Food and fuel microalgae applications: insights from portuguese experience [Resumo]

Microalgae have a wide range of application fields, from food to fuels, to pharmaceuticals & fine chemicals, aquaculture and environmental bioremediation, among others. Spirulina and Chlorella have been used as food sources since ancient times, due to their high and balanced nutritional value. Our research group in Lisbon has developed a range of food products (emulsions, gelled desserts, biscuits and pastas) enriched with freshwater and marine microalgae (Spirulina, Chlorella, Haematococcus, Isochrysis and Diacronema). The developed products presented attractive and stable colours, high resistance to oxidation and enhanced rheological properties. Some of these products will be prepared at the Post-Congress Course “Functional Foods Development” at the University of Antofagasta. More recently, a great interest has arisen on using microalgae for biofuel production. The same group has also been exploring several marine and freshwater species for biofuel production (e.g., biodiesel, bioethanol, biohydrogen and biomethane) within a biorefinery approach, in order to obtain high and low-value co-products using integral biomass maximizing the energy revenue. Namely, supercritical fluid extraction of Nannochloropsis sp. allowed the recovery of valuable carotenoids and lipids, prior to bioH2 production through dark fermentation of the residual biomass. Also, Scenedesmus obliquus residues after sugars (for bioethanol) and lipids (for biodiesel) extraction has been anaerobically digested attaining high biomethane yields. Regarding sustainability issues, the current trend of our group is now focused on using liquid effluents and high CO2 levels for low cost microalgae growth, contributing to a lower water demand, primary energy consumption and global warming potential by reducing the need for potable water and fertilizers (P, N) and increasing CO2 mitigation. Microalgae biomass has been successfully used for urban wastewater treatment with subsequent bioH2 production, in a biorefinery approach. Presently, ammonium-rich raw effluents from piggeries and poultry industry are being effectively used for microalgae growth avoiding any pre-treatment step.

The impact of the MARINET initiative on the development of Marine Renewable Energy

Marine Renewable Energy Conversion systems comprise wave energy and tidal stream converters as well as offshore-wind turbines for electrical generation. These technologies are currently at different stages of development but are mostly at the pre-commercial stage and require research to be undertaken at a series of scales along the path to commercialization. However each of these technologies also needs specific research infrastructures in order to conduct this research. The aim of the MARINET initiative is to coordinate research and development at all scales (small models through to prototype scales, from laboratories through to open sea tests) and to allow access for researchers and developers to infrastructures which are not available universally in Europe, including test facilities for components such as power take-off systems, grid integration, moorings and environmental monitoring so as to ensure a focusing of activities in this area. The initiative offers researchers and developers access to 45 research facilities as well as to the associated network of expertise at all scales in Offshore Marine Renewable Energy technology research and development. The aim of this paper is to present this MARINET initiative that was started in 2011, bringing together a network of 29 partners spread across twelve countries. Details of the MARINET Transnational Access (TA) program are presented, for which over 260 applications were received throughout the 5 official calls for proposals. In particular, statistics on applications and completed projects are presented which provide an overview of the global development progress of the different offshore renewable energy conversion technologies at a European level. It also provides a good overview of the current research activity, as well as evidence of the requirement for specialised research facilities, in this burgeoning field.

Magnetic Theory and Applications in the Naples Bay (Southern Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy): Magnetic Anomaly Fields and Relationships with Morpho-Structural Lineaments

Magnetic theory and application to a complex volcanic area located in Southern Italy are here discussed showing the example of the Gulf of Naples, located at Southern Italy Tyrrhenian margin. A magnetic anomaly map of the Gulf of Naples has been constructed aimed at highlighting new knowledge on geophysics and volcanology of this area of the Eastern Tyrrhenian margin, characterized by a complex geophysical setting, strongly depending on sea bottom topography. The theoretical aspects of marine magnetometry and multibeam bathymetry have been discussed. Magnetic data processing included the correction of the data for the diurnal variation, the correction of the data for the offset and the leveling of the data as a function of the correction at the cross-points of the navigation lines. Multibeam and single-beam bathymetric data processing has been considered. Magnetic anomaly fields in the Naples Bay have been discussed through a detailed geological interpretation and correlated with main morpho-structural features recognized through morphobathymetric interpretation. Details of magnetic anomalies have been selected, represented and correlated with significant seismic profiles, recorded on the same navigation lines of magnetometry. They include the continental shelf offshore the Somma-Vesuvius volcanic complex, the outer shelf of the Gulf of Pozzuoli offshore the Phlegrean Fields volcanic complex, the relict volcanic banks of Pentapalummo, Nisida and Miseno, the Gaia volcanic bank on the Naples slope, the western slope of the Dohrn canyon, the Magnaghi canyon’s head and the magnetic anomalies among the Ischia and Procida islands.

Report of the Workshop on Growth-increment Chronologies in Marine Fish: climate-ecosystem interactions in the North Atlantic 2 (WKGIC2). 18-22 April 2016 Esporles, Mallorca, Spain

Over the past several decades, thousands of otoliths, bivalve shells, and scales have been collected for the purposes of age determination and remain archived in European and North American fisheries laboratories. Advances in digital imaging and computer software combined with techniques developed by tree-ring scientists provide a means by which to extract additional levels of information in these calcified structures and generate annually resolved (one value per year), multidecadal time-series of population-level growth anomalies. Chemical and isotopic properties may also be extracted to provide additional information regarding the environmental conditions these organisms experienced.Given that they are exactly placed in time, chronologies can be directly compared to instrumental climate records, chronologies from other regions or species, or time-seriesof other biological phenomena. In this way, chronologies may be used to reconstruct historical ranges of environmental variability, identify climatic drivers of growth, establish linkages within and among species, and generate ecosystem-level indicators. Following the first workshop in Hamburg, Germany, in December 2014, the second workshop on Growth increment Chronologies in Marine Fish: climate-ecosystem interactions in the North Atlantic (WKGIC2) met at the Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies headquarters in Esporles, Spain, on 18–22 April 2016, chaired by Bryan Black (USA) and Christoph Stransky (Germany).Thirty-six participants from fifteen different countries attended. Objectives were to i) review the applications of chronologies developed from growth-increment widths in the hard parts (otoliths, shells, scales) of marine fish and bivalve species ii) review the fundamentals of crossdating and chronology development, iii) discuss assumptions and limitations of these approaches, iv) measure otolith growth-increment widths in image analysis software, v) learn software to statistically check increment dating accuracy, vi) generate a growth increment chronology and relate it to climate indices, and vii) initiate cooperative projects or training exercises to commence after the workshop.The workshop began with an overview of tree-ring techniques of chronology development, including a hands-on exercise in cross dating. Next, we discussed the applications of fish and bivalve biochronologies and the range of issues that could be addressed. We then reviewed key assumptions and limitations, especially those associated with short-lived species for which there are numerous and extensive otolith archives in European fisheries labs. Next, participants were provided with images of European plaice otoliths from the North Sea and taught to measure increment widths in image analysis software. Upon completion of measurements, techniques of chronology development were discussed and contrasted to those that have been applied for long-lived species. Plaice growth time-series were then related to environmental variability using the KNMI Climate Explorer. Finally, potential future collaborations and funding opportunities were discussed, and there was a clear desire to meet again to compare various statistical techniques for chronology development using a range existing fish, bivalve, and tree growth-increment datasets. Overall, we hope to increase the use of these techniques, and over the long term, develop networks of biochronologies for integrative analyses of ecosystem functioning and relationships to long-term climate variability and fishing pressure.

A compilation of global bio-optical in situ data for ocean-colour satellite applications

A compiled set of in situ data is important to evaluate the quality of ocean-colour satellite-data records. Here we describe the data compiled for the validation of the ocean-colour products from the ESA Ocean Colour Climate Change Initiative (OC-CCI). The data were acquired from several sources (MOBY, BOUSSOLE, AERONET-OC, SeaBASS, NOMAD, MERMAID, AMT, ICES, HOT, GeP&CO), span between 1997 and 2012, and have a global distribution. Observations of the following variables were compiled: spectral remote-sensing reflectances, concentrations of chlorophyll a, spectral inherent optical properties and spectral diffuse attenuation coefficients. The data were from multi-project archives acquired via the open internet services or from individual projects, acquired directly from data providers. Methodologies were implemented for homogenisation, quality control and merging of all data. No changes were made to the original data, other than averaging of observations that were close in time and space, elimination of some points after quality control and conversion to a standard format. The final result is a merged table designed for validation of satellite-derived ocean-colour products and available in text format. Metadata of each in situ measurement (original source, cruise or experiment, principal investigator) were preserved throughout the work and made available in the final table. Using all the data in a validation exercise increases the number of matchups and enhances the representativeness of different marine regimes. By making available the metadata, it is also possible to analyse each set of data separately. The compiled data are available at doi: 10.1594/PANGAEA.854832 (Valente et al., 2015).

DORIS: Processing and management of Sound Velocity Profiles for echosounding applications

If a bathymetric echosounder is the essential device to carry on hydrographic surveys, other external sensors are absolutely also necessary (positioning system, motion unit or sound velocity profiler). And because sound doesn‛t go straight away into the whole bathymetric swath its measurement and processing are very sensitive for all the water column. DORIS is the very answer for an operational sound velocity profile processing.

Marine photosynthetic organisms from the Portuguese coast as sources of antitumoural compounds

Dissertação de Mestrado, Ciências Biomédicas, Departamento de Ciências Biomédicas e Medicina, Universidade do Algarve, 2016

Perspectives of engineered marine derived polymers for biomedical nanoparticles

Marine environment exhibits an enormous diversity of organisms which contains an abundant source of polysaccharides. As polymer matrix carriers, marine-based polymers possess several valuable properties including high stability, non-toxicity, hydrophilicity, biodegradability, with low production cost. Despite notable biological activities of these natural polymers, there are certain limitations in exploring their functions in applications of nano-sized drug delivery systems. The review aims to demonstrate exceptional characteristics of marine-based polymers including fucoidan, alginate, carrageenan, hyaluronic acid, chondroitin sulfate, and chitosan as well as provide perspectives of current publications on their nanoparticle formulations for biomedical applications.

Brucite Microbialites in Living Coral Skeletons: Indicators of Extreme Microenvironments in Shallow-Marine Settings

Brucite [Mg(OH)2] microbialites occur in vacated interseptal spaces of living scleractinian coral colonies (Acropora, Pocillopora, Porites) from subtidal and intertidal settings in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, and subtidal Montastraea from the Florida Keys, United States. Brucite encrusts microbial filaments of endobionts (i.e., fungi, green algae, cyanobacteria) growing under organic biofilms; the brucite distribution is patchy both within interseptal spaces and within coralla. Although brucite is undersaturated in seawater, its precipitation was apparently induced in the corals by lowered pCO2 and increased pH within microenvironments protected by microbial biofilms. The occurrence of brucite in shallow-marine settings highlights the importance of microenvironments in the formation and early diagenesis of marine carbonates. Significantly, the brucite precipitates discovered in microenvironments in these corals show that early diagenetic products do not necessarily reflect ambient seawater chemistry. Errors in environmental interpretation may arise where unidentified precipitates occur in microenvironments in skeletal carbonates that are subsequently utilized as geochemical seawater proxies.