Exploration of indigenous agrowastes for cellulase production by Aspergillus niger

Regional agrowastes such as Vigna mungo, Saccharum spontaneum and Brassica campestris were collected and biohydrolysis of these substrates for cellulase production were carried out by Aspergillus niger. Proximate composition of each agrowastes was analyzed based on dry weight, to have an insight view of their chemical composition. Cellulose content of S. spontaneum and B. campestris was calculated as 43.1 ± 2.8 and 39.4 ± 3.1%, respectively, while cellulase activity of A. niger was found to be higher on S. spontaneum. Low lignin to cellulose ratio of S. spontaneum made it a preferred substrate for cellulase production. However, high lignin content of B. campestris made the cellulose inaccessible and resulted in poor yield of enzyme. Therefore, S. spontaneum has a great potential to serve as a cheaper, easily available and reasonable substrate for cellulase production.Key words: Agrowastes, cellulase, indigenous, Vigna mungo, Saccharum spontaneum, Brassica campestris