Establishment of rumen-mimic bacterial consortia: A functional union for bio-hydrogen production from cellulosic bioresource

The study aimed to establish stable rumen-mimic bacterial consortia as a functional union for simultaneous saccharification and fermentation from cellulosic bioresource. The consortia was constructed by repeated-batch culture with ruminal microflora and napiergrass at 38 °C. The major bacterial composition of batch culture was monitored by 16S rRNA gene-targeted denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). The result showed that a stable consortia constituted by ruminal microflora was formed, and the consortia includes bacterial strains such as Clostridium xylanolyticum, Clostridium papyrosolvens, Clostridium beijerinckii, Ruminococcus sp., Ethanoligenens harbinense, and Desulfovibrio desulfuricans. The Clostridium genus was showed as the dominant population in the system and contributed to the biohydrogen production. During each eight days incubation period, the functional consortia could degrade an average of 27% hemicellulose and 2% cellulose from napiergrass biomass. While the increasing of the reducing sugars and their converting to biohydrogen gas productivity were also observed. The time course profile for cellulytic enzymes showed that the hydrolysis of complex lignocellulosic material may occur through the ordered actions of xylenase and cellulase activities.