Bioemulsifier production by Penicillium Citrinum UCP 1183 and microstructural characterization of emulsion droplets

Abstract

Bioemulsifying compounds (BE) are biomolecules of high molecular weight produced by microorganisms and have as their main action the ability to emulsify and stabilize emulsions. In this context, the objective of this work was to investigate the potential of the fungus Penicillium citrinum in the production of bioemulsifier from substrates of renewable origin (milhocine and whey) and to characterize by optical microscopy the droplets of the emulsion formed. For this purpose, Penicillium citrinum was grown in sabouraud medium at 28ºC until the mycelial carpet was obtained. After growth, 20 8mm discs were used as inoculum in the production medium containing different concentrations of whey and cornocin determined by factorial design of 2 2. The statistical analysis of the residue concentrations was evaluated by the Pareto diagram, while the visualization of the microstructures of the emulsion droplets was visualized by optical microscopy with a 40x magnification. The results showed a maximum emulsification index of 95.8% and surface tension of 47.5 mN/m in condition 4 of the planning consisting of industrial residues (corn 5% and whey 5%). However, in all conditions of factorial design there was significant production of bioemulsifier. The Pareto diagram showed that the independent variable that most influenced the increase in the emulsification index was milhocin, followed by whey and its respective association. The type of emulsion formed was water-in-oil. The present study revealed that Penicillium citrinum has high biotechnological potential in the production of active biomolecule such as bioemulsifier (BE) produced from the metabolization of renewable industrial waste, suggesting potential use in cosmetics industries.