Sequential degradation of raw vinasse by a laccase enzyme producing fungus Pleurotus sajor-caju and its ATPS purification.

This study evaluated simultaneously the raw vinasse degradation, an effluent from the sugar-alcohol industry, the laccase production by Pleurotus sajor-caju and its purification using aqueous two-phase systems (ATPS). To improve laccase production, different concentrations of inducers (ethanol and CuSO4) were added. The higher laccase production promoted an increase of 4-fold using 0.4 mM of CuSO4 as inducer, with maximum enzymatic activity of 539.3 U/L on the 3rd day of fermentation. The final treated vinasse had a decolorization of 92% and turbidity removal of 99% using CuSO4. Moreover, the produced laccase was then purified by ATPS in a single purification step, reaching 2.9-fold and recovered ≈ 99,9 %, in the top phase (PEG-rich phase) using 12 wt% of PEG 1500 + 20 wt% of citrate buffer + enzyme broth + water, at 25 °C. Thus, an integrated process of vinasse degradation, laccase production and purification with potential industrial application was proposed.

Pulp wash: a new source for production of ligninolytic enzymes and biomass and its toxicological evaluation after biological treatment.

Pulp wash was used as substrate for the activity of ligninolytic enzymes of the fungus Pleurotus sajor-caju. Activity of laccase (Lac) and manganese peroxidase (MnP) as well as fungal biomass occurred under four conditions: different pulp wash concentrations, pH variation at the optimal pulp wash concentration, different glucose concentrations, and different concentrations of ammonium nitrate. The best enzyme activity and biomass production were obtained with in natura pulp wash and pH corrected to 5.0 (4884 IU/L Lac; 82 IU/L MnP; 25 g/100 mL biomass). However, the addition of glucose and ammonium nitrate to the pulp wash was not necessary for increasing the enzyme activity and biomass production. Efficient removal of pulp wash chemical oxygen demand (99.66%) and biochemical oxygen demand (83.27%) occurred after the mycoremediation with P. sajor-caju in the optimized conditions. Lactuca sativa L. seeds germination bioassay showed a four-fold reduction in the residue toxicity (EC50 28.72%) after the treatment with the fungus. Our findings are consistent with the notion that pulp wash is an excellent substrate for inducing the activity of ligninolytic enzymes and producing fungal biomass, and that the biological treatment is efficient to reduce effluent toxicity.

Role of the antioxidant defense system during the production of lignocellulolytic enzymes by fungi.

Fungi are used for the production of several compounds and the efficiency of biotechnological processes is directly related to the metabolic activity of these microorganisms. The reactions catalyzed by lignocellulolytic enzymes are oxidative and generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). Excess of ROS can cause serious damages to cells, including cell death. Thus, the objective of this work was to evaluate the lignocellulolytic enzymes produced by Pleurotus sajor-caju CCB020, Phanerochaete chrysosporium ATCC 28326, Trichoderma reesei RUT-C30, and Aspergillus niger IZ-9 grown in sugarcane bagasse and two yeast extract (YE) concentrations and characterize the antioxidant defense system of fungal cells by the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT). Pleurotus sajor-caju exhibited the highest activities of laccase and peroxidase in sugarcane bagasse with 2.6 g of YE and an increased activity of manganese peroxidase in sugarcane bagasse with 1.3 g of YE was observed. However, P. chrysosporium showed the highest activities of exoglucanase and endoglucanase in sugarcane bagasse with 1.3 g of YE. Lipid peroxidation and variations in SOD and CAT activities were observed during the production of lignocellulolytic enzymes and depending on the YE concentrations. The antioxidant defense system was induced in response to the oxidative stress caused by imbalances between the production and the detoxification of ROS.

Detection of hormones in surface and drinking water in Brazil by LC-ESI-MS/MS and ecotoxicological assessment with Daphnia magna.

The growing use of pharmaceutical drug is mainly due to several diseases in human and in animal husbandry. As these drugs are discharged into waterways via wastewater, they cause a major impact on the environment. Many of these drugs are hormones; in which even at low concentrations can alter metabolic and physiological functions in many organisms. Hormones were found in surface water, groundwater, soil, and sediment at concentrations from nanograms to milligrams per liter of volume--quantities known to cause changes in the endocrine system of aquatic organisms. This study aimed to develop a methodology for hormone detection (estriol, estrone, 17ß-estradiol, 17α-ethinylestradiol, progesterone, and testosterone) on surface and treated water samples. Sample toxicity was assessed by ecotoxicology tests using Daphnia magna. A liquid chromatograph coupled to a mass spectrometer with an electrospray ionization source (LC-ESI-MS/MS) was used for the analysis. The results showed that samples were contaminated by the hormones estriol, estrone, progesterone, 17ß-estradiol, and 17α-ethinylestradiol during the sampling period, and the highest concentrations measured were 90, 28, 26, 137, and 194 ng · L(-1), respectively. This indicates the inflow of sewage containing these hormones at some points in the Piracicaba River in the State of Sao Paulo-Brazil. Results indicated little toxicity of the hormone estriol in D. magna, indicating that chronic studies with this microcrustacean are necessary.

Qualidade de vida de trabalhadores afetados por Perda Auditiva Induzida por Ruído / Quality of life of workers affected by Noise-Induced Hearing Loss

Introdução: Trabalhadores podem apresentar Perda Auditiva Induzida por Ruído (PAIR), que compromete sua qualidade de vida ao prejudicar sua comunicação. O uso de Aparelho de Amplificação Sonora Individual (AASI) minimiza essa situação, razão da proposta de incluir esses indivíduos em programa de reabilitação auditiva. Objetivo: Localizar estudos que enfoquem a qualidade de vida de portadores de PAIR. Métodos: Foi providenciado levantamento bibliográfico cuja fonte foram livros, teses, o banco de dados da BIREME, nas bases de dados LILACS e SciELO e o acervo do Centro de Estudos da Saúde do Trabalhador e Ecologia Humana (CESTEH). Revisão da literatura: Foi analisada a evolução da atenção à saúde do trabalhador (ST) e seu acolhimento quando acometido por agravos à saúde, com destaque à PAIR e legislação pertinente. Foi revisto o mecanismo da audição, as características do som e as dimensões da qualidade de vida. Resultados e discussão: Foram selecionados trabalhos que investigaram, em diferentes amostras, a prevalência de PAIR, suas características segundo idade e tempo de exposição, sua associação com zumbido e a correlação entre audição, zumbido e qualidade de vida; que comprovaram associação entre piora da qualidade de vida e presença de PAIR e que a utilização de AASI propicia sua melhora. Considerações finais: Se propõe fortalecer a articulação intrassetorial nas ações em ST, com o fim de garantir acesso dos trabalhadores afetados ao AASI.

Evaluation of sugar-cane vinasse treated with Pleurotus sajor-caju utilizing aquatic organisms as toxicological indicators.

Toxicity tests with aquatic organisms constitute an effective tool in the evaluation, prediction and detection of the potential effect of pollutants from environmental samples in living organisms. Vinasse, a highly colored effluent, is a sub-product rich in nutrients, mainly organic matter, with high pollutant potential when disposed in the environment. Assays for vinasse decolorization were performed using the fungus Pleurotus sajor-caju CCB020 in vinasse biodegradation study, were occurred reductions of 82.8% in COD, 75.3% in BOD, 99.2% in the coloration and 99.7% in turbidity. The vinasse toxicity reduction was determined by the exposition to the following organisms: Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, Daphnia magna, Daphnia similis and Hydra attenuata. This work concluded that the systematic combination of P. sajor-caju and vinasse can be applied in the bioprocess of color reduction and degradation of complex vinasse compounds, with reduction in the toxicity and improving its physical-chemical properties.

Use of vinasse and sugarcane bagasse for the production of enzymes by lignocellulolytic fungi

In this present work, three strains of Pleurotus and Trichoderma reesei were cultivated in media with pre-treated bagasse and vinasse. Cellulolytic and lignolytic activities and biomass production were analyzed. The treatment of the bagasse with 2 percent H2O2 + 1.5 percent NaOH + autoclave resulted in a greater fiber breakage increasing the cellulose level up to 1.2 times and decreasing 8.5 times the hemicellulose content. This treatment also resulted in a high lignolytic activity for all cultures utilized. T. reesei produced laccase, peroxidase and manganese-peroxidase in all the treatments, having its manganese-peroxidase activity raging from 1.9 to 4.8 times higher than the basidiomycetes.

Recentemente o uso de material lignocelulolítico tem mostrado um importante avanço na produção de biocombustíveis. O bagaço e a vinhaça são resíduos oriundos do processamento da cana de açúcar e contem um alto teor de carbono, que geralmente é usado na co-geração de energia e ração animal. Três linhagens de Pleurotus e um ascomiceto, Trichoderma reesei, foram cultivados em bagaço pré-tratado e vinhaça. As atividades lignolíticas e celulolíticas foram analisadas, tanto quanto a produção de biomassa. Foi observado que o tratamento no bagaço com 2 por cento H2O2 + 1.5 por cento NaOH + autoclave resultou numa maior quebra da fibra, aumentando o teor de celulose em 1.2 vezes mais e diminuiu em 8.5 vezes o conteúdo de hemicelulose. Este tratamento também resultou numa alta atividade lignolítica pelos fungos utilizados. O ascomiceto T. reesei produziu lacase, peroxidase e manganês-peroxidase em todos os tratamentos, tendo uma atividade de manganês-peroxidase variando entre 1.9 a 4.8 vezes mais que nos basidiomicetos.