“Atlas” of mouse microbiome strengthens reproducibility of animal testing

Prof. Dr. Bahtiyar Yilmaz, Research group leader at the Department for Biomedical Research (DBMR) of the University of Bern and Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital.
Photo Credit: © Courtesy of Bahtiyar Yilmaz

Laboratory mice are indispensable for biomedical discovery, yet even genetically identical mice can yield conflicting experimental results depending on their resident microbiota. The complex interplay between microbial communities and their associated metabolic functions in the intestine can profoundly influence experimental results, therapeutic interventions, and our understanding of various biological processes. Understanding the dynamics of the gut microbiome is therefore of paramount importance for biomedical research, as it plays a vital role in shaping health and disease outcomes. This groundbreaking study addresses a fundamental question in microbiome science: how does the composition of microbial communities affect their metabolic function? By exploring this relationship, the research aims to provide insights that could lead to more effective strategies for utilizing mouse models in biomedical studies. 

Led by researchers from the Department of Biomedical Research of the University of Bern and the Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine from the Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, this collaborative effort involved a vast global consortium, that meticulously analyzed approximately 4,000 intestinal samples from mice. The study forms the geographically most comprehensive mouse microbiome dataset to date and revealed that, despite immense differences in bacterial species across facilities, metabolic outputs in the intestine are strikingly consistent. The findings represent a significant milestone in microbiome research and were recently published in the scientific journal Cell Host & Microbe.

The Saltwater Formula

Mannum Waterfalls in South Australia
Photo Credit: © denisbin Creative Commons 2.0  

A solution to a tricky groundwater riddle from Australia: Researchers at TU Wien have developed numerical models to simulate the movement of fluids in porous materials.

Things are complicated along the Murray–Darling River in southern Australia. Agricultural irrigation washes salt out of the upper soil layers, and this salt eventually ends up in the river. To prevent the river’s salt concentration from rising too much, part of the salty water is diverted into special basins. Some of these basins are designed to let the salty water evaporate, others to slowly release it in a controlled manner in the underground. That keeps salt temporarily out of the river and allows a better management of the river’s water—but increases the salinity in the ground. How can we calculate how this saltwater spreads underground and what its long-term effects will be?

Such questions are extremely difficult to answer, as several physical effects interact in complex ways. At TU Wien, researchers have now developed an efficient computer model that can run on supercomputers to calculate the spreading of fluids in porous materials—allowing the movement of saltwater in the soils, like in the case of the Murray–Darling River, to be predicted much more accurately. The same approach can also be applied to other problems, such as the dispersion of pollutants in groundwater.

WinSCP

WinSCP
Image Credit: Scientific Frontline

For developers, system administrators, and IT professionals operating in a Windows environment, secure and efficient file transfer between a local machine and a remote server is a daily necessity. While many tools exist for this purpose, WinSCP has remained a dominant force for over two decades. This review takes a deep look into its architecture, advanced features, security posture, and competitive standing.

WinSCP is an open-source, free-for-Windows graphical file manager that specializes in secure file transfers. Its primary strength lies not just in its user-friendly GUI, but in its profound and robust automation and scripting capabilities, which set it apart from its main competitors.

It is the ideal tool for Windows-based power users, sysadmins, and developers who need to automate complex or repetitive transfer tasks. It is not the right tool for macOS/Linux users or those who primarily need a simple GUI for cloud storage (like Google Drive).

Birch leaves and peanuts turned into advanced laser technology

Upper: The biomaterial-based random laser when activated. Lower: The same laser seen in daylight.
 Photo Credit: Zhihao Huang

Physicists at Umeå University, in collaboration with researchers in China, have developed a laser made entirely from biomaterials – birch leaves and peanut kernels. The environmentally friendly laser could become an inexpensive and accessible tool for medical diagnostics and imaging.

The results have been published in the scientific journal Nanophotonics and show how a so-called random laser can be made entirely from biological materials.

“Our study shows that it is possible to create advanced optical technology in a simple way using only local, renewable materials,” says Jia Wang, Associate Professor at the Department of Physics, Umeå University, and one of the authors of the study.

A random laser is a type of laser in which light scatters many times inside a disordered material before emerging as a focused beam. It holds great promise for applications such as medical imaging and early disease detection, and has therefore attracted significant research attention. However, conventional random laser materials are often toxic or expensive and complex to produce.

Researchers identify bacteria that could provide an early warning of blue-green algae toxicity

Photo Credit: Lara Jansen.

Researchers at McGill University have identified bacteria that can indicate whether a blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) bloom is likely to be toxic, offering a potential water-safety early warning system. Blooms are becoming more frequent due to climate change, according to previous McGill research. They can produce various contaminants, known as cyanotoxins, that pose serious health risks to humans, pets and wildlife.

The study was led by Lara Jansen in Professor Jesse Shapiro’s lab, in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. It showed that bacterioplankton populations shift in proportion to the broader bacterial community during a bloom. Jansen conducted the research at McGill as a PhD student, while on exchange from Portland State University.

Some of the bacterioplankton she identified – including some related to those known to break down cyanotoxins – were consistently more abundant in toxic blooms, suggesting that shifts in these bacterial populations may indicate a need for further testing to determine whether the water in a lake has become hazardous.

New study reveals fastest Antarctic glacier retreat in modern history

Hektoria and Green, once glaciated, are now reduced to drifting ice rubble.
Photo Credit: Naomi Ochwat, lead author of the study and Post-Doctoral Associate at CU Boulder’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), 26 February 2024.

A glacier on the Eastern Antarctic Peninsula has experienced the fastest recorded ice loss in modern history, according to a landmark study co-authored by Swansea University.

Published in Nature Geoscience, the research reveals that Hektoria Glacier lost nearly half its length—eight kilometers of ice—in just two months during 2023; a pace similar to the dramatic retreats seen at the end of the last ice age.

Led by the University of Colorado Boulder, an international team—including Swansea glaciologist, Professor Adrian Luckman—found that Hektoria’s retreat was boosted by the shape of the land beneath it.

Hektoria Glacier rested on an ice plain—a flat stretch of bedrock below sea level—which, once retreat began, saw large sections of ice break away in quick succession.

Scientists Produce Powerhouse Pigment Behind Octopus Camouflage

An octopus camouflages itself with the seafloor. UC San Diego scientists have discovered a new way to produce large amounts of xanthommatin, a natural pigment used in animal camouflage, in a bacterium for the first time.
Photo Credit: Charlotte Seid

Scientists at UC San Diego have moved one step closer to unlocking a superpower held by some of nature’s greatest “masters of disguise.”

Octopuses, squids, cuttlefish and other animals in the cephalopod family are well known for their ability to camouflage, changing the color of their skin to blend in with the environment. This remarkable display of mimicry is made possible by complex biological processes involving xanthommatin, a natural pigment.

Because of its color-shifting capabilities, xanthommatin has long intrigued scientists and even the military, but has proven difficult to produce and research in the lab — until now.

Angling best practices are essential to promote shark survival

A male porbeagle shark caught off the coast of Scotland.
Photo Credit James Thorburn

Most sharks in UK waters survive catch-and-release fishing when angling best practices are followed, according to a new study.

University of Exeter researchers, working with partners, tagged almost 70 blue, porbeagle and tope sharks caught in recreational fishing in the British Isles, to track their behavior and survival afterwards.

Fewer than 5% – three sharks, one from each species – died.

“Our results suggest survival rates are high when sharks are caught and released within current best-practice guidelines,” said Francesco Garzon, from the University of Exeter.

Commenting on the sharks that died, Garzon added: “These deaths can’t be definitively attributed to any one aspect of being caught, as the sharks had no external wounds and were energetic when released.

Unexpectedly high emissions from wastewater treatment plants

With a custom built drone, researchers at LiU have shown that greenhouse gas emissions from many wastewater treatment plants may be more than twice as large as previously thought.
Photo Credit: Magnus Gålfalk

Greenhouse gas emissions from many wastewater treatment plants may be more than twice as large as previously thought. This is shown in a new study from Linköping University, where the researchers used drones with specially manufactured sensors to measure methane and nitrous oxide emissions.

“We show that certain greenhouse gas emissions from wastewater treatment plants have been unknown. Now that we know more about these emissions, we also know more about how they can be reduced,” says Magnus Gålfalk, docent at Tema M – Environmental Change at Linköping University, who led the study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.

Wastewater treatment plants receiving sewage from households and industries account for approximately 5 per cent of human-induced methane and nitrous oxide emissions, according to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC.

To calculate this, the IPCC uses so-called emission factors that are linked to how many households are connected to the treatment plant. The calculation model then yields a number for the emissions from each wastewater treatment plant. This number is an estimate and not the result of actual measurements, which has turned out to be problematic.

New switch for programmed cell death identified

During the analysis work: Prof. Franz Hagn (left) and Dr. Umut Günsel
Photo Credit: Astrid Eckert / TUM 

In the fight against disease, programmed cell death – also known as apoptosis – is a key protective function of the body. It breaks down cells that are damaged or have undergone dangerous changes. However, cancer cells often manage to override this mechanism. A research team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now succeeded in identifying a new molecular switch in this process and elucidating how it works.

The activation and deactivation of apoptosis is a promising field of research in basic biomedical research. The team led by Prof. Franz Hagn from the Chair of Structural Membrane Biochemistry at the TUM School of Natural Sciences has now discovered a new switch: "Many research teams worldwide are working on the exciting topic of apoptosis and its targeted control. The big advantage is that we are dealing with a highly efficient, evolutionarily developed regulatory mechanism. So, we don't have to invent something completely new, but can use the appropriate structural methods to learn from nature's optimized processes."