STATISTICAL OPTIMIZATION OF EXOPOLYSACCHARIDE PRODUCTION BY Frateuria aurentia

Exopolysaccharide producing bacteria was isolated from elephant dung sample collected from Shenbagathoophu hills, Srivilliputhur taluk, Tamilnadu. Biochemical characterization and 16S rRNA gene sequencing were done to identify the organism Frateuria aurentia. The optimal level of the key variables (jaggary, glutamine and ferric chloride) used to determine the effect of their interactions on EPS production using the statistical tool (CCD of RSM). The second-order quadratic model with the optimum conditions (Jaggery1%, Ferric chloride 0.02% and glutamine 0.2%). The nearness of the coefficient of determination (R2=0.8716) to 1 ensures the satisfactory adjustment of the quadratic model to the experimental data. The bacterial EPS recovered from optimized medium was 231 ± 0.8 mg/100ml of dry weight respectively.