesis produces genotoxic hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) in the human colon using inorganic (sulfate) and organic (taurine/cysteine/methionine) substrates; however, the majority of studies have focused on sulfate reduction using dissimilatory sulfite reductases (Dsr). Results Here, we show that genes for microbial sulfur metabolism are more abundant and diverse than previously observed and are statistically associated with CRC. Using ~ 17,000 bacterial genomes from publicly available stool metagenomes, we studied the diversity of sulfur metabolic genes in 667 participants across different health statuses: healthy, adenoma, and carcinoma. Sulfidogenic genes were harbored by 142 bacterial genera and both organic and inorganic sulfidogenic genes were associated with carcinoma. Significantly, the anaerobic sulfite reductase (asr) genes were twice as abundant as dsr , demonstrating that Asr is likely a more important contributor to sulfate reduction in the human gut than Dsr. We identified twelve potential pathways for reductive taurine metabolism and discovered novel genera harboring these pathways. Finally, the prevalence of metabolic genes for organic sulfur indicates that these understudied substrates may be the most abundant source of microbially derived H 2 S. Conclusions Our findings significantly expand knowledge of microbial sulfur metabolism in the human gut. We show that genes for microbial sulfur metabolism in the human gut are more prevalent than previously known, irrespective of health status (i.e., in both healthy and diseased states). Our results significantly increase the diversity of pathways and bacteria that are associated with microbial sulfur metabolism in the human gut. Overall, our results have implications for understanding the role of the human gut microbiome and its potential contributions to the pathogenesis of CRC. D6EbGb2ro5gR7oXf6xaE6N Video abstract

ObjectiveColorectal cancer (CRC) incidence is higher in African Americans (AAs) compared with non-Hispanic whites (NHWs). A diet high in animal protein and fat is an environmental risk factor for CRC development. The intestinal microbiota is postulated to modulate the effects of diet in promoting or preventing CRC. Hydrogen sulfide, produced by autochthonous sulfidogenic bacteria, triggers proinflammatory pathways and hyperproliferation, and is genotoxic. We hypothesised that sulfidogenic bacterial abundance in colonic mucosa may be an environmental CRC risk factor that distinguishes AA and NHW.DesignColonic biopsies from uninvolved or healthy mucosa from CRC cases and tumour-free controls were collected prospectively from five medical centres in Chicago for association studies. Sulfidogenic bacterial abundance in uninvolved colonic mucosa of AA and NHW CRC cases was compared with normal mucosa of AA and NHW controls. In addition, 16S rDNA sequencing was performed in AA cases and controls. Correlations were examined among bacterial targets, race, disease status and dietary intake.ResultsAAs harboured a greater abundance of sulfidogenic bacteria compared with NHWs regardless of disease status. Bilophila wadsworthia-specific dsrA was more abundant in AA cases than controls. Linear discriminant analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed five sulfidogenic genera that were more abundant in AA cases. Fat and protein intake and daily servings of meat were significantly higher in AAs compared with NHWs, and multiple dietary components correlated with a higher abundance of sulfidogenic bacteria.ConclusionsThese results implicate sulfidogenic bacteria as a potential environmental risk factor contributing to CRC development in AAs.

Background Berberine (BBR) is a plant-based nutraceutical that has been used for millennia to treat diarrheal infections and in contemporary medicine to improve patient lipid profiles. Reduction in lipids, particularly cholesterol, is achieved partly through up-regulation of bile acid synthesis and excretion into the gastrointestinal tract (GI). The efficacy of BBR is also thought to be dependent on structural and functional alterations of the gut microbiome. However, knowledge of the effects of BBR on gut microbiome communities is currently lacking. Distinguishing indirect effects of BBR on bacteria through altered bile acid profiles is particularly important in understanding how dietary nutraceuticals alter the microbiome. Results Germfree mice were colonized with a defined minimal gut bacterial consortium capable of functional bile acid metabolism ( Bacteroides vulgatus, Bacteroides uniformis, Parabacteroides distasonis, Bilophila wadsworthia, Clostridium hylemonae, Clostridium hiranonis, Blautia producta ; B4PC2). Multi-omics (bile acid metabolomics, 16S rDNA sequencing, cecal metatranscriptomics) were performed in order to provide a simple in vivo model from which to identify network-based correlations between bile acids and bacterial transcripts in the presence and absence of dietary BBR. Significant alterations in network topology and connectivity in function were observed, despite similarity in gut microbial alpha diversity ( P =  0.30) and beta-diversity ( P  = 0.123) between control and BBR treatment. BBR increased cecal bile acid concentrations, ( P <  0.05), most notably deoxycholic acid (DCA) (P  < 0.001). Overall, analysis of transcriptomes and correlation networks indicates both bacterial species-specific responses to BBR, as well as functional commonalities among species, such as up-regulation of Na + /H + antiporter, cell wall synthesis/repair, carbohydrate metabolism and amino acid metabolism. Bile acid concentrations in the GI tract increased significantly during BBR treatment and developed extensive correlation networks with expressed genes in the B4PC2 community. Conclusions This work has important implications for interpreting the effects of BBR on structure and function of the complex gut microbiome, which may lead to targeted pharmaceutical interventions aimed to achieve the positive physiological effects previously observed with BBR supplementation.

The present study identifies, organizes, and structures the available scientific knowledge on the recent use and the prospects of Voice Assistants (VA) in private households. The systematic review of the 207 articles from the Computer, Social, and Business and Management research domains combines bibliometric with qualitative content analysis. The study contributes to earlier research by consolidating the as yet dispersed insights from scholarly research, and by conceptualizing linkages between research domains around common themes. We find that, despite advances in the technological development of VA, research largely lacks cross-fertilization between findings from the Social and Business and Management Sciences. This is needed for developing and monetizing meaningful VA use cases and solutions that match the needs of private households. Few articles show that future research is well-advised to make interdisciplinary efforts to create a common understanding from complementary findings—e.g., what necessary social, legal, functional, and technological extensions could integrate social, behavioral, and business aspects with technological development. We identify future VA-based business opportunities and propose integrated future research avenues for aligning the different disciplines’ scholarly efforts.

Abstract Many Canadian beekeepers replace a subset of their honey bee queens annually. However, introducing a new queen to a honey bee colony is a management practice with a high degree of uncertainty. Despite the consensus that it is most effective to introduce queens to queenless colonies, some commercial beekeepers claim success with introducing queen cells into the honey super of queenright colonies. We tested the success rate of this practice by introducing queen cells to 100 queenright colonies in southern Alberta during a honey flow. The genotypes of the resultant offspring drones were determined using the microsatellite marker A76 to identify their laying queen mothers. Our results show that new queens successfully supersede original queens in 6% of queenright colonies, suggesting that the practice does not result in the new queen taking over leadership in most colonies. Additionally, supersedure by daughter queens is more common (13%) than new queen supersedure when introducing queen cells to queenright colonies during a honey flow. However, there could be a benefit to the practice of requeening queenright colonies with queen cells in honey supers if the colonies that accepted a new queen (whether a daughter of or unrelated to the old queen) were colonies with a failing queen.

Purpose Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the USA, and malnutrition secondary to cancer progression and treatment side effects is common. While abundant evidence indicates that nutrition support improves patient outcomes, it is estimated that up to half of malnutrition cases are misclassified or undiagnosed. The use of a multidisciplinary team to assess nutrition status has been observed previously to reduce delays in nutritional support. Hence, educating all members of the oncology healthcare team to assess nutrition status may encourage earlier diagnosis and lead to improved patient outcomes. Thus, the objective was to perform a pilot study to assess change in knowledge and self-efficacy among oncology team members after watching an educational video about malnutrition. Methods A pre-test post-test educational video intervention was given to 77 ambulatory oncology providers during weekly staff meetings at a community ambulatory oncology center in central Illinois. Change in knowledge and self-efficacy in malnutrition assessment and diagnosis was measured and acceptability of the brief educational video format was also observed. Results Mean test scores improved by 1.95 ± 1.48 points ( p  < 0.001). Individual occupational groups improved scores significantly ( p  ≤ 0.005) except for specialty clinical staff. Self-efficacy improved from 38 to 70%. 90.8% of participants indicated the educational video improved their confidence in assessing malnutrition. Conclusions The educational video was well accepted and improved knowledge and self-efficacy of malnutrition assessment and diagnosis among ambulatory oncology providers. Wider implementation of such an educational intervention and longitudinal testing of knowledge retention and behaviors change is warranted.

Highbush blueberry pollination depends on managed honey bees (Apis mellifera) L. for adequate fruit sets; however, beekeepers have raised concerns about the poor health of colonies after pollinating this crop. Postulated causes include agrochemical exposure, nutritional deficits, and interactions with parasites and pathogens, particularly Melisococcus plutonius [(ex. White) Bailey and Collins, Lactobacillales: Enterococcaceae], the causal agent of European foulbrood disease, but other pathogens could be involved. To broadly investigate common honey bee pathogens in relation to blueberry pollination, we sampled adult honey bees from colonies at time points corresponding to before (t1), during (t2), at the end (t3), and after (t4) highbush blueberry pollination in British Columbia, Canada, across 2 years (2020 and 2021). Nine viruses, as well as M. plutonius, Vairimorpha ceranae, and V. apis [Tokarev et al., Microsporidia: Nosematidae; formerly Nosema ceranae (Fries et al.) and N. apis (Zander)], were detected by PCR and compared among colonies located near and far from blueberry fields. We found a significant interactive effect of time and blueberry proximity on the multivariate pathogen community, mainly due to differences at t4 (corresponding to ∼6 wk after the beginning of the pollination period). Post hoc comparisons of pathogens in near and far groups at t4 showed that detections of sacbrood virus (SBV), which was significantly higher in the near group, not M. plutonius, was the primary driver. Further research is needed to determine if the association of SBV with highbush blueberry pollination is contributing to the health decline that beekeepers observe after pollinating this crop.

Background Body weight is an important indicator of the overall health and production efficiency in broiler chickens. In broiler houses, body weight of chicks is variable despite the same genetics, hatching and feeding practices within a production system. The objective of this study was to investigate the intestinal microbiota and bile salt hydrolase (BSH) activity in slow and fast growing broiler chickens, which belonged to the 10 th and 90 th percentile body weight groups, respectively. Methods A total of 300 Ross 308 broiler chickens (100 per cohort from three independent cohorts) were selected and mucosal samples from the jejunum, ileum, and cecum were collected at day of arrival, 11 and 25 ( n  = 450). Then, bacterial counts, 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, species specific real-time qPCR, as well as BSH activity were analyzed. Results Results of bacterial counts showed no significant difference between slow and fast growing cohorts ( P  > 0.05), but they tended to be higher in the slow growing chickens in all measured bacterial groups in cecum. The 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing revealed higher relative abundance of E. coli-Shigella (71.3%−79.8%) at day of arrival, while the most abundant microorganisms at d 25 was Candidatus Arthromitus (slow: 44.5%; fast: 27.4%) in small intestine. qPCR results indicated significant differences in bacterial populations between the slow and fast growing chickens, especially higher total bacteria, Enterococcus , and Clostridium cluster I in the slow growing chickens at d 25. BSH activity was higher in the slow growing chickens than the fast growing chickens [slow: 0.476 ΔOD/protein (μg/mL); fast: 0.258 ΔOD/protein (μg/mL); P  < 0.0001], and correlation analysis highlighted associations between BSH activity, body weight, feed intake, body weight gain, and bacterial counts. Conclusions We postulate that high total bacteria and Enterococcus abundance are associated with high BSH activity, impacting low feed intake and body weight gain, ultimately resulting in separation into slow and fast growing birds. The findings of this study contribute to understanding the relationship between gut microbiota, BSH activity, and host physiology in broiler chickens, with potential implications for poultry production.

Objective The gut microbiome and bile acids (BAs) likely influence colorectal cancer (CRC) development and disparities. We conducted a nested case–control study of the associations of the colon tissue microbiome and circulating BAs with colorectal adenoma prevalence in the previously conducted multi‐center Colorectal Neoplasia Screening with Colonoscopy in Average‐Risk Women Regional Navy/Army Medical Centers study (CONCeRN). Methods We individually matched 143 women with adenoma to 279 without adenoma. Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, we assessed alpha and beta diversity, taxonomic abundance, and co‐abundance groups (CAGs). Fasting serum was analyzed for 13 primary and secondary BAs. Results The presence of oral‐originating Porphyromonas was positively associated with adenomas (odds ratio [OR] and 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.50 [1.18, 5.30]; p = 0.02). Race and study center explained statistically significant percentages of variation in the beta diversity matrices. BAs were generally positively associated with adenomas, though these results were not statistically significant. Discussion Overall, our findings suggest the colon tissue microbiome may differ by race and geography, and that certain oral‐originating bacteria may be positively associated with adenomas.