Liposomal Delivery Systems for Encapsulation of Ferrous Sulfate: Preparation and Characterization

Liposomal delivery systems for water-soluble bioactives were prepared using the pro-liposome and the microfluidization technologies. Iron, an essential micronutrient as ferrous sulfate and ascorbic acid, as an antioxidant for iron were encapsulated in the liposomes. Liposomes prepared by the microfluidization technology using 6% (w/w) concentration of the lipid encapsulated with ferrous sulfate and ascorbic acid had particle size distributions around 150 to 200 nm, whereas liposomes from the pro-liposome technology resulted in particle sizes of about 5 μm. The encapsulation efficiency of ferrous sulfate was 58% for the liposomes prepared by the microfluidization using 6% (w/w) lipid and 7.5% of ferrous sulfate concentrations, and it was 11% for the liposomes from pro-liposome technology using 1.5% (w/v) lipid and 15% of ferrous-sulfate concentration. Both the liposomes exhibited similar levels of oxidative stability, demonstrating the feasibility of microfluidization-based liposomal delivery systems for large-scale food/nutraceutical applications.     

Wastewater Treatment in a Packed-Bed Reactor with Immobilized Cells onto a New Ceramic Carrier

A new porous ceramic carrier based on casting sand, sawdust and zeolite was used to immobilize microorganisms for continuous wastewater treatment in a packed-bed bioreactor. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the ceramic carrier has a high porosity with diameters of around 5~300µm. Immobilization capacity of the carrier was 62 mg/ g dry carrier, in terms of mixed liquor volatile suspended solids. When synthetic wastewater (chemical oxygen demand 250 mg/l) as a model feed solution and 30 mg kaolin/l as a suspended solid (SS) were used, the removal efficiency as measured by the total organic carbon and SS were 91% and 71%, respectively, at a hydraulic retention time of 3 h.     

Fast Kinetics of Fe2+ Oxidation in Packed-Bed Reactors

Thiobacillus ferrooxidans was used in fixed-film bioreactors to oxidize ferrous sulfate to ferric sulfate. Glass beads, ion-exchange resin, and activated-carbon particles were tested as support matrix materials. Activated carbon was tested in both a packed-bed bioreactor and a fluidized-bed bioreactor; the other matrix materials were used in packed-bed reactors. Activated carbon displayed the most suitable characteristics for use as a support matrix of T. ferrooxidans fixed-film formation. The reactors were operated within a pH range of 1.35 to 1.5, which effectively reduced the amount of ferric iron precipitation and eliminated diffusion control of mass transfer due to precipitation. The activated-carbon packed-bed reactor displayed the most favorable biomass holdup and kinetic performance related to ferrous sulfate oxidation. The fastest kinetic performance achieved with the activated-carbon packed-bed bioreactor was 78 g of Fe²⁺ oxidized per liter per h (1,400 mmol of Fe²⁺ oxidized per liter per h) at a true dilution rate of 40/h, which represents a hydraulic retention time of 1.5 min.     

氧化亚铁硫杆菌亚铁氧化系统的研究进展

氧化亚铁硫杆菌(Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans)为无机化能自养菌,革兰氏阴性,能在极端酸性环境中生长.由于在生物冶金中的应用及特殊的生理学效应,该菌受到研究者的广泛关注.A.ferrooxidans能氧化亚铁、元素硫及还原态硫化物获得电子,并通过一系列电子载体将电子传递给氧生成水,同时释放能量供生命活动需要.目前对A.ferrooxidans电子传递系统的研究主要集中于亚铁氧化电子传递系统,已发现多种与亚铁氧化电子传递相关电子载体和操纵子,如电子载体铜蓝蛋白(Rustocyanin,Rus)、细胞色素C(Cytochrome C,Cyc)、细胞色素C氧化酶(Cytochrome Coxidase,Cox)、亚铁氧化酶(Iro)、细胞色素bc1复合物(cytochrome bc1 complex,bc1)等,以及rus操纵子和pet操纵子.综述了近年来有关A.ferrooxidans 亚铁氧化电子传递链相关蛋白载体,rus和pet操纵子结构与功能及表达调控等方面的研究进展.     

Ferrous Iron Oxidation by Thiobacillus ferrooxidans: Inhibition with Benzoic Acid, Sorbic Acid, and Sodium Lauryl Sulfate

Benzoic acid, sorbic acid, and sodium lauryl sulfate at low concentrations (5 to 10 mg/liter) each effectively inhibited bacterial oxidation of ferrous iron in batch cultures of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans. The rate of chemical oxidation of ferrous iron in low-pH, sterile batch reactors was not substantially affected at the tested concentrations (5 to 50 mg/liter) of any of the compounds.     

Anaerobic Methane Oxidation and Sulfate Reduction in Bacterial Mats on Coral-Like Carbonate Structures in the Black Sea

A detailed study of the processes of anaerobic methane oxidation and sulfate reduction in the bacterial mats occurring on coral-like carbonate structures in the region of methane seeps in the Black Sea, as well as of the phenotypic diversity of sulfate-reducing bacteria developing in this zone, has been performed. The use of the radioisotopic method shows the microbial mat structure to be heterogeneous. The peak activity of the two processes was revealed when a mixture of the upper (dark) and underlying (intensely pink) layers was introduced into an incubation flask, which confirms the suggestion that methanotrophic archaea and sulfate-reducing bacteria closely interact in the process of anaerobic methane oxidation. Direct correlation between the rate of anaerobic methane oxidation and the methane and electron acceptor concentrations in the medium has been experimentally demonstrated. Several enrichment and two pure cultures of sulfate-reducing bacteria have been obtained from the near-bottom water and bacterial mats. Both strains were found to completely oxidize the substrates to CO₂ and H₂S. The bacteria grow at temperatures ranging from −1 to 18 (24)°C, with an optimum in the 10–18°C range, and require the presence of 1.5–2.5% NaCl and 0.07–0.2% MgCl 2⋅6H₂O. Regarding the aggregate of their phenotypic characteristics (cell morphology, spectrum of growth substrates, the capacity for complete oxidation), the microorganisms isolated have no analogues among the psychrophilic sulfate-reducing bacteria already described. The results obtained demonstrate the wide distribution of psychrophilic sulfate-reducing bacteria in the near-bottom water and bacterial mats covering the coral-like carbonate structures occurring in the region of methane seeps in the Black Sea, as well as the considerable catabolic potential of this physiological group of psychrophilic anaerobes in deep-sea habitats__________Translated from Mikrobiologiya, Vol. 74, No. 3, 2005, pp. 420–429.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Pimenov, Ivanova.     

Biodegradation of Malathion with Indigenous Acclimated Activated Sludge in Batch Mode and in Continuous-Flow Packed-Bed Reactor

Acclimated activated sludge was examined for its ability to degrade malathion with and without the presence of glucose as a potential cometabolite substrate. In this study, a packed-bed reactor (PBR) using three kinds of biofilm carriers was employed for efficient degradation of malathion. The results obtained indicate that microorganisms tested were able to degrade malathion. The observed degradation rate of the pesticide in the presence of glucose was the same as without glucose. The activated sludge was found to be able to use malathion as the sole phosphorus source. In contrast, the degradation ability of the activated sludge was lost when the pesticide was used as the sole source of sulfur. The degradation capacity of the PBR was higher than the performance obtained with the batch reactor. The reactor packed with crushed olive kernels exhibited the best performance, allowing a total removal of malathion (10 mg/dm³) within 12 h.     

Microbiological Oxidation of Ferrous Iron at Low Temperatures

Acidophilic iron-oxidizing bacteria were enriched from mine water samples with ferrous sulfate as the substrate at incubation temperatures in the range of 4 to 46°C. After several subcultures at each test temperature except 46°C, which was prohibitive to growth, the rates of iron oxidation were determined in batch cultures. The results yielded linear rates in a semilogarithmic scale. The rate constants of iron oxidation by growing cultures were fitted into the Arrhenius equation, which displayed linearity in the 4 to 28°C range and yielded an activation energy value of 83 ± 3 kJ/mol.     

Products Formed by Photosensitized Oxidation of Tocopherols

Two isomers of primary products formed by méthylene blue sensitized photooxidation of δ-tocopherol were separated by thin layer chromatography. The products were characterized by UV, IR and NMR spectra and were identified to be 8aS- and 8aR-hydroperoxy δ-tocopheryl dienones, respectively. On decomposition of the photooxidized α-, γ- and δ-tocopherols, to-copheryl quinone and tocopheryl quinone epoxide were formed. The effect of hydroperoxy 5-tocopheryl dienone on methyl linoleate peroxidation was examined. The hydroperoxy dienone formed by the photooxidation of tocopherols did not accelerate lipid peroxidation.     

Structure and Dynamics of Anaerobic Bacterial Aggregates in a Gas-Lift Reactor

Anaerobic mixed-culture aggregates, which converted glucose to acetic, propionic, butyric, and valeric acids, were formed under controlled conditions of substrate feed (carbon limitation) and hydraulic regimen. The continuous-flow system used (anaerobic gas-lift reactor) was designed to retain bacterial aggregates in a well-mixed reactor. Carrier availability (i.e., liquid-suspended sand grains) proved necessary for bacterial aggregate formation from individual cells during reactor start-up. Electron microscopic examination revealed that incipient colonization of sand grains by bacteria from the bulk liquid occurred in surface irregularities, conceivably reflecting local quiescence. Subsequent confluent biofilm formation on sand grains proved to be unstable, however. Substrate depletion in the bulk liquid is assumed to weaken deeper parts of the biofilm due to cellular lysis, after which production of gas bubbles and liquid shearing forces cause sloughing. The resulting fragments, although sand free, were nevertheless large enough to be retained in the reactor and gradually grew larger through bacterial growth and by clumping together with other fragments. In the final steady state, high cell densities were maintained in the form of aggregates, while sand had virtually disappeared due to sampling losses and wash-out. Numerical cell densities within aggregates ranged from 10¹²/ml at the periphery to very low values in the center. The cells were enmeshed in a polymer matrix containing polysaccharides; nevertheless, carbon sufficiency was not a prerequisite to sustain high hold-up ratios.     

Structural and Functional Characterization of Bacterial Biofilms Formed on Phragmites australis (Cav.) in the Rybinsk Reservoir

Microbiology - The article presents long-term data of abundance and biomass of bacterial biofilms forming on Phragmites australis (Cav.), one of widespread species of the Rybinsk Reservoir higher...     

Mechanism of Bacterial Pyrite Oxidation

The oxidation by Ferrobacillus ferrooxidans of untreated pyrite (FeS(2)) as well as HCl-pretreated pyrite (from which most of the acid-soluble iron species were removed) was studied manometrically. Oxygen uptake was linear during bacterial oxidation of untreated pyrite, whereas with HCl-pretreated pyrite both a decrease in oxygen uptake at 2 hr and nonlinear oxygen consumption were observed. Ferric sulfate added to HCl-pretreated pyrite restored approximately two-thirds of the decrease in total bacterial oxygen uptake and caused oxygen uptake to revert to nearly linear kinetics. Ferric sulfate also oxidized pyrite in the absence of bacteria and O(2); recovery of ferric and ferrous ions was in excellent agreement with the reaction Fe(2)(SO(4))(3) + FeS(2) = 3FeSO(4) + 2S, but the elemental sulfur produced was negligible. Neither H(2)S nor S(2)O(3) (2-) was a product of the reaction. It is probable that two mechanisms of bacterial pyrite oxidation operate concurrently: the direct contact mechanism which requires physical contact between bacteria and pyrite particles for biological pyrite oxidation, and the indirect contact mechanism according to which the bacteria oxidize ferrous ions to the ferric state, thereby regenerating the ferric ions required for chemical oxidation of pyrite.     

Mechanism of Ferrous Iron Binding and Oxidation by Ferritin from a Pennate Diatom

A novel ferritin was recently found in Pseudo-nitzschia multiseries (PmFTN), a marine pennate diatom that plays a major role in global primary production and carbon sequestration into the deep ocean. Crystals of recombinant PmFTN were soaked in iron and zinc solutions, and the structures were solved to 1.65–2.2-Å resolution. Three distinct iron binding sites were identified as determined from anomalous dispersion data from aerobically grown ferrous soaked crystals. Sites A and B comprise the conserved ferroxidase active site, and site C forms a pathway leading toward the central cavity where iron storage occurs. In contrast, crystal structures derived from anaerobically grown and ferrous soaked crystals revealed only one ferrous iron in the active site occupying site A. In the presence of dioxygen, zinc is observed bound to all three sites. Iron oxidation experiments using stopped-flow absorbance spectroscopy revealed an extremely rapid phase corresponding to Fe(II) oxidation at the ferroxidase site, which is saturated after adding 48 ferrous iron to apo-PmFTN (two ferrous iron per subunit), and a much slower phase due to iron core formation. These results suggest an ordered stepwise binding of ferrous iron and dioxygen to the ferroxidase site in preparation for catalysis and a partial mobilization of iron from the site following oxidation.     

Oxidation of Manganous and Ferrous Metalloporphyrins by Dioxygen in Aqueous Solutions

The stoichiometry and rate of oxidation with dioxygen of tetra-(p-sulfonatophenyl)-porphinatomanganese(II) and the bisimidazole tetra(p-sulfonatophenyl)porphinato-iron(II) were studied in aqueous solutions at neutral pH. The stoichiometry for both complexes was determined; two molecules of metalloporphyrin reacted with dioxygen to produce the +3 oxidation state of the metalloporphyrins and hydrogen peroxide. The rate law for the oxidation of Mn(II)-TPPS is rate = k′[Mn(II)-TPPS][O₂], with k′ at 26.5° of 2.6 × 10⁵ M^?1 sec^?1. The rate law for the oxidation of Fe(II)-TPPS in the presence of imidazole is

with k″ = 10,100 sec^?1. Some possible mechanisms consistent with these data are discussed.     

Changes in Bacterial Communities Accompanied by Aggregation in a Fed-Batch Composting Reactor

The contents of fed-batch composting (FBC) reactors often aggregate after prolonged operation. This process leads to irreversible breakdown of the decomposition reaction and possible alteration of the bacterial communities. We compared the structures of bacterial communities in reactors under aggregate and optimal conditions. The results of 16S rRNA gene clone analysis showed that populations of the family Bacillaceae (such as Bacillus spp., Cerasibacillus spp., Gracilibacillus spp.), which dominate (98%) under optimal condition, were significantly decreased under aggregate condition. In contrast, populations of the family Staphylococcaceae considerably increased after aggregation and accounted for 53% of the total. Phylogenetic analysis also showed that anaerobes or facultative anaerobes related to Tetragenococcus halophilus, Atopostipes suicloacalis, Jeotgalicoccus pinnipedialis, and Staphylococcus spp. were dominant in the aggregates. These results suggested that aerobic Gram-positive bacteria mainly contributed to organic degradation and that aggregation created some anaerobic environment, which promoted the growth of bacterial communities usually not found in well-functioning FBC reactors.     

Bacterial Oxidation of Molybdenum in Ore Deposits

Some microorganisms can use reduced compounds of molybdenum as energy sources for autotrophic growth. A culture of molybdenum‐oxidizing bacteria was obtained by enrichment in a mineral‐salts medium by using samples of oxidized molybdenum ore from a molybdenum deposit as inoculum. In laboratory experiments, powellite (CaMoO₄) was obtained. The role of microorganisms in the geochemistry of molybdenum is discussed.