Kensuke Kawarada

Effects of Cellulose Crystallinity, Hemicellulose, and Lignin on the Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Miscanthus sinensis to Monosaccharides

The effects of cellulose crystallinity, hemicellulose, and lignin on the enzymatic hydrolysis of Miscanthus sinensis to monosaccharides were investigated. A air-dried biomass was ground by ball-milling, and the powder was separated into four fractions by passage through a series of sieves with mesh sizes 250–355 μm, 150–250 μm, 63–150 μm, and <63 μm. Each fraction was hydrolyzed with commercially available cellulase and β-glucosidase. The yield of monosaccharides increased as the crystallinity of the substrate decreased. The addition of xylanase increased the yield of both pentoses and glucose. Delignification by the sodium chlorite method improved the initial rate of hydrolysis by cellulolytic enzymes significantly, resulting in a higher yield of monosaccharides as compared with that for untreated samples. When delignified M. sinensis was hydrolyzed with cellulase, β-glucosidase, and xylanase, hemicellulose was hydrolyzed completely into monosaccharides, and the conversion rate of glucan to glucose was 90.6%.

The Properties of Activated Carbon Made from Waste Newsprint Paper

Activated carbon is a porous material made by activation of carbon materials, such as coal, by steam or carbon dioxide gas to form numerous micropores on the surface which gives the material high adsorption characteristics and it is widely used as a purifier for water and air. In this research, to develop a new use for waste paper, activated carbon was prepared from waste newsprint paper and its adsorption characteristics were measured. As a result, activated carbon with an iodine adsorption capacity of 1310 mg/g, a methylene blue adsorption capacity of 326 mg/g and a specific surface area of 1000 m2/g was obtained. These adsorption capacities were almost the same as ordinary activated carbon on the market.

Analysis of microbial volatile organic compounds produced by wood-decay fungi

ObjectivesMicrobial volatile organic compounds (MVOCs) produced by the brown-rot fungus Fomitopsis palustris and white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor grown on wood chip and potato dextrose agar were analyzed by GC–MS.Results In total, 110 organic compounds were identified as MVOCs. Among them, only 23 were MVOCs commonly observed in both types of fungi, indicating that the fungi have differential MVOC expression profiles. In addition, F. palustris and T. versicolor produced 38 and 22 MVOCs, respectively, which were detected only after cultivation on wood chip. This suggests that the fungi specifically released these MVOCs when degrading the cell-wall structure of the wood. Time course analysis of MVOC emission showed that both types of fungi produced the majority of MVOCs during the active phase of wood degradation.ConclusionAs both fungi produced specific MVOCs in the course of wood degradation indicates the possibility of the application of MVOCs as detection markers for wood-decay fungus existing in woody materials.

Quantitative Analysis of Mycoflora on Commercial Domestic Fruits in Japan

A comprehensive and quantitative analysis of the mycoflora on the surface of commercial fruit was performed. Nine kinds of fruits grown in Japan were tested. Overall fungal counts on the fruits ranged from 3.1 to 6.5 log CFU/g. The mean percentages of the total yeast counts were higher than those of molds in samples of apples, Japanese pears, and strawberries, ranging from 58.5 to 67.0%, and were lower than those of molds in samples of the other six fruits, ranging from 9.8 to 48.3%. Cladosporium was the most frequent fungus and was found in samples of all nine types of fruits, followed by Penicillium found in eight types of fruits. The fungi with the highest total counts in samples of the various fruits were Acremonium in cantaloupe melons (47.6% of the total fungal count), Aspergillus in grapes (32.2%), Aureobasidium in apples (21.3%), blueberries (63.6%), and peaches (33.6%), Cladosporium in strawberries (38.4%), Cryptococcus in Japanese pears (37.6%), Penicillium in mandarins (22.3%), and Sporobolomyces in lemons (26.9%). These results demonstrated that the mycoflora on the surfaces of these fruits mainly consists of common pre- and postharvest inhabitants of the plants or in the environment; fungi that produce mycotoxins or cause market diseases were not prominent in the mycoflora of healthy fruits. These findings suggest fruits should be handled carefully with consideration given to fungal contaminants, including nonpathogenic fungi, to control the quality of fruits and processed fruit products.