Jianguo Wu

Combination of biological pretreatment with mild acid pretreatment for enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol production from water hyacinth.

The mild acid pretreatment and the combination of biological pretreatment by a white rot fungus Echinodontium taxodii or a brown rot fungus Antrodia sp. 5898 with mild acid pretreatment were evaluated under different pretreatment conditions for enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol production from water hyacinth. The combined pretreatment with E. taxodii (10 days) and 0.25% H(2)SO(4) was proved to be more effective than the sole acid pretreatment. The reducing sugar yield from enzymatic hydrolysis of co-treated water hyacinth increased 1.13-2.11 fold than that of acid-treated water hyacinth at the same conditions. The following study on separate hydrolysis and fermentation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae indicated that the ethanol yield from co-treated water hyacinth achieved 0.192 g/g of dry matter, which increased 1.34-fold than that from acid-treated water hyacinth (0.146 g/g of dry matter). This suggested that the combination of biological and mild acid pretreatment is a promising method to improve enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol production from water hyacinth with low lignin content.

Production of fiberboard using corn stalk pretreated with white-rot fungus Trametes hirsute by hot pressing without adhesive.

Corn stalk pretreated with white-rot fungus Trametes hirsute was used to produce fiberboard by hot pressing without adhesive. The moduli of rupture and elasticity of the corn-stalk-based fiberboard were increased 3.40- and 8.87-fold when bio-pretreated rather than untreated corn stalk was used. Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and chemical analysis showed that bio-pretreated corn stalk increased the mechanical properties of the fiberboard because it had more than twice the number of hydroxyl group, an 18% higher crystallinity, and twice the polysaccharide content of untreated corn stalk. Its laccase content was 4.65 ± 0.38 U/g. Corn stalk-based fiberboard production did not require adhesives, thus eliminating a potential source of toxic emissions such as formaldehyde gas.

Thermogravimetric kinetics of corn stalk pretreated by oleaginous fungi Cunninghamella echinulata

The thermogravimetric and composition of corn stalk pretreated by oleaginous fungi Cunninghamella echinulata had been studied in this paper. Results indicated that pretreatment by oleaginous fungi C. echinulata could decrease the activation energy and make the pyrolysis more efficient and energy-saving. By bio-pretreatment, the contents of elements agreed with the weight loss, sugar content, and oil contents, especially the sulfur content was greatly decreased, greatly eliminating the inventory of gas contamination such as the emission of SOx and making the pyrolysis more environmentally friendly. Therefore, corn stalk with sugar pretreated by oleaginous fungi C. echinulata should be a good pyrolysis material to obtain high quality bio-oil.

Liquiritigenin protects rats from carbon tetrachloride induced hepatic injury through PGC-1α pathway.

The lack of effective treatment for liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinomas imposes serious challenges to the healthcare system. Here, we investigated the efficacy and mechanism of liquiritigenin involved in preventing or retarding the progression of liver diseases in a rat model with chronic carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) exposure. Sprague Dawley rats were given CCl4 and lliquiritigenin alone or simultaneously for 8 weeks before liver was harvested to check histological changes by Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining, apoptosis by TUNEL assay, ROS by dihydroethidium staining, antioxidant enzyme activities and malondialdehyde using specific kits, and gene expression by quantitative real-time PCR and western blot. Chronic CCl4 exposure caused profound changes in liver histology with extensive hepatocyte death (necrosis and apoptosis), fat accumulation, and infiltration of inflammatory cells, accompanied by depressed activities of antioxidant enzymes, increased oxidative stress, elevated expression of inflammation and fibrotic genes, and downregulation of PGC-1α, ND1, and Bcl-x in rat liver. All these changes were abolished or alleviated by lliquiritigenin. The results demonstrated that liquiritigenin is effective in protecting liver from injury or treating chronic liver diseases. The modulation of PGC-1α and its downstream genes might play a critical role in relieving CCl4-induced hepatic pathogenesis by liquiritigenin.

Influence of fungal pretreatment on thermogravimetric characteristics and fast pyrolysis vapors of corn stover

White rot fungi with different degradation patterns may have different effects on the thermal characteristics and pyrolysis products of biomass. Therefore, the influences of two fungal pretreatments with different degradation effects on thermal characteristics and pyrolysis products of corn stover were investigated. Auricularia polytricha AP degraded lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose with lignocellulolytic enzymes. Stereum hirsutum ZT had no ability to degrade hemicellulose and lignin, despite its higher xylanase activity. Thermogravimetry and kinetic parameter analysis demonstrated that the initial pyrolysis temperature and activation energies of corn stover treated by fungi were lower than that of untreated corn stover. Pyrolysis-gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy analysis suggested that differences within pyrolysis vapors could be observed between biopretreated and untreated corn stover, and that the degradation pattern of fungi made a difference to the pyrolysis products.

DIETARY FIBER PRODUCTION FROM SWEET POTATO RESIDUE BY SOLID STATE FERMENTATION USING THE EDIBLE AND MEDICINAL FUNGUS Schizophyllum commune

Dietary fiber (DF) has attracted increasing interest from nutritionists. The yield of DF by traditional extraction methods, however, is very low. This paper aims to increase the yield of DF by solid state fermentation using the edible and medicinal fungus Schizophyllum commune. Sweet potato residue (SPR) was selected as raw material for producing DF. Results showed that SPR was a good feedstock for DF production by solid state fermentation. Optimized conditions of solid state fermentation of SPR for DF were obtained as follows: material particle size = 1.8 mm to 2.5 mm, water moisture at 65%, natural lighting radiation, and temperature at 27 °C. Under the optimal conditions, the yield and DF content in fermented SPR were more than 80% and 70%, respectively. The increased DF yield was mainly attributable to increased cellulose and hemicelluloses conversion. Swelling capacity, water-holding capacity, oil-holding capacity, and glucose absorption capacity of the fermented SPR were also determined, and the data indicated that the fermented SPR could be considered as a new good DF. Therefore, this work showed us a novel bioconversion method to produce high-quality DF, and the yield of DF increased 4-fold compared with traditional extraction methods.