Project description:Xiangjiang River (Hunan, China) has been contaminated with heavy metal for several decades by surrounding factories. However, little is known about the influence of a gradient of heavy metal contamination on the diversity, structure of microbial functional gene in sediment. To deeply understand the impact of heavy metal contamination on microbial community, a comprehensive functional gene array (GeoChip 5.0) has been used to study the functional genes structure, composition, diversity and metabolic potential of microbial community from three heavy metal polluted sites of Xiangjiang River.
Project description:Xiangjiang River (Hunan, China) has been contaminated with heavy metal for several decades by surrounding factories. However, little is known about the influence of a gradient of heavy metal contamination on the diversity, structure of microbial functional gene in sediment. To deeply understand the impact of heavy metal contamination on microbial community, a comprehensive functional gene array (GeoChip 5.0) has been used to study the functional genes structure, composition, diversity and metabolic potential of microbial community from three heavy metal polluted sites of Xiangjiang River. Three groups of samples, A, B and C. Every group has 3 replicates.
Project description:We established simple synthetic microbial communities in a microcosm model system to determine the mechanisms that underlay cross-feeding in microbial methane-consuming communities. Co-occurring strains from Lake Washington sediment were used that are involved in methane consumption, a methanotroph and two non-methanotrophic methylotrophs.
Project description:Numerous studies signify that diets rich in phytochemicals reduce the risk of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs). However, their effects are often not uniform among individuals, possibly due to inter-individual variation in gut microbiota. The host indigenous gut microbiota and their metabolites have emerged as factors that greatly influence the efficacy of dietary interventions. The biological activities, mechanisms of actions and the specific targets of several microbial metabolites are unknown. Urolithin A (UroA) is one such natural microbial metabolite, which showed (including our recent study) anti-carcinogenic, anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities. The goal of the experiment to determine if Urolithin A blocks the genes induced by lipopolysaccharide (mimicking bacterial effects on colon) as well as determine effects of Urolithin A alone.
Project description:Neural circuits driving mammalian behaviors are highly plastic and modulated by internal and external factors, including the gut microbiome. We identify imidazole propionate (ImP), a microbial metabolite linked to metabolic disorders, as a key modulator of brain activity and behavior. Bacterially derived ImP enters the systemic circulation and brain, where it alters neuronal gene expression and activity in the hypothalamus without inducing overt neuroinflammation. Elevating systemic ImP promotes stress-related pathways and disrupts GABAergic/glutamatergic signaling in the hypothalamus before peripheral glucose dysregulation occurs. Similarly, colonization with the ImP-producing bacterium Eggerthella lenta elevates behavioral and molecular features of stress. In a mouse model of type 2 diabetes, the gut microbiome exhibits an enhanced ability to produce ImP, leading to elevated systemic levels that are associated with heightened stress responses. In humans, higher ImP associates with reduced hypothalamic reactivity to food cues, impaired stress-coping, and increased emotional eating, mirroring the causal links between ImP, hypothalamic activity, and stress-related behaviors in mice. Overall, these findings establish ImP as a notable microbial metabolite that links gut dysbiosis to altered hypothalamic function and stress in metabolic disease.
Project description:The increased urban pressures are often associated with specialization of microbial communities. Microbial communities being a critical player in the geochemical processes, makes it important to identify key environmental parameters that influence the community structure and its function.In this proect we study the influence of land use type and environmental parameters on the structure and function of microbial communities. The present study was conducted in an urban catchment, where the metal and pollutants levels are under allowable limits. The overall goal of this study is to understand the role of engineered physicochemical environment on the structure and function of microbial communities in urban storm-water canals. Microbial community structure was determined using PhyoChio (G3) Water and sediment samples were collected after a rain event from Sungei Ulu Pandan watershed of >25km2, which has two major land use types: Residential and industrial. Samples were analyzed for physicochemical variables and microbial community structure and composition. Microbial community structure was determined using PhyoChio (G3)
Project description:The increased urban pressures are often associated with specialization of microbial communities. Microbial communities being a critical player in the geochemical processes, makes it important to identify key environmental parameters that influence the community structure and its function.In this proect we study the influence of land use type and environmental parameters on the structure and function of microbial communities. The present study was conducted in an urban catchment, where the metal and pollutants levels are under allowable limits. The overall goal of this study is to understand the role of engineered physicochemical environment on the structure and function of microbial communities in urban storm-water canals. Water and sediment samples were collected after a rain event from Sungei Ulu Pandan watershed of >25km2, which has two major land use types: Residential and industrial. Samples were analyzed for physicochemical variables and microbial community structure and composition. Functional gene abundance was determined using GeoChip.
Project description:To study the responses of microbial communities to short-term nitrogen addition and warming,here we examine microbial communities in mangrove sediments subjected to a 4-months experimental simulation of eutrophication with 185 g m-2 year-1 nitrogen addition (N), 3oC warming (W) and nitrogen addition*warming interaction (NW).
Project description:Colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence is rising globally and anticipated to become the leading cause of cancer death in younger individuals. Potential risk factors are diet induced obesity and altered microbiomes that lead to accumulation of toxic metabolite accumulation. However, how ammonia and other microbial metabolites impact key signaling pathways, such as TGF-β signaling, to promote CRC remains unclear. Our study investigates a critical link between gut microbiome alterations, ammonia, and their toxic effects on the TGF-β signaling pathway, to drive CRC progression. We found that in an obesity induced mouse model of cancer, altered microbial populations and ammonia promote Caspase-3-mediated cleavage of SMAD3 adaptor βII-spectrin (SPTBN1). Cleaved SPTBN1 fragments form adducts with ammonia to induce pro-inflammatory cytokine expression and alter TGF-β signaling driving CRC. Extending on Alphafold docking simulations, we identified that ammonia interacts with six polar residues at SPTBN1 (S553, Y556, S663, Y666, N986, and T1178) of cleaved SPTBN1 fragments to form hydrogen bonds that disrupt downstream SMAD3 signaling, altering TGF-β signaling to a protumorigenic phenotype. Blocking SPTBN1, through an SPTBN1 specific siRNA blocks ammonia toxicity and restore TGF-β signaling by reducing the abundance of SPTBN1 cleaved fragments. Importantly, SPTBN1 siRNA blocks ammonia toxicity and restore normal TGF-β signaling in CRC cells. Moreover, our research establishes crosstalk between TGF-β signaling and a microbial sensor, carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1), which is significantly overexpressed in CRC patients. We identified CEACAM1-SPTBN1 interactions at specific residues (E517 and Y520) within the immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motif (ITIM) of CEACAM1 cytoplasmic domain, with both molecules playing pivotal roles in CRC progression. Our study identifies mechanistic insights into how microbial metabolites target TGF-β a major signaling pathways to promote CRC.