2012|13 Annual Report Fraunhofer IGB

89 Dipl.-Biol. (t. o.) Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Susanne Zibek Phone +49 711 970-4167 susanne.zibek@igb.fraunhofer.de Priv.-Doz. Dr. Steffen Rupp Phone +49 711 970-4045 steffen.rupp@igb.fraunhofer.de Added value through the extraction of inulin From an economic perspective the extraction of latex and rub- ber from Taraxacum koksaghyz is in itself already promising. Generation of further added value in ecological and economic terms is offered by the extraction of the sugar inulin, which is also present in the dandelion roots. Inulin is an oligo- or poly- saccharide consisting predominantly of β-(2-1)-linked fructose and one α-D-glucose molecule at the non-reducing end. It is used as a substitute for sugar and fat, as soluble ﬁber, and as a carrier and stabilizing agent in the pharmaceutical industry [6]. Hot-water extractions under optimized conditions have al- ready been performed at the Fraunhofer IGB in batch opera- tions and in a continuous process. It was possible to isolate up to 36 percent of the inulin from the root, prior to rubber extraction. The conversion of the extracted inulin with micro- organisms in fermentative processes will be tested in the near future. Pre-extraction of the inulin prior to rubber isolation has a number of advantages. For example, any contaminating sub- stance that may be present can be separated off together with the inulin, thereby simplifying the subsequent rubber pu- riﬁcation process. In addition, the hot-water extraction results in coagulation of the rubber molecules, which simpliﬁes the puriﬁcation: the roots become softer and this ultimately may substitute the steam treatment. 1 Cultivation of Russian dandelion on the roof of the Fraunhofer IGB. 2 Latex ﬂow after injuring the dandelion root. 3 Chemical formula of inulin and poly-(cis)-1,4-isoprene. 4 Top left: latex ﬂow; right: Russian dandelion; bottom left: rubber. OH OH OH OH O O O O HO HO HO CH2 OH n–1 HO 4 4 3 3 6 5 5 2 2 1 1 OHO HO HO n References [1] Brentin, A.; Sarnacke, P. (2011) http://soynewuses.org/wp- content/uploads/Rubber-Compounds-MOS-Sept-2011.pdf [2] Cornish, K.; Brichta, J. L. (2002) Trends in new crops and new uses, Janick J. and Whipkey A. (eds.) 226–233 [3] van Beilen, J. P.; Poirier, Y. (2007) TRENDS in Biotechnology 25(11): 522–529 [4] Eskew, R. K.; Edwards P. W. (1946) US 2,393,035 1946 [5] van Beilen, J. P.; Poirier, Y. (2007) Cr. Rev. Biotechn. 27: 217–231 [6] Barclay, T. et al. (2010) JEFC 1(3): 27–50 Project partners AESKULAP GmbH, Steinach | Continental Reifen Deutschland GmbH, Hanover | Südzucker AG, Mannheim | Synthomer Deutschland GmbH, Marl | Julius Kühn-Institut, Quedlinburg | Fraunhofer IME, Münster | numares GROUP, Regensburg | IGVP, University of Stuttgart | Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research, Cologne Funding We would like to thank the German Federal Ministry of Educa- tion and Research (BMBF) for funding the project “TARULIN”, promotional reference 031597 1 C. 3 4 Contacts

2012|13 Annual Report Fraunhofer IGB

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