Preservation of vegetables by microbial activity and radiation

Two locally-produced seasonal vegetables, carrot and patol, were preserved in brine, with and without radiation, with marked changes in their properties as foods and their microbiology. The treated vegetables could be preserved, at optimum salt and irradiation levels, for up to 60 days without becoming unacceptable in terms of appearance, texture, flavour and taste. The optimum salt concentrations for preservation of carrot and patol were 2% (w/v) and 3% (w/v), respectively. The microbial load initially showed an upward trend and then declined after 5 to 10 days of storage. Lactic acid bacteria predominated in treated vegetables.     

Production kinetics of β-carotene from Planococcus sp. TRC1 with concomitant bioconversion of industrial solid waste into crystalline cellulose rich biomass

Cost effective bioprocessing of nutraceuticals in present global scenario is a matter of concern. This study explored Paper mill sludge (PMS) and sugarcane bagasse (SCB) as inexpensive substrate for Planococcus sp. TRC1 mediated valuable β-carotene production and residual treated biomass as value added crystalline cellulose source simultaneously. Both biomass supported significant bacterial growth reaching highest yield 38.54 ± 1.4 mg/g on PMS (36 h) and 47.13 ± 1.9 mg/g (48 h) on SCB in solid state fermentation. Luedeking-Piret model revealed growth associated production with α and much lower β values of 5.18 and 0.24 for PMS and 4.5 and 0.165 for SCB. Cost analysis exhibited decrementation of pigment cost/mg by 84 % compared to synthetic media. Optimum production conditions were 30 °C temperature, pH 7, 10 % inoculum and initial moisture content 80 % (PMS) and 85 % (SCB). TLC (R_f = 0.9), HPLC (RT = 7.646) and lambda max (465 nm) confirmed pigment’s β-carotene nature with significant antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. It showed stability at varied temperature, pH and light conditions along with negligible phytotoxicity on Vigna radiata. Planococcus sp. TRC1 delignified PMS (41 %) and SCB (38 %) and FT-IR, FESEM and XRD suggested crystalline nature of residual cellulose rich fraction shedding light on a biorefinery approach for valorization of industrial solid wastes.     

The role of peroxisomes in xylose alcoholic fermentation in the engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Xylose is a second‐most abounded sugar after glucose in lignocellulosic hydrolysates and should be efficiently fermented for economically viable second‐generation ethanol production. Despite significant progress in metabolic and evolutionary engineering, xylose fermentation rate of recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae remains lower than that for glucose. Our recent study demonstrated that peroxisome‐deficient cells of yeast Ogataea polymorpha showed a decrease in ethanol production from xylose. In this work, we have studied the role of peroxisomes in xylose alcoholic fermentation in the engineered xylose‐utilizing strain of S. cerevisiae. It was shown that peroxisome‐less pex3Δ mutant possessed 1.5‐fold decrease of ethanol production from xylose. We hypothesized that peroxisomal catalase Cta1 may have importance for hydrogen peroxide, the important component of reactive oxygen species, detoxification during xylose alcoholic fermentation. It was clearly shown that CTA1 deletion impaired ethanol production from xylose. It was found that enhancing the peroxisome population by modulation the peroxisomal biogenesis by overexpression of PEX34 activates xylose alcoholic fermentation.     

A Review of: “Progress in Separation and Purification Vol. 3, E. S. Perry and C. J,van Oss,eds., Willy/Intersciencc,New York, 1970; xi + 316 pares; hard cover; 515.95”

The optimal culture conditions of exopolysaccharides (EPS) production in submerged culture medium by Pleurotus geesteranus 5 ^# were determined using an orthogonal matrix method. The optimal defined medium (per liter) was 60.0 g maltose, 5.0 g tryptone, 1 mM NaCl, 5 mM KH₂PO₄, and initial pH 6.0 at 28 °C. In the optimal culture medium, the maximum EPS production was 16.97 g/L in a shake flask. Two groups of EPSs (designated as Fr-I and Fr-II) were obtained from the culture filtrates by size exclusion chromatography (SEC), and their molecular characteristics were examined by a multiangle laser-light scattering (MALLS) and refractive index (RI) detector system. The approximate weight-average molar masses of the Fr-I and Fr-II of EPS were determined to be 3.263 × 10⁴ and 5.738 × 10³ g/mol, respectively. The low values of polydispersity ratio (1.176 and 1.124 for Fr-I and Fr-II, respectively) of EPSs mean that these EPS molecules exist much less dispersed in aqueous solution without forming large aggregates. Furthermore, the experiments in vitro indicated that P. geesteranus 5^# EPS exhibit high antitumor and antioxidative effects.     

An improved Method for Isolation of Rat Testis Golgi Apparatus H. H. Mollenhauer

The preparation of Golgi apparatus fractions from rat testis germ cells free from contamination by residual body fragments was accomplished by the use of the Yeda press as the homogenization device. The Golgi apparatus thus prepared retained excellent stuctural intactness. This method also allows for isolation of Golgi apparatus from single cell suspensions.     

EVALUATION OF BIOETHANOL PRODUCTION FROM CAROB PODS BY Zymomonas mobilis AND Saccharomyces cerevisiae IN SOLID SUBMERGED FERMENTATION

Bioethanol production from carob pods has attracted many researchers due to its high sugar content. Both Zymomonas mobilis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae have been used previously for this purpose in submerged and solid-state fermentation. Since extraction of sugars from the carob pod particles is a costly process, solid-state and solid submerged fermentations, which do not require the sugar extraction step, may be economical processes for bioethanol production. The aim of this study is to evaluate the bioethanol production in solid submerged fermentation from carob pods. The maximum ethanol production of 0.42 g g^?1 initial sugar was obtained for Z. mobilis at 30°C, initial pH 5.3, and inoculum size of 5% v/v, 9 g carob powder per 50 mL of culture media, agitation rate 0 rpm, and fermentation time of 40 hr. The maximum ethanol production for S. cerevisiae was 0.40 g g^?1 initial sugar under the same condition. The results obtained in this research are comparable to those of Z. mobilis and S. cerevisiae performance in other culture mediums from various agricultural sources. Accordingly, solid submerged fermentation has a potential to be an economical process for bioethanol production from carob pods.     

EFFECT OF FERMENTATION PARAMETERS ON BIO-ALCOHOLS PRODUCTION FROM GLYCEROL USING IMMOBILIZED Clostridium pasteurianum: AN OPTIMIZATION STUDY

This article addresses the issue of effect of fermentation parameters for conversion of glycerol (in both pure and crude form) into three value-added products, namely, ethanol, butanol, and 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PDO), by immobilized Clostridium pasteurianum and thereby addresses the statistical optimization of this process. The analysis of effect of different process parameters such as agitation rate, fermentation temperature, medium pH, and initial glycerol concentration indicated that medium pH was the most critical factor for total alcohols production in case of pure glycerol as fermentation substrate. On the other hand, initial glycerol concentration was the most significant factor for fermentation with crude glycerol. An interesting observation was that the optimized set of fermentation parameters was found to be independent of the type of glycerol (either pure or crude) used. At optimum conditions of agitation rate (200 rpm), initial glycerol concentration (25 g/L), fermentation temperature (30°C), and medium pH (7.0), the total alcohols production was almost equal in anaerobic shake flasks and 2-L bioreactor. This essentially means that at optimum process parameters, the scale of operation does not affect the output of the process. The immobilized cells could be reused for multiple cycles for both pure and crude glycerol fermentation.     

A new two-phase kinetic model of sporulation of Clonostachys rosea in a new solid-state fermentation reactor

A new two-phase kinetic model of sporulation of Clonostachys rosea in a new solid-state fermentation (SSF) reactor was proposed. The model including exponential and logistic models was applied to study the simultaneous effect of temperature, initial moisture content, medium thickness and surface porosity of the plastic membrane on C. rosea sporulation. The model fits experimental data very well and allows accurate predictions of spore production. The maximum spore production achieved 3.360 × 10¹⁰ (spores/gDM), about 10 times greater than that in traditional SSF reactor(data not shown). The new reactor can provide two times sporulation surface area. Moisture content can be adjusted by changing the surface porosity to meet the spore production. Two mixings carried out during fermentation makes medium loose and results in a mass of new sporulation surface area. Therefore, the new SSF reactor would have great potential for application in bulk spore production of fungal biocontrol agents.