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Journal articleSun T, Sun M-L, Lin L, et al., 2026,
Combining multiplex metabolic engineering with adaptive evolution strategies for high-level succinic acid production in Yarrowia lipolytica
, Synthetic and Systems Biotechnology, Vol: 11, Pages: 48-58, ISSN: 2405-805XSuccinic acid, an essential platform chemical with extensive utility in biodegradable materials, pharmaceuticals, and the food industry, faces challenges of high energy consumption and environmental pollution in traditional chemical synthesis. Here, we employed multiplex metabolic engineering and adaptive laboratory evolution to enhance succinic acid biosynthesis in Yarrowia lipolytica. By attenuating succinate dehydrogenase (Sdh) activity, mitigating by-product accumulation, and enhancing the succinate synthesis pathway, engineered strains showed efficient succinic acid production from glycerol. The titer reached 130.99 g/L under unregulated pH conditions, translating to a yield of 0.35 g/g and a productivity of 0.70 g/(L·h). Subsequently, transporter engineering and adaptive evolution strategies were applied to enhance glucose utilization for succinic acid synthesis, yielding an evolved strain that eliminated the growth lag phase and produced 106.68 g/L succinic acid from glucose, which translated to a yield of 0.32 g/g and a productivity of 0.64 g/(L·h). Additionally, transcriptomic analysis and inverse metabolic engineering revealed that 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (4-Hppd) in the tyrosine degradation pathway partially restored the growth of Sdh-deficient strains on glucose, offering new insights for subsequent succinic acid biomanufacturing using Y. lipolytica.
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Journal articleMayer F, Sampson WW, Wloch D, et al., 2025,
Towards the efficient preparation of tough cellulose nanopapers.
, Carbohydr Polym, Vol: 370Cellulose nanopapers are attractive materials with outstanding mechanical and optical properties, yet their production is slow. The use of non-aqueous suspension media, in particular ethanol, for nanopaper production reduced filtration times by 73 %. Nanopapers prepared from ethanolic suspensions possessed higher porosities than those prepared from aqueous suspensions, reducing their transparency and tensile properties. Rewetting nanopapers prepared from ethanolic suspensions with water and subsequent drying yielded nanopapers with densities essentially the same as those prepared from aqueous suspensions, which in turn greatly increased mechanical properties and transparency. The strain to failure of rewetted and dried nanopapers prepared from ethanolic suspensions increased from 2.8 % to 7.5 %. The strain to failure of rewetted and dried nanopapers prepared from ethanolic suspensions was also greater than that of nanopapers prepared from aqueous suspensions (3.3 %) albeit at the expense of a 20 % decrease in tensile strength and modulus, which was shown to be attributable to a lower bonding contribution between fibrils in the network. The increased strain to failure results in significantly increased work of fracture. The rewetting and drying treatment also yielded nanopapers with high total luminous transmittance and haze.
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Journal articleSun M, Zhao Y, Ledesma-Amaro R, et al., 2025,
Engineered membraneless organelles in Corynebacterium glutamicum for enhanced indigoidine biosynthesis and antimicrobial peptide production
, Synthetic and Systems Biotechnology, Vol: 10, Pages: 1331-1340, ISSN: 2405-805XLiquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS)-driven membraneless organelles (MLOs) have been employed to enhance metabolic efficiency in various microbial cell factories. However, their application in the industrial bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum has not been explored. Here, we report the formation of liquid protein condensates in C. glutamicum using the RGG domain of Caenorhabditis elegans LAF-1. We optimized conditions for condensate formation, including the pre-induction period, inducer concentration, and cultivation temperature. Using the indigoidine biosynthesis pathway as a model, we demonstrated that LLPS-mediated MLOs enhanced indigoidine production. Furthermore, we applied these MLOs to modulate the toxicity of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) to host cells, facilitating the expression of AMPs, including melittin and lactoferricin B. These findings provide insights into MLOs engineering in C. glutamicum and suggest broader applications of LLPS-mediated systems in industrial biotechnology.
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Journal articleZhang J, Yang X, Harrison XA, et al., 2025,
Associations between skin bacteria and chytrid fungal infection in Asian amphibians.
, iScience, Vol: 28Identifying the generality of defensive symbionts and microbiome structures associated with pathogen infection across multiple hosts provides insights into understanding disease susceptibility and managing disease. The fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) infects amphibian skin (the disease, chytridiomycosis), causing amphibian declines worldwide except in Asia. Here, we investigated associations between amphibian skin bacterial microbiome and Bd infection in five Asian amphibian species and the susceptible, Australasian species Litoria caerulea via experiments and in the wild. We found that Asian amphibians showed resistance to Bd infection experimentally, with Bd infection causing divergence in microbiome structures in inoculated animals. Alpha diversity and relative abundances of 16 OTUs had negative effects on Bd load across inoculated animals. Compared with L. caerulea, four OTUs (Bradyrhizobium, Achromobacter, Sediminibacterium, and Rhodoplanes) with negative effects on Bd load were consistently enriched in experimental and wild populations of Asian amphibians. These OTUs are probably associated with reduced Bd loads in Asian amphibians.
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Journal articleYang Y, Zheng H, Qi C, et al., 2025,
Genome-based identification, and characterization of a bacteriocin selective inhibiting Penicillium citrinum in yak yogurt
, International Dairy Journal, Vol: 170, ISSN: 0958-6946This study purified, identified, and characterized SN-F1, a novel bacteriocin produced by Limosilactobacillus fermentum SN-1 isolated from traditional Qinghai yak yogurt. SN-F1 was extracted using ethyl acetate and purified through multistep chromatography (cation-exchange, gel filtration, and semi-preparative RP-HPLC). Tricine-SDS-PAGE and HPLC-MS/MS analysis revealed SN-F1 has a molecular mass of 2859.29 Da and a novel sequence (NINDQWLVLSSTQAAKLQALMKDVTA), classifying it as a class II bacteriocin. SN-F1 exhibited broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, inhibiting the key dairy spoilage mold Penicillium citrinum GLM6, various Gram-positive and Gram-negative foodborne pathogens, and several yeasts. The bacteriocin demonstrated significant thermostability (retained activity after 121 °C for 20 min) and high stability across a wide pH range (pH 2–8), but was completely inactivated by proteases (trypsin, protease K, papain, pepsin, flavor protease). Molecular docking elucidated the interaction forces and specific binding sites between SN-F1 and target cell membrane proteins. Crucially, incorporating SN-F1-producing L. fermentum SN-1 into fermentations with other functional lactic acid bacteria successfully produced enhanced traditional dairy products, confirming SN-F1's effective antibacterial activity.
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Journal articleZHOU T, Park Y-K, Ledesma Amaro R, 2025,
Advances in the biosynthesis of β-carotene and its derivatives in yeast
, Bioresource Technology, Vol: 435, ISSN: 0960-8524β-Carotene and its derivatives have been gaining huge interest due to its applications as food supplements, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, pigments, etc. Owing to their high values, sustainable microbial production has been a heated research topic. Traditional production methods, such as plant extraction and chemical synthesis, face challenges in scalability, cost, and environmental impact. With advances in synthetic biology, yeast-based biosynthesis has emerged as a promising alternative. This review provides a comprehensive summary of recent progress in the metabolic engineering strategies and fermentation optimization approaches of yeast, particularly Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Yarrowia lipolytica, for the production of β-carotene and its derivatives. In contrast to previous reviews, this work emphasizes the shared biosynthetic logic underlying structurally related derivatives, classifying them into two major groups: xanthophylls (canthaxanthin, zeaxanthin, astaxanthin, and violaxanthin) and apocarotenoids (crocetin, retinol, β-ionone, β-cyclocitral, and strigolactones). Representative cases and transferable engineering/fermentation strategies are highlighted. Advantages and limitations of yeast species as production hosts are thoroughly compared, and potential strategies to improve the production are discussed. Future work may focus on broadening product diversity in different yeast hosts and enhancing biosynthetic efficiency for a more sustainable production.
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Journal articleDebabeche NB, Wagner M, Jiang Q, et al., 2025,
Stiffened cellulose sandwich composites
, COMPOSITES PART A-APPLIED SCIENCE AND MANUFACTURING, Vol: 198, ISSN: 1359-835X -
Journal articleChung F, 2025,
Multidrug-resistant Haemophilus influenzae cluster of severe asthma from sputum bacteriome-resistome
, ERJ Open Research -
Journal articleBozkurt O, Bagdiken EY, 2025,
Early lactate elimination trend during therapeutic hypothermia predicts acute kidney injury in hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy.
, Pediatr NephrolBACKGROUND: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is an important complication in neonates with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). The aim was to assess the association between early lactate elimination trend and development of AKI in neonates with HIE receiving therapeutic hypothermia. METHODS: Medical records of 257 neonates with moderate-severe HIE were retrospectively analyzed for development of AKI based on neonatal Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) criteria. Blood lactate values over time for the first 5 days were recorded. The percentage decrease in lactate values was calculated during the first 12 h and on a daily basis and reported as lactate elimination trend. Logistic regression analysis and receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) analysis were conducted. RESULTS: AKI developed in 70 neonates (27.2%). Median initial and 12-h lactate values were significantly higher in the AKI group. Lactate elimination trend at 12-h was significantly lower in the AKI group compared to neonates with no AKI (43.6% vs 61.4%, p < 0.001). Lower 12-h lactate elimination trend was associated with development of AKI (OR: 21.27, 95%CI: 6.73-67.17, p < 0.001). ROC curve analysis demonstrated a 47.5% decrease in lactate values at 12-h as critical cut-off value of lactate elimination trend with 90% specificity and 64% sensitivity to predict AKI. Area under curve was found to be 0.813 (95% CI: 0.76-0.86, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Lactate elimination trend in the first 12 h can be used as an early marker for AKI in neonates with HIE receiving therapeutic hypothermia. The presence of decreased lactate elimination trend will allow for careful fluid management and early medical interventions in this highly vulnerable patient population.
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Journal articleShi N, Yang G, Wang P, et al., 2025,
A mycovirus enhances fitness of an insect pathogenic fungus and potentially modulates virulence through interactions between viral and host proteins
, PLoS Pathogens, Vol: 21, ISSN: 1553-7366Beauveria bassiana is an entomopathogenic ascomycete widely utilized in biological pest control. However, its effectiveness is often limited by low conidiation rates, sensitivity to environmental stresses, and delayed insecticidal activity. In this study, we identify and characterize a mycovirus, Beauveria bassiana polymycovirus 4–2 (BbPmV4-2), which markedly enhances the fitness and may modulate virulence of its fungal host. BbPmV4-2 comprises eight double-stranded RNA segments, among which three are unique and have not detected in related mycoviruses. Infection with BbPmV4-2 nearly doubles conidial yields and upregulates key conidiation-related genes, facilitating enhanced dispersal of both the host fungus and the mycovirus itself. Additionally, BbPmV4-2 infected strains exhibit increased tolerance to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation and elevated temperatures, and may also exhibit increased virulence against the greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella. The potentially increased virulence is attributed to increased conidial hydrophobicity, adhesion, and cuticle penetration capabilities. Functional analysis reveals that the viral open reading frame ORF5 plays a critical role in conferring hypervirulence and stress tolerance by interacting with host proteins BbGAP1, a GPI-anchored membrane protein, and BbSDU1, a deubiquitinating enzyme. These interactions elucidate a molecular mechanism by which a mycovirus that potentially influences host pathogenicity and enhances environmental adaptability. Our findings provide significant insights into mycovirus-host interactions and suggest potential strategies for optimizing biological pest control applications.
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