Current research and advances in the molecular aspect of bacterial cellulose synthesis with special emphasis on the production of bacterial cellulose from waste and its food applications

Bacteria produce cellulose in the form of an extracellular matrix known for its ultrapure existence. Due to its distinctive features, such as high crystallinity, biocompatibility, biodegradability, excellent mechanical qualities, and high liquid-loading capacity, it has boosted significant advancements in biomedical, pharmaceutical, and healthcare. Bacterial cellulose (BC) has also been widely used as an antimicrobial packaging material/ ingredient in food due to its GRAS attribute. Komagataeibacter genus is a potential producer of BC and has been utilized by researchers and industries for cellulose production. The widely used synthetic culture medium yields cellulose with more prolonged incubation and high production costs. To overcome the drawbacks and to produce cellulose in an economical manner, waste of food, fruit/vegetable peel, starchy kitchen waste, agricultural waste, and other low-cost substrates have been widely exploited as an alternative nutritional source in the culture medium. Cell-free enzyme system for BC production is receiving a lot of attention due to its durability, reproducibility, and efficacy. Also, there has been a burst in the advancement in genetic intervention, genetic toolkit, metabolic engineering, and accessibility to whole genome sequences of BC-producing bacteria to regulate production. Furthermore, in the last few years, due to the increase in demand for BC with novel characteristics, researchers have also explored modern approaches, computational programming, genetic modifications, host recombinant expression, synthetic toolkits, and metabolic engineering for regulating and controlling BC production. This article aims to discuss inexpensive, affordable nutritional sources that can be readily employed for BC synthesis. Additionally, this article will list processes for gene regulation and recombination expression for accomplishing preferred alterations in the obtained cellulose as requisite for a distinct application and for adding new functionalities in the material.