Sürdürülebilir Kalkınma Amaçları
Yayınlar
- MakaleYalnız künye2026Utilizing Pollutant Waste Cheese Whey into Low-cost Broth for Bacterial Growth and Protein Production
Alkowlani, Amir Towfiq Hasan; Beldüz, Ali Osman; Çanakçi, Sabriye; Bektaş, Kadriye İnan; Ay, Fulya; Özyurt, Taner; Yıldız, Oktay
Cheese whey (CW), an abundant and nutrient-rich byproduct of cheese production, accounts for approximately 85% of milk volume and is generated globally in quantities reaching 145–200 million tons annually. Despite its biochemical complexity and high organic load, CW remains underutilized in microbial biotechnology. Its pollutant potential is up to 100 times higher than domestic sewage due to extreme biological oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), high nutrient content, and acidity. Untreated discharge causes severe oxygen depletion, damages aquatic ecosystems, degrades soil, and contributes to climate change. This study evaluates CW as a sustainable and cost-effective alternative to synthetic bacterial growth media. Ten bacterial strains were cultured for 17 h in different forms of CW fresh, aged (up to two years), and dried and compared with standard Luria Bertani (LB) medium. Bacterial growth was assessed using optical density at 600 nm (OD₆₀₀), and protein yields were measured in µg/µL. CW supported growth ranged from OD₆₀₀ 2.36–4.46, comparable to 2.53–4.16 in LB, with protein yields between 0.19 and 0.43 µg/µL versus 0.18–0.44 µg/µL in LB. These findings demonstrate that CW can effectively support bacterial proliferation and protein production, offering a novel valorization route for a major agro-industrial pollutant while reducing environmental harm and fermentation costs.
- MakaleAçık Erişim2026Isolation and Preliminary In Vitro Characterization of a Honey-Derived Bacillus licheniformis Isolate
Usta, Mehtap; Zengin, Kübra; Kara, Yakup; Nalçacıoğlu, Remziye; Demirbağ, Zihni; Yıldız, Oktay; Kolaylı, Sevgi
Background/Objectives: Despite its hostile physicochemical environment characterized by high osmotic pressure, acidic pH, and low water activity, honey serves as a unique ecological niche for resilient microorganisms. This study aimed to recover bacterial isolates from honeys of different botanical origins and to characterize the probiotic-associated properties of a honey-derived Bacillus licheniformis isolate. Methods: A total of 20 bacterial isolates were recovered from four honey samples, including two blossoms and two honeydew honeys. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that the recovered isolates had taxonomic assignments consistent with Bacillus licheniformis. Because 16S rRNA sequencing does not provide sufficient resolution to establish strain-level diversity or clonality, one isolate, designated Blhoney, was selected for subsequent molecular and functional characterization. Results: In vitro assays revealed that Blhoney exhibits robust tolerance to simulated gastrointestinal stress, including extreme acidity (pH 1–3), bile salts (0.3–1%), pepsin, and pancreatin, maintaining viability for up to 24 h. Phenotypic antimicrobial testing demonstrated measurable inhibition zones for erythromycin, kanamycin, chloramphenicol, ampicillin, tetracycline, gentamicin, streptomycin, and spectinomycin, whereas no measurable inhibition zones were observed for penicillin G, rifampicin, ciprofloxacin, or ceftazidime. However, MIC determination and standardized breakpoint interpretation were not performed; therefore, these findings were interpreted solely as preliminary phenotypic inhibition-zone observations. Although the isolate did not display direct antagonistic activity against the tested bacterial pathogens under experimental conditions, its persistence under the tested gastrointestinal stress conditions supports further investigation of its probiotic-associated characteristics. Conclusions: Overall, these findings indicate that the honey-derived Blhoney isolate exhibits preliminary probiotic-associated characteristics under the tested in vitro conditions. However, further strain-level genomic and safety characterization is required before its potential probiotic application can be established.
- MakaleAçık Erişim2021The Impact of Recreational Use on Land Cover at Uludağ National Park (Turkey)
Uzun, Serir; Çakır, Günay; Yıldız, Oktay; Aksoy, Necmi; Sargıncı, Murat; Toprak, Bülent; Müderrisoğlu, Haldun
The intense pressure resulting from population growth and urbanization along with technology has created the need for utilizing natural areas for tourism and recreational purposes and has necessitated the protection, development, and planning of natural resources for people to benefit from. Due to the importance of determining temporal changes within the framework of the protection-use balance, this study examined the changes occurring within the recreational areas of the Uludağ National Park between the years 1970 and 2010 from human use. As a result of the recreational facilities offered to visitors, an average of 550 000 people benefits annually from the area, which was designated as a national park in 1961. The study included the camping and picnic sites of Sarıalan, Çobankaya, Kirazlıyayla, and Karabelen situated within the park and the ski site of the first development zone. High-resolution satellite images and aerial photographs of the areas at different dates were employed. The temporal changes in the selected areas were analyzed by digital image processing with the help of the geographic information system. Upon examining the impact of the recreational use changes occurring on the land cover, it was revealed that building areas had increased by 15 ha (2.57%), road areas by 21 ha (7.89%), and bare land areas by 67 ha (.53%), while the meadowland areas had decreased by 223 ha (119.37%). The forested areas had increased by 78 ha (48.93%), woodland areas by 79 ha (59.37%) and were not adversely affected, mainly due to the protection status of the park.