Optimization of cellulase production by Aspergillus nidulans: application in the biosoftening of cotton fibers

Comparative proteome and volatile metabolome analysis of Aspergillus oryzae 3.042 and Aspergillus sojae 3.495 during koji fermentation

Aspergillus oryzae 3.042 and Aspergillus sojae 3.495 are crucial starters for fermented soybean foods since their abundant secreted enzymes. This study aimed to compare the differences in protein secretion between A. oryzae 3.042 and A. sojae 3.495 during the soy sauce koji fermentation and the effect on volatile metabolites to understand the fermentation characteristics of the strains better. Label-free proteomics detected 210 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) enriched in amino acid metabolism and protein folding, sorting and degradation pathways. Subsequently, extracellular enzyme analysis showed that three peptidases, including peptide hydrolase, dipeptidyl aminopeptidase, and peptidase S41, were up-regulated in A. sojae 3.495. Seven carbohydrases, including α-galactosidase, endo-arabinase, β-glucosidase, α-galactosidase, α-glucuronidase, arabinan-endo 1,5-α-l-arabinase, and endo-1,4-β-xylanase were up-regulated in A. oryzae 3.042, contributing to the difference in enzyme activity. Significantly different extracellular enzymes influenced the content of volatile alcohols, aldehydes and esters such as (R, R)-2,3-butanediol, 1-hexanol, hexanal, decanal, ethyl l-lactate and methyl myristate in both strains, which affected the type of aroma of koji. Overall, this study revealed the differences in molecular mechanisms between A. oryzae 3.042 and A. sojae 3.495 under solid-state fermentation, providing a reference for targeted enhancement strains.

Aspergillus nidulans: A Potential Resource of the Production of the Native and Heterologous Enzymes for Industrial Applications

Aspergillus nidulans is a filamentous fungus that is a potential resource for industrial enzymes. It is a versatile fungal cell factory that can synthesize various industrial enzymes such as cellulases, β-glucosidases, hemicellulases, laccases, lipases, proteases, β-galactosidases, tannases, keratinase, cutinases, and aryl alcohol oxidase. A. nidulans has shown the potential to utilize low-cost substrates such as wheat bran, rice straw, sugarcane bagasse, rice bran, coir pith, black gram residue, and chicken feathers to produce enzymes cost-effectively. A. nidulans has also been known as a model organism for the production of heterologous enzymes. Several studies reported genetically engineered strains of A. nidulans for the production of different enzymes. Native as well as heterologous enzymes of A. nidulans have been employed for various industrial processes.

Improvement of the quality of soy sauce by reducing enzyme activity in Aspergillus oryzae

How to effectively increase or decrease the ability of A. oryzae to produce enzymes was the key to improve the quality of soy sauce. However, multi-core property of A. oryzae resulted in genetic instability of the new strain. Here, A. oryzae 3.042-3 which can stably produce mononuclear spores was constructed based on A. oryzae 3.042. A. oryzae 3.042-3-c obtained by transformation of the fragment of cis-CreA into A. oryzae 3.042-3 exhibited genetic stability. The fragment containing the cis-acting and the promoter CreA from A. oryzae was connected to chromosome VII in A. oryzae 3.042-3-c. Compared with A. oryzae 3.042-3, the cellulase activity of A. oryzae 3.042-3-c was reduced by 50.5% and the pectinase activity was decreased by 10.0%. At the end of the soy sauce fermentation, the salt-free solid content of A. oryzae 3.042-3-c was higher 58.9% than that of A. oryzae 3.042-3. The kinds and contents of the flavor components of the soy sauce from the fermentation by A. oryzae 3.042-3-c were higher than those of the A. oryzae 3.042 and A. oryzae 3.042-3, especially in alcohols and esters. HEMF was only found in the soy sauce from A. oryzae 3.042-3-c. The results indicated that the new strain A. oryzae 3.042-3-c could improve the quality of soy sauce from the low-salt solid fermentation by decreasing enzyme activity of cellulase and pectinase.

Isolation, identification, and media optimization of high-level cellulase production by Bacillus sp. BCCS A3, in a fermentation system using response surface methodology

Cellulases are important glycosyl hydrolase enzymes, which break down cellulose to β-glucose. They have been used widely in biotechnological processing such as bioethanol production. In this work we studied maximizing cellulase production by Bacillus sp. BCCS A3 using response surface methodology (RSM). A good result was attained with these conditions (% w/v): tryptone 0.1, Na₂PO₄ 0.25, (NH₄)₂SO₄ 0.2, MgSO₄ · 7H₂O 0.005, CaCl₂ 0.005, KH₂PO₄ 0.1, NaCl 0.1, sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) 0.75, and pH 9. The cellulase activity in optimized medium was 49.80 U/ml. Moreover, high level of enzyme production was obtained by using fermentor system (50.30 U/ml). Thus, according to the obtained results, this statistical method provided quick identification and integration of key medium details for Bacillus sp. BCCS A3, leading to more cellulase production.