Search Results (38)

The global nutraceutical industry is experiencing a paradigm shift, driven by an increasing demand for functional foods and dietary supplements that address malnutrition and chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular conditions, and cancer. Traditional plant- and animal-derived nutraceuticals face limitations in scalability, cost, and environmental impact, paving the way for microbial biotechnology as a sustainable alternative. Microbial cells act as bio-factories, converting nutrients like glucose and amino acids into valuable nutraceutical products such as polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), peptides, and other bioactive compounds. By harnessing their natural metabolic capabilities, microorganisms efficiently synthesize these bioactive compounds, making microbial production a sustainable and effective approach for nutraceutical development. This review explores the transformative role of microbial platforms in the production of nutraceuticals, emphasizing advanced fermentation techniques, synthetic biology, and metabolic engineering. It addresses the challenges of optimizing microbial strains, ensuring product quality, and scaling production while navigating regulatory frameworks. Furthermore, the review highlights cutting-edge technologies such as CRISPR/Cas9 for genome editing, adaptive evolution for strain enhancement, and bioreactor innovations to enhance yield and efficiency. With a focus on sustainability and precision, microbial production is positioned as a game-changer in the nutraceutical industry, offering eco-friendly and scalable solutions to meet global health needs. The integration of omics technologies and the exploration of novel microbial sources hold the potential to revolutionize this field, aligning with the growing consumer demand for innovative and functional bioactive products. Full article

The capsid proteins of many viruses are capable of spontaneous self-assembly into virus-like particles (VLPs), which do not contain the viral genome and are therefore not infectious. VLPs are structurally similar to their parent viruses and are therefore effectively recognized by the immune system and can induce strong humoral and cellular immune responses. The structural features of VLPs make them an attractive platform for the development of potential vaccines and diagnostic tools. Chimeric VLPs can be obtained by attaching foreign peptides to capsid proteins. Chimeric VLPs present multiple copies of the antigen on their surface, thereby increasing the effectiveness of the immune response. Recombinant VLPs can be produced in different expression systems. Plants are promising biofactories for the production of recombinant proteins, including VLPs. The main advantages of plant expression systems are the overall low cost and safety of plant-produced products due to the absence of pathogens common to plants and animals. This review provides an overview of the VLP platform as an approach to developing plant-produced vaccines, focusing on the use of transient expression systems. Full article

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have increasingly gained attention owing to their distinctive physicochemical and biological properties. The objective of the investigation was to biologically synthesize AgNPs using plant extracts from Barleria albostellata. The synthesized AgNPs, obtained from B. albostellata (leaves and stems), were characterized through various techniques including UV-visible spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectral analysis, and nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA). The antibacterial efficacy of the synthesized AgNPs was evaluated utilizing the disk diffusion method. The cytotoxicity effects of the synthesized AgNPs were determined using the MTT assay (3-[(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide]) in cervical cancer (HeLa), embryonic kidney (HEK293), and breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7) cell lines. The results indicate that B. albostellata extracts could serve as eco-friendly biofactories for the synthesis of AgNPs. UV-vis spectroscopy of the leaf and stem extracts revealed absorption peaks within the range of 400–450 nm, thereby confirming the synthesis of AgNPs. Elemental Ag was highest in the methanol leaf extracts (16.87 ± 0.89%) and lowest in the powdered stem extracts (7.13 ± 1.44%). Synthesized AgNPs were predominantly spherical in shape. HRTEM revealed that synthesized AgNPs from the methanolic stem extracts (34.32 ± 16.99 nm) were larger in size, while those from the powdered stem extracts were smaller (16.57 ± 5.55 nm). AgNPs synthesized from both the leaf and stem extracts exhibited zeta potential values between −8.8 and −32.1 mV, with hydrodynamics diameters ranging from 34.3 to 111.3 nm. FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the presence of various functional groups on the AgNPs. AgNPs synthesized from the leaf and stem extracts displayed significant antibacterial activity and were sensitive to Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. AgNPs exhibited significant antibacterial activity (diameter of the zone of inhibition) against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (21.67 ± 2.87 mm) in the leaf methanolic extract. Synthesized AgNPs exhibited selective in vitro cytotoxicity against HEK293, HeLa, and MCF-7 cell lines. The IC₅₀ values of the AgNPs synthesized from the various extracts were all above 9 µg/mL. Significant cytotoxic levels (IC50 16.11 and 27.23 µg/mL) were observed for the MCF-7 cell line upon exposure to the methanolic leaf and stem AgNPs. This study recommends the use of medicinal plant extracts in producing economically effective AgNPs, due to their efficient capping. Overall, AgNPs synthesized from B. albostellata extracts comprised novel antibacterial and anticancer agents, and warrant further investigation. Bio-synthesized AgNPs show great potential in the area of nanotechnology and may be used as an affordable, eco-friendly alternative for the delivery of conventional therapeutics. Full article

Securing food, energy, and raw materials for a growing population is one of the most significant challenges of our century. Algae play a central role as an alternative to plants. Wastewater and flue gas can secure nutrients and CO₂ for carbon fixation. Unfortunately, algae domestication is necessary to enhance biomass production and reduce cultivation costs. Nannochloropsis spp. have increased in popularity among microalgae due to their ability to accumulate high amounts of lipids, including PUFAs. Recently, the interest in the use of Nannochloropsis spp. as a green bio-factory for producing high-value products increased proportionally to the advances of synthetic biology and genetic tools in these species. In this review, we summarized the state of the art of current nuclear genetic manipulation techniques and a few examples of their application. The industrial use of Nannochloropsis spp. has not been feasible yet, but genetic tools can finally lead to exploiting this full-of-potential microalga. Full article

Biostimulants (BSs) are natural materials (i.e., organic or inorganic compounds, and/or microorganisms) having beneficial effects on plant growth and productivity, and able to improve resilience/tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses. Therefore, they represent an innovative alternative to the phyto- and agrochemicals, being environmentally friendly and a valuable tool to cope with extreme climate conditions. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of several biomolecules (i.e., Xylanase, β-Glucosidase, Chitinase, and Tramesan), alone or in combinations, on lettuce plant growth and quality. With this aim, the influence of these biomolecules on biomass, pigment content, and antioxidant properties in treated plants were investigated. Our results showed that Xylanase and, to a lesser extent, β-Glucosidase, have potentially biostimulant activity for lettuce cultivation, positively influencing carotenoids, total polyphenols, and ascorbic acid contents; similar effects were found with respect to antioxidative properties. Furthermore, the effect of the more promising molecules (Xylanase and β-Glucosidase) was also evaluated in kiwifruit cultured cells to test their putative role as sustainable input for plant cell biofactories. The absence of phytotoxic effects of both molecules at low doses (0.1 and 0.01 µM), and the significantly enhanced cell biomass growth, indicates a positive impact on kiwifruit cells. Full article

The wastewater circular economy (WW-CE) represents a solution to improving sanitation coverage and management worldwide. However, the transition to circular wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) requires facilitation to enhance decision-makers’ understanding of the integral sustainability impacts of the WW-CE. This research implemented a Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA), combining Life Cycle Assessment, Social Life Cycle Assessment and Life Cycle Costing with a Multi-criteria Decision Making (MCDM) model to quantify the environmental, social, and economic impacts of different WWTPs technologies. Two real WWTPs (Plant A and Plant B) in Chile have embraced alternative WW-CE configurations, adopting the title Biofactories, and are considered as case studies in this investigation. A comparative LCSA considered the service of a 1,000,000-population equivalent, under three scenarios: wastewater discharge without treatment, conventional WWTPs, and biofactory WW-CE configurations. The results demonstrate that the transition to WW-CEs improved integral sustainability, and decreased integrated environmental, social, and economic impacts by 30% in Plant A, demonstrating better performance in terms environmental and social impacts. However, a 58% decrease in integral sustainability impacts for Plant B was achieved via the economic advantage of the thermal hydrolysis pre-treatment of sludge. The urgent need to adopt sustainable decision-making models to improve sanitation coverage and sustainability performance of the sanitation industry across the globe is discussed. The WW-CE in Chile presents an opportunity for this to be achieved. Full article

The literature is full of studies reporting environmental and health issues related to using traditional pesticides in food production and storage. Fortunately, alternatives have arisen in the last few decades, showing that organic agriculture is possible and economically feasible. And in this scenario, fungi may be helpful. In the natural environment, when associated with plants, these microorganisms offer plant-growth-promoting molecules, facilitate plant nutrient uptake, and antagonize phytopathogens. It is true that fungi can also be phytopathogenic, but even they can benefit agriculture in some way—since pathogenicity is species-specific, these fungi are shown to be useful against weeds (as bioherbicides). Finally, plant-associated yeasts and molds are natural biofactories, and the metabolites they produce while dwelling in leaves, flowers, roots, or the rhizosphere have the potential to be employed in different industrial activities. By addressing all these subjects, this manuscript comprehensively reviews the biotechnological uses of plant-associated fungi and, in addition, aims to sensitize academics, researchers, and investors to new alternatives for healthier and more environmentally friendly production processes. Full article

Crocins are glycosylated apocarotenoids with strong coloring power and anti-oxidant, anticancer, and neuro-protective properties. We previously dissected the saffron crocin biosynthesis pathway, and demonstrated that the CsCCD2 enzyme, catalyzing the carotenoid cleavage step, shows a strong preference for the xanthophyll zeaxanthin in vitro and in bacterio. In order to investigate substrate specificity in planta and to establish a plant-based bio-factory system for crocin production, we compared wild-type Nicotiana benthamiana plants, accumulating various xanthophylls together with α- and β-carotene, with genome-edited lines, in which all the xanthophylls normally accumulated in leaves were replaced by a single xanthophyll, zeaxanthin. These plants were used as chassis for the production in leaves of saffron apocarotenoids (crocins, picrocrocin) using two transient expression methods to overexpress CsCCD2: agroinfiltration and inoculation with a viral vector derived from tobacco etch virus (TEV). The results indicated the superior performance of the zeaxanthin-accumulating line and of the use of the viral vector to express CsCCD2. The results also suggested a relaxed substrate specificity of CsCCD2 in planta, cleaving additional carotenoid substrates. Full article

Non-specific lipid transfer proteins (nsLTPs) stand out among plant-specific peptide superfamilies due to their multifaceted roles in plant molecular physiology and development, including their protective functions against pathogens. These antimicrobial agents have demonstrated remarkable efficacy against bacterial and fungal pathogens. The discovery of plant-originated, cysteine-rich antimicrobial peptides such as nsLTPs has paved the way for exploring the mentioned organisms as potential biofactories for synthesizing antimicrobial compounds. Recently, nsLTPs have been the focus of a plethora of research and reviews, providing a functional overview of their potential activity. The present work compiles relevant information on nsLTP omics and evolution, and it adds meta-analysis of nsLTPs, including: (1) genome-wide mining in 12 plant genomes not studied before; (2) latest common ancestor analysis (LCA) and expansion mechanisms; (3) structural proteomics, scrutinizing nsLTPs’ three-dimensional structure/physicochemical characteristics in the context of nsLTP classification; and (4) broad nsLTP spatiotemporal transcriptional analysis using soybean as a study case. Combining a critical review with original results, we aim to integrate high-quality information in a single source to clarify unexplored aspects of this important gene/peptide family. Full article

The molecule (2S)-naringenin is a scaffold molecule with several nutraceutical properties. Currently, (2S)-naringenin is obtained through chemical synthesis and plant isolation. However, these methods have several drawbacks. Thus, heterologous biosynthesis has emerged as a viable alternative to its production. Recently, (2S)-naringenin production studies in Escherichia coli have used different tools to increase its yield up to 588 mg/L. In this study, we designed and assembled a bio-factory for (2S)-naringenin production. Firstly, we used several parametrized algorithms to identify the shortest pathway for producing (2S)-naringenin in E. coli, selecting the genes phenylalanine ammonia lipase (pal), 4-coumarate: CoA ligase (4cl), chalcone synthase (chs), and chalcone isomerase (chi) for the biosynthetic pathway. Then, we evaluated the effect of oxygen transfer on the production of (2S)-naringenin at flask (50 mL) and bench (4 L culture) scales. At the flask scale, the agitation rate varied between 50 rpm and 250 rpm. At the bench scale, the dissolved oxygen was kept constant at 5% DO (dissolved oxygen) and 40% DO, obtaining the highest (2S)-naringenin titer (3.11 ± 0.14 g/L). Using genome-scale modeling, gene expression analysis (RT-qPCR) of oxygen-sensitive genes was obtained. Full article

Plants have long been exploited as a sustainable source of food, flavors, agrochemicals, colors, therapeutic proteins, bioactive compounds, and stem cell production. However, plant habitats are being briskly lost due to scores of environmental factors and human disturbances. This necessitates finding a viable alternative technology for the continuous production of compounds that are utilized in food and healthcare. The high-value natural products and bioactive compounds are often challenging to synthesize chemically since they accumulate in meager quantities. The isolation and purification of bioactive compounds from plants is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and involves cumbersome extraction procedures. This demands alternative options, and the plant cell culture system offers easy downstream procedures. Retention of the metabolic cues of natural plants, scale-up facility, use as stem cells in the cosmetics industry, and metabolic engineering (especially the rebuilding of the pathways in microbes) are some of the advantages for the synthesis and accumulation of the targeted metabolites and creation of high yielding cell factories. In this article, we discuss plant cell suspension cultures for the in vitro manipulation and production of plant bioactive compounds. Further, we discuss the new advances in the application of plant cells in the cosmetics and food industry and bioprinting. Full article

The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) had a profound impact on the world’s health and economy. Although the end of the pandemic may come in 2023, it is generally believed that the virus will not be completely eradicated. Most likely, the disease will become an endemicity. The rapid development of vaccines of different types (mRNA, subunit protein, inactivated virus, etc.) and some other antiviral drugs (Remdesivir, Olumiant, Paxlovid, etc.) has provided effectiveness in reducing COVID-19’s impact worldwide. However, the circulating SARS-CoV-2 virus has been constantly mutating with the emergence of multiple variants, which makes control of COVID-19 difficult. There is still a pressing need for developing more effective antiviral drugs to fight against the disease. Plants have provided a promising production platform for both bioactive chemical compounds (small molecules) and recombinant therapeutics (big molecules). Plants naturally produce a diverse range of bioactive compounds as secondary metabolites, such as alkaloids, terpenoids/terpenes and polyphenols, which are a rich source of countless antiviral compounds. Plants can also be genetically engineered to produce valuable recombinant therapeutics. This molecular farming in plants has an unprecedented opportunity for developing vaccines, antibodies, and other biologics for pandemic diseases because of its potential advantages, such as low cost, safety, and high production volume. This review summarizes the latest advancements in plant-derived drugs used to combat COVID-19 and discusses the prospects and challenges of the plant-based production platform for antiviral agents. Full article

A wastewater treatment facility in Pau, France, will soon be modified to become a so-called “Biofactory” able to produce different resources or energy through a series of state-of-the art and innovative technologies. SUEZ will lead the consortium responsible for the design and construction of the biofactory, with commissioning planned for the beginning of 2023, and they will then operate the plant after its completion. First, the sludge treatment line will include classic and mature anaerobic digestion producing biogas, which will then be purified to biomethane before grid injection. Two innovative technologies will then be used to optimize both sludge volume reduction and energy management: (1) a hydrothermal carbonization reactor will allow for sludge volume reduction with minimal energy consumption and for additional biogas production thanks to filtrate methanisation; (2) a catalytic methanation reactor will convert the CO₂ coming from the biogas purification to CH4, thanks to hydrogen coming from an electrolysis plant fed with renewable electricity produced on site; this methanation process will also supply heat for the digestion process. Additional resources will also be produced by the biofactory, with the recovery of nitrogen through the production of ammonium sulphate to be used as fertilizer. The expected performance of the Pau plant, in terms of energy, resource preservation, avoided and CO₂ emissions, is a tangible indicator of the multiple benefits given by this biofactory approach. Full article

Ammonium (NH₄⁺) recirculation from the streams generated in the dehydration stage of the sludge generated in the anaerobic digestion of urban wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), known as centrate or sidestream, produces a reduction in the efficiency of WWTPs. Given this scenario and the formulation that a WWTP should be considered a by-product generating facility (biofactory), solutions for ammonia/ammonium recovery are being promoted. These include a nitrogen source that reduces the need for ammonia production through the Haber–Bosch process. Therefore, the recovery of nutrients from urban cycles is a potential and promising line of research. In the case of nitrogen, this has been aimed at recovering NH₄⁺ to produce high-quality fertilizers through membrane or ion exchange processes. However, these techniques usually require a pretreatment, which could include an ultrafiltration stage, to eliminate suspended solids and organic matter. In this case, the coagulation/flocculation (C/F) process is an economical alternative for this purpose. In this work, the sidestream from Vilanova i la Geltrú WWTP (Barcelona, Spain) was characterized to optimize a C/F process before being treated by other processes for ammonium recovery. The optimization was performed considering a bibliographic and experimental analysis of several operating parameters: coagulant and flocculant agents, mixing velocity, and operation time, among others. Then, the removal efficiency of control parameters such as turbidity, chemical oxygen demand (COD), and total suspended solids (TSS) was calculated. This optimization resulted in the use of 25 mg/L of ferric chloride (FeCl₃) combined with 25 mg/L of a flocculant composed of silicon (SiO₂ 3%), aluminum (Al₂SO₄ 64.5%), and iron salts (Fe₂O₃ 32.5%), into a 1 min rapid mixing process at 200 rpm and a slow mixing for 30 min at 30 rpm, followed by a final 30 min settling process. The numerical and statistical results of the process optimization reached 91.5%, 59.1%, and 95.2% removal efficiency for turbidity, COD, and TSS, respectively. These efficiencies theoretically support the enhanced coagulation/flocculation process as a pretreatment for a higher NH₄⁺ recovery rate, achieving 570.6 mgNH₄⁺/L, and a reduction in the dimensioning or substitution of other membrane processes process due to its high TSS removal value. Full article

In a circular economy era the transition towards renewable and sustainable materials is very urgent. The development of bio-based solutions, that can ensure technological circularity in many priority areas (e.g., agriculture, biotechnology, ecology, green industry, etc.), is very strategic. The agricultural and fishing industry wastes represent important feedstocks that require the development of sustainable and environmentally-friendly industrial processes to produce and recover biofuels, chemicals and bioactive molecules. In this context, the replacement, in industrial processes, of chemicals with enzyme-based catalysts assures great benefits to humans and the environment. In this review, we describe the potentiality of the plastid transformation technology as a sustainable and cheap platform for the production of recombinant industrial enzymes, summarize the current knowledge on the technology, and display examples of cellulolytic enzymes already produced. Further, we illustrate several types of bacterial auxiliary and chitinases/chitin deacetylases enzymes with high biotechnological value that could be manufactured by plastid transformation. Full article