Tropical Biotechnology

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Biosciences and Bioengineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 November 2024 | Viewed by 6528

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Department of Chemistry, Lund University, 22100 Lund, Sweden
Interests: molecular biotechnology; biocatalysts engineering; development of biorefinery processes
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The tropics encompass ecosystems of remarkably high biological value. Even today, a massive number of biological species are still unknown. The tropics are also regions of growing productive activities, mainly agriculture. Several native species are of global interest for their nutritional value, bioactive compounds for medicinal applications, oils for food and cosmetics products, biopolymers for material industries, and many others. At the same time, updating conventional agriculture practices is a need. In this line, the research on the sustainable use of tropical resources is fundamental for reducing deforestation, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. In this context, for this Special Issue, we invite submissions that investigate diverse strategies in plant biotechnology, microbial and enzyme technology, biorefinery technologies, and environmental bioanalysis that could contribute to the sustainable use of ecosystems resources.

Dr. Javier Linares-Pastén
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • plant biotechnology
  • microbial technology
  • enzyme technology
  • biorefinery technology
  • molecular biotechnology
  • environmental bioanalysis

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 481 KiB  
Article
Ensiling Typha (Typha latifolia) Forage with Different Additives for Ruminant Feeding: In Vitro Studies
by Trinidad de Evan, Ahmad Rufai Musa, Carlos N. Marcos, Johnson Sunday Alao, Eva Iglesias, Fernando Escribano and Maria Dolores Carro
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(11), 6546; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13116546 - 27 May 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2324
Abstract
Typha is a wild plant with invasive growth that causes environmental problems in different areas worldwide. This study investigated the ensiling potential of typha (Typha latifolia) to be preserved and used for ruminant feeding. Four silage treatments were evaluated: typha with [...] Read more.
Typha is a wild plant with invasive growth that causes environmental problems in different areas worldwide. This study investigated the ensiling potential of typha (Typha latifolia) to be preserved and used for ruminant feeding. Four silage treatments were evaluated: typha with no additives (CON); with formic acid (FA; 4 mL/kg); with urea and molasses (UM; 19 and 24 g/kg, respectively); and with formic acid, urea, and molasses (FAUM; all at previous concentrations). Three bags of each silage were prepared and stored for 4 months before being analysed and fermented in vitro with ruminal fluid from sheep. All of the silages were well preserved, and their pH was greater (p < 0.05) for UM and FAUM (8.50 and 7.70, respectively) compared with CON and FA (5.39 and 4.75). The high concentrations of volatile fatty acid and ammonia−nitrogen in the UM and FAUM silages indicated undesirable fermentations and precluded their use in practice. However, neither CON nor FA silages improved the in vitro ruminal degradability of pre-ensiling typha (61.7, 58.2, and 65.2%, respectively), which was lower than that of a medium-quality triticale hay (68.0%). The results indicate that typha silage could replace low-quality forages in ruminant diets, being adequate especially for low-producing animals or for those under maintenance conditions. More studies with different doses of additives are needed to identify the optimal conditions for ensiling typha and increasing its nutritive value. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tropical Biotechnology)
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14 pages, 6175 KiB  
Article
Organic Matter Structural Composition of Vascular Epiphytic Suspended Soils of South Vietnam
by Evgeny Abakumov and Alen Eskov
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(7), 4473; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13074473 - 31 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1176
Abstract
The biosphere organic matter is stored in nature in various forms. Most of it is associated with classical terrestrial organo-mineral soils. The carbon of woody plant biomass is counted separately from soil as carbon of the standing biomass. Nevertheless, humification as a universal [...] Read more.
The biosphere organic matter is stored in nature in various forms. Most of it is associated with classical terrestrial organo-mineral soils. The carbon of woody plant biomass is counted separately from soil as carbon of the standing biomass. Nevertheless, humification as a universal process already begins in plant residues before they reach the surface of the classical tropical mineral soil. Moreover, in tropical humid-forest ecosystems, most of the organic matter does not reach the soil surface at all and accumulates in the state of suspended soils. The data obtained in this study characterize, for the first time, the component and structural composition of the organic matter of plant residues of suspended soils, as well as the products of their transformation—humic substances formed in suspended soils. With the use of micro morphological methods, it was shown that humification appears in merged areas of organic remnants. There were statistically significant differences in the elemental composition of humic acids and initial organic material for all elements—C, H, O and N. It has been shown that the aliphatic part dominates (75–93%) in the initial organic materials of suspended soils, whereas the humic substances are characterized by a relatively increased fraction of aromatic fragments (31–42%) in the composition of their molecules, which confirms that humification takes place. Thus, even in the suspended soils, classical humification occurs, and this is not limited by the low content of mineral particles and cations in the suspended soils and the rather acidic reaction of the material. Therefore, the existence of tiering and the formation of the corresponding layers of suspended soils is accompanied by the stabilization and humification of organic matter, which is accompanied by a radical change in its structural and component composition. This process is the “natural biotechnology” of organic matter conservation and stabilization is discussed in article. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tropical Biotechnology)
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18 pages, 2026 KiB  
Article
Primed Seeds of NERICA 4 Stored for Long Periods under High Temperature and Humidity Conditions Maintain Germination Rates
by Emmanuel Kiprono Bore, Eri Ishikawa, Julie Ann Mher Alcances Libron, Keita Goto, Emmanuel Odama, Yoshihiro Nakao, Shin Yabuta and Jun-Ichi Sakagami
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(5), 2869; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13052869 - 23 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1846
Abstract
Agriculture depends on the ability of seeds to survive until the next planting season under ambient conditions that may be averse to seed quality even when the seed is in a quiescent state. Seed priming invigorates seeds, but the impact on the longevity [...] Read more.
Agriculture depends on the ability of seeds to survive until the next planting season under ambient conditions that may be averse to seed quality even when the seed is in a quiescent state. Seed priming invigorates seeds, but the impact on the longevity of seeds has limited its adoption. This study investigated the effect of the storage of primed rice seed on seed viability, vigor, and longevity. Three seed priming methods were employed on the rice cultivar New Rice for Africa (NERICA 4) seeds. Subsequently, the seeds were stored for 120 days at 25 °C and 65% relative humidity, simulating the ambient seed storage conditions of the tropics and sub-tropics. The primed seed recorded increased vigor compared to the non-primed seed until 90 days of storage. However, seed storage for 120 days reduced seed vigor and viability for all the seeds. The results indicated a significant reduction in seed vigor, increased solute leakage, generation of hydrogen peroxide, and accumulation of malondialdehyde after storage. Priming enhances cell membrane integrity and maintains seed vigor in storage at near ambient conditions long enough before reversal of its performance by the storage conditions. This assures that primed seed can either be stored until the following planting season or remain viable in the soil during delayed germination. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tropical Biotechnology)
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