High-Yield Endoglucanase Production by Trichoderma harzianum IOC-3844 Cultivated in Pretreated Sugarcane Mill Byproduct.
The low-cost production of cellulolytic complexes presenting high action at mild conditions and well-balanced cellulase activities is one of the major bottlenecks for the economical viability of the production of cellulosic ethanol. In the present paper, the filamentous fungus Trichoderma harzianum IOC-3844 was used for the production of cellulases from a pretreated sugarcane bagasse (namely, cellulignin), by submerged fermentation. This fungal strain produced high contents of endoglucanase activity (6,358 U·L(-1)) after 72 hours of process, and further relevant β-glucosidase and FPase activities (742 and 445 U·L(-1), resp.). The crude enzyme extract demonstrated appropriate characteristics for its application in cellulose hydrolysis, such as high thermal stability at up to 50°C, accessory xylanase activity, and absence of proteolytic activity towards azocasein. This strain showed, therefore, potential for the production of complete cellulolytic complexes aiming at the saccharification of lignocellulosic materials.
Renewable Energy Division, Research and Development Center, Petrobras, Avenue Horácio Macedo, 950 Ilha do Fundão, 21941-915 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Aline Machado
AM
de Castro
Marcela Costa
MC
Ferreira
Juliana Cunha
JC
da Cruz
Kelly Cristina Nascimento Rodrigues
KC
Pedro
Daniele Fernandes
DF
Carvalho
Selma Gomes Ferreira
SG
Leite
Nei
N
Pereira