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Applied and Environmental Microbiology Sep 2020Industrial methanol production converts methane from natural gas into methanol through a multistep chemical process. Biological methane-to-methanol conversion under...
Industrial methanol production converts methane from natural gas into methanol through a multistep chemical process. Biological methane-to-methanol conversion under moderate conditions and using biogas would be more environmentally friendly. Methanotrophs, bacteria that use methane as an energy source, convert methane into methanol in a single step catalyzed by the enzyme methane monooxygenase, but inhibition of methanol dehydrogenase, which catalyzes the subsequent conversion of methanol into formaldehyde, is a major challenge. In this study, we used the thermoacidophilic methanotroph "" SolV for biological methanol production. This bacterium possesses a XoxF-type methanol dehydrogenase that is dependent on rare earth elements for activity. By using a cultivation medium nearly devoid of lanthanides, we reduced methanol dehydrogenase activity and obtained a continuous methanol-producing microbial culture. The methanol production rate and conversion efficiency were growth-rate dependent. A maximal conversion efficiency of 63% mol methanol produced per mol methane consumed was obtained at a relatively high growth rate, with a methanol production rate of 0.88 mmol/g (dry weight)/h. This study demonstrates that methanotrophs can be used for continuous methanol production. Full-scale application will require additional increases in the titer, production rate, and efficiency, which can be achieved by further decreasing the lanthanide concentration through the use of increased biomass concentrations and novel reactor designs to supply sufficient gases, including methane, oxygen, and hydrogen. The production of methanol, an important chemical, is completely dependent on natural gas. The current multistep chemical process uses high temperature and pressure to convert methane in natural gas to methanol. In this study, we used the methanotroph "" SolV to achieve continuous methanol production from methane as the substrate. The production rate was highly dependent on the growth rate of this microorganism, and high conversion efficiencies were obtained. Using microorganisms for the production of methanol might enable the use of more sustainable sources of methane, such as biogas, rather than natural gas.
Topics: Methane; Methanol; Verrucomicrobia
PubMed: 32631865
DOI: 10.1128/AEM.01188-20 -
Arquivos de Neuro-psiquiatria Mar 2019
Topics: Humans; Methanol
PubMed: 30970137
DOI: 10.1590/0004-282X20190018 -
International Journal of Molecular... Apr 2022One- or two-carbon (C1 or C2) compounds have been considered attractive substrates because they are inexpensive and abundant. Methanol and ethanol are representative C1...
One- or two-carbon (C1 or C2) compounds have been considered attractive substrates because they are inexpensive and abundant. Methanol and ethanol are representative C1 and C2 compounds, which can be used as bio-renewable platform feedstocks for the biotechnological production of value-added natural chemicals. Methanol-derived formaldehyde and ethanol-derived acetaldehyde can be converted to 3-hydroxypropanal (3-HPA) via aldol condensation. 3-HPA is used in food preservation and as a precursor for 3-hydroxypropionic acid and 1,3-propanediol that are starting materials for manufacturing biocompatible plastic and polytrimethylene terephthalate. In this study, 3-HPA was biosynthesized from formaldehyde and acetaldehyde using deoxyribose-5-phosphate aldolase from (DERA) and cloned and expressed in for 3-HPA production. Under optimum conditions, DERA produced 7 mM 3-HPA from 25 mM substrate (formaldehyde and acetaldehyde) for 60 min with 520 mg/L/h productivity. To demonstrate the one-pot 3-HPA production from methanol and ethanol, we used methanol dehydrogenase from (MDH) and DERA. One-pot 3-HPA production via aldol condensation of formaldehyde and acetaldehyde from methanol and ethanol, respectively, was investigated under optimized reaction conditions. This is the first report on 3-HPA production from inexpensive alcohol substrates (methanol and ethanol) by cascade reaction using DERA and MDH.
Topics: Acetaldehyde; Escherichia coli; Ethanol; Formaldehyde; Methanol
PubMed: 35409349
DOI: 10.3390/ijms23073990 -
Microbiology (Reading, England) Jul 2020Methylotrophic yeasts of the genus are abundantly found in tree exudates. Their ability to utilize methanol as carbon and energy source relies on an assimilation... (Review)
Review
Methylotrophic yeasts of the genus are abundantly found in tree exudates. Their ability to utilize methanol as carbon and energy source relies on an assimilation pathway localized in largely expanded peroxisomes, and a cytosolic methanol dissimilation pathway. Other substrates like glucose or glycerol are readily utilized as well. yeasts usually grow as haploid cells and are secondary homothallic as they can switch mating type. Upon mating diploid cells sporulate readily, forming asci with four haploid spores. Their ability to secrete high amounts of heterologous proteins made them interesting for biotechnology, which expands today also to other products of primary and secondary metabolism.
Topics: Biotechnology; Fungal Proteins; Methanol; Phylogeny; Recombinant Proteins; Saccharomycetales
PubMed: 32720891
DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.000958 -
Analytical Chemistry Sep 2022A key element of successful lipidomics analysis is a sufficient extraction of lipid molecules typically by two-phase systems such as chloroform-based Bligh and Dyer...
A key element of successful lipidomics analysis is a sufficient extraction of lipid molecules typically by two-phase systems such as chloroform-based Bligh and Dyer (B&D). However, numerous metabolomics and lipidomics studies today apply easy to use one-phase extractions. In this work, quantitative flow injection analysis high-resolution mass spectrometry was applied to benchmark the lipid recovery of popular one-phase extraction methods for human plasma samples. The following organic solvents were investigated: methanol (MeOH), ethanol (EtOH), 2-propanol (IPA), 1-butanol (BuOH), acetonitrile (ACN) and the solvent mixtures BuOH/MeOH (3:1) and MeOH/ACN (1:1). The recovery of polar lysophospholipids was sufficient for all tested solvents. However, nonpolar lipid classes such as triglycerides (TG) and cholesteryl esters (CE) revealed extraction efficiencies less than 5% due to precipitation in polar solvents EtOH, MeOH, MeOH/ACN, and ACN. Sample pellets also contained a substantial amount of phospholipids, for example, more than 75% of total phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin for ACN. The loss of lipids by precipitation was directly related to the polarity of solvents and lipid classes. Although, lipid recovery increased with the volume of organic solvent, recovery in polar MeOH remains incomplete also for less polar lipid classes such as ceramides. Addition of stable isotope-labeled internal standards prior to lipid extraction could compensate for insufficient lipid recovery for polar lipid classes including lysolipids and phospholipids but not for nonpolar CE and TG. In summary, application of one-phase extractions should be limited to polar lipid classes unless sufficient recovery/solubility of nonpolar lipids has been demonstrated. The presented data reveal that appropriate lipid extraction efficiency is fundamental to achieve accurate lipid quantification.
Topics: Benchmarking; Humans; Lipidomics; Mass Spectrometry; Methanol; Phospholipids; Solvents; Triglycerides
PubMed: 36048752
DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c02117 -
International Journal of Molecular... Feb 2023The molecular dynamics method was used to study the structure and properties of dendrigrafts of the first and second generations in methanol-water mixtures with various...
The molecular dynamics method was used to study the structure and properties of dendrigrafts of the first and second generations in methanol-water mixtures with various volume fractions of methanol. At a small volume fraction of methanol, the size and other properties of both dendrigrafts are very similar to those in pure water. A decrease in the dielectric constant of the mixed solvent with an increase in the methanol fraction leads to the penetration of counterions into the dendrigrafts and a reduction of the effective charge. This leads to a gradual collapse of dendrigrafts: a decrease in their size, and an increase in the internal density and the number of intramolecular hydrogen bonds inside them. At the same time, the number of solvent molecules inside the dendrigraft and the number of hydrogen bonds between the dendrigraft and the solvent decrease. At small fractions of methanol in the mixture, the dominant secondary structure in both dendrigrafts is an elongated polyproline II (PPII) helix. At intermediate volume fractions of methanol, the proportion of the PPII helix decreases, while the proportion of another elongated β-sheet secondary structure gradually increases. However, at a high fraction of methanol, the proportion of compact α-helix conformations begins to increase, while the proportion of both elongated conformations decreases.
Topics: Methanol; Water; Lysine; Molecular Dynamics Simulation; Solvents; Protein Structure, Secondary
PubMed: 36834474
DOI: 10.3390/ijms24043063 -
Tidsskrift For Den Norske Laegeforening... Jan 2003
Topics: Chemistry Techniques, Analytical; Humans; Methanol; Reagent Kits, Diagnostic
PubMed: 12607511
DOI: No ID Found -
Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy =... Jul 2020Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan parasiteTrypanosoma cruzi, has no effective treatment available. On the other hand, microalgae are aquatic organisms that...
INTRODUCTION
Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan parasiteTrypanosoma cruzi, has no effective treatment available. On the other hand, microalgae are aquatic organisms that constitute an interesting reservoir of biologically active metabolites. Moreover, some species of green and red algae present anti-protozoan activity. Our aim was to study the antiparasitic effects of aqueous, methanolic and ethanolic extracts from different microalgae.
METHODS AND RESULTS
Our results show that the methanolic extracts of S. obliquus and T. suecica as well as the ethanolic extracts of C. reinhardtii and T. suecica present trypanocidal activity on the infective extracellular trypomastigotes and intracellular amastigotes. In addition, the ethanolic extract of C. reinhardtii potentiates the activity of the conventional antichagasic drug nifurtimox. In order to identify some potential compounds with trypanocidal activity, we performed a phytochemical screening analyzing the presence of phenolic compounds, pigments and terpenoids.
CONCLUSION
The different microalgae extracts, particularly the ethanolic extract ofC. reinhardtii, are promising potential candidates for the development of future natural antichagasic drugs.
Topics: Animals; Chagas Disease; Chlorocebus aethiops; Ethanol; Methanol; Microalgae; Trypanocidal Agents; Trypanosoma cruzi; Vero Cells
PubMed: 32371317
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2020.110178 -
Frontiers in Public Health 2022Ingestion of methanol can result in severe irreversible morbidity, and death. Simple and easy methods to detect methanol and other hazardous additives prior to...
BACKGROUND
Ingestion of methanol can result in severe irreversible morbidity, and death. Simple and easy methods to detect methanol and other hazardous additives prior to consumption can prevent fatalities. This form of harm reduction is analogous to the widely practiced "pill testing" of recreational drugs in various countries. We aimed to evaluate the performance of two qualitative and quantitative kits to simultaneously identify the presence of methanol and formaldehyde in alcoholic beverages, and compare this to the standard gas chromatographic (GC) method.
METHODS
Two-hundred samples of Indian and Iranian alcoholic drinks were examined by two new qualitative and quantitative chemical kits designed based on a modified chromotropic acid (CA) method, as well as a gold standard GC method.
RESULTS
Methanol levels were similar when evaluated by GC and quantitative method ( = - 0.328, = 0.743). The 75th percentile of methanol level detection was 4,290 mg L (range; 0-83,132) using GC compared to that of 4,671 mg L (range; 0-84,960) using the qualitative kit (predefined color intensity reflecting the methanol/ethanol ratio). The quantitative kit was able to detect all methanol-contaminated and non-contaminated samples (110 and 60 cases, respectively: 100% sensitivity). In 25 samples, GC analysis showed no methanol; but the qualitative kit detected possible toxic substances. Formaldehyde measurement by UV/Vis analysis showed the presence of formaldehyde in 23 samples (92%) with a median 912 [IQR 249, 2,109; range 112-2,742] mg L.
CONCLUSION
Methanol and formaldehyde can be easily detected using these simple CA chemical kits. Qualitative positive results may indicate the risk of poisoning if the beverage is consumed. CA kits can be used in community setting by public health units and community organizations to monitor for methanol contamination and inform a public health response to reduce methanol-related harms to the public.
Topics: Harm Reduction; Iran; Alcoholic Beverages; Methanol; Formaldehyde
PubMed: 36408033
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.983663 -
BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies Jun 2022Pithecellobium dulce (Roxb.), an evergreen medium-sized, spiny tree which have vast nutritional values and widely used in ayurvedic medicines and home remedies. The...
BACKGROUND
Pithecellobium dulce (Roxb.), an evergreen medium-sized, spiny tree which have vast nutritional values and widely used in ayurvedic medicines and home remedies. The plant has also been a rich source of biologically active compounds. The present study was designed to isolate pure compound from ethyl acetate fraction of methanol extract of leaves and to know the efficacy as antioxidant as well as its anti-tumor activity on Ehrlich ascites carcinoma cell (EAC). METHODS: The leaves were extracted with methanol and fractionated with different solvents. The isolation of the compound was carried out by column chromatography from ethyl acetate fraction (EAF) and structure was revealed by H-NMR and C NMR. The antioxidant activity was investigated by the scavenging of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radicals as well as the inhibition of oxidative damage of pUC19 plasmid DNA, hemolysis and lipid peroxidation induced by a water-soluble free radical initiator 2,2'-azo (2-asmidinopropane) dihydrochloride (AAPH) in human erythrocytes. In vivo anti-tumor activity of the compound was also evaluated by determining the viable tumor cell count, hematological profiles of experimental mice along with observing morphological changes of EAC cells by fluorescence microscope.
RESULTS
The isolated compound kaempferol-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnoside effectively inhibited AAPH induced oxidation in DNA and human erythrocyte model and lipid per oxidation as well as a stronger DPPH radical scavenging activity. In anti-tumor assay, at a dose of 50 mg/kg body weight exhibit about 70.89 ± 6.62% EAC cell growth inhibition, whereas standard anticancer drug vincristine showed 77.84 ± 6.69% growth inhibition.
CONCLUSION
The compound may have a great importance as a therapeutic agent in preventing oxidative damage of biomolecules and therapeutic use in chemotherapy.
Topics: Animals; Antioxidants; Fabaceae; Mannosides; Methanol; Mice; Plant Extracts; Plant Leaves; Proanthocyanidins
PubMed: 35733130
DOI: 10.1186/s12906-022-03633-x