Biomass Concentration Research Articles

Exploring Aspergillus biomass for fast and effective Direct Black 22-dye removal

Azo dyes are widely used in the textile industry due to their stability and resistance. These properties also make them recalcitrant xenobiotics, toxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic, even at low concentrations. Considered emerging pollutants, there is an urgency to address mechanisms capable of remediating these contaminants, with Aspergillus fungi standing out as an effective solution. Fifteen strains of Aspergillus were investigated for the decolorization of the tetra azo dye Direct Black 22. The influence of different culture media was evaluated on fungi biomass production, dye concentrations (50–300 mg/L), biomass concentrations (1–5g), and the reuse of biomass in continuous batches. The strains that stood out the most were Aspergillus japonicus URM 5620, Aspergillus niger URM 5741, and A. niger URM 5838. Obtaining biomass in less nutrient-rich medium favored decolorization by forming more organized pellets. The live biomass of these fungi was 59% more efficient than the dead biomass. The decolorization efficiency was not affected at lower dye concentrations, showing a decrease in decolorization only when the concentration reached 300 mg/L. Increasing the amount of biomass resulted in proportionally greater decolorization. Even with just 1 g of biomass, the three fungi could remove more than 90% of the dye in less than 60 minutes, and with 5 g, the dye was completely removed in 10 minutes. Thebiomass was reused in three consecutive decolorization cycles, and the fungus that best withstood the cycles was A. niger URM 5741. These results demonstrate the potential of the genus Aspergillus fungi tested in this study as sustainable and efficient biosorbents for the remediation of azo dyes such as Direct Black 22, with potential for colored industrial effluent treatment.

Effect of a tropical cyclone on the pelagic ecosystem of a continental shelf

AbstractThis study aimed to comprehend the effects of Typhoon Maria on the pelagic ecosystem in the southern East China Sea. Shipboard measurements were conducted at eight sampling stations before (2–4 d) and after (3–6 d) the typhoon, which enabled the evaluation of the potential impacts of the typhoon on this pelagic ecosystem, with particular focus on carbon dynamics. Following the typhoon's passage, there was a slight drop in sea surface temperature. The response of the variables to the typhoon, however, exhibited variations at different sampling stations. For further analysis, t‐tests compared variables, while type II regression assessed the linear correlation between two variables. Overall, during the post‐typhoon period, concentrations of nitrate, chlorophyll a, primary production, bacterial biomass and production, plankton community respiration, and abundance of large phytoplankton (> 2 μm) and the relative abundance of picophytoplankton among larger‐sized picoeukaryotes were higher compared to the pre‐typhoon period. The mean value of fugacity of CO2 was similar to or slightly lower than pre‐typhoon period. Although the typhoon‐induced vigorous primary production might have absorbed a significant amount of CO2, the decrease in fugacity of CO2 could have been offset by the plankton community respiration. The findings suggest that the typhoon enhanced physical disturbance and increased water column mixing, which, in turn, augmented nutrient availability and promoted plankton growth in the shallow water column. Overall, this study sheds light on the complex interactions between typhoons and marine ecosystems and highlights the importance of further investigating these phenomena to better understand their ecological implications.

Application of Spectral Imaging and Vegetation Index in Latin American Coffee Production: A Systematic Mapping

ABSTRACTCoffee production is a crucial economic, social, and cultural pillar in Latin America, facing numerous challenges, including integrating technological advancements such as multispectral imaging. This approach offers multiple advantages for coffee production; however, a knowledge gap in the domain is the need to methodologically review the available empirical evidence to delineate the field and the study region. Therefore, this systematic mapping aims to map the scientific corpus of multispectral imagery and vegetation index implemented in coffee production in the Latin American region. The study followed the PRISMA protocol; 42 primary studies were analyzed to identify key trends and research gaps. The main result of this research is that NDVI emerged as the most widely used spectral index, with applications in estimating critical biophysical parameters such as biomass and chlorophyll content. Other indices such as GNDVI, NDRE, and SAVI also proved valuable in assessing coffee plant health and development. There was an emerging trend to integrate multispectral imaging with machine learning techniques, promising greater accuracy in data interpretation. The study also revealed a concentration of research efforts in selected Latin American countries, particularly Brazil, indicating opportunities to expand research in other coffee‐producing regions. The study's main conclusion is that multispectral imaging, mainly through vegetation index, has emerged as a valuable tool for phenological monitoring and management of coffee production, offering several advantages over traditional methods. Finally, this review contributes to the existing knowledge base and identifies future research directions for applying multispectral imagery to sustainable coffee production in Latin America.

Effect of patulin on the growth and nutrient composition of black soldier fly larvae

Abstract Black solider fly (BSF, Hermetia illucens) is a common insect in most part of North America, Europe, and Asia, and it is one of the most promising alternative protein sources for animal consumption. BSF can be fed on food waste and agricultural byproducts, which are usually contaminated with mycotoxins. Therefore, it is important to study the fate of mycotoxins in BSF and how mycotoxins will affect the growth and nutrient composition of BSF. Patulin is one of the major mycotoxins found in rotten fruits and consumption of patulin contaminated food can cause both long term and short-term health problems in both human and livestock. In this study clean and patulin spiked apple puree were provided to 50 three days old black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) for 3, 6, 9 and 17 days. Patulin bioaccumulation and degradation by BSFL, survival rate, weight gain and nutrient composition of BSFL were evaluated. During the treatment period, no patulin bioaccumulation was found in BSFL. BSFL was able to degrade patulin and convert patulin into (E)-ascladiol. By day 17, BSFL degraded 89.7% of patulin, 5.7% of patulin was converted into (E)-ascladiol, and 10.3% of patulin remained in its original form. While patulin treatment led to lower biomass and growth rate in BSFL, greater protein content and lower lipid content was observed in patulin treated BSFL. Thus, we conclude that BSFL do not accumulate patulin, and it is able to degrade patulin and converts patulin into its derivatives. The applied patulin negatively affects the development of BSLF resulting in lower biomass, growth rate and lipid content, but it induces higher protein content in BSFL.

Removal efficiencies for 52 pesticides and pharmaceuticals from wastewater effluent by coupling solar heterogeneous photo-oxidation with TiO2 and infiltration in saturated soil column

Water resource management has become a hot button issue in recent decades. Countries facing water shortages as a result to climate change must adapt their water supply. The reuse of wastewater treatment plant effluents is becoming increasingly common around the world. However, the effluent quality must be improved before its reutilization to avoid contamination of the receiving environment. Pharmaceuticals and pesticides are particularly monitored because of their ubiquitous behaviours and limited removal by conventional wastewater treatment plants. The aim of this study was to combine heterogeneous photo-oxidation with TiO2 and soil infiltration to increase the elimination of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). These advanced treatments were applied on an effluent coming from a WWTP equipped with a Ultrafor membrane bioreactor (sludge ages: 8–30 days, biomass concentration: 8-12 g.L−1, hydraulic retention: 6.7-8 h). The concentration of CECs was determined to evaluate the efficiency of coupling treatments. Photo-oxidation alone showed an impressive 98 % removal under spring conditions, while 66 % removal was observed under winter conditions. The differences observed for photo-oxidation were related to UV flux density, lower in winter than in spring (4.4 kJ.L−1 vs 6.6 kJ.L−1) and initial concentrations of the effluent higher in winter (50 μg.L−1 vs 26 μg.L−1). For both experiments, additional soil infiltration increased the global concentration of CECs removal to at least 89 % with equal removal contributions observed for some compounds. From the 52 CECs quantified in the WWTP effluent, at least 30 were totally removed by the advanced treatments while 4 compounds showed recalcitrant behaviours with global removal <60 %.

Bayesian inversion of bacterial physiology and dissolved organic carbon biodegradability on water incubation data

In aquatic ecosystems, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) plays a significant role in the global carbon cycle. Microorganisms mineralize biodegradable DOC, releasing greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane) into the atmosphere. Extensive research has focused on the concentrations and biodegradability of DOC in aquatic systems worldwide. However, little attention has been given to uncertainties regarding the physiological characteristics of heterotrophic bacteria, which are crucial for biogeochemical modeling. In this study, the physiological properties of heterotrophic bacteria and the properties of DOC biodegradability in water are inferred through a Bayesian inversion approach. To achieve this, treated and natural water samples collected from the Seine River basin, were inoculated and incubated in laboratory. During incubation, the concentrations of DOC and heterotrophic bacteria biomass were measured. Then, a multiple Monte Carlo Markov Chains method and the HSB model (High-weight polymers, Substrate, heterotrophic Bacteria) are applied on the water incubation data. The results indicate a higher biodegradable fraction of DOC in natural water compared to treated water and significant variability in the fraction of fast biodegradable DOC within 5 days in both water samples. The significant variability highlights the uncertainties/challenges in the HSB model parameterization. The seven water samples used in the paper serve as a proof of concept. They are from various origins and display the potential of the method to identify parameter values in a large range of values. Because mortality rate of heterotrophic bacteria at 20 ∘C (kd20) showed a remarkable stability at 0.013 h−1, we considered that this parameter can be fixed at this value. The maximum growth rates at 20 ∘C (μmax20) was 0.061 h−1 while optimal growth yield (Y) estimated at 0.34 for treated water and at 0.25 for natural water. All these parameter values are well in accordance with previous determinations.

Study on the enhancement effect of EDTA and oxalic acid on phytoremediation of Cr(VI) from soil using Datura stramonium L.

This study investigated the enhancing effects of soil treatment with ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) and oxalic acid (OA) on the remediation of Cr(VI) contaminated soil by Datura stramonium L. A greenhouse pot experiment was conducted, where Cr(VI) contaminated soil was treated with 100 mg/kg Cr(VI) and varying concentrations of EDTA (5 and 10 mmol/kg) and OA (5 and 10 mmol/kg). The effects of these soil treatments on biomass, chlorophyll content, antioxidant enzyme activities, and Cr(VI) enrichment and translocation efficiency of D. stramonium were evaluated. The results showed that added OA to soil significantly increased the biomass and chlorophyll content of D. stramonium. The addition of 10 mmol/kg of OA to soil increased the plant biomass by 67.16 % and chlorophyll b content by 40.01 %. In addition, OA soil treatment significantly enhanced the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) by 6.36 %, peroxidase (POD) by 163.13 %, catalase (CAT) by 36.92 %, and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) by 32.12 %, which effectively alleviated the oxidative stress induced by Cr(VI). In contrast, soil treatment with a high concentration of EDTA (10 mmol/kg) significantly reduced plant biomass and chlorophyll content, although it increased the biological concentration factor (BCF) of the stem and leaf, as well as the translocation factor (TF). In conclusion, appropriate amounts of EDTA and OA added to soil can enhance the phytoremediation efficiency of D. stramonium grown in Cr(VI) contaminated soil, with OA added to soil being more effective than addition of EDTA. This study revealed the potential mechanisms of chelating agents EDTA and OA in enhancing the phytoremediation of Cr(VI) contaminated soil by D. stramonium, providing a scientific basis for further optimization of phytoremediation techniques.

A Theoretical Framework to Quantify Ecosystem Pressure-Volume Relationships.

'Water potential' is the biophysically relevant measure of water status in vegetation relating to stomatal, canopy and hydraulic conductance, as well as mortality thresholds; yet, this cannot be directly related to measured and modelled fluxes of water at plot- to landscape-scale without understanding its relationship with 'water content'. The capacity for detecting vegetation water content via microwave remote sensing further increases the need to understand the link between water content and ecosystem function. In this review, we explore how the fundamental measures of water status, water potential and water content are linked at ecosystem-scale drawing on the existing theory of pressure-volume (PV) relationships. We define and evaluate the concept and limitations of applying PV relationships to ecosystems where the quantity of water can vary on short timescales with respect to plant water status, and over longer timescales and over larger areas due to structural changes in vegetation. As a proof of concept, plot-scale aboveground vegetation PV curves were generated from equilibrium (e.g., predawn) water potentials and water content of the above ground biomass of nine plots, including tropical rainforest, savanna, temperate forest, and a long-term Amazonian rainforest drought experiment. Initial findings suggest that the stored water and ecosystem capacitance scale linearly with biomass across diverse systems, while the relative values of ecosystem hydraulic capacitance and physiologically accessible water storage do not vary systematically with biomass. The bottom-up scaling approach to ecosystem water relations identified the need to characterise the distribution of water potentials within a community and also revealed the relevance of community-level plant tissue fractions to ecosystem water relations. We believe that this theory will be instrumental in linking our detailed understanding of biophysical processes at tissue-scale to the scale at which land surface models operate and at which tower-based, airborne and satellite remote sensing can provide information.

Extreme rainfall events eliminate the response of greenhouse gas fluxes to hydrological alterations and fertilization in a riparian ecosystem

Riparian ecosystems are essential carbon dioxide (CO2) sources, which considerably promotes climate warming. However, the other greenhouse gas fluxes (GHGs), such as methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), in the riparian ecosystems have not been well studied, and it remains unclear whether and how these GHG fluxes respond to extreme weather, fertilization and hydrological alterations associated with reservoir management. Here, we assessed the impacts of hydrological alterations (i.e., flooding frequency) and fertilization (nitrogen and/or phosphorus) induced by human activities (hydroengineering construction and agricultural activities) on GHG fluxes, and further investigated the underlying mechanisms in two contrasting years (normal vs. extreme rainfall years) in a reservoir riparian zone dominated by grasses. The significant combined effects of extreme rainfall events and human activities (hydrological alterations and fertilization) on the GHGs were observed. Continuous flooding reduced CO2 emissions by 24% but increased CH4 emissions by ∼4 times in a normal rainfall year. In addition, nitrogen fertilization promoted CO2 emissions by 37%. However, these phenomena were not observed in the year with extreme rainfall events, which made the flooding levels homogeneous across the treatments. Furthermore, we found that CO2 fluxes were driven by the soil moisture, nutrient content, aboveground biomass, and root carbon content, while CH4 and N2O fluxes were merely driven by the soil properties (pH, moisture, and nutrient content). This study provides valuable insights into the crucial role of extreme rainfall events, hydrological alteration, and fertilization in regulating GHG fluxes in riparian ecosystems, as well as supports the integration of these changes in GHG emission models.

Effect of Plant Identity in Wheat Mixtures on English Grain Aphid (Sitobion avenae) Control

ABSTRACTField experiments have demonstrated that wheat mixtures differ in their ability to regulate aphid populations. To further investigate the effectiveness of wheat mixtures (Triticum aestivum and Triticum turgidum) in controlling aphids, we conducted both laboratory and greenhouse experiments. Specifically, we assessed the associational resistance of two wheat mixtures (Florence‐Aurora with Forment, Florence‐Aurora with Montcada), and their respective monocultures, in different stages of the aphid host selection process. We analysed aphid acceptance rate, population growth, and load under different wheat treatments. Additionally, we characterised wheat aboveground biomass and nitrogen content as important functional traits for aphid resistant. Aphid acceptance decreased in plants of cv. Forment when exposed to volatiles from undamaged Florence‐Aurora plants, whereas the other tested combinations tested had no effect. Aphids performed differently in the two mixtures: Florence‐Aurora mixed with Forment significantly reduced aphid population growth and load compared to the monocultures, whereas the combination of Florence‐Aurora with Montcada wheat had no effect on aphid performance. The plant–plant interactions also modified the analysed traits. Nitrogen content of Florence‐Aurora wheat plants was reduced when mixed with Forment wheat, which may explain the lower aphid load observed in plants of cv. Florence‐Aurora when mixed with plants of cv. Forment. However, mixing wheats with similar aboveground biomass resulted in an increase in the average biomass of plants of both cultivars which could have led to a higher aphid population. The data supports the idea of right neighbour, as the benefits of wheat mixtures for aphid control were determined by the identity of the combined plants (or species). Finally, our results suggest that associating wheats with different traits may promote facilitative interactions, which in turn enhances associational resistance, whereas the combination of wheats with similar traits may result in competitive interactions that may hinder aphid control benefits.

Genome reduction improves octanoic acid production in scale down bioreactors.

Microorganisms in large-scale bioreactors are exposed to heterogeneous environmental conditions due to physical mixing constraints. Nutritional gradients can lead to transient expression of energetically wasteful stress responses and as a result, can reduce the titres, rates and yields of a bioprocess at larger scales. To what extent these process parameters are impacted is often unknown and therefore bioprocess scale-up comes with major risk. Designing platform strains to account for these intermittent stresses before introducing synthesis pathways is one strategy for de-risking bioprocess development. For example, Escherichia coli strain RM214 is a derivative of wild-type MG1655 that has had several genes and whole operons removed from its genome based on their metabolic cost. In this study, we engineered E. coli strain RM214 (referred to as WG02) to produce octanoic acid from glycerol in batch-flask and fed-batch bioreactor cultivations and compared it to an octanoic acid-producing E. coli MG1655 (WG01). In batch flask cultivations, the two strains performed similarly. However, in carbon limited fed-batch bioreactor cultivations, WG02 provided a greater than 22% boost to biomass compared to WG01 while maintaining similar titres of octanoic acid. Reducing the biomass accumulation of WG02 with nitrogen limited fed-batch cultivation resulted in a 16% improvement in octanoic acid titre over WG01. Finally, in a scale-down system consisting of a stirred tank reactor (representing a well-mixed zone) and plug flow reactor (representing an intermittent carbon starvation zone), WG02 again improved octanoic acid titre by almost 18% while maintaining similar biomass concentrations as WG01.

UAV-Based Multispectral Winter Wheat Growth Monitoring with Adaptive Weight Allocation

Comprehensive growth index (CGI) more accurately reflects crop growth conditions than single indicators, which is crucial for precision irrigation, fertilization, and yield prediction. However, many current studies overlook the relationships between different growth parameters and their varying contributions to yield, leading to overlapping information and lower accuracy in monitoring crop growth. Therefore, this study focuses on winter wheat and constructs a comprehensive growth monitoring index (CGIac), based on adaptive weight allocation of growth parameters’ contribution to yield, using data such as leaf area index (LAI), soil plant analysis development (SPAD) values, plant height (PH), biomass (BM), and plant water content (PWC). Using UAV data on vegetation indices, feature selection was performed using the Elastic Net. The growth inversion model was then constructed using machine learning methods, including linear regression (LR), random forest (RF), gradient boosting (GB), and support vector regression (SVR). Based on the optimal growth inversion model for winter wheat, spatial distribution of wheat growth in the study area is obtained. The findings demonstrated that CGIac outperforms CGIav (constructed using equal weighting) and CGIcv (built using the coefficient of variation) in yield correlation and prediction accuracy. Specifically, the yield correlation of CGIac improved by up to 0.76 compared to individual indices, while yield prediction accuracy increased by up to 23.14%. Among the evaluated models, the RF model achieved the best performance, with a coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.895 and a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.0058. A comparison with wheat orthophotos from the same period confirmed that the inversion results were highly consistent with actual growth conditions in the study area. The proposed method significantly improved the accuracy and applicability of winter wheat growth monitoring, overcoming the limitations of single parameters in growth prediction. Additionally, it provided new technological support and innovative solutions for regional crop monitoring and precision farming operations.

STUDI POTENSI BIOMASSA HUTAN SAGU (Metroxylon Sp) DI DESA TULEHU KECAMATAN SALAHUTU KABUPATEN MALUKU TENGAH

Sago forests (Metroxylon sp) in Tulehu Village, Salahutu District, Central Maluku Regency are one of the staple food sources of the Maluku community that have been consumed for generations. Various parts of sago from leaf stalks to trunks have been widely studied. However, research related to sago biomass has not been done much. In this regard, this paper aims to determine the potential biomass and carbon reserves stored in sago forests in Tulehu Village for the purposes of handling climate change. The biomass and carbon content reserves to be determined are sago at the pole and tree levels. The method used was 3 survey routes with 30 measurement plots using purposive sampling, observation, then analysis and estimation of biomass and stored carbon reserves. The calculation results at the pole level of sago obtained a biomass of 27 tons/ha and stored carbon reserves of 14 tons/ha. At the tree level of sago, a biomass of 42 tons/ha and stored carbon reserves of 20 tons/ha were obtained.

Comparison of Biohydrogen Production by Tetraselmis subcordiformis During Cultivation Using Soil-Less Agricultural Wastewater and Effluent from Microbial Fuel Cells

The development and implementation of innovative production technologies have a direct influence on the creation of new sources of pollution and types of waste. An example of this is the wastewater from soil-less agriculture and the effluent from microbial fuel cells. An important topic is the development and application of methods for their neutralisation that take into account the assumptions of global environmental policy. The aim of the present study was to determine the possibilities of utilising this type of pollution in the process of autotrophic cultivation of the biohydrogen-producing microalgae Tetraselmis subcordiformis. The highest biomass concentration of 3030 ± 183 mgVS/L and 67.9 ± 3.5 mg chl-a/L was observed when the culture medium was wastewater from soil-less agriculture. The growth rate in the logarithmic growth phase was 270 ± 16 mgVS/L-day and 5.95 ± 0.24 mg chl-a/L-day. In the same scenario, the highest total H2 production of 161 ± 8 mL was also achieved, with an observed H2 production rate of 4.67 ± 0.23 mL/h. Significantly lower effects in terms of biomass production of T. subcordiformis and H2 yield were observed when fermented dairy wastewater from the anode chamber of the microbial fuel cell was added to the culture medium.

Effect of Macronutrients on Recombinant mCherry Production by Microalga

AbstractThis study sought to evaluate the influence of five macronutrients (acetate, calcium, sulfate, nitrogen, and phosphate) on the cell growth and heterologous mCherry protein production by Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. In the first step, three nitrogen (N) sources were tested (NH4NO3, NaNO3, and NH4Cl), and NH4NO3 was selected as N source for the following step, due to the best results for mCherry protein production. In the second step, a central composite design 25 was employed to evaluate the effect of the five macronutrients. Although all nutrients had effect on maximum biomass concentration, only acetate, nitrogen, and phosphate showed to influence mCherry protein production. By employing the experimental design with small‐scale culture in multiplates and multivariable regression, it was possible to achieve 12 % increase for recombinant protein production.

Harvesting Optimization, Biomass, and Lipid Content Analysis of Euglena sp. Culture with Ettlia texensis Bioflocculant and Commercial Chitosan

Graphical Abstract Highlight Research Bioflocculation technique can improve the harvesting effectiveness of semimass culture of Euglena The addition of E. texensis can significantly increase the flocculation efficiency of Euglena The addition of commercial chitosan was able to increase the flocculation efficiency of Euglena sp. The biomass and lipid content produced by Euglena with E. texensis flocculant agent showed higher results than the biomass and lipid content produced by Euglena sp. with commercial chitosan flocculant agent. Abstract Euglena sp. has a high potential to be developed as biofuel. However, the high cost and energy required for the harvesting process are hindering the production. Flocculation using natural substances, such as microorganisms and biopolymers, offers a promising solution to minimize energy and production costs, so it is applicable on a mass scale. Ettlia texensis is one of the autoflocculating microalgae that can excrete extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). Chitosan is a linear copolymer of D-glucosamine and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine produced by the deacetylation of chitin, which is usually exploited by marine crustaceans, shrimp, and crabs. Chitosan has a very high cation load, so it is often used for coagulation or flocculation. This study explores the potential of E. texensis and chitosan as flocculant agents to harvest the mass culture of Euglena sp. by giving different doses E. texensis with 1:0.25 (E3), 1:0.5 (E4), 1:1 (E5), and 1:2 (E6), and chitosan with 1.25 mg (C1), 2.5 mg (C2), 3.75 mg (C3), and 5 mg (C4). This research began with the cultivation of Euglena sp. and E. texensis on a 50 L scale for 12 days. The effectiveness of flocculation was measured by the spectrophotometric method. Based on this research, the best treatment for harvesting Euglena sp. culture by bioflocculation was shown by the addition of chitosan (5 mg) with the recovery of 84.83%, 0.2213 mg/mL biomass, and 0.2117 mg/mL lipid content. Meanwhile, with E. texensis, the best was shown by the ratio of 1:2 with recovery 84.71%, 0.2053 mg/mL biomass, and 0.1753 mg/mL

High biomass content in epoxy vitrimers: a study on bio-based and reprocessable thermosets

High biomass content in epoxy vitrimers: a study on bio-based and reprocessable thermosets

Accumulation of podophyllotoxin in the root culture of Hyptis suaveolens (L.) Poit: A potential natural lignan for clinically useful anticancer drugs

Podophyllotoxin (PTOX) is a natural antiviral, antirheumatic and anticancer molecule, but it is expensive to chemically synthesize. The present study aimed to evaluate growth and PTOX accumulation in root cultures of Hyptis suaveolens treated with different concentrations of auxins, vitamins and myo-inositol. Root cultures grown in liquid medium supplemented with different concentrations of indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA), vitamins and myo-inositol were used to measure biomass production and PTOX content. PTOX quantitation was performed via high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection (HPLC-DAD) using a newly developed analytical method after successful validation. Root culture in MS medium supplemented with 1 mg L−1 IBA +0.5 mg L−1 NAA resulted in the highest root dry weight (248.76 mg) and the highest PTOX concentration in the roots (179.97 μg g−1 root). The roots cultured in liquid MS medium supplemented with 1 mg L−1 IBA +0.5 mg L−1 NAA presented the greatest increase in root biomass and PTOX content. This adequate balance of vitamin and myo-inositol supplementation in liquid MS culture medium increased the root dry weight and PTOX content.

Exploring the Potential of Bacillus subtilis IS1 and B. amyloliquificiens IS6 to Manage Salinity Stress and Fusarium Wilt Disease in Tomato Plants by Induced Physiological Responses.

The intensified concerns related to agrochemicals' ecological and health risks have encouraged the exploration of microbial agents as eco-friendly alternatives. Some members of Bacillus spp. are potential plant-growth-promoting agents and benefit numerous crop plants globally. This study aimed to explore the beneficial effects of two Bacillus strains (B. subtilis strain IS1 and B. amyloliquificiens strain IS6) capable of alleviating the growth of tomato plants against salinity stress and Fusarium wilt disease. These strains were able to significantly promote the growth of tomato plants and biomass accumulation in pot trials in the absence of any stress. Under salinity stress conditions (150 mM NaCl), B. subtilis strain IS1 demonstrated superior performance and significantly increased shoot length (45.74%), root length (101.39%), fresh biomass (62.17%), and dry biomass (49.69%) contents compared to control plants. Similarly, B. subtilis strain IS1 (63.7%) and B. amyloliquificiens strain IS6 (32.1%) effectively suppressed Fusarium wilt disease and significantly increased plant growth indices compared to the pathogen control. Furthermore, these strains increased the production of chlorophyll, carotenoid, and total phenolic contents. They significantly affected the activities of enzymes involved in antioxidant machinery and the phenylpropanoid pathway. Hence, this study effectively demonstrates that these Bacillus strains can effectively alleviate the growth of tomato plants under multiple stress conditions and can be used to develop bio-based formulations for use in the fields.

The Emissions of a Compression-Ignition Engine Fuelled by a Mixture of Crude Oil and Biodiesel from the Lipids Accumulated in the Waste Glycerol-Fed Culture of Schizochytrium sp.

Microalgae are considered to be a promising and prospective source of lipids for the production of biocomponents for conventional liquid fuels. The available sources contain a lot of information about the cultivation of biomass and the amounts and composition of the resulting bio-oils. However, there is a lack of reliable and verified data on the impact of fuel blends based on microalgae biodiesel on the quality of the emitted exhaust gas. Therefore, the main objective of the study was to present the emission characteristics of a compression-ignition engine fuelled with a blend of diesel fuel and biodiesel produced from the lipids accumulated in the biomass of a heterotrophic culture of Schizochytrium sp. The final concentrations of microalgal biomass and lipids in the culture were 140.7 ± 13.9 g/L and 58.2 ± 1.1 g/L, respectively. The composition of fatty acids in the lipid fraction was dominated by decosahexaenoic acid (43.8 ± 2.8%) and palmitic acid (40.4 ± 2.8%). All parameters of the bio-oil met the requirements of the EN 14214 standard. It was found that the use of bio-components allowed lower concentrations of hydrocarbons in the exhaust gas, ranging between 33 ± 2 ppm and 38 ± 7 ppm, depending on the load level of the engine. For smoke opacity, lower emissions were found in the range of 50–100% engine load levels, where the observed content was between 23 ± 4% and 53 ± 8%.