Two roles for ecological surrogacy: Indicator surrogates and management surrogates

Ecological surrogacy – here defined as using a process or element (e.g., species, ecosystem, or abiotic factor) to represent another aspect of an ecological system – is a widely used concept, but many applications of the surrogate concept have been controversial. We argue that some of this controversy reflects differences among users with different goals, a distinction that can be crystalized by recognizing two basic types of surrogate. First, many ecologists and natural resource managers measure “indicator surrogates” to provide information about ecological systems. Second, and often overlooked, are “management surrogates” (e.g., umbrella species) that are primarily used to facilitate achieving management goals, especially broad goals such as “maintain biodiversity” or “increase ecosystem resilience.” We propose that distinguishing these two overarching roles for surrogacy may facilitate better communication about project goals. This is critical when evaluating the usefulness of different surrogates, especially where a potential surrogate might be useful in one role but not another. Our classification for ecological surrogacy applies to species, ecosystems, ecological processes, abiotic factors, and genetics, and thus can provide coherence across a broad range of uses.     

Biodiesel production with immobilized lipase: A review

Fatty acid alkyl esters, also called biodiesel, are environmentally friendly and show great potential as an alternative liquid fuel. Biodiesel is produced by transesterification of oils or fats with chemical catalysts or lipase. Immobilized lipase as the biocatalyst draws high attention because that process is “greener”. This article reviews the current status of biodiesel production with immobilized lipase, including various lipases, immobilization methods, various feedstocks, lipase inactivation caused by short chain alcohols and large scale industrialization. Adsorption is still the most widely employed method for lipase immobilization. There are two kinds of lipase used most frequently especially for large scale industrialization. One is Candida antartica lipase immobilized on acrylic resin, and the other is Candida sp. 99–125 lipase immobilized on inexpensive textile membranes. However, to further reduce the cost of biodiesel production, new immobilization techniques with higher activity and stability still need to be explored.     

Polychaetes as surrogates for marine biodiversity: lower taxonomic resolution and indicator groups

Due to conservation needs, reliable rapid-assessment methods for mapping of biodiversity are needed. One approach is to use surrogates, i.e. quantities that correlate strongly with the number of species, but are easier to obtain. The purpose of this paper is to test two polychaete surrogates, one for higher taxa and one for indicator groups, that will facilitate prediction of species richness in marine soft-bottom communities. Soft sediment is an important habitat which covers most of the ocean bottom. Data on polychaetes from the North Atlantic were used since polychaetes are often numerically dominant in the benthic assemblages, both with regard to the number of species and their abundance. In the polychaete assemblages along the Norwegian coast, richness at the genus, family and order level were significantly, linearly correlated to total species richness (r 0.92). Polychaetes in the order Terebellida were found to be a good indicator of polychaete species richness and to a lesser extent also of whole benthic assemblages. The group Terebellida is potentially well suited as an indicator group, since it contains long-lived, large species that are easy to sort from the sediment and it is well defined taxonomically. Although promising as proxies for species richness in marine biodiversity studies, the use of lower taxonomic resolution and indicator groups requires further investigations in more local areas where there are conservation issues.     

Biodiesel production from Jatropha oil by catalytic and non-catalytic approaches: an overview

Biodiesel (fatty acids alkyl esters) is a promising alternative fuel to replace petroleum-based diesel that is obtained from renewable sources such as vegetable oil, animal fat and waste cooking oil. Vegetable oils are more suitable source for biodiesel production compared to animal fats and waste cooking since they are renewable in nature. However, there is a concern that biodiesel production from vegetable oil would disturb the food market. Oil from Jatropha curcas is an acceptable choice for biodiesel production because it is non-edible and can be easily grown in a harsh environment. Moreover, alkyl esters of jatropha oil meet the standard of biodiesel in many countries. Thus, the present paper provides a review on the transesterification methods for biodiesel production using jatropha oil as feedstock.     

Biodiesel synthesis at high pressure and temperature: Analysis of energy consumption on industrial scale

Analysis of several different schemes for industrial FAME production at higher pressure and temperature (catalytic or non-catalytic synthesis) was realized with the aim to find the best route to reduce the energy consumption (EC) and to improve the life cycle energy efficiency. Obtained results indicated that the EC (MJ/kg FAME) mainly depends on degree of conversion of triglycerides being almost 25% smaller if degree of conversion increase from 97 mass% to complete conversion. Further significant decrease of EC might be obtained at subcritical conditions but only after substantial decrease of methanol to oil molar ratio (from 42 to 15) which requires use of appropriate catalyst. On account of that, the kinetics of heterogeneous catalyzed methanolysis of triglycerides was analyzed using data published in literature (CaO) as well as own experimental data (K₂CO₃/Al–O–Si) with a goal to obtain reliable kinetic rate constant which might be used for process simulation.This study shows that if heterogeneous process of biodiesel synthesis is realized at subcritical conditions then further decrease of EC is possible.     

Biodiesel production from waste cooking oil: 2. Economic assessment and sensitivity analysis

The economic feasibilities of four continuous processes to produce biodiesel, including both alkali- and acid-catalyzed processes, using waste cooking oil and the ‘standard’ process using virgin vegetable oil as the raw material, were assessed. Although the alkali-catalyzed process using virgin vegetable oil had the lowest fixed capital cost, the acid-catalyzed process using waste cooking oil was more economically feasible overall, providing a lower total manufacturing cost, a more attractive after-tax rate of return and a lower biodiesel break-even price. On the basis of these economic calculations, sensitivity analyses for these processes were carried out. Plant capacity and prices of feedstock oils and biodiesel were found to be the most significant factors affecting the economic viability of biodiesel manufacture.     

Bioconversion of Raw Glycerol Generated from the Synthesis of Biodiesel by Different Oleaginous Yeasts: Lipid Content and Fatty Acid Profile of Biomass

In this work, 12 different yeast strains were evaluated to gauge their ability to accumulate lipids using raw glycerol as the main carbon source. Lipomyces lipofer NRRL Y-1155 stood out above the other strains, achieving 9.48 g/l biomass, 57.64 % lipid content and 5.46 g/l lipid production. The fatty acid profile was similar to vegetable oils commonly used in the synthesis of biodiesel, with the predominance of polyunsaturated acids, especially linoleic acid, reaching 68.3 % for Rhodotorula glutinis NRRL YB-252. The occurrence of palmitic acid (39.3 % for Lipomyces starkeyi NRRL Y-11557) was also notable. Thus, yeast biomass with high lipid content can be a sustainable and renewable alternative as a raw material for the biodiesel industry.     

Studies on Guizotia abyssinica L. oil: Biodiesel synthesis and process optimization

Guizotia abyssinica seeds, a common bird feedstock, have been explored for the potential of biodiesel synthesis. The oil was extracted from the seeds by solvent extraction and composition of G. abyssinica oil was examined. The reaction parameters for biodiesel synthesis have been optimized. Temperature, oil: methanol ratio, catalyst type and catalyst concentration were found to have significant role on ester conversion. According to this study, the maximum yield of ester (98.7%) can be obtained with optimized sodium methoxide catalyst dosage (0.6%) at an operational temperature of 65 °C. Methyl ester of G. abyssinica oil was also studied for its oxidation stability and low temperature properties. Further, the synthesized product was blended in diesel at 5–20% ratios and evaluated for physico-chemical properties.     

Protein prosthesis: β‐peptides as reverse‐turn surrogates

The introduction of non‐natural modules could provide unprecedented control over folding/unfolding behavior, conformational stability, and biological function of proteins. Success requires the interrogation of candidate modules in natural contexts. Here, expressed protein ligation is used to replace a reverse turn in bovine pancreatic ribonuclease (RNase A) with a synthetic β‐dipeptide: β²‐homoalanine–β³‐homoalanine. This segment is known to adopt an unnatural reverse‐turn conformation that contains a 10‐membered ring hydrogen bond, but one with a donor–acceptor pattern opposite to that in the 10‐membered rings of natural reverse turns. The RNase A variant has intact enzymatic activity, but unfolds more quickly and has diminished conformational stability relative to native RNase A. These data indicate that hydrogen‐bonding pattern merits careful consideration in the selection of beneficial reverse‐turn surrogates.     

Proultraflexible lipid vesicles for effective transdermal delivery of levonorgestrel: Development,characterization, and performance evaluation

The present investigation aimed at formulation, performance evaluation, and stability studies of new vesicular drug carrier system protransfersomes for transdermal delivery of the contraceptive agent, levonorgestrel. Protransfersome gel (PTG) formulations of levonorgestrel were prepared and characterized for vesicle shape, size, entrapment efficiency, turbidity, and drug permeation across rat skin and were evaluated for their stability. The system was evaluated in vivo for biological assay of progestational activity including endometrial assay, inhibition of the formation of corpora lutea, and weight gain of uterus. The effects of different formulation variables (type of alcohol, type and concentration of surfactant) on transdermal permeability profile were assessed. The optimized PTG formulation showed enhanced in vitro skin permeation flux of 15.82±0.37 μg/cm²/hr as compared to 0.032±0.01 μg/cm²/hr for plain drug solution. PTG also showed good stability and after 2 months of storage there was no change in liquid crystalline nature, drug content, and other characteristic parameters. The peak plasma concentration of levonorgestrel (0.139±0.05 μg/mL) was achieved within 4 hours and maintained until 48 hours by a single topical application of optimized PTG formulation. In vivo performance of the PTG formulation showed increase in the therapeutic efficacy of drug. Results indicated that the optimized protransfersomal formulation of levonorgestrel had better skin permeation potential, sustained release characteristic, and better stability than proliposomal formulation.     

A high-oleic-acid and low-palmitic-acid soybean: agronomic performance and evaluation as a feedstock for biodiesel

Phenotypic characterization of soybean event 335-13, which possesses oil with an increased oleic acid content (> 85%) and reduced palmitic acid content (< 5%), was conducted across multiple environments during 2004 and 2005. Under these conditions, the stability of the novel fatty acid profile of the oil was not influenced by environment. Importantly, the novel soybean event 335-13 was not compromised in yield in both irrigated and non-irrigated production schemes. Moreover, seed characteristics, including total oil and protein, as well as amino acid profile, were not altered as a result of the large shift in the fatty acid profile. The novel oil trait was inherited in a simple Mendelian fashion. The event 335-13 was also evaluated as a feedstock for biodiesel. Extruded oil from event 335-13 produced a biodiesel with improved cold flow and enhanced oxidative stability, two critical fuel parameters that can limit the utility of this renewable transportation fuel.     

Swimming in four goldfish Carassius auratus morphotypes: understanding functional design and performance employing artificially selected forms

Four goldfish Carassius auratus morphotypes of similar length (50 mm): common (streamlined, full complement of paired and median fins, bifurcated caudal fin), comet (‘common like’ but with a long, deeply forked caudal fin), fantail (short, deep body with twinned caudal and anal fins) and eggfish (similar to the fantail but lacking a dorsal fin) were compared. Drag, steady swimming kinematics, energetics, fast‐start performance, stability in yaw and roll and propulsive muscle ultrastructural characteristics were measured. A performance ‘pairing’ (common and comet; fantail and eggfish) was a recurrent theme for most performance variables. Fantail and eggfish drag were higher (requiring more thrust at any given velocity) than those for the more streamlined common and comet. This was reflected in kinematics; tailbeat frequency and stride length at any given velocity for the common and comet were lower and higher, respectively, than that of the fantail and eggfish. Common and comet fatigue times were not significantly different from those of their ancestor, crucian carp Carassius carassius, and higher than the fantail and eggfish. The cost of transport of the common and comet (c. 0· 6 mg O₂ kg^?1 m^?1) was accurately predicted by the mass scaling relationship for fish, but values for the fantail and eggfish (c. 1· 3 mg O₂ kg^?1 m^?1) were not. Rolling and yawing motions in eggfish (dorsal fin absent) during steady swimming were associated with significant energy losses. Eggfish maximum fast‐start acceleration (c. 5 m s^?2) was poor due to the absence of inertial and lifting contributions to thrust from the dorsal fin and energy wasting rolling motions. Common and comet fast‐start performance (average velocity c. 0· 45 m s^?1, maximum velocity c. 1· 2 m s^?1, average acceleration c. 7· 5 m s^?2, maximum acceleration c. 35 m s^?2) was similar to that of other locomotor generalists (e.g. rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss). Artificially selected fishes can contribute to the understanding of form and movement in fishes and complement studies of the role of locomotor adaptations in natural systems.     

Emission enhancement in the luminescence performance of warm red light-emitting LiSrVO4:Pr3+ phosphors

Warm red-emitting praseodymium-doped LiSrVO₄ phosphors were synthesized via solid-state reaction. The phase formation was verified using an X-ray diffraction study and the morphology was investigated using a scanning electron microscope study. The LiSrVO₄:Pr³⁺ phosphors emitted red light when exposed to ultraviolet light, indicating their possibility for use in warm white light-emitting diodes (WLEDs). Furthermore, the effect of charge compensators on the luminescence characteristics was addressed. The decay time was investigated using time-resolved photoluminescence. Furthermore, thermal quenching was analyzed through temperature-dependent photoluminescence spectra. Their sensitivity was calculated using temperature-dependent decay time analysis. The colour purity of the emitted light could be measured by photometric analysis. This comprehensive investigation provides a thorough understanding of the luminescence properties of phosphors for WLED applications.     

Screening for improved cell performance: selection of subclones with altered production kinetics or improved stability by cell sorting

One of the major problems in the biotechnology industry is the selection of cell lines well suited for production of biopharmaceutical proteins. Usually, the most important selection criterion is the cell specific production rate. Nevertheless, a good producer cell line should have a number of additional advantageous properties, which allow the cell line to perform well in the type of bioreactor chosen for the process. However, the time and work required to select for high production rates as well as the lack of methods to specifically select for other cellular properties, usually prevents researchers from including such criteria into their screening program.With the Single Cell Secretion Assay it is possible to measure the specific production rates of individual cells by catching secreted product in an artificial matrix applied to the cell surface. Flow cytometric cell sorting then allows selection of rare cells with high production rates, which occur at frequencies as low as 10(-6). By combining this method with culture conditions that bring out a desired cellular property, we were able to isolate subclones with similar production rates, but improved performance from a recombinant Chinese hamster ovary cell line producing a human monoclonal antibody. The two desired cellular properties screened for were a non-growth associated production kinetic and improved stability in the absence of selective pressure.     

Polyphagy and primary host plants: oviposition preference versus larval performance in the lepidopteran pest Helicoverpa armigera

Oviposition preference and several measures of offspring performance of Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) were investigated on a subset of its host plants that were selected for their reputed importance in the field in Australia. They included cotton, pigeon pea, sweet corn, mungbean, bean and common sowthistle. Plants were at their flowering stage when presented to gravid female moths. Flowering pigeon pea evoked far more oviposition than did the other plant species and was the most preferred plant for neonate larval feeding. It also supported development of the most robust larvae and pupae, and these produced the most fecund moths. Common sowthistle and cotton were equally suitable to pigeon pea for larval development, but these two species received far fewer H. armigera eggs than did pigeon pea. Mungbean also received relatively few eggs, but it did support intermediate measures of larval growth and survival. Fewest eggs were laid on bean and it was also the least beneficial in terms of larval growth. Among the host plant species tested, only flowering pigeon pea supported a good relationship between oviposition preference of H. armigera and its subsequent offspring performance. Australian H. armigera moths are thus consistent with Indian H. armigera moths in their ovipositional behaviour and larval performance relative to pigeon pea. The results suggest that the host recognition and acceptance behaviour of this species is fixed across its geographical distribution and they support the theory that pigeon pea might be one of the primary host plants of this insect. These insights, together with published results on the sensory responses of the females to volatiles derived from the different host plant species tested here, help to explain why some plant species are primary targets for the ovipositing moths whereas others are only secondary targets of this polyphagous pest, which has a notoriously broad host range. Handling Editor: Joseph Dickens