Figure 1

Screening for sugarcane biomass degrading bacteria. A) Bacteria from the intestine of D. saccharalis were grown for 3 days on Petri dishes containing minimal medium supplemented with 0.5% (w/v) sugarcane bagasse as sole carbon source. After colonies had developed, plates were stained using Congo red dye to indicate cellulolytic activity of the colony. B) Bacterial strains showing cellulolytic activity on plates in A were purified and grown on Petri dishes containing CMC, which were later coloured with Congo red. The halo around bacterial colonies indicates total cellulolytic activity of the bacterial isolate.