Production of Mycoprotein by Aspergillus tubingensis NNIBRFG24257 Isolated from the Freshwater Environment

Mycoprotein is a whole protein derived from filamentous fungi biomass. The freshwater fungi isolated and identified from the freshwater environment were compared with the list of strains used in food ingredient production registered in domestic and foreign food safety institutions, and 78 strains were selected and tested. Among these, 10 strains having a protein content(> 2.5g/100g of mycelial wet weight) were selected as candidate strains for producing mycoprotein. Nutrient components of the mycelial biomass samples were compared using the literature data of ‘mycoprotein’, a protein obtained from Fusarium venenatum fermentation by Quorn, a British alternative meat company, as a control. Three candidate mycoprotein producing strains(Phlebiopsis gigantea NNIBRFG15516, Penicillium funiculosum NNIBRFG01597, Aspergillus tubingensis NNIBRFG24257) were selected. Among these, A. tubingensis is generally recognized as safe(GRAS) by the American food and drug administration(FDA). This species is notable for the production enzymes such amylase, lipase, glucose oxidase, phytase, xylanase, acid phosphatase and xylosidase production. In this study, agricultural by-products(soybean meal, ssame meal, and perilla seed meal) were evaluated as carbon sources to produce mycoprotein with low cost using Aspergillus tubingensis NNIBRFG24257.