Microbial consortia-derived cellulose biomaterial: Synthesis, characterization, and utility in neural tissue regeneration.

Therapeutic application of bacterial cellulose, a polymer produced by fermentative growth of bacteria, is often challenged by low yields and absence of high yielding strains. The current study reports the synthesis and characterization of bacterial cellulose from a novel microbial consortium of Weissela confusa, Neobacillus drentensis, and Bacillus sp. isolated from mother of vinegar and identified by 16S rDNA typing. The bacterial cellulose was characterized by Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (X-RD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Optimization of bacterial cellulose production was carried out using modified Hestrin Schramm (HS) Media (with industrial waste glycerol) to attain a maximum yield of 17.2 g/l after 10 days of incubation. The cytotoxicity evaluation of bacterial cellulose in murine neuroblastoma Neuro 2a cell lines showed 90 % cell viability after 48 h. Bacterial cellulose facilitated cell attachment and three-dimensional growth of N2a cells, as confirmed by the SEM analysis. We propose that the bacterial cellulose produced by this consortium could serve as a scaffold for neural stem cell-based therapeutic applications.