Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Brian Derby, Jinxin Yang, Pei He
Summary: Continuous conducting lines with a width of 5-20 μm have been successfully printed using Ag nanoparticle ink and drop-on-demand (DOD) electrohydrodynamic (EHD) inkjet printing. The stability of the printed lines is affected by the contact angle and the spacing between drops. The upper and lower bounds of the drop spacing for stable line formation are consistent with existing models. After printing and sintering, the conductivity of the printed tracks is about 15%-20% of bulk Ag, indicating a porosity of about 60%.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Liming Chen, Bixi Zhao, Alejandro Palomo, Yuhong Sun, Zhanwen Cheng, Miao Zhang, Yu Xia
Summary: Microscopic resolution is crucial for studying the spatial structure and interactions of microbial communities. This study investigates the microbial interactions at the micron-scale in anammox consortia and reveals the significant role of biotic interactions in the assembly of anammox communities. The results suggest that there is no statistically significant symbiotic interaction between anammox bacteria and other heterotrophic populations, and the conservative metabolic cooperation among Brocadia species may be regulated by quorum sensing with secondary messenger c-di-GMP.
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Xiaoliang Zhang, Jinxian Wang, Xin Lyu, Tianhang Yang, Wei Liu, Bidou Wang, Gangyin Luo
Summary: Droplet-based microfluidic (DMF) technology is widely used in genetic analysis. Acoustic droplet ejection (ADE) is a promising non-contact method for controlled droplet generation and nucleic acid manipulation in droplets. This study successfully achieved droplet ejection using a focused ultrasonic transducer and demonstrated the scalability of droplet size and the feasibility of multi-droplet ejections. Furthermore, it was shown that nucleic acid molecules could maintain their integrity under maximum power and longest duration of excitation in the ADE system.
SENSORS AND ACTUATORS A-PHYSICAL
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Nikolaus Porenta, Mirco Nydegger, Maxence Menetrey, Souzan Hammadi, Alain Reiser, Ralph Spolenak
Summary: Alloying is a common strategy to optimize materials performance, but precise control over composition in 3D nanostructures remains a challenge. In this study, electrohydrodynamic redox 3D printing is proposed as a versatile approach for alloy fabrication, allowing direct control over composition and achieving homogeneous alloying at the nanoscale.
MATERIALS & DESIGN
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jordi van Gestel, Tasneem Bareia, Bar Tenennbaum, Alma Dal Co, Polina Guler, Nitzan Aframian, Shani Puyesky, Ilana Grinberg, Glen G. D'Souza, Zohar Erez, Martin Ackermann, Avigdor Eldar
Summary: Bacterial cells communicate through the release and detection of small diffusible molecules in a process called quorum-sensing. While some systems support long-range communication, others support highly localized communication where signal molecules propagate within a few microns. This complex spatial biology allows bacteria to interact at different spatial scales.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Mingguang Shen, Ben Q. Li, Qingzhen Yang
Summary: A novel diffuse interface model was developed to simulate droplet impact and solidification microstructure formation, including nucleation and growth of polycrystalline crystals. The model combines Cahn-Hilliard and Navier-Stokes equations, and is discretized explicitly for shared-memory parallelism. Results show the model's robustness in simulating various impact conditions in plasma spraying.
MATERIALS RESEARCH EXPRESS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Benoit Guilhabert, Sean P. Bommer, Nils K. Wessling, Dimitars Jevtics, Jack A. Smith, Zhongyi Xia, Saptarsi Ghosh, Menno Kappers, Ian M. Watson, Rachel A. Oliver, Martin D. Dawson, Michael J. Strain
Summary: Transfer printing technology has been widely used for integrating planar membrane devices on photonic and electronic circuits. This work introduces an advanced transfer print system that allows printing of optical devices in non-planar geometries and enables in-situ optical monitoring. The system demonstrates the printing of micro-resonators coupled to on-chip waveguides, inverted device printing, and the assembly of micro-cavities with semiconductor micro-lenses and nanowire lasers. Non-standard substrates such as optical chip facets and single-mode fibre ends are also successfully printed. The in-situ optical coupling through the transfer printing system enables real-time active alignment of the printed devices.
IEEE JOURNAL OF SELECTED TOPICS IN QUANTUM ELECTRONICS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ruizhi Ning, Jinhai Fan, Liang Kong, Xue Jiang, Yun Qian, Tao Du, Guangjian Zhang, Weiwei Wu
Summary: Droplet-based microfluidics allows for the generation of uniform microdroplets at a small scale and precise control, providing a powerful tool for rapid, sensitive, and high-throughput detection and analysis of bacteria. The advantages include isolation and manipulation of single cells, improved effective concentrations, elimination of heterogeneous population effects, and reduced contamination risks. It has great potential in biological medicine, microbiological engineering, and environmental ecology.
CHINESE CHEMICAL LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jun Luo, Zhixuan Zhao, Lehua Qi, Hongcheng Lian, Yufang Zhao
Summary: The study demonstrated integrated fabrication of PVA films and CNT-based patterns using micro-pen writing and drop-on-demand printing. The proposed method can guide direct writing of high-molecular polymer materials and printing inks of other nanosuspensions. The feasibility of this hybrid printing method was successfully demonstrated.
Review
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Mengdong Cui, Taijie Zhan, Jiamin Yang, Hangyu Dang, Guoliang Yang, Hengxin Han, Linfeng Liu, Yi Xu
Summary: Cryopreservation is an important step in translational medicine, with potential applications in reproductive medicine, regenerative medicine, and cell therapy. Droplet-based printing for vitrification, which offers advantages such as low cryoprotectant concentration, fast cooling rate, and easy operation, has gained significant attention in cryopreservation. This review summarizes the techniques of droplet generation, vitrification, and warming, including inkjet printing, microvalve printing, and acoustic printing. It discusses the limitations of droplet vitrification and presents potential solutions. Additionally, it highlights the advantages of using external physical field warming for rapid and automated warming of microdroplets, and suggests that the combination of droplet vitrification and external physical field warming could pave the way for high-throughput and automated cryopreservation in biomedicine and regenerative medicine.
ACS BIOMATERIALS SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Rebecca A. Hayes, Maria Rebolleda-Gomez, Kristen Butela, Leah F. Cabo, Nevin Cullen, Nancy Kaufmann, Steffani O'Neill, Tia-Lynn Ashman
Summary: Studying the microbiome of flowers revealed similarities and differences in the petal microbiome of different plants. The bacterial community on petals is influenced by the varying ultraviolet absorption along the petal, with a majority of the community being culturable.
Article
Microbiology
Dominique Boeuf, John M. Eppley, Daniel R. Mende, Rex R. Malmstrom, Tanja Woyke, Edward F. DeLong
Summary: Through a study on the comparative genomics, ecology, and physiological potential of the SAR324 clade, a significant divergence in the metabolic potentials of different ecotypes living in different habitats was revealed. Ecotypes in the dark or twilight oceans shared features consistent with a sulfur-based chemolithoautotrophic lifestyle, while those in the sunlit ocean displayed a presumptive photoheterotrophic lifestyle. The results highlight the importance of metapangenomic approaches in understanding the properties and variations in function and ecological traits of specific phylogenetic clades within complex microbiomes.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Lucas J. Ustick, Alyse A. Larkin, Catherine A. Garcia, Nathan S. Garcia, Melissa L. Brock, Jenna A. Lee, Nicola A. Wiseman, J. Keith Moore, Adam C. Martiny
Summary: Nutrient supply affects phytoplankton activity, but understanding of global nutrient limitation and co-limitation is limited. Prochlorococcus adapt to local environments through gene gains and losses, with genomic changes indicating adaptation to nutrient stress. Regional transitions in stress type and severity, as well as widespread co-stress, were found, with correlations between Prochlorococcus stress genes, bottle experiments, and Earth system model predictions. The biogeography of multinutrient stress is linked through controls on nitrogen fixation, providing a detailed description of nutrient stress in the global ocean based on omics data.
Article
Engineering, Industrial
Zhou Zhang, Hua Yang, Jiankui Chen, Zhouping Yin
Summary: This paper proposes an accurate measurement method based on coherence scanning interferometry (CSI) to evaluate the volume consistency of deposited droplets in inkjet printed OLED for zero-defect manufacturing (ZDM). By capturing time series signals and applying deep learning methods, the distortions in the signals caused by chromatic dispersion are successfully restored. Experimental results demonstrate the ability of the method to accurately measure the volume of droplets and its promising performance in time series tasks.
JOURNAL OF MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Samuel E. Miller, Albert S. Colman, Jacob R. Waldbauer
Summary: The study used metaproteomic methods to investigate microbial activity and metabolic functions in Alaskan soils. It found that different bacterial groups have specialized roles in acquiring and degrading organic compounds. The research also showed that Acidobacteria have a key role in hemicellulose depolymerization. This study highlights the importance of understanding soil microbial ecology in relation to carbon cycling.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Alessandro Alcinesio, Idil Cazimoglu, Gabriella Raye Kimmerly, Vanessa Restrepo Schild, Ravinash Krishna Kumar, Hagan Bayley
Summary: The authors applied modular design to construct modular synthetic tissues, assembling different functional 3D-printed building blocks for storing and releasing reagents, performing logic operations, responding to magnetic fields, and encapsulating living cells. They successfully built synthetic tissues capable of transmitting electrical signals and assembled hybrid tissues composed of both synthetic modules and modules containing living cells. By incorporating mutant protein nanopores within the building blocks, they created modular synthetic tissues with electrical outputs modulated by chemical inputs.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Biology
R. Christopher D. Furniss, Nikol Kaderabkova, Declan Barker, Patricia Bernal, Evgenia Maslova, Amanda A. A. Antwi, Helen E. McNeil, Hannah L. Pugh, Laurent Dortet, Jessica M. A. Blair, Gerald Larrouy-Maumus, Ronan R. McCarthy, Diego Gonzalez, Despoina A. Mavridou
Summary: Antimicrobial resistance in Gram-negative bacteria poses a major threat to global health, and the development of new antibacterial strategies is urgently needed. This study demonstrates that disrupting cell envelope protein homeostasis can simultaneously compromise multiple classes of resistance determinants, laying the foundation for the development of broad-acting antibiotic adjuvants.
Review
Microbiology
Nikol Kaderabkova, Manasa Bharathwaj, R. Christopher D. Furniss, Diego Gonzalez, Tracy Palmer, Despoina A. I. Mavridou
Summary: The discovery of penicillin marked a new era in modern medicine, but the emergence of resistance against penicillin and other antibiotics has become a major concern. β-lactamases, hydrolytic enzymes, are largely responsible for this resistance. While much is known about these resistance determinants, little is discussed about their biogenesis process.
Article
Microbiology
Anton F. Evans, Meghan K. Wells, Jordan Denk, William Mazza, Raziel Santos, Amber Delprince, Wook Kim
Summary: In densely populated colonies of Pseudomonas fluorescens Pf0-1, diverse mutations in the rsmE gene are naturally selected to solve the problem of overcrowding. RsmE-regulated secretions work together to create and protect space of low cell density. These secretions are not regulated by RsmE's paralogs that share high sequence similarity.
JOURNAL OF BACTERIOLOGY
(2022)
Editorial Material
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Verena Ducret, Diego Gonzalez, Karl Perron
Summary: This review provides a detailed understanding of zinc homeostasis regulation and its biological significance in Pseudomonas. It also highlights the interactions and cross-regulations between zinc and copper import/export systems, as well as differences in gene complement and function across the Pseudomonas genus.
Article
Microbiology
Verena Ducret, Diego Gonzalez, Sara Leoni, Martina Valentini, Karl Perron
Summary: The control of cellular zinc concentrations is crucial for the survival and virulence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In this study, it was found that the Zur protein, a known repressor of zinc import, also plays a role in zinc export. Zur represses zinc entry in situations of zinc excess and activates the transcription of czcR, a positive regulator of the zinc export system. This discovery highlights a new role of Zur as a global regulator of zinc homeostasis in P. aeruginosa.
Article
Microbiology
Celine Terrettaz, Bruno Cabete, Johan Geiser, Martina Valentini, Diego Gonzalez
Summary: KaiC is a central cog of the circadian clock in Cyanobacteria, but its function, interaction network, and mechanism of action in other bacteria, specifically in Pseudomonas species, are still unknown. This study describes the distribution of KaiC homologues in Pseudomonas species and reveals a conserved interaction network involving a histidine kinase and response regulator. The experimentally characterized KaiC homologues in Pseudomonas putida and Pseudomonas protegens are shown to be involved in stress resistance and biofilm production, but not in response to diurnal rhythms.
ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Justin R. Randall, Cory D. DuPai, T. Jeffrey Cole, Gillian Davidson, Kyra E. Groover, Sabrina L. Slater, Despoina A. I. Mavridou, Claus O. Wilke, Bryan W. Davies
Summary: This article introduces a method for designing a large peptide library with macrocyclic beta-hairpin structure. Through activity-driven high-throughput screening, dozens of peptides that kill bacteria through selective membrane disruption are identified, and their biochemical features are analyzed using machine learning. Active peptides have a unique constrained structure and are highly enriched in cationic charge with arginine in their turn region. This study provides a synthetic strategy for structured macrocyclic peptide design and discovery, while also elucidating important characteristics for beta-hairpin antimicrobial peptide activity.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Ravinash Krishna Kumar, Kevin R. Foster
Summary: 3D printing is being used to create bespoke living materials by co-printing microbes and matrices, providing a new solution to the challenges of studying and manipulating spatially structured microbial communities.
MICROBIAL BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Elisa T. Granato, William P. J. Smith, Kevin R. Foster
Summary: Bacteria can collectively defend themselves against attacks from other strains using the T6SS, and the production of EPS can serve as a collective defense mechanism to protect both EPS-producing and non-producing cells. This has been confirmed by agent-based simulations and experiments.
Review
Microbiology
William P. J. Smith, Benjamin R. Wucher, Carey D. Nadell, Kevin R. Foster
Summary: Throughout their evolutionary history, bacteria have developed sophisticated defence mechanisms to protect themselves from diverse threats. This review explores the protective strategies of bacteria, including the mechanisms, evolution and clinical implications of these ancient defences, as well as the countermeasures developed by attackers. The authors argue that understanding bacterial defence is important for developing new therapies and minimizing resistance evolution.
NATURE REVIEWS MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biology
Thierry Kuhn, Pilar Junier, Redouan Bshary, Celine Terrettaz, Diego Gonzalez, Xiang-Yi Li Richter
Summary: Evolutionary game theory offers models to explain competing strategies coexistence, including the rock-paper-scissors game. Escherichia coli strains, consisting of a toxin-producer, a resistant and a sensitive, have been used as a classic model for studying this game. However, previous studies often ignored the influence of ecological factors such as nutrients and toxin dynamics on the game dynamics.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Jennifer K. Parker, Richard Gu, Gregory A. Estrera, Betsy Kirkpatrick, Dusten T. Rose, Despoina A. Mavridou, Kristin E. Mondy, Bryan W. Davies
Summary: Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) infections are increasing in Central Texas, with Klebsiella pneumoniae ST307 being the major cause, carrying ESBL-associated genes. Porin mutations may contribute to the transition from ESBL-producing to non-CP-CRE in ST307 isolates. Furthermore, CRE isolates also carry active colicinogenic plasmids, which may influence their competitiveness during colonization.
INFECTION AND DRUG RESISTANCE
(2023)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Oliver J. Meacock, William M. Durham
Summary: Most bacteria live in densely-packed communities on surfaces. Tracking individual cells in these communities is challenging, but the new software tool FAST combines machine learning and information theory to optimize cell tracking. By using various cell characteristics and minimizing tracking errors, FAST provides a quantitative platform to study bacterial behavior in groups.
PLOS COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY
(2023)