Calcium phosphate cements for bone engineering and their biological properties

Calcium phosphate cements （CPCs） are frequently used to repair bone defects. Since their discovery in the 1980s, extensive research has been conducted to improve their properties, and emerging evidence supports their increased application in bone tissue engineering. Much effort has been made to enhance the biological performance of CPCs, including their biocompatibility, osteoconductivity, osteoinductivity, biodegradability, bioactivity, and interactions with cells. This review article focuses on the major recent developments in CPCs, including 3D printing, injectability, stem cell delivery, growth factor and drug delivery, and pre- vascularization of CPC scaffolds via co-culture and tri-culture techniques to enhance angiogenesis and osteogenesis.

Quantitative evaluation of DNA damage caused by atmospheric and room-temperature plasma (ARTP) and other mutagenesis methods using a rapid umu-microplate test protocol for microbial mutation breeding

Mutagenesis is an important technique for microbial mutation breeding.As the source of mutations,DNA damage extent is a key indicator for the effectiveness of mutagenesis.Therefore,a rapid and easy DNA damage quantification method is required for the comparison of mutagenesis effects and development of mutagenesis tools.Here,we used the umu-microplate test system to quantitatively compare the DNA damage strength caused by atmospheric and room-temperature plasma(ARTP)and other traditional mutagenesis methods including:ultraviolet radiation(UV),diethyl sulfate(DES)and 4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide(4-NQO).The test strain of Salmonella typhimurium TA1535/pSK1002 was used to monitor the time-course profile of b-galactosidase activity induced by DNA damage caused by different mutagenesis methods using a microplate reader.The umu-microplate test results showed that ARTP caused higher extent of DNA damage than UV and chemical mutagens,which agrees well with the result obtained by SOS-FACS-based quantification method as reported previously.This umu-microplate test is accessible for broad researchers who are lack of the expensive FACS instruments and allows the quick quantitative evaluation of DNA damage among living cells for different mutagenesis methods in the study of the microbial mutation breeding.

Bioaugmentation of two-stage aerobic sequencing batch reactor with mixed strains for high nitrate nitrogen wastewater treatment

Mixed strains Delftia sp.YH01 and Acidovorax sp.YH02,with capability of heterotrophic nitrification-aerobic denitrification,were introduced into a two-stage aerobic sequencing batch reactor to enhance NO3^--N removal.With optimal C/N of 8,efficient NO3^--N removal was achieved at initial NO3^--N concentration of 2000 mg·L−1.Meanwhile,the massive accumulation of NO2^--N was avoided during the long operation.Compared to the one-stage aerobic sequencing batch reactor,the removal efficiency of NO3^--N and TN in the two-stage aerobic sequencing batch reactor was increased by 36.5% and 42.7%,which respectively was 93.8% and 88.4%.Microbial community study showed that the mixed strains have the stronger viability and can synergistically denitrify with the indigenous microorganisms in system,such as Azoarcus,Uncultured Saprospiraceae,Thauera,Paracocccus,which could be major contributors for aerobic denitrification.The proposed technology was shown to achieve high-efficiency treatment of high NO3^--N wastewater through aerobic denitrification.

School of Chemical and Biological Science and Engineering of YTU

The school consists of four first-level interdisciplines： chemistry, biological science, chemical engineering and technology, and food science and engineering. There are three basic teaching divisions： chemistry, biological science and chemical engineering; four research institutes： biological science and technology, food science and technology, chemical materials, and applied chemistry; four basic experimental teaching centers： biology, chemistry, chemical engineering and technique, and food science and engineering; and one food quality and safety testing and detecting center.

Recent insights into aquatic viruses: Emerging and reemerging pathogens, molecular features, biological effects, and novel investigative approaches

Aquatic viruses are naturally present in the aquatic environment and the number of viruses is staggering.Various multicellular organisms in aquatic ecosystems may be infected,cross-species transmitted,manipulated,and killed by aquatic viruses,which can lead to cascading ecological effects.The viruses in unicellular aquatic organisms can alter interactions between host individuals,and are essential in effecting or maintaining the dynamics of aquatic microbial communities,horizontal gene transfer,biodiversity,and modulating ecological processes globally.Meanwhile,hosts also impact viral abundance and diversity.Microbial diversity drives multifunctionality in ecosystems,while viruses shape complex microbial communities and are crucial for ecosystem functioning.This review focuses on molecular,genetic,evolutionary,and ecosystemic advances related to emerging and reemerging aquatic viruses,presents the contexts,novel tools,and investigative approaches pertaining to the study of aquatic virology,and discusses the mechanisms by which viruses affect aquatic ecosystems.The paper provides an efficient and broadly-based blueprint for improving understanding of aquatic viruses.

Degradation strategies of pesticide residue:From chemicals tosynthetic biology

The past 50 years have witnessed a massive expansion in the demand and application of pesticides.However,pesticides are difficult to be completely degraded without intervention hence the pesticide residue could pose a persistent threat to non-target organisms in many aspects.To aim at the problem of the abuse of pesticide products and excessive pesticide residues in the environment,chemical and biological degradation methods are widely developed but are scaled and insufficient to solve such a pollution.In recent years,bio-degradative tools instructed by synthetic biological principles have been further studied and have paved a way for pesticide degradation.Combining the customized design strategy and standardized assembly mode,the engineering bacteria for multi-dimensional degradation has become an effective tool for pesticide residue degradation.This review introduces the mechanisms and hazards of different pesticides,summarizes the methods applied in the degradation of pesticide residues,and discusses the advantages,applications,and prospects of synthetic biology in degrading pesticide residues.

Osteochondral Integrated Scaffolds with Gradient Structure by 3D Printing Forming

Recently in the area of biological manufacturing and rapid prototyping manufacturing, the bone scaffolds based on the additive manufacturing in repairing bone defects have been paid more and more attention. In the process of preparation, path planning directly affects the structure, performance as well as the final bone cell culture conditions. Due to the special natural bone scaffold structural characteristic, the traditional rapid prototyping(RP) path planning is not fully suitable for the preparation of bone scaffolds. In this paper, based on the 3D printing extrusion forming technology, a method of path planning for osteochondral integrated scaffolds with gradient structure is put forward, which provides a theoretical basis for bone-scaffold modeling and practical preparation. The implementation of the path planning processing system makes it possible to process data automatically from the initial stereo lithography(STL) model of the actual bone defect part by computer X-ray tomography technique(CT) scan or modeling,to generate the path code and to generate the final machining information after post-processing. This work provides some guidelines for independent research and development of automation equipment for biological manufacturing preparation and software technology.The experiment and test results have verified the validity of the path planning method and the good properties of the bone scaffolds with gradient structures.