Traditionally, industrial tequila production has used spontaneous fermentation or Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast strains. Despite the potential of non-Saccharomyces strains for alcoholic fermentation, few studies have been performed at industrial level with these yeasts. Therefore, in this work, Agave tequilana juice was fermented at an industrial level using two non-Saccharomyces yeasts (Pichia kluyveri and Kluyveromyces marxianus) with fermentation efficiency higher than 85 %. Pichia kluyveri (GRO3) was more efficient for alcohol and ethyl lactate production than S. cerevisiae (AR5), while Kluyveromyces marxianus (GRO6) produced more isobutanol and ethyl-acetate than S. cerevisiae (AR5). The level of volatile compounds at the end of fermentation was compared with the tequila standard regulation. All volatile compounds were within the allowed range except for methanol, which was higher for S. cerevisiae (AR5) and K. marxianus (GRO6). The variations in methanol may have been caused by the Agave tequilana used for the tests, since this compound is not synthesized by these yeasts.

Considerable efforts have been undertaken to produce an effective screening method to reduce lung cancer mortality. Imaging tools such as low-dose computed tomography has shown an increase in the detection of early disease and a reduction in the rate of death. This screening modality has, however, several limitations, such as overdiagnosis and a high rate of false positives. Therefore, new screening methods, such as the use of circulating protein biomarkers, have emerged as an option that could complement imaging studies. In this review, current imaging techniques applied to lung cancer screening protocols are presented, as well as up-to-date status of circulating protein biomarker panels that may improve lung cancer diagnosis. Additionally, diverse statistical and artificial intelligence tools applied to the design and optimization of these panels are discussed along with the presentation of two commercially available blood tests recently developed to help detect lung cancer early.

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Lipases and esterases are biocatalysts used at the laboratory and industrial level. To obtain the maximum yield in a bioprocess, it is important to measure key variables, such as enzymatic activity. The conventional method for monitoring hydrolytic activity is to take out a sample from the bioreactor to be analyzed off-line at the laboratory. The disadvantage of this approach is the long time required to recover the information from the process, hindering the possibility to develop control systems. New strategies to monitor lipase/esterase activity are necessary. In this context and in the first approach, we proposed a lab-made sequential injection analysis system to analyze off-line samples from shake flasks. Lipase/esterase activity was determined using p-nitrophenyl butyrate as the substrate. The sequential injection analysis allowed us to measure the hydrolytic activity from a sample without dilution in a linear range from 0.05–1.60 U/mL, with the capability to reach sample dilutions up to 1000 times, a sampling frequency of five samples/h, with a kinetic reaction of 5 min and a relative standard deviation of 8.75%. The results are promising to monitor lipase/esterase activity in real time, in which optimization and control strategies can be designed.