Enhanced bacterial cellulose production from Gluconobacter xylinus using super optimal broth

The bacterial cellulose (BC) produced by Gluconobacter xylinus due to its versatile properties, is used in healthcare and industrial applications. However, its use is restricted owing to the limited yield from the existing culture protocols. In the current study, BC production is studied in the presence of Super Optimal Broth with catabolite repression (SOC) medium which is used to revive Escherichia coli cells after electroporation or chemoporation. In SOC medium, Gluconobacter xylinus produces cellulose pellicles within 5 days of incubation with an enhanced conversion of the carbon source to cellulose compared to traditional Hestrin–Schramm (HS) medium. SOC medium also maintains the pH close to 7.0 in static cultures unlike in HS medium where the pH is acidic. The physico-chemical and morphological characteristics of the BC produced in SOC are determined using powder X-ray diffraction (pXRD), thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) and Barrett–Joyner–Halenda (BJH), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses. Our results indicate that SOC enhance the yield of bacterial cellulose and allows conversion of 50% of the carbon source to bacterial cellulose, compared to only 7% conversion in the case of traditional HS medium after 7 days of interaction. We also observe an increase in hydration capacity of BC produced using SOC as compared to HS media.