Xanthan Gum Production and Structure

In nature, microbial polysaccharides are essential components of biofilms, which are the main support form of life on earth (Flemming et al. in Nat Rev Microbiol 14:563–575, 2016), and microorganisms’ lifestyle (Penesyan et al. in NPJ Biofilms Microbiomes 5:34, 2019). These biofilms contain microbial cells that are fixed within a self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substances, which are composed of polysaccharides, proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids (Powell et al. in NPJ Biofilms Microbiomes 29:13, 2018). The relative composition and molecular structure of these polymeric substances vary depending on the producing microorganism and the environmental conditions (e.g., fluid chemistry, pressure, and temperature). Therefore, depending on the potential industrial application, different industrial fermentation processes can be adopted.