Swine waste as a source of natural products: A carotenoid antioxidant

Development of Environmentally Superior Technologies swine waste management has focused on extraction of products with relatively low unit values. Analyses of the bacterial composition of swine waste lagoon samples confirmed the presence of several purple non-sulfur bacteria (PNSB) species known to produce a variety of carotenoids. We examined a carotenoid naturally abundant in North Carolina swine waste lagoons dominated by PNSB. Analytical methods including high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), mass spectrometry, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) confirmed the identity of the dominant carotenoid as spirilloxanthin, C42H60O2, with 13 conjugated double bonds. This structure confers antioxidant properties as good as those of carotenoids currently marketed as antioxidants. Visual estimates of the “redness” of swine waste lagoon liquids were highly correlated with carotenoid content. Spirilloxanthin concentrations in a lagoon with a strong PNSB bloom were approximately 0.5 grams·m-3. These results support further investigations into the potential for extracting commercially valuable natural products from swine waste lagoons.

Integrative assessment of biomarker responses in teleostean fishes exposed to glyphosate-based herbicide(Excel Mera 71)

Present study deals with the effects of glyphosate-based herbicide,Excel Mera 71 on Anabas testudineus,Heteropnestes fossilis and Oreochromis niloticus in field conditions(1.85 kg/ha)based on anti-oxidative,metabolic and digestive responses.For this study following biomarkers viz.,acetylcholinesterase(AChE),lipid peroxidation(LPO),catalase(CAT),glutathione-S-transferase(GST),alkaline phosphatase(ALP),aspartate aminotransferase(AST),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),amylase,lipase and protease were investigated in gill,stomach,intestine,liver,kidney,brain,muscle and spinal cord of the concerned fish species.Enzyme activities were significantly altered by glyphosate exposure after 30 days,these activities were tissue as well as species specific.The results suggested that these biomarkers could be used to assess the ecological risks of glyphosate on fish.Bioaccumulation factor(BAF)studied in different aquatic natural macrophytes showed order of Alternanthera philoxeroides>Azolla pinnata>Lemna sp.(Minor)>Lemna sp.(Major)>Pistia stratiotes,while transfer factor(TF)showed the order of Pistia stratiotes>Alternanthera philoxeroides>Lemna sp.Bioconcentration factor(BCF)study showed maximum accumulation of glyphosate in liver,kidney or intestine,and minimum either in bone or stomach irrespective of fish species.An integrated biomarker response(IBR),which uses a battery of biomarkers to calculate the standardized scores for each biomarker responses ranging from physiological to biochemical/molecular responses,was evaluated by combining the multiple biomarkers into a single value to evaluate quantitatively the toxicological effects of glyphosate.In general,the multiple indices exhibited variations and A.testudineus was more affected than other fish species;maximum IBR value was observed for LPO and minimum in case of ALT.The order of integrated biomarkers caused by glyphosate treatment was recorded as follows:LPO>Amylase>CAT>AST>Protease>Lipase>ALP>GST>AChE>ALT for A.testudineus,LPO>AChE>AST>Protease>CAT>Amylase>Lipase>GST>ALP>ALT for H.fossilis and AChE>CAT>LPO>AST>Amylase>GST>Protease>ALP>Lipase>ALT for O.niloticus.Finally,IBR analysis is able to distinguish the variations between different parameters and might be a useful tool for the quantification of integrated responses induced by glyphosate toward fish.