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Register a new userPorous translucent electrodes enhance current generation from photosynthetic biofilms
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We tested the enhancement of electrical current generated from photosynthetically active bacteria by use of electrodes with porosity on the nano- and micrometer length-scale. For two cyanobacteria on structured indium-tin-oxide electrodes, current generation was increased by two orders of magnitude and the photo-response was substantially faster compared to non-porous anodes. These properties highlight porosity as an important design strategy for electrochemical bio-interfaces. The role of porosity on different length scales was studied systematically which revealed that the main performance enhancement was caused by the increased surface area of the electrodes. More complex microstructured architectures which spanned biofilms as translucent 3D scaffolds provided additional advantage in the presence of microbial direct electron transfer (DET). The absence of a clear DET contribution in both studied cyanobacteria, Synechocystis and Nostoc, raises questions about the role of conductive cellular components previously found in both organisms.
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Computational methods have reshaped the landscape of modern biology. While the biomedical community is increasingly dependent on computational tools, the mechanisms ensuring open data, open software, and reproducibility are variably enforced by academic institutions, funders, and publishers. Publications may present academic software for which essential materials are or become unavailable, such as source code and documentation. Publications that lack such information compromise the role of peer review in evaluating technical strength and scientific contribution. Incomplete ancillary information for an academic software package may bias or limit any subsequent work produced with the tool. We provide eight recommendations across four different domains to improve reproducibility, transparency, and rigor in computational biology - precisely on the main values which should be emphasized in life science curricula. Our recommendations for improving software availability, usability, and archival stability aim to foster a sustainable data science ecosystem in biomedicine and life science research.
The goal of this study is to explore a new self-healing concept in which fungi are used as a self-healing agent to promote calcium mineral precipitation to fill the cracks in concrete. An initial screening of different species of fungi has been conducted. Fungal growth medium was overlaid onto cured concrete plate. Mycelial discs were aseptically deposited at the plate center. The results showed that, due to the dissolving of Ca(OH)2 from concrete, the pH of the growth medium increased from its original value of 6.5 to 13.0. Despite the drastic pH increase, Trichoderma reesei (ATCC13631) spores germinated into hyphal mycelium and grew equally well with or without concrete. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) confirmed that the crystals precipitated on the fungal hyphae were composed of calcite. These results indicate that T. reesei has great potential to be used in bio-based self-healing concrete for sustainable infrastructure.
Concrete is susceptible to cracking owing to drying shrinkage, freeze-thaw cycles, delayed ettringite formation, reinforcement corrosion, creep and fatigue, etc. Since maintenance and inspection of concrete infrastructure require onerous labor and high costs, self-healing of harmful cracks without human interference or intervention could be of great attraction. The goal of this study is to explore a new self-healing approach in which fungi are used as a self-healing agent to promote calcium carbonate precipitation to fill the cracks in concrete structures. Recent research results in the field of geomycology have shown that many species of fungi could play an important role in promoting calcium carbonate mineralization, but their application in self-healing concrete has not been reported. Therefore, a screening of different species of fungi has been conducted in this study. Our results showed that, despite the drastic pH increase owing to the leaching of calcium hydroxide from concrete, Aspergillus nidulans (MAD1445), a pH regulatory mutant, could grow on concrete plates and promote calcium carbonate precipitation.
Cold atmospheric plasma treatments have been applied on lenses seeds and shoots to improve their germination and vigor rates. Two approaches have been considered: direct plasma exposure and plasma activation of liquids (tap water, demineralized water and liquid fertilizer). A special focus has been drawn on reactive oxygen species generated in the plasma phase but also in plasma activated media to understand their impact on germination process as well as on plants growth.
Lentil seeds have been packed in a dielectric barrier device and exposed for several minutes to a cold atmospheric plasma generated in helium with/without a reactive gas (nitrogen or oxygen). While no impact is evidenced on germination rates (caping nearly at 100% with/without plasma exposure), seeds vigor is clearly improved with a median germination time decreasing from 1850 min (31h) to 1500 min (26 h), hence representing a time saving of at least 5 hours. We show that the admixture of nitrogen to helium can further increase this time saving up to 8 hours. Contrarily, we demonstrate that the addition of molecular oxygen to the helium discharge does not promote seeds vigor. Whatever the plasma chemistry utilized, these biological effects are accompanied with strong hydrophilization of the seed coating (with a decrease in contact angles from 118{deg} to 25{deg}) as well as increased water absorption (water uptakes measured 8 hours after imbibition are close to 50% for plasma-treated seeds instead of 37% for seeds from the control group). A follow-up of the seeds over a 45-days ageing period shows the sustainability of the plasma-triggered biological effects: whatever the plasma treatment, seeds vigor remains stable and much higher than for seeds unexposed to plasma). For these reasons, the seed-packed dielectric barrier device (SP-DBD) supplied with a He-N2 gas mixture can be considered as a relevant dry atmospheric priming plasma (DAPP) in the same way as those used in routine by seed companies.
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