Improving the yield of (+)-terrein from the salt-tolerant Aspergillus terreus PT06-2

(+)-Terrein has a potential application for drug discovery. To improve the yield of (+)-terrein, two-level Plackett–Burman design and response surface methodology methods were used to optimize the condition of a salt-tolerant fungus, Aspergillus terreus PT06-2. As a result, the yield of (+)-terrein reached 8.20 ± 0.072 g/L in a 500-mL flask containing 150 mL optimal medium consisted of 13.1 % NaCl, 3.6 % starch, 2 % sodium glutamate, 0.05 % KCl, 3 % inoculum size, adjusting initial pH value to 5 with 10 % HCl and shaking for 18 days at 28 °C and 180 rpm. The production of (+)-terrein was 47.0 % higher than the highest production reported in shake flasks. The advantages of this optimization are uses of single carbon source and nitrogen source and easy separation and purification by recrystallization. The result exhibited the potential and advantages of A. terreus PT06-2 in industrial production of (+)-terrein by fermentation.