Biosurfactants are surface-active compounds that have sparked interest in recent years because of their environmental advantages over conventional surfactants. The aim of this study was to investigate the production of biosurfactants by soil fungi isolated from the Amazon forest. Fungi colonies were isolated from soil samples and screened for biosurfactant production in submerged fermentation. In addition, the influences of bioprocess factors (carbon source, nitrogen source, pH, and fermentation time) were investigated. Finally, the biosurfactant produced was semipurified and submitted to stability tests. One hundred fungal cultures were obtained from the soil samples, identified by micromorphology, and submitted to screening for biosurfactant production. Sixty-one strains produced biosurfactants. The strain Penicillium 8CC2 showed the highest emulsification index (54.2%). The optimized bioprocess conditions for biosurfactant production by Penicillium 8CC2 were as follows: soybean oil, 20 g/L; yeast extract, 30 g/L; pH 9; duration of 9 days. The semipurified biosurfactant showed stability after heating at 100°C for 60 min and after the addition of 30% NaCl (w/v). Tween 80 (0.2% w/v), a conventional surfactant, was used as the control.
The aim of this study was screening fungi strains, isolated from manipueira (a liquid subproduct obtained from the flour production of Manihot esculenta), for amylases production and investigating production of these enzymes by the strain Aspergillus 6V4. The fungi isolated from manipueira belonged to Ascomycota phylum. The strain Aspergillus 6V4 was the best amylase producer in the screening assay of starch hydrolysis in petri dishes (ASHPD) and in the assay in submerged fermentation (ASbF). The strain Aspergillus 6V4 produced high amylase levels (335 UI/L) using wheat bran infusion as the exclusive substrate and the supplementation of this substrate with peptone decreased the production of this enzyme. The moisture content of 70% was the best condition for the production of Aspergillus 6V4 amylases (385 IU/g) in solid state fermentation (SSF).
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