Recent Advances in Microbial Polymers and Pigments
A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Materials Chemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2023) | Viewed by 8762
Special Issue Editors
Interests: polyhydroxyalkanoate; astaxanthin; biofuels; microbiology; biofilm
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: polyhydroxyalkanoate; bioprocess engineering; algal biomass valorization; biopolyesters
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: biopolymers; polyhydroxyalkanoates; mixed cultures; waste/by-products valorisation; microbial ecology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Microbes are ubiquitous and perform a plethora of unique functions that often remain unnoticed until discovered. A variety of microbial products have been utilized by humans for several centuries; some of these products became evident during the Industrial Revolution, and efforts are underway to gain a further hold on such bioproducts and produce them in an economical manner at large-scale. Biopolymers, particularly bacterial cellulose, polyhydroxyalkanoates, xanthan, dextran, alginates, etc., are potential products required for industrial applications. Similarly, fungi, bacteria, algae and some protists are known to produce pigments (few are secretory). However, most of these products are quite challenging to produce at large scale, though attempts are being made to identify unique microbes or engineer them for the economical production of these bio-products. With a greater focus on bio-based products for a sustainable and green environment, microbial resources are becoming increasingly important. Thus, this Special Issue is focused on the recent progress in microbial polymer and pigment research, as well as commonly occurring short-comings and the underlying hidden opportunities.
Potential topics may include (but are not limited to):
- Bacteria as a source of pigments and dyes;
- Fungal pigments and their applications;
- Bacterial cellulose and its biomedical applications;
- Fermentation approaches to produce microbial polyesters;
- Polyhydroxyalkanoates: microbial polyesters;
- Untapped microbial resources for unique biopolymers and pigments;
- Co-production of biopolymer and astaxanthin;
- Microbial polymers and their applications;
- Molecular techniques exploited so far for PHA polymer production;
- Mixed cultures as a promising way for the economical production of polyhydroxyalkanoates;
- Novel applications of polyhydroxyalkanoates;
- Renewable substrates for microbial pigment production;
- Market potential of microbial pigments and polymers;
- Multipurpose usage of microbial pigments: an overview;
- Recent development of food and pharmaceutical grade pigments;
- Microbial carotenoids as an alternative to synthetic pigments;
- Microbial pigments in wood processing.
Dr. Prasun Kumar
Prof. Dr. Suchada Chanprateep Napathorn
Dr. Paulo Costa Lemos
Dr. Subhasree Ray
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- carotenoids
- melanin
- bacterial cellulose
- polyhydroxyalkanoates
- xanthan
- dextrans
- alginate
