• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.177-183
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• 2014

Recently, many biofuels and chemicals converted from renewable resources have been introduced into chemical industries. Sargassum fulvellum is a brown macro-algae, which is found on the seashores of Korea and Japan. In this work, the production of total reducing sugar and levulinic acid from S. fulvellum, using dilute-acid catalyzed hydrothermal hydrolysis and statistical methodology, was investigated. As a result, 15.28 g/l total reducing sugar was obtained under the optimized conditions of $160.1^{\circ}C$, 1.0% sulfuric acid, in 20.2 min. Furthermore, 2.65 g/l levulinic acid was obtained at $189.5^{\circ}C$, 2.93% sulfuric acid, in 48.8 min.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.27 no.9
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• pp.1649-1656
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• 2017

In simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) for production of cellulosic biofuels, engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae capable of fermenting cellobiose has provided several benefits, such as lower enzyme costs and faster fermentation rate compared with wild-type S. cerevisiae fermenting glucose. In this study, the effects of an alternative intracellular cellobiose utilization pathway-a phosphorolytic pathway based on a mutant cellodextrin transporter (CDT-1 (F213L)) and cellobiose phosphorylase (SdCBP)-was investigated by comparing with a hydrolytic pathway based on the same transporter and an intracellular ${\beta}$-glucosidase (GH1-1) for their SSF performances under various conditions. Whereas the phosphorolytic and hydrolytic cellobiose-fermenting S. cerevisiae strains performed similarly under the anoxic SSF conditions, the hydrolytic S. cerevisiae performed slightly better than the phosphorolytic S. cerevisiae under the microaerobic SSF conditions. Nonetheless, the phosphorolytic S. cerevisiae expressing the mutant CDT-1 showed better ethanol production than the glucose-fermenting S. cerevisiae with an extracellular ${\beta}$-glucosidase, regardless of SSF conditions. These results clearly prove that introduction of the intracellular cellobiose metabolic pathway into yeast can be effective on cellulosic ethanol production in SSF. They also demonstrate that enhancement of cellobiose transport activity in engineered yeast is the most important factor affecting the efficiency of SSF of cellulose.

• ALGAE
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.91-106
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• 2020

Incorporating renewable fuel into practice, especially from algae, is a promising approach in reducing fossil fuel dependency. Algae are an exceptional feedstock since they produce abundant biomass and oils in short timeframes. Algae also produce high-valued lipid products suitable for human nutrition and supplement. Achieving goals of producing algae fuels and high-valued lipids at competitive prices involves further improvement of technology, especially better control over cultivation. Manipulating microalgae cultivation conditions to prevent contamination is essential in addition to promoting optimal growth and lipid yields. Contamination of algal cultures is a major impediment to algae cultivation that can however be mitigated by choosing extremophile microalgae. This work describes the isolation of alkali-tolerant / alkaliphilic microalgae native to South Florida with ideal characteristics for cultivation. For that purpose, water samples from Lake Okeechobee were inoculated into Zarrouk's medium (pH 9-12) and incubated for 35 days. Selection resulted in isolation of three strains that were screened for biomass and lipid accumulation. Two alkali-tolerant algae Chloroidium sp. 154-1 and Chlorella sp. 154-2 were poor lipid accumulators. One of the isolates, the diatom Fistulifera sp. 154-3, was identified as a lipid accumulating, alkaliphilic organism capable of producing 0.233 g L^-1 d^-1 dry biomass and a lipid content of 20-30% dry weight. Lipid analysis indicated the most abundant fatty acid within Fistulifera sp. was palmitoleic acid (52%), or omega-7, followed by palmitic acid (17%), and then eicosapentanoic acid (15%). 18S rRNA phylogenetic analysis formed a well-supported clade with Fistulifera species.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.171-178
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• 2016

Extensive efforts from all over the world have been made to solve energy problems, such as high oil prices, global warning due to the depletion of oil. Among them, biofuel has been drawing attention as a clean energy, which can replace fossil fuels. However, conventional biofuels were often converted from eatable biomass such as sugar cane, corn and soy which should be replaced with uneatable biomass. In this study, a techno-economical evaluation of the gasification of biomass waste with mixed alcohol synthesis process was performed. Considering available domestic biomass wastes, a 2000 ton/day conversion plant were assumed to produce 533000 L/day ethanol. Also, financial data from previous studies were evaluated and used and economical sensitivities with various operation conditions were established. Economic analysis were conducted by the payback period and internal rate of return (IRR) and net present value (NPV). Sensitivity analyses of raw material costs, initial investment, the major process cost, ethanol price changes and operating costs were all performed.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.135-144
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• 2016

Due to the high price volatility and environmental concern of petroleum, biofuels such as bioethanol produced from lignocellulosic biomass have attracted much attention. It is also expected that the amount of lignin residue generated from pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass will increase as the volume of cellulosic bioethanol increases. Lignin is a natural aromatic polymer and has very complex chemical structures with chemical functional groups. Chemical modification of lignin such as oxypropylation and epoxidation has also been applied to the production of value-added bioplastics such as polyurethane and polyester with enhanced thermal and mechanical properties. In addition, lignin can be used for carbon fiber production in automobile industries. This review highlights recent progresses in utilizations and chemical modifications of lignin for the production of bioplastics, resins, and carbon fiber.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.205-213
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• 2021

The present study aimed to determine the effect of co-pyrolysis of sawdust biomass and scrap tyre waste employing different blending ratios of sawdust to waste tyre such as 100:0, 75:25, 50:50, 25:75, and 0:100. The thermochemical characterization of feedstocks was carried out by employing the proximate, ultimate analysis, and thermogravimetric (TGA) analyses, calorific values, and scanning electron microscope coupled with energy dispersive x-ray analysis (SEM-EDX) to select the blending ratio having better bioenergy potential amongst the studied ratios. The blending ratio of 25:75 (sawdust to waste tyre) was selected for the co-pyrolysis study in a fixed-bed pyrolysis reactor system based on its solid biofuels properties such as heating value (30.18 MJ/kg), and carbon (71.81 wt%) and volatile matter (63.82 wt%) contents. The pyrolysis temperatures were varied as 500, 600 and 700 ℃ while the other parameters such as heating rate and nitrogen flowrate were maintained at 30 ℃/min and 0.5 L/min respectively. The bio-oil yields as 31.9, 47.1 and 61.2 wt%, bio-char yields as 34.5, 34.2 and 31.4 wt% and gaseous product yields as 33.6, 18.60 and 7.3 wt% at the pyrolysis temperatures of 500, 600 and 700 ℃ respectively were obtained. The blends of sawdust and waste tyres showed the improved energy characteristics which could provide the solution for the beneficial management of sawdust and scrape tyre wastes via co-pyrolysis processing.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.7
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• pp.1035-1043
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• 2021

Although engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermenting cellobiose is useful for the production of biofuels from cellulosic biomass, cellodextrin accumulation is one of the main problems reducing ethanol yield and productivity in cellobiose fermentation with S. cerevisiae expressing cellodextrin transporter (CDT) and intracellular β-glucosidase (GH1-1). In this study, we investigated the reason for the cellodextrin accumulation and how to alleviate its formation during cellobiose fermentation using engineered S. cerevisiae fermenting cellobiose. From the series of cellobiose fermentation using S. cerevisiae expressing only GH1-1 under several culture conditions, it was discovered that small amounts of GH1-1 were secreted and cellodextrin was generated through trans-glycosylation activity of the secreted GH1-1. As GH1-1 does not have a secretion signal peptide, non-conventional protein secretion might facilitate the secretion of GH1-1. In cellobiose fermentations with S. cerevisiae expressing only GH1-1, knockout of TLG2 gene involved in non-conventional protein secretion pathway significantly delayed cellodextrin formation by reducing the secretion of GH1-1 by more than 50%. However, in cellobiose fermentations with S. cerevisiae expressing both GH1-1 and CDT-1, TLG2 knockout did not show a significant effect on cellodextrin formation, although secretion of GH1-1 was reduced by more than 40%. These results suggest that the development of new intracellular β-glucosidase, not influenced by non-conventional protein secretion, is required for better cellobiose fermentation performances of engineered S. cerevisiae fermenting cellobiose.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.378-386
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• 2022

Scenedesmus obliquus ABC-009 is a microalgal strain that accumulates large amounts of lutein, particularly when subjected to growth-limiting conditions. Here, the performance of this strain was evaluated for the simultaneous production of lutein and biofuels under three different modes of cultivation - photoautotrophic mode using BG-11 medium with air or 2% CO₂ and heterotrophic mode using YM medium. While it was found that the highest fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) level and lutein content per biomass (%) were achieved in BG-11 medium with CO₂ and air, respectively, heterotrophic cultivation resulted in much higher biomass productivity. While the cell concentrations of the cultures grown under BG-11 and CO₂ were largely similar to those grown in YM medium, the disparity in the biomass yield was largely attributed to the larger cell volume in heterotrophically cultivated cells. Post-cultivation light treatment was found to further enhance the biomass productivity in all three cases and lutein content in heterotrophic conditions. Consequently, the maximum biomass (757.14 ± 20.20 mg/l/d), FAME (92.78 ± 0.08 mg/l/d), and lutein (1.006 ± 0.23 mg/l/d) productivities were obtained under heterotrophic cultivation. Next, large-scale lutein production using microalgae was demonstrated using a 1-ton open raceway pond cultivation system and a low-cost fertilizer (Eco-Sol). The overall biomass yields were similar in both media, while slightly higher lutein content was obtained using the fertilizer owing to the higher nitrogen content.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.1325-1334
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• 2022

Global warming has accelerated in recent decades due to the continuous consumption of petroleum-based fuels. Cyanobacteria-derived biofuels are a promising carbon-neutral alternative to fossil fuels that may help achieve a cleaner environment. Here, we propose an effective strategy based on the large-scale cultivation of a newly isolated cyanobacterial strain to produce phycobiliprotein and biodiesel, thus demonstrating the potential commercial applicability of the isolated microalgal strain. A native cyanobacterium was isolated from Goryeong, Korea, and identified as Pseudanabaena mucicola GO0704 through 16s RNA analysis. The potential exploitation of P. mucicola GO0704 was explored by analyzing several parameters for mixotrophic culture, and optimal growth was achieved through the addition of sodium acetate (1 g/l) to the BG-11 medium. Next, the cultures were scaled up to a stirred-tank bioreactor in mixotrophic conditions to maximize the productivity of biomass and metabolites. The biomass, phycobiliprotein, and fatty acids concentrations in sodium acetate-treated cells were enhanced, and the highest biodiesel productivity (8.1 mg/l/d) was achieved at 96 h. Finally, the properties of the fuel derived from P. mucicola GO0704 were estimated with converted biodiesels according to the composition of fatty acids. Most of the characteristics of the final product, except for the cloud point, were compliant with international biodiesel standards [ASTM 6761 (US) and EN 14214 (Europe)].

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.8
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• pp.659-665
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• 2022

Chlorella vulgaris is an important freshwater alga that is widely used as a food source by humans and animals. Recently, Chlorella has received considerable attention with regard to its potential application in aquaculture and the production of biofuels, nutrients, and therapeutic proteins. Recently, our laboratory acquired a new strain of C. vulgaris, PKVL7422, characterized by fast growth, ease of culture, and cultivability under dark conditions. However, the genes involved in its nitrogen assimilation are unknown. In this work, we identified the nitrate reductase (NR) gene of C. vulgaris PKVL7422 using rapid amplification of cDNA ends and genome walking. The NR gene of C. vulgaris PKVL7422 is approximately 8 kb long and composed of 18 introns and 19 exons, which encode 877 amino acids. An alignment analysis of the NR gene showed that it possesses the five domains and several invariant residues found in plant NRs. These results provide new insight into the molecular organization of the NR gene in algae.