Search results for "microbial"
showing 10 items of 2041 documents
Clean and Sustainable Biodiesel Production
2015
To date, the majority of world's primary energy is derived from fossil fuels. However, the fossil fuel recourses are in an inevitable decline as energy demand continues to grow exponentially with population growth, urbanization, and improved standards of living. Crude oil prices have recently risen several times and their current annual volatility exceeds 30%. The potential scarcity of fossil fuels has prompted a global search for alternative energy resources. Biodiesel fulfills the major requirements for production of alternative fuels such as feedstock availability, technical feasibility, and economic competitiveness. Together with other renewable biofuels, the use of biodiesel as a subst…
Biological control of Listeria monocytogenes in soil model systems by Enterococcus mundtii strains expressing mundticin KS production
2022
Abstract The agricultural practices applied in pre-harvest greatly influence the presence and the levels of microorganisms in fresh produce. Among these, Listeria monocytogenes represents one of the most lethal foodborne pathogens associated with vegetables. The main hypothesis of this work is that bacteriocin producer Enterococcus mundtii strains can be effective against L. monocytogenes in soil. To this purpose, bacteriocin production by E. mundtii WFE3, WFE20 and WFE31, three strains showing a strong bacteriocin activity in terms of inhibitory power and inhibition spectra, was evaluated in sterile extracts from agricultural soil and peat moss, in organic nutrient solution (ONS) and miner…
Avidin Is a Promising Tag for Fusion Proteins Produced in Baculovirus-Infected Insect Cells
1999
The baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) has become one of the most versatile and powerful eukaryotic systems for recombinant protein expression. We have constructed a novel baculovirus transfer vector (pbacAVs+C) which allows for the efficient production, detection, and single-step purification of the desired molecule as a secretion-compatible avidin fusion protein in insect cells. It also enables fast construction of the baculoviruses by site-specific transposition in Escherichia coli. To demonstrate the power of this vector, we report here on the production of immunologically intact hevein, a major cysteine-rich latex allergen, as avidin fusion protein. Our results indicate that a…
The microbiology of Lascaux Cave.
2010
Lascaux Cave (Montignac, France) contains paintings from the Upper Paleolithic period. Shortly after its discovery in 1940, the cave was seriously disturbed by major destructive interventions. In 1963, the cave was closed due to algal growth on the walls. In 2001, the ceiling, walls and sediments were colonized by the fungus Fusarium solani. Later, black stains, probably of fungal origin, appeared on the walls. Biocide treatments, including quaternary ammonium derivatives, were extensively applied for a few years, and have been in use again since January 2008. The microbial communities in Lascaux Cave were shown to be composed of human-pathogenic bacteria and entomopathogenic fungi, the for…
A comparative study on the quality of air in offices and homes.
2013
The main purpose of this study was to collect data on some of the factors that contribute to indoor air quality and to discomfort, in order to take the proper actions that can reduce the level of air pollution within houses and offices. To ascertain the contamination degree total bacterial counts, total fungal counts, suspended particulate matter, air temperature, and relative humidity have been determined. Additionally, mathematical statistical models have been elaborated for the total bacterial count, respirable particulate matter and humidity. A total number of 40 indoor air samples were collected from office and houses. The results shows that approximately 45% of the air samples from ho…
A modification to the Activated Sludge Model No. 2 based on the competition between phosphorus-accumulating organisms and glycogen-accumulating organ…
2001
A modification to the ASM2 is proposed which permits representation of the competition between phosphorus accumulating organisms (PAOs) and glycogen accumulating organisms (GAOs) in a nutrient removal activated sludge system. Some important aspects, which are not considered in ASM2, are discussed. The proposed modification includes denitrification by PAOs, PAO glycogen storage capability and GAO metabolism model. It is shown that the proposed modification is capable of describing pilot plant data using a single set of stoichiometric and kinetic parameters over three different sludge ages (16, 14 and 12 days). The modified ASM2 may be applicable to a wide range of situations where PAOs and G…
Contribution of bacterial biodiversity on the operational performance of a styrene biotrickling filter.
2020
Abstract Long-term operational stability of biotrickling filters (BTFs) degrading volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is dependent on both physicochemical as well as biological properties. Effects of increasingly stressful levels of air pollutants on the microbial structure of biofilms within BTFs are not well understood, especially for VOCs such as styrene. To investigate the relationship between biofilm biodiversity and operational stability, the temporal dynamics of a biofilm from a biotrickling filter subjected to stepwise increasing levels of air polluted with styrene was investigated using 16S rDNA pyrosequencing and PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). As styrene con…
Soil biogeochemistry and microbial community dynamics in Pinus pinaster Ait. forests subjected to increased fire frequency.
2022
Fire frequency might increase in many fire-dominated ecosystems of the world due to the combined effects of global warming, land-use change and increased human pressures. Understanding how changes in fire frequency can affect the main soil biogeochemical dynamics, as well as the microbial community, in the long term is utmost important. Here we determined the effect of changes in fire frequency and other fire history characteristics on soil C and N dynamics and the main microbial groups (using soil fatty acid profiles), in Pinus pinaster forests from central Spain. Stands were chosen to differ in the number of fires (1 to 3) occurred between 1976 and 2018, in the time elapsed since the last…
Aerobic granular sludge treating anaerobically pretreated brewery wastewater at different loading rates.
2020
Abstract In this study, three different aerobic granular sludge (AGS) reactors fed with anaerobically pre-treated brewery wastewater were studied. The AGS reactors were operated under different conditions including organic loading rates (OLR) between 0.8 and 4.1 kg COD m−3 d−1, C:N:P ratios (100:10:1 and 100:6:1) and food to microorganism ratios (F/M) between 0.8 ± 0.6 and 1.2 ± 0.5 and 0.9 ± 0.3 kg-TCOD kg-VSS−1d−1. Stable granulation was achieved within two weeks and the size of the granules increased according to the OLR applied. The results indicated that low C:N:P and F/M ratios were favorable to achieve stable aerobic granules in the long term. The carbon removal rate was load-indepen…
Previous fire occurrence, but not fire recurrence, modulates the effect of charcoal and ash on soil C and N dynamics in Pinus pinaster Aiton forests.
2021
Abstract Understanding the effects of fire history on soil processes is key to characterise their resistance and resilience under future fire events. Wildfires produce pyrogenic carbonaceous material (PCM) that is incorporated into the soil, playing a critical role in the global carbon (C) cycle, but its interactions with soil processes are poorly understood. We evaluated if the previous occurrence of wildfires modulates the dynamic of soil C and nitrogen (N) and microbial community by soil ester linked fatty acids, after a new simulated low-medium intensity fire. Soils with a different fire history (none, one, two or three fires) were heat-shocked and amended with charcoal and/or ash deriv…