Applied and Environmental Science
Research Article | Applied and Environmental SciencePurification and Characterization of Botulinum Neurotoxin FA from a Genetically Modified Clostridium botulinum StrainBotulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs), produced by anaerobic bacteria, are the cause of the potentially deadly, neuroparalytic disease botulism. BoNTs have been classified into seven serotypes, serotypes A to G, based upon their selective neutralization by homologous antiserum, which is relevant for clinical and diagnostic purposes. Even though supportive care dramatically reduces the death rate of botulism, the only pharmaceutical intervention...
Research Article | Applied and Environmental ScienceAntibiotic Resistance in Animal and Environmental Samples Associated with Small-Scale Poultry Farming in Northwestern EcuadorIn developing countries, small-scale poultry farming employing antibiotics as growth promoters is being advanced as an inexpensive source of protein and income. Here, we present the results of a large ecoepidemiological study examining patterns of antibiotic resistance (AR) in E. coli isolates from small-scale poultry production environments versus domestic...
Research Article | Applied and Environmental ScienceA Novel Glycolipid Biosurfactant Confers Grazing Resistance upon Pantoea ananatis BRT175 against the Social Amoeba Dictyostelium discoideumThe genetic factors used for host interaction by the opportunistic human pathogen Pantoea ananatis are largely unknown. We identified two genes that are important for the production of a biosurfactant that confers grazing resistance against the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum. We show that...
Observation | Applied and Environmental ScienceMetagenomic Evidence for the Presence of Comammox Nitrospira-Like Bacteria in a Drinking Water SystemNitrification plays an important role in regulating the concentrations of inorganic nitrogen species in a range of environments, from drinking water and wastewater treatment plants to the oceans. Until recently, aerobic nitrification was considered to be a two-step process involving ammonia-oxidizing bacteria or archaea and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria. This process requires close cooperation between these two functional guilds for...