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Topic Review
Environmental Biofilms in Livestock Buildings
Biofilms are three-dimensional biological structures composed of microbial communities embedded in cohesive self-produced extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). EPS can drastically vary between biofilms but is generally composed of water and a complex mixture of polysaccharides, extracellular DNA (eDNA), proteins, and amyloid fibers. The presence of EPS, along with spatial organization and specific signaling systems, triggers a diversification of cell types and emerging community functions, including a fantastic adaptation to environmental fluctuations and the action of antimicrobials, in comparison to their free planktonic homologs.
  • 779
  • 18 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Bovine Herpesvirus 1
Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) is a virus of the family Herpesviridae and the subfamily Alphaherpesvirinae, known to cause several diseases worldwide in cattle, including rhinotracheitis, vaginitis, balanoposthitis, abortion, conjunctivitis, and enteritis. BoHV-1 is also a contributing factor in shipping fever, also known as bovine respiratory disease (BRD). It is spread horizontally through sexual contact, artificial insemination, and aerosol transmission and it may also be transmitted vertically across the placenta. BoHV-1 can cause both clinical and subclinical infections, depending on the virulence of the strain. Although these symptoms are mainly non-life-threatening it is an economically important disease as infection may cause a drop in production and affect trade restrictions. Like other herpesviruses, BoHV-1 causes a lifelong latent infection and sporadic shedding of the virus. The sciatic nerve and trigeminal nerve are the sites of latency. A reactivated latent carrier is normally the source of infection in a herd. The clinical signs displayed are dependent on the virulence of the strain. There is a vaccine available which reduces the severity and incidence of disease. Some countries in Europe have successfully eradicated the disease by applying a strict culling policy. Infection can occur in cattle of any age, but it is most commonly seen between the ages of 6 and 18 months.
  • 779
  • 20 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Coronavirus(SARS-CoV-2) Pandemic for Dental Practitioners
In the context of the SARS-CoV-2 (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) pandemic, the medical system has been subjected to many changes. Face-to-face treatments have been suspended for a period of time. After the lockdown, dentists have to be aware of the modalities to protect themselves and their patients in order not to get infected. Dental practitioners are potentially exposed to a high degree of contamination with SARS-CoV-2 while performing dental procedures that produce aerosols. It should also be noted that the airways, namely the oral cavity and nostrils, are the access pathways for SARS-CoV-2. In order to protect themselves and their patients, they have to use full personal protective equipment. Relevant data regarding this pandemic are under evaluation and are still under test.
  • 778
  • 19 Mar 2021
Topic Review
Phytochemicals as a Source of Antimicrobial Compounds
Many microorganisms develop resistance to drugs through different mechanisms, and this process is called antimicrobial resistance. It is highly essential to discover new antimicrobials to kill pathogenic microbes that have developed antimicrobial resistance. Natural sources, including plants, have been serving as a great source of medicinally important compounds for the past several decades.
  • 778
  • 19 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Prevalence of Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus in Poultry in Malaysia
Enterococcus has emerged as a significant nosocomial and community-acquired pathogen as a result of its ability to develop resistance to antimicrobials, particularly vancomycin. Vancomycin is the final treatment option, particularly for Enterococcus. There is abundant proof that drug-resistant bacteria exist in poultry and can be transmitted to humans. Regular monitoring of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) in poultry would aid policymakers in developing effective control measures and design antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance capacity building in Malaysia. Further, livestock farmers should be educated on antibiotics resistance and trained on responsible utilization of antibiotics.
  • 776
  • 16 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Biofilm of Helicobacter pylori
Helicobacter pylori is a gastric pathogen that infects nearly half of the global population and is recognized as a group 1 carcinogen by the Word Health Organization. The global rise in antibiotic resistance has increased clinical challenges in treating H. pylori infections. Biofilm growth has been proposed to contribute to H. pylori’s chronic colonization of the host stomach, treatment failures, and the eventual development of gastric diseases. Several components of H. pylori have been identified to promote biofilm growth, and several of these may also facilitate antibiotic tolerance, including the extracellular matrix, outer membrane proteins, shifted morphology, modulated metabolism, efflux pumps, and virulence factors.
  • 776
  • 18 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Thermo-L-Asparaginases
L-asparaginase (L-ASNase) is a vital enzyme with a broad range of applications in medicine, food industry, and diagnostics. Among various organisms expressing L-ASNases, thermophiles and hyperthermophiles produce enzymes with superior performances—stable and heat resistant thermo-ASNases.
  • 774
  • 20 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Mycotoxin Patterns in Fish Feedstuffs
he first part of this study evaluates the occurrence of mycotoxin patterns in feedstuffs and fish feeds. Results were extrapolated from a large data pool derived from wheat (n = 857), corn (n = 725), soybean meal (n = 139) and fish feed (n = 44) samples in European countries and based on sample analyses by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in the period between 2012–2019. Deoxynivalenol (DON) was readily present in corn (in 47% of the samples) > wheat (41%) > soybean meal (11%), and in aquafeeds (48%). Co-occurrence of mycotoxins was frequently observed in feedstuffs and aquafeed samples.
  • 771
  • 15 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Fusarium Photobiology
The genus Fusarium comprises a large and heterogeneous group of ascomycetes widely distributed in nature. Many of them have received attention as phytopathogens, with great impacts on crops and as mycotoxin producers, but others are non-pathogenic, endophytic, saprophytic, or parasitic species of other organisms. The global distribution of the genus is attributed both to its metabolic diversity, which broadens its accessibility to very diverse potential substrates, and to its efficient dispersal mechanism, which is based on the production of different types of conidia. The complex taxonomy of Fusarium species has been clarified by DNA-based phylogenetic analyses, which revealed a monophyletic lineage consisting of 20 species complexes including almost 300 phylogenetically distinct species. Different species of the Fusarium genus are widely used in research, e.g., Fusarium graminearum, Fusarium oxysporum, and Fusarium fujikuroi, which are normally associated with pathogenesis or secondary metabolism. Some features of the biology of these species, especially those related to development and metabolite production, are influenced by light. 
  • 771
  • 27 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Genetic Evolution and Global Spread of Clostridioides difficile
Clostridioides difficile is an obligate anaerobic pathogen among the most common causes of healthcare-associated infections. It poses a global threat due to the clinical outcomes of infection and resistance to antibiotics recommended by international guidelines for its eradication. In particular, C. difficile infection can lead to fulminant colitis associated with shock, hypotension, megacolon, and, in severe cases, death.
  • 770
  • 14 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Role of Microbiota-Modified Bile Acids in Neurodegenerative Diseases
Bile acids (BAs) are amphiphilic steroidal molecules generated from cholesterol in the liver and facilitate the digestion and absorption of fat-soluble substances in the gut. Some BAs in the intestine are modified by the gut microbiota. Because BAs are modified in a variety of ways by different types of bacteria present in the gut microbiota, changes in the gut microbiota can affect the metabolism of BAs in the host. Although most BAs absorbed from the gut are transferred to the liver, some are transferred to the systemic circulation. Furthermore, BAs have also been detected in the brain and are thought to migrate into the brain through the systemic circulation. Although BAs are known to affect a variety of physiological functions by acting as ligands for various nuclear and cell-surface receptors, BAs have also been found to act on mitochondria and autophagy in the cell. 
  • 770
  • 21 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Embelin and Herpes Simplex Virus-1
Embelin (2,5-dihydroxy-3-undecyl-1,4-benzoquinone) is an orange solid derived from berries of the Embelia ribes plant found throughout India and is not water soluble; however, it can dissolve in organic solvents. Embelin has shown excellent antioxidant activity when scavenging the superoxide radical.
  • 767
  • 07 May 2021
Topic Review
Rhodococcus Fascians
Rhodococcus fascians (known as Corynebacterium fascians until 1984) is a Gram positive bacterial phytopathogen that causes leafy gall disease. R. fascians is the only phytopathogenic member of the genus Rhodococcus; its host range includes both dicotyledonous and monocotyledonous hosts. Because it commonly afflicts tobacco (Nicotiana) plants, it is an agriculturally significant pathogen.
  • 767
  • 02 Dec 2022
Topic Review
The Microbiome and Tuberculosis Disease
The study of the microbiome has changed overall perspective on health and disease. Although studies of the lung microbiome have lagged behind those on the gastrointestinal microbiome, there is now evidence that the lung microbiome is a rich, dynamic ecosystem. Tuberculosis is one of the oldest human diseases, it is primarily a respiratory infectious disease caused by strains from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex. Even today, during the COVID-19 pandemic, it remains one of the principal causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Tuberculosis disease manifests itself as a dynamic spectrum that ranges from asymptomatic latent infection to life-threatening active disease. 
  • 765
  • 31 May 2022
Topic Review
Phototherapy-Based Treatment for Sexually Transmitted Infections
Phototherapy (PT) is a major therapeutic approach based on the controlled administration of light in the visible, near infrared, or UV spectrum, with or without the application of an external photosensitizer. New therapeutic strategies are urgently needed to overcome drawbacks in the treatment of some infections, particularly sexually transmitted infections (STI). STIs are easily spread by the transmission of various bacteria, viruses, and parasites with some of the infections being incurable or even lethal, leading to a serious impact on reproductive health worldwide.
  • 763
  • 20 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Metal Nanoparticles as An Alternative to Antimycotics
Fungi were initially included as a part of Kingdom Plantae but in 1969 were grouped into Kingdom Fungi, which comprises diverse groups with different morphologies, such as unicellular yeasts and multicellular organisms. The rate of antifungal resistance development has been called “unprecedented”. This is because immunocompromised individuals are at a higher risk of fungal infections than healthy individuals. Moreover, medical advancements over the past few decades and the HIV epidemic have increased the number of immunocompromised people, which has, in turn, shifted fungal infections from being an infrequent cause of disease to being an important contributor to human morbidity and mortality worldwide. There are six antifungal drug classes, and this scarcity, combined with the increasing resistance, has led to the need for novel treatments. The appearance of resistant species of fungi to the existent antimycotics is challenging for the scientific community. One emergent technology is the application of nanotechnology to develop novel antifungal agents. Metal nanoparticles (NPs) have shown promising results as an alternative to classical antimycotics.
  • 760
  • 23 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Gut Microbial Characterization of Melon-Headed Whales
Although gut microbes are regarded as a significant component of many mammals and play a very important role, there is a paucity of knowledge around marine mammal gut microbes, which may be due to sampling difficulties. Moreover, to date, there are very few, if any, reports on the gut microbes of melon-headed whales.
  • 758
  • 14 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Head and Neck SCC
Oncolytic virus (OV) therapy selectively infects tumor cells with a low-pathogenic virus, lyses tumor cells by the cytopathic effects of the virus, and induces anti-tumor immunity to destroy tumors by the action of immune cells. In OV therapy for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), viruses, such as herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), vaccinia virus, adenovirus, reovirus, measles virus, and vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), are mainly used. As the combined use of mutant HSV-1 and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) was successful for the treatment of melanoma, studies are underway to combine OV therapy with radiation, chemotherapy, and other types of immunotherapy. In such therapy, it is important for the virus to selectively replicate in tumor cells, and to express the viral gene and the introduced foreign gene in the tumor cells. In OV therapy for HNSCC, it may be useful to combine systemic and local treatments that improve the delivery and replication of the inoculated oncolytic virus in the tumor cells.
  • 757
  • 01 Feb 2021
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
Probiotics as Antibiotic Alternatives for Human and Animal Applications
Probiotics are live microorganisms recognized as natural candidates to substitute antibiotic substances, usually used to treat bacterial infections responsible for numerous human and animal diseases. Antibiotics are mostly prescribed for treating infections caused by bacteria. However, their excessive and inappropriate use has resulted in the increase of bacterial antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and host microbiota imbalance or dysbiosis phenomena. Even though antibiotics are the most well-known lifesaving substances, the AMR within the bacterial community has become a growing threat to global health, with the potential to cause millions of deaths each year in the future. Faced with these worldwide issues, it is high time to discover and develop antibiotic alternatives. There exists some evidence of probiotic roles in antagonizing pathogens, modulating immune systems, and maintaining general host health by restoring the gut microbiota balance. The multi-antimicrobial action mechanisms of such beneficial living microorganisms are one approach to practicing the “prevention is better than cure” concept to avoid antibiotics. The current review proposes a comprehensive description of antibiotic-related AMR issues and the potential of probiotics as antibiotic alternatives, while discussing pros and cons, as well as some evidence of beneficial uses of probiotics for human and animal health protection through recent results of experimental models and clinical trials.
  • 757
  • 15 May 2023
Topic Review
Biological Demalication and Deacetification of Musts and Wines
Grape must sometimes reveal excess acidity. An excessive amount of organic acids negatively affects wine yeasts and yeast fermentation, and the obtained wines are characterized by an inappropriate balance between sweetness, acidity or sourness, and flavor/aroma components. An appropriate acidity, pleasant to the palate, is more difficult to achieve in wines with high acidity due to an excess of malic acid because the Saccharomyces species generally cannot effectively degrade malic acid during alcoholic fermentation. One approach to solving this problem is biological deacidification by lactic acid bacteria or non-Saccharomyces yeasts, like Schizosaccharomyces pombe, that can degrade L-malic acid. Excessive volatile acidity in wine is also a problem in the wine industry. Free or immobilized Saccharomyces cells have been studied to solve these problems since these yeasts are wine yeasts that show a good balance between taste/flavor and aromatic compounds during alcoholic fermentation.
  • 757
  • 13 Sep 2023
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