Production of cupcake-like dessert containing microbial biosurfactant as an emulsifier

Recent progress in microbial biosurfactants production strategies: Applications, technological bottlenecks, and future outlook

Biosurfactants are surface-active compounds produced by numerous microorganisms. They have gained significant attention due to their wide applications in food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, agriculture, and environmental remediation. The production efficiency and yield of microbial biosurfactants have improved significantly through the development and optimization of different process parameters. This review aims to provide an in-depth analysis of recent trends and developments in microbial biosurfactant production strategies, including submerged, solid-state, and co-culture fermentation. Additionally, review discusses biosurfactants' applications, challenges, and future perspectives. It highlights their advantages over chemical surfactants, emphasizing their biodegradability, low toxicity, and diverse chemical structures. However, the critical challenges in commercializing include high production costs and low yield. Strategies like genetic engineering, process optimization, and downstream processing, have been employed to address these challenges. The review provides insights into current commercial producers and highlights future perspectives such as novel bioprocesses, efficient microbial strains, and exploring their applications in emerging industries.

Classification, application, multifarious activities and production improvement of lipopeptides produced by Bacillus

Lipopeptides, a class of compounds consisting of a peptide ring and a fatty acid chain, are secondary metabolites produced by Bacillus spp. As their hydrophilic and oleophilic properties, lipopeptides are widely used in food, medicine, environment and other industrial or agricultural fields. Compared with artificial synthetic surfactants, microbial lipopeptides have the advantages of low toxicity, high efficiency and versatility, resulting in urgent market demand and broad development prospect of lipopeptides. However, due to the complex metabolic network and precursor requirements of synthesis, the specific and strict synthesis pathway, and the coexistence of multiple homologous substances, the production of lipopeptides by microorganisms has the problems of high cost and low production efficiency, limiting the mass production of lipopeptides and large-scale application in industry. This review summarizes the types of Bacillus-produced lipopeptides and their biosynthetic pathways, introduces the versatility of lipopeptides, and describes the methods to improve the production of lipopeptides, including genetic engineering and optimization of fermentation conditions.

The Physicochemical and Functional Properties of Biosurfactants: A Review

Surfactants, also known as surface-active agents, have emerged as an important class of compounds with a wide range of applications. However, the use of chemical-derived surfactants must be restricted due to their potential adverse impact on the ecosystem and the health of human and other living organisms. In the past few years, there has been a growing inclination towards natural-derived alternatives, particularly microbial surfactants, as substitutes for synthetic or chemical-based counterparts. Microbial biosurfactants are abundantly found in bacterial species, predominantly Bacillus spp. and Pseudomonas spp. The chemical structures of biosurfactants involve the complexation of lipids with carbohydrates (glycolipoproteins and glycolipids), peptides (lipopeptides), and phosphates (phospholipids). Lipopeptides, in particular, have been the subject of extensive research due to their versatile properties, including emulsifying, antimicrobial, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory properties. This review provides an update on research progress in the classification of surfactants. Furthermore, it explores various bacterial biosurfactants and their functionalities, along with their advantages over synthetic surfactants. Finally, the potential applications of these biosurfactants in many industries and insights into future research directions are discussed.

Antibacterial activity of bioemulsifiers/biosurfactants produced by Levilactobacillus brevisS4 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarumS5 and their utilization to enhance the stability of cold emulsions of milk chocolate drinks

Chocolate milk drink, one of the most popular and widely consumed milk products among the population, independent of their age, has as its main challenge the problem of its physical instability. The aim of this study was to assess the stabilizing effect of bioemulsifiers/biosurfactants (BE/BS) from two lactobacilli strains in a cold chocolate milk drink. The strains Levilactobacillus brevis S4 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum S5 isolated from pendidam were screened for their ability to produce BE/BS. The produced BE/BS were characterized, their antimicrobial activities were assessed, and their ability to stabilize cold chocolate milk drinks was determined. The results obtained showed BE/BS yields of 3.48 and 4.37 g/L from L. brevis S4 and L. plantarum S5, respectively. These BE/BS showed emulsifying and surface activities that remained stable after treatment at different temperatures, pH, and salinity. The emulsions formed using BE/BS were stable for 72 h at room temperature (25 ± 1°C). The BE/BS exhibited antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus S1 and Escherichia coli E1. When applied to cold chocolate milk drinks at 0.2% (w/v), the BE/BS from L. brevis S4 and L. plantarum S5 showed interesting solubility indexes and water absorption capacities, which led to the successful stabilization of the drinks. The results of this study demonstrate the stabilizer potential of BE/BS from L. brevis S4 and L. plantarum S5 and suggest their use in the dairy and food industries.

Microbial Biosurfactant: Candida bombicola as a Potential Remediator of Environments Contaminated by Heavy Metals

Industrial interest in surfactants of microbial origin has intensified recently due to the characteristics of these compounds, such as biodegradability and reduced toxicity, and their efficiency in removing heavy metals and hydrophobic organic compounds from soils and waters. The aim of this study was to produce a biosurfactant using Candida bombicola URM 3712 in a low-cost medium containing 5.0% molasses, 3.0% corn steep liquor and 2.5% residual frying oil for 144 h at 200 rmp. Measurements of engine oil tension and emulsification were made under extreme conditions of temperature (0 °C, 5 °C, 70 °C, 100 °C and 120 °C), pH (2-12) and NaCl concentrations (2-12), demonstrating the stability of the biosurfactant. The isolated biosurfactant was characterized as an anionic molecule with the ability to reduce the surface tension of water from 72 to 29 mN/m, with a critical micellar concentration of 0.5%. The biosurfactant had no toxic effect on vegetable seeds or on Eisenia fetida as a bioindicator. Applications in the removal of heavy metals from contaminated soils under dynamic conditions demonstrated the potential of the crude and isolated biosurfactant in the removal of Fe, Zn and Pb with percentages between 70 and 88%, with the highest removal of Pb being 48%. The highest percentage of removal was obtained using the cell-free metabolic liquid, which was able to remove 48, 71 and 88% of lead, zinc and iron from the soil, respectively. Tests in packed columns also confirmed the biosurfactant's ability to remove Fe, Zn and Pb between 40 and 65%. The removal kinetics demonstrated an increasing percentage, reaching removal of 50, 70 and 85% for Pb, Zn and Fe, respectively, reaching a greater removal efficiency at the end of 24 h. The biosurfactant was also able to significantly reduce the electrical conductivity of solutions containing heavy metals. The biosurfactant produced by Candida bombicola has potential as an adjuvant in industrial processes for remediating soils and effluents polluted by inorganic contaminants.

Biotechnological potential of microbial bio-surfactants, their significance, and diverse applications

Globally, there is a huge demand for chemically available surfactants in many industries, irrespective of their detrimental impact on the environment. Naturally occurring green sustainable substances have been proven to be the best alternative for reducing reliance on chemical surfactants and promoting long-lasting sustainable development. The most frequently utilized green active biosurfactants, which are made by bacteria, yeast, and fungi, are discussed in this review. These biosurfactants are commonly originated from contaminated sites, the marine ecosystem, and the natural environment, and it holds great potential for environmental sustainability. In this review, we described the importance of biosurfactants for the environment, including their biodegradability, low toxicity, environmental compatibility, and stability at a wide pH range. In this review, we have also described the various techniques that have been utilized to characterize and screen the generation of microbial biosurfactants. Also, we reviewed the potential of biosurfactants and its emerging applications in the foods, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and agricultural industries. In addition, we also discussed the ways to overcome problems with expensive costs such as low-cost substrate media formulation, gravitational techniques, and solvent-free foam fractionation for extraction that could be employed during biosurfactant production on a larger scale.

Cookies and muffins containing biosurfactant: textural, physicochemical and sensory analyses

Interest in products with more natural ingredients increases the potential for application of Biosurfactants in foods. The aim of the present study was to assess the toxicity of biosurfactant produced by Saccharomyces cerevisiae URM6670 and the effect of the incorporation of this biosurfactant on the physicochemical and textural characteristics of cookies and muffins, performing unprecedented assessment of the sensorial effects of this application. The toxicity analysis revealed that the biosurfactant is classified as a mild irritant, with irritation indices lower than 4.9. The physical analysis of the incorporation of the biosurfactant in the formulation revealed that the addition of 1% to cookies significantly increased the diameter and spread factor. In muffins, significant changes in these properties were found beginning at 0.25% biosurfactant. The moisture content in cookies was reduced by a maximum of 74%, while in muffins this reduction was approximately 6%. The lipid content increased significantly with the addition of 1% of the biosurfactant (11% in cookies and 25% in muffins). The textural analysis revealed that the biosurfactant at 1% led to a significant increase in firmness as a consequence of the reduction in the moisture content. In muffins, the same concentration increased the firmness and variables related to chewability. The sensory analysis revealed that the muffins with biosurfactant had greater acceptance compared to the cookies. Thus, the biosurfactant demonstrated potential application in bakery products due to low toxicity and positive evaluation in important sensorial parameters for its commercialisation.

Sustainable production of bioemulsifiers, a critical overview from microorganisms to promising applications

Microbial bioemulsifiers are molecules of amphiphilic nature and high molecular weight that are efficient in emulsifying two immiscible phases such as water and oil. These molecules are less effective in reducing surface tension and are synthesized by bacteria, yeast and filamentous fungi. Unlike synthetic emulsifiers, microbial bioemulsifiers have unique advantages such as biocompatibility, non-toxicity, biodegradability, efficiency at low concentrations and high selectivity under different conditions of pH, temperature and salinity. The adoption of microbial bioemulsifiers as alternatives to their synthetic counterparts has been growing in ongoing research. This article analyzes the production of microbial-based emulsifiers, the raw materials and fermentation processes used, as well as the scale-up and commercial applications of some of these biomolecules. The current trend of incorporating natural compounds into industrial formulations indicates that the search for new bioemulsifiers will continue to increase, with emphasis on performance improvement and economically viable processes.

Biosurfactants: Forthcomings and Regulatory Affairs in Food-Based Industries

The terms discussed in this review-biosurfactants (BSs) and bioemulsifiers (BEs)-describe surface-active molecules of microbial origin which are popular chemical entities for many industries, including food. BSs are generally low-molecular-weight compounds with the ability to reduce surface tension noticeably, whereas BEs are high-molecular-weight molecules with efficient emulsifying abilities. Some other biomolecules, such as lecithin and egg yolk, are useful as natural BEs in food products. The high toxicity and severe ecological impact of many chemical-based surfactants have directed interest towards BSs/BEs. Interest in food surfactant formulations and consumer anticipation of "green label" additives over synthetic or chemical-based surfactants have been steadily increasing. BSs have an undeniable prospective for replacing chemical surfactants with vast significance to food formulations. However, the commercialization of BSs/BEs production has often been limited by several challenges, such as the optimization of fermentation parameters, high downstream costs, and low yields, which had an immense impact on their broader adoptions in different industries, including food. The foremost restriction regarding the access of BSs/BEs is not their lack of cost-effective industrial production methods, but a reluctance regarding their potential safety, as well as the probable microbial hazards that may be associated with them. Most research on BSs/BEs in food production has been restricted to demonstrations and lacks a comprehensive assessment of safety and risk analysis, which has limited their adoption for varied food-related applications. Furthermore, regulatory agencies require extensive exploration and analysis to secure endorsements for the inclusion of BSs/BEs as potential food additives. This review emphasizes the promising properties of BSs/BEs, trailed by an overview of their current use in food formulations, as well as risk and toxicity assessment. Finally, we assess their potential challenges and upcoming future in substituting chemical-based surfactants.

Surface-Active Compounds Produced by Microorganisms: Promising Molecules for the Development of Antimicrobial, Anti-Inflammatory, and Healing Agents

Surface-active compounds (SACs), biomolecules produced by bacteria, yeasts, and filamentous fungi, have interesting properties, such as the ability to interact with surfaces as well as hydrophobic or hydrophilic interfaces. Because of their advantages over other compounds, such as biodegradability, low toxicity, antimicrobial, and healing properties, SACs are attractive targets for research in various applications in medicine. As a result, a growing number of properties related to SAC production have been the subject of scientific research during the past decade, searching for potential future applications in biomedical, pharmaceutical, and therapeutic fields. This review aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the potential of biosurfactants and emulsifiers as antimicrobials, modulators of virulence factors, anticancer agents, and wound healing agents in the field of biotechnology and biomedicine, to meet the increasing demand for safer medical and pharmacological therapies.

Oily Wastewater Treatment: Methods, Challenges, and Trends

The growing interest in innovations regarding the treatment of oily wastewater stems from the fact that the oil industry is the largest polluter of the environment. The harm caused by this industry is seen in all countries. Companies that produce such wastewater are responsible for its treatment prior to disposal or recycling into their production processes. As oil emulsions are difficult to manage and require different types of treatment or even combined methods, a range of environmental technologies have been proposed for oil-contaminated effluents, such as gravity separation, flotation, flocculation, biological treatment, advanced oxidation processes, and membranes. Natural materials, such as biopolymers, constitute a novel, sustainable solution with considerable potential for oily effluent separation. The present review offers an overview of the treatment of oily wastewater, describing current trends and the latest applications. This review also points to further research needs and major concerns, especially with regards to sustainability, and discusses potential biotechnological applications.

A Biosurfactant from Candida bombicola: Its Synthesis, Characterization, and its Application as a Food Emulsions

The present study aimed to produce a biosurfactant from Candida yeast cultivated in a low-cost medium made of sugar-cane molasses (5%), frying oil waste (5%), and corn steep liquor (5%). Initially, the production at the flask-scale was investigated and then scaled up in bioreactors to 1.2, 3.0, and 50 L to simulate a real production scale. The products obtained an excellent reduction in surface tensions from 70 to 29 mN·m⁻¹ in the flask-scale, comparable to 33 mN·m⁻¹ in the 1.2-L reactor, to 31 mN·m⁻¹ in the 3-L reactor, and to 30 mN·m⁻¹ in the 50-L reactor. Regarding the yield, it was observed that the isolation by liquid-to-liquid extraction aided biosurfactant production up to 221.9 g·L⁻¹ with a critical micellar concentration of 0.5%. The isolated biosurfactant did not exhibit an inhibitory effect on the germination of vegetable seeds and presented no significant acute toxicity in assays with Artemia salina and Allium cepa. Among the different formulations of mayonnaise-like sauces, the most stable formula was observed with the addition of the biosurfactant at a concentration of 0.5% and the greatest results were associated with the guar and carboxymethyl cellulose gums. Thus, the biosurfactant from C. bombicola represents a promising alternative as a food additive in emulsions.

Application of a Biosurfactant Produced by Bacillus cereus UCP 1615 from Waste Frying Oil as an Emulsifier in a Cookie Formulation

Biosurfactants have attracted increasing interest from the food industry due to their emulsifying, foaming and solubilizing properties. However, the industrial use of microbial biosurfactants has been hampered by the high production costs related mainly to the use of expensive substrates. The search for low-cost alternative substrates is one of the strategies adopted to overcome this problem. In the present study, a biosurfactant produced by Bacillus cereus UCP1615 by fermentation in a medium supplemented with waste frying soybean oil as a low-cost substrate was evaluated as a bioemulsifier for the production of cookies. The biosurfactant was evaluated for its emulsifying capacity against different vegetable oils, antioxidant activity and toxicity, demonstrating favorable results for use in food. In particular, it showed satisfactory antioxidant activity at the tested concentrations and no cytotoxicity to the L929 (mouse fibroblast) and Vero (monkey kidney epithelial) cell lines using the MTT assay. The biosurfactant was then added at different concentrations (0.25%, 0.5% and 1%) to a standard cookie dough formulation to evaluate the physicochemical characteristics of the product. Cookies formulated with the biosurfactant exhibited similar energy and physical characteristics to those obtained with the standard formulation but with a lower moisture content. The biosurfactant also ensured a good preservation of the cookie texture after 45 days of storage. These results suggest that the biosurfactant has a potential application as a green emulsifier in accordance with the demands of the current market for biocompatible products.

Exploiting Microbes in the Petroleum Field: Analyzing the Credibility of Microbial Enhanced Oil Recovery (MEOR)

Crude oil is a major energy source that is exploited globally to achieve economic growth. To meet the growing demands for oil, in an environment of stringent environmental regulations and economic and technical pressure, industries have been required to develop novel oil salvaging techniques. The remaining ~70% of the world’s conventional oil (one-third of the available total petroleum) is trapped in depleted and marginal reservoirs, and could thus be potentially recovered and used. The only means of extracting this oil is via microbial enhanced oil recovery (MEOR). This tertiary oil recovery method employs indigenous microorganisms and their metabolic products to enhance oil mobilization. Although a significant amount of research has been undertaken on MEOR, the absence of convincing evidence has contributed to the petroleum industry’s low interest, as evidenced by the issuance of 400+ patents on MEOR that have not been accepted by this sector. The majority of the world’s MEOR field trials are briefly described in this review. However, the presented research fails to provide valid verification that the microbial system has the potential to address the identified constraints. Rather than promising certainty, MEOR will persist as an unverified concept unless further research and investigations are carried out.

Enhanced Oil Removal by a Non-Toxic Biosurfactant Formulation

In this study, a new formulation of low-cost, biodegradable, and non-toxic biosurfactant by Candida sphaerica UCP 0995 was investigated. The study was conducted in a bioreactor on an industrial waste-based medium, and a central composite rotatable design was used for optimization. The best results, namely a 25.22 mN/m reduction in surface tension, a biosurfactant yield of 10.0 g/L, and a critical micelle concentration of 0.2 g/L, were achieved in 132 h at an agitation speed of 175 rpm and an aeration rate of 1.5 vvm. Compositional and spectroscopic analyses of the purified biosurfactant by chemical methods, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance suggested that it is a glycolipid-type biosurfactant, and it showed no cytotoxicity in the MTT assay. The biosurfactant, submitted to different formulation methods as a commercial additive, remained stable for 120 days at room temperature. Tensioactive properties and stability were evaluated at different pH values, temperatures, and salt concentrations. The biosurfactant obtained with all formulation methods demonstrated good stability, with tolerance to wide ranges of pH, temperature and salinity, enabling application under extreme environmental conditions. Bioremediation tests were performed to check the efficacy of the isolated biosurfactant and the selected microbial species in removing oil from soil. The results demonstrated that the biosurfactant produced has promising properties as an agent for the bioremediation of contaminated soil.

Biosurfactants: Production and application prospects in the food industry

There has been considerable interest in the use of biosurfactants due to the diversity of structures and the possibility of production from a variety of substrates. The potential for industrial applications has been growing, as these natural compounds are tolerant to common processing methods and can compete with synthetic surfactants with regards to the capacity to reduce surface and interfacial tensions as well as stabilise emulsions while offering the advantages of biodegradability and low toxicity. Among biosurfactant-producing microorganisms, some yeasts present no risks of toxicity or pathogenicity, making them ideal for use in food formulations. Indeed, the use of these biomolecules in foods has attracted industrial interest due to their properties as emulsifiers and stabilizers of emulsions. Studies have also demonstrated other valuable properties, such as antioxidant and antimicrobial activity, enabling the aggregation of greater value to products and the avoidance of contamination both during and after processing. All these characteristics allow biosurfactants to be used as additives and versatile ingredients for the processing of foods. The present review discusses the potential application of biosurfactants as emulsifying agents in food formulations, such as salad dressing, bread, cakes, cookies, and ice cream. The antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-adhesive properties of these biomolecules are also discussed, demonstrating the need for further studies to make the use of the natural compounds viable in this expanding sector.