This thesis was aimed to analyze phenol oxidation by the bifunctional catalase/phenol oxidase of the thermophilic fungus Scytalidium thermophilum. Several reactive oxygen species (ROS) are continuously produced in fungi under oxidative stress. Depending on the nature of the ROS species, some are highly toxic and are rapidly detoxified by various cellular enzymatic mechanisms, including the production of catalase. S. thermophilum produces a novel bifunctional catalase-phenol oxidase (CATPO) which is capable of oxidizing phenolics in the absence of hydrogen peroxide. Phenol oxidases convert phenolic compounds to quinones, which are then polymerized mainly by free- radical mediated reactions. In this study, 14 phenolic compounds were selected according to their different chemical structures and functional properties and were analyzed as substrates of CATPO. Among 14 phenolic compounds, only in catechol, chlorogenic acid, catechin and caffeic acid distinct oxidation products were observed by HPLC. The oxidation products of catechol, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid and catechin were characterized by LC-ESI-MS. Dimer, trimer, tetramer and oligomer formations were detected. While the maximum conversion efficiency, at 1 hour of reaction, was observed with catechin, minimum conversion efficiency was attained by caffeic acid, under the specified conditions. The oxidation products observed after oxidation of catechol, chlorogenic acid, catechin and caffeic acid by CATPO was compared with the same phenolic compounds oxidation products oxidized by laccase and tyrosinase. CATPO was incapable of oxidizing tyrosinase and laccase-specific substrates tyrosine and ABTS respectively. However, the oxidizing spectrum of substrates indicates that the nature of phenol oxidation by CATPO appears to resemble mainly those of laccase.

L'un des avantages majeurs des réactions de bioconversion résulte du fait que le milieu réactionnel des biocatalyseurs est l'eau. Ce dit avantage constitue l'une des principales limitations de ces réactions de bioconversion lorsqu'il s'agit de substances lipophiles non solubles dans l'eau connue les stérols. L'efficacité d'un procédé de bioconversion de substances lipophiles solides dépend essentiellement du contact et de 1'interaction entre le biocatalyseur et ce substrat lipophile. Les solutions proposées dans la littérature font appel à des solvants et des produits chimiques de natures souvent toxiques, inflammables et explosives. Ces solutions décrites font perdre à la bioconversion son caractère de biotechnologie blanche. Dans ce travail, nous avons montré qu'en plus de ses avantages connus, l'immobilisation passive de biocatalyseurs au sein d'un support poreux peut favoriser l'interaction cellule-substrat lipophile et augmenter le taux de bioconversion sans utiliser de solvants et de produits chimiques. La réaction modèle étudiée est le clivage de la chaine latérale des stérols par des mycobactéries en vue de l'obtention des androsténones précurseurs naturels des stéroïdes, molécules à forte valeur biologique ajoutée. Le support d'immobilisation le plus performant a été le fruit sec de Luffa cylindrica. Par rapport aux supports organiques classiques tels que les gels de polyacrylamide, les mousses de polyuréthane, la silicone et les plastiques, le fruit sec de Luffa cylindrica présente les avantages suivants : (i) c'est un produit naturel, (ii) biodégradable, (iii) peu onéreux, (iv) non toxique pour les microorganismes, (v) stable du point de vue mécanique et thermique, (vi) et réutilisable.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor Technologiae: Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology - Cape Town, South Africa / Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are one of the most common and recalcitrant environmental contaminants – known for their potential toxicity, mutagenicity, and carcinogenicity to humans. Biosurfactant application can enhance the biodegradation of PAHs. The main object of this work was to explore the novelty of biosurfactant produced by the isolated strains of Bacillus sp and Pseudomonas aeruginosa grown exclusively on Beta vulgaris, and the modification of the zeolites nanoparticles by the biosurfactant, for enhanced biodegradation of PAHs in soil. Novel biosurfactant-producing strains were isolated from hydrocarbon-contaminated environments, while several agrowaste were screened as primary carbon sources for the expression of biosurfactants, which were quantified using various standardized methods......

abstract: Lignocellulosic biomass represents a renewable domestic feedstock that can support large-scale biochemical production processes for fuels and specialty chemicals. However, cost-effective conversion of lignocellulosic sugars into valuable chemicals by microorganisms still remains a challenge. Biomass recalcitrance to saccharification, microbial substrate utilization, bioproduct titer toxicity, and toxic chemicals associated with chemical pretreatments are at the center of the bottlenecks limiting further commercialization of lignocellulose conversion. Genetic and metabolic engineering has allowed researchers to manipulate microorganisms to overcome some of these challenges, but new innovative approaches are needed to make the process more commercially viable. Transport proteins represent an underexplored target in genetic engineering that can potentially help to control the input of lignocellulosic substrate and output of products/toxins in microbial biocatalysts. In this work, I characterize and explore the use of transport systems to increase substrate utilization, conserve energy, increase tolerance, and enhance biocatalyst performance. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Biological Design 2018

AgÃncia Nacional do PetrÃleo / Devido à futura escassez dos recursos oriundos do petrÃleo e o aumento da poluiÃÃo do ambiente, diversas universidades e empresas estÃo em busca de fontes renovÃveis de energia que possuam um baixo custo. O etanol à um bicombustÃvel renovÃvel em curto prazo e em alguns casos, para sua produÃÃo, sÃo utilizados resÃduos indÃstriais, valorizando ainda mais as qualidades do etanol produzido. Devido as inÃmeras vantagens que esse biocombustÃvel pode apresentar frente aos combustÃveis fosseis faz com que atualmente haja diversas pesquisas para encontrar novas formas baratas para sua produÃÃo, assim, a utilizaÃÃo de matÃrias primas nÃo convencionais vem como um atrativo a mais na produÃÃo de etanol. Neste trabalho utilizou-se glicerol bruto, oriundo da produÃÃo de biodiesel, como fonte de carbono com o objetivo de dar valor agregado a este resÃduo industrial. O glicerol à uma Ãtima fonte de carbono para fermentaÃÃo alcoÃlica, ele possui alto grau de reduÃÃo e um baixo custo, devido principalmente a crescente oferta no mercado mundial. O glicerol à um subproduto da reaÃÃo de transterificaÃÃo de Ãleos vegetais. A cada 10 kg de biodiesel produzidos obtÃm-se 1 kg de glicerol. A produÃÃo de biodiesel esta em constante crescimento devido a crescente demanda por combustÃvel, o que acarreta o crescimento da produÃÃo de glicerol. Para produÃÃo de etanol utilizando este glicerol, realizou-se um estudo com dois microrganismos. Os microrganismos estudados foram uma levedura e uma bactÃria, Saccharomyces sp.1201 e Klebsiella pneumonia ATCC 29665, respectivamente. Nesta dissertaÃÃo, utilizou-se diferentes concentraÃÃes de inÃculo para os cultivos utilizando Saccharomyces sp.1201 e difeentes concentraÃÃes de glicerol para os cultivos que utilizaram Klebsiella pneumonia ATCC 29665. Os resultados com a levedura nÃo foram satisfatÃrios, pois esta levedura nÃo foi capaz de produzir etanol utilizando glicerol como substrato. Jà à bactÃria estudada teve uma boa produÃÃo de etanol e foi capaz de metabolizar o glicerol do meio fermentativo, chegando a produzir cerca de 1,4 g/L de etanol. AlÃm da produÃÃo de etanol, nos ensaios usando a bactÃria Klebsiella pneumonia ATCC 29665, foram obtidos outros dois produtos de valor agregado, 1,3 propanodiol e Ãcido acÃtico. AlÃm do trabalho experiemental, foram realizadas simulaÃÃes da fermentaÃÃo utilizando K. pneumonia, para analisar o seu comportamento da fermentaÃÃo baseado nas variaÃÃes concentraÃÃo de glicerol, concentraÃÃo de inÃculo, bypass e zona morta dentro de reator real. Estas simulaÃÃes visavam analisar as condiÃÃes de operaÃÃo numa futura ampliaÃÃo de escala do processo em escala de laboratÃrio aqui estudado para implantaÃÃo de uma biorrefinaria. O modelo foi ajustado usando valores Ãtimos de volume de reator de 1.500 L e bypass de 0.1 / Due to shortage of energy sources and increasing environmental pollution, many universities and companies are in search to renewable energy. Ethanol can be a renewable biofuel in the short term. Besides the numerous advantages of ethanol over fossil fuels, it can be produced from industrial waste. In this work, it was used glycerol as carbon source in order to give value to this waste. Glycerol can be a good carbon source for fermentation, it has a high degree of reduction and a low cost. There is a large supply of glycerol in the world market, because it is a byproduct of the transterification reaction of vegetable oils, 10 kg biodiesel produced have 1 kg of glycerol. It is known that the production of biodiesel is in constant growth which results in the growth of the production of glycerol. To produce ethanol using glycerol was carried out a study of two microorganisms. The microorganisms studied were a bacterium and a yeast, Saccharomyces sp.1201 and Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 29,665 respectively. For this study, it was used different concentrations of inoculum for the runs using Saccharomyces sp.1201 and different concentrations of glycerol for the runs using Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 29,665. The results obtained with yeast have not been satisfactory, this yeast was not able to produce ethanol using glycerol as substrate, however, the bacteria studied presented good production of ethanol and was able to metabolize fermentation media with glycerol, up to produce about 1, 4 g / L of ethanol, also obtained as the reaction product of 1.3-propanediol and acetic acid. We also carried out a simulation of fermentation using Klebsiella pneumonia, and analyzed the behavior of the fermentation process based on the following changes of glycerol concentration, inoculum concentration, bypass and the dead zone inside the reactor. With the simulations it was possible to see how the dead zone and very influential on the reactor performance.

Food waste in the waste stream is becoming an important aspect of integrated waste management systems. Current efforts are composting and animal feeding. However, these food waste disposal practices rely on slow thermodynamic processes of composting or finding farmers with domestic animals capable of consuming the food wastes. Bioconversion, a potential alternative, is a waste management practice that converts food waste to insect larval biomass and organic residue. This project uses a native and common non-pest insect in Texas, the black soldier fly, which processes large quantities of food wastes, as well as animal wastes and sewage in its larval stage. The goal of this research is to facilitate the identification and development of the practical parameters of bioconversion methods at a large cafeteria. Three major factors were selected to evaluate the practicality of a bioconversion system: (1) the biological constraints on the species; (2) the economic costs and benefits for the local community; (3) the perception of and interaction between the public and management agencies with respect to the bioconversion process. Results indicate that bioconversion is feasible on all levels. Larvae tolerate and consume food waste as well as used cooking grease, reducing the overall waste volume by 30-70% in a series of experiments, with an average reduction of 50%. The economical benefits are reduced collection costs and profit from the sale of pupae as a feedstuff, which could amount to as much as $1,200 per month under optimal conditions. Social acceptance is possible, but requires education of the public, specifically targeting school children. Potential impediments to social acceptance include historical attitudes and ignorance, which could be overcome through effective educational efforts.

Orientador: Fabio Marcio Squina / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-22T07:16:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Brenelli_LiviaBeatriz_M.pdf: 3254921 bytes, checksum: 742abc7bd539c101669cd20c8861717d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Resumo: O bagaço de cana-de-açúcar é um resíduo agroindustrial abundante no Brasil que pode ser utilizado como matéria-prima em uma biorrefinaria para produção de compostos com interesse industrial. A dificuldade para conversão do bagaço de cana e outros materiais lignocelulósicos em biocombustíveis ou insumos químicos é atribuída às suas características químicas e morfológicas. Neste sentido, um dos principais desafios que envolvem esta bioconversão é a desconstrução da parede celular de forma eficiente e economicamente viável. O aproveitamento do bagaço de cana para produção de ácido ferúlico e de xilooligossacarídeos pode representar uma estratégia interessante de bioconversão de um resíduo agroindustrial em moléculas de alto valor agregado. O estudo descrito nesta dissertação aborda o desenvolvimento de uma rota biotecnológica utilizando o bagaço de cana para produção de ácido ferúlico, empregando a enzima feruloil esterase do fungo Aspergillus clavatus, e xilooligossacarídeos, fazendo uso de endo-xilanase e arabinofuranosidase, dos fungos Penicillium funiculosum e Aspergillus niger, respectivamente. Neste trabalho, estas enzimas recombinantes foram super expressas em sistema heterólogo, sendo a feruloil esterase expressa em Escherichia coli, enquanto a xilanase e a arabinofuranosidase expressas em Aspergillus nidulans como hospedeiro. O emprego da feruloil esterase resultou na liberação de ácido ferúlico e outros compostos fenólicos com capacidade antioxidante, utilizando o bagaço de cana e o arabinoxilano de trigo como substrato. O pré-tratamento químico do bagaço de cana mostrou ser adequado para aumentar a eficiência deste processo de conversão enzimática. A atividade sinérgica da endo-xilanase e arabinofuranosidase propiciou uma melhor eficiência na produção de xilooligossacarídeos a partir do bagaço de cana. Os estudos aqui descritos, quanto à utilização de bagaço de cana-de-açúcar como substrato para produção destes compostos com apelo biotecnológico, são inéditos na literatura. Além disso, os resultados deste trabalho, também contribuíram para a melhor compreensão do mecanismo de ação destas enzimas sobre este tipo de biomassa, bem como na elucidação de quais enzimas são necessárias para conversão do bagaço de cana em bioprodutos / Abstract: Sugarcane bagasse is an abundant agroindustrial residue in Brazil that can be used as feedstock biorefineries for the production of bioactive compounds of industrial interest. The difficulty on the convertion of sugarcane bagasse and other lignocellulosic materials into biofuels or chemicals is attributed to their chemical and morphological characteristics. Thus, one of the main challenges involved in this bioconversion route is the efficient and economically viable deconstruction of plant cell wall. The use of bagasse for the production of ferulic acid and xylooligosaccharides may represent an interesting alternative route for bioconversion of an agroindustrial residue into value-added molecules. This dissertation describes the development of a biotechnological approaches using sugarcane bagasse for the production of ferulic acid by employing the feruloyl esterase enzyme from the fungus Aspergillus clavatus. Likewise, the production of xylooligosaccharides was also described using arabinofuranosidase and endo-xylanase from the fungi Penicillium funiculosum and Aspergillus niger, respectively. These recombinant enzymes were over expressed in heterologous systems, meanwhile the feruloyl esterase was expressed in Escherichia coli, the arabinofuranosidase and xylanase were expressed in Aspergillus nidulans as host. Ferulic acid and other phenolic compounds with antioxidant capacity were released by the action feruloyl esterase using sugarcane bagasse and wheat arabinoxylan as substrate. Chemical pretreatment of the sugarcane bagasse proved to be suitable to increase the efficiency of the enzymatic conversion process. The synergistic activity of the endo-xylanase and arabinofuranosidase enzymes led to greater efficiency on the production of xylooligosaccharides from sugarcane bagasse. The studies described here, regarding the use of sugarcane bagasse as substrate for production of these compounds with biotechnological appealing are unprecedented in literature. Furthermore, the results of this work also contributed to better understanding the mechanism of enzyme action on this type of biomass, as well as to determine which enzymes are important for conversion of sugarcane bagasse into bioproducts / Mestrado / Fármacos, Medicamentos e Insumos para Saúde / Mestra em Biociências e Tecnologia de Produtos Bioativos

The desire for value addition to the organic waste management chain at Högbytorp using the Black Soldier Fly (BSF) process, as well as the problem of the escalating demand for protein in livestock feed motivated this study. Good quality crop land is devoted to growing feed for animals at the expense of human food, and ironically with a full understanding of the associated environmental footprints. Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL) feed on organic waste voraciously while building their body composition of 40% protein and 30% fat. Their protein can be used in animal feedstock and pet food, replacing the more expensive but nutritionally comparable fishmeal, while their fat can be used for biodiesel production. They can also reduce a waste pile significantly, minimizing possible pollution. In this study, the process was tried on various waste streams (fruits, manure and ‘slurry reject’) at Högbytorp. Biomass conversion, larval fat and protein content, compost by-product characteristics and residence time requirements for each stream were assessed. The study involved literature review, chemical analyses and experimental design (rearing BSFL on waste through their lifecycle). The study yielded waste reduction up to 83% and fat and protein contents up to 42% and 41% respectively, depending on the waste stream. The residence time depended on the age at which the larvae started feeding, but ranged between 8-11 days. If applied in organic waste management chain, the process could contribute to greener energy provision (biodiesel) as well as sustainable protein provision to the animal, fish and pet industries. It could further reduce waste amounts significantly and generate income while contributing to the saving of Earth’s limited resources.

La bioconversion des biomasses lignocellulosiques est actuellement un grand défi pour le développement de technologies de bio-raffinage. Le manque de connaissances des mécanismes de liquéfaction et de saccharification est l’un des principaux facteurs qui pénalisent le développement des procédés de bio-raffinage. Ce travail est centré sur le développement d’analyses physiques et biochimiques in-situ (viscosimétrie, focus beam reflectance measurement) et ex-situ (rhéometrie, granulométrie laser, morphogranulométrie, sédimentation…) pour améliorer la compréhension des mécanismes de déstructuration desfibres lignocellulosiques et caractériser les cinétiques de libération de carbone fermentescible. Des substrats modèles (cellulose microcristalline, papier Whatman) et industriels (pâte à papier, bagasse de canne à sucre) ont été utilisés avec différentes conditions d'hydrolyse (1% à 30%w/v, 0.1 à 0.5mL enzyme/ g cellulose). Les résultats obtenus ont permis:- de proposer et de valider les mesures in-situ de la viscosité de la suspension et de la distribution des longueurs de corde des particules, ainsi que sa conversion en distribution de diamètre.- de montrer l'impact de la nature et de la concentration de substrat et des ratios enzyme/substrat sur les évolutions des paramètres physico-biochimiques lors de l'hydrolyse. Ces effets ont été quantifiés sur les limitations de transfert.- d'établir un modèle phénoménologique de comportement rhéologique des suspensions initiales- de montrer que les cinétiques physico et bio-chimiques sont des cinétiques du second ordre- de montrer que, pour des hydrolyses à haute teneur en matière sèche, on peut réduire considérablement la limitation des transferts liée aux hautes concentrations et contrôler la cinétique de production de glucose par une stratégie d’ajouts cumulés desubstrat. / In the context of biofuels and chemicals production of petroleum substitutes from renewable carbon, bioconversion of lignocellulose biomasses is currently a major challenge. The limited knowledge of liquefaction and saccharification mechanisms stands as the main factor which penalizes bio-refinery progress. The present work is centred on the development of in-situ(viscosimetry, focus beam reflectance measurement) and ex-situ (rheometry, diffraction light scattered, morphometry, decantation…) physical and biochemical analysis to expand our understanding of the destructuration mechanisms of lignocellulose fibres and to characterise the release kinetics of fermentable cellulosic carbon. Model (microcrystalline cellulose,Whatman paper) and industrial (paper-pulp, sugarcane bagasse) lignocellulose matrices under a large range of hydrolysis conditions (1% up to 30%w/v and 0.1 up to 0.5mL enzyme/g cellulose) were studied during 24h hydrolysis experiments (pertinent period to appreciate transfer limitations). Our scientific results allow:- to propose and validate the in-situ measurements of the suspension viscosity and chord length distribution together with its conversion into particle size distribution.- to demonstrate the impact of the substrate nature and concentration and of the enzymatic ratios on the evolution of physical- and biochemical parameters during hydrolysis. Their impacts on transfer phenomena were quantified.- to establish phenomenological models for rheological behaviour of initial suspensions.- to describe all physical (viscosity, particle size) and biochemical (substrate and product) kinetics by second order reaction models.- to demonstrate that, for high dry matter concentration hydrolysis, a cumulative feeding substrate strategy allows considerably reducing the transfer limitations linked to high concentrations and to control the glucose production kinetics.

La première partie du travail présenté porte sur la bioconversion de l' -pinène oxyde en cis-2-methyl-5-isopropylhexa-2,5-dienal (isonovalal) par l' -pinène oxyde lyase de Pseudomonas rhodesiae CIP 107491 en milieu biphasique eau / hexadécane. Le produit de la bioconversion est purifié et ses caractéristiques physico-chimiques sont estimées. La correction de phénomènes de dégradation thermique, de perte par dégradation chimique et par entraînement dans la phase gazeuse montre que le rendement réel de bioconversion est proche de 100 %. L' -pinène oxyde lyase est également purifiée et des éléments concernant sa structure sont recueillies. Ses constantes cinétiques sont estimées (KS = 27 μmol.L-1, rSmax = 97 μmol.min-1.mg-1 et turn-over = 230.000 mol.mol-1). Une inactivation interfaciale de l'enzyme purifiée au contact d'une interface eau/hexadécane est mise en évidence. Une inactivation par le produit de bioconversion est également démontrée. Enfin, l'étude met en évidence une induction de la production de l'enzyme par l' -pinène au cours de la production du biocatalyseur. La deuxième partie du travail présenté concerne la mise au point et l'optimisation d'un procédé de bioconversion de l' -pinène oxyde en acide trans-2-methyl-5- isopropylhexa-2,5-dienoïque (acide novalique) par des cellules intactes de P.rhodesiae. Les étapes métaboliques initiales de la voie de dégradation de l' -pinène selon les composés " novas " sont étudiées en parallèle. Le procédé final permet d'obtenir 16 g.L-1 d'acide novalique produit en environ 7,5 h, ce qui correspond à une vitesse de 2,2 g.L-1.h-1, avec un rendement moyen de 47 %, à partir de 7 g.L-1 de biomasse.