Performance of okra and soil using indigenous microorganisms inoculants

Microbial inoculants are beneficial microorganisms applied to plants or the soil to promote plant growth and control pest disease and weeds. Microbial inoculants isolated from local surroundings are indigenous microorganisms (IMO) inoculants. The performance of the IMO inoculants is varied depending on the sources and the local environment. Therefore, it is important to identify the right sources to enhance the efficiency of the IMO inoculants. This research aims to study the performance of okra and soil by mixing potential yeast sources for indigenous microorganisms (IMO) inoculants. Longan and mango were chosen as the sources of yeasts. The IMO inoculants were fermented for a week, and the microorganisms group was identified. Then, the IMO inoculants were applied to the okra and tested for physical and mineral content analysis. IMO inoculants with mango and longan showed a higher yeast population than the control. However, IMO inoculants with mango showed the best plant growth and harvesting time performance. The soil treated with both IMO inoculants also showed higher potassium and calcium. To conclude, plants treated with both IMO inoculants performed better than the control. Thus, IMO inoculants with longan and mango may potentially enhance the yeast community in IMO inoculants, indirectly improving okra growth and benefiting the agriculture field in the future

Performance of okra and soil using indigenous microorganisms inoculants

Microbial inoculants are beneficial microorganisms applied to plants or the soil to promote plant growth and control pest disease and weeds. Microbial inoculants isolated from local surroundings are indigenous microorganisms (IMO) inoculants. The performance of the IMO inoculants is varied depending on the sources and the local environment. Therefore, it is important to identify the right sources to enhance the efficiency of the IMO inoculants. This research aims to study the performance of okra and soil by mixing potential yeast sources for indigenous microorganisms (IMO) inoculants. Longan and mango were chosen as the sources of yeasts. The IMO inoculants were fermented for a week, and the microorganisms group was identified. Then, the IMO inoculants were applied to the okra and tested for physical and mineral content analysis. IMO inoculants with mango and longan showed a higher yeast population than the control. However, IMO inoculants with mango showed the best plant growth and harvesting time performance. The soil treated with both IMO inoculants also showed higher potassium and calcium. To conclude, plants treated with both IMO inoculants performed better than the control. Thus, IMO inoculants with longan and mango may potentially enhance the yeast community in IMO inoculants, indirectly improving okra growth and benefiting the agriculture field in the future

Analysis of illicit drugs in municipal wastewater using LCMS/MS: A method validation study

An analytical method based on solid-phase extraction (SPE) liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the determination of five illicit drugs, namely amphetamine (AM), methamphetamine (MA), 3,4- methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), and morphine (MOR) in municipal wastewater has been optimized and validated. Sample preparation was performed using Oasis MCX SPE cartridges. LC separation was performed using a Zorbax Eclipse Plus C18 RRHD column. The linearity of the calibration curve was between 5 ng/mL and 250 ng/mL, with determination coefficient (R2 ) greater than 0.99, except for morphine. The mean recoveries of target analytes ranged from 91.6 to 112%, and the method demonstrated good inter-day repeatability (coefficient of variation, CV ranged from 2 to 19%). The limit of detection (LOD) for AM, MA, MDMA, MDA, and MOR was 0.29, 0.37, 0.86, 1.09 and 7.56 ng/mL, respectively. The method was applied to municipal wastewater samples collected from sewage treatment plants in Kuantan, Pahang, in which AM, MA and MDA were detected in all 3 samples

Prevalence of antibiotic resistance in E. coli in leachate

Landfill is one of the common practices for the disposal of municipal solid waste and may include possible contaminants such as antibiotics and heavy metals. The leachate produced from landfill has the potential to become a reservoir of antibiotic residues and heavy metals, leading to the dissemination of antibiotic resistance to the nearby environment. Not only that, enteric bacteria like Escherichia coli (E. coli) may be exposed to these contaminants. E. coli tended to survive in such stressful conditions due to the activation of the stress response. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the antibiotic susceptibility of E. coli in leachate. The E. coli was isolated in a landfill in Jabor, Kuantan, Pahang from three sampling points which were garbage hill, leachate pond, and river. The concentration of heavy metals was analyzed using ICP-MS while the antibiotic susceptibility test was performed using the disc diffusion method. Four out of six parameters measured have exceeded the standard permitted range where TSS was 110–580 mg/mL, BOD was 28–176 mg/mL, COD was 447–5100 mg/mL and NH3-N was 9–22 mg/mL. There were five elements (chromium, zinc, copper, manganese, and iron) were detected in leachate where the concentration of iron was the highest (0.158 ± 0.0203–2.287 ± 0.0706 mg/mL) among all metals measured. Besides, the colonies of E. coli were successfully isolated from each sampling point. In this study, all isolated E. coli from garbage hill and leachate pond show resistance towards three antibiotics tested (sulfamethoxazole, tetracycline, and erythromycin). However, isolated E. coli from the river shows intermediate sensitivity to sulfamethoxazole but is resistant to tetracycline and erythromycin. Based on the results, we can conclude that the landfill has the potential to retain pollutants such as TSS, COD, BOD, NH3-N, and antibiotic resistance even though the concentration of heavy metals decreased and meet the standard permitted limit. It shows that the landfill and leachates may act as an important reservoir of heavy metals and antibiotic resistance and potentially affect the environment

Preliminary assessment on pretreatment methods for landfill waste utilization in biohydrogen production

Landfill waste consists of a mixture of components that have high potential as a substrate for hosting various microorganisms’ growth. Utilizing this waste as a fermentation substrate is seen as an economical solution for the management of the waste. Treating this waste is crucial to remove unnecessary components for the growth of specific organisms to ensure a high reaction yield. Fermentative hydrogen production from this waste specifically requires the hydrogen-consuming bacteria to be reduced. In this work, heat, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, acid, and alkaline pretreatment were conducted on the landfill waste. The changes in the reduced sugar content and appearance of bacterial colonies were observed and compared. Heat pretreatment at 65 °C was found to give among the best increase (74 – 88%) in reducing sugar content and reduction (50 – 85%) in the number of aerobic bacterial colonies detected. Global warming potential and eutrophication potential recorded from simulated heat pretreatment plant was comparable to other heat-based pretreatment reported by other researchers with a potential reduction in severity as the plant size increased

Evaluation of pre-treated healthcare wastes during COVID-19 pandemic reveals pathogenic microbiota, antibiotics residues, and antibiotic resistance genes against beta-lactams

The disposal of healthcare waste without prior elimination of pathogens and hazardous contaminants has negative effects on the environment and public health. This study aimed to profile the complete microbial community and correlate it with the antibiotic compounds identified in microwave pre-treated healthcare wastes collected from three different waste operators in Peninsular Malaysia. The bacterial and fungal compositions were determined via amplicon sequencing by targeting the full-length 16S rRNA gene and partial 18S with full-length ITS1–ITS2 regions, respectively. The antibiotic compounds were characterized using high-throughput spectrometry. There was significant variation in bacterial and fungal composition in three groups of samples, with alpha- (p-value = 0.04) and beta-diversity (p-values <0.006 and < 0.002), respectively. FC samples were found to acquire more pathogenic microorganisms than FA and FV samples. Paenibacillus and unclassified Bacilli genera were shared among three groups of samples, meanwhile, antibiotic-resistant bacteria Proteus mirabilis, Enterococcus faecium, and Enterococcus faecalis were found in modest quantities. A total of 19 antibiotic compounds were discovered and linked with the microbial abundance detected in the healthcare waste samples. The principal component analysis demonstrated a positive antibiotic-bacteria correlation for genera Pseudomonas, Aerococcus, Comamonas, and Vagococcus, while the other bacteria were negatively linked with antibiotics. Nevertheless, deep bioinformatic analysis confirmed the presence of blaTEM-1 and penP which are associated with the production of class A beta-lactamase and beta-lactam resistance pathways. Microorganisms and contaminants, which serve as putative indicators in healthcare waste treatment evaluation revealed the ineffectiveness of microbial inactivation using the microwave sterilization method. Our findings suggested that the occurrence of clinically relevant microorganisms, antibiotic contaminants, and associated antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) represent environmental and human health hazards when released into landfills via ARGs transmission

Preliminary assessment on pretreatment methods for landfill waste utilization in biohydrogen production

Landfill waste consists of a mixture of components that have high potential as a substrate for hosting various microorganisms’ growth. Utilizing this waste as a fermentation substrate is seen as an economical solution for the management of the waste. Treating this waste is crucial to remove unnecessary components for the growth of specific organisms to ensure a high reaction yield. Fermentative hydrogen production from this waste specifically requires the hydrogen-consuming bacteria to be reduced. In this work, heat, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, acid, and alkaline pretreatment were conducted on the landfill waste. The changes in the reduced sugar content and appearance of bacterial colonies were observed and compared. Heat pretreatment at 65 °C was found to give among the best increase (74 – 88%) in reducing sugar content and reduction (50 – 85%) in the number of aerobic bacterial colonies detected. Global warming potential and eutrophication potential recorded from simulated heat pretreatment plant was comparable to other heat-based pretreatment reported by other researchers with a potential reduction in severity as the plant size increased

Antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes in wastewater: occurrence and removal technologies

Antibiotics are being used intensively for humans and livestock worldwide and led to the presence of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the environment. The existing wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are not designed to remove them. Consequently, surface water is a potential receptor of antibiotics and ARGs. Therefore, additional treatment technologies are needed to overcome the current drawbacks of our WWTPs. In this thesis, antibiotics and ARGs were measured in the surface water up to 20 km after being treated by a WWTP (with a post-treatment). A significant contribution of antibiotics and ARGs were observed in the environment. Therefore, treatment technologies based on natural systems, physicochemical technologies, or advanced biological technologies were selected to explore their effectiveness for reducing antibiotics and ARGs. Based on these findings, we can understand the occurrence of the antibiotics and ARGs in the environment, and the potential of these technologies for removing them

Alternative to conventional method of nitrite elimination of bird nest (Swiftlet)

Swiftlet farming industry is a very profitable investment for those that are successful. The demand for edible bird’s nest from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, India and the Middle Eastern countries is increasing. Swiftlet industry in Malaysia is facing difficult time since August 2011 because Chinese government has banned on edible bird’s nest and its products from Malaysia. This is due to high level of nitrite (NO2) spotted in edible bird’s nest (AQSIQ, 2011). As the consequences, the edible bird’s nest and swiftlet ranching industry in Malaysia has been hit hard. So, to meet the standard of Chinese government, an investigation is proposed by using indigenous microorganisms (IMO) technology for nitrite elimination in edible bird’s nest of swiftlet