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Updated: Apr 23, 2026

Techniques for the Evolution of Robust Pentose-fermenting Yeast for Bioconversion of Lignocellulose to Ethanol
Published on: October 24, 2016
Mineral composition of the sugarcane juice and its influence on the ethanol fermentation
Rafael Barros de Souza1, João Assis S de Menezes, Raquel de Fátima Rodrigues de Souza
1Interdepartmental Research Group in Metabolic Engineering, Department of Genetics, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235, 50670-901, Recife, PE, Brazil.
Abstract:
In the present work, we evaluated the mineral composition of three sugarcane varieties from different areas in northeast Brazil and their influence on the fermentation performance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The mineral composition was homogeneous in the different areas investigated. However, large variation coefficients were observed for concentrations of copper, magnesium, zinc and phosphorus. Regarding the fermentation performances, the sugarcane juices with the highest magnesium concentration showed the highest ethanol yield. Synthetic media supplemented with magnesium also showed the highest yield (0.45 g g(-1)) while the excess of copper led to the lowest yield (0.35 g g(-1)). According to our results, the magnesium is the principal responsible for the increase on the ethanol yield, and it also seems to be able to disguise the inhibitory effects of the toxic minerals present in the sugarcane juice.
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