Plant secondary metabolites have attracted considerable attention due to the increasing demand for finite fossil resources and environmental concerns. However, the biosynthesis of aromatic aldehydes or alcohols from renewable resources remains challenging and costly. This study explores a novel approach performed by the aromatic catabolizing organism Rhizopus oryzae, which enables a ferulic acid-activated co-production of 4-vinyl guaiacol (4-VG) and fumaric acid. The strain produced 4.60 g/L 4-VG and 11.25 g/L fumaric acid from a mixed carbon source of glucose and xylose, suggesting that this new pathway allows the potential production of natural 4-VG from low-cost substrates. This green route, which utilizes Rhizopus oryzae\'s ability to efficiently convert various renewable resources into valuable chemicals, paves the way for improved catalytic efficiency in 4-VG production.

Hydrogen-ethanol co-production can significantly improve the energy conversion efficiency of corn stalk (CS). In this study, with CS as the raw material, the co-production characteristics of one-step and two-step photo-fermentation hydrogen production (PFHP) and ethanol production were investigated. In addition, the gas and liquid characteristics of the experiment were analyzed. The kinetics of hydrogen-ethanol co-production was calculated, and the economics of hydrogen and ethanol were analyzed. Results of the experiments indicated that the two-step hydrogen-ethanol co-production had the best hydrogen production performance when the concentration of CS was 25 g/L. The total hydrogen production was 350.08 mL, and the hydrogen yield was 70.02 mL/g, which was 2.45 times higher than that of the one-step method. The efficiency of hydrogen-ethanol co-production was 17.79 %, which was 2.76 times more efficient than hydrogen compared to fermentation with hydrogen. The result provides technical reference for the high-quality utilization of CS.

As an alternative to antibiotics in response to antimicrobial-resistant infections, bacteriophages (phages) are garnering renewed interest in recent years. However, the massive preparation of phage is restricted using traditional pathogens as host cells, which incurs additional costs and contamination. In this study, an opportunistic pathogen, Klebsiella pneumoniae used to convert glycerol to 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PDO), was reused to prepare phage after fermentation. The phage infection showed that the fed-batch fermentation broth containing 71.6 g/L 1,3-PDO can be directly used for preparation of phage with a titer of 1 × 108 pfu/mL. Then, the two-step salting-out extraction was adopted to remove most impurities, e.g. acetic acid (93.5%), ethanol (91.5%) and cells (99.4%) at the first step, and obtain 1,3-PDO (56.6%) in the top phase as well as phage (97.4%) in the middle phase at the second step. This integrated process provides a cheap and environment-friendly manner for coproduction of 1,3-PDO and phage.

Co-production of multiple compounds is an efficient approach to enhance the economic feasibility of microalgae-based metabolites production. In this study, Chlorella sorokiniana FZU60 was cultivated under different bioprocess strategies to enhance the co-production of lutein and protein. Results showed that both lutein and protein content (7.72 and 538.06 mg/g, respectively) were highest at the onset of nitrogen deficiency under batch cultivation. Semi-batch III strategy, with 75% microalgal culture replacement by fresh medium, obtained similar content, productivity, and yield of lutein and protein as batch cultivation, demonstrating that it can be used for stable and continuous production. Fed-batch II strategy, feeding with 1/3 modified BG11 medium, achieved super-high lutein and protein yield (28.81 and 1592.77 mg/L, respectively), thus can be used for high-output production. Besides, two-stage strategy, combining light intensity shift and semi-batch cultivation, gained extremely high lutein and protein productivity (15.31 and 1080.41 mg/L/day, respectively), thereby is a good option for high-efficiency production. Moreover, the fed-batch II and two-stage strategy achieved high-quality lutein and protein, thus are promising for the co-production of lutein and protein in C. sorokiniana FZU60 for commercial application.

Group Model Building (GMB) is a participatory system dynamics method increasingly used to address complex public health issues like obesity. GMB represents a set of well-defined steps to engage key stakeholders to identify shared drivers and solutions of a given problem. However, GMB has not yet been applied specifically to develop multi-duty interventions that address multiple inter-related issues such as malnutrition in all its forms (MIAIF). Moreover, a recent systematic review of empirical applications of a systems approach to developing obesity interventions found no published work from non-western, low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In this paper we describe adaptations and innovations to a common GMB process to co-develop systemic MIAIF interventions with Chinese decision-makers.
We developed, piloted and implemented multiple cultural adaptations and two methodological innovations to the commonly used GMB process in Fang Cheng Gang city, China. We included formal, ceremonial and policy maker engagement events before and between GMB workshops, and incorporated culturally tailored arrangements during participant recruitment (officials of the same seniority level joined the same workshop) and workshop activities (e.g., use of individual scoring activities and hand boards). We made changes to the commonly used GMB activities which enabled mapping of shared drivers of multiple health issues (in our case MIAIF) in a single causal loop diagram. We developed and used a \'hybrid\' GMB format combining online and in person facilitation to reduce travel and associated climate impact.
Our innovative GMB process led to high engagement and support from decision-makers representing diverse governmental departments across the whole food systems. We co-identified and prioritised systemic drivers and intervention themes of MIAIF. The city government established an official Local Action Group for long-term, inter-departmental implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the co-developed interventions. The \'hybrid\' GMB format enabled great interactions while reducing international travel and mitigating limitations of fully online GMB process.
Cultural and methodological adaptations to the common GMB process for an Asian LMIC setting were successful. The \'hybrid\' GMB format is feasible, cost-effective, and more environmentally friendly. These cultural adaptations could be considered for other Asian settings and beyond to address inter-related, complex issues such as MIAIF.

The research on the efficient use of biomass to produce chemical products has received extensive attention. In this work, a novel heterogeneous biocarbon-based heterogeneous catalyst AT-Sn-YB was prepared using yellow bamboo (YB) as a carrier, and its physical properties were proved to be good by various characterization and stability experiments. In the γ-valerolactone/water (3:1, v/v) medium containing 100 mM CuCl2, the use of AT-Sn-YB (3.6 wt%) under 170 °C for 20 min was applied to catalyze YB into furfural (80.3% yield), accompanied with 2.8 g/L xylooligosaccharides. The YB solid residue obtained from treatment was efficiently saccharified to reducing sugars (17.2 g/L). Accordingly, comprehensive understanding of efficiently co-producing xylooligosaccharides, furfural and reducing sugars from YB was demonstrated via the pretreatment with biochar-based catalyst. This study innovatively used a new type of solid acid to complete the efficient co-production of chemical products, and realized the value-added utilization of yellow bamboo.

The effective conversion and recycling of organic solid waste contribute to the resolution of widespread issues such as global environmental pollution, energy scarcity and resource depletion. The anaerobic fermentation technology provides for the effective treatment of organic solid waste and the generation of various products. The analysis, which is based on bibliometrics, concentrates on the valorisation of affordable and easily accessible raw materials with high organic matter content as well as the production of clean energy substances and high value-added platform products. The processing and application status of fermentation raw materials such as waste activated sludge, food waste, microalgae and crude glycerol are investigated. To analyse the status of the preparation and engineering applications of the products, the fermentation products biohydrogen, VFAs, biogas, ethanol, succinic acid, lactic acid, and butanol are employed as representatives. Simultaneously, the anaerobic biorefinery process with multiple product co-production is sorted out. Product co-production can reduce waste discharge, enhance resource recovery efficiency, and serve as a model for improving anaerobic fermentation economics.

Many factors may affect the environmental satisfaction of elderly people, including their sense of involvement. This study examined the associations between community environment co-production and environmental satisfaction in older urban residents in China.
A cross-sectional survey was conducted in four age-friendly communities in Shanghai, China. Co-production and environmental satisfaction were assessed through a self-developed questionnaire. General health status was measured through the EuroQol-Visual Analogue Scale (EQ-VAS). Data on affective commitment for the community demographic and health-related factors were also collected. Multilevel linear regression was used to detect the associations.
In total, 480 older urban residents completed the survey. On average, the environment satisfaction score was 76.82/90, 8/10 for co-production, and 87.5/100 for EQ-VAS. Univariate analysis demonstrated environmental satisfaction was associated with educational background, party membership, physical activity, community location, age, sleep hours, co-production, affective commitment, and EQ-VAS. After controlling for confounding factors, the co-production score was significantly associated with higher environmental satisfaction (β = 4.68, p < 0.001). Multiple linear regression revealed that effective commitment for the community (β = 6.17, p < 0.001) and EQ-VAS (β = 0.06, p = 0.002) were also significantly associated with environment satisfaction.
Community environment co-production was positively associated with environmental satisfaction among older urban residents in Shanghai. Environmental co-production should be encouraged when developing age-friendly communities for the elderly.

In this study, we show how electrochemically mediated bioconversion can greatly increase the co-production of 1,3-propanediol and organic acids from glycerol in an industrial bioprocess using a Clostridum pasteurianum mutant. Remarkably, an enhanced butyrate formation was observed due to a weakened butanol pathway of the mutant. This allowed the strain to have a higher ATP generation for an enhanced growth, higher glycerol consumption and PDO production. The PDO titer reached as high as 120.67 g/L at a cathodic current of -400 mA, which is 33% higher than that without electricity, with a concurrent increase of butyric acid by 80%. To fully recover the increased PDO and organic acids, a novel downstream process combining thin film evaporation of PDO and esterification of organic acids with ethanol was developed. This enables the efficient co-production of PDO, ethyl acetate and ethyl butyrate with a high overall carbon use of 87%.

3-Hydroxypropionic acid (3-HP) and 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PDO) are value-added chemicals with versatile applications in the chemical, pharmaceutical, and food industries. Nevertheless, sustainable production of 3-HP and 1,3-PDO is often limited by the lack of efficient strains and suitable fermentation configurations. Herein, attempts have been made to improve the co-production of both metabolites through metabolic engineering of Escherichia coli and process optimization. First, the 3-HP and 1,3-PDO co-biosynthetic pathways were recruited and optimized in E. coli, followed by coupling the pathways to the transhydrogenase-mediated cofactor regeneration systems that increased cofactor availability and product synthesis. Next, pathway rebalancing and block of by-product formation significantly improved 3-HP and 1,3-PDO net titer. Subsequently, glycerol flux toward 3-HP and 1,3-PDO synthesis was maximized by removing metabolic repression and fine-tuning the glycerol oxidation pathway. Lastly, the combined fermentation process optimization and two-stage pH-controlled fed-batch fermentation co-produced 140.50 g/L 3-HP and 1,3-PDO, with 0.85 mol/mol net yield.