Biocatalytic Transformation of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural into 2,5-di(hydroxymethyl)furan by a Newly Isolated <i>Fusarium striatum</i> Strain

Abstract

The compound 2,5-di(hydroxymethyl)furan (DHMF) is a high-value chemical block that can be synthesized from 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), a platform chemical that results from the dehydration of biomass-derived carbohydrates. In this work, the HMF biotransformation capability of different Fusarium species was evaluated, and F. striatum was selected to produce DHMF. The effects of the inoculum size, glucose concentration and pH of the media over DHMF production were evaluated by a 23 factorial design. A substrate feeding approach was found suitable to overcome the toxicity effect of HMF towards the cells when added at high concentrations (>75 mM). The process was successfully scaled-up at bioreactor scale (1.3 L working volume) with excellent DHMF production yields (95%) and selectivity (98%). DHMF was purified from the reaction media with high recovery and purity by organic solvent extraction with ethyl acetate.

Keywords

• 5-hydroxymethylfurfural
• biocatalysis
• 2,5-di(hydroxymethyl)furan
• <i>Fusarium</i>
• whole cells
• biotransformation