Optimizing the medium components in bioemulsifiers production by Candida lipolytica with response surface method

A response surface methodology was used to study bioemulsifier production by Candida lipolytica. A 2(4) full experimental design was previously carried out to investigate the effects and interactions of the concentrations of corn oil, urea, ammonium sulfate, and potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate on the emulsification activity (EA) of the bioemulsifier produced by C. lipolytica. The best EA value (3.727 units of emulsification activity (UEA)) was obtained with a medium composed of 0.4 g of urea, 1.1 g of ammonium sulfate, 2.04 g of potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate, 5 mL of corn oil, 50 mL of distilled water, and 50 mL of seawater. A curvature check was performed and revealed a lack of fit of the linear approximation. The proximity of the optimum point was evident, as was the need for quadratic model and second-order designs that incorporate the effect of the curvature. Medium constituents were then optimized for the EA using a three-factor central composite design and response surface methodology. The second-order model showed statistical significance and predictive ability. It was found that the maximum EA produced was 4.415 UEA, and the optimum levels of urea, ammonium sulfate, and potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate were, respectively, 0.544% (m/v), 2.131% (m/v), and 2.628% (m/v).     

Decolorization of reactive azo dyes by Cunninghamella elegans UCP 542 under co-metabolic conditions

The inappropriate disposal of dyes in wastewater constitutes an environmental problem and can cause damage to the ecosystem. Alternative treatments have been reported that fungi are particularly effective in the decolorization of textile effluents. The decolorization of dyes with different molecular structures by Cunninghamella elegans was evaluated under several media conditions. The decolorization procedures consisted of adding 72 h of mycelium into the culture medium containing either orange or reactive black or reactive red or a mixture of these dyes in the presence or absence of sucrose and/or peptone. The decolorization profile was highly dependent upon the incubation time, the molecular structure of the dye and presence or absence of co-substrates. The presence of sucrose or both sucrose and peptone significantly increased the decolorization of the solutions, however, the presence of only the nitrogen source suppressed it. The ultraviolet spectra of the solutions before and after decolorization suggested the occurrence of biodegradation in addition to the biosorption of the dyes. All tested dyes, except for the reactive black, caused inhibition of respiration of Escherichia coli, which suggested that toxic metabolites were produced.     

A factorial design analysis of chitin production by Cunninghamella elegans

Chitin production by Cunninghamella elegans (IFM 46109) was studied with a two-level full factorial design, varying time of cultivation and the concentration of D-glucose, L-asparagine, and thiamine in the culture medium. The material extracted was characterized by infrared and NMR spectroscopy. The highest chitin yield, 28.8%, was comparable with the highest in the literature and was obtained with a medium containing 60 g.L-1 of glucose, 3 g.L-1 of asparagine, and 0.008 mg.L-1 of thiamine. Increasing the time of cultivation from 24 h to 72 h did not affect chitin production. The three factors showed significant positive effects on chitin production, without interactions between them.     

Biochemical markers in taxonomy of the genus Cunninghamella

The chemical composition of fatty acids and ubiquinones was studied in 18 strains of Cunninghamella, to establish quantitative and qualitative differences within the genus. Fatty acids analysis has shown the presence of four groups. Ubiquinone analysis, through high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), demonstrated the existence of three different groups based on the ubiquinone type. The average percentage of fatty acids of the species Cunninghamella elegans and Cunninghamella bertholletiae, show variations in linolenic and stearic acids, suggesting the possibility of differentiation between the two species.     

Oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT) by Serratia marcescens UCP 1549 formed biphenyl as final product

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The desulphurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT), a recalcitrant thiophenic fossil fuel component by Serratia marcescens (UCP 1549) in order for reducing the sulphur content was investigated. The study was carried out establishing the growth profile using Luria Bertani medium to different concentrations of DBT during 120hours at 28oC, and orbital shaker at 150rpm. RESULTS: The results indicated that concentrations of DBT 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 mM do not affected the growth of the bacterium. The DBT showed similar Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MCB) (3.68 mM). The desulphurization of DBT by S. marcescens was used with 96 hours of growth on 2mM of DBT, and was determined by gas chromatography (GC) and GC-mass spectrometry. In order to study the desulphurization process by S. marcescens was observed the presence of a sulfur-free product at 16 hours of cultivation The results show that S. marcescens oxidizes DBT to its corresponding DBT-5 oxide and then to DBT-sulfone, without the formation of any biphenyl. CONCLUSIONS: The data suggests the use of metabolic pathway "4S" by S. marcescens (UCP 1549) and formed biphenyl. The microbial desulphurization process by S. Serratia can be suggest significant reducing sulphur content in DBT, and showed promising potential for reduction of the sulfur content in diesel oil.     

Ubiquinone systems of the genus Cladosporium and morphologically similar taxa

Abstract We measured adenosine deaminase (ADA) activity in a guinea pig model of Legionella pneumophila infection. Female Hartley guinea pigs were inoculated intraperitoneally with one-quarter of the LD₅₀ dose of L. pneumophila Philadelphia-1 strain. Control groups were inoculated with clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae or Klebsiella pneumoniae . Each group consisted of 5 animals. ADA activity in plasma was assayed calorimetrically before and at various intervals after infection by measuring the amount of ammonia produced after adnosine was added to plasma samples. ADA activity before inoculation was 25.6±6.0 IU/1, it reached 174.4±60.0 IU/1 on day 3 after inoculation of L. pneumophila . ADA activity returned to normal levels on day 14. ADA activity did not increase significantly in guinea pigs infected with the other types of bacteria. These findings suggest that measurement of plasma ADA activity may be useful for the diagnosis of Legionella infection.     

On-line biomass estimation in biosurfactant production process by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Candida lipolytica</Emphasis> UCP 988

Biomass is an important variable in biosurfactant production process. However, such bioprocess variable, usually, is collected by sampling and determined by off-line analysis, with significant time delay. Therefore, simple and reliable on-line biomass estimation procedures are highly desirable. An artificial neural network model (ANN) is presented for the on-line estimation of biomass concentration, in biosurfactant production by Candida lipolytica UCP 988, as a nonlinear function of pH and dissolved oxygen. Several configurations were evaluated while developing the optimal ANN model. The optimal ANN model consists of one hidden layer with four neurons. The performance of the ANN was checked using experimental data. The results obtained indicate a very good predictive capacity for the ANN-based software sensor with values of R2 of 0.969 and RMSE of 0.021 for biomass concentration. Estimated biomass using the ANN was proved to be a simple, robust and accurate method.     

Experimental design for the production of tensio-active agent by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Candida lipolytica</Emphasis>

The strategy of optimization using sequential factorial design was employed to enhance the tensio-active emulsifying agent produced by Candida lipolytica using soybean oil refinery residue as substrate. A full factorial design was used to evaluate the impact of three fermentation factors—amounts of refinery residue, glutamic acid and yeast extract. This allowed exclusion of the yeast extract. Full factorials designs were then sequentially used to optimize the levels of the residue and glutamic acid. The surface tension value was finally reduced to 25.29 mN/m. The maximum emulsifier activity using different substrates was within 40 h of cultivation. The surface tension of the cell-free broth containing the biosurfactant remained very stable during exposure to a wide range of pH (2–12), temperatures (0–120°C) and salinity (2–10% NaCl). The combination of an industrial waste and a cheap substrate therefore seems to be very promising for the low-cost production of potent biosurfactant.     

Physical and rheological characterisation of polyethylene glycol-cashew-nut tree gum aqueous two-phase systems

The characterisation of the polyethylene glycol-cashew-nut tree gum aqueous two-phase system is described. Factors which affect the phase diagram including polymer molecular mass, pH and temperature were analysed. The physico-chemical properties of the system such as density, viscosity, volume ratio and phase separation times were also described. The characteristics of the system studied indicate it to be very attractive as a separation technique.     

Chitosan from Syncephalastrum racemosum used as a film support for lipase immobilization

Chitosan from a native Mucoralean strain, Syncephalastrum racemosum, isolated from herbivorous dung (Northeast-Brazil), was used as a film support for lipase immobilization. S. racemosum showed highest chitosan yield (152 mg g dry mycelia weight(-1); 15.2% of dry mycelia weight) among the nine strains screened, which presented 89% D-glucosamine. A chitosan film was used for lipase (EC 3.1.1.3) immobilization using glutaraldehyde as a bifunctional agent. The immobilized lipase retained 47% (12.6 micromol s(-1) m(-2)) of its initial catalytic activity after four cycles of reaction. This result is comparable (same order of magnitude) to that of the enzyme immobilized on film made from commercially available crustacean chitosan.