Analysis and quantification of naturally occurring aflatoxin B1 in dry fruits with subsequent physical and biological detoxification.

Current research involves extraction, identification and detoxification of mycotoxins from ten dry fruit samples. Mycotoxins were identified by high performance thin layer chromatography followed by physical and biological detoxification, analysed by HPLC. Three fungal species were observed after isolation including, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus and Fussarium sp. HP-TLC analysis revealed the presence of mycotoxin, aflatoxin B1 ranging from 0.000303-0.03636 mg/kg in all samples. Results were further analysed through various statistical tests. Detoxification methods proved to be cost effective and easily implementable. Concentration of aflatoxin B1 in pine nuts was reduced to 0.0043 mg/kg and 0.0039 mg/kg in dry dates through UV based detoxification. Solarisation reduced the concentration of aflatoxin B1 in figs to 0.0044 mg/kg. 90% aflatoxins were detoxified by UV treatment while Zingiber officinale powder detoxified 90% mycotoxin. This research concludes that the studied detoxification methods can be generalised on larger scale to benefit the dry fruit industry worldwide.

Mycotoxins in Zea mays, their quantification and HPLC analysis of physico-biological detoxification.

Present research delves in the isolation, extraction and identification of mycotoxins from ten corn samples collected from the northern province of Pakistan. Average concentration of aflatoxin B1 and B2 by HP-TLC found in all corn samples was 27.87 and 1.35 µg/kg, respectively. Following HP-TLC, detoxification of the identified and isolated mycotoxin was performed, which was analyzed by HPLC. Screening of mycoflora exhibited Aspergillus niger and Fusarium as the most dominant fungal strains. Aflatoxin B1 was physically detoxified under UV-Lamp and direct sunlight displaying detoxification percentage of 48% and 99%, respectively. Biological detoxification involved the use of botanicals such as neem leaves, garlic and ginger powder, which portrayed an approximate detoxification of 70% from corn samples. Current research concludes that the tested physical and biological methods can be easily adopted at field and storage rooms after the harvesting of crops to avoid fungal contamination and subsequent food spoilage.

Effective Remediation Strategy for Xenobiotic Zoxamide by Pure Bacterial Strains, Escherichia coli, Streptococcus pyogenes, and Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Zoxamide, a class IV hazardous fungicide, is perilous for the environment due to its highly persistent nature. Up till the current date, there are no reports on the biodegradation of zoxamide. The scarcity of knowledge in this domain led to the present research to evaluate the biodegradation of this benzamide fungicide by three bacterial strains, Escherichia coli (EC), Streptococcus pyogenes (SPy), and Streptococcus pneumoniae (SP). Biotransformation of zoxamide was scrutinized in nutrient broth assemblies for a period of 28 days followed by UV-visible spectrophotometer and GC-MS analysis of the metabolites. The results exhibited a low to medium biodegradation potential of the bacterial cells to metabolize zoxamide. The highest biotransformation percentage was observed by E. coli to be 29.8%. The order of half-life calculated for the degradation results was EC (42.5) < SPy (58.7) < SP (67.9) days. GC-MS analysis indicated the formation of several metabolites including, 2-(3,5-dichloro-4-methylphenyl)-4-ethyl-4-methyl-4H-1,3-oxazin-5(6H)-one, 3,5-dichloro-N-(3-hydroxy-1-ethyl-1-methyl--2-oxopropyl)-4-methylbenzamide and 3,5-dichloro-4-methylbenzamide. The research could influence the biotreatment strategies for the environmentally friendly eradication of xenobiotics.

Efficient fungal and bacterial facilitated remediation of thiencarbazone methyl in the environment.

Triazole herbicide, Thiencarbazone-methyl (TCM) applied on different crops for weedicidal activity is associated with an inherent toxicity towards bladder and urinary functionality. TCM has been first time explored for its biodegradative behavior utilizing microbes, previously isolated from soils. Simulated bio-transformation assemblies of five fungal strains; Aspergillus flavus (AF), Penicillium chrysogenum (PC), Aspergillus niger (AN), Aspergillus terrus (AT), Aspergillus fumigatus (AFu) and two bacterial strains: Xanthomonas citri (XC), Pseudomonassyringae (PS), were utilized. 10 mg/L TCM concentration was set up utilizing each microbe and analysed for 42 days. TCM bio-degradation was evaluated by UV-Visible spectrophotometery and gas chromatography mass spectroscopy. Aspergillus terrus (R2 = 0.86) and Penicillium chrysogenum (R2 = 0.88) exhibited highest capability to metabolize TCM while forming intermediate metabolites including; 2,4-dihydro-[1,2,4] triazol-3-one, semicarbazide and urea, methyl 4-isocyanatosulfonyl-5-methylthiophene-3-carboxylate. TCM degradation by all strains AF, AFu, AN, PC, AT, PS and XC was found to be 74, 74, 81, 95, 98, 90 and 95%, respectively after 42 days elucidating the effectiveness of all the utilized strains in degrading TCM. Current investigations can impact vital bioremediation approaches for pesticides mitigation from the ecological compartments. Furthermore, present research can be extended to the optimization of the bio-deteriorative assays to be employed on the practical scale for the successful management of environment through sustainable and cost effective ways.

Bioelectrochemical systems: Sustainable bio-energy powerhouses.

Bioelectrochemical systems comprise of several types of cells, from basic microbial fuel cells (MFC) to photosynthetic MFCs and from plant MFCs to biophotovoltaics. All these cells employ bio entities at anode to produce bioenergy by catalysing organic substrates while some systems convert solar irradiation to energy. The current review epitomizes the above-mentioned fuel cell systems and elucidates their electrical performances. Microbial fuel cells have advantages over conventional fuel cells in terms of being sustainable whilst producing impressive power efficiencies without any net carbon emissions. They can be utilized for several environmentally friendly applications including wastewater treatment and bio-hydrogen generation, apart from producing clean and green electricity. Multifarious heterotrophic and autotrophic microbes and plants have been studied for their potential as imperative components of fuel cell technology. MFCs also display some interesting applications, such as integration of plant MFCs into architecture to produce "green" cities. Biophotovoltaic technology is the current hot cake in this field, which aspires to achieve significant electrical efficiencies by light-induced water splitting mechanisms. Furthermore, the utilization of BPVs in space renders it a technology for the future. Compared with other fuel cell systems, this technology is still in its inception and requires further efforts to endeavour its use on commercial or industrial level.