Biorefinery strategies for upgrading Distillers’ Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS)

Distillers’ Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS) is the major by-product of bioethanol and distillery plants. Due to its high content of proteins, water-soluble vitamins and minerals, DDGS has been long marketed as animal feed for livestock. EU legislation on liquid biofuels could raise the demand on bioethanol production in Europe, with a resulting increase in DDGS availability. DDGS contains a spectrum of complex organic macromolecules, particularly polysaccharides, in addition to proteins and vitamins, and its use as a starting raw material within a biomass-based biorefining strategy could lead to the development of multi-stream processes for the production of commodities, platform molecules or speciality chemicals, with concomitant economic benefits and waste reduction for bioethanol plants. The present review aims to outline the compositional characteristics of DDGS and evaluate its potential utilisation as a starting material for the production of added-value products. Parameters of influence on the chemical and physical characteristics of DDGS are discussed. Moreover, various pre-treatment strategies are outlined in terms of efficient DDGS fractionation into several added value streams. Additional processing steps for the production of medium and high added value compounds from DDGS are evaluated and their potential applications in the food and chemical industry sector are identified.

Development of edible films based on differently processed Atlantic halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus) skin gelatin

The gelatin prepared from the skins of the Atlantic halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus) was investigated for the development of edible films plasticized with 30g sorbitol/100g gelatin. Two types of dry gelatin preparations were obtained depending on whether an intermediate evaporation step at 60 degrees C in the drying procedure is included or not. The amino acid composition, molecular weight distribution (determined by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis) and glass transition temperature (determined by differential scanning calorimetry) of the gelatins were determined and related to some physical properties of the resulting films. The gelatin extracted from the halibut skins showed a suitable filmogenic capacity, leading to transparent, weakly colored, water-soluble and highly extensible films. The intermediate evaporation step at 60 degrees C induced thermal protein degradation, causing the resulting films to be significantly less resistant and more extensible. No differences in water vapor permeability, viscoelasticity, glass transition or color properties were evidenced between the two gelatins tested. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cloning and characterization of a zebrafish homologue of human AQP1: a bifunctional water and gas channel

Chen LM, Zhao J, Musa-Aziz R, Pelletier MF, Drummond IA, Boron WF. Cloning and characterization of a zebrafish homologue of human AQP1: a bifunctional water and gas channel. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 299: R1163-R1174, 2010. First published August 25, 2010; doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00319.2010.-The mammalian aquaporins AQP1, AQP4, and AQP5 have been shown to function not only as water channels but also as gas channels. Zebrafish have two genes encoding an AQP1 homologue, aqp1a and aqp1b. In the present study, we cloned the cDNA that encodes the zebrafish protein Aqp1a from the 72-h postfertilization (hpf) embryo of Danio rerio, as well as from the swim bladder of the adult. The deduced amino-acid sequence of aqp1a consists of 260 amino acids and is 59% identical to human AQP1. By analyzing the genomic DNA sequence, we identified four exons in the aqp1a gene. By in situ hybridization, aqp1a is expressed transiently in the developing vasculature and in erythrocytes from 16 to 48 h of development. Later, at 72 hpf, aqp1a is expressed in dermal ionocytes and in the swim bladder. Western blot analysis of adult tissues reveals that Aqp1a is most highly expressed in the eye and swim bladder. Xenopus oocytes expressing aqp1a have a channel-dependent (*) osmotic water permeability (P(f)*) that is indistinguishable from that of human AQP1. On the basis of the magnitude of the transient change in surface pH (Delta pHS) that were recorded as the oocytes were exposed to either CO(2) or NH(3), we conclude that zebrafish Aqp1a is permeable to both CO(2) and NH(3). The ratio (Delta pHS*)CO2/P(f)* is about half that of human AQP1, and the ratio (Delta pHS*)NH3/P(f)* is about one-quarter that of human AQP1. Thus, compared with human AQP1, zebrafish Aqp1a has about twice the selectivity for CO(2) over NH(3).

Intranuclear crystalloids of Antarctic sea urchins as a biomarker for oil contamination

Because of human actions, biomarkers have become important to detect and mitigate pollution. This study showed that crystalloids can be a biomarker for analyses of low levels of water-soluble fractions of oil (WSF). Antarctic sea urchins (Sterechinus neumayeri) from regions free of pollution were exposed for 2, 5, 10 and 15 days at different levels of WSF (0.4, 0.8 and 1.2 ppm). No significant differences were observed in the phagocytic rates or the germicide capacity for the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae; however, there was a significant increase in the quantity of intranuclear iron crystalloids in phagocytic amoebocytes of urchins exposed to higher levels of WSF. This study characterizes histological alterations in crystalloids of S. neumayeri that could be used as a biomarker for oil contaminants, with a simple and inexpensive protocol.

Aerosol inorganic composition at a tropical site: Discrepancies between filter-based sampling and a semi-continuous method

The concentrations of the water-soluble inorganic aerosol species, ammonium (NH4+), nitrate (NO3-), chloride (Cl-), and sulfate (SO42-), were measured from September to November 2002 at a pasture site in the Amazon Basin (Rondnia, Brazil) (LBA-SMOCC). Measurements were conducted using a semi-continuous technique (Wet-annular denuder/Steam-Jet Aerosol Collector: WAD/SJAC) and three integrating filter-based methods, namely (1) a denuder-filter pack (DFP: Teflon and impregnated Whatman filters), (2) a stacked-filter unit (SFU: polycarbonate filters), and (3) a High Volume dichotomous sampler (HiVol: quartz fiber filters). Measurements covered the late dry season (biomass burning), a transition period, and the onset of the wet season (clean conditions). Analyses of the particles collected on filters were performed using ion chromatography (IC) and Particle-Induced X-ray Emission spectrometry (PIXE). Season-dependent discrepancies were observed between the WAD/SJAC system and the filter-based samplers. During the dry season, when PM2.5 (D-p <= 2.5 mu m) concentrations were similar to 100 mu g m(-3), aerosol NH4+ and SO42- measured by the filter-based samplers were on average two times higher than those determined by the WAD/SJAC. Concentrations of aerosol NO3- and Cl- measured with the HiVol during daytime, and with the DFP during day- and nighttime also exceeded those of the WAD/SJAC by a factor of two. In contrast, aerosol NO3- and Cl- measured with the SFU during the dry season were nearly two times lower than those measured by the WAD/SJAC. These differences declined markedly during the transition period and towards the cleaner conditions during the onset of the wet season (PM2.5 similar to 5 mu g m(-3)); when filter-based samplers measured on average 40-90% less than the WAD/SJAC. The differences were not due to consistent systematic biases of the analytical techniques, but were apparently a result of prevailing environmental conditions and different sampling procedures. For the transition period and wet season, the significance of our results is reduced by a low number of data points. We argue that the observed differences are mainly attributable to (a) positive and negative filter sampling artifacts, (b) presence of organic compounds and organosulfates on filter substrates, and (c) a SJAC sampling efficiency of less than 100%.

Novel manganese (III) porphyrin containing peripheral [RuCl(dppb)(X-bipy)](+) cations [dppb=1,4-bis(diphenylphosphino) butane and X = -CH3, -OMe, -Cl]. X-ray structure of the cis-[RuCl(dppb)(bipy)(4-Mepy)]PF6 complex

New tetraruthenated manganese (III) porphyrins were synthesized and characterized (P-31 NMR, cyclic voltammetry, UV-Vis). This new system presents four units of cationic ``[RuCl(dppb)(X-bipy)](+)``. The electrochemical and catalytic properties of the central manganese (III) show dependence on the characteristics of the peripheral ruthenium complexes as evidenced by the Mn-(III)/Mn-(II) reduction potential. The catalytic oxidation reactions of olefins, cyclohexene and cyclohexane, were carried out in the presence of tetrapyridyl manganese (III) porphyrins containing cationic ruthenium complex and using iodosylbenzene as oxygen donor. The performance of these new tetraruthenated porphyrins systems were evaluated and compared with the manganese porphyrin. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cys mutants in functional regions of Sticholysin I clarify the participation of these residues in pore formation

Experimental evidence shows that the mechanism of pore formation by actinoporins is a multistep process, involving binding of the water-soluble monomer to the membrane and subsequent oligomerization on the membrane surface, leading to the formation of a functional pore. However, as for other eukaryotic pore-forming toxins, the molecular details of the mechanism of membrane insertion and oligomerization are not clear. In order to obtain further insight with regard to the structure-function relationship in sticholysins, we designed and produced three cysteine mutants of recombinant sticholysin I (rStI) in relevant functional regions for membrane interaction: StI E2C and StI F15C (in the N-terminal region) and StI R52C (in the membrane binding site). The conformational characterization derived from fluorescence and CD spectroscopic studies of StI E2C, StI F15C and StI R52C suggests that replacement of these residues by Cys in rStI did not noticeably change the conformation of the protein. The substitution by Cys of Arg(52) in the phosphocholine-binding site, provoked noticeable changes in rStI permeabilizing activity; however, the substitutions in the N-terminal region (Glu(2), Phe(15)) did not modify the toxin`s permeabilizing ability. The presence of a dimerized population stabilized by a disulfide bond in the StI E2C mutant showed higher pore-forming activity than when the protein is in the monomeric state, suggesting that sticholysins pre-ensembled at the N-terminal region could facilitate pore formation. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Salinity influences glutathione S-transferase activity and lipid peroxidation responses in the Crassostrea gigas oyster exposed to diesel oil

Biochemical responses in bivalve mollusks are commonly employed in environmental studies as biomarkers of aquatic contamination. The present study evaluated the possible influence of salinity (35, 25,15 and 9 ppt) in the biomarker responses of Crassostrea gigas oysters exposed to diesel at different nominal concentrations (0.01, 0.1 and 1 mLL(-1)) using a semi-static exposure system. Salinity alone did not resulted in major changes in the gill`s catalase activity (CAT), glutathione S-transferase activity (GST) and lipid peroxidation levels (measured as malondialdehyde. MDA), but influenced diesel related responses. At 25 ppt salinity, but not at the other salinity levels, oysters exposed to diesel showed a strikingly positive concentration-dependent GST response. At 25 ppt and 1 mLL(-1) diesel, the GST activity in the gills remained elevated, even after one week of depuration in clean water. The increased MDA levels in the oysters exposed to diesel comparing to control groups at 9, 15 and 35 ppt salinities suggest the occurrence of lipid peroxidation in those salinities, but not at 25 ppt salinity. The MDA quickly returned to basal levels after 24 h of depuration. CAT activity was unaltered by the treatments employed. High toxicity for 1 mLL(-1) diesel was observed only at 35 ppt salinity, but not in the other salinities. Results from this study strongly suggest that salinity influences the diesel related biomarker responses and toxicity in C. gigas, and that some of those responses remain altered even after depuration. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Determination of anthropogenic and biogenic compounds on atmospheric aerosol collected in urban, biomass burning and forest areas in Sao Paulo, Brazil

This study was conducted at three sites of different characteristics in Sao Paulo State Sao Paulo (SPA), Piracicaba (PRB) and Mate Atlantica Forest (MAT) PM(10), n-alkanes. pristane and phytane, PAHs, water-soluble ions and biomass burning tracers like levoglucosan and retene, were determined in quartz fiber filters. Samplings occurred on May 8th to August 8th, 2007 at the MAT site; on August 15th to 29th in 2007 and November 10th to 29th in 2008 at the PRB site and, March 13th to April 4th in 2007 and August 7th to 29th in 2008 at the SPA site Aliphatic compounds emitted biogenically were less abundant at the urban sites than at the forest site, and its distribution showed the influence of tropical vascular plants Air mass transport front biomass burning regions is likely to impact the sites with specific molecular markers The concentrations of all species were variable and dependent of seasonal changes In the most dry and polluted seasons, n-alkane and canon total concentrations were similar between the megacity and the biomass burning site PAHs and inorganic ion abundances were higher at Sao Paulo than Piracicaba, yet, the site influenced by biomass burning seems lobe the most impacted by the organic anion abundance in the atmosphere Pristane and phytane confirm the contamination by petroleum residues at urban sites, at the MAT site, biological activity and long range transport of pollutants might influence the levels of pristane (C) 2010 Elsevier B V All rights reserved

Síntese, aplicação e avaliação do efeito do teor de fósforo da celulose fosfatada em argamassa de alvenaria com aditivo comercial a base de hidroxi-etil-metil celulose (HEMC)

Generally, cellulose ethers improves mortar properties such as water retention, workability and setting time, along with adherence to the substrate. However, a major disadvantage of the addition of cellulose ethers in mortars is the delay in hydration of the cement. In this paper a cellulose phosphate (Cp) was synthesized water soluble and has been evaluated the effect of their incorporation into mortar based on Portland cement. Cellulose phosphate obtained was characterized by spectrophotometry Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), elemental analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Mortar compositions were formulated with varying phosphorus content in cellulose and cellulose phosphate concentrations, when used in partial or total replacement of the commercial additive based hydroxyethyl methyl cellulose (HEMC). The mortars formulated with additives were prepared and characterized by: testing in the fresh state (consistency index, water retention, bulk density and air content incorporated) and in the hardened state (absorption by capillarity, density, flexural and compression strength). In mixtures the proportion of sand:cement of 1:5 (v / v) and factor a / c = 1.31 and water were held constant. Overall, the results showed that the celluloses phosphates employed in mortars added acted significantly when partially substituting the commercial additive. With regard to consistency index, water retention and bulk density in the fresh state and absorption by capillarity and bulk density apparent in the hardened state, showed no appreciable differences as compared to the commercial additive. The incorporated air content in the fresh state reduced markedly, but did not affect other properties. The mortars with cellulose phosphate, partially replacing the commercial additive showed an improvement of the properties of flexural strength and compressive strength

Efeitos de absorventes de umidade e de aditivos químicos e microbianos sobre o valor nutritivo, o perfil fermentativo e as perdas em silagens de capim-marandu

The objective of this trial was to evaluate the nutritional value, fermentation profile and dry matter losses of Palisadegrass silages ensiled with either dried citrus pulp, soybean hulls, chemical or microbial additives. The trial was carried out in a completely randomized experimental design and in a factorial arrangement (3 x 5), with three dry matter levels (wet forage or forage ensiled with pelleted citrus pulp or pelleted soybean hulls) and five additives (without or with the presence of bacterial inoculants or the addition of: sodium benzoate, formic acid in the concentration of 62% or 44%), totalizing 15 treatments and 60 experimental silos. The variables analyzed were: nutritional value, losses due to gases and effluents, and dry matter recovery. The use of dried citrus pulp or soybean hulls at the ensiling time increased the dry matter content (29.4 and 28,9%) and decreased the effluent production (4.1 and 3.8 kg/t of fresh matter), also providing fermentable substrate to microorganisms, resulting in increased fermentation coefficient and digestibility of silages. The use of formic acid resulted in silages with higher digestibility and increased water-soluble carbohydrates and crude protein content. This additive was also effective in reducing the losses due to gases and, as a result, increased the total dry matter recovery. The treatment containing homolactic bacteria showed similar trend of increasing the digestibility and reducing the losses due to gases. The use of sodium benzoate was less effective in altering the fermentation pattern of tropical silages. The nutritional value and total dry matter losses of silages ensiled without additives can be considered satisfactory. However, wet forage ensiled with dried citrus pulp and, mainly, with soybeans hulls showed the best results. Treatments containing formic acid had a beneficial effect on the fermentation profile of tropical grass silages.

Aditivos químicos e biológicos na ensilagem de cana-de-açúcar: 1. composição química das silagens, ingestão, digestibilidade e comportamento ingestivo

Avaliou-se o efeito da inclusão de aditivos na ensilagem de cana-de-açúcar (Saccharum officinarum L.) sobre a composição químico-bromatológica das silagens, o comportamento ingestivo, o consumo voluntário e a digestibilidade em bovinos de corte. Utilizaram-se cinco novilhos da raça Nelore providos de cânula ruminal, alocados em delineamento quadrado latino 5 ´ 5 e alimentados com dietas com 65% de volumoso na MS. Foram avaliadas cinco silagens (base úmida): controle - cana-de-açúcar sem aditivos; uréia - cana-de-açúcar + 0,5% uréia; benzoato - cana-de-açúcar + 0,1% de benzoato de sódio; LP - cana-de-açúcar inoculada com Lactobacillus plantarum (1 ´ 10(6) ufc/g MV); LB - cana-de-açúcar inoculada com L. buchneri (3,6 ´ 10(5) ufc/g forragem). A forragem foi armazenada em silos do tipo poço por 90 dias antes do fornecimento aos animais. A composição químico-bromatológica da cana-de-açúcar foi alterada após a ensilagem, em relação à cana-de-açúcar original, com redução no teor de carboidratos solúveis e na digestibilidade in vitro e elevação relativa nos teores de FDN e FDA. Os teores de etanol (0,30% da MS) e ácidos orgânicos (0,99% de ácido lático e 2,31% de acético) foram baixos e semelhantes entre as silagens. Os aditivos aplicados na ensilagem não promoveram alterações no consumo e na digestibilidade aparente da MS (7,2 kg/dia e 63,6%, respectivamente). O comportamento ingestivo dos animais também não foi alterado, com tempos médios de 230,6; 519,6 e 672,8 minutos/dia despendidos com ingestão de ração, ruminação e ócio, respectivamente. Os aditivos acrescidos à cana-de-açúcar promoveram pequenas alterações na maioria das variáveis avaliadas.

Polymeric alginate nanoparticles containing the local anesthetic bupivacaine

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Dermatose responsiva à biotina em cão

Os transtornos da pele e dos pelos são parte importante na prática clínica de pequenos animais. Numerosos fatores nutricionais afetam a homeostase, a qualidade e o aspecto da pelagem. As vitaminas do complexo B incluem compostos hidrossolúveis necessários como coenzimas em diversas funções celulares envolvidas no metabolismo energético e na síntese tecidual. A biotina, em especial, é necessária nas reações de carboxilação, participando da síntese de ácidos graxos, aminoácidos e purinas pelo tecido epitelial. Uma cadela com quadro de cistite recorrente e tumor venéreo transmissível foi tratada com antibioticoterapia prolongada e quimioterapia. Após alguns meses de tratamento, foram observadas lesões no plano nasal e nos coxins plantar e palmar, caracterizadas por hiperceratose, espessamento, fissuras, sangramento e inflamação. O paciente recebeu suplementação de 15mg de biotina por via oral (equivalente a 1,4mg kg-1 de peso corporal), uma vez por dia, durante 60 dias, havendo importante regressão das lesões. Sugere-se que, sob antibioticoterapia e doença, a síntese intestinal de biotina possa não ter sido suficiente, sendo necessária sua suplementação.

Efeito da calagem superficial em plantio direto na concentração de cátions hidrossolúveis na parte aérea de culturas anuais

A acidez do solo no sistema plantio direto pode ser minimizada com aplicação superficial de calcário. Tal prática é favorecida pela permanência de restos vegetais na superfície do solo, pela liberação de compostos orgânicos hidrossolúveis, que variam de planta para planta. Por isso foi instalado um experimento em Latossolo Vermelho distrófico (V = 41 %) em Botucatu (SP), objetivando avaliar os efeitos da aplicação superficial de calcário dolomítico na concentração de cátions solúveis nos resíduos vegetais das culturas de milheto, feijão e aveia preta em dois anos agrícolas (2002/2003 e 2003/2004). No caso do feijoeiro, o delineamento experimental utilizado foi o de blocos casualizados em esquema de parcelas subdivididas, com quatro repetições. As parcelas foram representadas por cultivares de feijão (Carioca, IAC Carioca Eté, Pérola, IAPAR 81 e Campeão 2), enquanto as subparcelas foram formadas por doses de calcário dolomítico (sem aplicação, 1,8; 3,6 e 5,4 t ha-1). Para o milheto e aveia preta foram consideradas apenas as doses como fator. Foram avaliados os teores de Ca, Mg, K e Mn na parte aérea de todas as culturas, bem como a condutividade elétrica no extrato. Os resultados evidenciaram que os teores de Ca, K e Mg solúveis na parte aérea das culturas anuais avaliadas não foram alterados com a aplicação superficial de doses de calcário dolomítico. As culturas do milheto e feijão apresentaram maior teor de cátions solúveis na parte aérea, quando comparado ao da aveia preta.