Irene Bermudez Gutierrez

@mare-centre.pt

PhD in Biosciences. Department of Life Sciences. Faculty of Science and Technology. University of Coimbra
MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET – Aquatic Research Network

Irene Bermudez Gutierrez


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https://researchid.co/irebguti

RESEARCH, TEACHING, or OTHER INTERESTS

Ecology, Pollution, Toxicology, Biochemistry
5

Scopus Publications

Scopus Publications

  • Advanced Extraction Techniques and Physicochemical Properties of Carrageenan from a Novel Kappaphycus alvarezii Cultivar
    Madalena Mendes, João Cotas, Irene B. Gutiérrez, Ana M. M. Gonçalves, Alan T. Critchley, et al.
    Marine Drugs, 2024
    Carrageenans are valuable marine polysaccharides derived from specific species of red seaweed (Rhodophyta) widely used as thickening and stabilizing agents across various industries. Kappaphycus alvarezii, predominantly cultivated in tropical countries, is the primary source of kappa-carrageenan. Traditional industrial extraction methods involve alkaline treatment for up to three hours followed by heating, which is inefficient and generates substantial waste. Thus, developing improved extraction techniques would be helpful for enhancing efficiency and reducing environmental impacts, solvent costs, energy consumption, and the required processing time. In this study, we explored innovative extraction methods, such as ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) and supercritical water extraction (SFE), together with other extraction methods to produce kappa-carrageenan from a new strain of K. alvarezii from the Philippines. FTIR-ATR spectroscopy was employed to characterize the structure of the different carrageenan fractions. We also examined the physicochemical properties of isolated phycocolloids, including viscosity, and the content of fatty acids, proteins, and carbohydrates. For refined carrageenan (RC), both the traditional extraction method and the UAE method used 1 M NaOH. Additionally, UAE (8% KOH) was employed to produce semi-refined carrageenan (SRC). UAE (8% KOH) produced a high yield of carrageenan, in half the extraction time (extraction yield: 76.70 ± 1.44), and improved carrageenan viscosity (658.7 cP), making this technique highly promising for industrial scaling up. On the other hand, SFE also yielded a significant amount of carrageenan, but the resulting product had the lowest viscosity and an acidic pH, posing safety concerns as classified by the EFSA’s re-evaluation of carrageenan as a food additive.
  • Similar breeding performance despite inter-annual differences in diet composition of seabirds inhabiting a tropical environment
    I dos Santos, AMM Gonçalves, AR Carreiro, B Martins, CP Rocha, et al.
    Marine Ecology Progress Series, 2023
    Amidst unprecedented anthropogenic pressure on marine ecosystems, seabirds can serve as sentinels for shifts in marine prey availability. We examined the diet and foraging ecology of 2 sympatric Procellariiformes, the Cape Verde shearwaterCalonectris edwardsiiand Bulwer’s petrelBulweria bulwerii, during their breeding period in Cabo Verde, West Africa. By analysing fatty acids (FAs), δ15N and δ13C values, and using GPS loggers, we quantitatively assessed the diet of both adults and chicks, estimated the isotopic niche of adult birds, and identified their main foraging regions. Our findings revealed annual variations in the diet of both adults and chicks, supported by quantitative prey estimates and FA signatures. Adult Cape Verde shearwaters consistently displayed a diet enriched in commercial fishes (>40%), with varying proportions of squid or non-commercial fishes across different years. Bulwer’s petrel displayed greater diet variability, consuming higher proportions of squid (54%), mesopelagic fishes (81%), and commercial fishes (29%) in 2017, 2018, and 2019, respectively. Chicks of both species exhibited varying diets across years. However, chick growth and fledging parameters remained fairly consistent among years. The isotopic niche, GPS tracking, and oceanographic conditions within foraging regions provided partial support for the annual variations observed in the diet of adults, especially for Cape Verde shearwaters. However, the diet differences for Bulwer’s petrels were less straightforward, likely due to the equitable distribution of their main prey. Notably, both species exhibited resilience in coping with unfavourable foraging conditions, enabling adult breeders to exploit a wide variety of prey resources without compromising breeding outcomes.
  • Impacts of low concentrations of nanoplastics on leaf litter decomposition and food quality for detritivores in streams
    Sahadevan Seena, Irene B. Gutiérrez, Juliana Barros, Cláudia Nunes, João Carlos Marques, et al.
    Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2022
  • Impacts of S-metolachlor and terbuthylazine in fatty acid and carbohydrate composition of the benthic clam Scrobicularia plana
    Irene B. Gutiérrez, Andreia F.C. Mesquita, Cláudia Nunes, Manuel A. Coimbra, Fernando J.M. Gonçalves, et al.
    Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 2019
  • Biomarkers’ responses of the benthic clam Scrobicularia plana to the main active ingredients (S-metolachlor and Terbuthylazine) of a common herbicide
    Irene B. Gutiérrez, Andreia F. Mesquita, Fernando J.M. Gonçalves, João C. Marques, Ana M.M. Gonçalves
    Ecological Indicators, 2019