Lignin from sugarcane bagasse as a prebiotic additive for poultry feed

Diet is a crucial factor on health and well-being of livestock animals. Nutritional strengthening with diet formulations is essential to the livestock industry and animal perfor-mance. Searching for valuable feed additives among by-products may promote not only circular economy, but also functional diets. Lignin from sugarcane bagasse was proposed as a potential prebiotic additive for chickens and incorporated at 1 % (w/w) in commercial chicken feed, tested in two feed forms, namely, mash and pellets. Physico-chemical characterization of both feed types with and without lignin was performed. Also, the prebiotic potential for feeds with lignin was assessed by an in vitro gastrointestinal model and evaluated the impact on chicken cecal Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. As for the pellet's physical quality, there was a higher cohesion of the pellets with lignin, indicating a higher resistance to breakout and lignin decreases the tendency of the pellets for microbial contamination. Regarding the prebiotic potential, mash feed with lignin showed higher promotion of Bifidobacterium in comparison with mash feed without lignin and to pellet feed with lignin. Lignin from sugarcane bagasse has prebiotic potential as additive to chicken feed when supplemented in mash feed diets, presenting itself as a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative to chicken feed additives supplementation.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

From sugarcane to skin: lignin as a multifunctional ingredient for cosmetic application

Lignin has been suggested as a promising candidate for cosmetic applications due to its remarkable potential to absorb ultraviolet rays and distinctive antioxidant activity. This study aims at evaluating the performance of lignin from sugarcane bagasse (SCB) as natural UV blocker, antioxidant, and pigment. Lignin was extracted from SCB, characterized and incorporated into a blemish balm (BB) cream. The biological potential, concretely, in vitro and in vivo sun protection factor (SPF) and in vitro UVA-PF, and safety were assessed. A high-purity SCB lignin (>92 %) was obtained by a mild alkaline extraction process. The results of cytotoxicity, mutagenicity, skin sensitization and in vivo acute cutaneous irritation demonstrated that SCB lignin is safe for topical applications. Lignin showed capacity to scavenge both ABTS and DPPH radicals, which were preserved after its incorporation into the cosmetic formulation. Notable results were achieved in terms of in vitro and in vivo SPF of 9.5 ± 2.9 and 9.6 ± 0.8, respectively. Furthermore, the tested lignin-based BB cream revealed a broad-spectrum UV protection (critical wavelength of 378 ± 0.5 nm). These results suggest SCB lignin as multifunctional and safe ingredient for use in cosmetic products.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A review on the valorization of lignin from sugarcane by-products: from extraction to application

The sugarcane industry generates several by-products including the harvest residue (straw) and the fibrous fraction following juice extraction (bagasse). The conversion of sugarcane industry by-products into value-added products is of paramount importance from a sustainable circular economy perspective. Also, the increase of second-generation bioethanol production has triggered the development of approaches to convert residues into functional bioproducts thus increasing the overall sustainability of the process. Lignin is the major biopolymer in nature, and one of the three main components of sugarcane bagasse (SCB) and straw (SCS) biomasses. Due to the potential of lignin as natural antioxidant, antimicrobial, and ultraviolet protector, lignin-based research and new product development have significantly increased. Therefore, this review aims at updating the progress on the valorization of SCS and SCB, and emphasizing their main potential bioactivities and applications, thus serving as a valuable reference material for the academy and industry. A brief introduction of the sugarcane and sugar industry in terms of by-products generation and current end-uses is presented. Recent research studies on SCB and SCS delignification techniques, lignin purification/separation and the main physical-chemical differences between SCS and SCB are covered. The most reported biological activities for sugarcane lignin and their potential applications in the cosmetic and materials fields are also detailed in this review.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Sugarcane bagasse as source of bioactive lignin: influence of pretreatment on the antioxidant and antibacterial activities

Sugarcane industry generates several by-products of particular interest in the context of a circular economy, due to their potential as a source of value-added ingredients. Bagasse is one of the main by-products, consisting of a fibrous fraction obtained after juice extraction. Sugarcane bagasse is composed of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, with lower amounts of extractives and ash (del Río et al., 2015). Lignin is one of the most abundant renewable resources on earth and recognized as a profitable source of high value compounds. The main functions attributed to lignin in the plant are elasticity and mechanical strength. It is a complex aromatic macromolecule formed by the dehydrogenative polymerization of three phenylpropanoid monomers coniferyl, synapyl, and p-coumaryl alcohols. The antimicrobial activity of lignin is related to plant sources and attributed to the phenolic components, particularly the side-chain structure and its functional groups (Chauhan, 2020). The antioxidant activity of lignin is mainly attributed to the scavenging action of their phenolic structures on oxygen-containing reactive free radicals. For the antioxidant activity of the lignin, free phenolic hydroxyl groups and ortho-methoxy substitution in aromatic rings are essential. The structural characteristics of lignin depend on several factors including the botanical origin, and environmental growth and extraction conditions. The main objective of this work was to study the potential of lignin from sugarcane bagasse as antimicrobial and antioxidant agent and assess the influence of two different pretreatments - deep eutectic solvents and organosolv – on the biological potential.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Valorization of lignin from sugarcane by-products: review

The valorization of sugarcane industry by-products is fundamental to increase competitiveness on a circular economy point of view. Straw and bagasse are by-products with huge potential as source of added value ingredients. Lignin is an abundant component found in these by-products with proved biological activity, particularly antimicrobial, antioxidant and UV protection. Additionally, recent applications on materials have been reported for lignin-based products.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

High value-added lignin extracts from sugarcane by-products

This study evaluates the production of lignin bioactive extracts from sugarcane bagasse (SCB) and straw (SCS) alkaline black liquors using greener precipitating agents (methane sulfonic acid (MSA), formic acid (FA) and lactic acid (LA)) as replacers of sulfuric acid (SA), the most common one used in industry. Results showed that the highest precipitation yield was achieved by LA when applied to SCB (14.5 g extract/g SCB). Lignin SCB extracts were similar in composition in terms of total carbohydrates (61–70 %), lignin (22–30 %) and inorganics (1.6–2.6 %). Regarding the SCS extracts, similar yields were obtained among all extracts, however; differences in composition were observed between SA and greener precipitating agents, particularly in terms of sugar content. All extracts exhibited radical scavenging activity; overall the extracts were more effective in the scavenging of ABTS radical. FA was the most promising alternative to SA to recover lignin bioactive extracts. This work suggests organic acids as good candidates for obtaining valuable extracts from alkaline pulping of SCB and SCS instead of the conventional sulfuric acid, thus suggesting a green solution for this biomass valorization.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Sugarcane light-colored lignin: a renewable resource for sustainable beauty

Lignin has emerged as a promising eco-friendly multifunctional ingredient for cosmetic applications, due to its ability to protect against ultraviolet radiation and its antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. However, its typical dark color and low water solubility limit its application in cosmetics. This study presents a simple process for obtaining light-colored lignin (LCLig) from sugarcane bagasse (SCB) alkaline black liquor, involving an oxidation treatment with hydrogen peroxide, followed by precipitation with sulfuric acid. The physico-chemical characterization, antioxidant and emulsifying potential of LCLig, and determination of its safety and stability in an oil-in-water emulsion were performed. A high-purity lignin (81.6%) with improved water solubility was obtained, as a result of the balance between the total aromatic phenolic units and the carboxylic acids. In addition, the antioxidant and emulsifying capacities of the obtained LCLig were demonstrated. The color reduction treatment did not compromise the safety of lignin for topical cosmetic applications. The emulsion was stable in terms of organoleptic properties (color, pH, and viscosity) and antioxidant activity over 3 months at 4, 25, and 40 °C.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Homegreens - Aquaponics System as an Educational Tool towards a Sustainable Future

Aquaponics is an integrated production practice that emerges from the combi-nation of two farming techniques: hydroponics and aquaculture. It consists in a simulation of a natural ecosystem that grows plants without soil substrate in the nutrient enriched waters recirculated from aquaculture systems. This type of production offers several advantages, namely economic and ecological ones. Homegreens is a project that aims to create small saltwater and freshwater aquaponic sys-tems, which can be installed in schools and serve as a didactic tool for introducing contents such as biology and sustainability to a juvenile audience. Implemented by a designers, biol-ogists and agronomists’ multidisciplinary team, the methodology was based on the develop-ment and quantitative validation of prototypes, and the installation and qualitative analyses of user’s interaction. These small scale aquaponic systems consists on a grow bed, an aquarium with a capacity for 45L, a protection barrier for the plant’s roots, aeration, biofilters and a thermostat. Sever-al simplified models were developed, presented and installed in two primary schools. Labor-atory tests were conducted to validate the use of a cork grow bed and a 3D printed polya-cid lactic (PLA) aeration and biofilter system. Children’s engagement and interaction with these simplified models, indicates that these systems will provide a biology and sustainability related group learning opportunity.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Toward the Mechanistic Understanding of Enzymatic CO2 Reduction

SFRH/BD/116515/2014 PTDC/BBB-EBB/2723/2014 UID/Multi/04378/2019 grant agreement number 810856Reducing CO2 is a challenging chemical transformation that biology solves easily, with high efficiency and specificity. In particular, formate dehydrogenases are of great interest since they reduce CO2 to formate, a valuable chemical fuel and hydrogen storage compound. The metal-dependent formate dehydrogenases of prokaryotes can show high activity for CO2 reduction. Here, we report an expression system to produce recombinant W/Sec-FdhAB from Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough fully loaded with cofactors, its catalytic characterization and crystal structures in oxidized and reduced states. The enzyme has very high activity for CO2 reduction and displays remarkable oxygen stability. The crystal structure of the formate-reduced enzyme shows Sec still coordinating the tungsten, supporting a mechanism of stable metal coordination during catalysis. Comparison of the oxidized and reduced structures shows significant changes close to the active site. The DvFdhAB is an excellent model for studying catalytic CO2 reduction and probing the mechanism of this conversion.publishersversionpublishe

Valorization of sugarcane by-products through synthesis of biogenic amorphous silica microspheres for sustainable cosmetics

Ashes from sugarcane by-product incineration were used to synthesize silica powders through alkaline hot extraction, followed by ethanol/acid precipitation or the sol–gel method. Both production methods allowed amorphous spherical silica microparticles with sizes ranging from 1–15 μm and 97% purity to be obtained. Water absorption ranged from 135–155 mL/100 g and 150–250 mL/100 g for precipitated silica and silica gel, respectively, while oil absorption ranged from 305 to 390 and from 250 to 350 mL/100 g. The precipitation with ethanol allowed the recovery of 178 g silica/kg ash, with a lab process cost of EUR 28.95/kg, while the sol-gel process showed a yield of 198 g silica/kg ash with a cost of EUR 10.89/kg. The experimental data suggest that ash from sugarcane by-products is a promising source to be converted into a competitive value-added product, minimizing the environmental impact of disposal problems.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio