Eva Gonzalez-Flo

Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya | UPC · Research Group of Environmental Engineering

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) are a promising bio-based alternative to traditional plastics derived from petroleum. Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic organisms that produce PHA from CO2 and sunlight, which can potentially reduce production costs and environmental footprint in comparison to heterotrophic bacteria cultures because (1) they utilize inorg...

Departing from the conventional axenic and heterotrophic cultures, our research ventures into unexplored territory by investigating the potential of photosynthetic microbiomes for polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) production. A cyanobacteria-rich microbiome was harnessed for PHB production in a 3 L photobioreactor under non-sterile conditions. The robust c...

The aim of this study was to set the operating mode in regards to nutrients, temperature and light to use as a strategy to enrich a microbiome rich in cyanobacteria in polyhidroxybutyrate (PHB)-producers in order to enhance the biopolymer production. Alternate growth and accumulation phases were conducted for 179 days in a 3 L photobioreactor. Alth...

The increasing interest of complex microbial communities for biotechnological solutions requires the development of computational workflows assisting the analysis of these communities. Due to the lack of tools to achieve this goal, here, we present a reproducible bioinformatic pipeline for the functional potential of natural microbial communities a...

Background Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a biopolymer synthetized by numerous bacterial species as intracellular carbon storage, which emerged as an alternative to fossil-based plastics. In this study, we elucidate the implications of harnessing photosynthetic microbiomes for the production of polyhidroxybutyrate (PHB). While previous studies have p...

The management and disposal of wastewater treatment sludge can be a costly and resource-intensive process. To provide a cost-effective and sustainable alternative, Sludge Treatment Wetlands (STW) have emerged as a viable solution for enhancing sludge quality through dewatering and biodegradation. In this study, the effectiveness of a full-scale STW...

The aim of this study was to set the operating mode in regards to nutrients, temperature and light to use as a strategy to enrich a microbiome rich in cyanobacteria in polyhidroxybutyrate (PHB)-producers in order to enhance this biopolymer production. Alternate growth and accumulation phases were conducted for 179 days in a 3 L photobioreactor. Alt...

Seven photosynthethic microbiomes were collected from field environmental samples to test their potential in polyhydroxybutirate (PHB) and exopolysaccharides (EPS) production, two alternatives to chemical-based polymers. Microscope observations together with microbial sequence analysis revealed the microbiome enrichment in cyanobacteria after cultu...

The optimal management of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is complex and involves an appropriate combination of diet, exercise, and different pharmacological treatments. Artificial intelligence-based tools have been shown to be very useful for the diagnosis and treatment of diverse pathologies, including diabetes. In the present study, we present a proof of...

Water reuse is becoming an important tool in water resource management in regions with recurrent droughts and water shortages, such as the Mediterranean. However, there are still obstacles preventing the multiple application of water reuse projects, such as social acceptability and financial problems. In this context, the use of green infrastructur...

In the coming years, the use of microalgal biomass as agricultural biofertilizers has shown promising results. The use of wastewater as culture medium has resulted in the reduction of production costs, making microalgae-based fertilizers highly attractive for farmers. However, the occurrence of specific pollutants in wastewater, like pathogens, hea...

Microalgae wastewater treatment systems have the potential for producing added-value products. More specifically, cyanobacteria are able to accumulate polyhydroxybutyrates (PHBs), which can be extracted and used for bioplastics production. Nonetheless, PHB production requires proper culture conditions and continue monitoring, challenging the state-...

Cyanobacteria are of particular interest as they can produce Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), which is a promising alternative to oil-based plastics, using only inorganic carbon and solar light. However, new strategies should be found to further increase their PHB content. In this study, the effect of salinity, light intensity, and internal phosphorus co...

Much effort has been expended on building cellular computational devices for different applications. Despite the significant advances, there are still several addressable restraints to achieve the necessary technological transference. These improvements will ease the development of end-user applications working out of the lab. In this study, we pro...

The engineering of biology strives on the creation of biological devices concerning society-impact applications. In this PhD thesis, we developed mathematical and experimental tools for the standard and rational design of living devices for biomedical purposes, offering robust and reliable responses. By breaking-up cellular device complexity into f...

Many studies have been devoted to the engineering of cellular biosensors by exploiting intrinsic natural sensors. However, biosensors rely not only on input detection but also on an adequate response range. It is therefore often necessary to tune natural systems to meet the demands of specific applications in a predictable manner. In this study, we...

Synthetic Biology studies aim to develop cellular devices for biomedical applications. These devices, based on living instead of electronic or electro-mechanic technology, might provide alternative treatments for a wide range of diseases. However, the feasibility of these devices depends, in many cases, on complex genetic circuits that must fulfill...