Review of LCA datasets in three emerging economies: a summary of learnings

Purpose

In response to a need for interoperable LCA databases of adequate quality, a review of 40 datasets from emerging economies has been conducted with UNEP support by independent LCA experts, with the purpose to encourage improvements, either prior to publication or as part of a continuous improvement cycle. We discuss the lessons learned during this reviewing process.

Methods

The review effort had to be delivered in a set and limited timeline of 9 months and covered 20 datasets from Malaysia, ten from Brazil, and ten from Thailand. The developed review process consisted in, among others, (i) developing a set of review criteria for this specific effort, (ii) pairing a local sector reviewer with an international LCA expert to enhance capacity development, (iii) establishing a legal relationship via a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) between the data provider and the data reviewers, and (iv) providing a review report for each dataset that assesses the presence and magnitude of gaps or deficiencies relative to the criteria, as well as their implications for qualifying usage.

Results and discussion

The reviews provided solid recommendations for improvement to the majority of the datasets submitted by the three countries. This review exercise has been conducted in the given timeframe for the majority of the datasets. Many challenges have been faced along the way; among them agreeing on an NDA, the need for sufficient information, and the question of the confidentiality of the data. The developed set of criteria for this exercise have not been presented or discussed outside of the narrow review exercise and therefore can be seen as a starting point for further debates and improvements that should involve the broad LCA community.

Conclusions

This hands-on exercise provided some valuable insights into the road towards global consensus and guidance on data review. Beyond this time-constrained effort, a broader discussion and consensus at international level on the review of datasets and a continuous effort in reviewing datasets is desirable. Four key aspects were identified as necessary to consider: review criteria, review process, reviewers’ selection criteria, and development of a legal basis which protects the confidentiality of the data, as well as the position of the reviewers. This last aspect is sensitive as, in LCA datasets reviews, companies and/or countries might disclose some information with high stakes regarding competition and trade.

     

Melanization of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Fusarium keratoplasticum</Emphasis> (<Emphasis Type="Italic">F. solani</Emphasis> Species Complex) During Disseminated Fusariosis in a Patient with Acute Leukemia

Fusarium spp. are recognized as the second most frequently filamentous fungi causing opportunistic infections and particularly important due to the increasing number of immunocompromised patients. F. keratoplasticum (a member of F. solani species complex) is one of the Fusarium species commonly associated with human infection, and therefore, studies on the virulence of this fungus are needed. This study aimed to confirm the presence of melanin in F. keratoplasticum from a patient with systemic fusariosis. Immunofluorescence labeling with anti-melanin monoclonal antibody (MAb) was used to examine an expression of melanin in F. keratoplasticum in vitro and during infection. Electron spin resonance identified the particles extracted from F. keratoplasticum as stable free radical consistent with melanin. Lesional skin from the sites with fusariosis contained hyphal structures that could be labeled by melanin-binding MAb, while digestion of the tissue yielded dark particles that were reactive. These findings suggest that F. keratoplasticum hyphae and chlamydospores can produce melanin in vitro and that hyphae can synthesize pigment in vivo. Given the potential role of melanin in virulence of other fungi, this pigment in F. keratoplasticum may play a role in the pathogenesis of fusariosis.     

The pbrB Gene Encodes a Laccase Required for DHN-Melanin Synthesis in Conidia of Talaromyces (Penicillium) marneffei

Talaromyces marneffei (Basionym: Penicillium marneffei) is a significant opportunistic fungal pathogen in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus in Southeast Asia. T. marneffei cells have been shown to become melanized in vivo. Melanins are pigment biopolymers which act as a non-specific protectant against various stressors and which play an important role during virulence in fungi. The synthesis of the two most commonly found melanins in fungi, the eumelanin DOPA-melanin and the allomelanin DHN-melanin, requires the action of laccase enzymes. The T. marneffei genome encodes a number of laccases and this study describes the characterization of one of these, pbrB, during growth and development. A strain carrying a PbrB-GFP fusion shows that pbrB is expressed at high levels during asexual development (conidiation) but not in cells growing vegetatively. The pbrB gene is required for the synthesis of DHN-melanin in conidia and when deleted results in brown pigmented conidia, in contrast to the green conidia of the wild type.     

Utilization of agricultural biomass in the production of the biopolymer schizophyllan

Schizophyllan is a homoglucan produced by the fungus Schizophyllum commune, with a β-1,3-linked backbone and β-1,6-linked side chains of single glucose units at every other residue. Schizophyllan is commercially produced for pharmaceutical and cosmetics uses. However, the unique physical properties of schizophyllan suggest that it may have biomaterials applications. Schizophyllan is conventionally produced by submerged culture fermentation using glucose as a carbon source. This study demonstrates for the first time the efficient utilization of agricultural biomass substrates, particularly distiller’s dried grains with solubles, for schizophyllan production. Sugar composition analysis, NMR, and permethylation linkage analysis confirmed that the recovered product was schizophyllan. Schizophyllan produced from agricultural residues was of a high molecular weight and exhibited solution viscosity properties similar to those of commercially produced material. Utilization of biomass substrates could reduce the cost of schizophyllan production and provide a new value-added bioproduct for integrated biorefineries of the future.     

Clonality Despite Sex: The Evolution of Host-Associated Sexual Neighborhoods in the Pathogenic Fungus Penicillium marneffei

Molecular genetic approaches typically detect recombination in microbes regardless of assumed asexuality. However, genetic data have shown the AIDS-associated pathogen Penicillium marneffei to have extensive spatial genetic structure at local and regional scales, and although there has been some genetic evidence that a sexual cycle is possible, this haploid fungus is thought to be genetically, as well as morphologically, asexual in nature because of its highly clonal population structure. Here we use comparative genomics, experimental mixed-genotype infections, and population genetic data to elucidate the role of recombination in natural populations of P. marneffei. Genome wide comparisons reveal that all the genes required for meiosis are present in P. marneffei, mating type genes are arranged in a similar manner to that found in other heterothallic fungi, and there is evidence of a putatively meiosis-specific mutational process. Experiments suggest that recombination between isolates of compatible mating types may occur during mammal infection. Population genetic data from 34 isolates from bamboo rats in India, Thailand and Vietnam, and 273 isolates from humans in China, India, Thailand, and Vietnam show that recombination is most likely to occur across spatially and genetically limited distances in natural populations resulting in highly clonal population structure yet sexually reproducing populations. Predicted distributions of three different spatial genetic clusters within P. marneffei overlap with three different bamboo rat host distributions suggesting that recombination within hosts may act to maintain population barriers within P. marneffei.     

Antifungal Effects of Bacilysin and Fengymycin from Bacillus subtilis F-29-3 A Comparison with Activities of Other Bacillus Antibiotics

Of the two antifungal antibiotics produced by Bacillus subtilis F-29-3, the dipeptide compound bacilysin inhibits yeasts (and bacteria), whereas the formerly unknown fengymycin, a complex of closely related lipopeptide components, shows antibiotic activity against filamentous fungi. Bacilysin production, formerly known for a few strains only, could be demonstrated for all 12 wild-type cultures of Bacillus subtilis tested during this study. The antibiotic also occurs in some strains of three other Bacillus species considered as closely realted to B. subtilis. Members of the lipopeptide class of antifungal Bacillus metabolites were formed by 8 of 12 Bacillus subtilis-isolates and several other Bacillus strains. The antibiotics of F-29-3 were compared with antifungal metabolites of other Bacillus isolates using TLC, agar-diffusion techniques and tests demonstrating the capacity of six lipopeptide and peptide preparations to protect rice seedlings from phytomycosis due to Rhizoctonia solani. Fengymycin proved to be different from the other compounds tested. It was less toxic to the test plants and protected them better from Rhizoctonia disease than the other antibiotics of the study did.     

Effect of Fluorination on Lithium Transport and Short‐Range Order in Disordered‐Rocksalt‐Type Lithium‐Ion Battery Cathodes

Fluorine substitution is a critical enabler for improving the cycle life and energy density of disordered rocksalt (DRX) Li‐ion battery cathode materials which offer prospects for high energy density cathodes, without the reliance on limited mineral resources. Due to the strong Li–F interaction, fluorine also is expected to modify the short‐range cation order in these materials which is critical for Li‐ion transport. In this work, density functional theory and Monte Carlo simulations are combined to investigate the impact of Li–F short‐range ordering on the formation of Li percolation and diffusion in DRX materials. The modeling reveals that F substitution is always beneficial at sufficiently high concentrations and can, surprisingly, even facilitate percolation in compounds without Li excess, giving them the ability to incorporate more transition metal redox capacity and thereby higher energy density. It is found that for F levels below 15%, its effect can be beneficial or disadvantageous depending on the intrinsic short‐range order in the unfluorinated oxide, while for high fluorination levels the effects are always beneficial. Using extensive simulations, a map is also presented showing the trade‐off between transition‐metal capacity, Li‐transport, and synthetic accessibility, and two of the more extreme predictions are experimentally confirmed.     

Thai national life cycle inventory readiness for product environmental footprint

Purpose

In the near future, the products of Thai industries and companies mainly producing parts and products for export to the European Union (EU) will require the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) to assess the environmental performance and resource efficiency of products by using a life cycle perspective. The potential generic (often used interchangeably with background data) data have to be modified and improved for mandatory use in the product-specific and country-specific PEF database.

Methods

PEF is used as a tool for assessing the environmental burden of products and services for export to the EU. It requires both specific data from primary sources and generic data to fulfill assessment requirement. Accordingly, the Thai national life cycle inventory (LCI) database plays a key role in generic data that was used to evaluate the environmental performance of products. This paper presents the perspective of Thai data readiness for PEF in which the quality of LCI is the main issue of concern. The current situation of the Thai national LCI database was reviewed. Then, the gaps of data were addressed, and the gaps were also filled. Non-representative data and untreated waste are the selected issues that were presented in this paper.

Results and discussion

Many gaps were revealed for the Thai national LCI database because this database was developed based on ISO 14040/44, which may not be compliant with the PEF guide. The issues that have been selected for improvement are non-representative data and untreated waste because these gaps can offer inaccuracy concerning the environmental burden of products potentially leading to the reliability of products for export to the EU. However, the Thai national LCI database has not achieved the data quality aspects of the PEF, continuously improving the quality of data to meet the requirements of the PEF.

Conclusions

The lessons learned from the real-world situation of data quality development based on PEF requirements were extracted. The practical procedure and recommendations were transparent for drivers and researchers who would like to start with data quality issues and prepare for the EU single market.

     

Low effective dispersal of asexual genotypes in heterogeneous landscapes by the endemic pathogen Penicillium marneffei

Long-distance dispersal in microbial eukaryotes has been shown to result in the establishment of populations on continental and global scales. Such "ubiquitous dispersal" has been claimed to be a general feature of microbial eukaryotes, homogenising populations over large scales. However, the unprecedented sampling of opportunistic infectious pathogens created by the global AIDS pandemic has revealed that a number of important species exhibit geographic endemicity despite long-distance migration via aerially dispersed spores. One mechanism that might tend to drive such endemicity in the face of aerial dispersal is the evolution of niche-adapted genotypes when sexual reproduction is rare. Dispersal of such asexual physiological "species" will be restricted when natural habitats are heterogeneous, as a consequence of reduced adaptive variation. Using the HIV-associated endemic fungus Penicillium marneffei as our model, we measured the distribution of genetic variation over a variety of spatial scales in two host species, humans and bamboo rats. Our results show that, despite widespread aerial dispersal, isolates of P. marneffei show extensive spatial genetic structure in both host species at local and country-wide scales. We show that the evolution of the P. marneffei genome is overwhelmingly clonal, and that this is perhaps the most asexual fungus yet found. We show that clusters of genotypes are specific to discrete ecological zones and argue that asexuality has led to the evolution of niche-adapted genotypes, and is driving endemicity, by reducing this pathogen's potential to diversify in nature.