Maximum saccharification of cellulose complex by an enzyme cocktail supplemented with cellulase from newly isolated Aspergillus fumigatus ECU0811.

Either the natural biodegradation process or the industrial hydrolytic process requires synergistic interactions between various cellulases. However, it is sometimes impeded by low hydrolytic rate of existing cellulases and the lack of accessory enzymes. Herein, the ability of a commercial cellulase (Spezyme CP, from Genencor) to degrade steam explosion-pretreated corn stover was significantly improved. Firstly, a fungal cellulase producer, Aspergillus fumigatus ECU0811, was isolated from hundreds of soil samples. A 96-deep-well microscale-based platform was developed here to reduce the labor-intensive screening work and proved to be consistent with macroscale screening work. After optimization of fermentation, 3% corn cob could induce A. fumigatus ECU0811 to yield the highest cellulase production. Based on the high activities of β-glucosidase and xylanase by A. fumigatus ECU0811, 0.91 and 125 U/mg protein, respectively, an enzyme cocktail was composed with a fixed dosage of Spezyme CP (CPCel) at 14.2 filter paper units (FPU)/g glucan and varied dosages of A. fumigatus cellulase (AFCel). Consequently, the glucan-to-glucose conversion of corn stover was increased from 25.6% in the presence of CPCel at a dosage of 14.2 FPU/g glucan to 99.5% in the presence of the enzyme cocktail (14.2 FPU CPCel plus 1.21 FPU AFCel per gram of glucan). On the other side, it reduced the total protein amount of CPCel by as much as tenfold, which extremely improved the hydrolytic rate of Spezyme CP and reduced its dosage.