This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

No abstract

Soummam river sediments were used to isolate a biosurfactant-producing and petroleumdegrading bacterium. This strain was identified as Alcaligenes aquatilis YGD 2906 using phenotypic characterization and 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing. The culture supernatant of the isolated strain showed no haemolytic activity had an oiled displacement of 23.66 ± 0.57 mm and Emulsification index (E24) of 68.5% ± 0.5%. The biosurfactant produced in minimal medium was extracted by acid precipitation and quantified gravimetrically, with a yield of 4.2 ± 0.01 g / L. The crude Biosurfactant was determinate by TLC and MALDI-TOF-MS as a lipopeptide with protein and lipid content of8.49 ± 0.19% and 52.66 ± 1.16% respectively. This lipopeptide structure was confirmed by HPLC-MS/MS. This technique gave two main peak ranges which are typical of surfactins, iturins and fengycin. Tandem mass spectrometry was further used to elucidate the structure of the lipopeptide produced by the strain. The non-haemolytic nature of the lipopeptide produced by this strain offers opportunities for biomedical applications. Further work is needed to optimize production and analyze potential biomedical uses of this lipopeptide including antimicrobial properties.