Hwee Li Teo, Roswanira Abdul Wahab, Mohd Hamdi Zainal-Abidin, Wun Fui Mark-Lee, Fahrul Huyop, Evi Susanti, Naji Arafat Mahat, Aida Rasyidah Azman
This study aimed to identify the ideal conditions for producing extracellular enzymes of Trichoderma harzianum and Aspergillus fumigatus by solid-state fermentation using untreated oil palm leaves as the substrate. The solid-state fermentation (SSF) process, which produces high yields of the fungal enzymes, was optimised for parameters, such as initial medium pH, initial moisture content, and inoculum size, via a three-level-three-factor Box-Behnken design (BBD). Results revealed that the fermentation medium’s initial moisture content significantly impacted the fungal enzymes’ activities, followed by the inoculum size and initial basal pH. The T. harzianum produced cellulases at optimal SSF conditions of pH 6, an inoculum size of 5 × 107 spore/g substrate, and 60% moisture content, yielding 347.15 ± 15.94 U/g EGase, 20.80 ± 1.55 U/g BGase, and 221.55 ± 10.41 U/g FPase. Conversely, the A. fumigatus required a different optimised condition, viz. 1.25 × 108 spore/g substrate and a 60% initial moisture content at pH 3 for the highest xylanase and β-glucosidase yield at 388.88 ± 19.01 U/g and 18.74 ± 1.84 U/g, respectively. Additionally, the study discovered that the freeze-drying method enables long-term enzyme storage possible, preserving the enzymatic activities up to 93.27%. The study findings conveyed that the T. harzianum and A. fumigatus are prolific endoglucanase and xylanase producers, with possible use for agro-biomass saccharification to produce biofuel. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2024.
Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, 81310, Malaysia; Enzyme Technology and Green Synthesis Group, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, 81310, Malaysia; Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre (AMTEC), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, 81310, Malaysia; Research Center for Quantum Engineering Design, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universitas Airlangga, Jl. Mulyorejo, Surabaya, 60115, Indonesia; Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, 81310, Malaysia; Biotechnology Program, Department of Applied Science, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Malang, Malang, 65145, Indonesia; Centre for Sustainable Nanomaterials, Ibnu Sina Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, 81310, Malaysia; Centre for Research for Fiqh Forensics and Judiciary, Faculty of Syariah and Law, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, Negeri Sembilan, Nilai, 71800, Malaysia
