Project description:The objective of this study was to determine how transcriptomic responses in the spleen are altered in juvenile red snapper exposed to oil, a known fish pathogen (Vibrio anguillarum), or both.
Project description:The aim of this study is identifying potential signaling pathways involve with visible red light induced photoprotective effect against skin damage by UVB exposure, using transcriptomic analysis
Project description:Abstract: Natural communities of microbes inhabiting amphibian skin, the skin microbiome, are critical to supporting amphibian health and disease resistance. To enable the pro-active health assessment and management of amphibians on Army installations and beyond, we investigated the effects of acute (96h) munitions exposures to Rana pipiens (leopard frog) tadpoles and the associated skin microbiome, integrated with RNAseq-based transcriptomic responses in the tadpole host. Tadpoles were exposed to the legacy munition 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), the new insensitive munition (IM) formulation, IMX-101, and the IM constituents nitroguinidine (NQ) and 1-methyl-3-nitroguanidine (MeNQ). The 96h LC50 values and 95% confidence intervals were 2.6 (2.4, 2.8) for ΣTNT and 68.2 (62.9, 73.9) for IMX-101, respectively. The NQ and MeNQ exposures caused no significant impacts on survival in 96h exposures even at maximum exposure levels of 3,560 and 5,285 mg/L, respectively. However, NQ and MeNQ, as well as TNT and IMX-101 exposures, all elicited changes in the tadpole skin microbiome profile, as evidenced by significantly increased relative proportions of the Proteobacteria with increasing exposure concentrations, and significantly decreased alpha-diversity in the NQ exposure. The potential for direct and indirect effects of munitions exposures on the skin microbiome were observed. A direct effect of munitions on microbial flora included the observation of increased relative abundance of the munitions-tolerant, Aeromonadaceae and Pseudomonadaceae, in the NQ exposure. Potential indirect effects on the tadpole skin microbiome resulting from tadpole-host responses to munitions included transcriptional responses indicative of potential changes in skin mucus-layer properties as well as altered production of antimicrobial peptides and innate immune factors. Additional insights into the tadpole host’s transcriptional response to munitions exposures indicated that TNT and IMX-101 exposures each elicited significant enrichment of pathways involved in type-I and type-II xenobiotic metabolism mechanisms where dose-responsive increases in expression were observed. Significant enrichment and increased transcriptional expression of heme and iron binding functions in the TNT exposures was likely connected with known mechanisms of TNT toxicity including hemolytic anemia and methemoglobinemia. The significant enrichment and dose-responsive decrease in transcriptional expression of cell cycle pathways in the IMX-101 exposures was consistent with previous observations in fish, while significant enrichment of immune-related function in response to NQ exposure indicated potential immune suppression at the highest NQ exposure concentration. Finally, the MeNQ exposures elicited significantly decreased transcriptional expression of keratin 16, type I, a gene likely involved in keratinization processes in amphibian skin. Overall, munitions showed the potential to alter tadpole skin microbiome composition and affect transcriptional profiles in the amphibian host, some indicative of potentially impacted host health and immune status, each of which suggest potential implications for munitions exposure on disease susceptibility.
Project description:During acute cutaneous inflammation in diseases such as atopic eczema there are alterations in the microbiome as well as histological and ultrastructural changes to the stratified epidermis, but the precise interaction between the keratinocyte proliferation and differentiation status and the skin microbiome has not been fully explored. We hypothesised that the skin microbiome contributes to regulation of keratinocyte differentiation and can modify antimicrobial responses. Therefore, we examined the effect of exposure to topical commensal or pathogenic Staphylococcal challenge on skin models. To further explore the cell types regulating inhibition specifically targeting SA, single-cell DropSeq analysis of unchallenged naïve, SE challenged, and SA challenged epidermis models was undertaken. Transcriptomic analysis distinguished cells from basal, spinous, and granular layers which could then be interrogated individually in relation to model exposure. In contrast to SE, SA specifically induced a sub-population of spinous cells which highly expressed transcripts related to epidermal inflammation and antimicrobial response such as IL36G, IVL, IL1RN, KLK7, PI3, MMP1, S100A7, S100A8, S100A9, SERPINB1, SERPINB2, SERPINB3, and SLPI. Furthermore, SA, but not SE, specifically induced a basal population which highly expressed IL-1-alpha and IL-1-beta.
Project description:Squalene makes up 12 % of human skin surface lipids, however little is known about its affects on the host skin microbiome. Here we tested the effect of squalene on genetic regulation of staphylococci, showing that it profoundly affects expression virulence or colonisation determinants, and of iron uptake systems.