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Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a novel biocompatible polymeric biomaterial with a wide range of biomedical uses, like tissue engineering (TE) scaffolds, wound dressings, and drug delivery. Although BC lacks good cell adhesion due to limited functionality, its tunable surface chemistry still holds promise. Here, hydroxyapatite (HA) was incorporated into a citrate-modified BC (MBC) using the biomimetic synthesis in simulated body fluid (SBF). Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), and compressive modulus were used to characterize the biomineralized MBC (BMBC) samples. Using 3-(4,5 dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl) -2H-tetrazolium (MTS), trypan blue dye exclusion (TBDE), and cell attachment assays on osteoblast cells, the developed BMBC have shown good cell viability, proliferation, and attachment after 3, 5, and 7 days of culture and therefore suggested as potential bone tissue regeneration scaffolding material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Developing co-cultivation systems involving microalgae and fungi has shown promising potential for microalgae harvesting technology. As discussed in this review, the co-cultivation of microalgae and fungi has emerged as a novel approach for enhancing biomass and lipid production, wastewater treatment, biofuel production, and high-value products. However, despite being used for a few years, this technique is still in its early stages of development and has yet to be widely applied in the industry. The main challenges associated with co-cultivation include designing effective cultivation systems, managing nutrient requirements, selecting compatible strains, and implementing contamination control measures. In this study, bibliometric analysis was conducted (using the Web of Science database) to examine global trends and developments in microalgae-fungi co-cultivation research between 2014 and 2023, which aimed to identify the research progression, prominent contributors, and leading countries in the research field. The dataset comprised 682 articles, 242 reviews, 31 book chapters, and 22 conference papers. The results showed a rapid increment of publications with China as an active nation in this research area, followed by India, the USA, Italy, Spain, etc. As demonstrated in this study, the immense potential of co-cultivation techniques suggests further exploration, particularly in employing different microalgae species with exceptional characteristics in conjunction with non-pathogenic and edible fungi for profitable industrialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

The intensive use of antibiotics in aquaculture results in the proliferation of antibiotic. In this study, antibiotic resistant bacteria from six different aquaculture sources (pond of Fisheries Research Institute (FRI), and rivers of Kukup, Pulai, Pendas Laut, Sungai Melayu and Kong Kong) were isolated. These isolates were tested for antibiotic resistance against seven antibiotics via the disc diffusion method. Finally, phenotypic and genotypic identification via 16S rRNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis were carried out. The results show that 58 out of 118 bacterial isolates are resistant to multiple antibiotics. The highest isolate resistance was observed towards rifampicin (89.66%), followed by ampicillin (79.31%) and sulfafurazole (67.24%). The isolates with multiple antibiotic resistant (MAR) index values with more than 20% were subjected to 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The majority of the bacterial strains exhibit multiple antibiotic resistance, indicating that they were isolated from highly contaminated sources based on the tested water qualities profiles, which showed the high level of turbidity and total dissolved solid (TDS) in most sampling sites with the high number of MAR bacteria obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

α-Amylase from Anoxybacillus sp. SK3-4 (ASKA) is a thermostable enzyme that produces a high level of maltose from starches. A truncated ASKA (TASKA) variant with improved expression and purification efficiency was characterized in an earlier study. In this work, TASKA was purified and immobilized through covalent attachment on three epoxide (ReliZyme EP403/M, Immobead IB-150P, and Immobead IB-150A) and an amino-epoxide (ReliZyme HFA403/M) activated supports. Several parameters affecting immobilization were analyzed, including the pH, temperature, and quantity (mg) of enzyme added per gram of support. The influence of the carrier surface properties, pore sizes, and lengths of spacer arms (functional groups) on biocatalyst performances were studied. Free and immobilized TASKAs were stable at pH 6.0-9.0 and active at pH 8.0. The enzyme showed optimal activity and considerable stability at 60 °C. Immobilized TASKA retained 50% of its initial activity after 5-12 cycles of reuse. Upon degradation of starches and amylose, only immobilized TASKA on ReliZyme HFA403/M has comparable hydrolytic ability with the free enzyme. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of an immobilization study of an α-amylase from Anoxybacillus spp. and the first report of α-amylase immobilization using ReliZyme and Immobeads as supports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...