Basit Yousuf

Société canadienne du sang | CBS · Center for innovation

Microbiota-released extracellular vesicles (MEVs) have emerged as a key player in intercellular signaling. However, their involvement in the gut-brain axis has been poorly investigated. We hypothesize that MEVs cross host cellular barriers and deliver their cargoes of bioactive compounds to the brain. In this study, we aimed to investigate the carg...

Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) is one of the most common causes of foodborne infections worldwide and a major contributor to diarrheal diseases. This study aimed to explore the ability of commensal gut bacteria to control C. jejuni infection. Bacterial strains from the intestinal mucosa of broilers were screened in vitro against C. jejuni ATCC BA...

Staphylococcus aureus is a well-documented bacterial contaminant in platelet concentrates (PCs), a blood component used to treat patients with platelet deficiencies. This bacterium can evade routine PC culture screening and cause septic transfusion reactions. Here, we investigated the gene expression modulation within the PC niche versus trypticase...

Staphylococcus epidermidis is one of the predominant bacterial contaminants in platelet concentrates (PCs), a blood component used to treat bleeding disorders. PCs are a unique niche that triggers biofilm formation, the main pathomechanism of S. epidermidis infections. We performed whole genome sequencing of four S. epidermidis strains isolated fro...

Staphylococcus epidermidis is one of the predominant bacterial contaminants in platelet concentrates (PCs), a blood component used to treat bleeding disorders. PCs are a unique niche that triggers biofilm formation, the main contributor to S. epidermidis infections. We performed whole genome sequencing of four S. epidermidis strains isolated from t...

Staphylococcus epidermidis is one of the predominant bacterial contaminants in platelet concentrates (PCs), a blood component used to treat bleeding disorders. PCs are a unique niche that triggers biofilm formation, the main contributor to S. epidermidis infections. We performed whole genome sequencing of four S. epidermidis strains isolated from t...

In this study, we aimed to develop a protective probiotic coculture to inhibit the growth of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium in the simulated chicken gut environment. Bacterial strains were isolated from the digestive mucosa of broilers and screened in vitro against Salmonella Typhimurium ATCC 14028. A biocompatibility coculture test was pe...

Background and objectives: Staphylococcus aureus is a predominant contaminant of platelet concentrates (PCs) that can evade detection during screening with culture methods. Importantly, S. aureus produces staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) during PC storage, which are linked to slow growth and enhanced biofilm formation. This study investigated tim...

We announce the draft genome sequences of 12 Bacteroides, 4 Phocaeicola, and 2 Parabacteroides strains, among which was a newly isolated species, Bacteroidaceae bacterium UO.H1004. These isolates produce health-benefiting short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and the neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in various concentrations.

Microbiota-gut-brain axis is an evident pathway of host-microbiota crosstalk that is linked to multiple brain disorders. Microbiota released extracellular vesicles (MEVs) has emerged as a key player in intercellular signaling in host microbiome communications. However, their role in gut-brain axis signaling is poorly investigated. Here, we performe...

Background and objectives: Platelet concentrates (PCs) contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus can escape detection during PC screening, causing septic transfusion reactions. This study aimed to determine the impact of S. aureus contamination on platelet metabolism and functionality during PC storage. Materials and methods: Targeted metabolomics...

Anti-virulence agents are non-bacteriostatic and non-bactericidal emerging therapeutic options which hamper the production of virulence factors in pathogenic flora. In Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis, regulation of virulence genes’ expression occurs through the cyclic peptide-mediated accessory gene regulator (agr) and its ortholog...

We present the genome sequence of Staphylococcus aureus strain PS/BAC/317/16/W, which was isolated from contaminated platelet concentrates by the National Health Service Blood and Transplant in England (2017). Genome sequence analysis revealed the presence of one chromosome (2,665,983 bp) and two plasmids (4,265 bp and 2,921 bp) in this strain.

We present the genome sequence of Staphylococcus aureus strain CBS2016-05, which was isolated from contaminated platelet concentrates by Canadian Blood Services in 2016. This strain caused a septic reaction in an acute leukemia patient. Genome sequence analysis revealed the presence of one chromosome (2,766,936 bp) and one plasmid (36,441 bp).

BACKGROUND Staphylococcus epidermidis forms surface‐attached aggregates (biofilms) when grown in platelet concentrates (PCs). Comparative transcriptome analyses were undertaken to investigate differential gene expression of S. epidermidis biofilms grown in PCs. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS Two S. epidermidis strains isolated from human skin (AZ22 and...

The human body harbors substantial microbial richness represented by both commensals and pathogens, which can be explained by different microbiomes such as mouth, gut, vagina, and skin. The host-microbiome cross talk support the delicate balance between microbiota composition and immunological response for maintaining the healthy state of individua...

Quorum sensing is a process of chemical communication that adjusts the genetic expression of certain important biological functions in a cell-density—dependent manner. Quorum sensing (QS) regulates important bacterial behaviors, such as production of virulence factors, formation of biofilm, and antibiotic resistance, via signaling molecules called...

Abstract Diazotrophs are key players of the globally important biogeochemical nitrogen cycle, having a significant role in maintaining ecosystem sustainability. Saline soils are pristine and unexplored habitats representing intriguing ecosystems expected to harbour potential diazotrophs capable of adapting in extreme conditions, and these implic...

Bacterial autotrophy contributes significantly to the overall carbon balance, which stabilises atmospheric CO2 concentration and decelerates global warming. Little attention has been paid to different modes of carbon/sulphur metabolism mediated by autotrophic bacterial communities in terrestrial soil ecosystems. We studied these pathways by anal...

Clostridium perfringens produces various exotoxins and enzymes that cause food poisoning and gas gangrene. The genes involved in virulence are regulated by the agr-like quorum sensing (QS) system, which consists of a QS signal synthesis system and a VirSR two-component regulatory system (VirSR TCS) which is a global regulatory system composed of si...

The aim of this study was to compare the antibacterial properties of the surfaces of copper plates that were rolled to a thickness of 25 and 100 μm. Differences in topology of 25- and 100-μm-thick copper plates were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Antibacterial activity o...

Salt marshes occupy the transition zone between terrestrial and marine ecosystem and provide habitat for salt tolerant plant species-halophytes. Dominant halophytes such as Salicornia brachiata, Aeluropus lagopoides and Suaeda maritima play significant role in carbon sequestration, nutrient mineralization, nutrient cycling and improving micro-envir...

The Gulf of Cambay is a trumpet-shaped inlet of the Arabian Sea, located along the west coast of India and confronts a high tidal range with strong water currents. The region belongs to a semi-arid zone and saline alkaline intertidal soils are considered biologically extreme. The selected four soil types (S1-S4) were affected by salinity, alkalinit...

Bacterial autotrophy contributes significantly to the overall carbon balance, which stabilises atmospheric CO2 concentration and decelerates global warming. Little attention has been paid to different modes of carbon/sulphur metabolism mediated by autotrophic bacterial communities in terrestrial soil ecosystems. We studied these pathways by analysi...

Diazotrophs are key players of globally important biogeochemical nitrogen cycle having significant role in maintaining ecosystem sustainability. Saline soils are pristine and unexplored habitats representing intriguing ecosystems expected to harbour potential diazotrophs capable of adapting in extreme conditions and the implicated organisms are lar...

Comparative molecular analysis of chemolithoautotrophic bacterial diversity and community structure from coastal saline soils, Abstract Background: Soils harbour high diversity of obligate as well as facultative chemolithoautotrophic bacteria that contribute significantly to CO 2 dynamics in soil. In this study, we used culture dependent and indepe...

Soils harbour high diversity of obligate as well as facultative chemolithoautotrophic bacteria that contribute significantly to CO2 dynamics in soil. In this study, we used culture dependent and independent methods to assess the community structure and diversity of chemolithoautotrophs in agricultural and coastal barren saline soils (low and high s...

Figure S1. Heat map showing abundance of OTUs in cbbL- and 16S rRNA gene clone libraries. The abundance for (a) cbbL gene libraries is shown at distance = 0.05 and (b) 16S rRNA gene libraries at distance = 0.02 within the three soil samples. Each row in the heatmap represents a different OTU and the color of the OTU in each group scaled between bla...

Figure S2b. Phylogenetic analysis of red-like cbbL clones from saline soils (SS1 & SS2) clone libraries. Bootstrap values are shown as percentages of 1000 bootstrap replicates. The bar indicates 5% estimated sequence divergence. One representative phylotype is shown followed by phylotype number and the number of clones within each phylotype is show...

Table S1. Taxonomic distribution of 16S rDNA clones. The OTUs were generated using a 16S rDNA percent identity value of 98%.

Figure S6. Venn diagrams showing overall overlap of representative genera. Venn diagrams representing the observed overlap of OTUs for (a) cbbL gene libraries (distance = 0.05) and (b) 16S rRNA gene libraries (distance = 0.02). The values in the diagram represent the number of genera that were taxonomically classified.

Figure S4. Number of OTUs as a function of total number of sequences. Rarefaction curves for (a) cbbL gene libraries at 0.05 distance cut-off and (b) 16S rRNA gene clone libraries at a phylum level distance (0.20) for the expected no of OTUs. Bacterial richness in agricultural soil (AS) and saline soils (SS1 & SS2) is indicated by slopes of the rar...

Table S2. Composition of AT media (Imhoff).

Figure S5. Results of selected LIBSHUFF comparisons. (I) 16S rRNA libraries (a1) AS (X) to SS1 (Y), (a2) libraries AS (X) to SS2 (Y) and (a3) libraries SS1 (X) to SS2 (Y). (II) CbbL libraries (b1) ASC (X) to SS1C (Y), (b2) libraries ASC (X) to SSC2 (Y) and (b3) libraries SS1C (X) to SS2C(Y). Agricultural soil is denoted as ‘AS’ while as saline soil...

Figure S2a. Phylogenetic analysis of red-like cbbL clones from agricultural soil (AS). Bootstrap values are shown as percentages of 1000 bootstrap replicates. The bar indicates 5% estimated sequence divergence. One representative phylotype is shown followed by phylotype number and the number of clones within each phylotype is shown at the end. Clon...

Figure S3. Neighbour joining phylogenetic tree of 16S rRNA nucleotide sequences from bacterial isolates. This phylogenetic tree reflecting the relationships of red-like cbbL harbouring bacterial isolates with closely related known isolates. 16S rRNA gene sequences of the isolates from this study were denoted as ‘BSCS’ from agricultural soil (AS), ‘...

Sequestration of CO(2) by autotrophic bacteria is a key process of biogeochemical carbon cycling in soil ecosystem. Rhizosphere is a rich niche of microbial activity and diversity, influenced by change in atmospheric CO(2). Structural changes in rhizosphere composition influence microbial communities and the nutrient cycling. In the present study,...