Characterization of extracellular lignocellulolytic enzymes of Coniochaeta sp. during corn stover bioconversion

Biorefinery of renewable lignocellulosic biomass to biochemical and biofuel is a promising technology to mitigate global warming and fuel shortage but hydrolysis of recalcitrant lignocellulose to its constitutive components is the bottleneck of the process. This work isolated and characterized a new lignocellulose degrading filamentous fungus from decomposing wood in mangrove area. The strain was identified as Coniochaeta sp. according to ITS rRNA sequences and its phylogenic analysis. The extracellular lignocellulolytic enzymes of this fungal strain, when grown on corn stover, were profiled by LC–MS/MS and exponentially modified protein abundance index (emPAI) based label-free quantitative proteomics approach. We identified 107 potential lignocellulolytic enzymes and their functional classification revealed unique extracellular enzyme system constituting multienzyme complexes of cellulases (29%), hemicellulases (17%), glycoside hydrolases (10%), proteases and peptidases (24%), lignin degrading enzymes (7%) and hypothetical proteins (13%). The growth behavior, biochemical assay and LC–MS/MS analysis of secretome by isolated fungal strain revealed its lignocellulose degradation potential when cultivated with corn stover as a major carbon source.     

Life cycle cost analysis of distributed versus centralized plastic sorting and recycling

Miniaturizing plastic recycling through distributed systems has been viewed as a way to manage waste closer to the source while minimizing logistics requirements. The environmental performance of distributed manufacturing and waste management systems has been evaluated, but few studies have measured the financial performance. This study combines life cycle costing and hybrid simulation modeling to compare the net present value of small-scale distributed versus large-scale centralized systems of sorting and recycling plastic bottles and takeaway containers disposed in Singapore over 7 years. The results showed that distributed systems face a net financial loss at existing prices of SGD80–120/tonne recycled pellets. This is because of the high operation costs, particularly the labor costs due to the reliance on manual sorting. Despite being closer to the waste sources, distributed scenarios have higher fuel costs due to the poorer fuel efficiency of commercial vans compared to the larger trucks in the centralized scenarios. To improve the financial performance of distributed small-scale plastic recycling systems, it is generally recommended that small-scale sorting facilities reduce the reliance on manual labor; the smaller trucks should have higher fuel economies than conventional large waste hauling trucks; the number of small-scale facilities set up should match the amount of waste to be converted; and the price of the recycled pellets should be high enough to recover the high operating costs of recycling. The findings of this study provide motivation for future research in evaluating the financial performance of distributed recycling of other waste streams. This article met the requirements for a gold-gold data badge JIE data openness badge described at http://jie.click/badges      

A20 (Tnfaip3) Deficiency in Myeloid Cells Protects against Influenza A Virus Infection

The innate immune response provides the first line of defense against viruses and other pathogens by responding to specific microbial molecules. Influenza A virus (IAV) produces double-stranded RNA as an intermediate during the replication life cycle, which activates the intracellular pathogen recognition receptor RIG-I and induces the production of proinflammatory cytokines and antiviral interferon. Understanding the mechanisms that regulate innate immune responses to IAV and other viruses is of key importance to develop novel therapeutic strategies. Here we used myeloid cell specific A20 knockout mice to examine the role of the ubiquitin-editing protein A20 in the response of myeloid cells to IAV infection. A20 deficient macrophages were hyperresponsive to double stranded RNA and IAV infection, as illustrated by enhanced NF-κB and IRF3 activation, concomitant with increased production of proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines and type I interferon. In vivo this was associated with an increased number of alveolar macrophages and neutrophils in the lungs of IAV infected mice. Surprisingly, myeloid cell specific A20 knockout mice are protected against lethal IAV infection. These results challenge the general belief that an excessive host proinflammatory response is associated with IAV-induced lethality, and suggest that under certain conditions inhibition of A20 might be of interest in the management of IAV infections.