Treatment of rice straw with selected Cyathus stercoreus strains to improve enzymatic saccharification

Seventeen Cyathus stercoreus isolates were tested for their ability to treat rice straw for improved enzymatic saccharification. These isolates showed a negative correlation between cellulase and xylanase activity and enzymatic saccharification yields. Incubation of rice straw pretreated at 60 °C for 15 min with strain C. stercoreus TY-2 for 25 days resulted in an enzymatic saccharification yield of 57% as compared to a yield of 11% for the same straw in the absence of the fungus. These findings highlight the potential of this isolate for biological pretreatment of rice straw under conditions of low energy input.

► 17 newly isolated Cyathus stercoreus strains were screened for their ability to improve saccharification of rice straw. ► The best strain TY-2 increased the enzymatic saccharification yield up to 57%. ► Enzymatic saccharification yields and cellulase and xylanase activities exhibited negative correlations.