3. Chitin contents of different organisms
Fungi %
Worms %
Squid %
Scorpions %
Spiders %
Cockroaches %
Silkworms %
Crabs %
Fungal source
No seasonal variation
Demineralization is not required during isolation
Homogenous preparation
Free of heavy metals as nickel, copper
Low molecular weight and low viscosity
High degree of deacetylation
High polydispersity
Useful to make tissue engineering scaffolds
Biocompatible
Have good mechanical, water absorption and lysozyme degradation properties
Not heavily melanised
Fungi are second largest group of organisms on earth
Estimated number - 15,00,000
Known species - 82,000
Zygomycetes are 1,056
(fungi containing more chitosan in the cell wall)
Non-zygomycetous plant and insect-pathogenic fungi have also chitosan in the cell wall for self defence from host chitinases

4. Three types of fungal sources
Use of waste mycelium from Mycotech industries
Fermentation of fungus for chitin/chitosan production
Fermentation of fungus for the production of chitin/chitosan and value
addition

5. Mycotech industries producing waste biomass
Brewing and baking Sacharomyces cerevisiae, Saccharomyces carlbergensis
Mushroom cultivation Agaricus bisporus, Auricularia sp., Flammulina velutipes, Lentinus edodes, Pleurotus sp., Volvariella volvacea
Antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals
(Penicillin, cephalosporin, cyclosporin, ergot alkaloids, griseofulvin mevalonin)
Aspergillus terreus , Cephalosporium acremonium,, Claviceps pupurea, Penicillium chrysogenum, Penicillium griseofulvum, Tolypocladium inflatum and others
Organic acids
(Citric acid, itaconic acid, lactic acid)
Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus terreus, Mucor rouxii , Rhizopus oryzae
Enzymes
(Amylase, cellulase, glucanase, glucoamylase, glucose oxidase, hemicellulase, laccase, lipase, pectinase, protease, rennet, tannase, xylanase)
Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus oryzae, Endothia parasitica , Mucor miehei, Penicillium emersonii , Penicillium funiculosum, Pyricularia oryzae, Rhizopus oryzae, Trichoderma reesei, Trichoderma viride to name a few
From citric acid production >80,000 tons of waste Aspergillus niger biomass per year is generated
In Australian wineries, > 800 tons yeast biomass is generated per year
Penicillin production > 80 % of the total yield of antibiotics.
1.2 million tons of bio waste, mainly Penicillium mycelial biomass per year
Mushroom waste- mainly stalks and mushrooms of irregular dimensions and shape. Approximately 50,000 metric tons of waste material per year ‎

6. Fungi studied for chitosan production
Chitosan % DDA
g/kg biomass
Zygomycetes
Absidia coerulea
Absidia glauca
Benjaminiella poitrasii
Cunninghamella bertholletiae
Gongrenella butleri
Mucour rouxii
Rhizopus arrhizus
Rhizopus oryzae

7. Agricultural industry
Use of fungi and fungal products for the control of insect pests and pathogens ( NCL work)
Use of conidia as mycoinsecticide
After solid state fermentation 70 g conidia and 5 g mycelial biomass are produced; Metarhizium anisopliae , chitosan, g/kg biomass; %DDA ,82
M. anisopliae
M34412: 67 g conidia / kg rice (4.4 x 1010 conidia/g)

8. Commercial chitosan 1M NaOH treatment CDA treatment
Another M. anisopliae strain produces extracellular CDA in submerged fermentation
Deacetylation of chitosan from marine sources using M. anisopliae CDA
Fungal biomass can be used for chitosan extraction
CDA treatment
1M NaOH treatment
Commercial chitosan
DDA-75%
DDA-80.8%
DDA-83.3%
1H-NMR spectra
Use of extracellular CDE/ME complex for biocontrol
After submerged fermentation 100 g enzyme complex and 100 g biomass
Myrothecium verrucaria , chitosan, 27 g/kg biomass; %DDA, 87

9. Advanced strain improvement method: Metabolic Engineering
Utilize metabolic engineering technologies to develop fungal strains with improved production capability for lactic acid by Rhizopus (Chitosan- enriched aqueous medium)
Metabolic engineering of the morphology of Aspergillus oryzae by altering chitin synthesis
Mycelial morphology affects the rheological properties of the cultivation medium
Metabolic engineering to produce higher biomass with higher chitosan contents

10. Epilouge Finally priority is important- Quantity in tons,kgs, or gram
Quality industrial/food /pharma grade
Ease of isolation protocol
Eco-friendly approach
Cost