Utilization of corncob xylan as a sole carbon source for the biosynthesis of endo-1,4-β xylanase from Aspergillus niger KIBGE-IB36

Abstract Background Xylan is a hemicellulose polysaccharide which is composed of β-1,4-linked d-xylosyl residues. Endo-1,4-β xylanase has the ability to cleave xylan back bone chains to release xylose residues. They are produced by a number of prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. Among them, filamentous fungi are attracting great attention due to high secretion of xylanolytic enzymes. Endo-1,4-β xylanase has wide industrial applications such as in animal feed, bread making, food and beverages, textile, bleaching of wood pulp, and biofuel production. Results In this study, different Aspergillus species were screened for the production of endo-1,4-β xylanase, and Aspergillus niger KIBGE-IB36 was selected for optimum production of enzyme in submerged fermentation technique. Influence of various fermentation conditions was investigated to produce high titer of endo-1,4-β xylanase. The results indicated that A. niger KIBGE-IB36 showed optimum production of endo-1,4-β xylanase at 30 °C, pH 8 after 6 days of incubation. Different macro- and micronutrients were also amalgamated in the fermentation medium to increase the enzyme production. The parametric optimization of endo-1,4-β xylanase resulted in tenfold increase after hydrolysis of 20 g L−1 corncob xylan. Conclusions The use of low-cost substrate approach for high production of endo-1,4-β xylanase has been developed successfully that can be consumed in different industrial applications especially in paper and pulp industry. Graphical abstract Production of Xylanase from Aspergillus niger KIBGE-IB36