Medium design from corncob hydrolyzate for pigment production by Talaromyces atroroseus GH2: Kinetics modeling and pigments characterization

The genusTalaromyceshas gained attention due to its ability to produce pigments with potential industrialapplications in different areas. Prosperous application of fungal pigments has challenges to overcome, like de-veloping a cost-effective bioprocess. Using agroindustrial wastes could provide inexpensive substrates and itcontributes to maximize sustainability. Therefore, this study evaluated the feasibility of using corncob as a low-cost substrate for pigment production byTalaromyces atroroseusGH2. An acid hydrolysis treatment was used torelease sugars from corncob. Corncob liquors with enough xylose concentration (> 20 g/L) were investigated asfermentation media with and without the addition of nutrients. Process kinetic modeling was applied andpigments produced in corncob and control media were characterized. The diluted hydrolyzate without nutrientsupplementation showed a pigment production (16.17 ± 0.37 OD500nm) comparable to the control medium(17.26 ± 0.41 OD500nm).Talaromyces atroroseusGH2 was able to co-utilize xylose and glucose in the corncob-based medium. However, growth kinetics patterns differed in both media. In the hydrolyzate medium, biomassgrowth presented an extended lag phase, which requires reduction for future process optimization. Finally,characterized pigments differed among evaluated media, but the pigments produced byTalaromyces atroroseusGH2 were mostlyMonascus’pigments homologous like monascorubrin and rubropunctamine.TalaromycesatroroseusGH2 ability to produce pigments using corncob hydrolyzate makes it a pigment-producing strain foran economically competitive large fermentation scale