Rice Bran Dextrose Agar as a Cost-Effective Alternative to Standard Fungal Culture Media

Microorganisms require carbohydrate-rich media for growth. Rice bran, a carbohydrate-dense by-product, offers a cost-effective alternative to synthetic media like Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) and potato dextrose agar (PDA), making it a promising ingredient for mushroom cultivation in laboratories. This research evaluated the performance of rice bran dextrose agar (RBDA) as a culture medium compared to standard SDA and PDA media for fungal growth. Rice bran dextrose agar was formulated (A1, A2, A3, B1, B2, B3, C2, and C3) and optimized by varying dextrose and agar concentrations to support fungal growth. Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans, and Aspergillus fumigatus were tested, and media performance was assessed by measuring colony diameters on day five. A statistical analysis was conducted to compare the fungal growth on RBDA with that on standard media, SDA, and PDA. On day five, the Candida albicans colony on RBDA (C1) showed a significantly larger diameter (16.46 mm, p < 0.05) compared to other RBDA formulations and SDA. For Aspergillus niger, no significant difference was observed (p > 0.05), but RBDA C1 (75.1 mm) showed better growth than the control (SDA), although lower than A2 (76.5 mm) and C3 (79.9 mm). Aspergillus fumigatus grown on RBDA (pH 5.91) showed significantly better growth (28.55 mm, p < 0.05) than SDA and PDA. The study’s findings indicated that RBDA medium demonstrated effective performance in supporting the growth of Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, and Aspergillus fumigatus, suggesting that rice bran is a viable natural alternative to synthetic mushroom culture media.