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Anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) technology is increasingly researched for wastewater treatment in a circular economy scenario to recover nutrients, water, and biogas. AnMBR couples the advantages of anaerobic digestion, such as low sludge production, no aeration requirement and biogas production, with the benefits of membrane technology, that is, complete solids removal and a high removal degree of pathogenic organisms. Nevertheless, membrane fouling remains the major operational challenge, limiting the economic feasibility and applicability of AnMBRs. Membrane fouling is responsible for lower flux, higher transmembrane pressure, the need for intensive biogas sparging or increased crossflow velocities for membrane scouring, and increased frequency of membrane cleaning and membrane replacement; consequently, increasing energy and operational costs. Researchers extensively studied the causes and mitigation of membrane fouling in both aerobic and anaerobic membrane bioreactors. Membrane fouling mitigation strategies have focused on optimisation of membrane operational variables, such as: gas sparging, crossflow velocity, filtration relaxation cycle, permeate flux and frequency and intensity of chemical cleaning. Although optimisation of operational variables might be suitable when the sludge has good or moderate filterability, it may not be adequate or sufficient when fouling is caused by a sludge with poor filterability. The application of flux enhancers for fouling control has been extensively investigated. Flux enhancers are adsorbents, coagulants and flocculants that decrease fouling by changing the sludge characteristics, thereby improving sludge filterability. Particularly, cationic polymers have been successfully applied as flux enhancers in short term tests on large scale aerobic membrane bioreactors (MBRs), whereas in AnMBRs research is scarce, and so far, only done at lab scale. Results from MBRs cannot be directly translated to AnMBRs because the extent and nature of membrane fouling under anaerobic and aerobic conditions are different. This thesis studies the feasibility of dosing cationic polymers into large scale AnMBRs for fouling mitigation, focusing on long term effects, possible side effects, optimal dosing strategy and variation of required dosage. Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación European Commission

Background: Brewers spent grain (BSG) is one of the most abundant by-products of the beer industry and causes serious environmental problems. Ferulic acid (FA) is an antioxidant with potential cosmeceutical applications. FA was extracted from BSG, developing a method of high extraction performance in order to be encapsulated in ultradeformable liposomes (Nanoferulic. NF).Objectives: To obtain a product with high added value such as FA, from a residue currently underused, using simple and economical chemical methods. To load FA into a nanosystem designed for the topical route; its encapsulation has the purpose to take profit from its photoprotective, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties in the deep layers of the skin. Methods: FA was obtained from dried BSG using acid and basic treatments in series. NF was prepared by lipid film resuspension of a solution containing FA obtained from BSG. Size and Z-potential were determined. Cytotoxicity was assessed in vitro. Skin penetration was assessed by NF determination at different skin depths and by confocal microscopy.Results: The yield of the extraction process was 0.43% on a dry basis. Encapsulation rendered liposomes of around 140 nm with 92% of encapsulation efficiency. No toxicity was observed in all the tested concentrations. Successful results were obtained from the regeneration studies.Conclusions: It was possible to develop a nanosystem containing FA, generating a high-value commercial input for the pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical industry. The use of BSG generated in industrial-scale would help to reduce the volume of highly polluting waste. Fil: Bucci, Paula Lorena. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentina Fil: Santos, Maria Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto Andino Patagónico de Tecnologías Biológicas y Geoambientales. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto Andino Patagónico de Tecnologías Biológicas y Geoambientales; Argentina Fil: Martinetti Montanari, Jorge Anibal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Celular. Grupo Vinculado al IMBICE - Grupo de Biología Estructural y Biotecnología - Universidad Nacional de Quilmes - GBEyB | Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Celular. Grupo Vinculado al IMBICE - Grupo de Biología Estructural y Biotecnología - Universidad Nacional de Quilmes - GBEyB | Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Celular. Grupo Vinculado al IMBICE - Grupo de Biología Estructural y Biotecnología - Universidad Nacional de Quilmes - GBEyB; Argentina Fil: Zaritzky, Noemi Elisabet. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentina

Bioremediation using actinobacterium consortia proved to be a promising alternative for the purification of co-contaminated environments. In this sense, the quadruple consortium composed of Streptomyces sp. M7, MC1, A5, and Amycolatopsis tucumanensis AB0 has been able to remove significant levels of Cr(VI) and lindane from anthropogenically contaminated soils. However, the effectiveness of the bioremediation process could not be evaluated only by analytical monitoring, which is complex mainly due to the characteristics of the matrix, producing non-quantitative analyte recoveries, or interferences in the detection stage and quantification. However, the effectiveness of the bioremediation process cannot be evaluated only through analytical monitoring, which is complex due mainly to the characteristics of the matrix, to the recoveries of non-quantitative analytes or to interferences in the detection and quantification stage. For this reason, it is essential to have tools of ecological relevance to assess the biological impact of pollutants on the environment. In this context, the objective of this work was to establish the appropriate bioassays to evaluate the effectiveness of a bioremediation process of co-contaminated soils. For this, five model species were studied: four plant species (Lactuca sativa, Raphanus sativus, Lycopersicon esculentum, and Zea mays) and one animal species (Eisenia fetida). On plant species, the biomarkers evaluated were inhibition of germination (IG) and the length of hypocotyls/steam and radicles/roots of the seedling. While on E. fetida, mortality (M), weight lost, coelomocyte concentration and cell viability were tested. These bioindicators and the battery of biomarkers quantified in them showed a different level of sensitivity, from maximum to minimum: E. fetida > L. esculentum > L. sativa > R. sativus ≫> Z. mays. Therefore, E. fetida and L. esculentum and their respective biomarkers were selected to evaluate the effectiveness of the bioremediation process due to the capability of assessing the effect on the flora and the fauna of the soil, respectively. The joint application of these bioindicators in a field scale bioremediation process is a feasible tool to demonstrate the recovery of the quality and health of the soil. Fil: Aparicio, Juan Daniel. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Garcia Velasco, Nerea. Universidad del País Vasco; España Fil: Urionabarrenetxea, Erik. Universidad del País Vasco; España Fil: Soto, Manu. Universidad del País Vasco; España Fil: Álvarez, Analía. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto Miguel Lillo; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Polti, Marta Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

En Argentina no existe información unificada y fácilmente accesible en relación con el potencial de acumulación de metales pesados en especies vegetales. El avance en estudios de acumulación de los principales contaminantes metálicos conformaría una herramienta importante para la gestión y recuperación de suelos contaminados, a partir del diseño de procesos de fitorremediación. Particularmente,el plomo es un contaminante común en las regiones pobladas del Gran Buenos Aires (AMBA), dada la actividad industrial predominante en esas zonas y que han generado un gran pasivo ambiental. En este trabajo se presentan resultados de acumulación de plomo en condimentos, a escala laboratorio, decebolla de verdeo y orégano. Las especies elegidas para este estudio representan condimentos de amplio uso en la cocina argentina y de las primeras opciones disponibles para comenzar una huerta doméstica.Los resultados indican una alta capacidad de acumulación, que permitió remover entre el 80 y 90 % del plomo presente en suelos o cuerpos de agua. Estos resultados preliminares dan indicios de la factibilidad de utilizar estas especies en procesos de fitorremediación. In Argentina, there is no unified and easily accessible information regarding the potential for accumulation of heavy metals in plant species. Goals in accumulation studies of the main metallic pollutants would be an important tool for the management and recovery of contaminated soils, based on the design of phytoremediation processes. Particularly, lead is a common pollutant in the most populated regions of Greater Buenos Aires (AMBA), as a consecuence of industrial activity that have generated a large environmental liability. In this paper results of laboratory scale lead accumulation experiments in spices such as green onion and oregano are presented. The vegetables chosen for this study represent spices widely used in argentinian cuisine and the first available options to start a domestic garden. The results indicate a high accumulation capacity, which allowed to remove between 80 and 90% of the lead present in soils or water. These preliminary results are an advance of the feasibility of using these species in phytoremediation processes. Fil: Ríos Medrano, Mayra Agustina. Universidad Argentina de la Empresa. Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Exactas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas; Argentina Fil: Lacava, Judith Elizabeth. Universidad Argentina de la Empresa. Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Curotto, Ignacio. Universidad Argentina de la Empresa. Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Exactas; Argentina Fil: Fucks, Leandro. Universidad Argentina de la Empresa. Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Exactas; Argentina Fil: Gargarello, Romina Mariel. Universidad Argentina de la Empresa. Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Tecnología; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Quilmes; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina

Given that the cadmium (Cd) toxicity could be due to its interference with the calcium (Ca) homeostasis, the aim of this work was to study the effect of Cd over the presence, distribution and volume density (Vv) of Ca and Ca-ATPase in the secretory cells of the pars preconvoluta (PPC) and the pars convoluta (pc) in Rhinella arenarum. The severe effect of the xenobiotic (CdCl2 2.5 mg/kg) in sexually matured females was evaluated. Co-localization, as well as a marked reduction of Ca and Ca-ATPase, was observed in treated animals, in the areas analyzed, compared to control. Low calcium deposits were found in the secreting granules (SG) of the epithelial (ESC) and glandular secretory cells (GSC), while an increase in their cytoplasm and intracellular space was observed. The Ca-ATPase in treated and control animals was detected at the SG and the plasmatic membrane of the ESC and GSC. In relation to the Vv estimates, a substantial reduction of Ca deposits and Ca-ATPase activity was observed in the treated group, with respect to the control. Both amounts of Vv of Ca and Ca-ATPase activity were higher in PPC than in pc, and, higher in ESC than in GSC. These results were associated with the Cd concentration in the oviductal PC, determining that it is a bioaccumulator organ. Thus, this work demonstrated that the Cd interacted with Ca-ATPase, leading to an increase of cytosolic Ca, which is responsible for the possible disruptions in cellular metabolism. Fil: Medina, Marcela Fatima. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina Fil: Taboada, Luis Nicolás. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina Fil: Gonzalez Alejandro, María Evangelina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina Fil: Díaz, Miguel Ángel. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Tecnología; Argentina Fil: Gelatti, Facundo Javier. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; Argentina Fil: Torres, Mabel. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina Fil: Romero, Cintia Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

Phenol is one of the contaminants most frequently found in the environment and it is considered a priority pollutant due to their toxic effects. Hairy roots (HR) constitute a good model tool for the removal of this contaminant. In this work, phenol removal using wild type (WT) and double transgenic (DT) Nicotiana tabacum HR was performed with high efficiency (60–80%, for 25–250 mg L−1 phenol solutions, respectively). After phytoremediation process, the toxicity of post removal solutions (PRS) was evaluated through two-toxicity test belonging to two trophic levels, Lactuca sativa test and Rhinella arenarum (AMPHITOX). Toxicity of PRS showed variable results since these solutions were less toxic to L. sativa seeds compared to R. arenarum embryos, which could be attributed to different sensitivities of the exposed organisms. Although PRS obtained using WT and DT HR reduced phenol phytotoxicity on L. sativa seeds, WT PRS were even less toxic than DT PRS according to this test. Regarding AMPHITOX, HR culture medium without phenol but incubated with HR and phenol PRS exerted a toxic effect on the embryos, which could be related to the presence of toxic products derived from HR metabolism. The results demonstrated that an efficient phenol removal is not always accompanied by a considerable reduction of the solution toxicity and therefore, the use of organisms from different trophic levels to evaluate the toxicity after the removal process gains importance. Fil: Paisio, Cintia Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina Fil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina Fil: González, Paola Solange. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina

Addition of food waste (FW) as a co-substrate in anaerobic digesters of wastewater treatment plants is a desirable strategy towards achievement of the potential of wastewater treatment plants to become energy-neutral, diverting at the same time organic waste from landfills. Because substrate type is a driver of variations in phylogenetic structure of digester microbiomes, it is critical to understand how microbial communities respond to changes in substrate composition and concentration. In this work, high throughput sequencing was used to monitor the dynamics of microbiome changes in four parallel lab-scale anaerobic digesters treating sewage sludge during acclimation to an increasing amount of food waste. A co-occurrence network was constructed using data from 49 metagenomes sampled over the 161 days of the digesters´ operation. More than half of the nodes in the network were clustered in two major modules, i.e. groups of highly interconnected taxa that had much fewer connections with taxa outside the group. The dynamics of co-occurrence networks evidenced shifts that occurred within microbial communities due to the addition of food waste in the co-digestion process. A diverse and reproducible group of hydrolytic and fermentative bacteria, syntrophic bacteria and methanogenic archaea appeared to grow in a concerted fashion to allow stable performance of anaerobic co-digestion at high FW. Fil: Orellana, Esteban. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentina Fil: Davies Sala, Carol Giselle. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentina Fil: Guerrero, Leandro Demián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentina Fil: Vardé, Ignacio. Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación. Benito Roggio Ambiental; Argentina Fil: Altina, Melisa Guadalupe. Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación. Benito Roggio Ambiental; Argentina Fil: Lorenzo, María Cielo. Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación. Benito Roggio Ambiental; Argentina Fil: Figuerola, Eva Lucia Margarita. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina Fil: Pontiggia, Rodrigo Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación. Benito Roggio Ambiental; Argentina Fil: Erijman, Leonardo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentina

Old Yellow Enzymes play key roles in several cellular processes and have become an important family of enzymes withbiotechnological potential. One of the major challenges of biotechnology consists of the bioremediation of co-polluted soilswith organic and inorganic compounds. In co-contaminated areas, chromium normally exists in its more toxic and carcinogenicform Cr(VI). Microorganisms can reduce this metal to the insoluble and less toxic Cr(III).Streptomycessp. M7 is a strain able toefficiently bioremediate polluted soils withγ-hexachlorocyclohexane and Cr(VI). The complete degradation pathway for γ-hexachlorocyclohexane was recently elucidated in this strain. In the present work, we confirmed the ability ofStreptomycessp.M7 to eliminate a high percentage of Cr(VI) from a synthetic culture medium. After a transcriptional study in the presence ofCr(VI), we also report the molecular cloning of a gene coding for an Old Yellow Enzyme with chromate reductase activity. Ourresults suggest that the elimination of Cr(VI) byStreptomycessp. M7 is directly related to the activity of this Old Yellow Enzyme.The importance of our work is in identifying for the first time an Old Yellow Enzyme with chromate reductase activity inStreptomycesand Actinobacteria. Finding this enzyme helps understand chromium homeostasis inStreptomycessp. M7, inaddition to opening a new research window related to Old Yellow Enzymes from Actinobacteria. Fil: Sineli, Pedro Eugenio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Guerrero, Daiana. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina Fil: Alvarez, Analia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Dávila Costa, José Sebastián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

Metal mobilization and immobilization catalyzed by microbial action are key processes in environmental biotechnology. Metal mobilization from ores, mining wastes, or solid residues can be used for recovering metals and/or remediating polluted environments; furthermore, immobilization reduces the migration of metals; cleans up effluents plus ground- and surface water; and, moreover, can help to concentrate and recover metals. Usually these processes provide certain advantages over traditional technologies such as more efficient economical and environmentally sustainable results. Since elevated temperatures typically increase chemical kinetics, it could be expected that bioprocesses should also be enhanced by replacing mesophiles with thermophiles or hyperthermophiles. Nevertheless, other issues like process stability, flexibility, and thermophile-versus-mesophile resistance to acidity and/or metal toxicity should be carefully considered. This review critically analyzes and compares thermophilic and mesophilic microbial performances in recent and selected representative examples of metal bioremediation and biorecovery. Fil: Castro, Camila Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina Fil: Urbieta, María Sofía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina Fil: Plaza Cazón, Josefina del Carmen. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina Fil: Donati, Edgardo Ruben. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina

Tannery effluents require effective treatment prior to their final disposal, and the use of native bacterial consortia could be an appropriate strategy for this purpose. In the present work, consortium SFC 500-1 was found to be highly tolerant to different metals, metalloids and aromatic compounds like phenols. It was also able to remove the black dye commonly used in tanneries. Moreover, it promoted a significant reduction in chemical oxygen demand and exhibited high capability for the simultaneous removal of Cr(VI) and phenol. However, the effectiveness of the remediation processes markedly varied from one experimental system (Erlenmeyer flasks) to another (field microcosm system), highlighting the importance of moving from a small-scale study system to one involving more realistic environmental scenarios. In addition, we found a decrease in the toxicity of the effluent treated with consortium SFC 500-1. Taken together, our results indicate that this consortium possesses great potential for the treatment of tannery effluents. We conclude that for the development of a bioremediation strategy, it is necessary to develop experiments at a larger scale under conditions similar to those of the original system, in order to complete the scenario first created by in vitro approaches. Fil: Fernandez, Marilina. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: Paisio, Cintia Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: Perotti, Romina. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: Pereira, Paola Patricia. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: González, Paola Solange. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina

Lindane is a highly chlorinated and recalcitrant insecticide, capable to accumulate in soil and groundwater. Despite lindane has been banned in many countries, numerous sites still remain contaminated. The present work studies the bioremediation of soils of different textures contaminated with lindane by bioaugmentation with a quadruple Streptomyces consortium. In the three evaluated soils, silty loam soil (SLS), sandy soil (SS), and clayey soil (CS), heterotrophic microbial populations increased during the 14 days of the assay and CFU counts were higher in bioaugmented than in non-bioaugmented soils. Lindane removal was detected in all contaminated treatments, with higher removal percentages in the bioaugmented microcosms (SS 70.3%, SLS 36.3%, and CS 30.7%), than in non-bioaugmented ones (SS 40.4%, SLS 9.3%, and CS 12.2%). The pesticide half-life decreased by 77.3, 50.3, and 10.7 days, in bioaugmented SLS, CS, and SS, respectively. Lindane had an inhibitory effect on soil enzyme activities such as dehydrogenase, fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis, acid and alkaline phosphatases and increased the catalase activity, in non-bioaugmented controls; however, no effect on urease activity was observed. Bioaugmentation of soil microcosms with actinobacteria increased all enzymatic activities. Finally, the survival of the four strains of the consortium was demonstrated at the end of the bioremediation assay. Bioremediation using the Streptomyces sp. A2-A5-A11-M7 consortium represents a promising tool to restore different types of soils contaminated with organochlorine pesticides. Fil: Raimondo, Enzo Emanuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Aparicio, Juan Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina Fil: Briceño Muñoz, Gabriela Elizabeth. Universidad de La Frontera; Chile Fil: Fuentes, María Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Benimeli, Claudia Susana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Catamarca; Argentina

A simple method for obtaining intrinsic kinetic parameters of photocatalytic, first-order reactions is presented. The method makes use of a microfluidic reactor, which was specifically designed to operate under conditions ofnegligible mass transfer limitations and involves a reversible sealing that allows one to test different catalyst films on the same device. An analytical model was derived to calculate the intrinsic kinetic constant from experimental data of reactant conversion vs flow rate. Radiation absorption by the catalyst was explicitly considered in the reaction rate expression. The degradation of a water pollutant, the pharmaceutical drug clofibric acid (CA), was evaluated in the microreactor under different flow rates, TiO2 film thicknesses, and UVirradiation fluxes. The intrinsic kinetic parameter of CA degradation was extracted from the output data of the microfluidic reactor. The model was verified against numerical calculations of the full problem (advection,diffusion and reaction). Then, as an ultimate proof of the method, the obtained value of the kinetic parameter was successfully employed to predict the performance of a conventional, laboratory scale photoreactor. The proposed method constitutes a practical tool for laboratories dedicated to modeling, design and optimization of photocatalytic reactors for environmental applications. Apart from determining intrinsic parameters, the methodalso enables easy and quick catalyst screening. Fil: Satuf, María Lucila. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química; Argentina Fil: Macagno, Joana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química; Argentina Fil: Manassero, Agustina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química; Argentina Fil: Bernal Bernal, Germán. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Reg.santa Fe. Departamento de Sistemas; Argentina Fil: Kler, Pablo Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Centro de Investigaciones en Métodos Computacionales. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Centro de Investigaciones en Métodos Computacionales; Argentina Fil: Berli, Claudio Luis Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química; Argentina

The aim of this work was to evaluate the composting process of poultry manure mixed with other complementary organic wastes. Two mixtures (treatment 1 and 2) were prepared with corn bare cobs, sawdust, shavings and manure. Temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter loss, total organic carbon, solved organic carbon, N loss, ammonium and nitrate concentration, laccase activity and respiration indices were analyzed. These variables showed similar tendencies during the composting process in both treatments. A peak of biological activity, organic matter mineralization and salt release was observed after 6 days of the process. Treatment 2 showed a higher concentration of solved organic carbon and higher organic matter loss than in the mixture with less manure (treatment 1). Laccase activity increased when solved organic carbon decreased. Compost from treatment 1 showed lower phytotoxic effects than that from treatment 2, probably because of a low salt content. In conclusion, it was observed that 60 % content of poultry manure in the mixture does not affect the composting process. However, the final product is not as good for agricultural purposes as a mixture with a lower manure content. Finally, it can be stated that the valorization of these wastes in the form of compost adds value to the materials, closing the biogeochemical nutrient cycle. Fil: Rizzo, Pedro Federico. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias. Centro de Investigación de Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Microbiología y Zoología Agrícola; Argentina Fil: Della Torre, Virginia . Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias. Centro de Investigación de Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Microbiología y Zoología Agrícola; Argentina Fil: Riera, Nicolás Iván. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias. Centro de Investigación de Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Microbiología y Zoología Agrícola; Argentina Fil: Crespo, Diana. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias. Centro de Investigación de Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Microbiología y Zoología Agrícola; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Barrena, Raquel . Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona; España Fil: Sánchez, Antoni . Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona; España

Vinasse, the most important liquid residue of the bioethanol production, is often used in fertigation programs. However, this practice may have negative effects on crops if applied without a prior conditioning treatment. In the present study, the efficiency of a fungus-based process as a method for vinasse treatment was evaluated. Phytotoxicity of the residue, before and after biological treatment, was tested on two plant species used for human consumption (Triticum aestivum L. and Raphanus sativus) in order to evaluate the application of vinasse in fertigation. The fungus, identified as Aspergillus sp. V2, showed high tolerance to vinasse, resulting in an optimal growth even when is cultivated on the undiluted residue. Biologically treated vinasse with a cycle of re-inoculation of spores resulted in a COD removal of 52%, whereas pH was increased from 4.4 to 6.1 at the end of treatment. Toxicity studies demonstrated a substantial improvement in the growth parameters (vigor index and fresh weight) of plant species exposed to treated vinasse compared to those exposed to raw residue. These results show that Aspergillus sp. V2 is useful for the recovery of an actual wastewater like sugarcane vinasse, enhancing its fertilizing properties. Fil: Rulli, Macarena María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Villegas, Liliana Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Química de San Luis. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Química de San Luis; Argentina Fil: Colin, Veronica Leticia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

This work was aimed at developing a bioprocess for the mycoremediation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and generating a matching early stage mass and energy balance approach to be applied in a large-scale process. Irpex lacteus BAFC 1171 and Trametes sanguinea LBM 023 capacity for PCBs biodegradation was tested under two different nutritional conditions, with 217 mg L−1 of a technical mixture of Aroclor 1242, 1254 and 1260 in oil transformer. Mass and energy balances were calculated based on a generic model developed for early stages of microbial bioprocesses estimation, employing a low-cost culture medium. Both strains not only demonstrated ability to growth, but also degraded about 68% of the PCBs mixture in an N-limited liquid medium after 35 days of incubation at 29 ± 1 °C under static conditions. PCBs addition at 217 mg L-1 modified fungal morphology, biomass, glucose consumption, proteins and laccase secretion. A 3-fold increase in protein content was observed in complex medium in PCBs presence, whereas PCBs supplementation enhanced laccase production by T. sanguinea, 5- and 40-fold in both culture media. Both strains produced approx. 34% of bioemulsifiers in absence of PCBs after 21 days of treatment, but only I. lacteus secreted them in pollutants presence (20% after 28 days). This approach provides an insight into a mycoremediation process applied to treat PCBs mineral oil. Fil: Sadañoski, Marcela Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; Argentina Fil: Benitez, Silvana Florencia. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; Argentina Fil: Velázquez, Juan Ernesto. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; Argentina Fil: Fonseca, Maria Isabel. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; Argentina Fil: Zapata, Pedro Dario. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; Argentina Fil: Levin, Laura Noemí. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental. Laboratorio de Micología Experimental; Argentina Fil: Villalba, Laura Lidia. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Químicas y Naturales. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica. Laboratorio de Biotecnología Molecular; Argentina

Cross-linked oxalic acid/chitosan hydrogels (ChOxb) were synthesized, characterized and tested for the adsorption of azo-dyes (Reactive Red 195 RR195) in contaminated wastewater; this novel biodegradable material was highly efficient. SEM-EDS and N2 adsorption/desorption were used to analyze specific area; FTIR-ATR spectra evidenced electrostatic interactions between protonated amino groups of chitosan and oxalate ions (intensity decrease and shift of amide-II band). Adsorption performance in batch assays showed a maximum percentage of removal of 90.6%, at pH = 4 (initial dye concentration of 300 mg.L−1). The maximum adsorption capacity (Qm) at pH = 4 was 110.7 mg.g−1, positioning ChOxb as one of the most efficient adsorption materials. Oxalic acid (natural organic acid) is an eco-friendly cross-linking agent that reduced swelling and improved chemical stability of ChOxb at low pH = 2.5. Redlich-Peterson adsorption isotherm presented the best fit; adsorption thermodynamic parameters were evaluated. Mixed surface reaction and diffusion-controlled kinetic model was the equation that best fitted kinetic data. FTIR-ATR, SEM-EDS and Z-potential showed electrostatic interactions between dye and amino groups of ChOxb; ChOxd can be reused without losing adsorption capacity and competitive electrostatic interactions between ChOxb-nitrate were observed. This new bio-material is an excellent alternative for the removal of RR195, improving Qm with better structural and functional properties. Fil: Perez Calderon, John Freddy. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentina Fil: Santos, Maria Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto Andino Patagónico de Tecnologías Biológicas y Geoambientales. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto Andino Patagónico de Tecnologías Biológicas y Geoambientales; Argentina Fil: Zaritzky, Noemi Elisabet. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ingenierí­a. Departamento de Ingeniería Química; Argentina

Gentle Remediation Options (GROs), such as biostimulation, bioaugmentation, phytoremediation and vermiremediation, are cost-effective and environmentally-friendly solutions for soils simultaneously polluted with organic and inorganic compounds. This study assessed the individual and combined effectiveness of GROs in recovering the health of a soil artificially polluted with hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] and lindane. A greenhouse experiment was performed using organically-amended vs. non-amended mixed polluted soils. All soils received the following treatments: (i) no treatment; (ii) bioaugmentation with an actinobacteria consortium; (iii) vermiremediation with Eisenia fetida; (iv) phytoremediation with Brassica napus; (v) bioaugmentation + vermiremediation; (vi) bioaugmentation + phytoremediation; and (vii) bioaugmentation + vermiremediation + phytoremediation. Soil health recovery was determined based on Cr(VI) and lindane concentrations, microbial properties and toxicity bioassays with plants and worms. Cr(VI) pollution caused high toxicity, but some GROs were able to partly recover soil health: (i) the organic amendment decreased Cr(VI) concentrations, alleviating toxicity; (ii) the actinobacteria consortium was effective at removing both Cr(VI) and lindane; (iii) B. napus and E. fetida had a positive effect on the removal of pollutants and improved microbial properties. The combination of the organic amendment, B. napus, E. fetida and the actinobacteria consortium was the most effective strategy., Soil health; Actinobacteria; Brassica napus; Eisenia fetida; Organic amendment; Metal pollution; Ecotoxicity; Phytomanagement; Bioremediation, Ecological Restoration; Soil Biology; Soil Chemistry; Soil Health; Soil Microbiology; Soil Pollution; Environmental Chemistry; Sustainable Development; Environmental Pollution; Chemistry, Microbiology, Environmental Science

Dye removal from effluents is a major problem for most textile industries. At present, wastewater treatments are currently based on physico-chemical methods which are expensive, energy inefficient and of limited versatility. The aim of this work was to find a low-cost and efficient method for dye removal. To do this, we designed a combined system based on the immobilization of the ligninolytic white-rot fungus Peniophora laxitexta (BAFC 4687) on mixed supports consisting of two polyurethane foam discs and a middle layer of diverse lignocellulosic substrates: soybean hulls, wheat straw or cellulose spent casings. As a corticioid fungus, P. laxitexta was able to completely colonize the supports developing a compact and tight structure that maintained the integrity of the system after several dye removal cycles. The immobilized fungus removed between 30% and 50% of the azoic dye Xylidine and more than 50% of the anthraquinonic dye RBBR in three successive cycles, and near 90% of the triphenylmethane Malachite Green in 10 repeated cycles without any loss of efficiency. Our analysis showed that the removal of the dyes was due to the combined effect of adsorption to the supports and enzymatic decolorization by soluble laccases and enzymes associated with the mycelium. Additionally, we showed that the presence of Malachite Green induced the expression of a new laccase isoform with high decolorization capacity. Based on these results, we propose that this inoculated laminar biocarrier could be effectively used for dye removal in textile wastewater. Fil: Majul, Leonardo Matias. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular; Argentina Fil: Wirth, Sonia Alejandra. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Levin, Laura Noemí. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; Argentina

Tannery wastewater is an industrial effluent characterized by high and variable concentrations of complex pollutants. These contaminants pose a high risk to the environment if discharged into a body of water without undergoing proper treatment. This study evaluated the performance of a pilot-scale hybrid constructed wetland system (horizontal subsurface flow + free water surface flow) for tannery wastewater treatment. The pollutant removal efficiency of the hybrid constructed wetland was determined, and the chromium bioaccumulation and growth and survival parameters of the macrophytes Isolepis cernua and Nasturtium aquaticum were evaluated. The 5-day biological oxygen demand, the chemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids, total dissolved solids and chromium reached maximum levels (98%, 97%, 97%, 33% and 98%, respectively) after treatment in the pilot-scale hybrid constructed wetland. The average concentrations of the 5-day biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids and chromium were within the discharge limits established by national and international organizations for surface water bodies. The macrophytes had low levels of chromium bioconcentration and translocation, with the growth and survival, especially of Isolepis cernua, revealing a high capacity to adapt to the variability and possible toxic effects of tannery wastewater. In general, the pilot-scale hybrid constructed wetland proved to be a feasible alternative for the treatment of tannery wastewater in an important industrial zone in Peru. Fil: Zapana, J. S. P.. National University of San Agustín de Arequipa; Perú Fil: Arán, Daniela Silvina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; Argentina Fil: Bocardo, E. F.. National University of San Agustín de Arequipa; Perú Fil: Harguinteguy, Carlos Alfredo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; Argentina

Chromium(VI) is discharged into the environment from different sources and industrial activities. Cr(VI) is used in many industries at high concentrations (Pattanapipitpaisal et al., 2001; Sultan and Hasnain, 2007) and various functions of different industries give rise to chromium-containing effluents (Lauwerys et al., 2007). When industries release chromium(VI)-containing effluent into water bodies or into soil, it results in its accumulation in these bodies, mostly through immobilization, and ultimately leads into the food chain. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has categorized this metal as one of the 17 chemicals that are of greatest threat to humans (Marsh and Mclnerney, 2001) and its permissible limit in drinking water is 0.05 mg/L. Hexavalent chromium causes irritation, lung carcinoma, and corrosion of the skin and respiratory tract in human beings (Wang et al., 2014). Cr(VI) also affects transcription, translation, and protein expression of the cell (Karthik et al., 2016). High concentrations of Cr(VI) may result in the inhibition of plant growth, change in nutrient status, chlorosis, and change in plasma and cell membrane stability and permeability, reduction in photosynthesis, and high ROS release... Fil: Fernandez, Pablo Marcelo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Catamarca; Argentina Fil: Viñarta, Silvana Carolina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Catamarca; Argentina Fil: Bernal, Anahi Romina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Castellanos, Lucia Ines. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentina

Se releva el panorama de la bioenergía en Argentina, y sus aplicaciones térmicas y eléctricas. Se analizan los avances en experiencias de acondicionamiento de biomasa sólida en forma de pellets, chips y carbón. Se mencionan algunos aprovechamientos energéticos mas destacables del país, que dan cuenta de la diversidad de recursos, pero aún señalan aspectos técnicos, tecnológicos y logísticos que deben ser resueltos. En particular, grandes emprendimientos cuentan con importación de tecnología y es escasa la producción nacional. Fil: Manrique, Silvina Magdalena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Investigaciones en Energía no Convencional. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Departamento de Física. Instituto de Investigaciones en Energía no Convencional; Argentina Fil: Salvo, Aien Weni. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Investigaciones en Energía no Convencional. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Departamento de Física. Instituto de Investigaciones en Energía no Convencional; Argentina Fil: Villafañe, Florencia. Gobierno de la Provincia de Jujuy. Ministerio de Ambiente; Argentina Fil: Martín, José Nicolás. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Ambiente, Hábitat y Energía; Argentina Fil: Honorato, Martín Omar. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Patagonia Sur; Argentina

In the last decades, the applications of Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) as inoculants for enhancing crops yield under different stress conditions have reached enormous interest. Pseudomonas putida KT2440 is a well-known rhizobacteria capable of colonizing roots of agronomically important crops. This work aims to evaluate three P. putida KT2440 mutants (mus-20, mus-42, and EU206), which have non-biofilm producing and exopolysaccharide overproducing phenotypes, for their potential as PGPR on soybean and corn plants under saline stress. Experimental studies showed that KT2440 and its mutants were effective in three main PGPR properties: solubilization of phosphates and synthesis of indolic compounds and siderophores. Notably, indolic compounds synthesis increased in mus-20 and EU206 strains. Furthermore, all evaluated strains were tolerant to saline stress. Bacterial inoculation of soybean and corn seeds was effective both in vitro and in vivo tests, even at high salt concentrations (80 and 120 mM NaCl). Among mutant bacteria, EU206 strain seems to be the most efficient PGPR by significantly increasing seed germination, shoot and root lengths, and fresh and dry weights of plants compared to non-inoculated controls, in in vivo tests under saline condition, mainly in both corn plants. These results suggest that inoculation with the P. putida KT2440 mutant strains is an appropriate strategy to enhance the growth of soybean and corn plants, so they might be employed for promoting regional crops growth at field scale using natural saline soils., Authors acknowledge financial support of PICT 2017-2285 and PICT 2018-3552 grants from Fondo para la Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (FONCyT) and PIP 908-15 grant from Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET).

Currently, organochlorine pesticides (OPs) are restricted or banned from agricultural and public health areas. However, many of these compounds have been found in high concentrations in contaminated sites, and therefore continue to pose environmental and health concerns. Thus, it is imperative to identify efficient microorganisms to remove them and to develop methods to remediate environments contaminated with OPs. In this regard, the aim of this work was to evaluate the individual and simultaneous removal of three OPs; specifically lindane (LIN), γ-chlordane (CLD) and methoxychlor (MTX) (2 mg L-1 of each pesticide alone or as constituent of a mixture), from liquid contaminated systems, employing a native and non-GMO Streptomyces strain. Toxicity test of the treated systems against the cell line Caco-2, and the detection in the genome of the used microorganism of sequences related with the pesticides catabolism are reported. The results demonstrated that, Streptomyces sp. A5 was able to remove individually 57.4%, 100.0% and 6.5% of LIN, CLD and MTX, respectively. From the pesticide mixture, LIN and CLD were efficiently removed on 62.2% and 68.6% respectively by the studied strain. On the other hand, we demonstrated that the liquid systems contaminated with the OPs mixture and bioremediated with Streptomyces sp. A5 showed lower cytotoxicity than their respective controls without inoculate. Moreover, molecular studies revealed the presence in Streptomyces sp. A5 of putative lin genes with potential dehydrochlorinase, haloalkane dehalogenase and NAD-dependent dehydrogenase activities. Therefore, the potential of Streptomyces sp. A5 to efficiently remediate OPs alone or in mixtures from liquid contaminated system, was demonstrated. Fil: Fuentes, María Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Sineli, Pedro Eugenio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Pons, Sofía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: de Moreno, Maria Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina Fil: Benimeli, Claudia Susana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Hill, Russell T.. University of Maryland; Estados Unidos Fil: Cuozzo, Sergio Antonio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

Bacterial community isolated from different units of a Drinking Water Treatment Plant (DWTP) including pre-ozonation unit (POU), the effluent-sludge mixture of the sedimentation unit (ESSU) and top-sand layer water sample from the filtration unit (TSFU) were acclimatized separately in the microcystin-leucine arginine (MC-LR)-rich environment to evaluate MC-LR biodegradation. Maximum biodegradation efficiency of 97.2 ± 8.7% was achieved by the acclimatized-TSFU bacterial community followed by 72.1 ± 6.4% and 86.2 ± 7.3% by acclimatized-POU and acclimatized-ESSU bacterial community, respectively. Likewise, the non-acclimatized bacterial community showed similar biodegradation efficiency of 71.1 ± 7.37%, 86.7 ± 3.19% and 94.35 ± 10.63% for TSFU, ESSU and POU, respectively, when compared to the acclimatized ones. However, the biodegradation rate increased 1.5-folds for acclimatized versus non-acclimatized conditions. The mass spectrometry studies on MC-LR degradation depicted hydrolytic linearization of cyclic MC-LR along with the formation of small peptide fragments including Adda molecule that is linked to the reduced toxicity (qualitative toxicity analysis). This was further confirmed quantitatively by using Rhizobium meliloti as a bioindicator. The acclimatized-TSFU bacterial community comprised of novel MC-LR degrading strains, Chryseobacterium sp. and Pseudomonas fragi as confirmed by 16S rRNA sequencing. Biodegradation of microcystin-LR by in-situ bacterial community present in the drinking water treatment plant without formation of toxic by-product. Fil: Kumar, Pratik. Université du Québec a Montreal; Canadá Fil: Hegde, Krishnamoorthy. Université du Québec a Montreal; Canadá Fil: Brar, Satinder Kaur. Université du Québec a Montreal; Canadá Fil: Cledón, Maximiliano. Universidad Nacional del Comahue; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Kermanshahi-pour, Azadeh. Dalhousie University Halifax; Canadá Fil: Roy-Lachapelle, Audrey. University of Montreal; Canadá Fil: Galvez-Cloutier, Rosa. Laval University; Canadá

The European grapevine moth, Lobesia botrana Den. & Schiff. (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) and the gray rot fungus(Botrytis cinerea) are two important factors that cause elevated losses of productivity in vineyards globally. TheEuropean grapevine moth is one of the most important pests in vineyards around the world, not only because ofits direct damage to crops, but also due to its association with the gray rot fungus; both organisms are highlydetrimental to the same crop. Currently, there is no effective, economic, and eco-friendly technique that can beapplied for the control of both agents. On the other hand, Metarhizium anisopliae belongs to a diverse group ofentomopathogenic fungi of asexual reproduction and global distribution. Several Metarhizium isolates have beendiscovered causing large epizootics to over 300 insects? species worldwide. In this study, a simple design wasconducted to evaluate the potential of native M. anisopliae isolates as one of biological control agents against L.botrana and as possible growth inhibitors to B. cinerea. Entomopathogenic fungal strains were isolated from aridsoils under vine (Vitis vinifera) culture. Results suggest that the three entomopathogenic strains (CEP413, CEP589,and CEP591) were highly efficient in controlling larval and pupal stages of L. botrana, with mortality rates rangingfrom 81 to 98% (within 4?6 days). Also, growth inhibition over B. cinerea strains resulted in percentages rangedfrom 47 to 64%. Finally, the compatibility of the entomopathogenic strains, with seven commercial fungicides, wasevaluated. The potential of the entomopathogenic fungal strains to act as control agents is discussed., Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectores

Current inorganic chemical-based fertilizers for soils have adverse impacts on human health and environment. In the present work, two nitrifying bacteria, i.e. Nitrosomonas sp. DSM 28437 and Nitrobacter sp. DSM 10236, were explored for the production of nitrate in vegetable wastes. For this purpose, the nitrite production by Nitrosomonas sp. and nitrate production by Nitrobacter sp. in two synthetic media containing ammonium and nitrite, respectively were investigated. Also, simultaneous growth of both bacteria in a single synthetic medium containing ammonium was investigated. Finally, the performance of both bacteria in a mixture of vegetable wastes, where a consortia of microorganisms present in cattle-based compost produced ammonium, were investigated. Highest concentration of nitrite (13.2 ppm) and nitrate (1600 ppm) in Nitrosomonas sp. and Nitrobacter sp. inoculated synthetic media were achieved after 12 and 28 days, respectively. The simultaneous growth of both bacteria in synthetic media and both bacteria along with compost microorganisms in vegetable wastes resulted in 12 and 20 ppm nitrate, respectively. Also, it was observed that with increasing time, the optical density of Nitrobacter sp. population increased from 0.04 to 0.72 after 35 days, but for Nitrosomonas sp., until 12 days, the optical density increased 0.3 from to 0.6 and then decreased to 0.2 on day 21 because of nitrite toxicity to the microorganism. The transformation of ammonium to nitrate using Nitrosomonas sp. and Nitrobacter sp. in synthetic media and a mixture of vegetable wastes was studied to develop a new organic fertilizer containing nitrogen source. Fil: Naghdi, Mitra. Université du Québec a Montreal; Canadá Fil: Cledón, Maximiliano. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro de Investigación Aplicada y Transferencia Tecnológica en Recursos Marinos "Almirante Storni". - Provincia de Río Negro. Ministerio de Agricultura, Ganadería y Pesca. Centro de Investigación Aplicada y Transferencia Tecnológica en Recursos Marinos "Almirante Storni". Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro de Investigación Aplicada y Transferencia Tecnológica en Recursos Marinos "Almirante Storni"; Argentina. Université du Québec a Montreal; Canadá Fil: Brar, Satinder Kaur. Université du Québec a Montreal; Canadá Fil: Ramirez, Antonio Avalos. Centre National en Électrochimie et en Technologie Environnementales; Canadá. Université du Québec a Montreal; Canadá

Acinetobacter guillouiae SFC 500-1A is an environmental bacterium able to efficiently co-remediate phenol and Cr(VI). To further understand the molecular mechanisms triggered in this strain during the bioremediation process, variations in the proteomic profile after treatment with phenol and phenol plus Cr(VI) were evaluated. The proteomic analysis revealed the induction of the β-ketoadipate pathway for phenol oxidation and the assimilation of degradation products through TCA cycle and glyoxylate shunt. Phenol exposure increased the abundance of proteins associated to energetic processes and ATP synthesis, but it also triggered cellular stress. The lipid bilayer was suggested as a target of phenol toxicity, and changing fatty acids composition seemed to be the bacterial response to protect the membrane integrity. The involvement of two flavoproteins in Cr(VI) reduction to Cr(III) was also proposed. The results suggested the important role of chaperones, antioxidant response and SOS-induced proteins in the ability of the strain to mitigate the damage generated by phenol and Cr(VI). This research contributes to elucidate the mechanisms involved in A. guillouiae SFC 500-1A tolerance and co-remediation of phenol and Cr(VI). Such information may result useful not only to improve its bioremediation efficiency but also to identify putative markers of resistance in environmental bacteria. Fil: Ontañon, Ornella Mailén. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Landi, Claudia. Università degli Studi di Siena; Italia Fil: Carleo, Alfonso. Hannover Medical School; Alemania. Università degli Studi di Siena; Italia Fil: Gagliardi, Assunta. University of Trento; Italia. Università degli Studi di Siena; Italia Fil: Bianchi, Laura. Università degli Studi di Siena; Italia Fil: González, Paola Solange. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentina Fil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Bini, Luca. Università degli Studi di Siena; Italia

With the aim of comparing the behavior of single and mixed cultures of actinobacteria for the removal of chromium and lindane from different co-contaminated systems, the actinobacteria Streptomyces sp. M7, MC1, A5 and Amycolatopsis tucumanensis DSM 45259 were assayed as simple, double, triple, and quadruple cultures in minimal medium and soil artificially polluted with Cr(VI) and lindane. In liquid medium, Streptomyces sp. MC1 and the quadruple consortium reached the highest Cr(VI) and lindane removal (94% and 52%, respectively, in both cultures), although they did not present statistically significant differences in Cr(VI) removal respect to six other consortia. The best removal of bioavailable chromium and lindane from artificially contaminated soil were achieved by Streptomyces sp. M7 (50% and 60%, respectively) and the quadruple consortium (60% and 55%, respectively). The bioassay with Lactuca sativa demonstrated the success of the bioremediation in soil by Streptomyces sp. M7 and the quadruple consortium through an increase in the vigor index measured in lettuce seedlings compared to non-treated soil. The quadruple consortium demonstrated to be appropriate to bioremediate Cr(VI) and lindane co-contaminated both liquid and soil systems. The viability of the four strains after the bioremediation process was confirmed. These results represent an approximation for conducting a field-scale bioremediation strategy. Fil: Aparicio, Juan Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Sáez, Juliana María. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Raimondo, Enzo Emanuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Benimeli, Claudia Susana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Polti, Marta Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Catamarca; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

Reactive Black 5, RB5, has been used as a model azo dye to evaluate the removal efficiency of sorption on Macrocystis pyrifera biomass (Mpyr) and commercial zerovalent iron nanoparticles (nZVI) in individual and combined treatments. The best conditions for the treatment with the isolated materials were first determined, and then, in series and combined treatments were performed under these conditions, achieving removal efficiencies higher than 80% of the initial dye concentration. Strengths and weaknesses of all removal strategies (individual, in series and combined) are analyzed regarding the application on real effluents. Mpyr efficiently adsorbed RB5, but also increased the total organic content by partial dissolution of components of the algal biomass. Removal experiments with commercial nZVI were also efficient but liberated Fe to the solution, and sulfanilic acid was observed after the treatment as a product of RB5 degradation. In contrast, after the Mpyr treatment, no sulfanilic acid was detected, suggesting that sulfanilic acid is efficiently adsorbed by the biomass. The best condition was the integrated use of Mpyr and nZVI, with a remarkable removal efficiency (69–80%) obtained after only 1 h of treatment. Finally, nZVI were successfully immobilized in Mpyr, and the hybrid material was used to remove RB5 in continuous flow experiments at pH 3, obtaining a removal capacity of 39.9 mg RB5 g−1 after a total processed volume of 630 mL of [RB5]0 = 100 mg L−1. Fil: García, Fabiana Elena. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica; Argentina Fil: Plaza Cazón, Josefina del Carmen. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina Fil: Montesinos, Victor Nahuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica; Argentina Fil: Donati, Edgardo Ruben. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina Fil: Litter, Marta Irene. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Instituto de Investigación en Ingeniería Ambiental; Argentina

Phytoremediation is a low cost technology based on the use of plants to remove a wide range of pollutants from the environment, including the insecticide DDT. However, some pollutants are known to enhance generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can generate toxic effects on plants affecting the phytoremediation efficiency. This study aims to analyze the potential use of antioxidant responses as a measure of tolerance to select plants for phytoremediation purposes. Tomato and zucchini plants were grown for 15 days in soils contaminated with DDTs (DDT + DDE + DDD). Protein content, glutathione-S-transferase (GST), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and catalase (CAT) activities were measured in plant tissues. Exposure to DDTs did not affect protein content or CAT activity in any of the species. GST, GR and GPx activity showed different responses in exposed and control tomato plants. After DDTs exposure, tomato showed increased GR and GPX activity in stems and leaves, respectively, and a decrease in the GST activity in roots. As no effects were observed in zucchini, results suggest different susceptibility and/or defense mechanisms involved after pesticide exposure. Finally, both species differed also in terms of DDTs uptake and translocation. The knowledge about antioxidant responses induced by pesticides exposure could be helpful for planning phytoremediation strategies and for the selection of tolerant species according to particular scenarios. Fil: Mitton, Francesca María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina Fil: Gonzalez, Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina Fil: Monserrat, José María. Universidad Do Rio Grande Do Sul; Brasil. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul; Brasil Fil: Miglioranza, Karina Silvia Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina

Tobacco hairy roots (THR) were used to evaluate its potential for the biosorption and removal of malachite green (MG) from aqueous solutions. A 32 full factorial design was applied to study the effects of pH and THR concentration on the biosorption capacity. Under the optimal conditions (pH of 7.0 and THR concentration of 1 g L−1), dye removal efficiency was around 92%. Experimental data obtained from kinetic studies demonstrated good concordance with the pseudo-second-order model. Equilibrium studies were developed and the data were evaluated by Langmuir, Freundlich, and Sips models, being the Sips model the most adequate (maximum biosorption capacity of 277.2 mg g−1). Thermodynamically, the biosorption of MG on THR proved to be endothermic, spontaneous, and favorable. Desorption was feasible under acidic conditions and the biosorbent could be reused three times. THR was tested in simulated effluent and the removal percentage was 87%, demonstrating that this material is a promising biosorbent which can be used to treat colored wastewaters. Fil: Escudero, Leticia Belén. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Laboratorio de Química Analítica para Investigación y Desarrollo; Argentina Fil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina Fil: Dotto, Guilherme L.. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil

The textile dyeing and other industries use an extensive amount of azo dyes. Their effluents are specifically colored and could cause severe damage to the environment. The anaerobic treatment of textile dying effluents could generate carcinogenic aromatic amines. For this reason, in the recent years yeasts have become a promising alternative, combining unicellular growth with oxidative mechanisms. This work reports the oxidative Reactive Black 5 (RB5) biodegradation mechanism by Trichosporon akiyoshidainum HP 2023, isolated from a non-contaminated environment and extensively studied for its exceptional decoloration abilities on azo dyes. Several analytical techniques (HPLC, FTIR, GC–MS, UV–vis) were used as to monitor the dye-decoloration process and the enzyme produced during biodecoloration. Starting with 200 mg L−1 of RB5, at 12 h, 89% color removal and a shift from dark blue to purple was observed, at 24 h no color was visible. Also, a decrease of aromatic amines and total aromacity (71 and 75%, respectively) was observed and biomass presented no color. The mechanism is driven by phenol oxidase and peroxidase enzymes, as they were no present in cultures without dye. During decoloration, at 15 h both enzymes reached it maximum activity levels, 353 UL−1 for phenol oxidase and 2750 UL−1 for peroxidase. The two-stages proposed mechanism involves the formation of a purple-colored quinone with an azo bond, which is subsequently degraded, finally the complete disappearance of color is achieved. These results make Trichosporon akiyoshidainum HP 2023 a promising tool for dye removal treatment of colored textile effluents. Fil: Martorell, María Martha. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Interno y Culto. Dirección Nacional del Antártico. Instituto Antártico Argentino; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Pajot, Hipolito Fernando. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Castellanos, Lucia Ines. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

Actinobacteria are well-known degraders of toxic materials that have the ability to tolerate and remove organochloride pesticides; thus, they are used for bioremediation. The biodegradation of organochlorines by actinobacteria has been demonstrated in pure and mixed cultures with the concomitant production of metabolic intermediates including γ-pentachlorocyclohexene (γ-PCCH); 1,3,4,6-tetrachloro-1,4-cyclohexadiene (1,4-TCDN); 1,2-dichlorobenzene (1,2-DCB), 1,3-dichlorobenzene (1,3-DCB), or 1,4-dichlorobenzene (1,4-DCB); 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene (1,2,3-TCB), 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (1,2,4-TCB), or 1,3,5-trichlorobenzene (1,3,5-TCB); 1,3-DCB; and 1,2-DCB. Chromatography coupled to mass spectrometric detection, especially GC–MS, is typically used to determine HCH-isomer metabolites. The important enzymes involved in HCH isomer degradation metabolic pathways include hexachlorocyclohexane dehydrochlorinase (LinA), haloalkane dehalogenase (LinB), and alcohol dehydrogenase (LinC). The metabolic versatility of these enzymes is known. Advances have been made in the identification of actinobacterial haloalkane dehydrogenase, which is encoded by linB. This knowledge will permit future improvements in biodegradation processes using Actinobacteria. The enzymatic and genetic characterizations of the molecular mechanisms involved in these processes have not been fully elucidated, necessitating further studies. New advances in this area suggest promising results. The scope of this paper encompasses the following: (i) the aerobic degradation pathways of hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) isomers; (ii) the important genes and enzymes involved in the metabolic pathways of HCH isomer degradation; and (iii) the identification and quantification of intermediate metabolites through gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Fil: Cuozzo, Sergio Antonio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; Argentina Fil: Sineli, Pedro Eugenio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Dávila Costa, José Sebastián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Tortella, G.. Universidad de La Frontera. Núcleo Científico y Tecnológico en Recursos Naturales; Chile

In the present work, Iridaea cordata (IC), a red marine macroalgae, was used as an efficient biosorbent for the removal of crystal violet (CV) and methylene blue (MB) dyes from aqueous solutions. The effects of pH (5, 7, and 9) and IC concentration (1, 3, and 5 g L-1) on the biosorption were studied through a 32 full factorial design. Under the optimal conditions (pH: 7, biosorbent concentration: 1 g L-1), biosorption kinetic studies were developed and the obtained experimental data were evaluated by pseudo-first order and pseudo-second order models. The results showed that the pseudo-second order model was in agreement with the experimental kinetic data for both dyes. Equilibrium studies were also carried out, and results exhibited good concordance with the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. The biosorption capacities were 36.5 and 45.0 mg g-1 for CV and MB dyes, respectively. The dye removal percentages were around 75% for CV and 90% for MB. Thermodynamically, the biosorption process proved to be exothermic, spontaneous, and favorable. These results showed that IC biomass is a promising biosorbent for removal of CV and MB dyes from aqueous solutions. Fil: Escudero, Leticia Belén. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Laboratorio de Química Analítica para Investigación y Desarrollo; Argentina Fil: Smichowski, Patricia Nora. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica; Argentina Fil: Dotto, Guilherme Luiz. Universidad Federal de Santa María; Brasil

In this work, a mixed biofilm composed by Pseudomonas monteilii P26 and Gordonia sp. H19 was formed using polyurethane foam (PUF) as immobilization support, for crude oil removal from artificial sea water. Fresh immobilized cells and immobilized cells that were stored at 4 °C for two months before use were assessed. The oil removal assays were carried out at microcosm scale at 4, 15 and 30 °C. A viability loss of P. monteilii P26 was observed after the storage. The highest removal value (75%) was obtained at 30 °C after 7 days using fresh immobilized cells on PUF. Enhanced oil bioremoval was obtained at 4 °C and 15 °C with the previously stored immobilized cells compared to the fresh immobilized cells. Crude oil sorption on the different systems was responsible for the removal of 22–33% oil at the different temperatures. In conclusion, an economic tool for petroleum bioremediation is proposed. Fil: Alessandrello, Mauricio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Juárez Tomás, María Silvina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Raimondo, Enzo Emanuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Vullo, Diana Lia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento; Argentina Fil: Ferrero, Marcela Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina

The use of living actinobacteria biomass to clean up contaminated soils is an attractive biotechnology approach. However, biomass generation from cheap feedstock is the first step to ensure process sustainability. The present work reports the ability of four actinobacteria, Streptomyces sp. M7, MC1, A5, and Amycolatopsis tucumanensis, to generate biomass from sugarcane vinasse. Optimal vinasse concentration to obtain the required biomass (more than 0.4 g L−1) was 20% for all strains, either grown individually or as mixed cultures. However, the biomass fraction recovered from first vinasse was discarded as it retained trace metals present in the effluent. Fractions recovered from three consecutive cycles of vinasse re-use obtained by mixing equal amounts of biomass from single cultures or produced as a mixed culture were evaluated to clean up contaminated soil with lindane and chromium. In all cases, the decrease in pesticide was about 50% after 14 d of incubation. However, chromium removal was statistically different depending on the preparation methodology of the inoculum. While the combined actinobacteria biomass recovered from their respective single cultures removed about 85% of the chromium, the mixed culture biomass removed more than 95%. At the end of the reused vinasse cycle, the mixed culture removed more than 70% of the biological oxygen demand suggesting a proportional reduction in the effluent toxicity. These results represent the first integral approach to address a problematic of multiple contaminations, concerning pesticides, heavy metals and a regionally important effluent like vinasse. Fil: Aparicio, Juan Daniel. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina Fil: Benimeli, Claudia Susana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina. Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino; Argentina Fil: Almeida, César Américo. Universidad Nacional de San Luis; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Química de San Luis. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Química de San Luis; Argentina Fil: Polti, Marta Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentina Fil: Colin, Veronica Leticia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina

The current study aimed to evaluate the removal of a pesticide mixture composed of the insecticides chlorpyrifos (CP) and diazinon (DZ) from liquid medium, soil and a biobed biomixture by a Streptomyces mixed culture. Liquid medium contaminated with 100 mg L−1 CP plus DZ was inoculated with the Streptomyces mixed culture. Results indicated that microorganisms increased their biomass and that the inoculum was viable. The inoculum was able to remove the pesticide mixture with a removal rate of 0.036 and 0.015 h−1 and a half-life of 19 and 46 h−1 for CP and DZ, respectively. The sterilized soil and biobed biomixture inoculated with the mixed culture showed that Streptomyces was able to colonize the substrates, exhibiting an increase in population determined by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (q-PCR), enzymatic activity dehydrogenase (DHA) and acid phosphatase (APP). In both the soil and biomixture, limited CP removal was observed (6–14%), while DZ exhibited a removal rate of 0.024 and 0.060 day−1 and a half-life of 29 and 11 days, respectively. Removal of the organophosphorus pesticide (OP) mixture composed of CP and DZ from different environmental matrices by Streptomyces spp. is reported here for the first time. The decontamination strategy using a Streptomyces mixed culture could represent a promising alternative to eliminate CP and DZ residues from liquids as well as to eliminate DZ from soil and biobed biomixtures. Fil: Briceño, Gabriela. Universidad de La Frontera. Núcleo Científico y Tecnológico en Recursos Naturales; Chile Fil: Vergara, Karen. Universidad de la Frontera. Nucleo Cientifico y Tecnológico en Recursos Naturales; Chile Fil: Schalchli, Heidi. Universidad de la Frontera. Nucleo Cientifico y Tecnológico en Recursos Naturales; Chile Fil: Palma, Graciela. Universidad de La Frontera. Núcleo Científico y Tecnológico en Recursos Naturales; Chile Fil: Tortella, Gonzalo. Universidad de La Frontera. Núcleo Científico y Tecnológico en Recursos Naturales; Chile Fil: Fuentes, María Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina Fil: Diez, María Cristina. Universidad de La Frontera. Núcleo Científico y Tecnológico en Recursos Naturales; Chile

Bioremediation proved to be an effective approach to deal with soil contamination, especially in isolated, cold environments such as Antarctica. Biostimulation, involving the addition of macronutrients -mainly nitrogen and phosphorous- is considered the simplest and cheapest bioremediation process. Optimizing the levels of these nutrients is a key step prior to the application of a biostimulation strategy. In this work, N and P levels, optimized by Response Surface Methodology (RSM) at lab-scale, were applied to an Antarctic hydrocarbon contaminated soil. The process was performed on-site, using high density polyethylene geomembranes (800 μm) to isolate treated soil from the surroundings and under environmental conditions at Carlini station (Antarctica) during 50 days. Two 0.5 ton biopiles were used as experimental units; a control biopile (CC), and a biostimulated system (BS), amended with N and P. At the end of the assay, hydrocarbon removal was significantly higher in BS system compared to CC (75.79% and 49.54% respectively), showing that the applied strategy was effective enough to perform a field-assay in Antarctica that significantly reduce soil contamination levels; and proving that RSM represents a fundamental tool for the optimization of nutrient levels to apply during bioremediation of fuel contaminated cold soils. Fil: Martinez Alvarez, Lucas Manuel. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Interno y Culto. Dirección Nacional del Antártico. Instituto Antártico Argentino; Argentina Fil: Ruberto, Lucas Adolfo Mauro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Nanobiotecnología. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Nanobiotecnología; Argentina Fil: Lo Balbo Alfredo. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentina Fil: Mac Cormack, Walter Patricio. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Interno y Culto. Dirección Nacional del Antártico. Instituto Antártico Argentino; Argentina

The use of immobilized biomass for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) removal from a liquid phase is a very promising technology. For this technology to be economically viable, the biomass production and immobilization should be as cost-effective as possible. The aim of this work was to produce a low-cost PAH removal system consisting of an immobilized biomass on different supports. A co-culture formed by two PAH-degrading bacteria (Pseudomonas monteilii P26 and Gordonia sp. H19, autochthonous Patagonian strains) was used. Industrial by-products such as sugar cane molasses, corn steep liquor, whey permeate and crude glycerol were used in combination to formulate different low-cost growth media. Naphthalene, phenanthrene and pyrene removal was evaluated using immobilized bacteria in polyurethane foam cubes, in sand and in calcium alginate beads. The growth of P. monteilii P26 and Gordonia sp. H19 was satisfactory in the different media assayed. The culture medium containing 1% corn steep liquor-2% molasses was selected for biomass production for subsequent immobilization. The removal of PAHs in different immobilization systems could be attributed to both the supports and the bacteria (up to 88.9% pyrene removal in 12 days); thus, immobilized cell systems for removing PAHs from an aqueous phase are proposed. Fil: Alessandrello, Mauricio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina Fil: Juárez Tomás, María Silvina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina Fil: Isaac, Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentina Fil: Vullo, Diana Lia. Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento; Argentina Fil: Ferrero, Marcela Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina

Extraction of high quality RNA is a prerequisite for downstream application in functional genomics analyses. However, the extraction and purification of pure nucleic acids from root tissues is generally difficult due to the high concentration of carbohydrates and secondary metabolites. Furthermore, the presence of enzymatic inhibitors such as fulvic and humic acids can also negatively affect extraction quality, when extracting from clay soil-grown roots. In this work, total RNA was extracted from soil-grown roots of Ilex paraguariensis using four commercially available kits: SpectrumTM, RNeasy®, TRI Reagent®, and SV Total RNA Isolation System. Spectral measurement and electrophoresis were used to demonstrate RNA quality and quantity. The SpectrumTM and RNeasy® protocols provided the highest quantity and quality of RNA; however, the former revealed superior extraction performance. Consequently, total RNA was extracted from the roots of non-stressed and drought-stressed plants using the SpectrumTM method and six RNA-seq libraries were prepared from polyA + mRNAs by means of TruSeq mRNA library construction protocol to convert RNA to complementary DNA (cDNA). More than 80 million raw read sequences were obtained from each condition with an average read length of 150 bp. The yield and quality of the total RNA were consistently high and the RNA could be used for further analyses as demonstrated by cDNA library construction, RT-PCR, and transcriptome sequencing. Thus, SpectrumTM method can be used to isolate high quality RNA from roots of normal and drought stressed I. paraguariensis plants. Fil: Avico, Edgardo Hernán. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; Argentina Fil: Acevedo, Raúl Maximiliano. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Departamento de Física y Química; Argentina Fil: Calzadilla, Pablo Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas; Argentina Fil: Ruiz, Oscar Adolfo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas; Argentina Fil: Sansberro, Pedro Alfonso. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; Argentina

Wastewaters containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) must be treated before discharge in water bodies to avoid environmental pollution and comply with environmental protection regulations. The development of novel PAH removal technologies from wastewaters is thus of great importance. The aim of this work was to use immobilized bacteria on polyurethane foam (PUF) for acenaphthene, fluoranthene and pyrene removal using annonaceous acetogenins (ACG) to stimulate biofilm and possibly enhance PAH removal activity. Different ACG were tested for their capacity to stimulate biofilm formation on Pseudomonas monteilii P26, a known naphthalene degrader. Itrabin, jetein and an ethanolic extract of Annona cherimola pulp were selected for showing a high stimulation level at low concentration in microplate biofilm formation assay. On PUF, the biofilm formation was strongly stimulated by itrabin and the ethanolic extract. However, there was no difference between the PAH removal percentages of the different systems (sterile PUF, cell immobilized in presence of ACG and cells immobilized without ACG). In average, 99% acenaphthene, 98% fluoranthene and 92.5% pyrene were removed in 7 days mostly by sorption (initial PAH concentration was 50 ppm). A 15–22% removal was attributed to biodegradation or bioaccumulation in the systems with immobilized cells. In this case, stimulating biofilm formation did not enhance PAH removal by immobilized bacteria on PUF. Fil: Alessandrello, Mauricio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina Fil: Parellada, Eduardo Alberto. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Juárez Tomás, María Silvina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina Fil: Neske, Adriana Neske. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Vullo, Diana Lia. Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento. Instituto de Ciencias; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Ferrero, Marcela Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiologicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia; Argentina

Actinobacteria exhibit cosmopolitan distribution since their members are widely distributed in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. In the environment they play relevant ecological roles including recycling of substances, degradation of complex polymers, and production of bioactive molecules. Biotechnological potential of actinobacteria in the environment was demonstrated by their ability to remove organic and inorganic pollutants. This ability is the reason why actinobacteria have received special attention as candidates for bioremediation, which has gained importance because of the widespread release of contaminants into the environment. Among organic contaminants, pesticides are widely used for pest control, although the negative impact of these chemicals in the environmental balance is increasingly becoming apparent. Similarly, the extensive application of heavy metals in industrial processes lead to highly contaminated areas worldwide. Several studies focused in the use of actinobacteria for cleaning up the environment were performed in the last 15 years. Strategies such as bioaugmentation, biostimulation, cell immobilization, production of biosurfactants, design of defined mixed cultures and the use of plant-microbe systems were developed to enhance the capabilities of actinobacteria in bioremediation. In this review, we compiled and discussed works focused in the study of different bioremediation strategies using actinobacteria and how they contributed to the improvement of the already existing strategies. In addition, we discuss the importance of omic studies to elucidate mechanisms and regulations that bacteria use to cope with pollutant toxicity, since they are still little known in actinobacteria. A brief account of sources and harmful effects of pesticides and heavy metals is also given. Fil: Alvarez, Analia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; Argentina Fil: Sáez, Juliana María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Dávila Costa, José Sebastián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Colin, Veronica Leticia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Fuentes, María Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Cuozzo, Sergio Antonio. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Benimeli, Claudia Susana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Polti, Marta Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Amoroso, Maria Julia del R.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

Bioaugmentation with the consortium SFC 500-1 is a promising alternative to remediate wastewaters, such as tannery effluents. With the aim of assessing the changes produced in response to bioaugmentation, bacterial 16S rDNA genes were sequenced with Illumina MiSeq Platform. Additionally, bacterial and fungal groups were analyzed through standard culture dependent methods. The impact of diverse physico-chemical and microbiological parameters on the prokaryotic diversity was also evaluated throughout. Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes and Proteobacteria, represented together up to 91% of the total number of sequences obtained from the tannery effluent. Diversity decreased immediately after inoculation, due to an increase in the representation of the taxa to which the added consortium belongs. However, bioaugmentation produced no greater variations since only a 10% of unique operational taxonomic units were found in the inoculated treatment. An increase in the abundance of Myroides and a reduction in the representation of Proteiniclasticum and Halomonas were major observed variations. On the other hand, pH and dissolved oxygen constituted main environmental factors affecting the structure of the prokaryotic communities. In all treatments yeasts increased over time, to the detriment of filamentous fungi. Together, data from this report may contribute to the development of improved bioremediation strategies of industrial wastewaters. Fil: Fernandez, Marilina. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: Pereira, Paola Patricia. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina Fil: González, Paola Solange. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentina

The geothermal Copahue-Caviahue (GCC) system (Argentina) is an extreme acidic environment, dominated by the activity of Copahue volcano. Environments characterised by low pH values, such as volcanic areas, are of particular interest for the search of acidophilic microorganisms with application in biotechnological processes. In this work, sulfate-reducing microorganisms were investigated in geothermal acidic, anaerobic zones from GCC system. Sediment samples from Agua del Limón (AL1), Las Máquinas (LMa2), Las Maquinitas (LMi) and Baño 9 (B9–2, B9–3) were found to be acidic (pH values 2.1–3.0) to moderate acidic (5.1–5.2), containing small total organic carbon values, and ferric iron precipitates. The organic electron donor added to the enrichment was completely oxidised to CO2. Bacteria related to ‘Desulfobacillus acidavidus’ strain CL4 were found to be dominant (67–83% of the total number of clones) in the enrichment cultures, and their presence was confirmed by their isolation on overlay plates. Other bacteria were also detected with lower abundance (6–20% of the total number of clones), with representatives of the genera Acidithiobacillus, Sulfobacillus, Alicyclobacillus and Athalassotoga/Mesoaciditoga. These enrichment and isolates found at low pH confirm the presence of anaerobic activities in the acidic sediments from the geothermal Copahue-Caviahue system. Fil: Willis, Graciana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina Fil: Nancucheo, Ivan. Universidad San Sebastian.; Chile Fil: Hedrich, Sabrina. Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources; Alemania Fil: Giaveno, Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ingeniería de Procesos, Biotecnología y Energías Alternativas. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ingeniería de Procesos, Biotecnología y Energías Alternativas; Argentina Fil: Donati, Edgardo Ruben. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales; Argentina Fil: Johnson, David Barrie. Bangor University; Reino Unido

Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) are bacterial products associated to cell wall or secreted to the liquidmedia that form the framework of microbial mats. These EPS contain functional groups as carboxyl, amino, hydroxyl,phosphate and sulfhydryl, able to interact with cations. Thus, EPS may be considered natural detoxifyingcompounds of metal polluted waters and wastewaters. In this work Attenuated Total Reflectance-Fourier TransformInfrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) in combination with multivariate analysis (Principal ComponentAnalysis-PCA-) were used to study the interaction of Cd(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) and Pseudomonas veronii 2E cells,including bound EPS and cell wall, and its different soluble EPS fractions, previously characterized as Cd(II) ligandsof moderate strength. Amino groups present in exopolysaccharide fraction were responsible for Zn(II)and Cu(II) complexation, while carboxylates chelated Cd(II). In lipopolysaccharide fraction, phosphoryl and carboxylsites were involved in Cd(II) and Cu(II) binding, while Zn(II) interacted with amino groups. Similar resultswere obtained from cells.These studies confirmed that FTIR-PCA is a rapid analytical tool to provide valuable information regarding thefunctional groups in biomolecules related to metal interaction. Moreover, a discrimination and identification offunctional groups present in both EPS and cells that interacted with Cd(II), Zn(II) and Cu(II) was demonstrated. Fil: Ferreira, Maria Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento. Instituto de Ciencias. Área de Química; Argentina Fil: Gerbino, Oscar Esteban. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentina Fil: Cavallero, Gustavo Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Centro de Investigaciones en Hidratos de Carbono. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Centro de Investigaciones en Hidratos de Carbono; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Orgánica; Argentina Fil: Casabuono, Adriana Cristina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Orgánica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Centro de Investigaciones en Hidratos de Carbono. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Centro de Investigaciones en Hidratos de Carbono; Argentina Fil: Couto, Alicia Susana. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Orgánica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Centro de Investigaciones en Hidratos de Carbono. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Centro de Investigaciones en Hidratos de Carbono; Argentina Fil: Gomez Zavaglia, Andrea. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentina Fil: Ramírez, Silvana Andrea María. Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento. Instituto de Ciencias. Área de Química; Argentina Fil: Vullo, Diana Lia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento. Instituto de Ciencias. Área de Química; Argentina

Lindane is an organochlorine pesticide that, due to its persistence in the environment, is still detected in different matrices. Bioremediation using actinobacteria consortia proved to be promising for the restoration of contaminated soils. Another alternative to remove xenobiotics is to use agricultural residues, which stimulates microbial activity, increasing its capacity to degrade organic pollutants. The present work studies the coupling of sugarcane bagasse biostimulation and bioaugmentation with the actinobacteria consortium composed of Streptomyces sp. A2, A5, A11 and M7 on lindane removal in different soil types. In this sense, factorial designs with three factors (proportion and size of sugarcane bagasse particles, and moisture content) were employed. A response optimizer identified the combination of factors levels that jointly allowed obtaining the maximum lindane removal in the evaluated conditions. In the optimal conditions, the effect of the bioremediation process on soil microbiota was studied by evaluating different parameters. The highest lindane removal percentages were detected in biostimulated microcosms bioaugmented with the microbial consortium, which were accompanied by a decrease in lindane half-life respect to the controls. Also, the bioaugmentation of biostimulated microcosms increased the microbial counts and enhanced soil enzymatic activities, corroborating the bioremediation process efficiency. The survival of the four actinobacteria at the end of the assay confirmed the ability of all Streptomyces strains to colonize amended soils. Bioremediation by simultaneous application of biostimulation with sugarcane bagasse and bioaugmentation with the actinobacteria consortium, in the optimized conditions, represents an efficient strategy to restore lindane contaminated soils. Fil: Raimondo, Enzo Emanuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Sáez, Juliana María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Aparicio, Juan Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Fuentes, María Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Benimeli, Claudia Susana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina

Las bacterias del género Azospirillum producen efectos benefciosos en el crecimiento de las plantas y el rendimiento de los cultivos, debido a su capacidad de fijar el nitrógeno atmosférico y de producir sustancias estimuladoras del crecimiento. En Cuba, se utiliza de manera satisfactoria en la biofertilización de la caña de azúcar y otros cultivos económicos la cepa 8-INICA de Azospirillum sp. Su caracterización morfológica y bioquímica, indicó similitud conla especie A. brasilense. Por la importancia de esta cepa en la continuidad de las labores de biofertilización que se ejecutan en el país, el objetivo del trabajo fue corroborar la identidad de la misma mediante el empleo de técnicas inmunológicas y moleculares. Azospirillum is a bacterium that produces growth and yields increments due to its capacity of fix atmospheric nitrogen and to produce phytohormones. In Cuba, the 8-INICA strain of Azospirillum sp. has been used successfully in sugarcane biofertilization and others economical crops. The morphological and biochemical characterization of this stain showed similarity with the species A. brasilense. Due to the importance of this strain in the biofertilization works carried out in our country, the aim of this paper was to confirm the identity of this strain through immunoenzymatic and molecular techniques. Fil: Pérez Pérez, Juana Mercedes. Instituto de Investigaciones de la Caña de Azúcar; Cuba Fil: San Juan Rodríguez, Ana Nelis. Instituto de Investigaciones de la Caña de Azúcar; Cuba Fil: Tortora, Maria Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Tecnología Agroindustrial del Noroeste Argentino. Provincia de Tucumán. Ministerio de Desarrollo Productivo. Estación Experimental Agroindustrial "Obispo Colombres" (p). Instituto de Tecnología Agroindustrial del Noroeste Argentino; Argentina Fil: Vera, Lucia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Tecnología Agroindustrial del Noroeste Argentino. Provincia de Tucumán. Ministerio de Desarrollo Productivo. Estación Experimental Agroindustrial "Obispo Colombres" (p). Instituto de Tecnología Agroindustrial del Noroeste Argentino; Argentina Fil: Casas González, Mario. Instituto de Investigaciones de la Caña de Azúcar; Cuba

The culture of fungal species from agro-waste allows for the sustainable preparation of valuable biotechnological products and contributes to establish the Circular Economy concept. The Ganoderma lucidum species is well known as producer of laccases (EC 1.10.3.2), which serves as a tool to oxidize chemicals. When producing G. lucidum E47 basidiomes with edible purposes out of rice crop residues, its laccase remains as by-product. In this work, we report the biotechnological characterization and application of the laccase recovered from spent cultures of the G. lucidum E47 strain. We detected at least one polypeptide (ca. 59 kDa) which displays attractive activity and stability values when used in the range of 18–45 °C in mildly acidic environment (pH 4.8–5.8). These parameters can be enhanced in the presence of organic cosolvents such as butyl acetate and methyl iso-butyl ketone, but the opposite effect is observed with solvents of lower log P. The best activity–stability performance is reached when the biocatalyst is used in pH 4.8 buffer with 5% (v/v) butyl acetate at 37 °C. The laccase was capable of decolorizing xanthene, azo and triarylmethane dyes, exhibiting excellent selectivity on bromocresol green and bromocresol purple. Furthermore, the biocatalyst displayed an attractive activity when assessed for the decolorization of bromocresol green in a proof-of-concept effluent biotreatment. Fil: Palazzolo, Martín Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química; Argentina Fil: Postemsky, Pablo Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida; Argentina Fil: Kurina Sanz, Marcela Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química; Argentina

Trichoderma fungi are considered as suitable biofertilizers, since they could increase the efficiency of the use of nutrients in plants and are used as biocontrol agents against plant pathogen. The aim of this study was to characterize a set of Trichoderma strains isolated from horticultural and near-pristine soils from the Argentine Pampas, and to evaluate their potentiality as a growth promoter and as a biocontroller of Fusarium wilt disease on tomato. Nineteen collected strains, identified as T. brevicompactum, T. gamsii and T. harzianum, were tested for their ability to produce the auxin indole 3-acetic acid (IAA), solubilize phosphate and biocontrol F. oxysporum. Twelve strains reduced growth of pathogenic fungus over 50% and four of them (named FCCT 16, FCCT 58, FCCT 199-2 and FCCT 363-2) exhibited IAA highest production (ranging 13.38–21.14 µg/ml) and were able to solubilize phosphate (ranging 215.80–288.18 µg/ml of calcium phosphate). Tomato plants inoculated with those four strains increased chlorophyll content, shoot length, fresh and dry weight of shoot and roots, and reduced F. oxysporum wilt disease between 10 and 30%. On the basis of our results, we conclude that soils of the Argentine Pampas harbor Trichoderma strains with beneficial dual effects which could be of interest for the development of commercial products. Fil: Bader, Araceli Natalia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Biotecnología; Argentina Fil: Salerno, Graciela Lidia. Fundación para Investigaciones Biológicas Aplicadas; Argentina Fil: Covacevich, Fernanda. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Biotecnología; Argentina Fil: Consolo, Verónica Fabiana. Fundación para Investigaciones Biológicas Aplicadas; Argentina

An inactive biomass of a new fungus recently discovered, Diaporthe schini, was evaluated for the biosorption of crystal violet (CV) in simulated textile effluents. The characterization assays were performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms. The influences of pH and biosorbent dosage on the biosorption capacity were evaluated. Kinetics, equilibrium and thermodynamic studies were also carried out. Characterization techniques showed an amorphous biosorbent, with a rough surface containing irregular particles and surface area of 6.5 m2 g-1. The most adequate values of pH and biosorbent dosage were 7.5 and 0.4 g L-1, respectively. The Elovich kinetic model and the Sips equilibrium model were suitable to fit the experimental data. The biosorption capacity increased with temperature, reaching a maximum biosorption capacity of 642.3 mg g-1 at 328 K. The biosorption was a spontaneous and endothermic process. Diaporthe schini inactive biomass was an interesting biosorbent to treat colored effluents, presenting efficiencyof 87% in the decolorization of a simulated dye house effluent. Fil: Grassi, Patrícia. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil Fil: Reis, Caroline. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil Fil: Drumm, Fernanda C.. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil Fil: Georgin, Jordana. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil Fil: Tonato, Denise. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil Fil: Escudero, Leticia Belén. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Laboratorio de Química Analítica para Investigación y Desarrollo; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza; Argentina Fil: Kuhn, Raquel. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil Fil: Jahn, Sérgio L.. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil Fil: Dotto, Guilherme L.. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria; Brasil