Quercetin (Que) and its derivatives are naturally occurring phytochemicals with promising bioactive effects. The antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-Alzheimer's, antiarthritic, cardiovascular, and wound-healing effects of Que have been extensively investigated, as well as its anticancer activity against different cancer cell lines has been recently reported. Que and its derivatives are found predominantly in the Western diet, and people might benefit from their protective effect just by taking them via diets or as a food supplement. Bioavailability-related drug-delivery systems of Que have also been markedly exploited, and Que nanoparticles appear as a promising platform to enhance their bioavailability. The present review aims to provide a brief overview of the therapeutic effects, new insights, and upcoming perspectives of Que.

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Sustainable utilization of agri-food wastes and by-products for producing value-added products (for cosmetic, pharmaceutical or food industrial applications) provides an opportunity for earning additional income for the dependent industrial sector. Besides, effective valorisation of wastes/by-products can efficiently help in reducing environmental stress by decreasing unwarranted pollution. The major focus of this review is to provide comprehensive information on valorisation of agri-food wastes and by-products with focus laid on bioactive compounds and bioactivity. The review covers the bioactives identified from wastes and by-products of plants (fruits, exotic fruits, vegetables and seeds), animals (dairy and meat) and marine (fish, shellfish seaweeds) resources. Further, insights on the present status and future challenges of sustainably utilizing agri-food wastes/by-products for value addition will be highlighted.

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Wild fruits are exotic or underutilized. Wild fruits contain many bioactive compounds, such as anthocyanins and flavonoids. Many studies have shown that wild fruits possess various bioactivities and health benefits, such as free radical scavenging, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer activity. Therefore, wild fruits have the potential to be developed into functional foods or pharmaceuticals to prevent and treat several chronic diseases. In the present article, we review current knowledge about the bioactivities and health benefits of wild fruits, which is valuable for the exploitation and utilization of wild fruits.

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Bioremediation is an important approach to waste reduction that relies on biological processes to break down a variety of pollutants. This is made possible by the vast metabolic diversity of the microbial world. To explore this diversity for the breakdown of plastic, we screened several dozen endophytic fungi for their ability to degrade the synthetic polymer polyester polyurethane (PUR). Several organisms demonstrated the ability to efficiently degrade PUR in both solid and liquid suspensions. Particularly robust activity was observed among several isolates in the genus Pestalotiopsis, although it was not a universal feature of this genus. Two Pestalotiopsis microspora isolates were uniquely able to grow on PUR as the sole carbon source under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Molecular characterization of this activity suggests that a serine hydrolase is responsible for degradation of PUR. The broad distribution of activity observed and the unprecedented case of anaerobic growth using PUR as the sole carbon source suggest that endophytes are a promising source of biodiversity from which to screen for metabolic properties useful for bioremediation.

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A yeast causing widespread infection of laboratory mice was identified from 26S rRNA gene sequences as Candida pintolopesii. To determine the relationship of C. pintolopesii with other members of the Kazachstania (Arxiozyma) telluris species complex, nucleotide sequences from domains 1 and 2 of the 26S rRNA gene, the mitochondrial small-subunit rRNA gene, and the RNA polymerase II gene were phylogenetically analyzed. That analysis resolved the 48 strains examined into five closely related species: K. telluris, Candida bovina, C. pintolopesii, Candida slooffiae, and a previously unknown species. One or more strains of each of the last four species formed an ascosporic state much like that of K. telluris. To place these ascosporogenous strains taxonomically, it is proposed that they be assigned to the teleomorphic genus Kazachstania as K. bovina (type strain NRRL Y-7283, CBS 9732, from the nasal passage of a pigeon), K. heterogenica (type strain NRRL Y-27499, CBS 2675, from rodent feces), K. pintolopesii (type strain NRRL Y-27500, CBS 2985, from the peritoneal fluid of a dead guinea pig), and K. slooffiae (type strain NRRL YB-4349, CBS 9733, from the cecum of a horse). On the basis of multigene sequence analyses, K. heterogenica appears to be a hybrid of K. pintolopesii and a presently unknown species. With the exception of K. bovina, the phylogenetically defined species show a moderate degree of host specificity.

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