Mushroom production on coffee pulp as substrate generates an intense black residual liquid, which requires suitable treatment. In the present study, Pleurotus ostreatus growth in wastewater from mushroom farm was evaluated as a potential biological treatment process for decolourisation as well as to obtain biomass (liquid inoculum). Culture medium components affecting mycelial growth were determined, evaluating colour removal. Laccase activity was monitored during the process. P. ostreatus was able to grow in non diluted WCP. Highest biomass yield was obtained when glucose (10 g/l) was added. The addition of this carbon source was necessary for efficient decolourisation. Agitation of the culture improved biodegradation of WCP as well as fungal biomass production. Laccase and manganese-independent peroxidase activities were detected during fungal treatment of the WCP by P. ostreatus CCEBI 3024. The laccase enzyme showed good correlation with colour loss. Both wastewater colour and pollution load (as chemical oxygen demand) decreased more than 50% after 10 days of culture. Phenols were reduced by 92%.

During a bioprospection of bacteria with antimicrobial activity, the actinomycete strain A38T was isolated from a sediment sample of the Carpintero river located in the Gran Piedra Mountains, Santiago de Cuba province (Cuba). This strain was identified as a member of the genus Micromonospora by means of a polyphasic taxonomy study. Strain A38T was an aerobic Gram-positive filamentous bacterium that produced single spores in a well-developed vegetative mycelium. An aerial mycelium was absent. The cell wall contained meso-diaminopimelic acid and the whole-cell sugars were glucose, mannose, ribose and xylose. The major cellular fatty acids were isoC15:0, 10 methyl C17:0, anteiso-C17:0 and iso-C17:0. The predominant menaquinones were MK-10(H4) and MK-10(H6). Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that this strain was closely related to Micromonospora tulbaghiae DSM 45142T (99.5 %), Micromonospora citrea DSM 43903T (99.4 %), Micromonospora marina DSM 45555T (99.4 %), Micromonospora maritima DSM 45782T (99.3 %), Micromonospora sediminicola DSM 45794T (99.3 %), Micromonospora aurantiaca DSM 43813T (99.2 %) and Micromonospora chaiyaphumensis DSM 45246T (99.2 %). The results of OrthoANIu analysis showed the highest similarity to Micromonospora chalcea DSM 43026T (96.4 %). However, the 16S rRNA and gyrB gene sequence-based phylogeny and phenotypic characteristics provided support to distinguish strain A38T as a novel species. On the basis of the results presented here, we propose to classify strain A38T (=LMG 30467T=CECT 30034T) as the type strain of the novel species Micromonospora fluminis sp. nov.

<p>En las universidades cubanas más del 65 % de los estudiantes son becarios y se presta especial atención a la gestión de las aguas domésticas generadas en las comunidades y residencias universitarias. Este trabajo presenta la remoción de la materia orgánica en las aguas domésticas de la comunidad universitaria Antonio Maceo de la Universidad de Oriente empleando, a escala de laboratorio, dos sistemas: reactor UASB y laguna anaerobia. Los sistemas anaerobios evaluados, alcanzaron una remoción de la DQO superior al 70 % y una disminución de las bacterias coliformes totales desde 72x10 5 NMP/100 mL hasta 16 NMP/100 mL. La clarificación con alumbre mejora las características estéticas del efluente. Cualquiera de las variantes (UASB o laguna anaerobia) pueden ser aplicadas para la remoción de la materia orgánica en las aguas domésticas de la comunidad universitaria.</p>

An actinomycete, strain D1T, was isolated from a freshwater sediment sample collected from the San Pablo river in the La Risueña community, Santiago de Cuba province, Cuba. The strain was identified as a member of the genus Nocardiopsis by means of a polyphasic taxonomic study. It produced a light yellow non-fragmented substrate mycelium, a white well-developed aerial mycelium and straight to flexuous hyphae. No specific spore chains were observed. Strain D1T contained meso-diaminopimelic acid, no diagnostic sugars, and MK-10(H2), MK-10(H4), MK-10 and MK-10(H6) as predominant menaquinones, but not phosphatidylcholine as diagnostic polar lipid of the genus Nocardiopsis . The predominant fatty acids were iso-C16 : 0, 10-methyl-C18 : 0 and anteiso-C17 : 0. Strain D1T showed the highest degree of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to Nocardiopsis synnematoformans DSM 44143T (99.8 %), Nocardiopsis dassonvillei subsp. albirubida NBRC 13392T (99.8 %) and Nocardiopsis dassonvillei subsp. dassonvillei DSM 43111T (99.6 %). A genomic OrthoANIu value between D1T and N. dassonvillei subsp. dassonvillei DSM 43111T of 97.63 % and a dDDH value of 78.9 % indicated that strain D1T should be classified in N. dassonvillei . However, phenotypic characteristics distinguished strain D1T from its nearest neighbour taxon. On basis of these results we propose to classify strain D1T (=LMG 30468T=CECT 30033T) as a representative of a novel subspecies of the genus Nocardiopsis , for which the name Nocardiopsis dassonvillei subsp. crassaminis subsp. nov. is proposed. In addition, the genomic distance between N. dassonvillei subsp. albirubida NBRC 13392T and N. dassonvillei subsp. dassonvillei DSM 43111T as determined through OrthoANIu (93.64 %) and dDDH (53.40 %), along with considerable phenotypic and chemotaxonomic differences reported in earlier studies, indicated that the classification of this taxon as Nocardiopsis alborubida Grund and Kroppenstedt 1990 is to be preferred over its classification as N. dassonvillei subsp. albirubida Evtushenko et al. 2000.

a b s t r ac tHydrocarbon pollution in salty media is an important and long-lasting problem worldwide, especially it is not attended to. A mixed culture constituted by Xanthomonas sp., Acinetobacter bouvetii, Shewanella sp. and Defluvibacter lusatiensis was employed to degrade a hydrocarbon blend, composed of hexadecane (HXD), phenanthrene (PHE) and pyrene (PYR) (25:1:1 v/w/w). The degradation was assayed in two salty conditions (0-35 g L -1 NaCl) and the kinetics were described by the reparametrized Gompertz model. The mixed culture was halotolerant and able to degrade the three hydrocarbons, both in serological bottles and in an airlift bioreactor (ALB) in the presence and absence of salt. Hydrocarbon degradation in serological bottles was preferable to HXD and then to PHE and PYR. The presence of salt decreased the Gompertz parameter values for bacterial growth and hydrocarbon degradation. When salty media were used, the maximum degradation extent diminished in both serological bottles and ALB. Hydrodynamic was fundamental to enhance the hydrocarbon degradation efficiency, that is, pneumatic agitation provided in ALB enhanced the interfacial surface reducing the culture time from 14 to 5 d, almost cancelling the lag time required for hydrocarbon degradation. Our results suggest the use of ALB as a good method to remediate hydrocarbon-contaminated water bodies.

Five rhizosphere Bacillus subtilis isolates were tested for in vitro antagonism against a sugarcane seedling pathogen strain of Curvularia gudauskasii. The isolate B. subtilis SR/B-16 was selected because it permanently inhibits 71% of fungal growth. Microscopic analysis of the antagonistic bacteria effects on C. gudauskasii revealed swelling and bulbous hyphae, vacuolated cytoplasm and no spore formation. The analysis of culture filtrates of SR/B-16 collected from stationary phase showed that they are responsible for the antifungal effects and for the abnormal shapes observed. However, bacterial culture efficiency is higher. The organic concentrated fraction of the extracts caused the same morphological changes as those caused by antifungal lipopeptides secreted by Bacillus species. The strain SR/B-16 can be used for the formulation of bioactive compounds for the treatment of C. gudauskasii diseases on sugarcane seedlings.

Los residuos sólidos urbanos (RSU), al ser vertidos sin tratamiento adecuado, ocasionan daños severos al ambiente influyendo en la calidad de vida de la población, razón por la cual actualmente se le presta atención diferenciada al vertido de residuos urbanos. En este trabajo se evalúa la fracción orgánica de estos residuos (FORSU), tomando como referencia el grupo poblacional de una de las Residencias estudiantiles de la Universidad de Oriente. La generación de FORSU en la residencia es de 0,06 kg/hab/día, con un contenido de sólidos totales de 30,9 ± 5,3 % de los cuáles el 81,7 ± 0,6 % son sólidos volátiles. Se evalúa el funcionamiento de un reactor en lote de lecho escurrido, que permitió un tratamiento discontinuo e in situ de la FORSU, en codigestión anaerobia con un 25 % de estiércol vacuno en una primera etapa. También se evalúa, en una segunda etapa, el tratamiento anaerobio para los lixiviados que se generan en el reactor en lote, empleando un reactor UASB. En el reactor en lote se alcanzó una remoción de sólidos volátiles del 44,1 %, mientras que en el reactor UASB se removió un 81,2 % de DQO. Como resultado del sistema de tratamiento evaluado, se alcanzó una productividad total de 5,37 LCH4·kgSV-1·d-1.

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