energetic characterization of pineapple crown leaves Braga, R. M; Queiroga, T. S; Calixto, G. Q ...
Environmental science and pollution research international,
12/2015, Letnik:
22, Številka:
23
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Energetic characterization of biomass allows for assessing its energy potential for application in different conversion processes into energy. The objective of this study is to physicochemically ...characterize pineapple crown leaves (PC) for their application in energy conversion processes. PC was characterized according to ASTM E871-82, E1755-01, and E873-82 for determination of moisture, ash, and volatile matter, respectively; the fixed carbon was calculated by difference. Higher heating value was determined by ASTM E711-87 and ash chemical composition was determined by XRF. The thermogravimetric and FTIR analyses were performed to evaluate the thermal decomposition and identify the main functional groups of biomass. PC has potential for application in thermochemical processes, showing high volatile matter (89.5 %), bulk density (420.8 kg/m³), and higher heating value (18.9 MJ/kg). The results show its energy potential justifying application of this agricultural waste into energy conversion processes, implementing sustainability in the production, and reducing the environmental liabilities caused by its disposal.
Due to the rise of multidrug-resistant infections in humans, phage therapy is gaining renewed attention in Western medicine. Despite the increasing number of publications focussed on the isolation, ...characterization and in vitro performance of different phages, there is still a lack of concise pre-clinical information to guide the application of phage therapy in clinical practice. Nevertheless, over the last decade, efforts have been made to conduct more detailed studies of the in vivo efficacy of phages. Here, we review the most relevant in vivo studies performed in the last decade covering phage efficacy in both preclinical and clinical trials. We compare different routes of administration, dosage effect and different animal models of distinct types of infections. Moreover, insights into case studies and results from clinical trials are presented. Challenges and limitations of phage use as evidenced by the current state of research are also discussed in order to improve both the trustworthiness and success of the implementation of phage therapy.
Bacteriophages are the most abundant and diverse entities in the biosphere, and this diversity is driven by constant predator-prey evolutionary dynamics and horizontal gene transfer. Phage genome ...sequences are under-sampled and therefore present an untapped and uncharacterized source of genetic diversity, typically characterized by highly mosaic genomes and no universal genes. To better understand the diversity and relationships among phages infecting human pathogens, we have analysed the complete genome sequences of 205 phages of Staphylococcus sp.
These are predicted to encode 20,579 proteins, which can be sorted into 2139 phamilies (phams) of related sequences; 745 of these are orphams and possess only a single gene. Based on shared gene content, these phages were grouped into four clusters (A, B, C and D), 27 subclusters (A1-A2, B1-B17, C1-C6 and D1-D2) and one singleton. However, the genomes have mosaic architectures and individual genes with common ancestors are positioned in distinct genomic contexts in different clusters. The staphylococcal Cluster B siphoviridae are predicted to be temperate, and the integration cassettes are often closely-linked to genes implicated in bacterial virulence determinants. There are four unusual endolysin organization strategies found in Staphylococcus phage genomes, with endolysins predicted to be encoded as single genes, two genes spliced, two genes adjacent and as a single gene with inter-lytic-domain secondary translational start site. Comparison of the endolysins reveals multi-domain modularity, with conservation of the SH3 cell wall binding domain.
This study provides a high-resolution view of staphylococcal viral genetic diversity, and insights into their gene flux patterns within and across different phage groups (cluster and subclusters) providing insights into their evolution.
Chronic wounds affect thousands of people worldwide, causing pain and discomfort to patients and represent significant economical burdens to health care systems. The treatment of chronic wounds is ...very difficult and complex, particularly when wounds are colonized by bacterial biofilms which are highly tolerant to antibiotics. Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis are within the most frequent bacteria present in chronic wounds. Bacteriophages (phages) have been proposed as an efficient and alternative against antibiotic-resistant infections, as those found in chronic wounds. We have isolated and characterized two novel enterococci phages, the siphovirus vB_EfaS-Zip (Zip) and the podovirus vB_EfaP-Max (Max) to be applied during wound treatment. Both phages demonstrated lytic behavior against E. faecalis and E. faecium. Genome analysis of both phages suggests the absence of genes associated with lysogeny. A phage cocktail containing both phages was tested against biofilms formed in wound simulated conditions at a multiplicity of infection of 1.0 and a 2.5 log CFU.mL
reduction in the bacterial load after at 3 h of treatment was observed. Phages were also tested in epithelial cells colonized by these bacterial species and a 3 log CFU.mL
reduction was observed using both phages. The high efficacy of these new isolated phages against multi-species biofilms, their stability at different temperatures and pH ranges, short latent periods and non-cytotoxicity to epithelial cells suggest their therapeutic use to control infectious biofilms present in chronic wounds.
Droughts are particularly critical for Brazil because of impacts on water supply and because most (70 %) of its electricity is derived from hydroelectric generation. The Paraná basin (PB), a major ...hydroelectric producing region with 32 % (60 million people) of Brazil's population, recently experienced the most severe drought since the 1960s, compromising the water supply for 11 million people in São Paulo. The objective of this study is to quantify linkages between meteorological and hydrological droughts based on remote sensing, modelling, and monitoring data using the Paraná River basin in south-eastern Brazil as a case study. Two major meteorological droughts were identified in the early 2000s and 2014, with precipitation 20–50 % below the long-term mean. Total water storage change estimated from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites declined by 150 km3 between April 2011 and April 2015. Simulated soil moisture storage declined during the droughts, resulting in decreased runoff into reservoirs. As a result, reservoir storage decreased by 30 % relative to the system's maximum capacity, with negative trends ranging from 17 (May 1997–April 2001) to 25 km3 yr−1 (May 2011–April 2015). Storage in upstream reservoirs is mostly controlled by natural climate forcing, whereas storage in downstream reservoirs also reflects dam operations. This study emphasizes the importance of integrating remote sensing, modelling, and monitoring data to evaluate droughts and to establish a preliminary understanding of the linkages between a meteorological and hydrological drought for future management.
Triple-negative breast cancer is the most aggressive subtype of invasive breast cancer with a poor prognosis and no approved targeted therapy. Hence, the identification of new and specific ligands is ...essential to develop novel targeted therapies. In this study, we aimed to identify new aptamers that bind to highly metastatic breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells using the cell-SELEX technology aided by high throughput sequencing. After 8 cycles of selection, the aptamer pool was sequenced and the 25 most frequent sequences were aligned for homology within their variable core region, plotted according to their free energy and the key nucleotides possibly involved in the target binding site were analyzed. Two aptamer candidates, Apt1 and Apt2, binding specifically to the target cells with Formula: see text values of 44.3 ± 13.3 nM and 17.7 ± 2.7 nM, respectively, were further validated. The binding analysis clearly showed their specificity to MDA-MB-231 cells and suggested the targeting of cell surface receptors. Additionally, Apt2 revealed no toxicity in vitro and showed potential translational application due to its affinity to breast cancer tissue sections. Overall, the results suggest that Apt2 is a promising candidate to be used in triple-negative breast cancer treatment and/or diagnosis.
Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) have emerged as major pathogens in healthcare-associated facilities, being
,
and, more recently,
, the most clinically relevant species. Despite being less ...virulent than the well-studied pathogen
, the number of CoNS strains sequenced is constantly increasing and, with that, the number of virulence factors identified in those strains. In this regard, biofilm formation is considered the most important. Besides virulence factors, the presence of several antibiotic-resistance genes identified in CoNS is worrisome and makes treatment very challenging. In this review, we analyzed the different aspects involved in CoNS virulence and their impact on health and food.
Bloodstream infections (BSIs) are considered a major cause of death worldwide. Staphylococcus spp. are one of the most BSIs prevalent bacteria, classified as high priority due to the increasing ...multidrug resistant strains. Thus, a fast, specific and sensitive method for detection of these pathogens is of extreme importance. In this study, we have designed a novel assay for detection of Staphylococcus in blood culture samples, which combines the advantages of a phage endolysin cell wall binding domain (CBD) as a specific probe with the accuracy and high-throughput of flow cytometry techniques. In order to select the biorecognition molecule, three different truncations of the C-terminus of Staphylococcus phage endolysin E-LM12, namely the amidase (AMI), SH3 and amidase+SH3 (AMI_SH3) were cloned fused with a green fluorescent protein. From these, a higher binding efficiency to Staphylococcus cells was observed for AMI_SH3, indicating that the amidase domain possibly contributes to a more efficient binding of the SH3 domain. The novel phage endolysin-based flow cytometry assay provided highly reliable and specific detection of 1-5 CFU of Staphylococcus in 10 mL of spiked blood, after 16 hours of enrichment culture. Overall, the method developed herein presents advantages over the standard BSIs diagnostic methods, potentially contributing to an early and effective treatment of BSIs.
An acrylonitrile/dimethylacrylamide cross-linked polymer could be swollen in different imidazolium ionic liquids. Mechanical compression of the obtained polymer gels inside an NMR tube allowed the ...measurement of residual dipolar couplings. Conformational analysis of the 1-methyl-3-butyl-imidazolium (BMIM) cation could be performed by including the measured RDCs as restraints in time-averaged molecular dynamics.
Swelling of an acrylonitrile/
N-N
-dimethylacrylamide copolymer in ionic liquids provides residual dipolar couplings which are applied to conformational analysis of the bulk ionic liquid.
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