Chitosan, Chitosan Derivatives and their Biomedical Applications

Chitosan is one of the most studied polysaccharides nowadays. Because of its biocompatibility, biodegradability and abundance in nature, it has had a wide number of applications. In this chapter, an overview of chitosan including its physicochemical properties and characterization methods is presented. Subsequently, the main chitosan chemical modifications via the hydroxyl and amino groups are discussed. These chemical modifications improve chitosan physical properties and expand its range of applications especially in the biomedical field which will also be studied

Bacteriophages as an Up-and-Coming Alternative to the Use of Sulfur Dioxide in Winemaking

Certain acetic and lactic acid bacteria are major causes of quality defects in musts and wines, giving rise to defects such as a "vinegary," "sharp, like nail polish-remover" taste or preventing alcoholic and/or malolactic fermentation. Sulfur dioxide is the major tool currently used in the control of these bacteria in wine. The aim of this work was to isolate bacteriophages from musts and wine of different grape varieties that were able to eliminate lactic and acetic acid bacteria spoilages at the laboratory scale. Musts obtained from grape-berries of Vitis vinifera cv. Chardonnay and Moscatel and a red wine made with V. vinifera cv. Tintilla de Rota were used to isolate bacteriophages. Bacteriophages were obtained from each of the musts and the wine and belonged to the order Caudovirals and the family Tectivirals. They were isolated by classical virology methods and identified by electron microscopy. The host bacteria used in the study were lactic acid bacteria of the species Lactobacillus hilgardii, Lactobacillus plantarum, and Oenococcus oeni and the acetic bacteria Acetobacter aceti. A comparative study was performed by adding phage titrations and SO2 to musts and wines, which had been previously inoculated with bacteria, to study the effectiveness of bacteriophages against bacteria. The comparative study showed that some bacteriophages were as effective as sulfur dioxide at low concentration

Culturable Yeasts as Biofertilizers and Biopesticides for a Sustainable Agriculture: A Comprehensive Review

The extensive use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides has negative consequences in terms of soil microbial biodiversity and environmental contamination. Faced with this growing concern, a proposed alternative agricultural method is the use of microorganisms as biofertilizers. Many works have been focused on bacteria, but the limited literature on yeasts and their potential ability to safely promote plant growth is gaining particular attention in recent years. Thus, the objective of this review is to highlight the application of yeasts as biological agents in different sectors of sustainable agricultural practices through direct or indirect mechanisms of action. Direct mechanisms include the ability of yeasts to provide soluble nutrients to plants, produce organic acids and phytohormones (indole-3-acetic acid). Indirect mechanisms involve the ability for yeasts to act as biocontrol agents through their high antifungal activity and lower insecticidal and herbicidal activity, and as soil bioremediating agents. They also act as protective agents against extreme environmental factors by activating defense mechanisms. It is evident that all the aspects that yeasts offer could be useful in the creation of quality biofertilizers and biopesticides. Hence, extensive research on yeasts could be promising and potentially provide an environmentally friendly solution to the increased crop production that will be required with a growing populatio

Isolation of bacteriophages from must and wine for the elimination of contaminating bacteria as an alternative to the use of sulfurous

Acetic and some lactic acid bacteria are the main reason for the loss of quality of musts and wines, giving rise to defects such as "vinegary", "chopped" or preventing alcoholic and / or malolactic fermentation. The solution to this problem consists in the application of authorized bactericidal agents, such as sulfurous. The aim of this work is to isolate bacteriophages from musts and wines of different grape varieties, able to eliminate lactic and acetic acid bacteria spoilages. Musts obtained from grape-berries of Vitis vinifera cv. Chardonnay and Moscatel and a red wine made with the Tintilla de Rota variety were used to isolate bacteriophages. It were isolated by classical virology methods and identified by electron microscopy. Host bacteria used in the study were the lactic acid bacteria of the species Lactobacillus hilgardii, L. plantarum and Oenococcus oeni and the acetic bacteria Acetobacter aceti. A comparative study was performed on musts and wines, previously inoculated with bacteria, by phage titration and SO2 addition to study the effectiveness of bacteriophages against bacteria. Bacteriophages were obtained from all musts and wine, belonging to the order of Caudovirals and Tectivirals. The comparative study showed that a cocktail of bacteriophages at low concentration is as effective as sulfur

Improving an Industrial Sherry Base Wine by Yeast Enhancement Strategies

There is growing interest in yeast selection for industrial fermentation applications since it is a factor that protects a wine's identity. Although it is strenuous evaluating the oenological characteristics of yeasts in selection processes, in many cases the most riveting yeasts produce some undesirable organoleptic characteristics in wine. The aim of the present work is to improve an industrial yeast strain by reducing its hydrogen sulfide (H2S) production. To accomplish this, two different improvement approaches were used on said yeast: hybridization by mass mating and adaptive laboratory evolution, both performed through spore generation and conjugation, thus increasing genetic variability. Three evolved variants with lower H2S production were obtained and used as starters to carry out fermentation at an industrial level. Wine quality was analyzed by its principal oenological parameters and volatile aroma compounds, which were both corroborated by sensory evaluations. Significant differences between the produced wines have been obtained and a substantial improvement in aromatic quality has been achieved. Both hybrids were the most different to the control due to terpenes and esters production, while the evolved strain was very similar to the parental strain. Not only have organoleptic defects been reduced at an industrial level, more floral and fruitier wines have been produced.This research was funded by the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI) (grant number IDI-20141202) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) (grant number FEDER-UCA18-106947)

Non-Saccharomyces Are Also Forming the Veil of Flor in Sherry Wines

Biological ageing is an essential process for obtaining some distinctive Sherry wines, such as Fino and Manzanilla. It occurs after the fermentation of the grape must due to the appearance of a biofilm on the surface of the wine called "veil of flor". Yeasts belonging to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae species mainly comprise such biofilm. Although other species have also been found, these have been traditionally considered spoilage. Indeed, it has even been hypothesised that they may not be able to form biofilm on their own under such conditions. In the present work, four different non-Saccharomyces yeasts isolated from barrels in the Jerez area under biological ageing have been characterised through their physiological abilities, including extracellular enzymatic and biofilm-forming capabilities. Results showed not only a surprising ethanol tolerance, above 15.5% in all cases, but also a significant degree of extracellular enzyme production, highlighting the urease and proteolytic activities found in Pichia manshurica, as well as lipolytic activity in Pichia kudriavzevii, Pichia membranifaciens and Wicherhamomyces anomalus. As a conclusion, these non-Saccharomyces could be very interesting in the oenological field, beyond improving the organoleptic characteristics as well as technological features in these wines

Culturable Yeast Diversity of Grape Berries from Vitis vinifera ssp. sylvestris (Gmelin) Hegi

Vitis vinifera L. ssp. sylvestris (Gmelin) Hegi is recognized as the dioecious parental generation of today's cultivars. Climatic change and the arrival of pathogens and pests in Europe led it to be included on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species in 1997. The present work focused on the study of culturable yeast occurrence and diversity of grape berries collected from wild vines. Sampling was performed in 29 locations of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Italy, Romania, and Spain. In total, 3431 yeast colonies were isolated and identified as belonging to 49 species, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae, by 26S rDNA D1/D2 domains and ITS region sequencing. Isolates of S. cerevisiae were also analyzed by SSR-PCR obtaining 185 different genotypes. Classical ecology indices were used to obtain the richness (S), the biodiversity (H'), and the dominance (D) of the species studied. This study highlights the biodiversity potential of natural environments that still represent a fascinating source of solutions to common problems in winemaking

The veil of flor’s structure, composition and interactions in biological ageing wines

Biological ageing occurs after fermentation of the grape must and it is due to the appearance of a biofilm on the surface of the wine called "veil of flor". Yeast involved in veil formation are mainly Saccharomyces cerevisiae and they have traditionally been divided into four races according to their ability to metabolize different sugars. The growth of flor yeasts depends on different factors, such as the aerobic assimilation of the wine ethanol, since the medium is deficient in both sugars and nitrogen. Actually, flor yeast metabolism is different from wine S. cerevisiae yeast, but it hasn't been analysed yet. Thus, the aim of this work is to study the diversity of flor yeast strains and to analyse the composition and the structure of the veil of flor in Jerez-Xeres-Sherry D.O. The results of this work revealed 14 different genotypes of S. cerevisiae strains using multiplex-microsatellite PCR and these strains showed 8 different biochemical profiles using a similar procedure than traditionally. In addition, mannose and glucose were found in veil of flor complex using UHPLC-MS

Evolved Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains to reduce ethyl carbamate in Sherry wines

Urea is the main precursor of ethyl carbamate in fortified wines, which is in turn mostly produced by Saccharomyces cerevisiae due to the arginine catabolism during alcoholic fermentation. Due to its potential safety risks, efforts have been taken to reduce ethyl carbamate content by reducing the urea produced. However, most of them have been made through genetic manipulation, and their use in the food industry is therefore limited by legal constraints. In the present study, the adaptive laboratory evolution technique had been used to improve this trait in a diploid wine yeast already used at industrial level to obtain Sherry base wine. For this purpose, the genetic variability of the yeast population was increased by sexual reproduction and subsequently canavanine, a toxic arginine analogue, was applied as selective pressure to select yeast variants with lower urea production. Finally, an evolved variant that showed 62% lower urea content than the parental strain, also displaying an enhanced fermentative performance, was selected. The base Sherry wine obtained at industrial level not only showed a lower urea and ethyl carbamate content, but also an improvement in the aromatic profile, being fruitier and fresher than that obtained with the parental strain mainly due to an increase in ester content

Consenso colombiano de enfermedad inflamatoria intestinal

La Enfermedad inflamatoria intestinal (EEI) es un término con el que se conocen varias entidades, las dos más importantes: la colitis ulcerativa idiopática (CUI) y la enfermedad de Crohn (EC), cuyo origen es multifactorial y se caracterizan por un fenómeno inflamatorio, crónico, recurrente, con diferentes grados de severidad del tubo digestivo; pero, además con afectación potencial de otros órganos. En la última década ha habido un renovado interés en dichas entidades, debido a un auge en medicamentos novedosos; a pesar de lo cual estas siguen siendo incurables. Lo anterior asociado a una incidencia creciente de dicha patología en nuestro país nos obliga tanto científica como moralmente a convocar a un panel de expertos para elaborar unos lineamientos básicos en el enfoque y manejo de la EEI. OBJETIVOS 1. Desarrollar un consenso adaptado a nuestro medio, basado en documentación científica de la mejor calidad disponible para el enfoque diagnóstico y el manejo médico y quirúrgico. 2. Publicar y difundir dichos lineamentos tanto a la comunidad científica como al público en general a través de foros especializados, y medios de comunicación de alta penetración. 3. Elaborar y divulgar el consenso en forma de suplemento de la Revista Colombiana de Gastroenterología, el 8 de diciembre de 2011, en medio del congreso de ACADI (Asociación Colombiana de Asociaciones del Aparato Digestivo); es el mejor homenaje que el panel multidisciplinario de expertos le puede rendir a dicho evento; pero más importante aún es el reconocimiento que se le hace a los pacientes que padecen de dicha patología en nuestro país, quienes en últimas son nuestra razón de ser. METODOLOGÍA 1. Se invitaron médicos especialistas (Clínicos y quirúrgicos), líderes de opinión e industria farmacéutica nacional, cuyo área de interés y de trabajo es la EEI. 2. Se separó y manejó independientemente desde el principio la CUI de la EC. A su vez, se dividió cada entidad por módulos, con base en el método de panel de Delphi, se nombró un coordinador por cada uno de ellos, el cual se encargó de analizar junto con su equipo la literatura, para extraer el nivel de evidencia clínica y así emitir unos conceptos preliminares. Posteriormente, todo el panel de expertos se reunió en varias jornadas y conjuntamente se revisó nuevamente la evidencia clínica y conclusiones de los diferentes módulos homogenizándolas y de una manera concertada se formularon las recomendaciones definitivas.Q4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9219-4548Revista Nacional - Indexad