Ethanol production from chitosan by the nematophagous fungus Pochonia chlamydosporia and the entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana

Author

AlmudenaMiguel ÁngelNaranjo OrtizbIsabel SofíaAbihssira GarcíaaErnesto A.Zavala-GonzalezaLuis VicenteLopez-Llorcaa

a

Laboratory of Plant Pathology, Department of Marine Sciences and Applied Biology, Multidisciplinary Institute for Environmental Studies Ramón Margalef, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain

b

Centre for Genomic Regulation Comparative Genomics Group, Barcelona, Spain

Received 3 March 2017, Revised 14 June 2017, Accepted 21 July 2017, Available online 25 July 2017.

Abstract

Chitin is the second most abundant biopolymer after cellulose and virtually unexplored as raw material for bioethanol production. In this paper, we investigate chitosan, the deacetylated form of chitin which is the main component of shellfish waste, as substrate for bioethanol production by fungi. Fungal parasites of invertebrates such as the nematophagous Pochonia chlamydosporia (Pc) or the entomopathogens Beauveria bassiana (Bb) and Metarhizium anisopliae (Ma) are biocontrol agents of plant parasitic nematodes (eg. Meloidogyne spp.) or insect pests such as the red palm weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus). These fungi degrade chitin-rich barriers for host penetration. We have therefore tested the chitin/chitosanolytic capabilities of Pc, Bb and Ma for generating reducing sugars using chitosan as only nutrient. Among the microorganisms used in this study, Pc is the best chitosan degrader, even under anaerobic conditions. These fungi have alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and pyruvate decarboxylase (PDC) encoding genes in their genomes. We have therefore analyzed their ethanol production under anaerobic conditions using chitosan as raw material. P. chlamydosporia is the largest ethanol producer from chitosan. Our studies are a starting point to develop chitin-chitosan based biofuels.

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