Bacterial cellulose: Strategies for its production in the context of bioeconomy

Abstract

Bacterial cellulose has advantages over plant‐derived cellulose, which make its use for industrial applications easier and more profitable. Its intrinsic properties have been stimulating the global biopolymer market, with strong growth expectations in the coming years. Several bacterial species are capable of producing bacterial cellulose under different culture conditions; in this context, strategies aimed at metabolic engineering and several possibilities of carbon sources have provided opportunities for the bacterial cellulose's biotechnological exploration. In this article, an overview of biosynthesis pathways in different carbon sources for the main producing microorganisms, metabolic flux under different growth conditions, and their influence on the structural and functional characteristics of bacterial cellulose is provided. In addition, the main industrial applications and ways to reduce costs and optimize its production using alternative sources are discussed, contributing to new insights on the exploitation of this biomaterial in the context of the bioeconomy.

Production of Bacterial Exopolysaccharides: Xanthan and Bacterial Cellulose

“…Statistical methods have been applied systematically to optimize xanthan and BC production parameters [89][90][91][92][93][94][95][96][97][98]. A recent interesting review by Rocha et al (2023) presents the main BC biosynthesis processes and strategies to optimize its production at industrial scale for the purposes of bioeconomy [99]. Xanthan is produced through submerged aerobic fermentation under dynamic conditions.…”

“…The availability of TS to increase the BC yield was studied [112,194,195]. Organic acids, glycerol, and ethanol are known from the literature to have a positive effect on BC production [99,112]. For instance, rice wine stillage containing organic acids was applied as an additive to the HS medium to increase cellulose yield.…”

“…Overall, the ABE fermentation wastewater had a high COD value (18,050 mg/L). The previous literature reports demonstrated the secondary substrates or supplements (organic acids, ethanol, butanol) to be essential to facilitate BC production [99,112,196,197]. Huang et al (2015) used the wastewater generated by fermentation broth distillation after ABE fermentation without any pretreatment or adding nutrients as the substrate for BC production using G. xylinus [197].…”

Design and Development of a Novel Tray Bioreactor for Optimization of Bacterial Nano-cellulose Production

“…Many studies have shown that various methods such as stirred and static culture, and cultivation in horizontal or vertical bioreactors can remarkably reduce the production cost and increase the productivity per unit of time The productivity and effective large-scale production of BNC depends on various factors comprising inoculation conditions, carbon and nitrogen sources, bacterial species, type of bioreactor and cultivation process, etc. [4][5][6].…”

“…Static culture is relatively simple and the method of producing a thin cellulose shell is widely used. The culture medium is placed in shallow trays; inoculation is carried out for 5-20 days until the cellulose almost lls the culture container [4,7]. In recent years, the interest in the production of BC from surface culture has continuously increased due to its potential for use in medicine and cosmetics [4,5].…”