71 research outputs found
Prospects and Trends in the Brazilian Market for Biologically Sourced Products
The aim of this paper was to select the most interesting Brazilian biopharmaceuticals, with the best market opportunity for production. The biopharmaceuticals filgrastim, infliximab, somatropin, imiglucerase, betainterferon and factor VIII were selected because they are not produced in Brazil and thus could increase the technological capacity of domestic production. The use of a data mining tool facilitated the results achieved here, using the patents deposited in several banks worldwide as the source information. The prospects and trends of producing biopharmaceuticals in Brazil are of great interest to the country to establish a competitive industry and reduce the vulnerability of the National Health System, such as display windows of opportunity, showing the possibility of moving towards the production of biopharmaceuticals
Sugar cane bagasse as feedstock for second generation ethanol production. Part II: Hemicellulose hydrolysate fermentability
Sugar cane bagasse is produced in Brazil as waste of the sugar and
ethanol industries. This lignocellulosic material is a potential source
for second-generation ethanol production; however a pretreatment stage
is essential, which aims at removing the hemicellulose component by
disorganizing the lignocellulosic complex. In this work sugar cane
bagasse was pretreated by diluted acid hydrolysis resulting in
xylose-rich hydrolysates, which could be fermented to ethanol by a
strain of the yeast Pichia stipitis. Statistical approach was used to
investigate the effects of factors associated with the diluted acid
hydrolysis process (acid concentration, solid:liquid ratio and time of
exposure) on the fermentability of different hydrolysates. The
statistical analysis was useful for determining the effects of the
individual factors and their interactions on the response variables. An
acid concentration of 1.09% (v/v), a solid:liquid ratio of 1:2.8
(g:ml), and an exposure time of 27 min were established and validated
as the optimum pretreatment conditions for ethanol production from
hemicellulose hydrolysates of sugar cane bagasse. Under these
conditions, a hydrolysate with 50 g/l of xylose, 6.04 g/l of acetic
acid, 0.55 g/l of hydroxylmethylfurfural and 0.09 g/l of furfural was
obtained and its fermentation yielded roughly 20 g/l of ethanol in 40
hrs
Sugar cane bagasse as feedstock for second generation ethanol production. Part I: Diluted acid pretreatment optimization
Tons of sugar cane bagasse are produced in Brazil as waste of the sugar
and ethanol industries. This lignocellulosic material is a potential
source for second-generation ethanol production. Diluted acid
hydrolysis is one of the most efficient pretreatments for
hemicellulosic solubilization. The hydrolysate obtained is rich in
xylose, which can be converted to ethanol by Pichia stipitis. This work
used a statistical approach and the severity factor to investigate the
effects of factors associated with the diluted acid hydrolysis process
(acid concentration, solid:liquid ratio and time of exposure) on
various response variables (xylose concentration, hydrolysis yield,
inhibitor concentration and hydrolysate fermentability). The severity
factor had a strong influence on the generation of inhibitors. The
statistical analysis was useful for determining the effects of the
individual factors and their interactions on the response variables. An
acid concentration of 1.09% (vv), an S:L ratio of 1:2.8 (g:ml), and an
exposure time of 27 min were established and validated as the optimum
pretreatment conditions for the generation of hydrolysates with high
xylose concentration and low contents of inhibitors. In such
conditions, hydrolysate with 50 g/l of xylose was obtained
Knowledge Management and Analysis of Scientific Biotechnology Trends in Venezuela
This paper presents a study on knowledge management and analysis of scientific Biotechnology trends in Venezuela, providing an overview of the science profile as well as regional development and its relation to issues of topics covered by Biotechnology based on the analysis of scientific publications for the period of 1995 to 2010. The survey was accomplished in database ISI/Web of Science using 60 terms selected by experts in Biotechnology and 803 register has been organized. Scientific indicators were produced using data/ text mining tools. It was possible to find a greater number of scientific publications in areas such as Ecology and Health, showing a greater frequency in these terms: DNA, PCR and Biodiversity. Results pointed out The United States of America as the main foreign partner-country of scientific publications followed by Spain and France. It was possible to verify cooperation network with others Latin American countries: Brazil, Colombia and Chile
Effects of agitation and exogenous H2 on bioconversion of sugarcane bagasse into ethanol by Clostridium thermocellum ATCC 27405
Background: The production of ethanol by a Consolidated Bioprocessing
(CBP) strategy, which simultaneously combines cellulase production,
lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysis and fermentation of released sugars
to ethanol in one bioreactor, is a promising technology for cost
reduction in the biological processing of biomass, specially using
agroindustrial residues. Clostridium thermocellum is an anaerobic,
thermophilic, strictly fermentative gram positive bacterium that meets
all the requirements for CBP. Results: Ethanol concentration obtained
in the non-stirred fermentation process in flasks with raw bagasse was
two times greater than that in the stirred system. The results observed
using a pretreated sugarcane bagasse in non-stirred flasks regarding
ethanol concentration, were slightly lower than with raw bagasse. The
sparging of exogenous H2 into the medium at atmospheric pressure inside
the bioreactor showed to be unfavourable to achieve higher ethanol
yields. Conclusions: The strain investigated is a promising candidate
for thermophilic fermentative ethanol production from dried ground raw
sugarcane bagasse in a CBP strategy, although the alcohol
concentrations need to be further improved. In future studies, it is
recommended to investigate different modes of operation of the
fermentation process, including pressurized conditions, as well as to
use wet raw sugarcane bagasse aiming to achieve additional improvement
in ethanol production and to reduce the costs of the process
Liderando através da inovação na biotecnologia: estudo de caso da Monsanto
O presente artigo pretende mostrar a trajetória da Monsanto desde o período que antecedeu sua entrada em mercados oriundos da biotecnologia moderna, em particular no de sementes geneticamente modificadas (GMs), até sua consolidação como maior empresa mundial de sementes. A análise dos movimentos estratégicos da Monsanto, deixando de ser uma das maiores empresas químicas do mundo para atuar nos mercados emergentes da biotecnologia moderna, permite identificar alguns comportamentos marcantes e reincidentes da empresa e que estão presentes em toda sua trajetória de crescimento, desde sua fundação em 1901. Estes movimentos estratégicos são empregados pela Monsanto com quatro objetivos: o de crescimento, por meio da diversificação e da inovação; de entrada em novos mercados, a partir do estabelecimento de parcerias e acordos com empresas já atuantes nos setores de interesse, ou, até mesmo, da compra dessas empresas; para consolidar-se nos novos mercados; e para neles alcançar a liderança. Ao executar estes movimentos, a empresa aprende ao longo de sua trajetória e utiliza o conhecimento adquirido e acumulado em novas estratégias de crescimento, de entrada em novos mercados, de consolidação e de liderança
A thermotolerant xylan-degrading enzyme is produced by Streptomyces malaysiensis AMT-3 using by-products from the food industry
ABSTRACT: This study evaluated the production of endoxylanases by Streptomyces malaysiensis AMT-3 in submerged fermentation using by-products of the food industry at 28ºC. In shake-flasks experiments, the highest endoxylanase activity of 45.8 U.mL-1 was observed within 6 days in a medium containing (w/v) 2.5% wheat bran and 1.2% corn steep liquor. The same culture conditions were used to evaluate the enzyme production in a 2 L stirred tank reactor under different agitation (300, 450 and 600 rev.min-1) and aeration (30 and 60 L.h-1) conditions. The use of 450 rev.min-1 coupled to an aeration of 90 L.h-1 resulted on 81.3 U.mL-1 endoxylanase activity within 5 days. The effect of temperature and pH on endoxylanase activity and stability showed the highest activity at 60 ºC and pH 6.0. Zymography showed the presence of three xylanolytic bands with molecular masses of 690, 180 and 142 kDa. The results showed that the thermotolerant actinobacterial endoxylanase can be produced in high titers using by-product of the food industry.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Acid and enzymatic hydrolysis of the residue from Castor Bean (Ricinus communis L.) oil extraction for ethanol production: detoxification and biodiesel process integration
The starch hydrolysis process of Castor Bean Cake by (CBC) acid or enzymatic combination of alpha-amylase, glucoamylase and pullulanase was evaluated and followed by fermentation. The chemical hydrolysis resulted in 27.3 g L-1 of sugars with 33.4% of hydrolysis efficiency. The generated hydrolyzate was fermented yielding 11 g L-1 of ethanol (Y P/S=0.48 g g-1). The best enzymatic hydrolysis condition was as follows (per gram of CBC): 200 µL of a-amylase, at 90 ºC; 200 µL of glucoamylase and 100 µL of pullulanase, both at 60 °C, which yielded 75 g L-1 of total reducing sugars corresponding to 91.4 % of hydrolysis efficiency. These sugars were subsequently converted to 34.5 g L-1 of ethanol. The acid hydrolysis process was also capable to allow the detoxification of the Castor Bean Cake
Investigation of cultivation conditions for capsular polysaccharide production by Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 14
Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is among the most significant
causes of bacterial disease in humans. Capsular polysaccharide (CPS)
production is essential for pneumococcal virulence. Pneumococcal CPS
has been widely used as vaccine antigen. This study is focused on the
influence of culture conditions of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 14
as for developing an industrial method for polysaccharide production.
The pH proved to be a highly important variable in batchwise culture.
Using the pH control all glucose added was consumed resulting in a
four-fold increase in polysaccharide productivity relative to
cultivation without pH control. S. pneumoniae is a lactic acid
bacterium, so named for its primary metabolic byproduct (lactate),
which has an inhibitory effect on cell growth in concentrations ranging
from 4 to 5 g/L. An increase of 30% in polysaccharide productivity was
observed using glucose pulses with 5.5 hrs of growth, resulting in a
maximum polysaccharide concentration of 185.2 mg/L. Our data suggest
the possibility of using a medium of non-animal origin and employing pH
control for the cultivation of pneumococcus to produce a polysaccharide
vaccine
Potential of giant reed ( Arundo donax L.) for second generation ethanol production
Background: The production of second generation ethanol
fromlignocellulosic biomasses that have not had their potential fully
explored as feedstock is of great importance. Arundo donax is one
these biomasses. It is a promising grassy plant to be used as a
renewable resource for the production of fuels and chemicals, because
of its fast growth rate, ability to grow in different soil types and
climatic conditions. The present study evaluated its use as feedstock
for the production of second generation ethanol. Results: Initially its
chemical characterization was carried out, and a protocol for
fractioning the biomass through diluted acid pretreatment followed by
alkaline pretreatmentwas developed, providing a solid fractionwhich was
undergone to enzymatic hydrolysis reaching 42 g/L of glucose, obtained
in 30 h of enzymatic hydrolysis. This partially delignified material
was subjected to a simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF)
process, resulting in an ethanol concentration of 39 g/L at 70 h.
Conclusions: The fermentability of the pretreated biomasswas performed
successfully through the conception of simultaneous saccharification
and fermentation resulting in approximately 75 L of ethanol per ton of
cellulose
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