Characterization and Cytotoxic Effect of Biosurfactants Obtained from Different Sources

In this work, five biosurfactant extracts, obtained from different sources, all of them with demonstrated antimicrobial properties, were characterized and subjected to a cytotoxic study using mouse fibroblast cells (NCTC clone 929). Biosurfactant extracts obtained directly from corn steep water (CSW) showed similar surfactant characteristics to those of the extracellular biosurfactant extract produced by Bacillus isolated from CSW and grown in tryptic soy broth, observing that they are amphoteric, consisting of viscous and yellowish liquid with no foaming capacity. Contrarily, cell-bound biosurfactant extracts produced from Lactobacillus pentosus or produced by Bacillus sp isolated from CSW are nonionic, consisting of a white powder with foaming capacity. All the biosurfactants possess a similar fatty acid composition. The cytotoxic test revealed that the extracts under evaluation, at a concentration of 1 g/L, were not cytotoxic for fibroblasts (fibroblast growth > 90%). The biosurfactant extract obtained from CSW with ethyl acetate, at 1 g/L, showed the highest cytotoxic effect but above the cytotoxicity limit established by the UNE-EN-ISO10993-5. It is remarkable that the cell-bound biosurfactant produced by L. pentosus, at a concentration of 1 g/L, promoted the growth of the fibroblast up to 113%.