Kinetic modeling and scale up of lipoic acid (LA) production from Saccharomyces cerevisiae in a stirred tank bioreactor

Scale up studies for production of lipoic acid (LA) from Saccharomyces cerevisiae have been reported in this paper for the first time. LA production in batch mode was carried out in a stirred tank bioreactor at varying agitation and aeration with maximum LA production of 512 mg/L obtained at 350 rpm and 25 % dissolved oxygen in batch culture conditions. Thus, LA production increased from 352 mg/L in shake flask to 512 mg/L in batch mode in a 5 L stirred tank bioreactor. Biomass production under these conditions was mathematically explained using logistic equation and data obtained for LA production and substrate utilization were successfully fitted using Luedeking–Piret and Mercier’s models. The kinetic studies showed LA production to be growth associated. Further enhancement of LA production was carried out using fed-batch (variable volume) and semi-continuous modes of fermentation. Semi-continuous fermentation with three feeding cycles of sucrose effectively increased the production of LA from 512 to 725 mg/L.