# Valorization of Residual Babassu Mesocarp To Obtain Lipases and Laccases by Solid-State Fermentation

## TL;DR

This study shows that waste from babassu palm can be used to produce valuable enzymes through a simple fermentation process.

## Contribution

The first demonstration of using residual babassu mesocarp for lipase and laccase production via solid-state fermentation.

## Key findings

- Maximum lipase activity was achieved using G. candidum on in natura babassu mesocarp with 7 salts and glucose.
- Laccase activity was highest with T. harzianum on defatted babassu mesocarp using 7 salts and glucose.
- Laccase production was first demonstrated with G. candidum on defatted babassu mesocarp.

## Abstract

The growing life
expectancy of the world’s population has
demanded more significant inputs of food and energy, stimulating the
industrialization of agriculture, with the subsequent generation of
residual lignocellulosic biomass of various kinds, where new technologies
for its valorization and reinsertion into the production chain are
essential. Babassu (Attalea speciosa Mart. Ex Spreng), a palm native to the north and northeast of Brazil,
plays a critical role in the economic development of these regions,
with notable applications in the oil industry, generating large quantities
of residual babassu mesocarp (BM). In this study, BM was investigated
as a matrix for the production of lipases and laccases, enzymes of
great biotechnological importance, by solid-state fermentation (SSF)
with Trichoderma harzianum (IOC4042)
and Geotrichum candidum (CCT1205).
The in natura (IN-BM) and defatted (DEF-BM) materials were fermented
with hydration solutions containing 3–7 salts, combined with
glucose or sucrose. The best enzyme activity results were obtained
with solutions of 7 salts and glucose, where maximum lipase activity
was demonstrated by G. candidum IN-BM
(33.14 ± 0.017 U·mL–1) and the laccase
activity by T. harzianum in DEF-BM
(0.524 ± 0.016 U·mL–1). Laccase production
was also demonstrated for the first time with G. candidum in DEF-BM (0.441 ± 0.069 U·mL–1). The
results showed for the first time that residual babassu mesocarp is
a promising matrix for the bioproduction of lipases and laccases by G. candidum and T. harzianum through a simple and competitive methodology, adding value to an
agro-industrial waste.