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Journal articleSun T, Sun M-L, Lin L, et al., 2026,
Combining multiplex metabolic engineering with adaptive evolution strategies for high-level succinic acid production in Yarrowia lipolytica
, Synthetic and Systems Biotechnology, Vol: 11, Pages: 48-58, ISSN: 2405-805XSuccinic acid, an essential platform chemical with extensive utility in biodegradable materials, pharmaceuticals, and the food industry, faces challenges of high energy consumption and environmental pollution in traditional chemical synthesis. Here, we employed multiplex metabolic engineering and adaptive laboratory evolution to enhance succinic acid biosynthesis in Yarrowia lipolytica. By attenuating succinate dehydrogenase (Sdh) activity, mitigating by-product accumulation, and enhancing the succinate synthesis pathway, engineered strains showed efficient succinic acid production from glycerol. The titer reached 130.99 g/L under unregulated pH conditions, translating to a yield of 0.35 g/g and a productivity of 0.70 g/(L·h). Subsequently, transporter engineering and adaptive evolution strategies were applied to enhance glucose utilization for succinic acid synthesis, yielding an evolved strain that eliminated the growth lag phase and produced 106.68 g/L succinic acid from glucose, which translated to a yield of 0.32 g/g and a productivity of 0.64 g/(L·h). Additionally, transcriptomic analysis and inverse metabolic engineering revealed that 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (4-Hppd) in the tyrosine degradation pathway partially restored the growth of Sdh-deficient strains on glucose, offering new insights for subsequent succinic acid biomanufacturing using Y. lipolytica.
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Journal articleRafieenia R, Fu J, Hapeta P, et al., 2026,
Advancing arabinose-based bioproduction in Yarrowia lipolytica by integrating metabolic engineering and adaptive laboratory evolution
, Metabolic Engineering, Vol: 94, Pages: 15-23, ISSN: 1096-7176The oleaginous yeast, Yarrowia lipolytica has gained interest as a biotechnological chassis to produce foods, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and biofuels. To reduce production costs and sustainability, inexpensive and abundant feedstocks such as lignocellulose must be used for bioproduction. Since lignocellulosic biomass contains components that cannot be utilised by Y. lipolytica, it is important to use engineering biology to enable their utilisation. L-arabinose is the second most abundant pentose in lignocellulose after xylose. However, it has received much less attention than xylose as a bioresource. In the present study, we first engineered Y. lipolytica to grow on L-arabinose as the sole carbon source. We used several wild-type and engineered strains to express the multigene arabinose cassette. Second, we used adaptive laboratory evolution to improve the utilisation of arabinose by the engineered strains. Third, we enabled the production of β-carotene from arabinose by expressing a β-carotene cassette in the evolved strain. Using minimal YNB medium supplemented with 20 g/l of arabinose as the sole carbon source resulted in the complete utilisation of L-arabinose within 120 h. In bioreactors, a β-carotene production of 418.89 mg/l was achieved with the complete utilisation of 60 g/l of L-arabinose. This study is the first to engineer L-arabinose utilisation in Y. lipolytica, opening new avenues for biomanufacturing using alternative carbon sources.
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Journal articleWang Y, Jiang Q, Vorlaufer D, et al., 2026,
Application of vitrimer-based sizing agent onto carbon fibres through thiol-ene photo-polymerisation
, COMPOSITES PART A-APPLIED SCIENCE AND MANUFACTURING, Vol: 202, ISSN: 1359-835X -
Journal articleWilliams TJ, Griffiths JS, Gonzales-Huerta LE, et al., 2026,
Selective Targeting of IL-1RAP-Dependent Eosinophilic Inflammation in Allergic Fungal Airway Disease.
, Allergy -
Journal articleWang D, Hadad N, Moss S, et al., 2026,
Assessment of mosaic loss of chromosome Y in pulmonary fibrosis reveals limited association with susceptibility or disease severity.
, BMJ Open Respir Res, Vol: 13BACKGROUND: Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a rare lung disease with diverse pathogenesis and biological mechanisms. Mosaic loss of chromosome Y (mLOY) has been reported to be associated with increased risk of fibrotic diseases. However, the exact role of mLOY in the development of PF remains to be elucidated. METHODS: Copy number on chromosome Y was used to estimate mLOY comparing patients in PROFILE and gnomAD cohorts and between cases and control patients from the GE100KGP cohort. Correlation of mLOY with demographic and clinical variables was tested using patients from the PROFILE cohort. Lung single-cell transcriptomic data were analysed to assess the cell types implicated in mLOY. Mendelian randomisation was performed to examine the causal relationship between mLOY, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and telomere length. RESULTS: The genetic analysis suggests that mLOY is found in PF from both case cohorts but when compared with an age matched population the effect is minimal (p=0.00316, median: 0.288 vs 0.291). mLOY is related to age (p=0.000214) and shorter telomere length (p=0.00815) rather than PF severity or progression. Single-cell analysis indicates that mLOY appears to be found primarily in immune cells. Mendelian randomisation demonstrates that mLOY is not on the causal pathway for IPF, but partial evidence supports that telomere shortening is on the causal pathway for mLOY. CONCLUSIONS: Our study confirms the existence of mLOY in PF patients, suggests that mLOY is not a major driver of IPF, and might support a triangulation model where telomere shortening leads to both IPF and mLOY.
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Journal articleAlmousa HA, De Luca HG, Anthony DB, et al., 2026,
Uniform and scalable carbon nanotube growth on carbon fibers: insights from experimental dynamic snapshots and computational fluid dynamics
, Carbon, Vol: 248, ISSN: 0008-6223Carbon nanotube (CNT) grafted carbon fibers (CFs) are promising for multifunctional composites (CFRPs) but remain limited by scalability, non-uniform growth, and degradation of fiber tensile strength. This paper reports a continuous spool-to-spool chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process that achieves uniform CNT growth throughout 12k CF tows while preserving fiber tensile properties. The uniformity of CNT coverage, over meters of length and across thousands of fibers, was objectively established via a multi-length scale characterization protocol, combining machine learning-based SEM classification with macroscopic measurements of BET-based specific surface area (SSA) and gravimetric CNT content. Microscopic and macroscopic measurements are independently self-consistent. To understand and optimize CNT growth, a new dynamic snapshot method was developed and combined with steady-state computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling to resolve the spatial evolution of catalyst activation, nucleation, and CNT growth kinetics as a function of reactor temperature and species concentrations. These insights informed targeted modifications to gas flow and temperature conditions, enabling reproducible CNT growth at 550 °C. Under optimized CVD conditions, the CFs were grafted with a CNT corona of 850 nm in length, corresponding to a loading of 2.9 wt% on the fibers, which led to a ten-fold increase in SSA (5.35 m2 g−1). The process was shown to be stable for extended lengths (>50 m) and reproducible across multiple runs, establishing a scalable route for integrating CNT-grafted CFs into conventional manufacturing. This experimental-computational framework provides a rational approach toward high-performance multifunctional, hierarchical CFRPs.
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Journal articleStewart I, John A, Bin L, et al., 2026,
Residual lung abnormality following COVID-19 hospitalisation is characterised by biomarkers of epithelial injury
, EBioMedicine, Vol: 124, ISSN: 2352-3964Some survivors of acute COVID-19 infection have long-term symptoms that could suggest ongoing lung impairment. Searches performed in MEDLINE and Embase for SARS-COV-2 studies with radiological lung follow-up estimated that 50% of participants had inflammatory patterns and 29% had fibrotic patterns at a median of 3 months post infection. Analysis of the UK nationwide Post-hospitalisation COVID-19 Study at 5-months follow-up suggested that up to 11% of people discharged from hospital following COVID-19 infection were at-risk of radiological residual lung abnormalities, such as ground glass opacity and reticulation. In people with pulmonary fibrosis, these radiological patterns are often consistent with persistent epithelial lung injury. Biomarker studies have identified associations with COVID-19 severity, however there are few studies that explore the relationship between biomarkers of epithelial injury and parenchymal lung abnormalities post-hospitalisation.
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Journal articleGreenland JR, Perch M, Halloran K, et al., 2026,
Considerations for Endpoints in Lung Transplant Clinical Trials: Perspective on the ISHLT Consensus Statement.
, J Heart Lung Transplant, Vol: 45, Pages: 168-171 -
Journal articleGreenland JR, Perch M, Halloran K, et al., 2026,
Considerations for Endpoints in Lung Transplant Clinical Trials: An ISHLT Consensus Statement.
, J Heart Lung Transplant, Vol: 45, Pages: e104-e128Clinical trials in lung transplantation have been hindered by a lack of clarity on the formulation and significance of endpoints for evaluating therapeutic efficacy. To address this challenge, a multidisciplinary working group from the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation developed consensus recommendations on endpoints beyond mortality. These endpoints include primary graft dysfunction (PGD), chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD), acute cellular rejection (ACR), antibody-mediated rejection (AMR), immunosuppression-related complications, patient-reported outcomes (PROs), and pediatric-specific considerations. For each endpoint, a subgroup reviewed measurement best practices, assessed links to clinical benefit, and evaluated the evidence supporting their utility in clinical trial settings. Consensus was established through a Delphi process involving three rounds of voting. This document provides practical guidance for operationalizing these endpoints and outlines their optimal use in clinical trials. By standardizing trial design, these recommendations aim to accelerate the development of urgently needed therapies to improve lung transplantation outcomes.
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Journal articleHemmings S, Varaden D, Barnes J, et al., 2026,
Diversity analysis of indoor and outdoor fungal bioaerosols in UK households: a longitudinal study
, The Lancet Microbe, ISSN: 2666-5247BackgroundProlonged exposure to indoor fungal bioaerosols is a recognised risk factor for respiratory illness, particularly in damp and poorly ventilated housing. However, the diversity and seasonal variability of these communities are poorly understood. This study as part of WellHome, aimed to characterise the composition, diversity, and temporal dynamics of indoor fungal bioaerosols in urban UK homes compared with outdoor air, to inform future exposure baselines and policy development.MethodsIn this prospective, community-based observational study, 118 households were recruited across West London, UK, via community networks and partner organisations, prioritising families with children aged 5–17 years with asthma or allergies from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. Sampling occurred between 3rd October 2022 and 14th June 2024. Participant data was collected via questionnaires completed by household members, capturing demographics, building characteristics, and respiratory health. Passive air samplers were deployed in living rooms for 28 days during two seasonal campaigns, with concurrent outdoor sampling at four fixed community sites. Fungal bioaerosols were identified by ITS2 amplicon sequencing and quantified using broad-range qPCR targeting the 18S rRNA gene. Diversity indices and temporal dynamics were analysed using ecological statistics and generalised additive models.Findings118 households were enrolled, comprising 504 residents (263 female, 237 male, 4 not reported). Of these, 104 households completed both seasonal campaigns and 14 completed one, yielding 262 air samples (222 indoor, 40 outdoor). DNA was successfully recovered from all samples, identifying 2,027 fungal genera. Indoor environments showed significantly higher richness (mean 646 vs 495 ASVs; p<0.0001) and Shannon diversity (4.21 vs 3.53; p<0.0001) than outdoors. Community composition differed markedly (PERMANOVA p<0.0001), with Penicillium, Aspergillus, and Wallemia enriched in
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