Materials & Tech

·

Study

Split Gill Mushroom Turns Brewery Waste Into Useful Biopolymers

Split Gill Mushroom Turns Brewery Waste Into Useful Biopolymers

Split gill mushroom

What they found

Split gill mushroom grown on spent brewer's grain produced 7.3 g/L exopolysaccharides, nearly double the yield on glucose.

Split gill mushroom grown on spent brewer's grain produced 7.3 g/L exopolysaccharides, nearly double the yield on glucose.

The number

9.8 g/L biomass and 7.3 g/L exopolysaccharides

How solid is it?

Field study

Field study

Materials/engineering

Materials/engineering

Evidence ladder: Lab dish → Animal → Early human → Strong human. Reviews summarize earlier research.

At a glance

Latin name

Schizophyllum commune

Schizophyllum commune

Compound

β-glucans

β-glucans

Published in

International Journal of Biological Macromolecules

International Journal of Biological Macromolecules

Covered in Shroom Scan

Section

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

As it ran in Shroom Scan

Beer Waste

Beer Waste

Researchers grew split gill mushroom (Schizophyllum commune) on leftover brewer’s grain and achieved 9.8 g/L biomass and 7.3 g/L exopolysaccharides (EPS) in bioreactors—nearly double the yield compared to glucose media. The fungal EPS were rich in β-glucans (~44%), thermally stable, and showed gel-like, shear-thinning properties ideal for food or material applications. This study is the first to fully characterize beer waste as a sole feedstock for mushroom-derived biopolymers, pointing to a sustainable, circular bioeconomy.

Researchers grew split gill mushroom (Schizophyllum commune) on leftover brewer’s grain and achieved 9.8 g/L biomass and 7.3 g/L exopolysaccharides (EPS) in bioreactors—nearly double the yield compared to glucose media. The fungal EPS were rich in β-glucans (~44%), thermally stable, and showed gel-like, shear-thinning properties ideal for food or material applications. This study is the first to fully characterize beer waste as a sole feedstock for mushroom-derived biopolymers, pointing to a sustainable, circular bioeconomy.

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