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This book covers polyextremophiles, the latest biotechnological advances, and developments in the study of extremophilic diversity with a focus on genetics, proteomics and the impact of climate change. It sets out new perspectives on the polyextremophiles'mechanism of tolerance to extreme conditions, and it also outlines their applications in bioremediation, therapeutics, and astrobiology research. Expert contributors discuss topics such as genes associated with polyextremophiles, the applications of genome editing in extremophiles, secondary metabolites from extremophiles, and the biocatalytic potential of extemozymes isolated from extremophiles. Readers will find in this book several case studies that collate the diverse applications of polyextremophiles for bioremediation, including the use of extremophilic algae in wastewater treatment, nutrient recovery and animal feed production, the treatment of industrial waste, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, and the removal of microplastics, heavy metals and E-waste. Particular attention is given to the use of polyextremophiles for bioremediation of abandoned mining sites. The book also presents bioactive compounds from halophiles and their biomedical applications and discusses the implications of polyextremophiles in astrobiology research. Given its breadth, this book is a valuable contribution to the biotechnology of polyextremophiles by overviewing research to date and exploring challenges and opportunities for future research. It also benefits a broad readership, from scholars, researchers and students to industry professionals interested in the study and development of biotechnological applications of polyextremophiles.

This book approaches biofuels from a new biotechnological perspective with the aim of equipping researchers with a thorough, up-to-date understanding of biofuel research and related technologies. Topics include biomethane, bioethanol, biobutanol, biomass, hydrolysis, bio-oil, microbiology, and many more. Biofuel research has evolved mechanisms to advance their utilization and their application in our system. The chapters will provide concise and up-to-date information to aid our understanding of biotechnology-related implications of biofuels development and its advancements. Readers in the areas of bioengineering, sustainability, renewable energies and biotechnology will find this work useful to widen their knowledge and perspectives on biofuels.

Hot environments are diverse environments that habor a wide variety of anaerobic microorganisms. Although the existence of thermophilic microorganisms has been known for over a century, it is only since the 1970s that warm environments inhabited by thermophiles have been studied in more detail. While aerobic thermophiles have received most of the interest, thermophilic anaerobes have received less attention. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the fundamental aspects of thermophilic anaerobes, from their environments to their applications in biotechnology. The book is divided into three parts: 1) a general overview of thermophilic anaerobes, their history, environments, and phylogenetic relationships, 2) physiological aspects of thermophilic anaerobes and their mechanisms of thermal adaptation, and 3) the biotechnological applications of thermophiles for the production of biofuels and other chemical building blocks as well as their applications in specific industries. This comprehensive and up-to-date book, Thermophilic anaerobes - Phylogeny, Physiology and Biotechnological Applications, is a valuable resource for experienced researchers and early career scientists alike who want to learn more about this exciting and developing field.

The second volume of the Book-Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology covers various emerging concepts in microbial technology which have been developed to harness the potential of the microbes. The book examines the microbes-based products that have widespread applications in various domains i.e., agriculture, biorefinery, bioremediation, pharmaceutical, and medical sectors. It focusses on recent advances and emerging topics such as CRISPR technology, advanced topics of genomics, including functional genomics, metagenomics, metabolomics, and structural and system biology approaches for enhanced production of industrially relevant products. It further gives an insight into the advancement of genetic engineering with special emphasis on value-added products via microalgal systems and their techno-economics analysis and life cycle assessment. The book towards the end presents recent advancements in the use of microbes for the production of industrial relevant enzymes, amino acids,vitamins, and nutraceuticals, on vaccine development and their biomedical applications. The book is an essential source for researchers working in allied fields of microbiology, biotechnology, and bioengineering.

This book, besides discussing challenges and opportunities, will reveal the microbe-metal interactions and strategies for e-waste remediation in different ecosystems. It will unveil the recent biotechnological advancement and microbiological approach to sustainable biorecycling of e-waste such as bioleaching for heavy metal extraction, valorization of precious metal, biodegradation of e-plastic, the role of the diverse microbial community in e-waste remediation, genetically engineered microbes for e-waste management, the importance of microbial exopolysaccharides in metal biosorption, next-generation technologies, omics-based technologies etc. It also holds the promise to discuss the conservation, utilization and cataloging indigenous microbes in e-waste-polluted niches and promising hybrid technology for sustainable e-waste management.Revolution in the area of information technology and communication is constantly evolving due to scientific research and development.Concurrently, the production of new electrical and electronic equipment also thus uplifting in this era of revolution. These technological advancements certainly have problematic consequences which is the rise of huge amounts of electronic obsoletes or electronic waste (e-waste). Improper management of both hazardous and nonhazardous substances of e-waste led to a major concern in our digital society and environment. Therefore, a sustainable approach including microbial candidates to tackle e-waste is the need of the hour.Nevertheless, the continuous demand for new-generation gadgets and electronics set this high-tech evolution to a new frontier in the last few years. With this continuing trend of technological development, e-waste is expanding exponentially worldwide. In the year of 2019, the worldwide generation of e-waste was approximately 53.6 Mt, of which only about 17.4% of e-waste was collected and recycled, and the other 82.6% was not even documented. E-waste containsvarious heterogeneous waste complexes such as metals (60%), blends of many polymers (30%) and halogenated compounds, radioactive elements and other pollutants (10%), respectively. The sustainable, efficient, and economic management of e-waste is thus, a challenging task today and in the coming decades. Conventional techniques such as the use of chemicals, incineration and informal ways of e-waste dismantling trigger serious health risks and contamination to the human population and environment, respectively due to the liberation of toxic and hazardous substances from the waste. In this context, bio-candidates especially microorganisms could be sharp-edged biological recycling tools to manage e-waste sustainably. As microbes are omnipresent and diverse in their physiology and functional aspects, they offer a wide range of bioremediation.

This book covers various aspects of microbial biotechnology to produce bioenergy. It focuses on production of biofuels from plant and microbial biomass including agri-food residues and other wastes. It educates readers about various biomass resources, major aspects of production of renewable energy and fuels based on biochemical conversion routes. There is special focus on the microbial system and biotechnological processes as well as process optimization and industrial scale-up. The book brings together current challenges and potential solutions to enhance biomass to biofuel bioconversion. It is relevant for researchers, academicians, students as well as industry professionals working on biomass-based biorefineries.

This book highlights recent advancements in such an important topic, through contribution from experts demonstrating different applications in ‘day-to-day'life, both existing and newly emerging biological technologies, and thought provoking approaches from different parts of the world, potential future prospects associated with some frontier development in non-conventional energy sources. It covers different aspects of cellulosic and lignocellulosic biomass; Cellulosics Biorefinery; Algal Biofuels; Biodiesel; Bioethanol; Microbial Fuel Cells; Biofuel cells; and biohydrogen production. This book is a comprehensive and informative compilation for international readers, especially undergraduate, post graduate students and researchers.

This book brings together the most recent advances from leading experts in the burgeoning field of environmental biotechnology. The contributing chapters adopt a multidisciplinary approach related to environmental aspects of agriculture, industry, pharmaceutical sciences and drug developments from plant and microbial sources, biochemical chemical techniques/methods/protocols involved in different areas of environmental biotechnology. Book also highlights recent advancements, newly emerging technologies, and thought provoking approaches from different parts of the world. It also discusses potential future prospects associated with some frontier development of biotechnological research related to the environment. This book will be of interest to teachers, researchers, biotechnologists, capacity builders and policymakers, and will serve as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of biotechnology, microbiology and environmental sciences.

This book provides a comprehensive account of past, present and future of the biomass based biorefineries. It is an all-inclusive and insightful compilation of recent advancements in the technology and methods used for conversion of biomass to bioenergy and other useful biochemicals. The book also focuses on the limitations of existing technologies and provides the future prospects, as well as discusses socio-economic impact of biomass based biorefineries. This book assists researchers in the area of lignocellulosic biorefineries and can be used by the students, scientist and academician as an advanced reference textbook.

Pollution is one of the most serious issues facing mankind and other life forms on earth. Environmental pollution leads to the degradation of ecosystems, loss of services, economic losses, and various other problems. The eco-friendliest approach to rejuvenating polluted ecosystems is with the help of microorganism-based bioremediation. Microorganisms are characterized by great biodiversity, genetic and metabolic machinery, and by their ability to survive, even in extremely polluted environments. As such, they are and will remain the most important tools for restoring polluted ecosystems / habitats. This three-volume book sheds light on the utilization of microorganisms and the latest technologies for cleaning up polluted sites. It also discusses the remediation or degradation of various important pollutants such as pesticides, wastewater, plastics, PAHs, oil spills etc. The book also explains the latest technologies used for the degradation of pollutants in several niche ecosystems. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to teachers, researchers, bioremediation scientists, capacity builders and policymakers. It also offers valuable additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of microbiology, ecology, soil science, and the environmental sciences.

Pollution is one of the most serious issues facing mankind and other life forms on earth. Environmental pollution leads to the degradation of ecosystems, loss of services, economic losses, and various other problems. The eco-friendliest approach to rejuvenating polluted ecosystems is with the help of microorganism-based bioremediation. Microorganisms are characterized by great biodiversity, genetic and metabolic machinery, and by their ability to survive, even in extremely polluted environments. As such, they are and will remain the most important tools for restoring polluted ecosystems / habitats. This three-volume book sheds light on the utilization of microorganisms and the latest technologies for cleaning up polluted sites. It also discusses the remediation or degradation of various important pollutants such as pesticides, wastewater, plastics, PAHs, oil spills etc. The book also explains the latest technologies used for the degradation of pollutants in several niche ecosystems. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to teachers, researchers, bioremediation scientists, capacity builders and policymakers. It also offers valuable additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of microbiology, ecology, soil science, and the environmental sciences.

This book highlights the latest findings on fundamental aspects of composting, the interaction of various microorganisms, and the underlying mechanisms. In addition to addressing modern tools and techniques used for composting research, it provides an overview of potential composting applications in both agriculture and environmental reclamation.Composting is the process of organic waste decomposition, mediated by microorganisms. The end-product is called ‘compost'and can be used as a supplement to improve soil fertility. As the municipal waste generated in most developing countries contains a substantial amount of organic matter suitable for composting, this technology offers a win-win opportunity for stakeholders in terms of disposing of organic waste and providing organic fertilizers for agriculture. In addition, using compost reduces the dependency on harmful chemical fertilizers, and represents a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative.

As renewable energy sources, biofuels have tremendous potential to replace fossil fuels in future energy scenarios, offering green alternative energy sources. However, though such fuels could mean a significant reduction in environmental pollution, they are still far from practical implementation due to their high production costs and technical issues.Consequently, efforts are being made around the globe to achieve the cost-effective production of biofuels. In this context, the use of nanomaterials to improve biofuels production efficiency is a vital, emerging area. Nanomaterials are attracting attention due to their versatile physicochemical properties and may improve the production process for various biofuels by acting as catalysts. However, this area is still in its infancy. To improve the practical viability of the biofuels production process, it is essential to focus on the specific type of nanomaterial used, its synthesis, and its specific effectson the process parameters. This book explores the potential advantages and feasibility of various aspects of nanomaterials with regard to improving the current biofuels production process, making it a valuable resource for a broad readership.

Converting biomass to biofuels involves hydrolyzing cellulose to sugars using cost-intensive commercial enzymes – an expensive step that makes large-scale production economically non-viable. As such, there is a need for low-cost bioprocessing. This book critically evaluates the available bioprocessing technologies for various biofuels, and presents the latest research in the field. It also highlights the recent developments, current challenges and viable alternative approaches to reduce the overall cost of producing biofuels.

This book offers a comprehensive introduction to electron-based bioscience, biotechnology, and biocorrosion. It both explains the importance of electron flow during metabolic processes in microorganisms and provides valuable insights into emerging applications in various fields. In the opening section, readers will find up-to-date information on topics such as electron transfer reactions, extracellular electron transfer mechanisms, direct interspecies electron transfer, and electron uptake by sulfate-reducing bacteria. The focus then shifts to state-of-the-art advances and applications in the field of biotechnology. Here, the coverage encompasses e.g. progress in understanding electrochemical interactions between microorganisms and conductive particles, enzymatic reactions and their application in the bioproduction of useful chemicals, and the importance of redox balance for fatty acid production. In closing, the book addresses various aspects of the complex phenomenon of microbiologically induced corrosion, highlighting novel insights from the fields of electromicrobiology and electrochemistry and their implications.

In recent decades, scientific insight into the chemistry of water has increased enormously, leading to the development of advanced wastewater and water purification technologies. However, the quality of freshwater resources has continually deteriorated worldwide, both in industrialized and developing countries. Although traditional wastewater technologies focus on the removal of suspended solids, nutrients and bacteria, hundreds of organic pollutants occur in wastewater and urban surface waters. These new pollutants are synthetic or naturally occurring chemicals that are not often monitored in the environment but have the potential to enter the environment and cause known or suspected adverse ecological and / or human health effects. Collectively referred to as the'emerging contaminants,'they are mostly derived from domestic use and occur in trace concentrations ranging from pico to micrograms per liter. Environmental contaminants are resistant to conventional wastewater treatment processes and most of them remain unaffected, leading to the contamination of the receiving water. As such, there is a need for advanced wastewater treatment process that is capable of removing environmental contaminants to ensure safe fresh water supplies. This book explains the biological and chemical wastewater treatment technologies. The biological wastewater treatment processes presented include: (1) bioremediation of wastewater such as aerobic and anaerobic treatment; (2) phytoremediation of wastewater using engineered wetlands, rhizofiltration, rhizodegradation, phytodegradation, phytoaccumulation, phytotransformation and hyperaccumulators; and (3) mycoremediation of wastewater. The chemical wastewater treatment processes discussed include chemical precipitation, ion exchange, neutralization, adsorption and disinfection. In addition, the book describes wastewater treatment plants in terms of plant size, layout and design as well as installation location. Also presenting the latest, innovative effluent water treatment processes, it is a valuable resource for biochemical and wastewater treatment engineers, environmental scientists and environmental microbiologists.

This second and expanded edition of the first book on agromining (phytomining) presents a comprehensive overview of the metal farming & recovery of the agromining production chain. Agromining is an emerging technology that aims to transform the extraction of sources of target elements not accessible by traditional mining and processing techniques. Agromining, which is based on sustainable development, uses hyperaccumulator plants as'metal crops'farmed on sub-economic soils or minerals wastes to obtain valuable target elements. This volume is edited and authored by the pioneers in the rapidly expanding field of agromining and presents the latest insights and developments in the field. This book provides in-depth information on the global distribution and ecology of hyperaccumulator plants, their biogeochemical pathways, the influence of rhizosphere microbes, the physiology and molecular biology of hyperaccumulation, as well as aspects of propagation and conservation of theseunusual plants. It describes the agronomy of metal crops and opportunities for incorporating agromining into rehabilitation and mine closure, including test cases for agromining of nickel, cobalt, manganese, arsenic, selenium, cadmium, zinc, thallium, rare earth elements and platinum group elements. Since the first edition was published, there have successful nickel agromining field trials in the tropics (in Malaysia and Guatemala), and these are presented in a dedicated case study chapter. Other new chapters focus on the processing of bio-ore for elements other than nickel, such as rare earth elements and cadmium, and on agromining from industrial wastes such as tailings, and industrial by-products and sites. Furthermore, the book features two new chapters that provide a comprehensive assessment of accumulation a very wide range elements from the Periodic Table in various plant species around the globe, and a chapter on practical methods for discovery of hyperaccumulator plantspecies in the field and in the herbarium. This book is of interest to environmental professionals in the minerals industry, government regulators, and academics.

This book focuses on the application of microbes in all fields of biology. There is an urgent need to understand and explore new microbes, their biological activities, genetic makeup and further opportunities for utilizing them. The book is divided into sections, highlighting the application of microbes in agriculture, nanotechnology, genetic engineering, bioremediation, industry, medicine and forensic sciences, and describing potential future advances in these fields. It also explores the potential role of microbes in space and how they might support life on a different planet.

Over the last decades, scientists have been intrigued by the fascinating organisms that inhabit extreme environments. These organisms, known as extremophiles, thrive in habitats which for other terrestrial life-forms are intolerably hostile or even lethal. Based on such technological advances, the study of extremophiles has provided, over the last few years, ground-breaking discoveries that challenge the paradigms of modern biology. In the new bioeconomy, fungi in general, play a very important role in addressing major global challenges, being instrumental for improved resource efficiency, making renewable substitutes for products from fossil resources, upgrading waste streams to valuable food and feed ingredients, counteracting life-style diseases and antibiotic resistance through strengthening the gut biota, making crop plants more robust to survive climate change conditions, and functioning as host organisms for production of new biological drugs. This range ofnew uses of fungi all stand on the shoulders of the efforts of mycologists over generations. The book is organized in five parts: (I) Biodiversity, Ecology, Genetics and Physiology of Extremophilic Fungi, (II) Biosynthesis of Novel Biomolecules and Extremozymes (III) Bioenergy and Biofuel synthesis, and (IV) Wastewater and biosolids treatment, and (V) Bioremediation.

The integration of enzymes in food processing is well known, and dedicated research is continually being pursued to address the global food crisis. This book provides a broad, up-to-date overview of the enzymes used in food technology. It discusses microbial, plant and animal enzymes in the context of their applications in the food sector; process of immobilization; thermal and operational stability; increased product specificity and specific activity; enzyme engineering; implementation of high-throughput techniques; screening of relatively unexplored environments; and development of more efficient enzymes. Offering a comprehensive reference resource on the most progressive field of food technology, this book is of interest to professionals, scientists and academics in the food and biotech industries.

Various types of secondary agriculture and forestry wastes represent valuable resource materials for developing alternate energy as biofuels and other value added products such as sugars, phenols, furans, organic acids, enzymes and digestible animal feed etc. However, if not managed properly, waste material and environmental contaminants generated by various industries such as food and feed, pulp and paper and textile may lead to severe environmental pollution. The energy, food and feed demand necessitate developing simple and economically viable technologies for environmental management and resource recovery. Microorganisms and their enzymes contribute significantly in utilization of plant residues, resource recovery and eventually in pollution mitigation. “Biotechnology for Environmental Management and Resource Recovery” presents a comprehensive review of selected research topics in a compendium of 16 chapters related to environmental pollution control and developing biotechnologies in agro-ecosystem management and bioconversion of agro-residues (lignocellulosics) into biofuels, animal feed and paper etc. This book provides a valuable resource for reference and text material to graduate and postgraduate students, researchers, scientists working in the area of microbiology, biotechnology, and environmental science and engineering.

The second edition of Comprehensive Biotechnology, Six Volume Set continues the tradition of the first inclusive work on this dynamic field with up-to-date and essential entries on the principles and practice of biotechnology. The integration of the latest relevant science and industry practice with fundamental biotechnology concepts is presented with entries from internationally recognized world leaders in their given fields. With two volumes covering basic fundamentals, and four volumes of applications, from environmental biotechnology and safety to medical biotechnology and healthcare, this work serves the needs of newcomers as well as established experts combining the latest relevant science and industry practice in a manageable format. It is a multi-authored work, written by experts and vetted by a prestigious advisory board and group of volume editors who are biotechnology innovators and educators with international influence. - All six volumes are published at the same time, not as a series; this is not a conventional encyclopedia but a symbiotic integration of brief articles on established topics and longer chapters on new emerging areas. - Hyperlinks provide sources of extensive additional related information; material authored and edited by world-renown experts in all aspects of the broad multidisciplinary field of biotechnology - Scope and nature of the work are vetted by a prestigious International Advisory Board including three Nobel laureates - Each article carries a glossary and a professional summary of the authors indicating their appropriate credentials - An extensive index for the entire publication gives a complete list of the many topics treated in the increasingly expanding field