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Multilayer perceptron-genetic algorithm as a promising tool for modeling cultivation substrate of Auricularia cornea Native to Iran

Summary

Black ear mushrooms (Auricularia cornea) are nutritious and medicinal fungi that can be grown on waste materials from wood industries. Researchers tested different combinations of sawdust and bran to find the best growing mixture. They used artificial intelligence to predict which combinations would give the best yields, finding that a mix of 70% beech sawdust with 30% wheat bran worked best and could be produced efficiently.

Background

Auricularia cornea is a wood-decaying medicinal mushroom with significant nutritional and therapeutic properties. Industrial wastes like beech and hornbeam sawdust are available in Iran and could be utilized as cultivation substrates. Optimizing substrate formulations for maximum yield and biological efficiency is essential for industrial mushroom production.

Objective

To optimize cultivation substrate for Auricularia cornea spawn and fruiting body production using different ratios of beech and hornbeam sawdust supplemented with wheat and rice brans. To develop and compare multilayer perceptron-genetic algorithm (MLP-GA) and stepwise regression models for predicting yield, biological efficiency, and cultivation period parameters.

Results

The substrate combination of beech sawdust (70%) plus wheat bran (30%) at 28°C displayed the highest mycelial growth rate and shortest spawn run period. In bag tests, this substrate showed the highest fresh sporophore yield (131.7 g/bag) and biological efficiency (53.1%). MLP-GA models exhibited superior predictive ability (R² = 0.81-0.99) compared to stepwise regression (R² = 0.06-0.58) for forecasting all output variables.

Conclusion

MLP-GA proved to be a powerful tool for modeling and forecasting Auricularia cornea cultivation outcomes based on substrate composition. Wheat bran was identified as the most critical component for yield and biological efficiency, while beech sawdust significantly influenced spawn run period and cultivation duration. The findings support the use of industrial wood waste for sustainable mushroom production.
  • Published in:PLoS ONE,
  • Study Type:Experimental Study,
  • Source: 10.1371/journal.pone.0281982, PMID: 36809254
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