**Meet the editor**

Professor Marian Petre, BSc and Ph.D. in Biological Sciences, graduated from the Faculty of Biology at the Bucharest University in 1981. He has worked as principal investigator in the field of biotechnology at five Romanian research institutes from 1981 up to 2000. He became lecturer at the Ecological University of Bucharest (2000-2004) and from 2004 to 2007 he worked as

senior researcher at the National Institute of Research & Development for Biotechnology in Horticulture Stefanesti-Arges. Since 2007, he has been professor of biotechnology for environmental protection, microbiology and bioremediation at the University of Pitesti, Faculty of Sciences. He has published over 150 papers, 53 of them in international journals and proceeding volumes all over the world. Also, he is the first author of 10 Romanian patents. So far, he has written and edited a book of applied biotechnology at InTech Open Access Publisher and 15 books published in Romania as well as 3 book chapters published by Marcel Dekker, Kluwer Academic Publishers and InTech Open Access Publisher.

Contents

**Preface VII**

**Reactors 25**

Mohamed Ghoul

**Fermentation 65** Prihardi Kahar

**Retardants 91**

**Section 1 Biotechnology for Conversion of Organic Wastes 1**

Marian Petre and Violeta Petre

Chapter 1 **Environmental Biotechnology for Bioconversion of Agricultural and Forestry Wastes into Nutritive Biomass 3**

Chapter 2 **Comparison of the Performance of the Laccase Bioconversion**

Chapter 3 **Biochemical Processes for Generating Fuels and Commodity Chemicals from Lignocellulosic Biomass 39**

Chapter 4 **Synergistic Effects of Pretreatment Process on Enzymatic Digestion of Rice Straw for Efficient Ethanol**

Chapter 5 **Microbial Degradation of Persistent Organophosphorus Flame**

Shouji Takahashi, Katsumasa Abe and Yoshio Kera

**Section 2 Biodegradation of Hazardous Contaminants 89**

**of Sodium Lignosulfonates in Batch, Continuous and Fed Batch**

Nidal Madad, Latifa Chebil, Hugues Canteri, Céline Charbonnel and

Amy Philbrook, Apostolos Alissandratos and Christopher J. Easton

## Contents

**Preface XI**


Chapter 6 **Continuous Biotechnological Treatment of Cyanide Contaminated Waters by Using a Cyanide Resistant Species of Aspergillus awamori 123** Bruno Alexandre Quistorp Santos, Seteno Karabo Obed Ntwampe and James Hamuel Doughari Chapter 7 **Biodegradation of Cyanobacterial Toxins 147** Sonja Nybom

Preface

For the whole humankind there is as an urgent need to sustain the efforts for changing the current environmental crisis by improving the efficiency of using biotechnology to convert a lot of organic wastes and hazardous contaminants into useful bioproducts or degrade them as harmless metabolites through the enzymatic processes induced by specialized microbial and plant species. Only through the understanding of main interactions between biological, biophysical and biochemical phenomena and processes directly involved in biotechnological applications, the actual endangered status of environmental health could be changed.

Taking into consideration the outstanding importance of studying and applying the biological means to remove or at least mitigate the harmful effects of global pollution on the natural envi‐ ronment, as direct consequences of quantitative expansion and qualitative diversification of persistent and hazardous contaminants, the present book provides useful information regard‐

This volume contains twelve chapters divided in the following three parts: biotechnology for conversion of organic wastes, biodegradation of hazardous contaminants and, finally, biotechnological procedures for environmental protection. Each chapter provides detailed information regarding scientific experiments that were carried out in different parts of the world to test different procedures and methods designed to remove or mitigate the impact

The first part of this book includes four chapters referring to biotechnology for conversion of organic wastes, especially celluloses and lignocelluloses as well as lignosulfonates. Thus, the main objectives of the research works presented in these book chapters were focused on the biotechnology for bioconversion of agricultural and forestry wastes into nutritive biomass by using edible and medicinal mushroom species, the enzymatic bioconversion of lignosul‐ fonates in batch, continuous and fed-batch reactors, the biochemical processes to convert lignocelluloses into biofuels as well as the effect of advanced treatment on the enzymatic

The next four chapters are included in the second part of the book being focused on microbi‐ al degradation of different contaminants, such as persistent organophosphorous com‐ pounds, continuous biotechnological treatments of contaminated waters to degrade the hazardous cyanides through the use of resistant fungal species, biodegradation of cyanobac‐ terial toxins by using probiotic bacteria and bioaugmentation of polycyclic aromatic hydro‐

The third part of this book includes the last four chapters regarding the biotechnological procedures that are used for environmental protection. These proceedings refer to different

ing New Approaches and Prospective Applications in Environmental Biotechnology.

of hazardous pollutants on environment.

carbons by certain fungal species.

conversion of rice straw for efficient ethanol fermentation.


## Preface

Chapter 6 **Continuous Biotechnological Treatment of Cyanide**

**Aspergillus awamori 123**

and James Hamuel Doughari

Sonja Nybom

**VI** Contents

Obed Ntwampe

**Protection 195**

and Hideo Akiyama

**Medicinal Plants 235**

**Genotypes 287**

Katarzyna Nawrot - Chorabik

Chapter 7 **Biodegradation of Cyanobacterial Toxins 147**

**Section 3 Biotechnological Procedures for Environmental**

**by Recombinant Cyanobacteria 197**

Chapter 11 **Role of Biotechnology for Protection of Endangered**

Krasimira Tasheva and Georgina Kosturkova

Chapter 8 **Bioavailability of High Molecular Weight Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Using Renewable Resources 171**

Chapter 9 **Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) Production from Carbon Dioxide**

Chapter 10 **The Extracellular Indolic Compounds of Lentinus edodes 217**

Chapter 12 **The Use of Interactions in Dual Cultures in vitro to Evaluate the Pathogenicity of Fungi and Susceptibility of Host Plant**

**Contaminated Waters by Using a Cyanide Resistant Species of**

Bruno Alexandre Quistorp Santos, Seteno Karabo Obed Ntwampe

Olusola Solomon Amodu, Tunde Victor Ojumu and Seteno Karabo

Hitoshi Miyasaka, Hiroshi Okuhata, Satoshi Tanaka, Takuo Onizuka

Olga M. Tsivileva, Ekaterina A. Loshchinina and Valentina E. Nikitina

For the whole humankind there is as an urgent need to sustain the efforts for changing the current environmental crisis by improving the efficiency of using biotechnology to convert a lot of organic wastes and hazardous contaminants into useful bioproducts or degrade them as harmless metabolites through the enzymatic processes induced by specialized microbial and plant species. Only through the understanding of main interactions between biological, biophysical and biochemical phenomena and processes directly involved in biotechnological applications, the actual endangered status of environmental health could be changed.

Taking into consideration the outstanding importance of studying and applying the biological means to remove or at least mitigate the harmful effects of global pollution on the natural envi‐ ronment, as direct consequences of quantitative expansion and qualitative diversification of persistent and hazardous contaminants, the present book provides useful information regard‐ ing New Approaches and Prospective Applications in Environmental Biotechnology.

This volume contains twelve chapters divided in the following three parts: biotechnology for conversion of organic wastes, biodegradation of hazardous contaminants and, finally, biotechnological procedures for environmental protection. Each chapter provides detailed information regarding scientific experiments that were carried out in different parts of the world to test different procedures and methods designed to remove or mitigate the impact of hazardous pollutants on environment.

The first part of this book includes four chapters referring to biotechnology for conversion of organic wastes, especially celluloses and lignocelluloses as well as lignosulfonates. Thus, the main objectives of the research works presented in these book chapters were focused on the biotechnology for bioconversion of agricultural and forestry wastes into nutritive biomass by using edible and medicinal mushroom species, the enzymatic bioconversion of lignosul‐ fonates in batch, continuous and fed-batch reactors, the biochemical processes to convert lignocelluloses into biofuels as well as the effect of advanced treatment on the enzymatic conversion of rice straw for efficient ethanol fermentation.

The next four chapters are included in the second part of the book being focused on microbi‐ al degradation of different contaminants, such as persistent organophosphorous com‐ pounds, continuous biotechnological treatments of contaminated waters to degrade the hazardous cyanides through the use of resistant fungal species, biodegradation of cyanobac‐ terial toxins by using probiotic bacteria and bioaugmentation of polycyclic aromatic hydro‐ carbons by certain fungal species.

The third part of this book includes the last four chapters regarding the biotechnological procedures that are used for environmental protection. These proceedings refer to different

approaches on the polyhydroxyalkanoate production from carbon dioxide by using geneti‐ cally modified cyanobacteria, the growth stimulation of mycelia under the action of indolic compounds synthetized by the same cultivated mushroom, the protection of medicinal plants through biotechnological methods and the use of interactions between pathogenic fungi and trees in order to protect the endangered forest species.

This book is addressed to researchers and students with specialties in biotechnology, bio‐ engineering, ecotoxicology, environmental engineering and all those readers who are inter‐ ested to improve their knowledge in order to keep the Earth healthy.

Finally, I would like to thank the authors of all chapters for their sustained efforts to present the most relevant achievements in Environmental Biotechnology and I really hope this vol‐ ume will be a useful tool for researchers and other specialists who are working in this im‐ portant field of science and technology.

Like in the similar circumstance of my previous book editing by InTech Open Access Publisher, my sincere thanks are going to Mr Aleksandar Lazinica for his remarkable kindness to invite me, once again, to bring my professional contribution, both as book editor and chapter author, to the high quality publishing of this significant volume for the scientific community.

Last but not least, I really want to thank the whole staff of InTech for its tremendous work that has been performed over ten months, especially Ms Marina Jozipovic, Ms Victoria Zge‐ la and Ms Iva Lipovic for their great professional assistance, technical support and kind cooperation during the whole book processing.

> **Prof. Marian Petre** University of Pitesti Romania

**Section 1**

**Biotechnology for Conversion of Organic**

**Wastes**

**Biotechnology for Conversion of Organic Wastes**

approaches on the polyhydroxyalkanoate production from carbon dioxide by using geneti‐ cally modified cyanobacteria, the growth stimulation of mycelia under the action of indolic compounds synthetized by the same cultivated mushroom, the protection of medicinal plants through biotechnological methods and the use of interactions between pathogenic

This book is addressed to researchers and students with specialties in biotechnology, bio‐ engineering, ecotoxicology, environmental engineering and all those readers who are inter‐

Finally, I would like to thank the authors of all chapters for their sustained efforts to present the most relevant achievements in Environmental Biotechnology and I really hope this vol‐ ume will be a useful tool for researchers and other specialists who are working in this im‐

Like in the similar circumstance of my previous book editing by InTech Open Access Publisher, my sincere thanks are going to Mr Aleksandar Lazinica for his remarkable kindness to invite me, once again, to bring my professional contribution, both as book editor and chapter author,

Last but not least, I really want to thank the whole staff of InTech for its tremendous work that has been performed over ten months, especially Ms Marina Jozipovic, Ms Victoria Zge‐ la and Ms Iva Lipovic for their great professional assistance, technical support and kind co-

> **Prof. Marian Petre** University of Pitesti

> > Romania

to the high quality publishing of this significant volume for the scientific community.

fungi and trees in order to protect the endangered forest species.

portant field of science and technology.

VIII Preface

operation during the whole book processing.

ested to improve their knowledge in order to keep the Earth healthy.

**Chapter 1**

**Environmental Biotechnology for Bioconversion of**

Marian Petre and Violeta Petre

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/55204

**1. Introduction**

Carlile & Watkinson, 1996).

"protein rich feed" (PRF) producing.

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

solid wastes from canned food and drinks industries.

**bioconversion of agricultural crop wastes**

**Agricultural and Forestry Wastes into Nutritive Biomass**

The cellulose is the most widely distributed skeletal polysaccharide and represents about 50% of the cell wall material of plants. Beside hemicellulose and lignin, cellulose is a major component of agricultural wastes and municipal residues. The cellulose and hemicellulose comprise the major part of all green plants and this is the main reason of using such terms as "cellulosic wastes" or simply "cellulosics" for those materials which are produced especially as agricultural crop residues, fruit and vegetable wastes from industrial processing, and other

The cellulose biodegradation using fungal cells is essentially based on the complex interaction between biotic factors, such as the morphogenesis and physiology of fungi, as the cellulose composition and its complexness with hemicellulose and lignin (Andrews & Fonta, 1988;

An efficient method to convert cellulose materials, in order to produce unconventional highcalorie foods or feeds, is the direct conversion by cellulolytic microorganisms. Theoretically, any microorganism that can grow as pure culture on cellulose substrata, used as carbon and energy sources, should be considered a potential organism for "single-cell protein" (SCP) or

**2. Biotechnology of mycelia biomass producing through submerged**

The submerged cultivation of mushroom mycelia is a promising method which can be used in novel biotechnological processes for obtaining pharmaceutical substances of anticancer,

> © 2013 Petre and Petre; licensee InTech. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

© 2013 Petre and Petre; licensee InTech. This is a paper distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

**Chapter 1**
