Soil constitutes a major component of the agro-ecosystem. Unrestrained uses of chemical pesticides and increased human activities have contributed to unprecedented changes in soil microflora affecting productivity. Modern microbiomics has proven to be an indispensable tool to understand the adaptations underlying complex soil microbial communities and their beneficial applications. In this review, we seek to emphasize the scope of microbiomics in enhancing soil productivity by providing an overview of the various sequencing platforms considering key parameters such as the accuracy, read lengths, reads per run, time involved and weighing out their pros and cons. The advances in modern ultra-high-throughput microbiomics platforms in combination with cloud-based analytics for in-depth exploration of soil-microbe associations can help achieve sustainable soil management contributing to better plant yield and productivity.

Aging leads to and is associated with aberrant function of multiple signaling pathways and a host of factors that maintain cellular health. Under normal conditions, the prolongevity, 5' AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), is dedicated to the homeostasis of metabolism and autophagy for removal of damaged cellular compartments and molecules. A host of sirtuin family of molecules, that extend life-span, regulate metabolism and repair DNA damage, and possess either mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase, or deacylase activity. Another group of pro-longevity factors, include FOX (forkhead box) proteins, a family of transcription factors that regulate the expression of genes involved in cell growth, proliferation, differentiation, and longevity. Nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAmPRTase or Nampt) catalyzes the condensation of nicotinamide with 5-phosphoribosyl-1-pyrophosphate to yield nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), a requisite step for production of NAD+, which is known to increase longevity. Loss of Klotho, a transmembrane enzyme that controls the sensitivity of the organism to insulin and suppresses oxidative stress and inflammation, leads to premature aging in mice. Hydrogen sulfide and transsulfuration pathways are crucial to the long life and are required in protection of cells against damage. Aging also leads to the imbalanced activation of other pathways and factors including p53, insulin and IGF signaling, P13K/AKT, mTOR, PKA, RAS, RTK, MEK, ERK, MAPK, CRTC-1/CREB and NFkB. Such aberrant cellular functions, disturb cell metabolism, derail autophagy and other housekeeping actions, inhibit cell division, induce inflammaging and immunosenecence, cause stem cell exhaustion and induce either senescence, apoptosis or cancer.

Dendrimers are three dimensional, multifunctional polymeric structures which are composed of a core and branches emanating from these structures, resembling a tree. Here, we review the key highlights of the dendrimers for diagnostic uses as MRI contrast agents, X-ray computed tomography and particularly for cancer treatment as an effective carrier for drug delivery and in boron capture therapy. We will discuss how dendrimers represent a new class of carriers that are able to deliver drugs effectively and in a sustained manner to the target tumor sites. Dendrimers are being utilized to a variety of cancer therapies to improve the safety and effectiveness of anticancer therapeutics. This review will also investigates the benefits utilizing dendrimers for cancer diagnosis and therapy.

Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a fundamental cellular phenomenon that plays an intrinsic role in development, tissue repair, and cancer progression. EMT is tightly regulated by transcription factors that alter gene expression to promote epithelial to mesenchymal phenotype. EMT is also regulated by a diverse array of cytokines and growth factors whose activities are deregulated during malignancy. EMT enables tumor cells to exist in various intermediate states along the epithelial-mesenchymal phenotypic axis that transit from cancer stem cells (CSCs) to circulating tumor cells (CTCs). Recent studies have revealed the importance of CSCs in tumor promotion, invasion and metastasis. The relapsed tumors encompass CSCs which are resistant to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. In this review, we have summarized our current understanding of the molecular mechanisms that regulate EMT induced CSC phenotype. We have highlighted studies implicating the function of TGF-�, Wnt, and Notch regulated non-coding RNAs in driving EMT promoting CSC self-renewal. Finally, we discuss how the EMT and CSCs cause drug resistance with the hope to overcome such resistance as a possible approach for cancer treatment.

Mammalian spermatogenesis is a complex but well-coordinated process in which spermatogonial stem cells (SSC) of the testis develop to form spermatozoa. During testicular homeostasis, the spermatogonial stem cells self-renew to maintain the stem cell pool or differentiate to form a progeny of germ cells which sequentially transform to spermatozoa. Accumulating evidence from clinical data and diverse model organisms suggest that the fate of spermatogonial stem cells towards self-renewal or differentiation is governed by intrinsic signals within the cells and by extracellular signals from the SSC niche. Here, we review the past and the most recent developments in understanding the nature of spermatogonial stem cells and the regulation of their homeostasis in mice. We also review the potential clinical applications of spermatogonial stem cells in male infertility as well as in germline modification, by virtue of gene correction and conversion of somatic cells to biologically competent male germline cells.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is an endocrine-disruptor compound that exhibits estrogenic activity. BPA is used in the production of materials such as polycarbonate plastics, epoxy resins and dental sealants. Whereas, the endocrine modulating activity of BPA and its effects on reproductive health have been widely studied, its effects on the function of the immune system are poorly characterized. This might be attributable to the different BPA doses used in a diversity of animal models. Moreover, most studies of the effect of BPA on the immune response are limited to in vitro and in vivo studies that have focused primarily on the impact of BPA on the number and proportion of immune cell populations, without evaluating its effects on immune function in response to an antigenic challenge or infectious pathogens. In this review, we discuss the current literature on the effects of BPA on the function of immune system that potentially increases the susceptibility to infections by the virtue of acting as a pro-inflammatory molecule. Thus, it appears that BPA, while by such an impact might be useful in the control of certain disease states that are helped by an inflmmatory response, it can worsen the prognosis of diseases that are adversely affected by inflammation.

Some organophosphorus compounds (OPs), which are used in the manufacturing of insecticides and nerve agents, are racemic mixtures with at least one chiral center with a phosphorus atom. Acute exposure of humans to these mixtures induces the covalent modification of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and neuropathy target esterase (NTE) and causes a cholinergic syndrome or organophosphate-induced delayed polyneuropathy syndrome (OPIDP). These irreversible neurological effects are due to the stereoselective interaction of the racemic OPs with these B-esterases (AChE and NTE) and such interactions have been studied in vivo, ex vivo and in vitro, using stereoselective hydrolysis by A-esterases or phosphotriesterases (PTEs) and the PTE from Pseudomonas diminuta, and paraoxonase-1 (PON1) from mammalian serum. PON1 has a limited hydrolytic potential of the racemic OPs, while the bacterial PTE exhibits a significant catalytic activity on the less toxic isomers P(+) of the nerve agents. Avian serum albumin also shows a hydrolyzing capacity of chiral OPs with oxo and thio forms. There are ongoing environmental and bioremediation efforts to design and produce recombinants as bio-scavengers of OPs.

Resveratrol (RES) is a naturally occurring polyphenol found in fruits, green leafy vegetables, and peanuts. This versatile compound, which has potent regenerative, anti-oxidative, and cancer-fighting properties, is produced in plants, particularly in response to stress stimuli. By various mechanisms, including regulation of genes and proteins, RES inhibits the growth of pathogenic bacteria and the development of cancers. The gut has a prominent role in nutrient assimilation, metabolism, immunity, and cancer regression, and the endogenous microbiome protects the host from invasive bacteria that facilitate the progression of various diseases. Short-chain fatty acids (SFCAs) are the byproducts of microbial fermentation in the gastrointestinal tract. Native microflora regulates internal homeostasis, influence the activity of host immune cells, and regress some cancers via the action of SCFAs produced from a plant-based diet. This review shows the relevance of dietary constituents and gut microbial activity in ensuring optimal health of the host.

Synesthesia literally means a "union of the senses" whereby two or more of the five senses that are normally experienced separately are involuntarily and automatically joined together in experience (1, 2, 3). For example, some synesthetes experience a color when they hear a sound, although many instances of synesthesia also occur entirely within the visual sense. In this paper, I first mainly engage critically with Sollberger's view that there is reason to think that at least some synesthetic experiences can be viewed as truly veridical perceptions, and not as illusions or hallucinations (4). Among other things, I explore the possibility that many forms of synesthesia can be understood as experiencing what I will call "second-order secondary properties," that is, experiences of properties of objects induced by the secondary qualities of those objects. In doing so, I shed some light on why synesthesia is typically one-directional and its relation to some psychopathologies such as autism.

Ovarian serous adenocarcinoma is one of the most common and fatal malignancies among women worldwide. The tumor microenvironment plays a critical role in tumor initiation, proliferation, and metastasis. Immune scores and stromal scores of the tumor microenvironment were determined using the ESTIMATE. Immune cell infiltration was assessed using TIMER and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were determined using the R/Bioconductor package of edgeR. Survival analysis was carried out using a univariate Cox model and Kaplan-Meier survival, and gene functional information was obtained through Gene Ontology and KEGG pathway analysis. Survival analysis revealed 39 DEGs that significantly influenced the prognosis of ovarian serous adenocarcinoma patients and were correlated with immune cell abundance. Functional enrichment and protein-protein interaction network analyses further indicated that these genes are primarily involved in immune-related responses. Finally, we verified the prognostic value of these genes via GEO. The present results reveal the genes associated with the tumor microenvironment of ovarian adenocarcinoma, potentially providing prognostic information.