Enzymatic depolymerization of arabinoxylan from bamboo culm for high and fast production of high purity short chain xylo-oligosaccharides

The economically viable and sustainable production of xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS) still challenges researchers. The enzymatic hydrolysis of the hemicellulosic fraction is one of the most investigated methods, since it is a more efficient process, easier to control, and less harmful to the environment, which are the main variables to be investigated. This study evaluated the application of the bamboo culm of Dendrocalamus latiflorus in optimizing xylo-oligosaccharides production by the enzymatic hydrolysis of arabinoxylan extracted from this plant matrix using a low-cost commercial enzyme cocktail. Applying a 2% substrate load, 50 °C temperature, pH 5.0, enzymatic load of 7.5 mg of protein/g of xylan, for only 24 h of hydrolysis were the ideal conditions to obtain a high concentration of short-chain xylo-oligosaccharides, especially xylobiose and xylotriose (oligomers with greater prebiotic effect). The low amount of xylose and the lack of inhibitory compounds such as furfural and hydroxymethylfurfural also indicate the high purity of the XOS obtained (~ 97%) without the need for purification processes that could raise costs and make the process economically unfeasible.