Anhalt University of Applied Sciences

Metaproteomics is an emerging approach for studying microbiomes, offering the ability to characterize proteins that underpin microbial functionality within diverse ecosystems. As the primary catalytic and structural components of microbiomes, proteins provide unique insights into the active processes and ecological roles of microbial communities. By integrating metaproteomics with other omics disciplines, researchers can gain a comprehensive understanding of microbial ecology, interactions, and functional dynamics. This review, developed by the Metaproteomics Initiative (www.metaproteomics.org), serves as a practical guide for both microbiome and proteomics researchers, presenting key principles, state-of-the-art methodologies, and analytical workflows essential to metaproteomics. Topics covered include, among others, experimental design, sample preparation, mass spectrometry techniques, data analysis strategies, and statistical approaches.

One Health seeks to integrate and balance the health of humans, animals, and environmental systems. These three spheres are intricately interconnected through microbiomes, which are universally present and exchange microbes and genes, influencing not only human and animal health but also key environmental, agricultural, and biotechnological processes. Preventing the emergence of pathogens as well as monitoring and controlling the composition of microbiomes through microbial effectors including virulence factors, toxins, antibiotics, non-ribosomal peptides, and viruses holds transformative potential. However, the mechanisms by which these microbial effectors shape microbiomes and their broader functional consequences in relation to host and ecosystem health remain poorly understood to date. Metaproteomics offers a novel methodological framework as it provides insights into microbial dynamics by quantifying microbial biomass composition, metabolic functions and detecting effectors like viruses, antimicrobial resistance proteins, and non-ribosomal peptides. Here, we document the potential of metaproteomics for elucidating microbial effectors and their impact on microbiomes, and discuss their potential for modulating microbiomes to foster desired functions.

Apple proliferation is among the most important diseases in European fruit production. Early and reliable detection enables farmers to respond appropriately and to prevent further spreading of the disease. Traditional phenotyping approaches by human observers consider multiple symptoms, but these are difficult to measure automatically in the field. Therefore, the potential of hyperspectral imaging in combination with data analysis by machine learning algorithms was investigated to detect the symptoms solely based on the spectral signature of collected leaf samples. In the growing seasons 2019 and 2020, a total of 1160 leaf samples were collected. Hyperspectral imaging with a dual camera setup in spectral bands from 400 nm to 2500 nm was accompanied with subsequent PCR analysis of the samples to provide reference data for the machine learning approaches. Data processing consists of preprocessing for segmentation of the leaf area, feature extraction, classification and subsequent analysis of relevance of spectral bands. The results show that imaging multiple leaves of a tree enhances detection results, that spectral indices are a robust means to detect the diseased trees, and that the potentials of the full spectral range can be exploited using machine learning approaches. Classification models like rRBF achieved an accuracy of 0.971 in a controlled environment with stratified data for a single variety. Combined models for multiple varieties from field test samples achieved classification accuracies of 0.731. Including spatial distribution of spectral data further improves the results to 0.751. Prediction of qPCR results by regression based on spectral data achieved RMSE of 14.491 phytoplasma per plant cell.

The formation of amyloid-β (Aβ) aggregates in brain is a neuropathological hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, there is mounting evidence that Aβ also plays a pathogenic role in other types of dementia and that specific post-translational Aβ modifications contribute to its pathogenic profile. The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that distinct types of dementia are characterized by specific patterns of post-translationally modified Aβ variants. We conducted a comparative analysis and quantified Aβ as well as Aβ with pyroglutamate (pGlu3-Aβ and pGlu11-Aβ), N-truncation (Aβ(4-X)), isoaspartate racemization (isoAsp7-Aβ and isoAsp27-Aβ), phosphorylation (pSer8-Aβ and pSer26-Aβ) or nitration (3NTyr10-Aβ) modification in post mortem human brain tissue from non-demented control subjects in comparison to tissue classified as pre-symptomatic AD (Pre-AD), AD, dementia with Lewy bodies and vascular dementia. Aβ modification-specific immunohistochemical labelings of brain sections from the posterior superior temporal gyrus were examined by machine learning-based segmentation protocols and immunoassay analyses in brain tissue after sequential Aβ extraction were carried out. Our findings revealed that AD cases displayed the highest concentrations of all Aβ variants followed by dementia with Lewy bodies, Pre-AD, vascular dementia and non-demented controls. With both analytical methods, we identified the isoAsp7-Aβ variant as a highly abundant Aβ form in all clinical conditions, followed by Aβ(4-X), pGlu3-Aβ, pGlu11-Aβ and pSer8-Aβ. These Aβ variants were detected in distinct plaque types of compact, coarse-grained, cored and diffuse morphologies and, with varying frequencies, in cerebral blood vessels. The 3NTyr10-Aβ, pSer26-Aβ and isoAsp27-Aβ variants were not found to be present in Aβ plaques but were detected intraneuronally. There was a strong positive correlation between isoAsp7-Aβ and Thal phase and a moderate negative correlation between isoAsp7-Aβ and performance on the Mini Mental State Examination. Furthermore, the abundance of all Aβ variants was highest in APOE 3/4 carriers. In aggregation assays, the isoAsp7-Aβ, pGlu3-Aβ and pGlu11-Aβ variants showed instant fibril formation without lag phase, whereas Aβ(4-X), pSer26-Aβ and isoAsp27-Aβ did not form fibrils. We conclude that targeting Aβ post-translational modifications, and in particular the highly abundant isoAsp7-Aβ variant, might be considered for diagnostic and therapeutic approaches in different types of dementia. Hence, our findings might have implications for current antibody-based therapies of AD. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00401-024-02824-9.

The individual (poly)phenols of red wines cultivated in two different Western Balkan wine-growing regions were determined using the HPLC method, while the ABTS and DPPH tests were employed to investigate antioxidant activity. The reduction potential of antioxidants was determined by FRAP assay. Five distinct classes of phenolic compounds, including phenolic acids, flavan-3-ols, flavonols, stilbenes, and anthocyanins, were identified. The analyzed wines showed very good antioxidant properties. All of the studied wines exhibited a very strong correlation between their antioxidant potential and the concentration of significant antioxidants. Phenolic components that were the most represented in the investigated samples were selected for the theoretical investigation of the antioxidant effect. For this purpose, epicatechin gallate and sinapic acid were used. Their concentrations in the tested samples ranged up to 132.76 mg/mL and 125.66 mg/mL. Theoretical aspects of reactions of the mentioned compounds towards DPPH and ABTS radicals were examined.

One Health seeks to integrate and balance the health of humans, animals, and environmental systems. These three spheres are intricately interconnected through microbiomes, which are universally present and exchange microbes and genes, influencing not only human and animal health but also key environmental, agricultural, and biotechnological processes. Preventing the emergence of pathogens as well as monitoring and controlling the composition of microbiomes through microbial effectors including virulence factors, toxins, antibiotics, non-ribosomal peptides, and viruses holds transformative potential. However, the mechanisms by which these microbial effectors shape microbiomes and their broader functional consequences in relation to host and ecosystem health remain poorly understood to date. Metaproteomics offers a novel methodological framework as it provides insights into microbial dynamics by quantifying microbial biomass composition, metabolic functions and detecting effectors like viruses, antimicrobial resistance proteins, and non-ribosomal peptides. Here, we document the potential of metaproteomics for elucidating microbial effectors and their impact on microbiomes, and discuss their potential for modulating microbiomes to foster desired functions.

In Europe, various conservation programs adopted to maintain or restore biodiversity have experienced differing levels of success. However, a synthesis about major factors for success of biodiversity-related conservation programs across ecosystems and national boundaries, such as incentives, subsidies, enforcement, participation, or spatial context, is missing. Using a balanced scorecard survey among experts, we analyzed and compared factors contributing to success or failure of three different conservation programs: two government programs (Natura 2000 and the ecological measures of the Water Framework Directive) and one conservation program of a non-governmental organization (NGO; Rewilding Europe), all focusing on habitat and species conservation. The experts perceived the NGO program as more successful in achieving biodiversity-related aims than governmental conservation legislation. Among the factors perceived to influence the success of biodiversity conservation, several stood out: Biodiversity-damaging subsidies, external economic interests competing with conservation goals or policies conflicting with biodiversity conservation were recognized as major factors for the lack of conservation success. Outreach to raise societal interest and awareness as well as stakeholder involvement were perceived as closely related to the success of programs. Our expert survey demonstrated that external factors from economy and policy often hinder success of conservation programs, while societal and environmental factors rather contribute to it. This study implies that conservation programs should be designed to be as inclusive as possible and provides a basis for developing a standardized methodology that explicitly considers indirect drivers from areas such as economy, policy and society.

Poly(ethylene furanoate) (PEF) is considered the greener alternative to poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and other plastics, as it can be produced 100% biobased from renewable resources based on the building blocks 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) and ethylene glycol (EG). So far, most of the literature has dealt with the synthesis and detailed characterization of this synthetic polymer, but very few articles deal with enzymatic depolymerization, which is increasingly favored due to environmental reasons. This study therefore aimed to perform hydrolysis of Nano-PEF using 12 different esterases, which have been shown to depolymerize PET very efficiently. All enzymes were compared in terms of their hydrolysis efficiency, showing very different hydrolysis rates and different product profiles over time. A wide variety of hydrolysis products were identified using ESI-TOF including FDCA, (mono(2-hydroxyethyl)-furanoate) (MHEF), (bis(2-hydroxyethyl)-furanoate) (BHEF), dimers, and trimers. Among the tested enzymes, LCCICCG was the most efficient one performing best at pH 8–9 and elevated temperatures (>70 °C). Finally, all hydrolysis intermediates were hydrolyzed to the final building block FDCA (>99% with almost complete depolymerization of Nano PEF), and higher Nano-PEF-concentrations (up to about 1.4 mg mL⁻¹) were depolymerized equally efficient.

Over the past years, enzymatic depolymerization of PET, one of the most widely used plastics worldwide, has become very efficient leading to the end products terephthalic acid (TPA) and ethylene glycol (EG) used for PET re‐synthesis. Potent alternatives to these monomers are the intermediates BHET and MHET, the mono‐ and di‐esters of TPA and EG which avoid total hydrolysis and can serve as single starting materials for direct re‐polymerization. This study therefore aimed to selectively prepare those intermediates through reaction medium engineering during the biocatalytic hydrolysis of PET. After a comparative pre‐screening of 12 PET‐hydrolyzing enzymes, two of them (LCCICCG, IsPETasewt) were chosen for detailed investigations. Depending on the reaction conditions, MHET and BHET are predominantly obtainable: (i) MHET was produced in a better ratio and high concentrations at the beginning of the reaction when IsPETasewt and 10 % EG was used; (ii) BHET was produced as predominant product when LCCICCG and 25 % EG was used. TPA itself was nearly the single product at pH 9.0 after 24 h due to the self‐hydrolysis of MHET and BHET under basic conditions. Using medium engineering in biocatalytic PET‐hydrolysis, the product profile can be adjusted so that TPA, MHET or BHET is predominantly produced.

In recent years, Morocco has grappled with a precipitation shortage, exacerbating the challenge of low assimilable phosphorus (P) availability in many Moroccan soils. This presents a dual stressor for crops, hindering plant growth, particularly for staple foods like legumes and cereals, crucial to the Moroccan diet. Our study aims to assess the physiological and biochemical responses of Triticum turgidum and Vicia faba intercrops to water and P limitation, and their combined effects within a greenhouse environment. Additionally, we seek to enhance wheat growth under these challenging conditions by implementing an intercropping system. For that purpose, a variety of (Vicia faba) (Aguadulce), and (Triticum turgidum durum) (Karim) were grown in a greenhouse under sole cropping and intercropping system. The combined stress of water and P limitation was maintained by irrigating at 40% of field capacity (FC) and using an agriculture soil deficient in assimilable P (11 mg kg-1), while control conditions were ensured by irrigating at 80% of (FC) and adding 100 mg kg-1 of P2O5 of soil. At the flowering stage. Based on the agro-physiological and biochemical parameters of both species, our findings revealed significant impacts of the combined stress on the biomass of both faba beans and wheat, regardless of the cropping system. With the most notable reduction of 76%, 67 %, and 75% in intercropped faba bean shoot dry weight (SDW), root dry weight (RDW), and nodules dry weight (NDW) respectively. While intercropping showed advantages for wheat with an increase of 94% and 130% for (SDW) and (RDW) respectively under control conditions compared to sole crops, intercropping with faba bean led to reduced levels of K+ and Na+ and glycine-betaine content in wheat plants, while enhancing nitrate reductase activity under the combined stress. Comparing the two cropping systems, our comprehensive analysis suggests that combined stress adversely affected nearly all parameters studied in both species, with intercropping favoring wheat growth at the expense of faba bean plants.

In this work, we establish a novel approach to the foundations of relativistic quantum theory, which is based on generalizing the quantum-mechanical Born rule for determining particle position probabilities to curved spacetime. A principal motivator for this research has been to overcome internal mathematical problems of relativistic quantum field theory (QFT) such as the ‘problem of infinities’ (renormalization), which axiomatic approaches to QFT have shown to be not only of mathematical but also of conceptual nature. The approach presented here is probabilistic by construction, can accommodate a wide array of dynamical models, does not rely on the symmetries of Minkowski spacetime, and respects the general principle of relativity. In the analytical part of this work, we consider the 1-body case under the assumption of smoothness of the mathematical quantities involved. This is identified as a special case of the theory of the general-relativistic continuity equation. While related approaches to the relativistic generalization of the Born rule assume the hypersurfaces of interest to be spacelike and the spacetime to be globally hyperbolic, we employ prior contributions by C. Eckart and J. Ehlers to show that the former condition is naturally replaced by a transversality condition and that the latter one is obsolete. We discuss two distinct formulations of the 1-body case, which, borrowing terminology from the non-relativistic analog, we term the Lagrangian and Eulerian pictures. We provide a comprehensive treatment of both. The main contribution of this work to the mathematical physics literature is the development of the Lagrangian picture. The Langrangian picture shows how one can address the ‘problem of time’ in this approach and, therefore, serves as a blueprint for the generalization to many bodies and the case that the number of bodies is not conserved. We also provide an example to illustrate how this approach can in principle be employed to model particle creation and annihilation.

Driven by the urge to expand renewable energy generation and mitigate the intensifying extreme climatic events effects on crops, development of agrivoltaics is currently accelerating. However, harmonious deployment requires to assess both photovoltaic and crop yields to ensure simultaneous compliance with energetic and agricultural objectives of stakeholders within evolving local legal contexts. Based on the community’s priority modelling needs, this paper presents the Python Agrivoltaic Simulation Environment (PASE), an MIT-licensed framework developed in partnership to assess the land productivity of agrivoltaic systems. The various expected benefits of this development are outlined, along with the open-source business model established with partners and the subsequent developments stemming from it. Examples illustrate how PASE effectively fulfils two primary requirements encountered by agrivoltaics stakeholders: predict irradiation on relevant surfaces and estimate agricultural and energy yields. In a dedicated experiment, PASE light model assumptions resulted in 1% error in the daily irradiation received by a sensor under two contrasted types of sky conditions. PASE’s ability to predict photovoltaic and crop yields and land equivalent ratio over several years is demonstrated for wheat on the BIODIV-SOLAR pilot. Ultimately, a sensitivity analysis of inter-row spacing demonstrates its usefulness to optimise systems according to different criteria.

Zusammenfassung Die Etablierung einer wissenschaftlichen Bibliothek an der Hochschule Anhalt war, wie die anderer Hochschulbibliotheken der neuen Bundesländer, zur Wendezeit und viele Jahre danach von vielfältigsten Herausforderungen und Veränderungen geprägt. Vor der Wiedervereinigung Deutschlands waren die Hochschulen im Osten der Republik und damit auch die Bibliotheken Teil eines von sozialistischen Ideologien dominierten Bildungssystems. Die politische Zensur beeinflusste die Auswahl und Verfügbarkeit von Ressourcen, so dass die Bibliotheksbestände eine begrenzte Ausrichtung hatten und der Anteil wissenschaftlicher Literatur der westlichen Länder stark unterrepräsentiert und an kleineren Standorten nicht vorhanden war. Im Zuge der Wiedervereinigung wurden die Hochschulbibliotheken der einstigen DDR in das Bildungssystem der Bundesrepublik Deutschland integriert und standen damit unter immensem Modernisierungs- und zugleich Transformationsdruck. Durch Hochschulneugründungen versuchten die Landesregierungen, die neuen Bundesländer voranzubringen. Viele Anforderungen auf verschiedenen Ebenen mussten erfüllt werden. Diese reichten von umfangreichen administrativen Umstellungen über die Bestandsprüfung und -erweiterung, die Internationalisierung, die Erneuerung der technologischen Infrastruktur bis hin zu gravierenden personellen Umstrukturierungen. Die Veränderungskompetenz von Mitarbeiterinnen und Mitarbeitern, die sich mit neuen und zusätzlichen Bibliotheksstandards und Arbeitsweisen vertraut machen mussten, war gefragt. Im Folgenden sollen die Gründung und die Entwicklungsdynamiken der Hochschule Anhalt und ihrer Hochschulbibliothek mit drei Standorten im Fokus stehen.

Background/objectives: Coated drug pellets enjoy widespread use in hard gelatine capsules. In heterogeneous pellets, the drug substance is layered onto core pellets. Coatings are often applied to generate a retarded release or an enteric coating. Methods: In the present study, the thickness of a polymer coating layer on drug pellets was correlated to the drug release kinetics. Results: The question should be answered whether it is possible to stop the coating process when a layer thickness referring to an intended drug release is achieved. Inert pellets were first coated with sodium benzoate and second with different amounts of water insoluble polyacrylate in a fluidized bed apparatus equipped with a Wurster inlet. The whole process was controlled in-line and at-line with process analytical technology by the measurement of the particle size and the layer thickness. The in-vitro sodium benzoate release was investigated, and the data were linearized by different standard models and compared with the polyacrylate layer thickness. With increasing polyacrylate layer thickness the release rate diminishes. The superposition of several processes influencing the release results in release profiles corresponding approximately to first order kinetics. The coating layer thickness corresponds to a determined drug release profile. Conclusions: The manufacturing of coated drug pellets with intended drug release is possible by coating process control and layer thickness measurement. Preliminary investigations are necessary for different formulations.

Land‐use intensification is often associated with a decline in functional diversity, potentially undermining the provision of ecosystem services. However, how changes in traits affect ecosystem processes remains poorly understood. Variation in trait values among species in a community may drive ecosystem processes. Alternatively, the mass ratio hypothesis proposes that trait values of the dominant species in a local community are related to ecosystem processes. Using data from 159 farms in six European countries, we quantified the impact of local and landscape‐level land‐use intensity on ground beetles as pest control agents. We then assessed the extent to which functional diversity and community‐weighted mean trait values relate to pest control and cereal yield. In addition, we assessed how the responses to land use and the effects of different species on pest control and yield varied with their traits to compare the relative impact of the traits studied. Functional diversity of ground beetles improved aphid removal, but did not translate into higher crop yields. Pest control of aphids was enhanced by a higher proportion of smaller, mobile ground beetles with a preference for the vegetation layer. Smaller, predatory ground beetles in communities improved crop yield. The magnitude of responses to land‐use intensification and the effects on pest control and yield were more strongly influenced by body size than other traits. Our study provides evidence that reduced management intensity can improve pest control by supporting small‐sized, macropterous ground beetles. In contrast to the claims of ecological intensification, our joint analysis of the direct effects of land use on yield and indirect effects via functional diversity of ground beetles and pest control suggests that ecosystem services by ground beetles cannot compensate for the yield gap due to a reduction in land‐use intensity.

The three‐dimensional crosslinking of encapsulants in photovoltaic (PV) modules significantly defines their thermomechanical properties and is usually initiated using peroxides and crosslinking accelerators. However, it has been shown that excess peroxides lead to undesirable side reactions such as browning, which is directly linked to the PV module power losses. Therefore, the encapsulant formulation should be adjusted accordingly, on the one hand, keeping the peroxide concentration possibly low and, on the other hand, enabling a sufficiently high gel content (GC). This work investigates the basic interaction of the crosslinking peroxide Luperox TBEC and the crosslinking accelerator Perkalink 301 (TAIC) with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), to address this issue. In addition, their reaction potential with the antioxidant butylhydroxytoluene (BHT) is investigated. It is shown that stabilizing additives can have an influence on the peroxide crosslinking process, which can affect the resulting crosslinking state and require optimization of the lamination conditions. The additive content of commercial PV encapsulants is quantified using pyrolysis gas‐chromatography mass spectrometry (PY‐GCMS). Subsequently, a number of films with different TBEC and TAIC contents are produced, and their GC is analyzed as a function of the additive concentrations and lamination conditions. A range of formulations leading to a GC > 75% was identified which can be used as a guidance for encapsulant manufacturers.

In the field of industrial microalgae production, the introduction of parasitic contaminants is an often-neglected topic, but one that represents a major risk with potentially significant financial implications. So far, no successful strategy exists to maintain a long-term stable cultivation environment in industrial photobioreactors. To create a strategy for preventing and controlling parasitic contamination, methods from synthetic ecology were used, replacing monocultures with mixed-biocoenoses. The goals were the identification of microbiotic ecosystems of potentially symbiotic bacteria and the utilization of synergistic effects between bacteria and algae to stabilize cultures. The final aim was to combine the findings with abiotic factors influencing the infections. As model organisms, the microalga Coelastrella vacuolata (formerly Scenedesmus vacuolatus) and the parasitic contaminant Amoeboaphelidium protococcarum were chosen. For this case, a correlation between infection rate and the chlorophyll a fluorescence in the culture was found. Algal co-cultures with specific bacteria were tested using the protecting effects of antiphytopathogenic, extracellular substances. This led to the bacterium Pseudomonas protegens and the naturally antipathogenic phenol 2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol (DAPG). Co-cultures with DAPG-producing P. protegens effectively inhibited the infection even though no quantifiable amounts of DAPG were found in the culture. Furthermore, abiotic influences on the infection process were identified, resulting in the implementation of a light–dark-cycle with induced anaerobic conditions in the dark phase. With these findings, conditions that inhibit the growth of parasitic contaminants could now be introduced preventively within standard cultivation procedures.