Utilização do soro de leite em bioprocesso para a produção de goma xantana

Abstract

Whey resulting from cheese production is often disposed of in the environment as waste. However, due to its composition (rich in lactose, proteins and salts), it stands out as a substrate that can be used in various biotechnological processes. Xanthan gum is a biopolymer used mainly as thickener and emulsifier in several industrial segments, synthesized by bacteria of the genus Xanthomonas. The use of alternative substrates such as cheese whey, besides being an environmentally friendly alternative, can reduce the costs of xanthan gum production. The objective of this work was to produce and characterize xanthan gums synthesized by strains of Xantomonas campestris using two culture media: sterile whey (SW) and deproteinized whey (DW). The strains of Xanthomonas campestris pv. manihotis n. 1182 (Xc1182), pv. campestris n. 1866 (Xc1866), pv. mangiferaindicae n. 1230 (Xc1230) and pv. pruni n. 2414 (Xc2414) were applied.The whey used in the experiment was not supplemented and the bacterial inoculum was produced in a lactose-based medium, which differentiates the present study from the vast majority of published studies that used whey to produce xanthan gum. The xanthan gums produced (XGs) were analyzed for the mass obtained and were characterized by color, rheological behavior and near infrared spectral profile (NIR) using a standard xanthan gum as the control. The highest xanthan gum production was 7.89 g.L-1 in DW for Xc1230 strain. The lowest production was 3.65 g.L-1 in SW for Xc1866 strain. In DW there was no significant difference in the production amount of xanthan gum between the strains. In SW the production of xanthan gum was significantly higher for strains Xc1182 and Xc1230. The amount of xanthan gum produced by Xc2414 was significantly higher in DW (6.08 g.L-1) than in SW (4.09 g.L-1). The culture medium influenced the color analysis results, and the XGs produced in the DW presented greater similarity to the color of the standard gum. In the rheological analysis, the XGs showed pseudoplastic fluid behavior. However, there was no difference between strains or between culture media tested. An equivalence of the NIR spectra of the experimental samples was observed between the culture media tested, although both showed differences from the standard sample. The differences observed suggest the need for a purification step with the experimental samples. The results indicate an advantage of the use of deproteinized whey, related to the color of the biopolymer obtained. The study generated useful knowledge applicable to the development of improved methods for the obtention and characterization of xanthan gum from whey.