Optimization of culture conditions for enhanced production of extracellular α-amylase using solid state and submerged fermentation from Aspergillus tamarii MTCC5152

Amylases are one of the main enzymes used in various industries such as food, fermentation, textile and pharmaceuticals. Microorganisms are the potent sources of amylase enzyme, apart from plant and animal sources. Fungal amylases are more stable than bacterial amylases. The production of extracellular α-amylase from Aspergillus tamarii MTCC5152 using solid state and submerged fermentation and the various nutritional factors influencing its production were studied. A higher activity of α-amylase (519.40 u/g) was attained in a medium having wheat bran alone as the substrate at an initial moisture content of 70% v/w with 2.5% v/w of inoculum level (containing 10⁶ spores/ml) after 4 days of incubation at 28°C by SSF. Addition of 1% glucose to wheat bran containing basal medium enhanced α-amylase production (6.49 u/ml) after 4 days of incubation by SmF method. Comparative evaluation of enzyme production by solid state and submerged fermentation methods produced better results in solid state fermentation method. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Solid-state fermentation increases secretome complexity in Aspergillus brasiliensis

Aspergillus is used for the industrial production of enzymes and organic acids, mainly by submerged fermentation (SmF). However, solid-state fermentation (SSF) offers several advantages over SmF. Although differences related to lower catabolite repression and substrate inhibition, as well as higher extracellular enzyme production in SSF compared to SmF have been shown, the mechanisms undelaying such differences are still unknown. To explain some differences among SSF and SmF, the secretome of Aspergillus brasiliensis obtained from cultures in a homogeneous physiological state with high glucose concentrations was analyzed. Of the regulated proteins produced by SmF, 74% were downregulated by increasing the glucose concentration, whereas all those produced by SSF were upregulated. The most abundant and upregulated protein found in SSF was the transaldolase, which could perform a moonlighting function in fungal adhesion to the solid support. This study evidenced that SSF: (i) improves the kinetic parameters in relation to SmF, (ii) prevents the catabolite repression, (iii) increases the branching level of hyphae and oxidative metabolism, as well as the concentration and diversity of secreted proteins, and (iv) favors the secretion of typically intracellular proteins that could be involved in fungal adhesion. All these differences can be related to the fact that molds are more specialized to growth in solid materials because they mimic their natural habitat.

Comparative studies on the fermentation performance of autochthonous Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains in Chinese light-fragrant liquor during solid-state or submerged fermentation

AIM

To explore the metabolic characteristic of autochthonous Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains in Chinese light-fragrant liquor fermentation.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Inter-delta amplification analysis was used to differentiate the S. cerevisiae strains at strain level. Twelve biotypes (I-XII) were identified among the 72 S. cerevisiae strains preselected. A comparison was conducted between solid-state fermentation (SSF) and submerged fermentation (SmF) with S. cerevisiae strains had different genotype, with a focus on the production of ethanol and the volatile compounds. The degree of ethanol ranged from 28·0 to 45·2 g l^-1 in SmF and from 14·8 to 25·6 g kg^-1 in SSF, and SSF was found to be more suitable for the production of ethanol with higher yield coefficient of all the S. cerevisiae strains. The metabolite profiles of each yeast strain showed obvious distinction in the two fermentations. The highest amounts of ethyl acetate in SmF and SSF were found in genotype VII (328·2 μg l^-1 ) and genotype V (672 μg kg^-1 ), respectively. In addition, the generation of some volatile compounds could be strictly related to the strain used. Compound β-damascenone was only detected in genotypes I, II, X and XII in the two fermentation processes. Furthermore, laboratory scale fermentations were clearly divided into SSF and SmF in hierarchical cluster analysis regardless of the inoculated yeast strains, indicating that the mode of fermentation was more important than the yeast strains inoculated.

CONCLUSION

The autochthonous S. cerevisiae strains in Chinese light-fragrant liquor vary considerably in terms of their volatiles profiles during SSF and SmF.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

This work facilitates a better understanding of the fermentative mechanism in the SSF process for light-fragrant liquor production.

Efficient polygalacturonase production from agricultural and agro-industrial residues by solid-state culture of Aspergillus sojae under optimized conditions

Previously identified fungal pectinase producers of the species Aspergillus sojae were used for optimization of polygalacturonase production in solid-state fermentation applying Design of Experiment. The effects of media composition and several process parameters, like inoculum size, moisture level, incubation time and temperature on polygalacturonase activity were studied in screening and optimization investigations. Utilization of agricultural and agro-industrial by-products provided the establishment of a cost-efficient and sustainable process for enzyme production. Comparison of pectinase production by A. sojae ATCC 20235 and A. sojae CBS 100928 under optimized conditions yielded 6.9 times higher polygalacturonase activity by A. sojae ATCC 20235. Highest enzyme yield (909.5 ± 2.7 U/g) was obtained by A. sojae ATCC 20235 after 8 days at 30°C applying 30% sugar beet pulp as inducer substrate in combination with wheat bran as medium wetted at 160% with 0.2 M HCl. Furthermore, an overview of pectinolytic enzyme activities present in the extracts of both strains is provided. Protein profiles of both strains are given by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis, as well as zymograms for pectinolytic enzymes in comparison to commercial pectinase preparations.

Determination of the effects of initial glucose on the production of α-amylase from Penicillium sp. under solid-state and submerged fermentation

The effects of catabolite repression of initial glucose on the synthesis of α-amylase from Penicillium chrysogenum and Penicillium griseofulvum were investigated under solid-state fermentation (SSF) and submerged fermentation (SmF) systems. The results obtained from either fermentation were compared with each other. In the SmF system, initial glucose concentration above 10 mg/mL completely repressed the production of α-amylase from P. chrysogenum and P. griseofulvum. However, the repression in the SSF system was not complete, even when the glucose level was raised to 160 mg/g.

Derepression of carbon catabolite repression in an extractive liquid-surface immobilization (Ext-LSI) system

An extractive liquid-surface immobilization (Ext-LSI) system with a fungal mat formed on the surface of a liquid medium effectively enabled derepression of carbon catabolite repression. In this system, a fungicidal secondary metabolite 6-pentyl-α-pyrone was efficiently produced by Trichoderma atroviride AG2755-5NM398 despite the addition of 25% glucose or fructose.

Production of Pectate Lyase by Penicillium viridicatum RFC3 in Solid-State and Submerged Fermentation

Pectate lyase (PL) was produced by the filamentous fungus Penicillium viridicatum RFC3 in solid-state cultures of a mixture of orange bagasse and wheat bran (1 : 1 w/w), or orange bagasse, wheat bran and sugarcane bagasse (1 : 1 : 0.5 w/w), and in a submerged liquid culture with orange bagasse and wheat bran (3%) as the carbon source. PL production was highest (1,500 U mL(-1) or 300 Ug(-1) of substrate) in solid-state fermentation (SSF) on wheat bran and orange bagasse at 96 hours. PL production in submerged fermentation (SmF) was influenced by the initial pH of the medium. With the initial pH adjusted to 4.5, 5.0, and 5.5, the peak activity was observed after 72, 48, and 24 hours of fermentation, respectively, when the pH of the medium reached the value 5.0. PL from SSF and SmF were loaded on Sephadex-G75 columns and six activity peaks were obtained from crude enzyme from SSF and designated PL I, II, III, IV, V, and VI, while five peaks were obtained from crude enzyme from SmF and labeled PL I', II', III', IV', and VII'. Crude enzyme and fraction III from each fermentative process were tested further. The optimum pH for crude PL from either process was 5.5, while that for PL III was 8.0. The maximum activity of enzymes from SSF was observed at 35 degrees C, but crude enzyme was more thermotolerant than PL III, maintaining its maximum activity up to 45 degrees C. Crude enzyme from SmF and PL III' showed thermophilic profiles of activity, with maximum activity at 60 and 55 degrees C, respectively. In the absence of substrate, the crude enzyme from SSF was stable over the pH range 3.0-10.0 and PL III was most stable in the pH range 4.0-7.0. Crude enzyme from SmF retained 70%-80% of its maximum activity in the acid-neutral pH range (4.0-7.0), but PIII showed high stability at alkaline pH (7.5-9.5). PL from SSF was more thermolabile than that from SmF. The latter maintained 60% of its initial activity after 1 h at 55 degrees C. The differing behavior of the enzymes with respect to pH and temperature suggests that they are different isozymes.

Characterization of a thermostable alkaline protease produced by marine Streptomyces fungicidicus MML1614

Totally 191 different marine actinomycetes were isolated from 256 different marine samples collected from the Bay of Bengal and its associated Pulicat lake and Pichavaram mangrove, India. Among them, 157 produced caseinase, 113 produced gelatinase and 108 produced both the protease enzymes. An isolate coded as MML1614 was selected for further study as it exhibited high proteolytic activity. The MML1614 was identified as Streptomyces fungicidicus based on polyphasic taxonomical approach including 16S rRNA sequence analysis. The culture conditions were standardized for the growth and protease production in S. fungicidicus MML1614. The protease was isolated from a 6-day-old culture filtrate of S. fungicidicus MML1614 and partially purified up to 4.5-fold. The protease was optimally active at pH 9 and 40 degrees C and it was stable up to pH 11 and 60 degrees C. PMSF and NaCl inhibited the enzyme activity up to 22 and 11%, respectively. The partially purified protease removed the blood stain more effectively when combined with different detergents than the detergents alone.

Filamentous fungi for production of food additives and processing aids

Filamentous fungi are metabolically versatile organisms with a very wide distribution in nature. They exist in association with other species, e.g. as lichens or mycorrhiza, as pathogens of animals and plants or as free-living species. Many are regarded as nature's primary degraders because they secrete a wide variety of hydrolytic enzymes that degrade waste organic materials. Many species produce secondary metabolites such as polyketides or peptides and an increasing range of fungal species is exploited commercially as sources of enzymes and metabolites for food or pharmaceutical applications. The recent availability of fungal genome sequences has provided a major opportunity to explore and further exploit fungi as sources of enzymes and metabolites. In this review chapter we focus on the use of fungi in the production of food additives but take a largely pre-genomic, albeit a mainly molecular, view of the topic.

Production of cellulases and hemicellulases by Penicillium echinulatum grown on pretreated sugar cane bagasse and wheat bran in solid-state fermentation

AIM

To evaluate the solid-state fermentation (SSF) production of cellulase and hemicellulases (xylanases), by Penicillium echinulatum 9A02S1, in experiments carried out with different concentrations of the pretreated sugar cane bagasse (PSCB) and wheat bran (WB).

METHODS AND RESULTS

This study reports the production of xylanolytic and cellulolytic enzymes by P. echinulatum 9A02S1 using a cheap medium containing PSCB and WB under SSF. The highest amounts of filter paper activity (FPA) could be measured on mixtures of PSCB and WB (32.89 +/- 1.90 U gdm(-1)). The highest beta-glucosidase activity was 58.95 +/- 2.58 U gdm(-1) on the fourth day. The highest activity for endoglucanases was 282.36 +/- 1.23 U gdm(-1) on the fourth day, and for xylanases the activity was around 10 U gdm(-1) from the second to the fourth day.

CONCLUSIONS

The present work has established the potential of P. echinulatum for FPA, endoglucanase, beta-glucosidase and xylanase productions in SSF, indicating that WB may be partially substituted by PSCB.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

The incorporation of cheap sources, such as sugar cane bagasse, into media for the production of lignocellulose enzymes should help decrease the production costs of enzymatic complexes that can hydrolyse lignocellulose residues for the formation of fermented syrups, thus contributing to the economic production of bioethanol.

Production and Regulation of Lipase Activity from Penicillium restrictum in Submerged and Solid-State Fermentations

Different carbon (C) sources, mainly carbohydrates and lipids, have been screened for their capacity to support growth and lipase production by Penicillium restrictum in submerged fermentation (SmF) and in solid-state fermentation (SSF). Completely different physiological behaviors were observed after the addition of easily (oleic acid and glucose) and complex (olive oil and starch) assimilable C sources to the liquid and solid media. Maximal lipolytic activities (12.1 U/mL and 17.4 U/g) by P. restrictum were obtained with olive oil in SmF and in SSF, respectively. Biomass levels in SmF (12.2-14.1 mg/mL) and SSF (7.0-8.0 mg/g) did not varied greatly with the distinct C sources used. High lipase production (12.3 U/g) using glucose was only attained in SSF, perhaps due to the ability of this fermentation process to minimize catabolite repression.