Project description:The spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) into agricultural soils, products, and foods severely limits the use of organic fertilizers in agriculture. In this study, experimental land plots were fertilized, sown, and harvested for two consecutive agricultural cycles using either mineral or three types of organic fertilizers: sewage sludge, pig slurry, or composted organic fraction of municipal solid waste. The analysis of the relative abundances of more than 200,000 ASV (Amplicon Sequence Variants) allowed the identification of a small, but significant (<10%) overlap between soil and fertilizer microbiomes, particularly in soils sampled the same day of the harvest (post-harvest soils). Loads of clinically relevant ARG were significantly higher (up to 100 fold) in fertilized soils relative to the initial soil. The highest increases corresponded to post-harvest soils treated with organic fertilizers, and they correlated with the extend of the contribution of fertilizers to the soil microbiome. Edible products (lettuce and radish) showed low, but measurable loads of ARG (sul1 for lettuces and radish, tetM for lettuces). These loads were minimal in mineral fertilized soils, and strongly dependent on the type of fertilizer. We concluded that at least part of the observed increase on ARG loads in soils and foodstuffs were actual contributions from the fertilizer microbiomes. Thus, we propose that adequate waste management and good pharmacological and veterinarian practices may significantly reduce the potential health risk posed by the presence of ARG in agricultural soils and plant products.
Project description:We compared gene expression profiles between asymptomatic and symptomatic atherosclerotic plaques from the same patient. This was accomplished by analyzing carotid plaques from four patients with bilateral high-grade carotid artery stenoses one being symptomatic (TIA or stroke) and the other asymptomatic.
Project description:In this data set, we reported for the first time that huanglongbing disease (HLB) induces major changes in the expression of global genes in flavedo, vascular and juice vesicle tissues of citrus fruit. 68 Total samples were analyzed. cDNA generation, array analysis, and statistical tests were performed as a service at the Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research (ICBR) Microarray Core facility at the University of Florida (Gainesville, FL). The linear models were used for array analysis (Smyth GK et al. Bioinformatics, 2005, 2067-2075). The linear models were firstly used to assess differential expression, and then an empirical Bayes method was used to moderate the standard errors. 13 comparisons were performed for the study. The comparisons in Citrus sinensis cv. Hamlin included: SC vs. CC (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic vascular core); SJV vs. CJV (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic juice vesicle); SS vs. CS (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic seed); SP vs. CP (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic peel). The comparisons in Citrus sinensis cv. Valencia included: SP vs. HP (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic peel); ASP vs. HP (genes that respond to infection in asymptomatic peel); SP vs. ASP (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic peel compared to asymptomatic peel); SC vs. HC (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic vascular core); ASC vs. HC (genes that respond to infection in asymptomatic vascular core); SC vs. ASC (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic vascular core compared to asymptomatic vascular core); SJV vs. HJV (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic juice vesicle); ASJV vs. HJV (genes that respond to infection in asymptomatic juice vesicle); SJV vs. ASJV (genes that respond to infection in symptomatic juice vesicle compared to asymptomatic juice vesicle). ESTs with significant expression changes (P value <0.001; false discovery rate <0.01 with equal or higher than 2-fold changes in expression) were selected for further analysis.
Project description:Domoic acid (DA) is a naturally produced neurotoxin synthesized by the marine diatom genus Pseudo-nitzschia. DA accumulates in filter-feeders such as shellfish, and can produce severe neurotoxicity when contaminated seafood is ingested. DA poisoning is a significant public health concern, and though seafood regulations have effectively minimized the human risk of severe acute poisoning, the effects of exposure at asymptomatic levels are poorly understood. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of exposure to symptomatic and asymptomatic doses of DA on gene expression patterns in the zebrafish brain. We exposed adult zebrafish to either a symptomatic (1.1 ± 0.2 μg /g) or an asymptomatic (0.31 ± 0.03 µg DA/g fish) dose of DA by intracelomic injection and sampled at 24, 48 and 168 h post-injection. Transcriptional profiling was done using Agilent and Affymetrix microarrays. Our analysis revealed distinct, non-overlapping changes in gene expression between the two doses. We found that the majority of transcriptional changes were observed at 24 hours post-injection with both doses. In response to symptomatic dose exposure, we observed 328, 5, and 1 genes were differentially expressed at 24, 48 and 168 hours post-injection, respectively. In contrast, 136, 12, and 28 genes were differentially expressed in the asymptomatic dose at the same time points. Pathway analysis revealed symptomatic DA exposure affected genes associated with pathways including cell adhesion, inflammation, and amyloid proteins. Among the pathways enriched among genes differentially expressed with asymptomatic exposure were circadian rhythms and endocrine signaling. Overall, these results suggest that transcriptional responses are specific to the DA dose and that asymptomatic exposure can cause long-term changes. Many of the differentially expressed genes are important players in neuronal, neuroimmune and neuroendocrine function. Further studies are needed to characterize the potential downstream neurobehavioral impacts of DA exposure.
Project description:In this work, we used a functional gene microarray approach (GeoChip) to assess the soil microbial community functional potential related to the different wine quality. In order to minimize the soil variability, this work was conducted at a “within-vineyard” scale, comparing two similar soils (BRO11 and BRO12) previously identified with respect to pedological and hydrological properties within a single vineyard in Central Tuscany and that yielded highly contrasting wine quality upon cultivation of the same Sangiovese cultivar
Project description:Leaf tissues of Valencia orange and Citron plants extracted with ethanol for the 2D mapping experiment. For Valencia, healthy, HLB-infected (symptomatic and asymptomatic) leaves are included. For Citron, infected symptomatic and asymptomatic leaves are included.
Project description:Human rhinoviruses (HRV) are among the most common causes of respiratory infections in humans but can be frequently detected also in asymptomatic subjects. We evaluated the value of gene expression profiles to differentiate asymptomatic detection from symptomatic HRV infection in children.