Simple one-step treatment for saccharification of mango peels using an optimized enzyme cocktail of Aspergillus niger ATCC 9642.

Developing efficient microbiological methods to convert polysaccharide-rich materials into fermentable sugars, particularly monosaccharides, is vital for advancing the bioeconomy and producing renewable chemicals and energy sources. This study focused on optimizing the production conditions of an enzyme cocktail from Aspergillus niger ATCC 9642 using solid-state fermentation (SSF) and assessing its effectiveness in saccharifying mango peels through a simple, rapid, and efficient one-step process. A rotatable central composite design was employed to determine optimal conditions of moisture, time, and pH for enzyme production in SSF medium. The optimized enzyme cocktail exhibited cellulase activity (CMCase) at 6.28 U/g, filter paper activity (FPase) at 3.29 U/g, and pectinase activity at 117.02 U/g. These optimal activities were achieved with an SSF duration of 81 h, pH of 4.66, and a moisture content of 59%. The optimized enzyme cocktail effectively saccharified the mango peels without the need for chemical agents. The maximum saccharification yield reached approximately 81%, indicating efficient conversion of mango peels into sugars. The enzyme cocktail displayed consistent thermal stability within the tested temperature range of 30-60°C. Notably, the highest sugar release occurred within 36 h, with glucose, arabinose, galactose, and xylose being the primary monosaccharides released during saccharification. This study highlights the potential application of Aspergillus niger ATCC 9642 and SSF for enzymatic production, offering a simple and high-performance process for monosaccharide production. The optimized enzyme cocktail obtained through solid-state fermentation demonstrated efficient saccharification of mango peels, suggesting its suitability for industrial-scale applications.

The emergence of hybrid cellulose nanomaterials as promising biomaterials.

Cellulose nanomaterials (CNs) are promising green materials due to their unique properties as well as their environmental benefits. Among these materials, cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) and nanocrystals (CNCs) are the most extensively researched types of CNs. While they share some fundamental properties like low density, biodegradability, biocompatibility, and low toxicity, they also possess unique differentiating characteristics such as morphology, rheology, aspect ratio, crystallinity, mechanical and optical properties. Therefore, numerous comparative studies have been conducted, and recently, various studies have reported the synergetic advantages resulting from combining CNF and CNC. In this review, we initiate by addressing the terminology used to describe combinations of these and other types of CNs, proposing "hybrid cellulose nanomaterials" (HCNs) as the standardized classifictation for these materials. Subsequently, we briefly cover aspects of properties-driven applications and the performance of CNs, from both an individual and comparative perspective. Next, we comprehensively examine the potential of HCN-based materials, highlighting their performance for various applications. In conclusion, HCNs have demonstraded remarkable success in diverse areas, such as food packaging, electronic devices, 3D printing, biomedical and other fields, resulting in materials with superior performance when compared to neat CNF or CNC. Therefore, HCNs exhibit great potential for the development of environmentally friendly materials with enhanced properties.