Fernanda Maria Policarpo Tonelli

• PhD in Biochemistry (UFMG)
• Professor and Researcher at Federal University of São João del-Rei

Allelopathy is a field that can play a major role in containing environmental pollution through providing viable alternatives to synthetic pesticides and contributing to sustainable agriculture. Allelochemicals have the ability to contribute to inhibiting pest damage to crops, to promote weed control, and to help in creating a desirable plant-micro...

Water is vital to living beings and due to environmental pollution, there is a worldwide concern regarding treating contaminated water to offer to human beings a clean one that will not negatively impact their health. So, efficient strategies to remediate water pollution deserve attention on an urgent basis. This chapter will be dedicated to review...

A Lei nº 14.192/2021 que criminalizou a violência política de gênero não deu fim a esta. Diante deste cenário, visa-se discutir mecanismos complementares que necessitam ser implementados para prevenção e efetivação da justiça, e caminhada rumo à equidade de gênero na política. Para tanto, realizou-se pesquisa teórico-bibliográfica, análises compara...

Nanotechnology has the potential to offer elegant solutions to problems experienced in the medical field, such as poor drug delivery efficiency and microbial resistance. In this sense, it is interesting to associate nanomaterials with substances that also offer desirable properties to favor human health. Green propolis is an example of a material t...

Synthetic dyes are persistent organic environmental pollutants that can cause extensive damage to living beings and to the ecosystem as a whole. Cost-effective, sustainable, and efficient strategies to deal with this type of pollution are necessary as it commonly resists conventional water treatment methods. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) synthesized...

Objetiva-se com a presente investigação científica apresentar o cenário de sub-representação feminina na ciência nacional especialmente nas áreas STEM, propor reflexão sobre este cenário sob a ótica das proposições jusfilosóficas de Nancy Fraser em contexto isomênico, e apresentar exemplos de estratégias para reversão da disparidade de gênero. Part...

A presente investigação objetiva propor uma discussão acerca dos mecanismos para prevenção e efetivação da justiça no que se refere à violência política contra as mulheres. Para tanto, parte-se da análise da figura da mulher enquanto integrante de um grupo minoritário, cuja proteção ainda reclama a efetivação de direitos que garantam uma real igual...

Phosphorus (P) is a crucial element for plants to correctly develop and provide the level of productivity that humans need to feed the growing worldwide population. However, not all forms of P in soil can be taken up and used by vegetal species, so various attempts have been made to provide it artificially, but not all of them have positively affec...

his book focuses on green nanoremediation addressing aspects related to the use of nanomaterials generated through green synthesis prools to efficiently restore polluted environs. Nanomaterials’ characteristics such as large surface area, capacity to easily reach into contaminated sites, good reactivity, and possibility of being developed to presen...

Environmental pollution threatens life on Earth. Inorganic and organic chemicals can negatively impact living beings’ health as same as biological contaminants can. Some of them can persist for long periods of time in an ecosystem and can also enter food chains, causing extensive damage. It is necessary to develop ecofriendly solutions to deal with...

This review addresses green algae-based gold (Au), iron (Fe), and silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) as eco-friendly nanomaterials to deal with biological, organic, and inorganic environmental contaminants. Among nanotechnological tools that can fully degrade, adsorb, and/or convert pollutants into less harmful structures, AgNPs, AuNPs, and FeNPs dese...

Nanomaterials have been offering improvements in different areas due to their unique characteristics, but cytotoxicity associated with their use is still a topic that concerns researchers. Causing cell death, at first glance, may seem to be a problem and the studies regarding signaling pathways involved in this toxicity are still in their infancy....

Concern has arisen regarding the environmental impact caused by some nanomaterials, as well as their possible toxicity to cells. A new generation of eco-friendly nanomaterials has been developed in response to these concerns. Green synthesis of nanoparticles is revealing how environmentally friendly nanoparticles can be synthesized from different b...

Phytohormones and Stress Responsive Secondary Metabolites provides a deep dive into the signaling pathways associated with phytohormones and phytometabolites. With a strong focus on plant stress responses and DNA technology, the book highlights plant biotechnology and metabolic engineering principles. Biotechnology, by using DNA editing technologie...

Fossil hydrocarbons are needs of the global economy to function. Fossil hydrocarbons are required for producing light, heat and transportation. With the increase in our population and economy, there will be the increase in the use of fossil fuel. Additionally, atmospheric CO2 concentration was increased, and the potential for major greenhouse gas-m...

Rapid industrialization and urbanization the world has experienced caused several consequences that negatively impact life on Earth. Environmental pollution is a severe consequence that threatens the survival of several species and disrupts the balance of ecosystems. Soil, water and air containing organic (e.g. hydrocarbons) and inorganic pollutant...

The biodiesel obtainment through transesterification of fat and oils from animal or vegetable sources can be optimized to allow quality and quantity enhancements, important to attend the increasing demand for this eco-friendly fuel. World population is expected to rise up to nine billion people by 2050 increasing energy demand preferentially in a w...

The utilization of non-renewable sources of energy has directly affected the economies of developing countries. So far, man has succeeded to utilize nature’s renewable forms of energy to a large extent. However, deriving energies from such kind of sources involves the huge amount of costs. In the recent times, energy production from bio-sources has...

Biofuel is a chemical generated by biological processes. Mainly living organism biomasses (microalgae, pants and bacteria) are the source of it. An increase of population needs more energy for the betterment of life, and to fulfil their needs, biofuel is the best example of source globally. Since many years ago, the fossil fuels are the major sourc...

Plants and algal metabolites are believed to be the potential source of biofuel. High cellulose and lignin content in plant biomass is the major obstruction towards the sustainable fuel production. Owing to expensive pretreatment methods for lignin and cellulose degradation have raised several questions on the use of plants biomass for energy produ...

The economy of algae biomass is probably affected due to the extraction and auction of natural co-products and algal oil. There can be the addition of proteins or many other purification products or an increase in these facilities if the infrastructure for the generation of algal biofuel is in place.KeywordsEconomic benefitsEnergy securityAlgal bio...

Energy scarcity is a worrying problem for the global population. The limited fuel reserve has pressed for the utilization of renewable fuel sources, mainly biomass. Biomass is considered as the potential substrate for renewable fuel, and several crops and plants have been utilized as the source of renewable fuel. Owing to certain constraints, the b...

There is also an increasing concern regarding sustainability of biofuel generation/use that will influence on raw material preferences and consequently influence on biofuel’s obtainment chosen protocol. This chapter will explore main challenges related to biofuel obtainment presenting also interesting strategies to surpass some of these difficultie...

Phytoremediation is a strategic, efficient, and eco-friendly tool to deal with environmental pollution, in order to attenuate the harmful impacts this contamination may cause to life on Earth, restoring polluted areas. Anthropic action without concern regarding sustainability can result in the accumulation of organic and inorganic substances on eco...

As the environmental pollution is a major concern for human beings worldwide, different strategies have been developed over the years to try to mitigate the dangers associated with environmental pollutants and/or to efficiently remove them from contaminated areas, thus recovering the balance of the ecosystem. Phytoremediation is an efficient, well-...

Fishing and fish farming are extremely relevant worldwide, as fish is a food of great nutritional value that is part of the diet of many people on earth. However, regarding this theme, a major concern threatens the economy and health of fish and humans: bacterial fish diseases. Different gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria have the potential t...

The main problems researchers aim to solve by genetically engineering plants to perform efficient phytoremediation are to reduce the risk of food chain contamination occurrence, reduce the remediation time, increase the plant's biomass and growth rate and enhance tolerance to stressful conditions such as the one induced by the presence of pollutant...

Pollution represents a serious risk to living forms once it can cause from acute intoxication to death. In order to avoid the damage or restrict it, if it is not possible to eliminate it, it is necessary to develop remediation strategies. These different strategies offer a large array of options available to be used in an optimized way to remediate...

Environmental pollution threatens life existence on Earth. It is necessary and urgent that human beings develop efficient and safe strategies to remediate the harmful impacts caused by anthropogenic action over ecosystems. The use of plants is an interesting tool to promote environs’ restoration through phytoremediation. This kind of remediation ca...

Anthropogenic actions can result in environmental damage when they disrespect sustainability principles. The use of synthetic chemical substances as pesticides, the large presence of pharmaceuticals and personal care products in wastewaters, industrial activities using dyes or other organic compounds that can persist for a long time in nature are s...

Organic and inorganic persistent pollutants are a serious risk to human health and to other living forms, negatively affecting the ecosystem as a whole. Contaminated surface water and groundwater are a serious concern once there are limited water resources in the world and that not only quality standards of microbial risk that regulatory agencies w...

Due to anthropogenic interference in the environment disrespecting the principles of sustainability, pollution is currently a serious matter of concern. This increasingly global problem threatens the survival not only of humans but also of other life forms on the planet as contaminants pose serious risks to health and to the ecosystem as a whole. T...

Pollution from heavy metals and pesticides is a major problem as these pollutants can cause irreparable damage to health or end the life of living beings exposed to them. Therefore, it is extremely important not only to create strategies to avoid these and other types of pollution and to remediate contaminated areas. It is necessary to develop inno...

As the process of man’s intervention on the environment is accelerated and enhances the range of industrial activities and the use of chemical agents to improve the yield of agricultural crops, pollution becomes an increasingly evident global problem that challenges the humanity and is difficult to solve. Not only human health is negatively affecte...

The history of transgenesis is marked by milestones such as the development of cellular transdifferentiation, recombinant DNA, genetic modification of target cells, and finally, the generation of simpler genetically modified organisms (e.g. bacteria and mice). The first transgenic fish was developed in 1984, and since then, continuing technological...

Microinjection is commonly performed to achieve fish transgenesis; however, due to difficulties associated with this technique, new strategies are being developed. Here we evaluate the potential of lentiviral particles to genetically modify Nile tilapia cells to achieve transgenesis using three different approaches: spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) g...

Tissue engineering is an important field of regenerative medicine for tissue repair (after damaged caused by a disease or an accident, for example). To offer this possibility, stem cells are important tools owing to their capacity to differentiate into a large number of cells according to the stimuli provided. Embryonic stem cells, adult stem cells...

Tissue engineering is a research field that aims to offer efficient strategies for tissue repair in an effective way, and it has been developing rapidly in the last years. In this context, embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and adult stem cells (ASCs) are the most promising tools to repair tissue damage and loss of function. New protocols using stem cells...

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), nanographene oxide (NGO), and gold nanorods (NRs) can be functionalized and complexed to DNA to promote efficient gene delivery to Nile tilapia spermatogonial stem cells inducing less cell death than electroporation and the commercial reagents tested. Therefore, nanomaterials can contribute to achieve fish tra...

Nanodiamonds (NDs), multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and gold nanorods (NRs) can be functionalized to promote gene delivery to hard-to-transfect cells with higher transfection efficiency than cationic lipids, and inducing less cell death.

Graphene and its derivatives, due to a wide range of unique properties that they possess, can be used as starting material for the synthesis of useful nanocomplexes for innovative therapeutic strategies and biodiagnostics. Here, we summarize the latest progress in graphene and its derivatives and their potential applications for drug delivery, gene...

Biological processes, such as induction of undifferentiated cells to neurogenesis, provide complex mechanisms for studying. For further insights, subsets ruled by metabolic pathways or key molecules called attractors need to be elucidated. In this review, we have focused on the role of calcium as a driven force of neuronal differentiation. Calcium...

Carboxi-functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes (fMWCNTs), when complexed with DNA, can promote gene delivery to Nile tilapia spermatogonial stem cells with higher transfection efficiency than cationic lipids or electroporation, causing also less cell death.

Biomaterial matrices are being developed that mimic the key characteristics of the extracellular matrix, including presenting adhesion sites and displaying growth factors in the context of a viscoelastic hydrogel. This review focuses on two classes of materials: those that are derived from naturally occurring molecules and those that recapitulate k...

Stem cells are known for their capacity to self-renew and differentiate into at least one specialized cell type. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were isolated initially from bone marrow but are now known to exist in all vascularized organ or tissue in adults. MSCs are particularly relevant for therapy due to their simplicity of isolation and cultivat...