Improving Undernutrition with Microalgae.

Undernutrition is an important global health problem, especially in children and older adults. Both reversal of maternal and child undernutrition and heathy ageing have become United Nations-supported global initiatives, leading to increased attention to nutritional interventions targeting undernutrition. One feasible option is microalgae, the precursor of all terrestrial plants.

Could chlorophyllins improve the safety profile of beta-d-N4-hydroxycytidine versus N-hydroxycytidine, the active ingredient of the SARS-CoV-2 antiviral molnupiravir?

Molnupiravir, a specific SARS-CoV-2 antiviral, may cause adverse genetic changes and thereby create potential host cell damage (through genotoxicity and DNA stressors). In our opinion, this side effect of treatment could be reduced if the antiviral was taken as a combined therapy with chlorophyllins. Specifically, we hypothesise that chlorophyllins might improve the overall effectiveness of molnupiravir, typically used to treat patients suffering from COVID-19.

Biomass pre-treatments of the N-fixing cyanobacterium Tolypothrix for co-production of methane.

Tolypothrix, a self-flocculating, fast growing, CO and nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium, can be cultivated in nutrient-poor ash dam waters of coal-fired power stations, converting CO emissions into organic biomass. Therefore, the biomass of Tolypothrix sp. is a promising source for bio-fertiliser production, providing micro- and macronutrients.

Protein Recovery from Underutilised Marine Bioresources for Product Development with Nutraceutical and Pharmaceutical Bioactivities.

The global demand for dietary proteins and protein-derived products are projected to dramatically increase which cannot be met using traditional protein sources. Seafood processing by-products (SPBs) and microalgae are promising resources that can fill the demand gap for proteins and protein derivatives. Globally, 32 million tonnes of SPBs are estimated to be produced annually which represents an inexpensive resource for protein recovery while technical advantages in microalgal biomass production would yield secure protein supplies with minimal competition for arable land and freshwater resources.

Bioproduct Potential of Outdoor Cultures of sp.: Effect of Carbon Dioxide and Metal-Rich Wastewater.

Rising CO levels, associated climatic instability, freshwater scarcity and diminishing arable land exacerbate the challenge to maintain food security for the fast growing human population. Although coal-fired power plants generate large amounts of CO emissions and wastewater, containing environmentally unsafe concentrations of metals, they ensure energy security. Nitrogen (N)-fixation by cyanobacteria eliminate nitrogen fertilization costs, making them promising candidates for remediation of waste CO and metals from macronutrient-poor ash dam water and the biomass is suitable for phycocyanin and biofertilizer product development.

Hot water pretreatment-induced significant metabolite changes in the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus.

Hot water pretreatment of sea cucumbers potentially changes nutritional benefits. This study aimed to quantify hot water pretreatment-induced changes in metabolite profiles of sea cucumber body walls. ICP-OES, GC-MS, and LC-MS analyses of untreated- (UT-BW), hot water-treated body walls (HW-BW) of Apostichopus japonicus, and the hot water extract (HW-E) determined significant losses of minerals (25-50% w/w), protein (~11% w/w), carbohydrate (33% w/w), saponins (~41% w/w), and spermidine (100%), a potential antipsychotic from hot water-treated samples.

Effect of CO and metal-rich waste water on bioproduct potential of the diazotrophic freshwater cyanobacterium, sp.

Continued economic growth is reliant on stable, affordable energy, requiring at present fossil fuel-derived energy production. Coal-fired power stations produce metal-rich but macro-nutrient-poor waste waters and emit flue gas, containing ∼10% CO. Algae and cyanobacteria remediate metals and CO, but use of N-fixing (diazotrophic) cyanobacteria can reduce nitrogen-fertilization costs.

Eukaryotic Cell Toxicity and HSA Binding of [Ru(Mephen)(bb)] and the Effect of Encapsulation in Cucurbit[10]uril.

The toxicity (IC) of a series of mononuclear ruthenium complexes containing bis[4(4'-methyl-2,2'-bipyridyl)]-1,-alkane (bb) as a tetradentate ligand against three eukaryotic cell lines-BHK (baby hamster kidney), Caco-2 (heterogeneous human epithelial colorectal adenocarcinoma) and Hep-G2 (liver carcinoma)-have been determined. The results demonstrate that -α-[Ru(Mephen)(bb)] (designated as α-Mephen-bb, where Mephen = 3,4,7,8-tetramethyl-1,10-phenanthroline) showed little toxicity toward the three cell lines, and was considerably less toxic than -α-[Ru(phen)(bb)] (α-phen-bb) and the dinuclear complex [{Ru(phen)}{μ-bb}]. Fluorescence spectroscopy was used to study the binding of the ruthenium complexes with human serum albumin (HSA).

Turbo thin film continuous flow production of biodiesel from fungal biomass.

Direct biodiesel production from wet fungal biomass may significantly reduce production costs, but there is a lack of fast and cost-effective processing technology. A novel thin film continuous flow process has been applied to study the effects of its operational parameters on fatty acid (FA) extraction and FA to fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) conversion efficiencies. Single factor experiments evaluated the effects of catalyst concentration and water content of biomass, while factorial experimental designs determined the interactions between catalyst concentration and biomass to methanol ratio, flow rate, and rotational speed.

Continuous flow biodiesel production from wet microalgae using a hybrid thin film microfluidic platform.

A novel continuous flow turbo-thin film device (T2FD) has been developed. The microfluidic platform is effective in high yielding production of biodiesel from wet microalgae at room temperature under continuous flow conditions. These findings open the possibility of cost effective production of biodiesel directly from wet microalgae.

Vortex fluidic mediated direct transesterification of wet microalgae biomass to biodiesel.

A bottleneck in the production of biodiesel from microalgae is the dewatering and lipid extraction process which is the dominant energy penalty and cost. A novel biodiesel production platform based on vortex fluidic device (VFD)-assisted direct transesterification (DT) of wet microalgal biomass of Chloroparva pannonica was developed and evaluated. Fatty acid extraction and fatty acid to FAME conversion efficiencies were used at different parameter settings to evaluate performance of the processing technology in confined and continuous mode.

Negative regulators of cell death pathways in cancer: perspective on biomarkers and targeted therapies.

Cancer is a primary cause of human fatality and conventional cancer therapies, e.g., chemotherapy, are often associated with adverse side-effects, tumor drug-resistance, and recurrence.

Improved therapeutic efficacy of mammalian expressed-recombinant interferon gamma against ovarian cancer cells.

Human interferon gamma (hIFNγ) affects tumour cells and modulates immune responses, showing promise as an anti-cancer biotherapeutic. This study investigated the effect of glycosylation and expression system of recombinant hIFNγ in ovarian carcinoma cell lines, PEO1 and SKOV3. The efficacy of E.

Recycling of food waste for fuel precursors using an integrated bio-refinery approach.

The main aim was to integrate FW-recycling with cultivation of Rhodotorula glutinis and anaerobic digestion (AD) for bio-energy and -fuel recovery. Mixed FW was mechanically macerated (Pcon) and hydrolysed (at 250gL water) via chemical (Ch), thermal (Th) and TCh (combined Ch and Th) treatments. Cleared hydrolysates from individual pre-treatment processes were used as culture medium for cultivation of R.

Effects of temperature, salinity and composition of the dinoflagellate assemblage on the growth of Gambierdiscus carpenteri isolated from the Great Barrier Reef.

Increases in reported incidence of ciguatera fish poisoning (hereafter ciguatera) have been linked to warmer sea temperatures that are known to trigger coral bleaching events. The drivers that trigger blooms of ciguatera-causing dinoflagellates on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) are poorly understood. This study investigated the effects of increased temperatures and lowered salinities, often associated with environmental disturbance events, on the population growth of two strains of the potentially ciguatera-causing dinoflagellate, Gambierdiscus carpenteri (NQAIF116 and NQAIF380).

Responses of mixed methanotrophic consortia to variable Cu/Fe ratios.

Methane mitigation in landfill top cover soils is mediated by methanotrophs whose optimal methane (CH) oxidation capacity is governed by environmental and complex microbial community interactions. Optimization of CH remediating bio-filters need to take microbial responses into account. Divalent copper (Cu) and iron (Fe) are present in landfills at variable ratios and play a vital role in methane oxidation capacity and growth of methanotrophs.

Is Pichia pastoris a realistic platform for industrial production of recombinant human interferon gamma?

Human interferon gamma (hIFNγ) is an important cytokine in the innate and adaptive immune system, produced commercially in Escherichia coli. Efficient expression of hIFNγ has been reported once for Pichia pastoris (Wang et al., 2014) - a proven heterologous expression system.

Review of the recombinant human interferon gamma as an immunotherapeutic: Impacts of production platforms and glycosylation.

Human interferon gamma is a cytokine belonging to a diverse group of interferons which have a crucial immunological function against mycobacteria and a wide variety of viral infections. To date, it has been approved for treatment of chronic granulomatous disease and malignant osteopetrosis, and its application as an immunotherapeutic agent against cancer is an increasing prospect. Recombinant human interferon gamma, as a lucrative biopharmaceutical, has been engineered in different expression systems including prokaryotic, protozoan, fungal (yeasts), plant, insect and mammalian cells.

Biological processing of dinuclear ruthenium complexes in eukaryotic cells.

The biological processing - mechanism of cellular uptake, effects on the cytoplasmic and mitochondrial membranes, intracellular sites of localisation and induction of reactive oxygen species - of two dinuclear polypyridylruthenium(ii) complexes has been examined in three eukaryotic cells lines. Flow cytometry was used to determine the uptake of [{Ru(phen)2}2{μ-bb12}](4+) (Rubb12) and [Ru(phen)2(μ-bb7)Ru(tpy)Cl](3+) {Rubb7-Cl, where phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, tpy = 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine and bbn = bis[4(4'-methyl-2,2'-bipyridyl)]-1,n-alkane} in baby hamster kidney (BHK), human embryonic kidney (HEK-293) and liver carcinoma (HepG2) cell lines. The results demonstrated that the major uptake mechanism for Rubb12 and Rubb7-Cl was active transport, although with a significant contribution from carrier-assisted diffusion for Rubb12 and passive diffusion for Rubb7-Cl.

Culture scale-up and immobilisation of a mixed methanotrophic consortium for methane remediation in pilot-scale bio-filters.

Robust methanotrophic consortia for methane (CH) remediation and by-product development are presently not readily available for industrial use. In this study, a mixed methanotrophic consortium (MMC), sequentially enriched from a marine sediment, was assessed for CH removal efficiency and potential biomass-generated by-product development. Suitable packing material for bio-filters to support MMC biofilm establishment and growth was also evaluated.

Hydrolysis treatments of fruit and vegetable waste for production of biofuel precursors.

This study investigated hydrolysis approaches for cultivation of the oleaginous red yeast Rhodotorula glutinis for biodiesel production, whilst utilising the residual solids (RS) for biogas production. Macerated fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) (24h-4°C-leachate served as the control, Pcon) was hydrolysed chemically (Chem), thermally (Therm) and using a combined thermo-chemical treatment (T-Chem). All cleared hydrolysates supported growth of R.

Novel approaches to microalgal and cyanobacterial cultivation for bioenergy and biofuel production.

Growing demand for energy and food by the global population mandates finding water-efficient renewable resources. Microalgae/cyanobacteria have shown demonstrated capacity to contribute to global energy and food security. Yet, despite proven process technology and established net energy-effectiveness and cost-effectiveness through co-product generation, microalgal biofuels are not a reality.

Oligonuclear polypyridylruthenium(II) complexes: selectivity between bacteria and eukaryotic cells.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to: (i) determine the in vitro activities of a series of di-, tri- and tetra-nuclear ruthenium complexes (Rubbn, Rubbn-tri and Rubbn-tetra) against a range of Gram-positive and -negative bacteria and compare the antimicrobial activities with the corresponding toxicities against eukaryotic cells; and (ii) compare MIC values with achievable in vivo serum concentrations for the least toxic ruthenium complex.

Methods: The in vitro activities were determined by MIC assays and time-kill curve experiments, while the toxicities of the ruthenium complexes were determined using the Alamar blue cytotoxicity assay. A preliminary pharmacokinetic study was undertaken to determine the Rubb12 serum concentration in mice as a function of time after administration.

Influence of nutrients on oxidation of low level methane by mixed methanotrophic consortia.

Low-level methane emissions from coal mine ventilation air (CMV-CH4; i.e., 1 % CH4) can significantly contribute to global climate change, and therefore, treatment is important to reduce impacts.