The Use of Brewer′S Spent Grains in the Cultivation of Some Fungal Isolates

Abstract

The use of brewery spent grains in the cultivation of some fungal isolates was investigated. Five fungal isolates namely: Rhizopus stolonifer, Rhizopus oligosporus, Mucor racemosus, Aspergillus niger and Mucor rouxii were selected. The growth and performance of these micro organisms were observed on substrate formulated from spent grains, while commercial yeast extract was used as a control of the experiment. Dry biomass were obtained were obtained using standard procedures and pellet sizes were determined by diameter measurement. The isolates showed best growth on sub-strate containing spent grains and commercial yeast powder. Aspergillus niger showed the highest extension growth of 380mm at 144hrs in 0.9% w/ v of spent grains and yeast powder combination in the ratio 1: 1. The biomass production by each micro organisms peaked at the 90th hour.