Glycerol Conversion to D-Xylulose by a Two-stage Microbial Reaction Using Candida parapsilosis and Gluconobacter oxydans

Abstract

A yeast strain, 25N-2B, that produces D-arabitol from glycerol, was identified as Candida parapsilosis based on phylogenetic, morphological, physiological, and biochemical analyses. It produced 32.2 g/L D-arabitol from 170 g/L glycerol in a jar fermentor. The D-arabitol in the reaction mixture was then completely converted to D-xylulose using Gluconobacter oxydans NBRC3293. The product was isolated from the reaction mixture and confirmed to be D-xylulose by ¹H and ¹³C-NMR and optical rotation.