Research Trends of Biodegradation of Cooking Oil in Antarctica from 2001 to 2021: A Bibliometric Analysis Based on the Scopus Database

Construction and application of highly efficient waste cooking oil degrading bacteria consortium in oily wastewater

The treatment of cooking oil wastewater is an urgent issue need to be solved. We aimed to screen for efficient oil-degrading bacteria and develop a new microbial agent for degrading waste cooking oil in oily wastewater. Three extremely effective oil-degrading bacteria, known as YZQ-1, YZQ-3, and YZQ-4, were found by the enrichment and acclimation of samples from various sources and separation using oil degradation plates. The 16S rRNA sequencing analysis and phylogenetic tree construction showed that the three strains were Bacillus tropicus, Pseudomonas multiresinivorans, and Raoultella terrigena. Under optimal degradation conditions, the maximal degradation rates were 67.30 ± 3.69%, 89.65 ± 1.08%, and 79.60 ± 5.30%, respectively, for YZQ-1, YZQ-3, and YZQ-4. Lipase activity was highest for YZQ-3, reaching 94.82 ± 12.89 U/L. The best bacterial alliance was obtained by adding equal numbers of microbial cells from the three strains. Moreover, when this bacterial alliance was applied to oily wastewater, the degradation rate of waste cooking oil was 61.13 ± 7.30% (3.67% ± 2.13% in the control group), and COD removal was 62.4% ± 5.65% (55.60% ± 0.71% in the control group) in 72 h. Microbial community analysis results showed YZQ-1 and YZQ-3 were adaptable to wastewater and could coexist with local bacteria, whereas YZQ-4 could not survive in wastewater. Therefore, the combination of YZQ-1 and YZQ-3 can efficiently degrade oil and shows great potential for oily wastewater treatment.

Mapping the global research landscape on malnutrition for patients with chronic kidney disease: a visualization analysis

BACKGROUND

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is seen as a diverse disease and a primary contributor to global mortality. Malnutrition arises within chronic illness, which involves protein energy depletion and inadequate levels of essential nutrients. These factors increase the likelihood of death and the overall impact of the disease on affected individuals. Consequently, this study aims to utilize bibliometric and visual analysis to assess the current state of research, the latest advances and emerging patterns in the fields of CKD and malnutrition.

METHODS

Extensive research was conducted using the Scopus database, which is the most authoritative database of research publications and citations, to focus on CKD research between 2003 and 2022, as indicated by title and author keywords. Then, within this vast collection of academic publications, a notable subset of articles was exclusively dedicated to investigating the relationship between CKD and malnutrition. Finally, we performed bibliometric analysis and visualization using VOSviewer 1.6.19 and Microsoft Excel 2013.

RESULTS

Large global research between 2003 and 2022 resulted in 50,588 documents focused on CKD, as indicated by title and author keywords. In this extensive collection of scientific publications, a staggering portion of 823 articles is devoted exclusively to investigating the link between CKD and malnutrition. Further analysis reveals that this body of work consists of 565 articles (68.65%), 221 reviews (26.85%), and 37 miscellaneous entries (4.50%), which encompass letters and editorials. The USA was found to be the most productive country (n = 173; 21.02%), followed by Italy (n = 83; 10.09%), Sweden (n = 56; 6.80%), Brazil (n = 54; 6.56%) and China (n = 51; 6.20%). The most common terms on the map include those related to the topic of (a) malnutrition in hemodialysis patients and predicting factors; terms associated with the (b) impact of malnutrition on cardiovascular risk and complications in CKD patients; and terms related to the (c) dietary protein intake and malnutrition in CKD.

CONCLUSIONS

This study is the first of its kind to analyze CKD and malnutrition research using data from Scopus for visualization and network mapping. Recent trends indicate an increasing focus on protein-energy wasting/malnutrition in hemodialysis patients and predicting factors, dietary protein intake, and malnutrition in CKD. These topics have gained significant attention and reflect the latest scientific advances. Intervention studies are crucial to examining diet therapy's impact on patients with stages 1 to 5 CKD. We hope this study will offer researchers, dietitians and nephrologists valuable information.

Antarctic heavy metal pollution and remediation efforts: state of the art of research and scientific publications

In Antarctica, human activities have been reported to be the major cause of the accumulation of heavy metal contaminants. A comprehensive bibliometric analysis of publications on heavy metal contamination in Antarctica from year 2000 to 2020 was performed to obtain an overview of the current landscape in this line of research. A total of 106 documents were obtained from Scopus, the largest citation database. Extracted data were analysed, and VOSviewer software was used to visualise trends. The result showed an increase in publications and citations in the past 20 years indicating the rising interest on heavy metal contamination in the Antarctic region. Based on the analysis of keywords, the publications largely discuss various types of heavy metals found in the Antarctic water and sediment. The analysis on subject areas detects multiple disciplines involved, wherein the environmental science was well-represented. The top countries and authors producing the most publication in this field were from Australia, China, Brazil and Chile. Numerous efforts have been exercised to investigate heavy metal pollution and its mitigation approaches in the region in the past decades. This paper not only is relevant for scholars to understand the development status and trends in this field but also offers clear insights on the future direction of Antarctic heavy metal contamination and remediation research.

Global research trends on diet and nutrition in Crohn’s disease

BACKGROUND

Crohn’s disease represents a challenge for patients concerned with the modified diet regimen as well as practitioners who seek the best nutritional therapy. Crohn’s disease can alter the body’s ability to digest food and to absorb nutrients, resulting in severe vitamin deficiencies, malnutrition and sometimes life-threatening complications. However, a comprehensive bibliometric analysis is lacking to map the current links between nutrition and Crohn’s disease in terms of the number of citations, geographic distribution and growth trends of publications.

AIM

To introduce the current state of research as well as hotspots in the field of nutrition and Crohn’s disease from a bibliometric standpoint.

METHODS

We searched the Scopus database and selected the relevant literature on nutrition and Crohn’s disease that met the inclusion criteria. We analyzed the publication trends and research hotspots by using video object segmentation viewer software.

RESULTS

We included 1237 publications. The number of documents published each year has increased steadily. The United States and the University of Otago, Christchurch, have had the highest productivity, with 208 (16.81%) and 29 (2.34%) documents, respectively. The “role of exclusive enteral nutrition for complicated Crohn’s disease” and “manipulation of the gut microbiota as a key target for Crohn’s disease” were the major research areas in 2016-2021, and they could be extensively investigated in the future. Meanwhile, research on “malnutrition in patients with Crohn’s disease” appeared to be an area that attracted more research attention before 2016.

CONCLUSION

This is the first bibliometric analysis to map the knowledge structure and trends regarding nutrition in Crohn’s disease research over the past two decades. The results provide a comprehensive summary and identification of the frontiers of nutrition and Crohn’s disease-related research, which may be used as a resource by researchers in the field.

Potential Application of Algae in Biodegradation of Phenol: A Review and Bibliometric Study

One of the most severe environmental issues affecting the sustainable growth of human society is water pollution. Phenolic compounds are toxic, hazardous and carcinogenic to humans and animals even at low concentrations. Thus, it is compulsory to remove the compounds from polluted wastewater before being discharged into the ecosystem. Biotechnology has been coping with environmental problems using a broad spectrum of microorganisms and biocatalysts to establish innovative techniques for biodegradation. Biological treatment is preferable as it is cost-effective in removing organic pollutants, including phenol. The advantages and the enzymes involved in the metabolic degradation of phenol render the efficiency of microalgae in the degradation process. The focus of this review is to explore the trends in publication (within the year of 2000-2020) through bibliometric analysis and the mechanisms involved in algae phenol degradation. Current studies and publications on the use of algae in bioremediation have been observed to expand due to environmental problems and the versatility of microalgae. VOSviewer and SciMAT software were used in this review to further analyse the links and interaction of the selected keywords. It was noted that publication is advancing, with China, Spain and the United States dominating the studies with total publications of 36, 28 and 22, respectively. Hence, this review will provide an insight into the trends and potential use of algae in degradation.

Efficient and Fast Removal of Oils from Water Surfaces via Highly Oleophilic Polyurethane Composites

In this study we evaluated the oil adsorption capacity of an aliphatic polyurethane foam (PU 1) and two of its composites, produced through surface coating using microparticles of silica (PU-Si 2) and activated carbon (PU-ac 3). The oil adsorption capacity in diesel was improved up to 36% using the composite with silica and up to 50% using the composite with activated carbon with respect to the initial PU 1. Excellent performances were retained in gasoline and motor oil. The adsorption was complete after a few seconds. The process follows a monolayer adsorption fitted by the Langmuir isotherm, with a maximum adsorption capacity of 29.50 g/g of diesel for the composite with activated carbon (PU-ac 3). These materials were proved to be highly oleophilic for oil removal from fresh water and sea water samples. Regeneration and reuse can be repeated up to 50 times by centrifugation, without a significant loss in adsorption capacity.

The Use of Response Surface Methodology as a Statistical Tool for the Optimisation of Waste and Pure Canola Oil Biodegradation by Antarctic Soil Bacteria

Hydrocarbons can cause pollution to Antarctic terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, both through accidental release and the discharge of waste cooking oil in grey water. Such pollutants can persist for long periods in cold environments. The native microbial community may play a role in their biodegradation. In this study, using mixed native Antarctic bacterial communities, several environmental factors influencing biodegradation of waste canola oil (WCO) and pure canola oil (PCO) were optimised using established one-factor-at-a-time (OFAT) and response surface methodology (RSM) approaches. The factors include salinity, pH, type of nitrogen and concentration, temperature, yeast extract and initial substrate concentration in OFAT and only the significant factors proceeded for the statistical optimisation through RSM. High concentration of substrate targeted for degradation activity through RSM compared to OFAT method. As for the result, all factors were significant in PBD, while only 4 factors were significant in biodegradation of PCO (pH, nitrogen concentration, yeast extract and initial substrate concentration). Using OFAT, the most effective microbial community examined was able to degrade 94.42% and 86.83% (from an initial concentration of 0.5% (v/v)) of WCO and PCO, respectively, within 7 days. Using RSM, 94.99% and 79.77% degradation of WCO and PCO was achieved in 6 days. The significant interaction for the RSM in biodegradation activity between temperature and WCO concentration in WCO media were exhibited. Meanwhile, in biodegradation of PCO the significant factors were between (1) pH and PCO concentration, (2) nitrogen concentration and yeast extract, (3) nitrogen concentration and PCO concentration. The models for the RSM were validated for both WCO and PCO media and it showed no significant difference between experimental and predicted values. The efficiency of canola oil biodegradation achieved in this study provides support for the development of practical strategies for efficient bioremediation in the Antarctic environment.