Prosecco grape pomace: a new feedstock for high molecular weight hyaluronic acid

Due to its remarkable properties, hyaluronic acid (HA) has always attracted the attention of academia and industry. However, to meet the growing demand for HA, reduce costs and adopt sustainable approaches lignocellulosic raw materials were investigated as potential low-cost bio-resources. For example, the wine industry provides waste that can be valorised as fermentation substrates. In this study, grape pomace from Prosecco vinification underwent a three-step pre-treatment, resulting in the recovery of approximately 30 g of sugars per 100 g of dry matrix. The resulting sugar-rich medium was used for the growth of Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus ATCC 39920, which produced a hyaluronic acid titre of 0.41 g/L after 11 h of batch fermentation. Although derived from a waste matrix, the hyaluronic acid obtained exhibited a lower polydispersity index and a higher molecular weight than a commercially available high molecular weight hyaluronic acid. Therefore, this study demonstrates the feasibility of using lignocellulosic raw materials to produce high-quality hyaluronic acid, while promoting a biorefinery approach to improve the sustainability of wineries.