Optimization of Pigment Production: Case of Chromobacterium violaceum and Serratia marcescens

Abstract

Due to the high cost of the technology currently used for pigment production on an industrial scale, there is a need to develop a low cost process such as the use of agricultural-waste residues as growth medium, instead of the typical expensive synthetic medium. The use of these nutrient-rich agricultural wastes, which is renewable, abundant and easily available, even offers the potential for the production of value-added products such as specialty chemicals, biofuels and bioplastics. It also provides an ingenious way of protecting the environment by reducing the amount of waste to be treated, hence reducing the threat of envi- ronmental contamination. However, the pigment-producing bacteria needs to be adapted to grow in these agricultural-waste residues taking into consideration important growth parameters such as temperature, growth medium and light. Temperature is an important factor as it influences metabolic activities and microbial growth, light may influence the production of photosensitive pigment (directly affecting pigment intensity) while knowledge on the bacterial ability to grow either in solid or liquid growth medium is essential to ensure most of the available agricultural-waste residues can be effectively utilized as growth medium.