• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.83-88
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• 1998

Heavy metal removal by Z. ramigera 115 and soluble slime polymer producing mutant Z. ramigera 115SLR was investigated. Both strains showed similar tolerance against $Cd^{2+}$, $Co^{2+}$, $Cu^{2+}$, $Ni^{2+}$ and $Fe^{2+}$. When cells were cultivated in the presence of 500 ppm $Cd^{2+}$, the mutant strain removed 1.5 fold more metal than the wild type did at same biomass. Metal adsorption capacities were in the order of Z. ramigera l15SLR polymer > Z. ramigera 115 polymer > Z. ramigera 115 cell >Z. ramigera l15SLR cell. The optimum pH for metal adsorption was 7.5. Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms indicated that Qmax and 1/n of Z. ramigera l15SLR polymer were 164.2 mg $Cd^{2+}$/g dw and 0.496, respectively. These results showed that the polymer of Z. ramigera l15SLR could be used as an effective metal adsorbate.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.264-269
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• 2002

The production of exopolysaccharide from Zoogloea ramigera 115SLR in batch culture was affected by carbon sources, rifampicin concentration, inoculum size and cell density of starter culture. The increase of organic nitrogen concentration and cell density in defined medium by adding starter culture resulted in higher production of exopolysaccharide (EPS) within 2 days. Glucose and lactose as carbon sources showed EPS production of 10.7 gk and 10.5 ga, respectively. Higher EPS production was obtained with 2.5% (w/v) glucose. White sugar, brown sugar and galactose produced less than 10 gt of EPS. The optical density of starter culture affected on EPS yield, producing over 10 gt of EPS in the range of 1.0-1.7. In the presence of rifsmpicin, Z. ramigera 115SLR produced EPS of 12.9 gt. Molecular weight of EPS produced with/without rifampicin was determined with 1.367$\times$106 and 1.711$\times$106 g/mol using HPSEC-MALLS-RI, respectively.