Improvement on D-xylose to Xylitol Biotransformation by Candida guilliermondii Using Cells Permeabilized with Triton X-100 and Selected Process Conditions.

Cells of Candida guilliermondii permeabilized with Triton X-100 were able to efficiently produce xylitol from a medium composed only by D-xylose and MgCl2·6H2O in potassium phosphate buffer, at 35 °C and pH 6.5. Under these conditions, the results were similar to those obtained when cofactor and co-substrate or nutrients were added to the medium (about 95 % D-xylose was assimilated producing 42 g/L of xylitol, corresponding to 0.80 g/g yield and 2.65 g/L h volumetric productivity). Furthermore, the permeabilized cells kept the D-xylose assimilation in about 90 % and the xylitol production in approx. 40 g/L during three bioconversion cycles of 16 h each. These values are highly relevant when compared to others reported in the literature using enzyme technology and fermentative process, thereby demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed method. The present study reveals that the use of permeabilized cells is an interesting alternative to obtain high xylitol productivity using low cost medium formulation. This approach may allow the future development of xylitol production from xylose present in lignocellulosic biomass, with additional potential for implementation in biorefinery strategies.

CTAB, Triton X-100 and freezing-thawing treatments of Candida guilliermondii: effects on permeability and accessibility of the glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, xylose reductase and xylitol dehydrogenase enzymes.

Cells of Candida guilliermondii (ATCC 201935) were permeabilised with surfactant treatment (CTAB or Triton X-100) or a freezing-thawing procedure. Treatments were monitored by in situ activities of the key enzymes involved in xylose metabolism, that is, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), xylose reductase (XR) and xylitol dehydrogenase (XD). The permeabilising ability of the surfactants was dependent on its concentration and incubation time. The optimum operation conditions for the permeabilisation of C. guilliermondii with surfactants were 0.41 mM (CTAB) or 2.78 mM (Triton X-100), 30°C, and pH 7 at 200 rpm for 50 min. The maximum permeabilisation measured in terms of the in situ G6PD activity observed was, in order, as follows: CTAB (122.4±15.7U/g(cells)) > freezing-thawing (54.3 ± 1.9U/g(cells))>Triton X-100 (23.5 ± 0.0U/g(cells)). These results suggest that CTAB surfactant is more effective in the permeabilisation of C. guilliermondii cells in comparison to the freezing-thawing and Triton X-100 treatments. Nevertheless, freezing-thawing was the only treatment that allowed measurable in situ XR activity. Therefore, freezing-thawing permeabilised yeast cells could be used as a source of xylose reductase for analytical purposes or for use in biotransformation process such as xylitol preparation from xylose. The level of in situ xylose reductase was found to be 13.2 ± 0.1 U/g(cells).

Individual and interaction effects of vanillin and syringaldehyde on the xylitol formation by Candida guilliermondii.

The effect of lignin degradation products liberated during chemical hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials on xylose-to-xylitol bioconversion by Candida guilliermondii FTI 20037 was studied. Two aromatic aldehydes (vanillin and syringaldehyde) were selected as model compounds. A two-level factorial design was employed to evaluate the effects of pH (5.5-7.0), cell concentration (1.0-3.0 g l(-1)), vanillin concentration (0-2.0 g l(-1)) and syringaldehyde concentration (0-2.0 g l(-1)) on this bioprocess. The results showed that in the presence of vanillin or syringaldehyde (up to 2.0 g l(-1)) the cell growth was inhibited to different degrees with a complete inhibition of the yeast growth when the mixture of both (at 2.0 g l(-1) each) was added to the fermentation medium. The xylitol yield was not significantly influenced by vanillin, but was strongly reduced by syringaldehyde, which showed a more pronounced inhibitor effect at pH 7.0. The yeast was also able to convert vanillin and syringaldehyde to the corresponding aromatic acids or alcohols and their formation was dependent of the experimental conditions employed.

Micelas reversas de lecitina de soja: uma alternativa para purificação de proteínas / Soybean lecithin reversed micelles: an alternative for protein purification

No presente trabalho, estudaram-se os efeitos de diversos parâmetros sobre a extração das proteínas caseína e albumina de soro bovino empregando micelas reversas de lecitina de soja. Independentemente da condição empregada, a extração da albumina apresentou baixo rendimento (variando de 0 por cento a 4 por cento, aproximadamente), resultado de um significativo efeito de exclusão por tamanho. Com relação à caseína, o rendimento da extração aumentou 23 vezes com o aumento do tempo de agitação, ou seja, com o maior tempo de contato entre a proteína e o sistema de micelas reversas. A adição de 1-hexanol ao sistema, usado como co-solvente, foi efetiva, aumentando a solubilização da caseína em 36 por cento, sendo os rendimentos da extração desta proteína muito influenciados pelo pH. Os valores máximos de eficiência obtidos foram de 20 por cento em pH 7,9, 80 por cento em pH 5,4 e 100 por cento em pH 5,0 (pH próximo ao pI da proteína).

In this work, the effect of different parameters for extraction of casein and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were studied. Such proteins were extracted by soybean lecithin reversed micelles. BSA extraction was not effective, independent of the extraction conditions employed. Owing to its molar mass, the effect of exclusion by size was clearly observed. The casein extraction yield increased about 23-fold as a function of agitation time. In other words, the increase occurred by using higher contact time between protein and reversed micelles. The use of hexanol as a co-solvent was effective, and increased casein extraction to 36 percent. The extraction values were strongly influenced by pH, and the high extraction yield was obtained under the following conditions: 20 percent at pH 7.9, 80 percent at pH 5.4 e 100 percent at pH 5.0 (close to casein isoelectrical point).

Otimização do processo de extração de BETA - xilosidase por sistemas micelares reversos / Optimization of beta xilosidade extration process using reversed micelar systems

A enzima "BETA"-xilosidase, produzida pelo fungo Penicillium janthinellum, foi extraída pelo sistema micelar reverso formado pelo agente tensoativo catiônico CTAB em isoctano, hexanol e butanol. Os efeitos combinados da concentração de CTAB e de butanol sobre a extração da enzima foram estudados empregando-se a metodologia de superfície de resposta. A partir dos resultados obtidos, foi proposto um modelo matemático para descrever o processo de extração da "BETA"-xilosidase na região de trabalho estudada. De acordo com a equação do modelo, podem ser obtidos valores máximos de recuperação de 35,05 ñ 6,40 por cento nas seguintes condições: pH 8,0, concentração de CTAB 0,2...