An Arthrobacter strain isolated from desert soils in the region of Shule River (China) can convert cellulose to potential biofuels

In this study, an Arthrobacter strain from desert soils in the Shule River Valley was isolated, China, which has a strong ability to convert cellulose to potential biofuel. In total, from five soil sample sites, six strains were isolated that grew well on CMC-Agar medium, with colony diameters ranging from 3~4 mm, among them, one strain had a strong ability to produce biofuels. Based on morphological and phylogenetic analyses, the isolate was identified as Arthrobacter nitroguajacolicus strain SLP1. The chemical properties of the biofuel extracted from the fermentation broth of strain SLP1 were analysed by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. A total of 41 kinds of carbon compounds were identified, of those, five were detected at peak concentration and the carbon numbers ranged from C 16 –C 22 , which can be classified as alkanes, alkenes, and alcohols. Furthermore, biofuel-producing ability of strain SLP1 was enhanced using NTG mutagen. In a total of 94 mutant strains, four show the most enhanced biofuel production relative to the original strain. Biofuel production conditions were optimized by growing the four mutant strains on LB-Agar and SS-Agar medium.