Recycling Sargassum spp. Biomass for Sustainable Biocontrol in Agriculture: A Circular Approach

Mislén Gómez-Matos, Dariellys Martínez-Balmori (), Yamilet Coll-García, Yamilé Baró-Robaina and Yaneris Mirabal-Gallardo ()
Additional contact information
Mislén Gómez-Matos: Center for Natural Product Studies (CEPN), Faculty of Chemistry, University of Havana, Zapata Street s/n Between G and Carlitos Aguirre, Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana 10400, Cuba
Dariellys Martínez-Balmori: Department of Organic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Havana, Zapata Street s/n Between G and Carlitos Aguirre, Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana 10400, Cuba
Yamilet Coll-García: Center for Natural Product Studies (CEPN), Faculty of Chemistry, University of Havana, Zapata Street s/n Between G and Carlitos Aguirre, Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana 10400, Cuba
Yamilé Baró-Robaina: Plant Health Research Institute (INISAV), 110 Street No. 514 Between 5th B and 5th F, Playa, Havana 11600, Cuba
Yaneris Mirabal-Gallardo: Institute of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Engineering, Universidad Autónoma de Chile, 5 Poniente, 1670, Talca 3460000, Chile

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-14

Abstract: The increasing frequency of Sargassum spp. blooms represents a global environmental challenge, impacting coastal ecosystems and requiring sustainable management strategies. This study evaluates the potential of Sargassum spp. extract as an encapsulating material for biological pest control, contributing to marine waste valorization. Pelagic Sargassum spp. collected from the Havana coast was processed to obtain an alginate-rich extract, which was used to encapsulate Beauveria bassiana conidia via ionic gelation. FTIR confirmed characteristic carboxylate absorption bands, indicating structural similarities with commercial alginate, while TGA demonstrated comparable thermal behavior. Beads exhibited consistent dimensions (0.5–3 mm) with irregular post-drying shapes. Encapsulation efficiency yielded a conidial concentration of 1.43 × 10 8 conidia per mL, ensuring retention within the matrix. Long-term viability was confirmed as conidia remained viable and able to grow after six months, potentially benefiting from extract-derived compounds. These findings highlight the potential of repurposing Sargassum spp. for sustainable agricultural applications, advancing environmentally friendly pest management while addressing the ecological burden of excessive Sargassum accumulation.

Keywords: Sargassum valorization; Beauveria bassiana biocontrol; sustainable agriculture (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/13/6107/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/13/6107/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:13:p:6107-:d:1694132

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().