Enzymatic synthesis of alkyl xylobioside and xyloside from xylan and alcohol

Alkyl β-D-xylobioside and alkyl β-D-xyloside were prepared by the one-pot reaction of xylan and a fatty alcohol, such as 1-octanol, 1-decanol, 2-octanol and 2-ethylhexanol using the cell-free culture filtrate of the xylan-assimilating strain, Aureobasidium pullulans KK415. Using this strain, a novel surfactant, alkyl β-D-xylobioside, was produced as the main product when the alcohol and xylan was incubated at a temperature of 65°C and pH 4.5.