Emerging Biomolecular Technologies in Marine Science

A special issue of Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (ISSN 2077-1312).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2016) | Viewed by 18193

Special Issue Editor

Istituto di Chimica Biomolecolare, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Comprensorio Olivetti, Edificio 70, Via Campi Flegrei 34, I-80078 Pozzuoli, Napoli, Italy
Interests: biocatalysis; marine enzymes; marine glycosidases; marine biotechnology; oligosaccharides
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biotechnological advancements in Marine Science have already resulted in successes in at least five application domains, including the food and cosmetics industries, agriculture, chemistry, and pharmacology. Most of this growth stemmed from basic research on ecological issues related to the chemical defense of prey, or on the selection of microbial communities in contaminated areas after petroleum pollution or from many other examples, including biomolecular studies of micro- and macroalgae and other marine organisms. Compounds derived from algae, invertebrates, vertebrates, and microorganisms from the sea, offer the potential to provide valuable nutraceuticals and functional food ingredients, potentially meeting the requirements for bioactive substances by future consumers. Enabling biomolecular technologies in Marine Science will increase the sustainability of renewable energy resources.

This Special Issue will collect articles of original studies regarding blue biotechnology from a biomolecular perspective. It is, in fact, the high (bio)chemical diversity found in marine (bio)molecules that has the ability to further drive developments and market growth for the future. Natural biodiversity of marine bacteria and fungi, for example, can serve as new sources for marine natural products using new technologies in analytical spectroscopy and can give a boost to the excitement and anticipation of new marine drug discoveries. Marine -omics, from metagenomic technologies, which currently offer new and promising strategies for marine biodiscovery, to metabolomics for bio-function exploration, will also be developed in the future, enabling new approaches for the study of chemically mediated interactions. The identification of an arsenal of enzymes and pathways is also greatly in demand for biotechnological applications, including production of biofuel and treatment of waste of marine origin. Monitoring metabolites through Mass Spectrometry, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy, fluxomics and MS-imaging will be of great help in the localization and quantification in cells and tissues. Recent years have clearly shown that genome studies and new molecular techniques are useful tools to study marine life, such as symbiosis and its molecular aspects, biodiversity and defense mechanisms, and other important marine bioprocesses.

Gathering the wealth of already-existing knowledge with an interdisciplinary approach in review articles and selection of papers from worldwide conferences are also welcomed in this Special Issue.

While a great deal of progress has been made to advance the field, many challenges remain for the deep comprehension of the “marine biotechnology landscape”. This Special Issue aims to provide a compilation of current state-of-the-art and future perspectives in a multidisciplinary approach in the following areas:

- Biomolecular technology
- Marine enzymes
- Marine biomolecules
- Marine bioprocesses
- Blue biotechnology

Dr. Antonio Trincone
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Marine enzymes
  • Marine drugs
  • Marine biomolecules
  • Marine bioprocesses
  • Marine bioprocessing waste

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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1935 KiB  
Article
Enhancement of Protein and Pigment Content in Two Chlorella Species Cultivated on Industrial Process Water
by Hamed Safafar, Patrick Uldall Nørregaard, Anita Ljubic, Per Møller, Susan Løvstad Holdt and Charlotte Jacobsen
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2016, 4(4), 84; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse4040084 - 02 Dec 2016
Cited by 77 | Viewed by 7343
Abstract
Chlorella pyrenoidosa and Chlorella vulgaris were cultivated in pre-gasified industrial process water with high concentration of ammonia representing effluent from a local biogas plant. The study aimed to investigate the effects of growth media and cultivation duration on the nutritional composition of biomass. [...] Read more.
Chlorella pyrenoidosa and Chlorella vulgaris were cultivated in pre-gasified industrial process water with high concentration of ammonia representing effluent from a local biogas plant. The study aimed to investigate the effects of growth media and cultivation duration on the nutritional composition of biomass. Variations in proteins, lipid, fatty acid composition, amino acids, tocopherols, and pigments were studied. Both species grew well in industrial process water. The contents of proteins were affected significantly by the growth media and cultivation duration. Microalga Chlorella pyrenoidosa produced the highest concentrations of protein (65.2% ± 1.30% DW) while Chlorella vulgaris accumulated extremely high concentrations of lutein and chlorophylls (7.14 ± 0.66 mg/g DW and 32.4 ± 1.77 mg/g DW, respectively). Cultivation of Chlorella species in industrial process water is an environmentally friendly, sustainable bioremediation method with added value biomass production and resource valorization, since the resulting biomass also presented a good source of proteins, amino acids, and carotenoids for potential use in aquaculture feed industry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Biomolecular Technologies in Marine Science)
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Review

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850 KiB  
Review
Recent Advances in the Study of Marine Microbial Biofilm: From the Involvement of Quorum Sensing in Its Production up to Biotechnological Application of the Polysaccharide Fractions
by Paola Di Donato, Annarita Poli, Valentina Taurisano, Gennaro Roberto Abbamondi, Barbara Nicolaus and Giuseppina Tommonaro
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2016, 4(2), 34; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse4020034 - 13 May 2016
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 5925
Abstract
The present review will explore the most relevant findings on marine microbial biofilm, with particular attention towards its polysaccharide fraction, namely exopolysaccharide (EPS). EPSs of microbial origin are ubiquitous in nature, possess unique properties and can be isolated from the bacteria living in [...] Read more.
The present review will explore the most relevant findings on marine microbial biofilm, with particular attention towards its polysaccharide fraction, namely exopolysaccharide (EPS). EPSs of microbial origin are ubiquitous in nature, possess unique properties and can be isolated from the bacteria living in a variety of habitats, including fresh water or marine environments, extreme environments or different soil ecosystems. These biopolymers have many application in the field of biotechnology. Several studies showed that the biofilm formation is closely related to quorum sensing (QS) systems, which is a mechanism relying on the production of small molecules defined as “autoinducers” that bacteria release in the surrounding environment where they accumulate. In this review, the involvement of microbial chemical communication, by QS mechanism, in the formation of marine biofilm will also be discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Biomolecular Technologies in Marine Science)
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Other

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1086 KiB  
Technical Note
An Alternative Method to Niskin Sampling for Molecular Analysis of the Marine Environment
by Jonathan Teague, Thomas B. Scott, Sanjay Sharma, George Graham and Michael J. Allen
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2017, 5(2), 22; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse5020022 - 02 Jun 2017
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4202
Abstract
The development of low-cost, open-source Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) systems has provided almost unrestricted access for researchers looking to monitor the marine environment in ever greater resolution. Sampling microbial communities from the marine environment, however, still usually relies on Niskin-bottle sampling (ROV or [...] Read more.
The development of low-cost, open-source Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) systems has provided almost unrestricted access for researchers looking to monitor the marine environment in ever greater resolution. Sampling microbial communities from the marine environment, however, still usually relies on Niskin-bottle sampling (ROV or Conductivity-Temperature-Depth sampler (CTD) based), a method which introduces an inaccuracy and variability that is incompatible with metatranscriptomic analysis, for example. Here, we describe a versatile, easily-replicated platform which achieves in situ mRNA preservation, via the addition of RNAlater to filtered microbial cells, to enhance ROV or CTD functionality. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Biomolecular Technologies in Marine Science)
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