Production and Evaluation of Chitosan from Aspergillus Niger MTCC Strains

Three different Aspergillus Niger MTCC strains (872, 1785 and 2208) were used for the production of chitosan. Multivariate growth mediums in varying incubation periods were analyzed for the production. The produced chitosan was characterized by its physical appearance, moisture content (by means of gravimetric method), percentage of ash and solubility (through the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists (AOAC) methods) and also the degree of deacetylation (with Infra red spectroscopy). The infrared (IR) spectrum of produced fungal chitosan shows strong similarity with the IR spectrum of commercial chitosan. Our experimental results concluded that the maximum yield of chitosan (26.1%) was obtained from Aspergillus niger MTCC 2208 grown in supplemented Potato Dextrose Broth (PDB) medium, incubated at 30°C for 120 h in 180 rpm. The antimicrobial activity of produced chitosan was tested against five bacteria by Disc diffusion technique, which confirmed that chitosan have minimal antimicrobial activity.