Microbial production of hyaluronic acid from agricultural resource derivatives.

Agricultural resource derivatives (ARDs) such as hydrolysate soy protein concentrate (HSPC), whey protein concentrate (WPC), and cashew apple juice (CAJ) were studied with focus on the production of hyaluronic acid (HA) by Streptococcus zooepidemicus. Supplementation of the media with corn steep liquor (CSL) was also evaluated. Synthetic medium containing glucose and yeast extract was used as control. CAJ was a promising medium for the production of HA. It produced the highest amount of HA (0.89 g L(-1)), similar to that of the control (0.86 g L(-1)). WPC and HSPC media were the most effective for the production of biomass. CSL did not influence the production of HA when HSPC and WPC were used. However, in the synthetic medium it doubled the yield of HA from glucose. The average molecular weight of HA ranged from 10(3) to 10(4)Da for the ARDs and 10(7)Da for the synthetic medium. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.