Highest biomass and lipid productivities where achieved at mixotrophic cultivation. Lipids from mixotrophic biomass were more suitable for biodiesel production. Nutrient removal achieved below the most strict threshold limits. Positive energy production scenarios can be designed coupling distinct processes.

Microalgae farming has been identified as the most eco-sustainable solution for producing biodiesel. However, the operation of full-scale plants is still limited by costs and the utilization of industrial and/or domestic wastes can significantly improve economic profits. Several waste effluents are valuable sources of nutrients for the cultivation of microalgae. Ethanol production from sugarcane, for instance, generates significant amounts of organically rich effluent, the vinasse. After anaerobic digestion treatment, nutrient remaining in such an effluent can be used to grow microalgae. This research aimed to testing the potential of the anaerobic treated vinasse as an alternative source of nutrients for culturing microalgae with the goal of supplying the biodiesel industrial chain with algal biomass and oil. The anaerobic process treating vinasse reached a steady state at about 17 batch cycles of 24 h producing about 0.116 m(3)CH4 kgCODvinasse (-1). The highest productivity of Chlorella vulgaris biomass (70 mg l(-1) day(-1)) was observed when using medium prepared with the anaerobic digester effluent. Lipid productivity varied from 0.5 to 17 mg l(-1) day(-1). Thus, the results show that it is possible to integrate the culturing of microalgae with the sugarcane industry by means of anaerobic digestion of the vinasse. There is also the advantageous possibility of using by-products of the anaerobic digestion such as methane and CO2 for sustaining the system with energy and carbon source, respectively.

The results of the present study indicate that laser phototherapy has a positive effect on the healing of infected wounds, particularly with the association of λ680 + λ790 nm.

The molecular epidemiology of a recent norovirus (NoV) outbreak in Brazil performed by comparative analysis with Genebank NoV sequences showed that the GII.4 strain was responsible for 72.5% of all NoV-positive cases (58/80). Other detected NoV strains included GII.3 (7/80; 8.8%) and GII.9 (8/80; 10%). This is the first outbreak reported in Bahia state, Brazil, during June-July of 2006, where NoV was identified as the principal etiologic agent in hospitalized young adults with acute gastroenteritis symptoms. These findings suggest that GII.4 is a predominant circulating genotype in NoV outbreaks in Brazil.

The activity of anaerobic sulfate reduction was studied using sulfate-reducing bacteria isolated from the water produced from a Brazilian oil reservoir. The effects of the initial sulfate concentration on the anaerobic sulfate reduction and sulfide generation kinetics were investigated. The redox potential, the biomass solution content, and the sulfate and the sulfide solution content were measured. The results indicate that the sulfate conversion and the sulfide generation are both first-order processes for the initial sulfate concentration of 823, 1,282, and 1,790 mg/L. The results for the kinetic constants for the sulfate conversion indicate an inhibition with the enhancement of the initial sulfate solution content. The kinetic constants for the sulfide generation indicate that this reaction is almost independent of the initial sulfate solution content due to the presence of at least two in-series processes that are faster than the microbial conversion of the sulfate. The kinetic test using the water from an onshore oil field, with an initial sulfide content of 228 mg/L and sulfate content of 947 mg/L, shows a sulfate conversion of 50 % in 528 h. The kinetic modeling for the net content of sulfate and sulfide indicates that the sulfate conversion is slower for this water than for the deionized water tests; however, the sulfide formation has almost the same conversion velocity. The reactions are first order in both cases.