Anaerobic biodegradation of oleate by a highly loaded biomass before and after degrading the associated substrate

Oleic Acid (C18:1) is an unsaturated Long Chain Fatty Acid (LCFA), described as especially problematic in anaerobic digestion processes. In this work, a sludge heavily loaded with 5985 mgCOD.gVSˉ¹ was studied in terms of its capability to biodegrade oleic acid in batch assays, in concentrations ranging from 100 to 1500 mg.lˉ¹. Lag phases before the onset of methane production increased with the oleic acid concentration, up to 17 days for 1500 mg.lˉ¹and methane production did not exceed 50% recovery for the highest concentrations tested (1000 and 1500 mg.lˉ¹). After the mineralization of the biomass-associated substrate, and for the same concentration range, maximum lag phases of three days and methane recoveries up to 80% were obtained, evidencing an improving capacity of the sludge to biodegrade oleic acid. Also the specific methanogenic activity with acetate and H2/CO2 as individual substrates increased 3.6 and 2 times respectively, after the mineralization of the biomass associated substrate, confirming the reversibility of the inhibitory effect of LCFA, even when the sludge was heavily loaded with more than 5 g COD.gVSˉ¹.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - POCTI/CTA/46328/2002

The moderating role of self-care behaviors in personal care aides of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought new challenges and work changes for formal caregivers such as personal care aides with an impact on their quality of life (QoL). This cross-sectional study aims to analyze the relationships and contribution of sociodemographic and psychological variables towards QoL including the moderating role of self-care. This study included 127 formal caregivers from Portugal who were assessed on depression, anxiety and stress (DASS-21); professional self-care (SCAP); quality of life (SF-12); COVID-19 traumatic stress (COVID-19TSC) and preventive COVID-19 infection behaviors (PCOVID-19 IBS). Professional self-care was positively associated with QoL and also moderated the relationship between distress and QoL (p < 0.001). According to results, nursing homes should provide formal caregivers, such as personal care aides, with the professional support they need in order to promote their QoL and prevent burnout.This study was conducted at the Psychology Research Centre (PSI/01662), School of Psychology, University of Minho, supported by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through the Portuguese State Budget (Ref.: UIDB/PSI/01662/2020

Effect of pH and pressure on syngas fermentation by anaerobic mixed cultures

Syngas fermentation by mesophilic anaerobic mixed cultures was studied, regarding the effect of initial medium pH (5.8, 6.9 and 7.6) and total initial syngas pressure (1.0, 1.75 and 2.5 atm) in methane production and other alternative products (acids and alcohols). Complete consumption of CO and H2 was achieved in less than 72 h at 1.0 atm syngas, and within 240 h for higher syngas pressures. The highest specific CH4 production (normalized to the initial syngas concentration, CO+H2) was 0.89 mol CH4/mol syngas, and was obtained for pH 5.8 and 1.0 atm syngas. Volatile fatty acids (VFA) were produced in methanogenic-inhibited assays, with 0.92 mol VFA/mol syngas as the best conversion yield (at pH 6.9 and 1.0 atm). Only residual concentrations of alcohols (< 0.005 mol alcohols/mol syngas) were produced by methanogenic-inhibited sludge. Syngas pressure had a major effect on conversion yields, which might be related to the susceptibility of microbial communities to the higher CO partial pressures

Macroscopic and histopathological study of the placenta: an essential resource in litigation processes

The pathological study of the placenta is of upmost importance in cases of unexplained fetal/perinatal loss and often these carry litigation implications. Integrating pathological findings and the underlying pathophysiological processes, leading to placental lesions, is fundamental for the evaluation of poor fetal and perinatal outcomes and to distinguish from cases of true negligence

Usage patterns and self-esteem of female consumers of antiaging cosmetic products

The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding authors.Aging is an irreversible process of the human body, resulting from a progressive decrease in the biological functions of the organs, including the skin. This study analyzed the relationship between usage patterns of different types of anti-aging cosmetic products, sociodemographic variables, appearance schemes, psychological morbidity, perfectionism, and aging perception of aging with self-esteem. This cross-sectional study included a sample of 260 women, aged between 25 and 64 years, who are users of anti-aging cosmetics and/or aesthetic treatments. Participants were assessed on psychological morbidity (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), appearance schemes (Appearance Schemas Inventory—Revised), perfectionism (Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale), aging perceptions (Brief Aging Perceptions Questionnaire), and self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale). The use of facial-firming cosmetics positively correlated with self-esteem. The results of regression analysis revealed that psychological morbidity and perfectionism contribute negatively to self-esteem, while marital status, professional status, and aging perceptions (positive consequences) contribute positively. According to the results, intervention programs to promote women’s self-esteem should focus on the reduction in psychological morbidity and the promotion of adaptive patterns of perfectionism and address aging perceptions. Longitudinal studies might help explain the complex relationship between the use of anti-aging cosmetic products and psychological variables, particularly self-esteem in women.This study was conducted at the Psychology Research Centre (PSI/01662), School of Psy chology, University of Minho, supported by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through the Portuguese State Budget (Ref.: UIDB/01662/2020). This work was also supported by national funds from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Northern Re gional Operational Programme (NORTE2020) under the project 47239-Cork2Cosmetic (NORTE-01- 0247-FEDER-047239). S.M. acknowledges the research fellowship (NORTE-01-0247-FEDER-047239), fully supported by national funding by Project 47239-Cork2Cosmetic (NORTE-01-0247-FEDER-047239)

Intensified bioprocess for the anaerobic conversion of syngas to biofuels

Este resumo faz parte de: Book of abstracts of the Meeting of the Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 2, Braga, Portugal, 2010. A versão completa do livro de atas está disponível em: http://hdl.handle.net/1822/1096

An Insight into the Release Kinetics

The authors acknowledge the financial support from Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT-MEC), Portugal, through the dedicated project (PTDC/EDM-EDM/30828/2017) (BeLive) Publisher Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.This work explores the unique features of magnetic-responsive hydrogels to obtain liposomal hydrogel delivery platforms capable of precise magnetically modulated drug release based on the mechanical responses of these hydrogels when exposed to an external magnetic field. Magnetic-responsive liposomal hydrogel delivery systems were prepared by encapsulation of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocoline (DPPC) multilayered vesicles (MLVs) loaded with ferulic acid (FA), i.e., DPPC:FA liposomes, into gelatin hydrogel membranes containing dispersed iron oxide nanoparticles (MNPs), i.e., magnetic-responsive gelatin. The FA release mechanisms and kinetics from magnetic-responsive liposomal gelatin were studied and compared with those obtained with conventional drug delivery systems, e.g., free liposomal suspensions and hydrogel matrices, to access the effect of liposome entrapment and magnetic field on FA delivery. FA release from liposomal gelatin membranes was well described by the Korsmeyer–Peppas model, indicating that FA release occurred under a controlled diffusional regime, with or without magnetic stimulation. DPPC:FA liposomal gelatin systems provided smoother controlled FA release, relative to that obtained with the liposome suspensions and with the hydrogel platforms, suggesting the promising application of liposomal hydrogel systems in longer-term therapeutics. The magnetic field, with low intensity (0.08 T), was found to stimulate the FA release from magnetic-responsive liposomal gelatin systems, increasing the release rates while shifting the FA release to a quasi-Fickian mechanism. The magnetic-responsive liposomal hydrogels developed in this work offer the possibility to magnetically activate drug release from these liposomal platforms based on a non-thermal related delivery strategy, paving the way for the development of novel and more efficient applications of MLVs and liposomal delivery systems in biomedicine.publishersversionpublishe

Anaerobic biodegradability of meat-processing wastes: effect of physical, chemical and enzymatic pre-treatments

Methane is produced during the anaerobic degradation of greaves and rinds, two by-products of pig slaughter and meat-processing industry. However, although values of 914±37 and 664±35 m3 CH4 ton-1 waste (wet weight) respectively were obtained, the degradation rate in batch assays was slow and lasted between 25 and 30 days. Therefore, in order to assess the potential increase in the biodegradation rate and biodegradability of these substrates, physical (temperature), chemical (alkali) and enzymatic (lipase) pre-treatments were tested. Partial hydrolysis was achieved for all the conditions applied but the efficiency was higher in alkaline and enzymatic treatments. These conditions produced hydrolysates with higher soluble+colloidal COD, long-chain fatty acids and ammonia concentrations, comparatively with the other treatments applied. Enzymatic hydrolysis increased 14% the methane production potential of the rinds, and this increase was even higher (80%) when rinds were thermally treated before addition of the enzyme. With all other pre-treatments, anaerobic biodegradability of both wastes was not improved comparatively to the raw materials. Alkaline conditions induced a severe decreased (89%) of rinds’ biodegradability. Enzymatic pre-treatment appears to be a promising strategy for increasing methane production from meat-processing wastes

Acceleration of anaerobic reactions by conductive carbon nanomaterials

Anaerobic processes are environmentally friendly solutions for the decontamination of a wide range of recalcitrant compounds, while generating energy through the production of methane, a renewable energy source. The rates of anaerobic biotransformations are often slow, but the amendment with carbon-based conductive materials (CBCM) has been reported to accelerate the microbial conversions. For example, methane production from organic compounds could be accelerated in the presence of CBCM, which has been often justified by the occurrence of direct interspecies electron transfer (DIET), between anaerobic bacteria and methanogens, over the typical electron exchange via hydrogen or formate. However, in these studies the effect of conductive materials towards individual microbial species was never determined and therefore it is difficult to conclude whether it influences the entire microbial community and changes the electron transfer mechanism between distinct microbial groups, or whether it only stimulates the activity of specific groups of microorganisms. In our laboratory, we have been investigating the effect of CBCM in two main research areas: in the anaerobic biodegradation of organic pollutants, and in the activity of pure cultures of methanogens and in syntrophic co-cultures.ERC Grant nº323009; UID/BIO/04469/2013; POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684; NORTE -01-0145-FEDER-000004; FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462; SFRH/BPD/80528/2011info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Biochemical Methane Potential of raw and pre-treated meat-processing wastes

Raw and pre-treated greaves and rinds, two meat-processing wastes, were assessed for biochemical methane potential (BMP). Combinations of temperature (25, 55, 70 and 120°C), NaOH (0.3 g g-1 waste volatile solids) and lipase from Candida rugosa (10 U g-1 fat) were applied to promote wastes hydrolysis, and the effect on BMP was evaluated. COD solubilisation was higher (66% for greaves; 55% for rinds) when greaves were pre-treated with NaOH at 55°C and lipase was added to rinds after autoclaving. Maximum fat hydrolysis (52-54%) resulted from NaOH addition, at 55°C for greaves and 25°C for rinds. BMP of raw greaves and rinds was 707±46 and 756±56 L CH4 (at standard temperature and pressure) kg-1 VS, respectively. BMP of rinds improved 25% by exposure to 70ºC; all other strategies tested had no positive effect on BMP of both wastes, and anaerobic biodegradability was even reduced by the combined action of base and temperature.The authors thank Cristiana Goncalves for her help with the enzymatic pre-treatments. The financial support from Portuguese Innovation Agency (ADI), through the project FatValue (QREN no. 3491), is gratefully acknowledged. Professor Giovana Tommaso thanks the EMUNDUS15 - Erasmus Mundus External Cooperation Window (Lot15) that provided financial support for her stay in the University of Minho, Portugal