Synthetic biology is a novel research field,and it is referred to design and construct new artificial biological pathways,organisms,devices or redesign natural biological systems. Synthetic biology could be used to rebuild the symbiotic bacterial strains in our gut,which may effectively improve the intestinal health status of the host by the targeted regulation of the intestinal flora or intestinal cell state. Due to the strong flexibility,a wide range of controllable targets,target specificity and few side effects of this method,it has been gradually applied in the treatment of intestinal diseases. We summarized the advances on synthetic biology in the following aspects,first,intestinal pathogens killing and intestinal microbiota balance maintaining;second,nutrient metabolism assisting and metabolic diseases curing;third,intestinal diseases diagnosing,tumor tissue locating and intestinal immune system regulating. Further we analyzed the advantages and issues while synthetic biology used in improving intestinal health,and based on which,we proposed the technological route and management system of “synthetic biology-based novel probiotics system to achieve personalized medical treatment of intestinal health”.
The analysis on the degradation mechanism of petroleum hydrocarbons is crucial for oil pollution remediation since oil pollution is an urgent issue of water environment. This paper summarizes the main processes of treating oil-polluted water bodies and sediments,and highlights the degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons by microbes. The microbial species,degradation mechanism and reaction mechanism in the course of microbial degradation and removal of petroleum hydrocarbon are mainly introduced. It mainly includes representative bacteria,fungi and algae,aerobic degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons(alkane,cyclane,and aromatic hydrocarbon)and anaerobic degradation(dehydrogenation hydroxylation and fumarate addition). In addition,the factors affecting microbial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbon are discussed,specifically including hydrocarbon structures(The more complex branched multi-structure is,then the more difficult it is to be degraded),microbial species(More biochemical degradation by mixed bacteria)and environmental factors(pH,temperature,salinity,oxygen content,and nutrients). The advantages and disadvantages of the applied bioremediation technologies for oil pollution remediation are further pointed out. Moreover,by analyzing the problems in current researches,the development emphasis in the biodegradation of oil pollutants is forecasted,that is,the mechanism of biodegrading oil needs to be further clarified. And the paper predicts that bio-electrochemical methods will make an important role in the degradation of petroleum hydrocarbon pollutants. By reviewing the biodegradation mechanism and reaction mechanism of petroleum hydrocarbons,it is aimed to provide the reference for bioremediation of petroleum pollution in water bodies.
Bacteriocins are antimicrobial peptides synthesized in microbial ribosomes and are generally used as food preservatives. In recent years,scientists have selected a small number of bacteriocins to conduct in-depth study,opened up new research fields for bacteriocins,and extended their application area. With the rapid development of genetics and nanotechnology,bacteriocins are likely to be developed into the next generation of antibiotics,novel carrier molecules,and drugs for the treatment of tumors. Concurrently,scientists have discovered that some bacteriocins have the ability to regulate quorum sensing,this finding suggests that bacteriocins may be applied in new areas. At present,the bacteriocins produced by Gram-negative bacteria are mainly utilized for the study of translation and modification of bacteriocins,while the bacteriocins produced by Gram-positive bacteria(mainly lactic acid bacteria)are mainly for the study of bacteriocin application. Currently,the application of bacteriocins is expanding from the food field to human health. This review focuses on the function of bacteriocins and their effects,and describes their application from the food field to human health in detail,indicating the importance of bacteriocin.to further study bacteriocin laid the foundation for food antisepsis,human disease prevention and biological control.
Molecular inversion probe technology is a newly developed technique for capturing targeted sequences by designed specific probes,and the captured sequences is enriched for subsequent chip hybridization or sequencing detection. By this technology,researchers can study important genome regions in a large of samples and avoid the high cost and difficulties from genome-wide analysis. In addition,molecular inversion probe technology makes up for the shortages of molecular capture methods such as hybrid capture and PCR capture techniques,and will provide forceful technical support for the research of important DNA fragments of plants,animals and pathogens. Molecular inversion probe technology is currently being used in SNP genotyping,exon sequencing,copy number variation,loss of heterozygosity,somatic mutation,DNA methylation and alternative splicing,etc. Molecular inversion probe technology has been applied more and more broadly owing to its characteristics,such as strong specificity,fine repeatability,simple operation,low cost,low requirement for DNA integrity,and being adaptable to the analysis of formalin-paraffin-embedded samples. However,molecular inversion probe technology still needs to be improved in terms of probe design and data analysis software development. To promote a comprehensive understanding of this technology,here we review the principle,development process,technical characteristics,and the applications in disease research,as well as discuss its values and existing issues while applying molecular inversion probe technology.