Abstract Shrimps fishing, especially the pink (Farfantepenaeus brasiliensis and F. subtilis) and the white (Litopenaeus schmitti) ones, are relevant for the Brazilian Northeast economy, and their price depends on their aspect-quality. They are rich in lipids/proteins, which are a target for autolytic and microbial enzymes. These may not change the shrimps’ appearance but generate substances that may cause poisoning, as histamines. This work compared the microbial quality of fillets and shells of these three shrimps, harvested in two years, after cooking and storage under different freezing times (0- 90 days), as well as the total carotenoids (TC) and antioxidant activity (AA%) of ethanolic extracts from all the samples, using spectrophotometry and DPPH test. None histaminogenic and few mesophilic bacteria were isolated (all Gram+ species of Corynebacterium, Listeria, Arthrobacter, Bacillus and Erysipelothrix), but in lower number than the tolerability limit. The TC and AA% of fresh shells from time “zero” were always higher than those of fillets, mainly for F. subtilis. Cooking increased TC and AA% of fillets, but reduced them in shells, and both parameters declined along the freezing. Thin-layer chromatography and spectrophotometric scanning of all the extracts and standards evidenced astaxanthin as the main carotenoid.

Abstract Biosurfactants possess diverse chemical properties and provide important characteristics to the producing microorganisms, which can act as surface-actives and emulsifiers of hydrocarbon and others water insoluble substances. Most of them are lipopeptides synthetized by Bacillus. This study evaluated the biosurfactant production by strains of Bacillus previously obtained from liquid residues of sugar-alcohol industry. The bacterial isolates LBPMA: BSC, BSD, J1, J2 and L1 were cultivated in medium that induces production of biosurfactants (Landy medium). During 48 h of incubation, at intervals of 12 h, the total contents of proteins, reducing carbohydrates and surfactant activity of the filtrated growth media free of cells were evaluated. The results showed that these strains use glucose as a source of carbon, energy and for synthesis of surfactant. In this medium (24 h), the best producer of biosurfactant was the strain LBPMA-J2, molecularly identified as Bacillus thuringiensis. Once the supernatant free of cells of this microorganism disperses the oil phase in the water, this strain has potential for being utilized on bioremediation processes.

Abstract This study evidenced the physicochemical composition and antioxidant activity (AA) of honeys (n = 31) and pollen (n = 25) of stingless bees species from Alagoas, Brazil. Fifteen parameters were studied under the light of a multivariate analysis. A dendrogram with three groups of honeys was stablished for the different bees, being the group III formed exclusively by samples from genus Melipona. Plebeia sp. and Tetragona clavipes Fabricius (1804) produced honeys with higher pH/acidity, electrical conductivity, phenolic total and AA. Even different bees from the same meliponary, as M. asilvai and T. clavipes, produced honeys with different AA and chemical profiles, possibly due their different nectar preference. The multivariate analysis of the bee pollen samples also showed three principal components responsible for 74.52% of their variability, clustering nine groups strongly influenced by total phenolics and AA. Honey and pollen produced by T. clavipes had the highest phenolic content and AA. Therefore, the chemical characteristics and AA of the Meliponini honey and bee pollen showed here can give support to the market to influence their incorporation in the human diet as sources of potential functional foods.

Abstract Considering that Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium able to colonize the upper gastrointestinal tract and cause mucosal injury, not always can be effectively eradicated by the traditional approaches, there is an interest in alternative therapies until a vaccine be available. Honey is a food supplement with high carbohydrate content and antioxidant activity, as well as broad antimicrobial spectrum. After analyzing the physicochemical and in vitro antimicrobial properties of an Apis mellifera honey from the Atlantic forest of Alagoas / Brazil, the purpose of the present work was evaluate its in vivo effects against Helicobacter pylori in the gastric mucosa of Wistar rats. First, it was verified the success of inoculation/infection of the pathogen in the gastric mucosa of the rats, through the subsequent removal of their stomachs for histological analysis (hematoxylin and eosin stain and Giemsa stain). Then, four groups of animals were treated with sterilized distilled deionized water, the Apis mellifera honey, a combination of omeprazole, amoxicillin and clarithromycin, and an association of such medicines and honey (1:1). Except the control, all treatments were effective in combating infection, however, honey reduced the inflammatory process, whilst the antibiotics increase the number of eosinophils.

Lignin is present in plant cell secondary wall, associated to carbohydrates preventing their efficient hydrolysis, and cellulose pulp manufacture basically consists in breaking down the middle lamella of plant cells, individualizing fibers such as cellulose from the other biopolymers. Different levels of lignocellulose are found in plant residues and they can be decomposed by extracellular fungal lignin modifying enzymes, used as a tool to reduce waste materials in contaminated soils and effluents. In the paper mill industries, for instance, they are a suitable or complementary alternative to the traditional methods of pulping/bleaching, contributing to improve paper strength as well as to reduce the pitch content, the quantity of chemicals and the consume of electrical energy. The aim of this review was to describe the fungal degradation of lignocellulosic like-material, the non-specific enzymatic aspects of the attack of wood and agricultural wastes, the fungal ability for biosorption and bioconversion, and its applications in the pulp/paper industry and bioremediation.

RESUMO O pólen apícola resulta da mistura de pólen e néctar floral com substâncias salivares da abelha, e emerge como um alimento com propriedades terapêuticas. Neste trabalho foram analisadas 30 amostras desse material de apiários (Apis mellifera), coletadas durante a estação seca de 2008/09 em três mesorregiões de Alagoas - Mata Atlântica, Costa Sul e Caatinga. A Mata Atlântica e a Caatinga foram regiões boas produtoras de pólen apícola. Na mesma época, a Mata Atlântica apresentou a maior diversidade de tipos de pólen para alimentar abelhas, com predominância de herbáceas (63%), enquanto as amostras de Caatinga foram monoflorais. Os dados físico-químicos foram analisados pelo teste estatístico não paramétrico de Kruskal-Wallis. As amostras da Caatinga se destacaram quanto ao teor de fenóis (25,85 ± 10,80 eq. mg Ácido Gálico/g), flavonoides totais (45,62 ± 32,19 eq. mg Quercetin/g), e atividade antioxidante (através do teste do DPPH, por exemplo, 70,62 ± 4,50%), provavelmente devido à condição ambiental deste bioma.

ABSTRACT Bee pollen results from the mixture of pollen and floral nectar with the salivary substances of bees and has increasingly been used as a food with therapeutic properties. In this study, 30 samples of bee pollen from Apis mellifera apiaries in three mesoregions of Alagoas (Brazil) - Mata Atlântica, South Coast and Caatinga, were collected during the dry season of 2008/09 and analysed. Mata Atlântica and Caatinga had good production of bee pollen. In the same season, Mata Atlântica contained a higher diversity of pollen types for feeding bees with a predominance of herbaceous pollen (63%), whereas the Caatinga samples contained monofloral pollen. Physicochemical data were analysed with the nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis statistical test. The Caatinga samples were analysed to determine their contents of total phenolic compounds (25.85 ± 10.80 mg gallic acid eq/g) and flavonoids (45.62 ± 32.19 mg quercetin eq/g) and their antioxidant activity (for instance, 70.62 ± 4.50% in the DPPH test), which were possibly affected by the environmental conditions of this biome.

A cultura de caju (Anacardium occidentale L.) é uma fonte de renda importante para a população do Nordeste brasileiro, sendo a antracnose causada por Colletotrichum gloeosporioides a doença que mais conduz a perdas de sua produção. Entretanto, há pouca informação para a resistência desse hospedeiro ou para a variação na agressividade do patógeno em ambiente controlado. A reação de clones comerciais (CCP-06, CCP-09, CCP-76 e CCP-1001) e um não comercial (CAP-14) de cajueiros anão-precoce, contra 36 isolados desse fungo, foi avaliada sob condições controladas. Todos os isolados, incluindo os provenientes de diferentes hospedeiros, foram capazes de causar lesões sobre folhas e hastes da maioria dos clones, ainda que em graus diferenciados. O clone CCP-06 foi o mais suscetível, enquanto o clone CCP-1001 foi resistente a mais isolados, incluindo o 905, enquanto os isolados 910 e 912 foram agressivos a todos os clones testados. A injúria mecânica das folhas aumentou a suscetibilidade dos clones a todos os isolados, indicando que a resistência pode também estar associada a barreiras estruturais que impedem a penetração. Os pseudofrutos amadurecidos (8 semanas) dos clones comerciais avaliados, foram suscetíveis a ambos os isolados testados (905 e 910), mas os jovens (2 semanas), com exceção daqueles do clone CCP-76, suscetíveis aos dois isolados, apresentaram resistência a ambos, sugerindo a ação de obstáculos estruturais e químicos diferenciados. As castanhas desenvolvidas (8 semanas), no entanto, foram mais resistentes a ambos os isolados do que as jovens (2 semanas), talvez devido à espessa cutícula do exocarpo e baixo número de estômatos.

The cashew (Anacardium occidentale L.) crop is an important source of income for the population of the Brazilian Northeast, and anthracnose disease caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides leads to significant production loss. However, there is little information on either the host resistance or the variation in the aggressiveness of the pathogen under controlled environment. The reaction of commercial (CCP-06, CCP-09, CCP-76 and CCP-1001) and one non-commercial (CAP-14) dwarf cashew clones was assessed against 36 isolates of this fungus controlled environmental conditions. All the isolates, including those from hosts other than cashew, were able to cause lesions on leaves and stems of most clones, albeit to different degrees. Clone CCP-06 was the most susceptible, while clone CCP-1001 showed a level of resistance to a number of the isolates, including isolate 905, while isolates 910 and 912 were aggressive to all clones. Injury increased the susceptibility of the clones to all isolates, indicating that resistance also might be associated with structural barriers that hinder penetration. Ripened cashew apples (8-week-old), of commercial clones were susceptible to isolates 905 and 910. Immature pseudo-fruits (2-week-old), with exception of clone CCP-76 which was susceptible to both isolates showed resistance against these isolates, suggesting the presence of structural and chemical barriers. Developed nuts (8-week-old), however, were more resistant than immature nuts (2-week-old) to both isolates, probably due to their thicker exocarp cuticle and reduced number of stomatal pores.

A produção brasileira de pinha (Annona squamosa L.) predomina no Nordeste, sendo afetada pela antracnose causada por Colletotrichum gloeosporioides. Este estudo avaliou: 1) as taxas de crescimento micelial e conidiação, dimensões de conídios e produção de amilase, xilanase, pectinases e protease por isolado desse fungo de lesões de abacate (Persea americana Mill), em diferentes meios; 2) as porcentagens de germinação e formação de apressórios do mesmo sobre folhas jovens de pinha; 3) as alterações in vivo nos teores de proteínas, fenóis e carboidratos solúveis totais, antes e após a inoculação. Folhas jovens de plântulas de dois ecótipos de pinha (PI e CT) foram destacadas, submetidas à inoculação e incubadas ou para sua extração (0 e 36 horas após), ou para seu clareamento (0, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42 e 46 horas após), coloração e análise ao microscópio. Particionou-se cada extrato contra hexano, e a fração polar foi concentrada e resolubilizada para determinação dos parâmetros bioquímicos mencionados. Verificou-se maior esporulação do isolado fúngico em meio Mathur, e este produziu todas as enzimas ensaiadas in vitro. In vivo, este foi mais agressivo ao ecótipo PI, mas verificou-se ca. de 80% de germinação e 50% de formação de apressórios após 24 e 30 horas de incubação respectivamente sobre os ecótipos PI e CT. Os teores de proteínas, glicídeos redutores e fenóis totais dos extratos de CT foram mais elevados 36 horas após a inoculação, enquanto apenas uma ligeira elevação no conteúdo de fenóis foi constatada nos extratos de PI.

The Brazilian production of sugar-apple (Annona squamosa L.) predominates in the Northeast, being affected by anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides. This study evaluated:1) the rates of micelial growth, conidiation, size of conidia and production of amylase, xylanase, protease and pectinases by the fungus isolated from lesions of avocado (Persea americana Mill), in different media; 2) the percentage of its germination and formation of appressoria on the young leaves of sugar apple; 3) the in vivo changes in levels of total proteins, phenols and soluble carbohydrates, before and after inoculation. Young leaves of two different ecotypes of sugar apple (PI and CT) were detached, inoculated and incubated either for their extraction (after 0 and 36 hours), or for its clearing (after 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42 and 46 hours), staining and analysis under the microscope. Each extract was partitioned against hexane, and the polar fraction was concentrated and re-solubilized for determination of biochemical parameters above mentioned. It was observed a higher sporulation of the fungal isolate in Mathur's medium, and it has produced all the enzymes tested in vitro. In vivo, this was more aggressive on the ecotype PI. There was ca. 80% germination and 50% of appressoria formation of the same after 24 and 30 hours of incubation on the ecotypes PI and CT respectively. The levels of total proteins, phenols and reducing glycids in extracts of CT were higher at 36 hours after inoculation, while only a slight increase in phenolic content was detected in extracts of PI.