Bioengineering and Environmental Center, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad – 500 607, Andhra Pradesh, India
*For correspondence -prakasam@iict.res.in
Among all agro industrial material hydrolyzing enzymes, xylanases gained importance due to their role in production of xylose based products of industrial importance. An isolated fungal strain, Aspergillus sp. RSP-6, having potential in xylanase production specific to palm fiber was characterized for enzyme production properties under solid suspend fermentation environments. Effective enzyme production was achieved with palm fiber as carbon source compared to all other tested agro materials and carbohydrates. Among different nitrogen sources, beef extract supported maximum enzyme production. Various fermentation parameters (pH of the medium, particle size and its concentration, incubation time and medium volume in addition to carbon and nitrogen sources) influenced the xylanase production. Maximum enzyme production of 62,480 U/l was observed in the medium of pH 3.0 containing 2% palm material having particle size of 2.8–1.4 mm and 1% (w/v) beef extract in presence of other mineral salts in 144 hours of incubation. Over all, the enzyme production has increased significantly from 20,000 to 62,480 U/l under optimized environment and observed to be constitutive in nature in this fungal strain.
Agro-material, Aspergillus sp, Enzyme, Palm fiber, Solid suspended fermentation, Xylanase
