Microbiological Quality Assessment by PCR and Its Antibiotic Susceptibility in Mangrove Crabs (Ucides cordatus) from Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The bacteriological quality of crabs from three different mangroves (Itaóca, Suruí, and Piedade) from Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, was investigated using conventional and molecular methods. The results revealed high counts for total coliforms in meat and hepatopancreas samples. PCR analyses identified 25 Escherichia coli colonies in the Itaóca, Piedade, and Suruí samples, detecting 13 enterotoxigenic colonies and 9 enteroaggregative colonies. Respectively, 12, 11, and 21 Vibrio parahaemolyticus strains were detected in the Itaóca, Piedade, and Suruí samples. Two V. cholerae strains were detected in the Piedade samples. The E. coli strains isolated in the present study showed resistance to gentamicin. E. coli strains from the Piedade samples showed 33% resistance to chloramphenicol and the strains also showed multiresistance to several antimicrobial agents with a MAR index ranging from 0.12 to 0.31. Vibrio strains from Piedade, Itaóca, and Suruí showed 86%, 78%, and 85% resistance, respectively, to ampicillin. The isolated Vibrio strains showed multiresistance to several antimicrobial agents, with a MAR index ranging from 0.12 to 0.25. The presence of these organisms in crab meat is an indication of microbial contamination, which may pose health risks to consumers when improperly cooked.

Slow-release nutrient capsules for microorganism stimulation in oil remediation.

As the concern towards environmental deterioration grows worldwide, new technological achievements become essential for all countries. Among the technologies with great potential of bioremediation is microencapsulation of active material. Several studies have investigated the use of controlled release of active materials as a way of biostimulation and supplying the nutrients necessary for the bioremediation process. In fact, as the use of microorganisms has a great potential in degrading crude oils, this work aims to use that technology and to associate it to produce controlled-release capsules of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (N, P, and K) for bioremediation purposes. For the capsule formulation, polymers of sodium alginate, Capsul®, and the commercial fertilizer NPK from Sempre Verde Inc. were used. Crude oil was the only carbon source and mineral medium for microorganism growth. Controlled-release nutrient capsules, with 4 mm in diameter, made of 3.0 % alginate (w/v) and 4.0 % Capsul® (w/v) were produced. Those capsules were used in association with a microbial consortium, in a liquid phase bioremediation process, having degraded 43.6 % of the total hydrocarbon within 240 h, evidencing thus as a promising tool for hydrocarbon bioremediation.

Heavy metal removal from synthetic wastewaters in an anaerobic bioreactor using stillage from ethanol distilleries as a carbon source.

This work was conducted to investigate the possibility of using stillage from ethanol distilleries as substrate for sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB) growth and to evaluate the removal efficiency of heavy metals present in wastewaters containing sulfates. The experiments were carried out in a continuous bench-scale Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket reactor (13 l) operated with a hydraulic retention time of 18 h. The bioreactor was inoculated with 7 l of anaerobic sludge. Afterwards, an enrichment procedure to increase SRB numbers was started. After this, cadmium and zinc were added to the synthetic wastewater, and their removal as metal sulfide was evaluated. The synthetic wastewater used represented the drainage from a dam of a metallurgical industry to which a carbon source (stillage) was added. The results showed that high percentages of removal (>99%) of Cd and Zn were attained in the bioreactor, and that the removal as sulfide precipitates was not the only form of metal removal occurring in the bioreactor environment.

Media components and amino acid supplements influencing the production of fruity aroma by Geotrichum candidum

The ability of Geotrichum candidum to produce fruity aroma in food grade sucrose, molasses, corn steep liquor and peptone based culture media was tested by sensory evaluation and analyzed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry. A strong and sweet fruity aroma was produced from molasses, with peptone or corn steep liquor stimulating aroma production. Molasses with peptone supplemented with leucine, valine, or alanine yielded better fruity aroma production and the presence of many esters was consistent with the fruity aroma production.

Geotrichum candidum foi cultivado em diversos meios de cultura contendo sacarose ou melaço e milhocina ou peptona e a produção de aroma frutal foi verificada através de avaliação sensorial e cromatografia gasosa acoplada a espectrometria de massas. Os meios contendo melaço, peptona e leucina, valina ou alanina apresentaram os melhores resultados e a presença de diversos ésteres foi consistente com a formação de aroma frutal.

Bioremediation of a weathered and a recently oil-contaminated soils from Brazil: a comparison study.

The facility with which hydrocarbons can be removed from soils varies inversely with aging of soil samples as a result of weathering. Weathering refers to the result of biological, chemical and physical processes that can affect the type of hydrocarbons that remain in a soil. These processes enhance the sorption of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) to the soil matrix, decreasing the rate and extent of biodegradation. Additionally, pollutant compounds in high concentrations can more easily affect the microbial population of a recently contaminated soil than in a weathered one, leading to inhibition of the biodegradation process. The present work aimed at comparing the biodegradation efficiencies obtained in a recently oil-contaminated soil (spiked one) from Brazil and an weathered one, contaminated for four years, after the application of bioaugmentation and biostimulation techniques. Both soils were contaminated with 5.4% of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) and the highest biodegradation efficiency (7.4%) was reached for the weathered contaminated soil. It could be concluded that the low biodegradation efficiencies reached for all conditions tested reflect the treatment difficulty of a weathered soil contaminated with a high crude oil concentration. Moreover, both soils (weathered and recently contaminated) submitted to bioaugmentation and biostimulation techniques presented biodegradation efficiencies approximately twice as higher as the ones without the aforementioned treatment (natural attenuation).

Anaerobic sulphate-reducing microbial process using UASB reactor for heavy metals decontamination.

This study was conducted to investigate the possibility of using sewage as an organic substrate for the growth of sulphate reducing bacteria (SRB) and to acclimatise anaerobic sludge to produce sulphide from sulphate reduction, with a view to metal precipitation. The experiments were carried out in a continuous bench-scale bioreactor (13 1 UASB reactor) operated with hydraulic retention times (HRT) of 11 and 19 hours. The feed solution used was composed of the liquid part of the sewage (organic matter) supplemented with nickel sulphate and sodium sulphate. The results showed that it was possible to acclimatise anaerobic sludge for production of sulphide by sulphate reduction. A relation between the available COD and the concentration of sulphate reduced by SRB was observed. High nickel removal efficiency (96%) was obtained during the whole operation (320 days). However, the process required very strict control of the organic load available (sewage) in the solution and, if necessary, the addition of a complementary organic carbon source, in order to maintain a constant level of metal removal. The SRB were not affected by the HRT values studied and were installed and maintained in the system; however, granular sludge was not observed. The micrographs confirmed the presence of iron and nickel sulphides and also a mixed bacterial culture in the anaerobic sludge. The EDS spectrum of the sludge showed that nickel was retained in the sludge predominantly as a nickel sulphide.

Proteases from actinomycetes interfere in solid media plate assays of hyaluronidase activity.

Four hundred and fifteen actinomycete strains were screened for hyaluronidase activity in two plate assays media. In the first one, using hyaluronic acid as substrate and bovine serum albumin (BSA) to help precipitation of the nondegraded substrate, only strain 594 and hyaluronidase control were positive. In the second assay, plates with hyaluronic acid, but not BSA, gave the same results. For plates containing only BSA, proteinase activity was detected in strain 594. When hyaluronic acid was treated with pronase, the only clear zones, in the second assay without BSA, were those around hyaluronidase controls. Protease activity, commonly found in actinomycetes, was detected only in strain 594, among the 415 studied, when tested in hyaluronidase assay using hyaluronate plus BSA. This may be due to the composition of the growth medium, since media with different composition gave different results for protease activity in each of the 15 strains analyzed. These data suggest that proteases can affect an accurate detection of hyaluronidase in media containing proteins, not only from hyaluronate preparations, but also from other medium ingredients. Thus, for a correct interpretation of the method, they must be excluded. Commercial Hyaluronidase used as controls must be also tested for the presence of protease contamination.