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Many corals form intimate symbioses with photosynthetic dinoflagellates in the family Symbiodiniaceae. These symbioses have been deeply studied, particularly in reef-forming corals. The complex microbial community that is associated with corals contains other members that have also been well characterized such as bacteria. However, our understanding of the coral holobiont and subsequently coral reef ecosystems is not complete if we do not take into consideration the microeukaryotes like protists and fungi. Microeukaryotes are currently the greatest enigma within the coral microbiome. Only a handful of them have been characterized, very few have been cultured and even less have genomes available. This is a reflection of a smaller community of scientists working on this particular group of organisms when compared with bacteria or Symbiodiniaceae, but also of the many technical challenges that we face when trying to study microeukaryotes. Recent advances in the use of metabarcoding are revealing the importance of microeukaryotes in corals in terms of abundance and presence, with notable examples being the green algae Ostreobium and the apicomplexans Corallicolidae. We believe that it is timely and necessary to present what we know so far about coral microeukaryotes before the expected flow of high-throughput metabarcoding studies exploring the microeukaryotic fraction of the coral microbiome.

The increasing awareness of the importance of water for human and environmental health has prompted the need for developing fast, user-friendly and cost-effective analytical approaches for quality control and management. This work reports the fabrication and analytical assessment of a very simple sample-to-result electrochemical sensor for discrete and precise measurements of dissolved chemical oxygen demand (COD) in water samples of urban wastewater treatment plants (UWWTP). The device is fabricated by screen printing and shows a three-electrode cell configuration including a working electrode made of a composite material comprising a porous carbon matrix and copper nanoparticles, synthesized by a customized one-pot sol-gel process. The key feature of this device is the implementation of a paper disk loaded with sodium hydroxide covering the electrochemical cell area that allows sample filtering and pH conditioning. Thus, analytical measurements are carried out by casting a 20 µL sample drop without requiring any further user intervention. The overall sensor fabrication process can be scaled up for cost-effective mass manufacturing. The feasibility and performance of this integrated device are first evaluated using glucose as a standard analyte. A linear range up to 400 mg L− 1 O2 and a limit of detection of around 26 mg L− 1 O2 is achieved, this being well below the EU legal concentration limit of 125 mg L− 1 set for effluents of UWWTPs. Three real samples are analyzed in the lab as well as on-site and COD sensor values are in agreement with those obtained with the standard dichromate method at a certified laboratory, within the error limits. This miniaturized novel sensor platform greatly simplifies the standard analytical procedure for measuring COD, facilitating rapid decentralized analysis for precise control of urban wastewater treatment., This work was partially funded by Generalitat de Catalunya, grants numbers 2017 SGR 1771 and 2017 SGR 765, and the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation through the Severo Ochoa programme for Centers of Excellence in R&D (CEX2019-000917-S). We are very grateful to Antoni Baldi, Mercè Baldi and Josefina Torán for their help and for kindly providing us with the real water samples. The Chinese Scholarship Council fellowship (201806220063) to W.C. Duan is also acknowledged. WD is enrolled in the Materials Science PhD Program of the UAB (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona). The X-ray diffraction and thermal analysis laboratories of the ICMAB scientific services contributed to this work and are acknowledged. This work used the Spanish ICTS Network MICRONANOFABS that was partly supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation., With funding from the Spanish government through the ‘Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence’ accreditation (CEX2019-000917-S).

Within microeukaryotes, genetic variation and functional variation sometimes accumulate more quickly than morphological differences. To understand the evolutionary history and ecology of such lineages, it is key to examine diversity at multiple levels of organization. In the dinoflagellate family Symbiodiniaceae, which can form endosymbioses with cnidarians (e.g., corals, octocorals, sea anemones, jellyfish), other marine invertebrates (e.g., sponges, molluscs, flatworms), and protists (e.g., foraminifera), molecular data have been used extensively over the past three decades to describe phenotypes and to make evolutionary and ecological inferences. Despite advances in Symbiodiniaceae genomics, a lack of consensus among researchers with respect to interpreting genetic data has slowed progress in the field and acted as a barrier to reconciling observations. Here, we identify key challenges regarding the assessment and interpretation of Symbiodiniaceae genetic diversity across three levels: species, populations, and communities. We summarize areas of agreement and highlight techniques and approaches that are broadly accepted. In areas where debate remains, we identify unresolved issues and discuss technologies and approaches that can help to fill knowledge gaps related to genetic and phenotypic diversity. We also discuss ways to stimulate progress, in particular by fostering a more inclusive and collaborative research community. We hope that this perspective will inspire and accelerate coral reef science by serving as a resource to those designing experiments, publishing research, and applying for funding related to Symbiodiniaceae and their symbiotic partnerships.

Introduction. The adequate allocation and equitable distribution of human resources are essential for the health system›s performance, especially at the first level of care. The Rural and Urban Marginal Service Program (SERUMS) is the primary strategy developed by the Peruvian State for this purpose. Objective. To describe the effect of the number of doctors, nurses, and midwives of the SERUMS Program on the equity of the distribution of human resources at the primary care level. Methods. Observational, descriptive, and cross-sectional study of a census nature based on the National Registry of Health Personnel - INFORHUS, August 2019. Staffing indicators were applied, it was verified if there is a difference between the percentage distribution of SERUMS and non-SERUMS professionals, density (professionals per 10 000 inhabitants at the departmental level, poverty quintile, and rurality), and Gini coefficients (departmental) were calculated. Results. The population consisted of 6037 SERUMS professionals and 27 495 non-SERUMS professionals. The SERUMS Program significantly increased the number and density of professionals in almost all departments. In 5 regions, SERUMS professionals represented more than 50% of the workforce. Significant increases in the number of doctors were found in the poverty quintile and rural areas analysis. According to the Gini coefficients, the SERUMS program showed greater inequality in its distribution in favor of the most vulnerable populations. Conclusions. The SERUMS Program significantly increases the number and density of healthcare professionals, especially in the poorest districts of Peru., Introducción. La adecuada dotación y distribución con equidad de recursos humanos son fundamentales para el desempeño del sistema de salud, especialmente en el primer nivel de atención. El Programa Servicio Rural y Urbano Marginal (SERUMS) es la principal estrategia desarrollada por el Estado peruano para este fin. Objetivo. Describir el efecto de la dotación de médicos, enfermeros y obstetras del Programa SERUMS en la equidad de la distribución de recursos humanos en el primer nivel de atención. Métodos. Estudio observacional, descriptivo y transversal, de carácter censal con base en el Registro Nacional de Personal de Salud – INFORHUS, agosto 2019. Se aplicó indicadores de dotación, se verificó si existe diferencia entre la distribución porcentual de profesionales SERUMS y no SERUMS, se calculó la densidad (profesionales/10 000 hab. a nivel departamental, quintil de pobreza y ruralidad) y coeficientes de Gini (departamental). Resultados. La población estuvo constituida por 6037 profesionales SERUMS y 27 495 no SERUMS. El Programa SERUMS incrementó de manera importante la dotación y densidad de profesionales en casi todas las regiones del país. En 5 regiones los profesionales SERUMS representaron más del 50% de la dotación. Incrementos importantes se encontraron en el análisis por quintil de pobreza y en el ámbito rural, especialmente en la dotación de médicos. El programa SERUMS evidenció una mayor desigualdad en su distribución, según los coeficientes de Gini, a favor de las poblaciones más vulnerables. Conclusiones. El Programa SERUMS incrementa de manera importante la dotación y densidad de profesionales, especialmente en los distritos más pobres del Perú.

Wearable electrochemical sensors represent a point of convergence between lab-on-a-chip technologies, advanced microelectronics and connected intelligence. These three pillars establish data flow from analytes present in body fluids, to the Cloud infrastructures towards next-generation personal healthcare and wellness. The design of electrode-embedded interfacing instrumentation in advanced CMOS technology nodes offer a number of challenges spanning from ultra-low power operation, small footprint, sufficient general purpose operability, and compatibility with advanced CMOS technology nodes. This paper presents a low-power frontend with extended amperometric dynamic range and wide potentiostatic range for electrochemical transducers with Delta-Sigma (ΔΣ) digital output. The second-order single-bit continuous-time ΔΣ modulator architecture reuses the electrochemical cell dynamic characteristics for quantization noise shaping, while the differential potentiostat enables 1.8 Vpp of control range under single 1.2-V supply. The proposed frontend has been integrated in TSMC 65-nm CMOS technology occupying 0.07 mm2. From electrical and electrochemical tests, the micro potentiostat achieves a Signal-to-Distortion-and-Noise of 80 dB with 15-μW power consumption and a combined multi-scale dynamic range of 105 dB.

Wearable electrochemical sensors represent a point of convergence between lab-on-a-chip technologies, advanced microelectronics and connected intelligence. These three pillars establish data flow from analytes present in body fluids, to the Cloud infrastructures towards next-generation personal healthcare and wellness. The design of electrode-embedded interfacing instrumentation in advanced CMOS technology nodes offer a number of challenges spanning from ultra-low power operation, small footprint, sufficient general purpose operability, and compatibility with advanced CMOS technology nodes. This paper presents a low-power frontend with extended amperometric dynamic range and wide potentiostatic range for electrochemical transducers with Delta-Sigma (ΔΣ) digital output. The second-order single-bit continuous-time ΔΣ modulator architecture reuses the electrochemical cell dynamic characteristics for quantization noise shaping, while the differential potentiostat enables 1.8 V pp of control range under single 1.2-V supply. The proposed frontend has been integrated in TSMC 65-nm CMOS technology occupying 0.07 mm 2 . From electrical and electrochemical tests, the micro potentiostat achieves a Signal-to-Distortion-and-Noise of 80 dB with 15-μW power consumption and a combined multi-scale dynamic range of 105 dB.

A single-step electrochemical liquid-liquid-solid (ec-LLS) deposition route is developed for growing nanowire-based Ge-Sn nanostructures with tailored morphologies and compositions. Composite films, submicron fibers, nanowires, and also three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical structures are fabricated in the same electrolyte, simply by varying the electrodeposition current density. COMSOL simulations indicate that the current density is able to generate sufficient Joule heating to activate the ec-LLS growth mode. A concomitant reduction of Ge and Sn ions during Sn-doped Ge nanowire growth results in the formation of multicomponent heterostructures comprising non-equilibrium GexSn1-x, pure Sn, and Sn-rich amorphous phases. The proposed deposition technique enables the fabrication of high mass loading electrodes with enhanced Li storage properties. In particular, a 3D hierarchical structure composed of 38 wt % Ge delivers a specific capacity of 938 mA h g-1 after 400 cycles, corresponding to a high areal capacity of 4.95 mA h cm-2. We believe that the present study could be considered as a low-cost procedure for the industrial fabrication of anode materials for high-performance Li-ion battery applications., Spanish MICINN funded this work under grants MAT2017-91404-EXP, RTI2018-096273-B-I00, and RTI2018-097753-B-I00 with FEDER cofunding and through the “Severo Ochoa” Programme for Centres of Excellence in R&D (CEX2019-000917-S), and a grant was provided by Iranian Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology., With funding from the Spanish government through the ‘Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence’ accreditation (CEX2019-000917-S).

Materials sustainability is becoming increasingly relevant in every developed technology and, consequently, environmentally friendly solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) based on gellan gum and different quantities of ionic liquid (IL) 1- Ethyl-3-methyl-imidazolium-thiocyanate [Emim][SCN] have been prepared and applied in electrochromic devices (ECDs). The addition of the IL does not affect the crystalline phase of gellan gum and the samples show a compact morphology, surface uniformity, no phase separation and good distribution of the IL within the carrageenan matrix. The developed SPE are thermally stable up to ~ 100 ºC and show suitable mechanical properties. The most concentrated sample (39 wt.% IL content) reaches a maximum ionic conductivity value of 6.010–3 S cm–1 and 1.810–2 S cm–1 at 30 ºC and 90 ºC, respectively. The electrochromic device (ECD) was fabricated with poly(3,4- ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) as working electrode and the developed SPE was compared with an aqueous 0.1 M KNO3 solution. The electrochromic performance of the electrolyte was assessed in terms of spectroelectrochemistry, demonstrating a fully flexible ECD operating at voltages below 1.0 V. This novel electrolyte opens the door to the preparation of high performance sustainable ECD., Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT): Strategic Funding grants UID/FIS/04650/2021, UID/CTM/50025/2021, and UID/QUI/0686/2021; projects PTDC/FIS-MAC/28157/2017 and POCI-01-0247-FEDER-046985. R. G. and C. M. C. thank the FCT for the contracts under the Stimulus of Scientific Employment: CEECIND/00833/2017 and 2020.04028 CEECIND, respectively. Basque Government for funding under the ELKARTEK program; Basque University System Research Groups, IT-1290-19 and the University of the Basque Country (GIU18/197). L. C. -A. thanks the University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU) for the doctoral grant PIFI20/04

Screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs) are enjoying increasing popularity in different electrochemistry areas, from electroanalysis to energy storage and power generation. Highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG), an ordered form of graphite, displays excellent electrochemical properties. However, its application in screen-printed electrodes has remained elusive. In this work, we present a straightforward laser-based process to selectively transform, in ambient conditions, the surface of conventional SPCEs into highly homogeneous HOPG. Energy densities between 6.8 and 7.7 mJ cm(-2) result in a binder-free, high-purity HOPG surface with very fast electron transfer rates. The electrode transformation to HOPG has been followed by SEM, Raman spectroscopy and XPS. Cyclic voltammetry of model systems ferrocyanide, ferrocenecarboxylic acid, dopamine and hydroquinone has been used to determine variations in electrode kinetics (from 50% increase for ferrocenecarboxylic acid, up to ca. 2 orders of magnitude for ferrocyanide and dopamine) and interfacial capacitance (from 40 up to 220 mu F cm(-2)). Finally, differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) has been used to demonstrate the ability of these electrodes to detect dopamine in the presence of an excess amount of ascorbic acid. The authors are grateful for the technical and human support provided by SGIker of UPV/EHU and European funding (ERDF and ESF). We acknowledge funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Programme for Research, ICT-02-2018 - Flexible and Wearable Electronics, Grant agreement no. 825339 - WEARPLEX. Lia Campos-Arias thanks the University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU) for doctoral grant PIFI20/04. Project number PID2020-113154RB-C22 from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation is also gratefully acknowledged.

The development of conformable electronic systems’ focuses on the multifunctional smart materials transform areas from the automotive industry to biomedicine, based on improved integration and advanced functionalities. In-mold electronics (IME) combines thermoforming, injection molding, and printed electronics, resulting in sensing structural parts integrated into smart surfaces, communicating with computer systems, and enabling advanced experiences in terms of human-machine interaction. Contrary to flexible electronics, designed as bend conductors around a single axis, thermoformed electronics allow deformations in the three-axial directions for different geometries. Herein, a 2D screen-printed pattern using conductive silver ink thermoformed into a spherical surface suitable for 3D gesture recognition is reported. The mechanical deformation of the high-impact polystyrene sheet (HIPS) and polyethylene terephthalate-glycol (PETG) substrates during the thermoforming process of the electrical circuit is characterized experimentally. The electrical resistance changes through the circuit in the stages of the fabrication process due the thickness decrease and the propagation of the small cracks. Both evaluations contribute to a better understanding of the performance of the materials when subject to the IME process. Validation of the 3D gesture recognition operation is carried out, demonstrating their full operability, as well as the possibilities that the combination of technologies allows., The authors thank FEDER funds through the COMPETE 2020 Programme and National Funds through FCT -Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under Strategic Funding UID/FIS/04650/2021 and grant SFRH/BPD/110914/2015 (P.C.). V. C. thanks for the FCT (Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia) and for the junior researcher contract (DL57/2016). Financial support from the Basque Government Industry Department under the ELKARTEK and HAZITEK programs are also acknowledged. F.J.d.C. gratefully acknowledges funding through project number PID2020-113154RB-C22 from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.

7 pages, 2 figures, supporting information https://doi.org/10.1111/1462-2920.14733, The application of metabarcoding to study animal‐associated microeukaryotes has been restricted because the universal barcode used to study microeukaryotic ecology and distribution in the environment, the Small Subunit of the Ribosomal RNA gene (18S rRNA), is also present in the host. As a result, when host‐associated microbial eukaryotes are analysed by metabarcoding, the reads tend to be dominated by host sequences. We have done an in silico validation against the SILVA 18S rRNA database of a non‐metazoan primer set (primers that are biased against the metazoan 18S rRNA) that recovers only 2.6% of all the metazoan sequences, while recovering most of the other eukaryotes (80.4%). Among metazoans, the non‐metazoan primers are predicted to amplify 74% of Porifera sequences, 4% of Ctenophora, and 15% of Cnidaria, while amplifying almost no sequences within Bilateria. In vivo, these non‐metazoan primers reduce significantly the animal signal from coral and human samples, and when compared against universal primers provide at worst a 2‐fold decrease in the number of metazoan reads and at best a 2800‐fold decrease. This easy, inexpensive, and near‐universal method for the study of animal‐associated microeukaryotes diversity will contribute to a better understanding of the microbiome, This work was funded by a grant from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (MOP‐42517). JdC was supported by a grant from the Tula Foundation to the Centre for Microbial Biodiversity and Evolution and the Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship FP7‐PEOPLE‐2012‐IOF‐331450 CAARL

Electrochromic sensors are electrochemical devices exploiting colour changes as a means to simplify device construction and instrumentation requirements. Despite their advantages, electrochromic sensors have begun to emerge only recently. Mainly based on the works appeared in the literature over the past 2 years, we describe the construction and operation of these devices. A simple framework is proposed to understand and classify these devices more easily. This is based on the sensor architecture, their power source, and how information is displayed. Despite their youth, electrochromic sensors are already demonstrated in a number of applications, mostly related to health and point of care devices.

Apicomplexa is a group of obligate intracellular parasites that includes the causative agents of human diseases such as malaria and toxoplasmosis. Apicomplexans evolved from free-living phototrophic ancestors, but how this transition to parasitism occurred remains unknown. One potential clue lies in coral reefs, of which environmental DNA surveys have uncovered several lineages of uncharacterized basally branching apicomplexans1,2. Reef-building corals have a well-studied symbiotic relationship with photosynthetic Symbiodiniaceae dinoflagellates (for example, Symbiodinium3), but the identification of other key microbial symbionts of corals has proven to be challenging4,5. Here we use community surveys, genomics and microscopy analyses to identify an apicomplexan lineage—which we informally name ‘corallicolids’—that was found at a high prevalence (over 80% of samples, 70% of genera) across all major groups of corals. Corallicolids were the second most abundant coral-associated microeukaryotes after the Symbiodiniaceae, and are therefore core members of the coral microbiome. In situ fluorescence and electron microscopy confirmed that corallicolids live intracellularly within the tissues of the coral gastric cavity, and that they possess apicomplexan ultrastructural features. We sequenced the genome of the corallicolid plastid, which lacked all genes for photosystem proteins; this indicates that corallicolids probably contain a non-photosynthetic plastid (an apicoplast6). However, the corallicolid plastid differs from all other known apicoplasts because it retains the four ancestral genes that are involved in chlorophyll biosynthesis. Corallicolids thus share characteristics with both their parasitic and their free-living relatives, which suggests that they are evolutionary intermediates and implies the existence of a unique biochemistry during the transition from phototrophy to parasitism. A newly identified lineage of apicomplexans, named corallicolids, are intracellular symbionts of many coral species, and possesses a plastid that retains genes for chlorophyll biosynthesis despite lacking photosystem genes.

Cristamonadea is a large class of parabasalian protists that reside in the hindguts of wood-feeding insects, where they play an essential role in the digestion of lignocellulose. This group of symbionts boasts an impressive array of complex morphological characteristics, many of which have evolved multiple times independently. However, their diversity is understudied and molecular data remain scarce. Here we describe seven new species of cristamonad symbionts from Comatermes, Calcaritermes, and Rugitermes termites from Peru and Ecuador. To classify these new species, we examined cells by light and scanning electron microscopy, sequenced the symbiont small subunit ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, and carried out barcoding of the mitochondrial large subunit rRNA gene of the hosts to confirm host identification. Based on these data, five of the symbionts characterized here represent new species within described genera: Devescovina sapara n. sp., Devescovina aymara n. sp., Macrotrichomonas ashaninka n. sp., Macrotrichomonas secoya n. sp., and Macrotrichomonas yanesha n. sp. Additionally, two symbionts with overall morphological characteristics similar to the poorly-studied and probably polyphyletic ‘joeniid’ Parabasalia are classified in a new genus Runanympha n. gen.: Runanympha illapa n. sp., and Runanympha pacha n. sp., This work was supported by a grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (RGPIN-2014-03994). JdC, VB, AK, EH and MK were supported by grants to the Centre for Microbial Diversity and Evolution from the Tula Foundation, and NATI was supported by a fellowship from NSERC. JdC was supported by a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship Grant (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IOF-331450 CAARL).

Ecological flexibility, extended lifespans, and large brains have long intrigued evolutionary biologists, and comparative genomics offers an efficient and effective tool for generating new insights into the evolution of such traits. Studies of capuchin monkeys are particularly well situated to shed light on the selective pressures and genetic underpinnings of local adaptation to diverse habitats, longevity, and brain development. Distributed widely across Central and South America, they are inventive and extractive foragers, known for their sensorimotor intelligence. Capuchins have among the largest relative brain size of any monkey and a lifespan that exceeds 50 y, despite their small (3 to 5 kg) body size. We assemble and annotate a de novo reference genome for Cebus imitator. Through high-depth sequencing of DNA derived from blood, various tissues, and feces via fluorescence-activated cell sorting (fecalFACS) to isolate monkey epithelial cells, we compared genomes of capuchin populations from tropical dry forests and lowland rainforests and identified population divergence in genes involved in water balance, kidney function, and metabolism. Through a comparative genomics approach spanning a wide diversity of mammals, we identified genes under positive selection associated with longevity and brain development. Additionally, we provide a technological advancement in the use of noninvasive genomics for studies of free-ranging mammals. Our intra- and interspecific comparative study of capuchin genomics provides insights into processes underlying local adaptation to diverse and physiologically challenging environments, as well as the molecular basis of brain evolution and longevity., Funding was provided by Washington University in St. Louis, the Canada Research Chairs Program, and a National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Discovery Grant (to A.D.M.); the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute (A.D.M., J.D.O., and M.C.J.); the Beatriu de Pinós postdoctoral programme of the Government of Catalonia’s Secretariat for Universities and Research of the Ministry of Economy and Knowledge 2017 BP 00265 (to J.D.O.); and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science 15H02421 and 18H04005 (to S.K.). This work was partly funded by a Methuselah Foundation grant (to J.P.d.M.); and the Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica Chile through the doctoral studentship number 21170433 and the scholarship from the Higher Education Quality Improvement Program (MECESUP) AUS 2003 (to D.T.-M.). GenAge is funded by a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council Grant BB/R014949/1 (to J.P.d.M.). T.M.-B. is supported by funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No. 864203), BFU2017-86471-P (MINECO/FEDER, UE), “Unidad de Excelencia María de Maeztu”, funded by the Agencia Estatal de Investigación (CEX2018-000792-M), Howard Hughes International Early Career, Obra Social “La Caixa” and Secretaria d’Universitats i Recerca and CERCA Programme del Departament d’Economia i Coneixement de la Generalitat de Catalunya (GRC 2017 SGR 880). C.F. is supported by the “La Caixa” doctoral fellowship program. E.L. is supported by CGL2017-82654-P (MINECO/FEDER, UE). M.C.J. is supported by funding from the Natural Environment Research Council (NE/T000341/1)., With funding from the Spanish government through the "Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence" accreditation (CEX2018-000792-M).

Sampling of different body regions can reveal highly specialized bacterial associations within the holobiont and facilitate identification of core microbial symbionts that would otherwise be overlooked by bulk sampling methods. Here we characterized compartment-specific associations present within the model cnidarian Nematostella vectensis by dividing its morphology into three distinct body regions. This sampling design allowed us to uncover a capitulum-specific dominance of spirochetes within N. vectensis. Bacteria from the family Spirochaetaceae made up 66% of the community in the capitulum, while only representing 1.2% and 0.1% of the communities in the mesenteries and physa, respectively. A phylogenetic analysis of the predominant spirochete sequence recovered from N. vectensis showed a close relation to spirochetes previously recovered from wild N. vectensis. These sequences clustered closer to the recently described genus Oceanispirochaeta, rather than Spirochaeta perfilievii, supporting them as members of this clade. This suggests a consistent and potentially important association between N. vectensis and spirochetes from the order Spirochaetales.

Legionella is a pathogenic bacterium, ubiquitous in freshwater environments and able to colonise man-made water systems from which it can be transmitted to humans during outbreaks. The prevention of such outbreaks requires a fast, low cost, automated and often portable detection system. In this work, we present a combination of sample concentration, immunoassay detection, and measurement by chronoamperometry. A nitrocellulose microfiltration membrane is used as support for both the water sample concentration and the Legionella immunodetection. The horseradish peroxidase enzymatic label of the antibodies permits using the redox substrate 3,3′,5,5′-Tetramethylbenzidine to generate current changes proportional to the bacterial concentration present in drinking water. Carbon screen-printed electrodes are employed in the chronoamperometric measurements. Our system reduces the detection time: from the 10 days required by the conventional culture-based methods, to 2–3 h, which could be crucial to avoid outbreaks. Additionally, the system shows a linear response (R2 value of 0.99), being able to detect a range of Legionella concentrations between 101 and 104 cfu·mL−1 with a detection limit (LoD) of 4 cfu·mL−1.

8 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, supporting Information https://doi.org/10.1111/jeu.12825.-- This is the pre-peer reviewed version of the following article: Bradley A. Weiler, Elisabet L. Sà, Michael E. Sieracki, Ramon Massana, Javier del Campo. Mediocremonas mediterraneus, a New Member within the Developea. Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology 68(1): e12825 (2021), which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/jeu.12825. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions, The stramenopiles are a large and diverse group of eukaryotes that possess various lifestyles required to thrive in a broad array of environments. The stramenopiles branch with the alveolates, rhizarians, and telonemids, forming the supergroup TSAR. Here, we present a new genus and species of aquatic nanoflagellated stramenopile: Mediocremonas mediterraneus, a free‐swimming heterotrophic predator. M. mediterraneus cell bodies measure between 2.0–4.0 μm in length and 1.2–3.7 μm in width, possessing two flagella and an oval body morphology. The growth and grazing rate of M. mediterraneus in batch cultures ranges from 0.68 to 1.83 d−1 and 1.99 to 5.38 bacteria/h, respectively. M. mediterraneus was found to be 93.9% phylogenetically similar with Developayella elegans and 94.7% with Develorapax marinus, two members within the class Developea. The phylogenetic position of the Developea and the ability of M. mediterraneus to remain in culture make it a good candidate for further genomic studies that could help us to better understand phagotrophy in marine systems as well as the transition from heterotrophy to phototrophy within the stramenopiles, This work was supported by two grants from the Spanish government, FLAME (CGL2010‐16304, MICINN) and ALLFLAGS (CTM2016‐75083‐R, MINECO), and by the National Science Foundation Award DEB‐1031049 to MES. BW was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Postgraduate Scholarships‐Doctoral Program (NSERC PGS‐D). BW and JdC were supported by start‐up funds from the University of Miami, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, With the funding support of the ‘Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence’ accreditation (CEX2019-000928-S), of the Spanish Research Agency (AEI)

Altres ajuts: 2016 Leonardo grant from the BBVA Foundation (TIC-TIC-0007) Electrochromic materials are becoming increasingly important in analytical devices and applications. Their opto-electronic properties make them particularly useful in the development of electronics-free, self-powered sensors. However, the mass manufacture of such devices is often limited by the need for transparent electrodes and liquid electrolyte systems. The self-powered biosensor presented here overcomes these limitations by means of a coplanar construction and a gel electrolyte. This configuration enables an effective separation between the sample and the electrochromic component, which allows the naked eye readout of the analyte concentration even if coloured or dark samples, such as blood, are used. This lack of contact between sample and electrochromic material also prevents the action of possible interferents on the electrochromic display, which is an additional advantage. Moreover, because the device is entirely screen-printed, its mass production is also feasible. The fabricated device features a glucose biosensor connected to a Prussian-Blue electrode, displaying a dynamic range between 2.5 mM-10 mM that makes it suitable for blood testing and diabetes screening.

Legionella is a pathogenic bacterium, ubiquitous in freshwater environments and able to colonise man-made water systems from which it can be transmitted to humans during outbreaks. The prevention of such outbreaks requires a fast, low cost, automated and often portable detection system. In this work, we present a combination of sample concentration, immunoassay detection, and measurement by chronoamperometry. A nitrocellulose microfiltration membrane is used as support for both the water sample concentration and the Legionella immunodetection. The horseradish peroxidase enzymatic label of the antibodies permits using the redox substrate 3,3&prime, 5,5&prime, Tetramethylbenzidine to generate current changes proportional to the bacterial concentration present in drinking water. Carbon screen-printed electrodes are employed in the chronoamperometric measurements. Our system reduces the detection time: from the 10 days required by the conventional culture-based methods, to 2&ndash, 3 h, which could be crucial to avoid outbreaks. Additionally, the system shows a linear response (R2 value of 0.99), being able to detect a range of Legionella concentrations between 101 and 104 cfu&middot, mL&minus, 1 with a detection limit (LoD) of 4 cfu&middot, 1.

Microfluidic technologies are highly adept at generating controllable compositional gradients in fluids, a feature that has accelerated the understanding of the importance of chemical gradients in biological processes. That said, the development of versatile methods to generate controllable compositional gradients in the solid‐state has been far more elusive. The ability to produce such gradients would provide access to extensive compositional libraries, thus enabling the high‐throughput exploration of the parametric landscape of functional solids and devices in a resource‐, time‐, and cost‐efficient manner. Herein, the synergic integration of microfluidic technologies is reported with blade coating to enable the controlled formation of compositional lateral gradients in solution. Subsequently, the transformation of liquid‐based compositional gradients into solid‐state thin films using this method is demonstrated. To demonstrate efficacy of the approach, microfluidic‐assisted blade coating is used to optimize blending ratios in organic solar cells. Importantly, this novel technology can be easily extended to other solution processable systems that require the formation of solid‐state compositional lateral gradients., The authors would like to acknowledge financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness through the “Severo Ochoa” Programme for Centers of Excellence in R&D (SEV‐2015‐0496) and project reference PGC2018‐095411‐B‐I00 as well as the European Research Council (ERC) under grant agreement no. 648901. J.P.‐L. acknowledges the European Research Council Starting Grant microCrysFact (ERC‐2015‐STG No. 677020) and the Swiss National Science Foundation (200021_181988) and ETH Zürich. R. R.‐T. acknowledges the support from Generalitat de Catalunya and the COFUND programme of the Marie Curie Actions of the 7th R&D Framework Programme of the European Union (BP‐B 00256). X.R.‐M. acknowledges the departments of Physics, Chemistry and Geology of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) as coordinators of the PhD programme in Materials Science. X.R.‐M. and C.F. acknowledge Nicole Kleger‐Schai from ETH Zürich for her valuable help in using the rheometer. X.R.‐M. and M.C.‐Q. acknowledge Dr. Joan M. Cabot from the University of Tasmania for fruitful discussions on 3D printing. D.B.A. thanks the University of Nottingham Beacon Propulsion Futures.

Spectroelectrochemistry studies spectral changes as a function of applied potential or current. While there is no standard experimental setup, transparent electrodes are most typically used in transmission mode. Working in reflection mode forces light across the sample twice, resulting in higher sensitivities, but in turn requires the use of highly reflective electrodes. Here we present the production and characterization of screen-printed electrodes made from different antimony tin oxide (ATO) conducting particles. The resulting electrodes display excellent spectroelectrochemical properties, such as reflectivities up to 20 times higher than conventional graphite screen-printed electrodes, but with comparable electron transfer rates. These electrodes represent an attractive alternative to conventional materials and widen the choice of suitable electrode materials for electrochemistry in general and spectroelectrochemistry in particular, FEDER funds managed by the Catalan Secretary of Universities and Research through project PROD-0000114 (Enterprise and Knowledge, Industry Department, Generalitat de Catalunya).

Special issue on Marine Microbes.-- 10 pages, 3 figures, supporting information https://doi.org/10.1111/1462-2920.14134, Apicomplexans are a group of obligate intracellular parasites, but their retention of a relict non-photosynthetic plastid reveals that they evolved from free-living photosynthetic ancestors. The closest relatives of apicomplexans include photosynthetic chromerid algae (e.g., Chromera and Vitrella), non-photosynthetic colpodellid predators (e.g., Colpodella) and several environmental clades collectively called Apicomplexan-Related Lineages (ARLs). Here we investigate the global distribution and inferred ecology of the ARLs by expansively searching for apicomplexan-related plastid small ribosomal subunit (SSU) genes in large-scale high-throughput bacterial amplicon surveys. Searching more than 220 million sequences from 224 geographical sites worldwide revealed 94 324 ARL plastid SSU sequences. Meta-analyses confirm that all ARLs are coral reef associated and not to marine environments generally, but only a subset is actually associated with coral itself. Most unexpectedly, Chromera was found exclusively in coral biogenous sediments, and not within coral tissue, indicating that it is not a coral symbiont, as typically thought. In contrast, ARL-V is the most diverse, geographically widespread and abundant of all ARL clades and is strictly associated with coral tissue and mucus. ARL-V was found in 19 coral species in reefs, including azooxanthellate corals at depths greater than 500 m. We suggest this is indicative of a parasitic or commensal relationship, and not of photosynthetic symbiosis, further underscoring the importance of isolating ARL-V and determining its relationship with the coral host, This work was supported by a grant from the Canadian Institute for Health Research to PJK (MOP 42517). JdC and MK were supported by a grant to the Centre for Microbial Diversity and Evolution from the Tula Foundation and JdC was supported by a Marie Curie Outgoing Fellowship grant (FP7‐PEOPLE‐2012‐IOF - 331450 CAARL)

The work is part of the EU ERA-Net program BiodivERsA, under the project BioMarKs (Biodiversity of Marine euKaryotes).-- 14 pages, 8 figures, supplementary material https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-27509-8, Although animals are among the best studied organisms, we still lack a full description of their diversity, especially for microscopic taxa. This is partly due to the time-consuming and costly nature of surveying animal diversity through morphological and molecular studies of individual taxa. A powerful alternative is the use of high-throughput environmental sequencing, providing molecular data from all organisms sampled. We here address the unknown diversity of animal phyla in marine environments using an extensive dataset designed to assess eukaryotic ribosomal diversity among European coastal locations. A multi-phylum assessment of marine animal diversity that includes water column and sediments, oxic and anoxic environments, and both DNA and RNA templates, revealed a high percentage of novel 18S rRNA sequences in most phyla, suggesting that marine environments have not yet been fully sampled at a molecular level. This novelty is especially high among Platyhelminthes, Acoelomorpha, and Nematoda, which are well studied from a morphological perspective and abundant in benthic environments. We also identified, based on molecular data, a potentially novel group of widespread tunicates. Moreover, we recovered a high number of reads for Ctenophora and Cnidaria in the smaller fractions suggesting their gametes might play a greater ecological role than previously suspected, This work was supported by an Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats contract, two grants (BFU-2011-23434 and BFU2014-57779-P) from the Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (MINECO), one of which (BFU2014-57779-P) was co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER), and a European Research Council Consolidator Grant (ERC-2012-Co -616960) to I.R.-T. We also acknowledge financial support from the Secretaria d’Universitats i Recerca del Departament d’Economia i Coneixement de la Generalitat de Catalunya (Project 2014 SGR 619). J.d.C. was supported by a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship grant (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IOF - 331450 CAARL). J.P. acknowledges support from the European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007–2013)/ERC grant [268513]

Biosensors; Mètodes moleculars; Diagnòstics basat en telèfons intel·ligents Biosensores; Métodos moleculares; Diagnósticos basados en teléfonos inteligentes Biosensors; Molecular methods; Smarthphone-based diagnostics Smartphones are becoming increasingly versatile thanks to the wide variety of sensor and actuator systems packed in them. Mobile devices today go well beyond their original purpose as communication devices, and this enables important new applications, ranging from augmented reality to the Internet of Things. Personalized diagnostics is one of the areas where mobile devices can have the greatest impact. Hitherto, the camera and communication abilities of these devices have been barely exploited for point of care (POC) purposes. This short review covers the recent evolution of mobile devices in the area of POC diagnostics and puts forward some ideas that may facilitate the development of more advanced applications and devices in the area of personalized diagnostics. With this purpose, the potential exploitation of wireless power and actuation of sensors and biosensors using near field communication (NFC), the use of the screen as a light source for actuation and spectroscopic analysis, using the haptic module to enhance mass transport in micro volumes, and the use of magnetic sensors are discussed. Financial support from the Basque Government under the ELKARTEK program is also acknowledged. EB is funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III, cofinanced by the European Regional Development Fund (grant CPII18/00025).

The occurrence of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), mainly organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls, was directly associated with several diseases and environmental endocrine disrupting. In the aquatic environment, POPs can accumulate in fish lipoid tissues due to their high hydrophobicity, and become this way one of the main sources of human exposure to POPs through the consumption of fish meat and oil as Omega-3 source. Chlorine might serve as a proxy for the presence of POPs, and a fast screening of chlorine in a complex matrix, such as fish oil, could provide substantial information about the contamination with POPs. Therefore, a method has been developed in this work for the determination of total chlorine in fish oil samples via molecular absorption of the strontium mono-chloride molecule in the gas phase using high-resolution continuum source graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry. The effect of zirconium as permanent chemical modifier in the pyrolysis and vaporization stages was optimized in order to avoid the need for any kind of sample preparation prior to the determination of total chlorine, using just a dilution with 1-propanol. The accuracy has been evaluated using micro-coulometric titration after sample combustion, and the values were statistically in agreement (95% confidence level) between both techniques. The method has been applied for the determination of total chlorine in five different fractions of a commercial pooled marine fish oil sample collected from the Pacific Ocean, where the majority of the fish is Peruvian anchovy ( Engraulis ringens ), two commercial oils from Brazil and three Omega-3 supplements acquired in Germany. The limit of detection of the procedure is 1.8 ng Cl absolute or 0.9 μg g −1 Cl in the fish oil. The time required for a single determination is less than 5 min, and less than 15 min for a triplicate determination.

The authors are grateful to the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico and Tecnologico (CNPq), and Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES) for financial support and scholarships. The present research was mostly financed through Project no. CNPq 406877/2013-0. The authors are also grateful to Analytik Jena for financial support and the donation of the contrAA 600.

We have developed electrochromic inks and electrolyte materials to enable mass production of flexible electrochromic displays (ECDs) and other optoelectronic devices by screen printing. Here we present a new screen‐printable ink incorporating electrochromic polymer, poly(3,4‐propylenedioxythiophene)bis(ethylhexyloxy), referred to here as ECP‐Magenta, and antimony‐doped tin oxide (ATO/TiO2) particles to facilitate electron transport. Their dispersion in a P(VDF‐co‐HFP) binder leads to the formation of a new electrochromic ink that is suitable for screen printing. This strategy opens the door to the preparation of similar electrochromic inks based on other organic or polymeric compounds. This approach is scalable and can applied to different fields. Ion gels (IGs) composed of P(VDF‐co‐HFP) and room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) are promising solid‐state electrolytes with high ionic conductivity, flexibility, elasticity and eco‐friendliness. The electrochemical features of different ion gels were analyzed as a function of composition and nature of the ionic liquid. Hence, new formulations of IGs were developed, evaluated by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy, Cyclic Voltammetry, before being incorporated into ECDs. The electrochromic performance of ECP‐Magenta ink combined with the RTIL‐based IG was evaluated by terms of spectroelectrochemistry showing that fully flexible ECD operating at voltages below 1 V can be screen‐printed., AGAUR 2016PROD00114

The Fungi are a diverse kingdom, dominating terrestrial environments and driving important ecologies. Although fungi, and the related Opisthosporidia, interact with photosynthetic organisms on land and in freshwater as parasites, symbionts, and/or saprotrophic degraders [1, 2], such interactions in the marine environment are poorly understood [3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]. One newly identified uncultured marine lineage has been named novel chytrid-like-clade-1 (NCLC1) [4] or basal-clone-group-I [5, 6]. We use ribosomal RNA (rRNA) encoding gene phylogenies to demonstrate that NCLC1 is a distinct branch within the Opisthosporidia (Holomycota) [7]. Opisthosporidia are a diverse and largely uncultured group that form a sister branch to the Fungi or, alternatively, the deepest branch within the Fungi, depending on how the boundary to this kingdom is inferred [9]. Using culture-free lineage-specific rRNA-targeted fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) microscopy, we demonstrate that NCLC1 cells form intracellular infection of key diatom species, establishing that intracellular colonization of a eukaryotic host is a consistent lifestyle across the Opisthosporidia [8, 9, 10, 11]. NCLC1 infection-associated loss and/or envelopment of the diatom nuclei infers a necrotrophic-pathogenic interaction. Diatoms are one of the most diverse and ecologically important phytoplankton groups, acting as dominant primary producers and driving carbon fixation and storage in many aquatic environments [12, 13, 14]. Our results provide insight into the diversity of microbial eukaryotes that interact with diatoms. We suggest that such interactions can play a key role in diatom associated ecosystem functions, such as the marine carbon pump through necrotrophic-parasitism, facilitating the export of diatoms to the sediment [15, 16].