Lignocellulose Biomass Degradation by microbial consortium Isolated from Harvested Rice Field

Lignocellulose is a renewable organic material and major structural component of all plants. Lignocellulose consists of three major components: cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. In addition, small amounts of other materials such as ash, proteins and pectin found in lignocellulosic residues in different degrees based on the source (Sanchez et al., 2009). Cellulose is major constituent of all plant material and most abundant organic molecule on the Earth. It is a linear biopolymer of an hydroglucopyranose-molecules, connected by -1, 4-glycosidic bonds. The coupling of adjacent cellulose chains by hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic interactions and Van der Waal's forces leads to a parallel alignment of crystalline structures known as microfibril. Hemicelluloses, the second most abundant component of lignocellulosic biomass, are heterogeneous polymers of pentoses (including xylose and arabinose), hexoses (mainly mannose, less glucose and galactose) and sugar acids. Composition of hemicelluloses is very variable in nature and depends on the plant source (Saha, 2003). Lignin, the third main heterogeneous polymer in lignocellulosic residues, generally contains three aromatic alcohols including coniferyl alcohol, sinapyl and pcoumaryl. Lignin acts as a barrier for any solutions or enzymes by linking to both hemicelluloses and cellulose and prevents penetration of lignocellulolytic enzymes to the interior lignocellulosic structure. Not surprisingly, lignin is the most recalcitrant component of lignocellulosic material to degrade (Sanchez et al., 2009). ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 4 Number 9 (2015) pp. 274-280 http://www.ijcmas.com