Cellulose Synthase in Atacama Cyanobacteria and Bioethanol Production from Their Exopolysaccharides
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2023
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Cyanobacteria produce exopolysaccharides (EPSs) as an adaptative mechanism against
ultraviolet radiation and desiccation. Cellulose is present in the extracellular polymeric substance in
some cyanobacteria genera and it has been proposed as a raw material for biofuel production. The
goal of this work was to evaluate the cellulose presence in EPS of Atacama cyanobacteria strains
and its use as an alternative and innovative biological source to produce bioethanol. The presence
of cellulose was evaluated using techniques of molecular biology, bioinformatics, and electronic
microscopy. The conserved motif D,D,D,35QXXRW, characteristic of processive -glycosyltransferase
in all cellulose-producing organisms, was identified in the genome of the LLA-10 strain. This is
evidence that cellulose synthase in the LLA-10 strain is a functional enzyme. EPS from Atacama
cyanobacteria was hydrolyzed by -glucosidases (cellobiase and cellulase) and the released glucose
was yeast-fermented to ethanol. Ethanol production reached 172.69 0.02 mg ethanol/g EPS after
48 h of incubation. These results are the first step in the evaluation of EPS produced by native
cyanobacteria isolated from northern Chile for future biotechnological applications such as the
production of bioethanol.