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Phosphorus in the form of phosphate (Pi) is an essential element for metabolic processes, including lipid metabolism. In yeast, the inositol polyphosphate kinase vip1 mediated synthesis of inositol heptakisphosphate (IP7) regulates the phosphate-responsive (PHO) signaling pathway, which plays an important role in response to Pi stress. The role of vip1 in Pi stress and lipid metabolism of Candida albicans has not yet been studied. We found that when vip1Δ/Δ was grown in glucose medium, if Pi was supplemented in the medium or mitochondrial Pi transporter was overexpressed in the strain, the lipid droplet (LD) content was reduced and membrane damage was alleviated. However, further studies showed that neither the addition of Pi nor the overexpression of the Pi transporter affected the energy balance of vip1Δ/Δ. In addition, the LD content of vip1Δ/Δ grown in Pi limitation medium PNMC was lower than that grown in SC, and the metabolic activity of vip1Δ/Δ grown in PNMC was also lower than that grown in SC medium. This suggests that the increase in Pi demand by a high energy metabolic rate is the cause of LD accumulation in vip1Δ/Δ. In addition, in the vip1Δ/Δ strains, the core transcription factor PHO4 in the PHO pathway was transported to the vacuole and degraded, which reduced the pathway activity. However, this does not mean that knocking out vip1 completely blocks the activation of the PHO pathway, because the LD content of vip1Δ/Δ grown in the medium with β-glycerol phosphate as the Pi source was significantly reduced. In summary, the increased Pi demand and the decreased PHO pathway activity in vip1Δ/Δ ultimately lead to LD accumulation and cell membrane damage.

Through analysis of the literature titled Chinese Stone Figurines of Wat Pho (CSFW), the study employed a descriptive approach, focusing on both prose and poetry. The literature consists of prose passages and a total of 30 verses (bot) of poetry in the Klong Dan style. The objectives of this research were to analyze the linguistic features used in the CSFW, and to investigate how Chinese culture and its values are reflected in this literature within the context of Thailand. It was found that the poetic compositions are notable through the use of rhyme, wordplay, similes and multilingual vocabulary including Pali-Sanskrit, Khmer, Chinese, and English. In particular, Chinese language elements appear in both transliterated Thai form and original Chinese script, emphasizing the cultural context. Regarding the reflection of Chinese culture, four key cultural dimensions were identified: 1) conceptual beliefs including elements of Taoism, Confucianism, and Mahayana Buddhism reflecting Chinese views on fate and spirituality 2) social organization represented through depictions of the Chinese hierarchical system including nobility and caste structures 3) cultural practices illustrated through traditional customs such as the clothing styles of nobles, monks and dancers and 4) material and symbolic culture classified into 1) tangible objects such as Chinese pagodas and sculpted figures, and 2) symbolic elements, most notably the use of the Chinese language.

Eukaryotic cells control inorganic phosphate to balance its role as essential macronutrient with its negative bioenergetic impact on reactions liberating phosphate. Phosphate homeostasis depends on the conserved INPHORS signaling pathway that utilizes inositol pyrophosphates and SPX receptor domains. Since cells synthesize various inositol pyrophosphates and SPX domains bind them promiscuously, it is unclear whether a specific inositol pyrophosphate regulates SPX domains in vivo, or whether multiple inositol pyrophosphates act as a pool. In contrast to previous models, which postulated that phosphate starvation is signaled by increased production of the inositol pyrophosphate 1-IP 7 , we now show that the levels of all detectable inositol pyrophosphates of yeast, 1-IP 7 , 5-IP 7 , and 1,5-IP 8 , strongly decline upon phosphate starvation. Among these, specifically the decline of 1,5-IP 8 triggers the transcriptional phosphate starvation response, the PHO pathway. 1,5-IP 8 inactivates the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor Pho81 through its SPX domain. This stimulates the cyclin-dependent kinase Pho85-Pho80 to phosphorylate the transcription factor Pho4 and repress the PHO pathway. Combining our results with observations from other systems, we propose a unified model where 1,5-IP 8 signals cytosolic phosphate abundance to SPX proteins in fungi, plants, and mammals. Its absence triggers starvation responses.

A new iron-based T sub(1) contrast agent consisting of a complex of iron ions coordinated to phosphate and amine ligands (Fe sub((phos)) in short) has been characterized by spectroscopic and magnetic measurements. NMR relaxation studies showed r sub(1) values to be dependent on the phosphate salt concentration, K sub(2)HPO sub(4), present in the medium, r sub(1) reaches a maximum value of 2.5 mM super(-1) s super(-1) for measurements carried out at 7 T and 298 K. super(31)P MRS, Moessbauer spectroscopy and magnetic measurements of Fe sub((phos)) solutions suggest paramagnetic Fe super(3+) ions present in the studied iron-phosphate complex. In vitro and in vivo toxicity experiments with C6 cells and CD1 mice, respectively, demonstrated lack of toxicity for Fe sub((phos)) at the highest dose tested in the MRI experiments (12 mM iron for C6 cells and 0.32 mmol iron/kg for mice). Finally, T sub(1) weighted images of brain tumours in mice have shown positive contrast enhancement of Fe sub((phos)) for tumour afflicted regions in the brain.

A gel-like emulsion stabilized with whey protein was prepared by microfluidization, and the effects of the oil phase fraction on the physical properties of emulsions were studied. The rheological analysis indicated that these emulsions exhibited thixotropic behavior, and their apparent viscosity and solid-like behavior increased with increasing oil fraction from 0.3 to 0.6 (v/v). The microstructures, droplet size distribution, and thermal stability of these emulsions were also characterized using a light microscope, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), respectively. The viscosity of these emulsions increased in an exponential way versus increasing oil fraction and showed good correlation coefficient ( R 2 > 0.99). The size of droplets in the emulsion increased from 301 ± 3.6 to 597 ± 7.3 nm. The DSC results showed that the crystalline peak of these emulsions gradually decreased from − 15 to − 21 °C and started thawing at ~ 3 °C. Visually, the textures of these emulsions could be transformed from flexible to rigid by changing the oil fraction, which suggests they could have multiple potential applications. Finally, the semi-solid emulsions were fabricated into delicate shapes using extrusion-based 3D food printing. Based on the results obtained, these emulsions may have the potential to be used as a solid-like fat substitute, which could be used in various applications such as cake decoration or customized functional foods.

The socio-economic transformations of the 1990s have forced many people in Poland into impoverishment. Hunters, Gatherers, and Practitioners of Powerlessness gives a dramatic account of life after this degradation, tracking the experiences of unemployed miners, scrap collectors, and poverty-stricken village residents. Contrary to the images of passivity, resignation, and helplessness that have become powerful tropes in Polish journalism and academic writing, Tomasz Rakowski traces the ways in which people actively reconfigure their lives. As it turns out, the initial sense of degradation and helplessness often gives way to images of resourcefulness that reveal unusual hunting-and-gathering skills.

The development of aluminum anodization technology features many stages. With the story stretching for almost a century, rather straightforward—from current perspective—technology, raised into an iconic nanofabrication technique. The intrinsic properties of alumina porous structures constitute the vast utility in distinct fields. Nanoporous anodic alumina can be a starting point for: Templates, photonic structures, membranes, drug delivery platforms or nanoparticles, and more. Current state of the art would not be possible without decades of consecutive findings, during which, step by step, the technique was more understood. This review aims at providing an update regarding recent discoveries—improvements in the fabrication technology, a deeper understanding of the process, and a practical application of the material—providing a narrative supported with a proper background.

Cells cope with and adapt to ever-changing environmental conditions. Sophisticated regulatory networks allow cells to adjust to these fluctuating environments. One such archetypal system is the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Pho regulon.When external inorganic phosphate (Pi ) concentration is low, the Pho regulon activates, expressing genes that scavenge external and internal Pi . However, the precise mechanism controlling this regulon remains elusive. We conducted a systems analysis of the Pho regulon on the single-cell level under well-controlled environmental conditions. This analysis identified a robust, perfectly adapted Pho regulon state in intermediate Pi conditions, and we identified an intermediate nuclear localization state of the transcriptional master regulator Pho4p. The existence of an intermediate nuclear Pho4p state unifies and resolves outstanding incongruities associated with the Pho regulon, explains the observed programmatic states of the Pho regulon, and improves our general understanding of how nature evolves and controls sophisticated gene regulatory networks. We further propose that robustness and perfect adaptation are not achieved through complex network-centric control but by simple transport biophysics. The ubiquity of multitransporter systems suggests that similar mechanisms could govern the function of other regulatory networks as well.

Antimicrobial resistance is one of the major public health threats globally. This challenge has been aggravated with the overuse and misuse of antibiotics in food animals and humans. The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence of Extended-Spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) genes in Escherichia coli ( E . coli ) isolated from broiler chickens in Kelantan, Malaysia. A total of 320 cloacal swabs were collected from farms in different districts of Kelantan and were analyzed using routine bacteriology, antimicrobial susceptibility test, and molecular techniques for further identification and characterization of ESBL encoding genes. Based on PCR detection for the E . coli species-specific Pho gene, 30.3% (97/320) of isolates were confirmed as E . coli , and 84.5% (82/97) of the isolates were positive for at least one ESBL gene. Majority of the isolates, 62.9% (61/97) were harboring bla CTX-M followed by 45.4% (44/97) of bla TEM genes, while 16.5% (16/97) of the isolates were positive for both mcr-1 and ESBL genes. Overall, 93.8% (90/97) of the E . coli were resistant to three or more antimicrobials; indicating that the isolates were multi-drug resistance. 90.7% of multiple antibiotic resistance (MAR) index value greater than 0.2, would also suggest the isolates were from high-risk sources of contamination. The MLST result shows that the isolates are widely diverse. Our findings provide insight into the alarmingly high distribution of antimicrobial resistant bacteria, mainly ESBL producing E . coli in apparently healthy chickens indicating the role of food animals in the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance, and the potential public health threats it may pose.

The analysis of the inorganic phosphate effect over the antibiotics production is a long-distance history in the Streptomyces genus, which began almost at the same time that Michael Ende published his book entitled The Neverending Story. In some way, the unveiling of the pho regulon and its influence over the secondary metabolites production is an unfinished story, which keeps this subject as a trending topic, nowadays. Up to date, different studies have been releasing knowledge about particular areas of the pho regulon of different Streptomyces species. Nevertheless, for the first time, these knowledge drops are grouped in a review presenting a broad overview of the phosphate regulation and its impact over the secondary metabolites production in industrially relevant species. Even though the genetic response against phosphate scarcity is similar, as a whole, in different Streptomyces species, the fine-tuning is species-specific. Thus, the response regulator PhoP directly controls the secondary metabolites production in some species, whereas it regulates them in an indirect manner in other species. This information, unraveled in this review, is the result of the intensive analysis along last decade in several species of the genus that is allowing to distinguish how the phosphate response is unleashed in Streptomyces coelicolor , Streptomyces lividans , Streptomyces natalensis , Streptomyces lydicus , Streptomyces avermitilis , and Streptomyces tsukubaensis .