Myocardium and endocardium of the early mammalian heart tube arise from independent multipotent lineages specified at the primitive streak.

The formation of the primitive heart tube from cardiomyocytes and endocardial cells is a key event in mammalian development. Previous studies suggested that cardiomyocytes and endocardial cells segregate from a shared cardiac progenitor around the onset of gastrulation, yet their lineage relationship with other mesodermal tissues remains unclear. Using retrospective and prospective clonal analyses in mouse embryos, we traced cardiomyocyte and endocardial progenitors from the primitive streak to the heart tube.

Earthworms Significantly Alter the Composition, Diversity, Abundance and Pathogen Load of Fungal Communities in Sewage Sludge from Different Urban Wastewater Treatment Plants.

Management of sewage sludge is of ongoing concern because this waste product is generated continuously and contains high levels of harmful constituents. Among these constituents, fungal pathogens are of increasing concern. Vermicomposting can reduce the amounts of bacterial pathogens in sewage sludge; however, information about the effects of earthworms on fungal pathogens is limited or non-existent.

Earthworms attenuate antibiotic resistance genes and mobile genetic elements during vermicomposting of sewage sludge.

Sewage sludge is among the richest reservoirs of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) that may spread to urban environment. Further investigation is warranted for removal of sludge-borne ARGs in large-scale vermicomposting systems. Under this scenario, there is the necessity to unveil the role of the widely-used earthworm species Eisenia andrei, since the current body of literature mostly focuses on E.

Clarification of the controversy around the problematic species "Eophila gestroi" (Cognetti, 1905) in the Balkan.

The taxonomy and phylogeny of the Southern Alpine species Eophila gestroi (Cognetti, 1905) can be confusing. The main reason for this is the morphological similarity of this species with the Vardar endemic species Cernosvitovia strumicae (Šapkarev, 1973). The confirmation of the identification of our findings based on morphological characters, previous molecular phylogenetic analyses, and biogeographical analysis revealed the misidentification of C.

Taxonomic and Functional Dynamics of Bacterial Communities During Drift Seaweed Vermicomposting.

Seaweed is a valuable natural resource, but drift or beach-cast seaweed is considered a waste product. Although seaweed is traditionally used as an organic amendment, vermicomposting has the potential to transform the material into valuable organic fertilizer, thereby enhancing its microbial properties. This study aimed to investigate the dynamics of the taxonomic and functional bacterial communities in seaweed during the vermicomposting process by high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons.

Extracellular Vesicles: Advanced Tools for Disease Diagnosis, Monitoring, and Therapies.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a heterogeneous group of membrane-encapsulated vesicles released by cells into the extracellular space. They play a crucial role in intercellular communication by transporting bioactive molecules such as proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids. EVs can be detected in body fluids, including blood plasma, urine, saliva, amniotic fluid, breast milk, and pleural ascites.

Prevalence of Oral Diseases and the Influence of the Presence of Overweight/Obesity in Schoolchildren Population in Mallorca.

The pediatric population is one of the social groups most affected by oral pathology, and overweight and/or obesity is increasingly frequently observed. This work presents a study of the prevalence of oral disease in the school population in Mallorca and its relationship with overweight/obesity. A cross-sectional study was carried out with a sample of 718 students aged 5-6 ( = 255), 12 ( = 230) and 15 years ( = 233).

Earthworm activity reduces bacterial pathogen loads in sewage sludge.

Wastewater processing plants (WWTPs) produce large amounts of sewage sludge that are mainly disposed of on the land. This represents a health hazard due to the high loads of human bacterial pathogens (HBPs) the sludge generally contains. Vermicomposting, a mesophilic process, can reduce HBPs in organic wastes.

Growth media change Eisenia fetida epithelium thickness: implications for improving earthworm welfare in vermicomposting systems.

Because the earthworm tegument represents their first barrier against environmental aggressions, we hypothesised that substrate-induced changes in earthworm growth would also alter the morphology of this protective layer. Therefore, a histological and morphometric study was performed on Eisenia fetida specimens that have been grown in five different organic residues: cow manure, horse manure, grape marc, coffee grounds, and a mixture of coffee grounds and cooking oil. The results showed that, across all treatments, both cuticle and epidermis were significantly thicker in the pre-clitellar region than after the clitellum, attributed to the fact that the former region is responsible for breaking up the soil.

Spent coffee grounds as a suitable alternative to standard soil in ecotoxicological tests.

Eisenia andrei is considered in OECD and ISO guidelines to be a suitable replacement for Eisenia fetida in ecotoxicological assays. This suggests that other alternative materials and methods could also be used in standard procedures for toxicity testing. The guidelines also favor using less time-consuming procedures and reducing costs and other limitations to ecotoxicological assessments.

Increased incidence of rheumatoid arthritis after COVID-19.

An increase in the incidence of inflammatory arthritis after COVID-19 has been reported. Since many diseases exhibit population-specific causal effect sizes, we aimed to evaluate the incidence trends of inflammatory arthritis, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA), after COVID-19 in a large admixed Colombian population. Data analysis for this retrospective, population-based cohort study was carried out using the COOSALUD EPS registry.

Complexities underlying the breeding and deployment of Dutch elm disease resistant elms.

Dutch elm disease (DED) is a vascular wilt disease caused by the pathogens and with multiple ecological phases including pathogenic (xylem), saprotrophic (bark) and vector (beetle flight and beetle feeding wound) phases. Due to the two DED pandemics during the twentieth century the use of elms in landscape and forest restoration has declined significantly. However new initiatives for elm breeding and restoration are now underway in Europe and North America.

Contribution to the knowledge of the genus Boucheona (Oligochaeta, Hormogastridae) in France with a newly described species and a redescribed species.

Hormogastrid earthworms are found in the diversity hotspot of the Franco-Iberian domain, together with the better-known family Lumbricidae. Integrative systematics (the combination of morphological, molecular and ecological data) have increased our knowledge of the diversity and evolutionary history of these earthworms, highlighting unresolved taxonomic conflicts. One example of a species group in need of integrative taxonomic revision is the genus Boucheona in France.

New Earthworm Record from Division Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan Supported by Molecular Markers.

Earthworm diversity and ecology in Pakistan is poorly known, especially in the region of Azad Jammu & Kashmir. An earthworm community survey assisted by genetic barcoding detected an unidentified species which could constitute a new record for Pakistan. Morphological study revealed its identity as Perelia kaznakovi.

Cre recombinase microinjection for single-cell tracing and localised gene targeting.

Tracing and manipulating cells in embryos are essential to understand development. Lipophilic dye microinjections, viral transfection and iontophoresis have been key to map the origin of the progenitor cells that form the different organs in the post-implantation mouse embryo. These techniques require advanced manipulation skills and only iontophoresis, a demanding approach of limited efficiency, has been used for single-cell labelling.

Changes in the microbiota during biological treatment of palm oil mill waste: A critical review.

Palm oil mill waste has a complex cellulosic structure, is rich in nutrients, and provides a habitat for diverse microbial communities. Current research focuses on how the microbiota and organic components interact during the degradation of this type of waste. Some recent studies have described the microbial communities present in different biodegradation processes of palm oil mill waste, identifying the dominant bacteria/fungi responsible for breaking down the cellulosic components.

Host taxonomy determines the composition, structure, and diversity of the earthworm cast microbiome under homogenous feeding conditions.

Host evolutionary history is a key factor shaping the earthworm cast microbiome, although its effect can be shadowed by the earthworm's diet. To untangle dietary from taxon effects, we raised nine earthworm species on a uniform diet of cow manure and compared cast microbiome across species while controlling for diet. Our results showed that, under controlled laboratory conditions, earthworm microbiomes are species-specific, more diverse than that of the controlled diet, and mainly comprised of native bacteria (i.

Live Imaging of Early Cardiac Progenitors in the Mouse Embryo.

The first steps of heart development imply drastic changes in cell behavior and differentiation. While analysis of fixed embryos allows studying in detail specific developmental stages in a still snapshot, live imaging captures dynamic morphogenetic events, such as cell migration, shape changes, and differentiation, by imaging the embryo as it develops. This complements fixed analysis and expands the understanding of how organs develop during embryogenesis.

Pitx2 Differentially Regulates the Distinct Phases of Myogenic Program and Delineates Satellite Cell Lineages During Muscle Development.

The knowledge of the molecular mechanisms that regulate embryonic myogenesis from early myogenic progenitors to myoblasts, as well as the emergence of adult satellite stem cells (SCs) during development, are key concepts to understanding the genesis and regenerative abilities of the skeletal muscle. Several previous pieces of evidence have revealed that the transcription factor might be a player within the molecular pathways controlling somite-derived muscle progenitors' fate and SC behavior. However, the role exerted by in the progression from myogenic progenitors to myoblasts including SC precursors remains unsolved.

Influence of earthworms on the microbial properties and extracellular enzyme activities during vermicomposting of raw and distilled grape marc.

The treatment of winery wastes by using appropriate management technologies is of utmost need in order to reduce to a minimum their disposal and avoid negative environmental impacts. This is of particular interest for grape marc, the main solid by-product of the winery industry. However, comparative studies on a pilot-scale dealing with the impact of earthworms on marc derived from both red and white grape varieties during vermicomposting are still scarce.

Composition, Structure and Diversity of Soil Bacterial Communities before, during and after Transit through the Gut of the Earthworm .

Earthworms heavily modify the soil microbiome as it passes throughout their guts. However, there are no detailed studies describing changes in the composition, structure and diversity of soil microbiomes during gut transit and once they are released back to the soil as casts. To address this knowledge gap, we used 16S rRNA next-generation sequencing to characterize the microbiomes of soil, gut and casts from the earthworm .

Comparative Analysis of Metagenomics and Metataxonomics for the Characterization of Vermicompost Microbiomes.

The study of microbial communities or microbiotas in animals and environments is important because of their impact in a broad range of industrial applications, diseases and ecological roles. High throughput sequencing (HTS) is the best strategy to characterize microbial composition and function. Microbial profiles can be obtained either by shotgun sequencing of genomes, or through amplicon sequencing of target genes (e.

Regulation of Epicardial Cell Fate during Cardiac Development and Disease: An Overview.

The epicardium is the outermost cell layer in the vertebrate heart that originates during development from mesothelial precursors located in the proepicardium and septum transversum. The epicardial layer plays a key role during cardiogenesis since a subset of epicardial-derived cells (EPDCs) undergo an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT); migrate into the myocardium; and differentiate into distinct cell types, such as coronary vascular smooth muscle cells, cardiac fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and presumably a subpopulation of cardiomyocytes, thus contributing to complete heart formation. Furthermore, the epicardium is a source of paracrine factors that support cardiac growth at the last stages of cardiogenesis.

Therapeutic Values of Earthworm Species Extract from Azad Kashmir as Anticoagulant, Antibacterial, and Antioxidant Agents.

Aims: Current research aimed to explore the therapeutic values of different earthworms as antibacterial, anticoagulant, and antioxidant agents.

Methods: Ten different earthworms, i.e.

Evaluating the Conservation Status of a North-Western Iberian Earthworm () with Insight into Its Genetic Diversity and Ecological Preferences.

In spite of the high conservation value of soil fauna, the evaluation of their conservation status has usually been neglected. This is more evident for earthworms, one of the most important ecosystem service providers in temperate habitats but rarely the subject of conservation research. These studies have not been developed in Western Europe, which comprises high diversity and several early-branching, relic genera.