Search

Highlights • Wheat gluten hydrolysates (WGH) and soy protein hydrolysates (SPH) were prepared. • WGH and SPH exhibited significant yeast growth and fermentation promoting activity. • The bioactivity was not linear with the degree of hydrolysis and addition amount. • Bioactivity of hydrolysates was related to the molecular structure characteristics. • Glu, Leu, Lys and Arg in hydrolysates were responsible for their bioactivity. Abstract Wheat gluten hydrolysates (WGH) and soy protein hydrolysates (SPH) were used to examine their effects on the growth and fermentation performance of yeast during high-gravity fermentation. Results showed that both the kind and the addition amount of hydrolysates had significant impacts on the biomass, viability, fermentability and ethanol yield of yeast cells. Worts supplemented with WGH and SPH (with the hydrolysis time of 24 h and 12 h, and the addition amount of 1.0% and 0.1%, respectively) increased 5.5% and 12.6% of net cell growth, 0.3% and 1.1% of fermentability, and 19.3% (v/v) and 23.7% (v/v) of ethanol yields, respectively. All these results indicated that both hydrolysates were effective and preferential nitrogen sources for yeast growth and fermentation. The moderate molecular weight distribution, the complexity of nitrogen source and the higher hydrophilic and basic amino acids contents in hydrolysates might be responsible for their specific bioactivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A co-fermentation process involving Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Fusarium oxysporum was studied, using hydrothermally pretreated wheat straw as substrate. In the first step of the study, we examined liquefaction of the material in a free-fall reactor. Both the enzyme loading and the dry matter content affected severely the liquefaction efficiency. In the second step (simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) experiments), we found that the enzymatic system of F. oxysporum contributed significantly to substrate hydrolysis, while its metabolic system played a secondary role in fermentation. SSF in the presence of F. oxysporum cells and enzymes gave 62 g L −1 ethanol. In the third step of the study, a semi-consolidated bioprocess was designed in which F. oxysporum culture (submerged or solid-state) was added at the SSF stage along with S. cerevisiae . The addition of solid F. oxysporum culture increased ethanol production by 19%, leading to a final ethanol concentration of 58 g L −1 . The present study proposes a semi-consolidated process combining two microorganisms for the fermentation at high solids concentration of a liquefied material using an in house free fall mixing reactor. The semi-consolidated process proposed not only increased the ethanol yields significantly, but could also lead to lower overall cost of the process by incorporating in-situ enzyme production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]