Anaerobic co-digestion (AcoD) of sewage sludge (SS) and food waste (FW) is often constrained by the slow hydrolysis of SS and rapid acidification of FW. This study evaluated a combined nano zero-valent iron/sodium percarbonate (nZVI/SPC) pretreatment for improving substrate disintegration, methane recovery, process stability, and biogas quality. nZVI/SPC increased the initial soluble chemical oxygen demand to 22,483.6 mg/L, compared with 8493.7 mg/L in the control, and markedly promoted the release of soluble proteins and polysaccharides. The cumulative methane yield reached 412.5 mL/g volatile solids (VS), 55.2% higher than the control, while the maximum methane production rate increased to 48.6 mL/(g VS·day) and the lag phase decreased to 0.52 day. Although volatile fatty acids peaked at 8124.6 mg/L on day 7, the pH remained between 6.99 and 7.41, indicating effective buffering by SPC-derived carbonate. The maximum CH₄ content reached 71.2%, whereas the H₂S peak decreased by 49.6%. Microbial analysis showed enrichment of hydrolytic and syntrophic bacteria, including Clostridium, Syntrophomonas, and Syntrophobacter, together with Methanosaeta and Methanobacterium. Overall, nZVI/SPC enhanced AcoD by promoting organic matter solubilization, stabilizing acidification, accelerating methanogenic conversion, and reducing H₂S release. This work offers a feasible strategy for efficient resource recovery from multiple organic wastes.

In bacteria, the auxiliary complex SecDF-YajC participates in the Sec system, facilitating post-translational translocation of preproteins across the membrane through the SecYEG channel. Although YajC homologs are strongly conserved in rhizobial strains and may play important roles in many processes, the functions and mechanisms by which they are involved in the interaction between rhizobia and host legumes are unknown. By constructing Mesorhizobium huakuii yajC mutant, we observed an increase in the strain growth rate, but a reduction in both the biomass and average thickness of the biofilm in the yajC gene mutant compared to the wild type. Deletion of yajC gene results in severe suppression of competitive ability in the plant rhizosphere, alongside a substantial reduction in root hair curling and infection thread initiation during the early infection stages. The yajC-deficient mutant formed more numerous but smaller root nodules, with a 77% decrease in nitrogen-fixing capacity. Scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed that yajC mutant bacteroids displayed, alongside clear hallmarks of cellular deformation, dissociation, and premature senescence. From nodule bacteroid proteomic analysis, we further identified 210 differentially expressed proteins, including 32 transport-related proteins, and 10 associated with nitrogen fixation. Altogether, our findings reveal the importance of YajC-mediated transport and biofilm formation in rhizobial infection and nodule development during M. huakuii-Astragalus sinicus symbiosis.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major opportunistic pathogen with a remarkable capacity to develop resistance to multiple antibiotics. Although numerous resistance determinants have been characterized, broader genomic features associated with antibiotic resistance remain incompletely understood. In this study, more than 3 million CDSs were extracted from 7,801 P. aeruginosa genomes and clustered into a non-redundant CDS set comprising 87,744 centroid CDSs. Functional characterization of the CDSs was conducted using the Comprehensive Antibiotic Resistance Database, the Virulence Factor Database and KEGG annotations, and genome-wide enrichment analyses were performed to identify CDSs and functions associated with antibiotic resistance. Resistant strains generally carried more resistance- and virulence-associated CDSs than susceptible strains. Several CDSs encoding efflux pumps and antibiotic-modifying enzymes, e.g. aad genes, tet(G) and cmlA9, were significantly enriched in resistant strains. Pathway enrichment analyses revealed antibiotic-specific functional signatures, including porphyrin metabolism, sulphur metabolism and folate-related pathways among aminoglycoside-resistant strains, and homologous recombination, DNA replication and mismatch repair pathways among levofloxacin-resistant strains. However, polysaccharide production was enriched among CDSs nominally significantly associated with susceptible strains. Random forest models demonstrated moderate to excellent predictive performance with external validation confirming robustness. Co-occurrence network analyses further identified associations among virulence genes, e.g. between lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis- and O-antigen-associated genes, as well as associations between resistance determinants and virulence-associated genes, such as β-lactam resistance and iron acquisition genes. These findings revealed antibiotic-specific gene and pathway signatures, enabled the prediction of antibiotic resistance using genomic features and revealed potential genomic linkages between canonical resistance determinants and other resistance-associated features.

Splanchnic venous thrombosis (SVT) is a potentially catastrophic manifestation of polycythaemia vera (PV). We report a woman in her 60s with masked PV who had been managed for 5 years with intermittent phlebotomy and aspirin without haematology referral, molecular testing or cytoreductive therapy. Chronic iron deficiency masked erythrocytosis, delaying diagnosis. She presented with extensive thrombosis involving the portal, splenic and superior mesenteric veins complicated by mesenteric ischaemia requiring exploratory laparotomy, jejunal resection and ileostomy. Bone marrow biopsy and JAK2 V617F testing confirmed PV. Therapeutic anticoagulation was initiated with enoxaparin and subsequently transitioned to apixaban, while hydroxyurea achieved sustained haematologic control. Interval imaging demonstrated thrombus regression with persistent cavernous transformation. Given ongoing portal hypertension, oesophageal varices, occasional mild ostomy bleeding and low body weight, anticoagulation was continued indefinitely at reduced intensity with apixaban 2.5 mg twice daily. At 21-month follow-up, the patient remained free of recurrent thrombosis and major bleeding.

Industrial wastewater often contains mixtures of organic pollutants. Unlike single-pollutant exposure, their antagonistic or synergistic interactions redirect microbial community assembly trajectories and destabilize anaerobic conversion. Iron amendment strategies such as nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) may promote process recovery under such stress. How granule-surface iron transformation, extracellular matrix remodeling, and microbial community assembly are coordinated during recovery remains unclear. Here we conducted 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP)/N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) batch experiments under iron amendment and provided directional cross-checking in expanded granular sludge bed (EGSB) reactors treating real industrial wastewater. Batch experiments followed a disturbance-adaptation-recovery trajectory. Over an observation window comparable to that of the batch experiments, nZVI increased mean chemical oxygen demand (COD), 2,4-DCP, and DMF removal in EGSB by 17.13%, 22.72%, and 17.32%, respectively. Community Bureau of Reference (BCR) fractionation and extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) analysis showed reducible-iron enrichment at the granule interface coinciding with a shift from an acute polysaccharide (PS) response to protein (PN)-dominated tightly bound EPS during recovery. Using the infer Community Assembly Mechanisms by Phylogenetic-bin-based null model analysis (iCAMP) framework and molecular ecological network analysis, we identified enrichment of Chloroflexi and Actinobacteriota and a more centralized and specialized network structure. Community assembly shifted from homogeneous selection toward a more balanced mix of deterministic and stochastic processes. These interfacial iron-extracellular matrix associations and assembly shifts accompanied recovery within the same time series and were directionally consistent under complex influent, providing microecological insights into microbial community reorganization during anaerobic industrial wastewater treatment.

Waterborne organic micro-pollutants threaten both ecological integrity and human health. However, the simultaneous elimination of these contaminants remains challenging. We synthesized a magnetic biochar (CD/Fe3O4-BC) with amphiphilic and magnetic properties via a coprecipitation method using humic acid, iron compounds, and β-cyclodextrin as raw materials, followed by optimization of the preparation conditions. Surface and bulk properties of the modified biochar were probed by multiple analytical techniques, including SEM, BET, FT-IR, XRD, and XPS. The results showed that decorating the biochar surface with Fe3O4 nanoparticles and β-cyclodextrin substantially expanded its specific surface area and generated new active sites for pollutant adsorption. Adsorption experiments demonstrated that CD/ Fe3O4-BC efficiently removed both hydrophobic 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP) and hydrophilic tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH), achieving removal rates of 86.38% and 85.45%, respectively. Under the optimal adsorption conditions, CD/ Fe3O4-BC achieved equilibrium adsorption capacities reaching approximately 105.71 mg g[-1] toward 2,4-DCP and 35.44 mg g[-1] toward TCH in the binary mixed system. The adsorption process involved multiple mechanisms, including pore filling, hydrogen bonding, π-π stacking, and electrostatic attraction. Furthermore, surface complexation contributed specifically to TCH adsorption. The Fe3O4 loading enables rapid magnetic separation of the spent adsorbent, and reusability tests showed that the material maintained elevated removal efficiency over five successive reuse cycles. This work provides a promising strategy for treating composite organic micropollutants in water.

Background and Objectives: Iron deficiency (ID) is common in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and is associated with adverse clinical outcomes. Although intravenous ferric carboxymaltose (FCM) improves functional status, its effects on ventricular electrophysiological indices remain incompletely characterized. This study evaluated short-term changes in the corrected index of cardiac electrophysiological balance (iCEBc) and conventional electrocardiographic repolarization parameters after FCM administration. Materials and Methods: This retrospective single-center pre-post study included 92 clinically stable patients with HFrEF and ID who received intravenous FCM. Standard 12-lead electrocardiograms and laboratory parameters were evaluated at baseline and 30 ± 5 days after treatment. The primary outcome was the within-patient change in iCEBc, while secondary outcomes included conventional ventricular repolarization indices. Results: Following FCM treatment, ferritin, transferrin saturation, and hemoglobin increased significantly (all p < 0.001). iCEBc decreased significantly (4.33 ± 1.04 vs. 4.04 ± 0.82, p = 0.016). Significant reductions were also observed in QTc, JTc, JT, Tp-e, Tp-e/QT, Tp-e/QTc, frontal QRS-T angle, and QT, whereas QRS duration remained unchanged. Changes in iron indices were not associated with changes in iCEBc. Conclusions: In this uncontrolled pre-post cohort, intravenous FCM was associated with favorable short-term changes in several electrocardiographic repolarization indices. However, because anemia correction occurred concurrently and no control group or clinical arrhythmic outcomes were available, these findings should be considered exploratory and hypothesis-generating rather than evidence of an antiarrhythmic effect.

Two novel facultatively anaerobic thermophilic members of the genus Limisphaera (Verrucomicrobiota), strains 4302-co[T] and VF2[T], were isolated from terrestrial hot springs of Geyser Valley (Kamchatka) and the Lake Baikal region, Russia. Cells were motile cocci, forming aggregates; strain 4302-co[T] grew optimally at a range of 60-65 °C and pH 7.4 and strain VF2[T] at 55 °C and pH 8.5. Both were chemoorganoheterotrophs utilizing mono-, di-, and polysaccharides, including cellulose, xylan, xanthan gum, arabinan, gluco-, and galactomannans. Both grew anaerobically by fermentation or by respiration with nitrite, nitrate, ferric citrate, or ferrihydrite; dissimilatory iron reduction is reported here for the first time within the phylum Verrucomicrobiota. Their genomes encoded more than 100 glycoside hydrolases and more than 15 polysaccharide lyases, indicating high hydrolytic potential. Additionally, the metabolic pathways of sugar catabolism, fermentation, and both aerobic and anaerobic respiration were reconstructed. A GH51 glycoside hydrolase of strain 4302-co[T] phylogenetically related to endoglucanases was heterologously expressed and shown to be active at 70 °C with unusually broad specificity, hydrolyzing both β-1,4 and β-1,3 linkages. Based on phylogenomic analysis and phenotypic features, the strains are assigned to two novel species, for which the names Limisphaera vallis sp. nov. and Limisphaera sibirica sp. nov. are proposed.

Nanotechnology is considered a promising approach to enhance the functionality of phytobiotics, that promote animal health. This study aimed to fabricate iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4) coated with alginate (SA)-chitosan (CS) for the delivery of sweet basil oil (SBO). Fe3O4-SBO-SA-CS was characterised in terms of its physicochemical properties, safety, in vitro release, and stability. Fe3O4-SBO was successfully modified with SA-CS polysaccharides, as evidenced by Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy. Thermal stability of SBO was enhanced by being incorporated into Fe3O4-SA-CS, whereas Fe3O4-SBO-SA-CS exhibited high antioxidant with broad-spectrum antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, and Staphylococcus aureus. The release was 73.79% with a phenolic compound content of 82.85 mg GAE/g in simulated intestinal fluid. The Fe3O4-SBO-SA-CS effectively protected SBO activity under acid, bile salt and storage. Therefore, Fe3O4-SBO-SA-CS demonstrated the potential not only to protect and deliver SBO to the target site but also to support its safe application in animal nutrition.

Hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae, a novel variant with unique phenotypic and genotypic features that enhance pathogenicity and epidemic potentiality, has become a serious worldwide public health emergency. Even healthy people can contract invasive infections from hypervirulent K. pneumoniae (hvKp), which shows higher virulence than classical K. pneumoniae (cKp). Because of its colonization in the human gut, it can spread and cause serious morbidity in community-acquired diseases like meningitis, endophthalmitis, and liver abscesses. To increase its pathogenic potential, hvKp possesses a distinct collection of virulence factors that go beyond antibiotic resistance. Capsule, fimbriae, siderophores and LPS are the major essential elements responsible for pathogenicity. Siderophores are a major class of secondary metabolites that play a key role in facilitating the transport of iron across bacterial cell membranes into the cytoplasm. This review examines numerous virulence factors that contribute to the infectious capacity of hvKp, including the polysaccharide capsule, biofilm formation, siderophore production (aerobactin, enterobactin, salmochelin, and yersiniabactin), and adhesins involved in host cell colonization and pathogenicity. Additionally, this review may evaluate the specific role of virulence regulatory genes in balancing antibiotic resistance and pathogenicity. Understanding these virulence genes and their mechanisms is essential for the development of effective diagnostic, preventive, and therapeutic approaches to address the escalating threat of hvKp pathogenesis. This is a novel and impactful review that should go beyond the description of virulence factors and pathogenicity and should highlight how understanding these mechanisms can inform the development of novel therapeutic strategies against hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKp).

Skin diseases affect approximately 30%-70% of the global population and significantly reduce quality of life. Although polysaccharide-based dissolving microneedles (DMNs) are a minimally invasive transdermal delivery platform with strong clinical potential, their loose molecular packing and weak intermolecular interactions often lead to insufficient mechanical strength, increasing the risk of bending or fracture during insertion into pathological skin. In this study, a metal-polyphenol network (MPN)-mediated dual-enhancement strategy was developed by incorporating an EGCG-iron ion self-assembled precursor into a hyaluronic acid (HA) matrix to generate the preferred MPN-enhanced DMNs (PMN). MPN incorporation regulated the molecular organization of the HA polysaccharide matrix through synergistic hydrogen bonding and metal-ligand coordination interactions, leading to enhanced structural integrity and mechanical robustness. Under 808 nm near-infrared irradiation (NIR), PMN generated localized photothermal heating that disrupted dense tissue barriers and promoted molecular transport, resulting in a 2.67-fold increase in transdermal drug penetration compared with conventional DMNs. In melanoma-bearing mice model, PMN combined with NIR irradiation achieves an 83.5% tumor inhibition rate in a B16 melanoma model with good biosafety. Overall, this work provides mechanistic insights into the structure-property relationship of MPN-regulated polysaccharide matrix and offers a versatile strategy for constructing mechanically robust and multifunctional polysaccharide-based transdermal delivery systems.

Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent programmed cell death driven by lipid peroxidation that has been implicated in the pathogenesis of various diseases, especially lethal cancers. Numerous studies have suggested that ferroptosis serves as a bona fide target for antitumor therapies. However, therapeutic efficacy and tumor-targeting capacity still need to be improved, and the underlying mechanisms need to be studied and illustrated. In this study, a nanoformulation of folate-acid-decorated Fe-loaded heparin nanoparticles was rationally designed with the intention of facilitating tumor accumulation for antitumor therapy, with efficient ferroptosis efficacy. The results of both in vitro and in vivo experiments indicated that the nanomedication used in this study could provide an effective antitumor system with efficient ferroptosis capacity and satisfactory biosafety.

This study aims to develop and optimize taste-masked chewable iron tablets using Hydroxypropyl beta-cyclodextrin (HPβCD) and E-Tongue technology to improve patient compliance. A 2-level factorial design was employed to evaluate the effects of HPβCD, isomaltose, and Pearlitol® on the formulation. By using design of experiment the effect of each factor individually on the response can be predicted. There are 8 runs in this design the response for each 8 formulations is predicted individually by using design expert software. The composition of the tablet formulation was optimized using full factorial 23design, which is desirable for response surface methodology to optimize complex formulations. The results demonstrated favorable flow properties, with consistent bulk and tapped densities, and excellent mechanical strength, particularly for F8. In-vitro dissolution studies revealed a high cumulative drug release (93.75%) for F8. E-Tongue analysis indicated that F8 exhibited superior taste-masking efficiency, with the lowest bitterness score. The optimised chewable tablet evaluated for bitter score and hardness. According to point prediction mean predicted was found to be 4.1 for bitter score and observed mean was 4 and for hardness the predicted mean was 13kg/density and observed mean was 14 kg/density. Therefore, the optimised formulation F9 was Drug:CD (1:5), Sweetening agent (11.25mg) and Pearlitol (90 mg) Additionally, chewability was influenced by tablet hardness, with F8 showing the highest chewability difficulty index. The optimized formulation (F8) provides a balanced combination of taste masking, drug release, and mechanical strength, enhancing patient adherence.

Antibiotic resistance is a growing global health concern, with poultry systems acting as important reservoirs of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). However, resistome and functional profiles of indigenous chickens raised under traditional systems remain underexplored. This study aimed to characterize the antibiotic resistome, virulence factor genes, and metabolic potential of gut microbiota in Indonesian Kedu chickens using a shotgun metagenomic approach. Digesta samples from five gastrointestinal segments of 21 healthy adult chickens were analyzed through high-throughput sequencing. ARGs were identified using the Comprehensive Antibiotic Resistance Database (CARD) and Antibiotic Resistance Genes Databases (ARDB), while virulence factors and functional genes were annotated using Virulence Factor Database (VFDB), Clusters of Orthologous Groups (COG), and Carbohydrate-Active EnZymes (CAZy) databases. Results revealed a diverse resistome dominated by multidrug resistance and efflux pump mechanisms, with prominent genes associated with fluoroquinolone, tetracycline, β-lactam, and glycopeptide resistance. The detection of clinically relevant ARGs suggests that genetic determinants associated with antimicrobial resistance are present in the gut microbiota of traditionally raised Kedu chickens, although metagenomic data alone cannot determine whether these genes are actively expressed or confer phenotypic resistance. Virulence factor analysis showed functions related to adherence, immune evasion, iron acquisition, quorum sensing, and efflux activity, reflecting strong microbial adaptability. Functional profiling demonstrated enrichment in translation, carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism, genome maintenance, and cell envelope biogenesis. Additionally, CAZyme analysis indicated a high capacity for complex polysaccharide degradation, supporting efficient utilization of fiber-rich traditional diets. In conclusion, this study provides a comprehensive metagenomic overview of antibiotic resistance and functional potential in Kedu chicken gut microbiota, emphasizing the importance of incorporating indigenous poultry into antimicrobial resistance surveillance within a One Health framework.