Development of a biocatalytic process for the isolation of noncellulosic B-glucans from yeast cell wall by-products

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The bio-ingredients division of Lallemand has partnered with researchers in the Food Science and Agricultural Chemistry Department at McGill University to develop an efficient and sustainable biocatalytic process for the preparation of the yeast cell wall-based glucan bioingredient. Noncellulosic ß-glucans widely distributed in the cell walls of Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast constitute a class of bioactive molecules, whose potential health benefits are increasingly being recognized and are of great importance in food, pharmaceutical, and feed industries. The isolation of ß-glucan with a minimum structural degradation is particularly challenging because of the complex microfibrillar nature of yeast cell wall. In this CRD project, the synergistic interactions between selected multi-enzymatic products will be explored for the isolation of ß-glucan. In addition, the understanding of the relationships between the synergistic interactions of multi-enzymatic products and the structural properties of ß-glucans is expected to provide the fundamental and technological base for the isolation of these ingredients targeting specific structural and functional properties. The successful completion of this project will allow for the improvement of Lallemand's high value-added Fibosel bioingredient and broaden its application beyond animal-feed applications. In a more global perspective, the development of a biocatalytic process applicable in the food ingredient industry for high-yield production of well-defined bioactive molecules of great potential health benefits as functional ingredients is both timely and of considerable potential benefit to Canada in light of the current demand for functional foods to improve the public health. In economic terms, such innovations will assist the Agri-Food sector, which is the second largest industry in Canada, in maintaining its position in an increasingly competitive marketplace.