Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jun 17;27(12):3887.
doi: 10.3390/molecules27123887.

Fungal Proteins from Sargassum spp. Using Solid-State Fermentation as a Green Bioprocess Strategy

Adriana M Bonilla Loaiza  1 , Rosa M Rodríguez-Jasso  1 , Ruth Belmares  1 , Claudia M López-Badillo  1 , Rafael G Araújo  1 , Cristóbal N Aguilar  1 , Mónica L Chávez  1 , Miguel A Aguilar  2 , Héctor A Ruiz  1
Affiliations

Fungal Proteins from Sargassum spp. Using Solid-State Fermentation as a Green Bioprocess Strategy

Adriana M Bonilla Loaiza et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

The development of green technologies and bioprocesses such as solid-state fermentation (SSF) is important for the processing of macroalgae biomass and to reduce the negative effect of Sargassum spp. on marine ecosystems, as well as the production of compounds with high added value such as fungal proteins. In the present study, Sargassum spp. biomass was subjected to hydrothermal pretreatments at different operating temperatures (150, 170, and 190 °C) and pressures (3.75, 6.91, and 11.54 bar) for 50 min, obtaining a glucan-rich substrate (17.99, 23.86, and 25.38 g/100 g d.w., respectively). The results indicate that Sargassum pretreated at a pretreatment temperature of 170 °C was suitable for fungal growth. SSF was performed in packed-bed bioreactors, obtaining the highest protein content at 96 h (6.6%) and the lowest content at 72 h (4.6%). In contrast, it was observed that the production of fungal proteins is related to the concentration of sugars. Furthermore, fermentation results in a reduction in antinutritional elements, such as heavy metals (As, Cd, Pb, Hg, and Sn), and there is a decrease in ash content during fermentation kinetics. Finally, this work shows that Aspergillus oryzae can assimilate nutrients found in the pretreated Sargassum spp. to produce fungal proteins as a strategy for the food industry.

Keywords: bioprocess; bioreactor; hydrothermal pretreatment; macroalgal biomass; seaweed.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Temperature change profile during hydrothermal pretreatment (150, 170 and 190 °C, respectively, for 50 min).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Boxplot of the specific growth rate of Aspergillus species on Sargassum spp. after hydrothermal pretreatment at 150, 170, and 190 °C without nutritional enrichment (5S1: 150 °C, Aspergillus oryzae; 5S2:150 °C, Aspergillus niger HT3; 5S3: 150 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa20; 5S4: 150 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa210; 7S1: 170 °C, Aspergillus oryzae; 7S2:170 °C, Aspergillus niger HT3; 7S3: 170 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa20; 7S4: 170 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa210; 9S1: 190 °C, Aspergillus oryzae; 9S2:190 °C, Aspergillus niger HT3; 9S3: 190 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa20; 9S4: 190 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa210).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Boxplot of the specific growth rate of Aspergillus species on Sargassum spp. after hydrothermal pretreatment at 150, 170, and 190 °C with nutritional enrichment (5M1: 150 °C, Aspergillus oryzae; 5M2:150 °C, Aspergillus niger HT3; 5M3: 150 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa20; 5M4: 150 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa210; 7M1: 170 °C, Aspergillus oryzae; 7SM2:170 °C, Aspergillus niger HT3; 7M3: 170 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa20; 7M4: 170 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa210; 9M1: 190 °C, Aspergillus oryzae; 9M2:190 °C, Aspergillus niger HT3; 9M3: 190 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa20; 9M4: 190 °C, Aspergillus niger Aa210).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Growth of Aspergillus oryzae on Sargassum spp. after hydrothermal pretreatment at 150 (A), 170 (B) and 190 °C (C) without nutritional enrichment.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Fungal proteins and total sugars obtained from solid-state fermentation of Sargassum spp. after hydrothermal pretreatment (170 °C). The treatments that do not have the same letters (a, b, and c) are significantly different.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Fungal proteins obtained during SSF kinetics using Sargassum spp. after hydrothermal pretreatment (170 °C) as substrate in a packed-bed bioreactor. The treatments that do not have the same letters (a, b, and c) are significantly different.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) (A) of Sargassum after hydrothermal pretreatment at 170 °C; (B) Aspergillus oryzae growth kinetics at 24 h through solid-state fermentation; (C) Aspergillus oryzae growth kinetics at 72 h through solid-state fermentation; (D) Aspergillus oryzae growth kinetics at 120 h through solid-state fermentation.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Schematic representation of the general process in the production of fungal proteins using a sequential process: hydrothermal pretreatment and solid-state fermentation.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Solid-state fermentation system (packed-bed bioreactor) for Sargassum spp. pretreated at 170 °C to obtain fungal proteins from Aspergillus oryzae.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Wang M., Hu C. Remote Sensing of Environment Mapping and quantifying Sargassum distribution and coverage in the Central West Atlantic using MODIS observations. Remote Sens. Environ. 2016;183:350–367. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2016.04.019. - DOI
    1. Smetacek V., Zingone A. Green and golden seaweed tides on the rise. Nature. 2013;504:84–88. doi: 10.1038/nature12860. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Strokal M., Kroeze C. Nitrogen and phosphorus inputs to the Black Sea in 1970—2050. Reg. Environ. Chang. 2013;13:179–192. doi: 10.1007/s10113-012-0328-z. - DOI
    1. Resiere D., Valentino R., Nevière R., Banydeen R., Gueye P., Florentin J., Cabié A., Lebrun T., Mégarbane B., Guerrier G., et al. Sargassum seaweed on Caribbean islands: An international public health concern. Lancet. 2018;392:2691. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(18)32777-6. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hu C., Murch B., Barnes B.B., Wang M., Maréchal J.P., Franks J., Johnson D., Lapointe B., Goodwin D., Schell J., et al. Sargassum watch warns of incoming seaweed. Eos. 2016;97:10–15. doi: 10.1029/2016EO058355. - DOI

Substances