Role of Combined Na2HPO4 and ZnCl2 in the Unprecedented Catalysis of the Sequential Pretreatment of Sustainable Agricultural and Agro-Industrial Wastes in Boosting Bioethanol Production.

Improper lignocellulosic waste disposal causes severe environmental pollution and health damage. Corn Stover (CS), agricultural, and aseptic packaging, Tetra Pak (TP) cartons, agro-industrial, are two examples of sustainable wastes that are rich in carbohydrate materials and may be used to produce valuable by-products. In addition, attempts were made to enhance cellulose fractionation and improve enzymatic saccharification. In this regard, these two wastes were efficiently employed as substrates for bioethanol production. This research demonstrates the effect of disodium hydrogen phosphate (Na2HPO4) and zinc chloride (ZnCl2) (NZ) as a new catalyst on the development of the sequential pretreatment strategy in the noticeable enzymatic hydrolysis. Physico-chemical changes of the native and the pretreated sustainable wastes were evaluated by compositional analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). These investigations showed major structural changes after the optimized sequential pretreatment. This pretreatment not only influences the delignification process, but also affects the functionalization of cellulose chemical structure. NZ released a higher glucose concentration (328.8 and 996.8 mg/dl) than that of ZnCl2 (Z), which released 203.8 and 846.8 mg/dl from CS and TP, respectively. This work led to the production of about 500 mg/dl of ethanol, which is promising and a competitor to other studies. These findings contribute to increasing the versatility in the reuse of agricultural and agro-industrial wastes to promote interaction areas of pollution prevention, industrialization, and clean energy production, to attain the keys of sustainable development goals.

The Interplay of Autoclaving with Oxalate as Pretreatment Technique in the View of Bioethanol Production Based on Corn Stover.

Bio-based treatment technologies are gaining great interest worldwide, and significant efforts are being afforded to develop technology for the use of lignocellulosic biomass. The potential of corn stover (CS) as a feedstock for bioethanol production was investigated by creating an optimal pretreatment condition to maximize glucose production. The current study undertook the impact of novel physico-chemical pretreatment methods of CS, i.e., autoclave-assisted oxalate (CSOA) and ultrasound-assisted oxalate (CSOU), on the chemical composition of CS and subsequent saccharification and fermentation for bioethanol production. The delignification was monitored by physicochemical characterizations such as SEM, XRD, FTIR, CHNs, and TGA. The results evidenced that delignification and enzymatic saccharification of the CS pretreated by CSOA was higher than CSOU. The optimum enzymatic saccharification operating conditions were 1:30 g solid substrate/mL sodium acetate buffer at 50 °C, shaking speed 100 rpm, and 0.4 g enzyme dosage. This condition was applied to produce glucose from CS, followed by bioethanol production by S. cerevisiae using an anaerobic fermentation process after 72 h. S. cerevisiae showed high conversion efficiency by producing a 360 mg/dL bioethanol yield, which is considered 94.11% of the theoretical ethanol yield. Furthermore, this research provides a potential path for waste material beneficiation, such as through utilizing CS.

Clinical and laboratory characteristics of short-term mortality in Egyptian patients with acute heart failure.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the clinical and laboratory predictors of short-term mortality in patients with acute heart failure (AHF). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We conducted a prospective, single center study on 120 consecutive patients presented with acute heart failure to the emergency department. All patients had clinical, laboratory, electrocardiographic and echocardiographic evaluation. Short-term mortality was reported within 30 days of presentation. RESULTS: Mean age was 59.29 ± 10.1 years, 55.8% were males and 50.8% were smokers. The common AHF presentations were dyspnea (91.7%), chest tightness (62.5%) and lower limb edema (54.2%). Ischemic heart disease, diabetes and hypertension were present in 72.5%, 43.3% and 35% of patients, respectively.Short-term mortality was reported in 29 patients (24.16%); most of them died in-hospital (19 patients, 65.52%). The following parameters were significantly associated with short-term mortality: hypoxia (P < 0.001), tachycardia (P < 0.01), raised jugular venous pressure (JVP) (P < 0.001), low systolic blood pressure (P < 0.01), prolonged PR interval (P < 0.007), atrial fibrillation (AF) (P < 0.038), left bundle branch block (LBBB) (P < 0.04), impaired kidney function (P < 0.007), anemia (P < 0.029), hyponatremia (P < 0.006), hypoalbuminemia (P < 0.005), dilated left ventricle (LV) (P < 0.001), low LV ejection fraction (LVEF) (P < 0.001), and dilated left atrium (LA) (P < 0.002).ROC curve analysis showed that low LVEF (≤24%), dilated LV end diastolic diameter (LVESD) ≥ 66.5 mm, dilated LV end systolic diameter (LVESD) ≥ 53.5 mm, dilated LA diameter ≥ 48 mm, increased serum creatinine ≥ 1.6 mg/dl, and decreased serum albumin ≤ 3 g/dl can significantly predict short-term mortality in patients with acute heart failure. CONCLUSION: Variable clinical, laboratory, electrocardiographic and echocardiographic parameters were associated with short-term mortality. Our study showed that low LVEF, dilated LV diameter, dilated LA diameter, impaired kidney function and low serum albumin can predict short-term mortality in patients with acute heart failure.

Safety and Complications of Medical Thoracoscopy.

Objectives. To highlight the possible complications of medical thoracoscopy (MT) and how to avoid them. Methods. A retrospective and prospective analysis of 127 patients undergoing MT in Nagoya Medical Center (NMC) and Toyota Kosei Hospital. The data about complications was obtained from the patients, notes on the computer system, and radiographs. Results. The median age was 71.0 (range, 33.0-92.0) years and 101 (79.5%) were males. The median time with chest drain after procedure was 7.0 (range, 0.0-47.0) days and cases with talc poudrage were 30 (23.6%). Malignant histology was reported in 69 (54.3%), including primary lung cancer in 35 (27.5), mesothelioma in 18 (14.2), and metastasis in 16 (12.6). 58 (45.7%) revealed benign pleural diseases and TB was diagnosed in 15 (11.8%). 21 (16.5%) patients suffered from complications including lung laceration in 3 (2.4%), fever in 5 (3.9%) (due to hospital acquired infection (HAI) in 2, talc poudrage in 2, and malignancy in 1), HAI in 2 (1.6%), prolonged air-leak in 14 (11.0%), and subcutaneous emphysema in 1 (0.8%). Conclusions. MT is generally a safe procedure. Lung laceration is the most serious complication and should be managed well. HAI is of low risk and can be controlled by medical treatment.

Follow-up using fluorescence bronchoscopy for the patients with photodynamic therapy treated early lung cancer.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the accuracy of fluorescence bronchoscopy by precise histological analysis of the photodynamic therapy (PDT) treated lesions. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on thirteen patients (16 lesions) with centrally located early lung cancer (CLELC) had been undergone photodynamic therapy and had been followed up by fluorescence bronchoscopy. Fluorescence bronchoscopy was performed between 1 and 60 months after photodynamic therapy. RESULTS: Of the 16 early carcinomas treated, 14 (87.5%) had a CR, 2 (12.5%) had a NR after initial PDT. Among the 14 carcinomas achieving a CR, 4 (29%) recurred locally from 6 to 12 months after initial PDT. A total of 62 surveillance auto fluorescence bronchoscopies (average; 4.5/patient) and 47 biopsies (average; 4/patient) were performed after PDT. The addition of the SAFE-3000 examination to conventional bronchoscopy increased the sensitivity of screening from 69% to 100%, which yielded a relative sensitivity of 145% with a negative predictive value of 100%. Out of 14 CR lesions, 9 lesions finally reverted to normal fluorescence. CR cases that did not show normal fluorescence were relapsed cases or a patient with complete response whose treated lesion showed fibrosis in the sub mucosa. Histopathological finding of the complete response sites which demonstrated temporal fluorescent defect consisted of inflammatory lesions, goblet cell hyperplasia, basal cell hyperplasia, squamous metaplasia or dysplasia. CONCLUSION: our results confirm that SAFE-3000 allows accurate assessment of the quality and efficacy of PDT.