1,721,138 research outputs found
Valorisation of brewery wastes in a circular bioeconomy – from low-cost animal feed to high-value products
No full textThe global brewery industry generates around 46 million metric tonnes of by-products annually. The brewing process produces solid wastes such as spent grains, spent hops and spent yeasts. Wastewater is generated from the production and cleaning of fermentation and storage tanks as well as vats and bottles rinsing. The majority of the solid wastes are either disposed of in the environment or used as low-cost animal feed. Brewery wastes are in fact viable and sustainable commodities. They contain residual compounds and materials that can be used to produce valuable chemicals, pharmaceuticals and biopolymers, or act as platform chemicals to be further processed into higher-value products. Brewery
wastes and wastewater can also function as feedstock for energy production. This chapter provides an overview of the brewing process to highlight the major waste streams of the industry. The chemical properties of the wastes are detailed to illustrate their intrinsic values. The state-of-the-art biotechnological advances to valorise brewery waste are discussed and a circular bioeconomy conceptual model is proposed. It is hoped that the knowledge presented in this chapter will help to maximise the socio-economic potential of brewery wastes and the sustainability of the brewery industry to reduce their impact on the environment and burden on the ecosystem
Application of microalgae and fungal-microalgal associations for wastewater treatment
No full textMicroalgal applications represent potential green and smart solutions for the treatment of different types of wastewaters. Fungal–microalgal associations are gaining increasing attention as a low cost and an efficient strategy for the concentration of microalgal cells and the additive contribution of their components to the production of value-added chemicals and biofuels. In spite of the obvious attractiveness of microalgal-based bioremediation, there are still some challenges that can affect their economic viability. The costs associated with removing microalgal cells from treated wastewaters and harvesting them for the production of value-added products can account for up to 50 % of the total cost. With both biological components known to be involved in absorption of key nutrients and microelements from growing environments, fungal–microalgal consortiums show cumulative and synergistic effects on wastewater treatment efficiencies. This review covers the potential of microalgal representatives and their association with filamentous fungi for the treatment of different types of wastewaters and conversion of generated biomass into value-added chemicals and biofuels
Mycoremediation of heavy metal/metalloid-contaminated soil: current understanding and future prospects
No full textIn natural environments, heavy metals and metalloids are widely dispersed as a consequence of anthropogenic (e.g. mining) and geological (e.g. volcanic eruption) activities. The toxicity of these metals/metalloids could adversely affect the ecosystem as well as causing major human health concerns. Mycoremediation (remediation by fungi) has received attention from many researchers as an alternative to conventional chemical and physical methods in removing toxic metals and metalloids. A number of regulatory mechanisms to control the concentrations and counteract the toxicity of these pollutants have been observed in fungi. These mechanisms include: (i) precipitation or binding to cell surface materials, (ii) intracellular chelation and precipitation, (iii) biotransformation and (iv) control of membrane transport systems. This chapter examines the use of fungi to bioremediate metals and metalloids and their detoxification mechanisms, with special focus on an extremophilic fungus, Acidomyces acidophilus, isolated from a disused tin mine in the UK, to illustrate some of the mechanisms involved. Future biotechnological and nanotechnological prospects of metal/metalloids bioremediation using fungi are also discussed
The Potential Use of Food Waste in Biocementation Process for Eco-Efficient Construction Materials
Full text linkBiocement is emerging as a novel and sustainable alternative to current conventional construction materials because the microorganisms used are renewable, environmentally friendly, and safe. However, its implementation is hampered by the prohibitive cost associated with the raw materials required for possible industrial applications. Thus, in this chapter, we examine recent claims that introducing food waste usage into the biocementation process would lead to reduced costs and increased efficiency. The huge quantity of worldwide food waste generation is both an important resource and an environmental burden if not properly managed. Therefore, the motivation to use food waste is both environmental and economical as it makes the biocementation process more cost-effective, sustainable and easier to implement. This chapter reviews recent literature on the use of food waste in biocement technology, and examines other food waste yet to be investigated as raw material for culture media, cementing agent, biopolymer, and enzyme to generate biocement economically and sustainably
The potential use of food waste in biocementation process for eco-efficient construction materials
No full textBiocement is emerging as a novel and sustainable alternative to current conventional construction materials because the microorganisms used are renewable, environmentally friendly, and safe. However, its implementation is hampered by the prohibitive cost associated with the raw materials required for possible industrial applications. Thus, in this chapter, we examine recent claims that introducing food waste usage into the biocementation process would lead to reduced costs and increased efficiency. The huge quantity of worldwide food waste generation is both an important resource and an environmental burden if not properly managed. Therefore, the motivation to use food waste is both environmental and economical as it makes the biocementation process more cost-effective, sustainable and easier to implement. This chapter reviews recent literature on the use of food waste in biocement technology, and examines other food waste yet to be investigated as raw material for culture media, cementing agent, biopolymer, and enzyme to generate biocement economically and sustainably
Educational activities for students and citizens supporting the one-health approach on antimicrobial resistance
Full text linkAntibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security and development. Urgent action is needed at all levels of society to reduce the impact and spread of antibiotic resistance. For a more sustaining approach, education in children, college students, citizens and caregivers are essential. The One-Heath approach is a collaborative, multisectoral and transdisciplinary strategy in which, no single organizations or sector can address the issue of antimicrobial resistance at the human–environment interface alone. Within this strategy, education plays a central role. In this scoping review, we highlighted a range of learning activities on antibiotic resistance as part of the One-Health approach. In particular, those applications that can be introduced to a wide audience to help arrest the current crisis for the next generation. The review identifies a high number of teaching opportunities: board and role-play games, round tables, musicals, e-learning and environmental experiments to couple with more curricula and formal education to inform a diverse group of audiences
The Bacterial Urban Resistome: Recent Advances
Full text linkCities that are densely populated are reservoirs of antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs). The overall presence of all resistance genes in a specific environment is defined as a resistome. Spatial proximity of surfaces and different hygienic conditions leads to the transfer of antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) within urban environments. Built environments, public transportation, green spaces, and citizens’ behaviors all support persistence and transfer of antimicrobial resistances (AMR). Various unique aspects of urban settings that promote spread and resilience of ARGs/ARB are discussed: (i) the role of hospitals and recreational parks as reservoirs; (ii) private and public transportation as carriers of ARGs/ARB; (iii) the role of built environments as a hub for horizontal gene transfer even though they support lower microbial biodiversity than outdoor environments; (iv) the need to employ ecological and evolutionary concepts, such as modeling the fate of a specific ARG/ARB, to gain enhanced health risk assessments. Our understanding and our ability to control the rise of AMR in an urban setting is linked to our knowledge of the network connecting urban reservoirs and the environment
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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