Enhancement of the fermentation process and properties of bacterial cellulose: a review

Cellulose produced by bacteria (BC) has attracted increasing interest in view of its superior properties with respect to nanofibrillar structure, high purity and biocompatibility. Despite the intensive research, industrial production of BC has been limited, due to the low productivity, and the high cost of raw materials. This paper reviews the new approaches tried recently to get BC production feasible at large scale as the reduction in the quality of raw materials, the use of by-products and the optimization of the culture method. In addition, the new trends of enhancing specific properties of BC by varying culture conditions or by using additives have been reviewed. Thus, the paper presents how to obtain and enhance a desired property of BC for a specific use. This new approach will help researchers to develop new ideas in this field which will favour the commercialization of products made with BC and their industrial application.