Fungal Biotechnology

Production of microbial polysaccharides for use in food

“…Their role in the cell can be to form an external slimy layer as a means of attachment to other cells and cell-to-cell interaction (a characteristic of many pathogenic speices) or a more rigid capsule or glycocalyx closely attached to the cell wall offering protection from unfavourable conditions (such as high acid or alkali concentrations, desiccation, oxygen stress, antibiotics, phagocytes, etc. ), the mechanical stability of the cell wall, the control of the diffusion of molecules into the cell and the export of other metabolites, or the formation of an energy reserve, as some polysaccharide-producing microorganisms also possess degrading enzymes (polysaccharide lyases) in order to hydrolyse these biopolymers to sugar monomers (Sutherland, 1990;Herrera, 1991;Sharon and Lis, 1993;Whitfi eld and Valvano, 1993;McNeil, 1996;Sutherland, 1997, Kumar et al, 2007.…”