The relation between redox potential and D-xylose fermentation by Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis

Summary Fed-batch xylose fermentations with the yeastsCandida shehatae andPichia stipitis were conducted, using stirrer speed variation with the redox potential as control index to maintain oxygen-limited conditions. The best results were obtained withC. shehatae at 300 (±10) m V (relative to the standard hydrogen electrode), and these fermentation parameters compared favourably with those obtained previously with the dissolved oxygen tension as control variable. Redox control ofP. stipitis fermentations proved especially difficult. Cell growth during the fermentation was probably a major factor affecting redox potential.     

Xylose fermentation by Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis: effects of pH,temperature and substrate concentration

The effects of temperature, pH and xylose concentration on the fermentation parameters of Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis were evaluated. The optimum pH was in the region of pH 4–5.5, with an optimum fermentation temperature of 30°C. Maximum fermentation rates were reached at 50 g l⁻¹ xylose. A maximum volumetric ethanol productivity of about 0.9 g (l h)⁻¹ was obtained with both yeast strains. The ethanol yield of C. shehatae decreased considerably when cultivated above 30°C or when the xylose concentration was increased. Xylitol accumulated concomitantly. Xylitol production by P. stipitis was observed only during cultivation at 36°C. Whereas the ethanol yield of C. shehatae was usually about 75% of the theoretical maximum, it was 85–90% with P. stipitis.     

Comparison of different pretreatments in ethanol fermentation using corn cob hemicellulosic hydrolysate with Pichia stipitis and Candida shehatae

A hemicellulosic hydrolysate was prepared with 0.3 M H₂SO₄ at 98 °C for 1 h. The total initial reducing sugar was maintained at 45 g l^–1 by synthetic xylose supplementation. The seven detoxification methods were employed including either the single addition of solid CaO (to pH 10 or 6) or its combinations with zeolite shaking. Over-liming gave the hydrolysate that was most completely fermented by Pichia stipitis and Candida shehatae at 30 °C, pH 6, among the tested methods.     

Effect of aerobiosis on fermentation and key enzyme levels during growth of Pichia stipitis,Candida shehatae and Candida tenuis on d-xylose

The relationship between the degree of aerobiosis, xylitol production and the initial two key enzymes of d-xylose metabolism were investigated in the yeasts Pichia stipitis, Candida shehatae and C. tenuis. Anoxic conditions severely curtailed growth and retarded ethanol productivity. This, together with the inverse relationship between xylitol accumulation and aeration level, suggested a degree of redox imbalance. The ratios of NADH- to NADPH-linked xylose reductase were similar in all three yeasts and essentially independent of the degree of aerobiosis, and thus did not correlate with their differing capacities for ethanol production, xylitol accumulation or growth under the different conditions of aerobiosis. Under anoxic conditions the enzyme activity of Pichia stipitis decreased significantly, which possibly contributed to its weaker anoxic fermentation of xylose compared to C. shehatae.     

Xylitol production by recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae expressing the Pichia stipitis and Candida shehatae XYL1 genes

The xylose reductase gene (XYL1) was isolated from Pichia stipitis and Candida shehatae, cloned into YEp-based vectors under the control of ADH2 and PGK1 promoter/terminator cassettes and introduced into Saccharomyces cerevisiae Y294 by electroporation. Shake-flask fermentations were carried out with 5% xylose and 1% galactose, glucose or maltose as co-substrates. Xylose uptake was similar in both the recombinant strains when different co-substrates were used and slowed once the co-substrate was depleted. The recombinant strains converted xylose to xylitol with yields approaching the theoretical maxima. Xylitol production was most rapid when the co-substrate was still present. Approximately 50% of the xylose was not metabolized due to the depletion of the co-substrate. Received: 23 December 1999 / Received revision: 30 June 2000 / Accepted: 1 July 2000     

Adaptation of Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis to wood hydrolysates for increased ethanol production

Summary Candida shehatae ATCC 22984 and Pichia stipitis CBS 5776 were tested for ethanol production from xylose, glucose-xylose mixtures, and aspen wood total hydrolysates. Adaptation of these yeasts to wood hydrolysate solutions by recycling resulted in improved substrate utilization and ethanol production. Compared to the non-adapted cultures, recycled C. shehatae and P. stipitis in aspen hydrolysate increased g ethanol/g sugar consumed from 0.39 and 0.41 to 0.45 and 0.47; while ethanol production from a 70:30 glucose-xylose solution (total sugars 140 g/L) was 45 g/L in 24 h and 60 g/L in 72 h with the adapted yeasts compared to 15 g/L and 28 g/L in the same times with the parent strains.     

Ethanol fermentation of hexose and pentose wood sugars produced by hydrogen-fluoride solvolysis of aspen chips

Summary Hexose and pentose sugars, produced by hydrogen-fluoride solvolysis of aspen wood chips, were totally consumed in a coculture fermentation by Zymomonas mobilis and a mutant of Clostridium saccharolyticum. Z. mobilis converted the glucose to ethanol, while the mutant, which was improved in both ethanol production and tolerance, converted the xylose component to ethanol. A high conversion efficiency of wood sugars to ethanol was obtained, and the cells after the fermentation were successfully used for cell recycle.NRCC no. 23211     

Temperature profiles of growth and ethanol tolerance of the xylose-fermenting yeasts Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis

Summary The effect of different ethanol concentrations on the growth of Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis with xylose as substrate was evaluated in a temperature gradient incubator. The upper limit of the temperature profiles of ethanol tolerance of both yeast strains were similar, although P. stipitis appeared to have a slightly higher ethanol tolerance in the higher temperature range. An increase in the ethanol concentration severely depressed the maximum growth temperature, and also increased the minimum growth temperature slightly. The ethanol tolerance limit of 46–48 g·l^-1 occurred within a narrow temperature plateau of 11 to 22° C. The low ethanol tolerance of these pentose fermenting yeasts is detrimental for commercial ethanol production from hemicellulose hydrolysates.     

D-xylose fermentation by Candida shehatae and pichia stipitis at low dissolved oxygen levels in fed-batch cultures

Summary The fermentation of D-xylose byCandida shehatae andPichia stipitis was studied in fed-batch fermentations using dissolved oxygen tension (DOT) control in the range of 0.2 to 1.4% air saturation. The response of these two yeasts to DOT was significantly different. Whereas the ethanol yield withC. shehatae was 0.35 to 0.38 g.g^–1 at all DOT levels, that ofP. stipitis decreased from 0.44 at a zero DOT reading to 0.19 g.g^–1 at 1.4% DOT.     

The effect of aeration on D-xylose fermentation byPachysolen tannophilus,Pichia stipitis,Kluyveromyces marxianus andCandida shehatae

Summary The fermentation of D-xylose byPachysolen tannophilus Y2460,Pichia stipitis Y7124,Kluyveromyces marxianus Y2415 andCandida shehatae Y12878 was investigated in aerobic, anaerobic and microaerophilic batch cultures. The aeration rate greatly influenced the fermentations; growth, rate of ethanol production and oxidation of ethanol are affected. Of the strains tested,Pichia stipitis appears superior; under anaerobic conditions it converts D-xylose (20 g/l) to ethanol with a yield of 0.40 g/l and it exhibits the highest ethanol specific productivity (3.5 g of ethanol per g dry cell per day) under microaerophilic conditions.     

Alcoholic fermentation of glucose and xylose by Pichia stipitis,Candida shehatae,Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Zymomonas mobilis: oxygen requirement as a key factor

Summary To investigate simultaneous alcoholic fermentation of glucose and xylose derived from lignocellulosic material by separate or co-culture processes, the effect of oxygen transfer rate (OTR) on the fermentation of 50 g/l xylose by Pichia stipitis NRRL Y 7124 and Candida shehatae ATCC 22984, and the fermentation of 50 g/l glucose by Saccharomyces cerevisiae CBS 1200 and Zymomonas mobilis ATCC 10988 was carried out in batch cultures. The kinetic parameters of the xylose-fermenting yeasts were greatly dependent on the OTR. The optimum OTR values were found to be 3.9 and 1.75 mmol·1^–1·h^–1 for C. shehatae and P. stipitis, respectively. By contrast the fermentative parameters of S. cerevisiae were poorly affected by the OTR range tested (0.0–3.5 mmol·l^–1·h^–1) Under these conditions the ethanol yields ranged from 0.41 g·g^–1 to 0.45 g·g^–1 and the specific ethanol productivity was around 0.70 g·g^–1·h^–1. Z. mobilis gave the highest fermentative performance under strictly anaerobic conditions (medium continually flushed with nitrogen): under these conditions, the ethanol yield was 0.43 g·g^–1 and the average specific ethanol productivity was 2.3 g·g^–1·h^–1. Process considerations in relation to the effect of OTR on the fermentative performance of the tested strains are discussed. Offprint requests to: J. P. Delgenes     

木糖发酵生产乙醇的研究

选育出一株优良的木糖发酵菌株树干毕赤酵母菌7124,并利用纯木糖优化了木糖发酵条件,利用海藻酸钠固定化树干毕赤酵母菌增殖细胞,不仅能较好满足限氧发酵条件,而且能耐较高糖浓度,使乙醇发酵浓度提高到20g/L。利用半纤维素水解液进行了乙醇发酵的初步研究,基本达到了纯木糖发酵的效果。     

Ethanol tolerance of Pichia stipitis and Candida shehatae strains in fed-batch cultures at controlled low dissolved oxygen levels

Summary Fed-batch cultivations of Pichia stipitis and strains of Candida shehatae with d-xylose or d-glucose were conducted at controlled low dissolved oxygen tension (DOT) levels. There were some marked differences between the strains. In general growth was inhibited at lower ethanol concentrations than fermentation, and ethanol levels of up to 47 g·l^-1 were produced at 30°C. Ethanol production was mainly growth associated. The yeast strains formed small amounts of monocarboxylic acids and higher alcohols, which apparently did not enhance the ethanol toxicity. The maximum ethanol concentration obtained on d-xylose could not be increased by using a high cell density culture, nor by using d-glucose as substrate. The latter observation suggested that the low ethanol tolerance of these xylose-fermenting yeast strains was not a consequence of the metabolic pathway used during pentose fermentation. In contrast with the C. shehatae strains, it was apparent with P. stipitis CSIR-Y633 that when the ethanol concentration reached about 28 g·l^-1, ethanol assimilation exceeded ethanol production, despite cultivation at a low DOT of 0.2% of air saturation. Discontinuing the aeration enabled ethanol accumulation to proceed, but with concomitant xylitol production and cessation of growth.     

Fermentation of cellobiose and wood sugars to ethanol byCandida shehatae andPichia stipitis

Summary Three pentose fermenting yeast strains ofCandida shehatae and three ofPichia stipitis were examined for their ability to produce ethanol from cellobiose and from sugars liberated by hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass. All of thePichia strains tested produced some ethanol;P. stipitis CBS 5776 gave the highest yield: 10.3 g/L on complete fermentation of 25 g/L cellobiose within 48 hours. This yeast also produced considerably more ethanol from the wood sugar mixture.     

The vitamin requirements of Candida shehatae for xylose fermentation

Abstract The vitamin requirements of a strain of Candida shehatae for the fermentation of d -xylose was determined using a statistical procedure with a 2³ factorial design. Biotin as well as thiamine exerted a dramatic stimulatory effect on the rate of ethanol production, coupled with a significant improvement in the ethanol yield. The greatest enhancement of the fermentation was found in the presence of both these vitamins. Pyridoxine exerted only a minor effect, but was essential for complete substrate utilization in the absence of either biotin or thiamine. Only biotin caused a significant increase in the growth rate.     

Effect of pretreatment chemicals on xylose fermentation by Pichia stipitis

Pretreatment of biomass with dilute H₂SO₄ results in residual acid which is neutralized with alkalis such as Ca(OH)₂, NaOH and NH₄OH. The salt produced after neutralization has an effect on the fermentation of Pichia stipitis. Synthetic media of xylose (60 g total sugar/l) was fermented to ethanol in the presence and absence of the salts using P. stipitis CBS 6054. CaSO₄ enhanced growth and xylitol production, but produced the lowest ethanol concentration and yield after 140 h. Na₂SO₄ inhibited xylitol production, slightly enhanced growth towards the end of fermentation but had no significant effect on xylose consumption and ethanol concentration. (NH₄)₂SO₄ inhibited growth, had no effect on xylitol production, and enhanced xylose consumption and ethanol production.     

Simultaneous consumption of pentose and hexose sugars: an optimal microbial phenotype for efficient fermentation of lignocellulosic biomass

Lignocellulosic biomass is an attractive carbon source for bio-based fuel and chemical production; however, its compositional heterogeneity hinders its commercial use. Since most microbes possess carbon catabolite repression (CCR), mixed sugars derived from the lignocellulose are consumed sequentially, reducing the efficacy of the overall process. To overcome this barrier, microbes that exhibit the simultaneous consumption of mixed sugars have been isolated and/or developed and evaluated for the lignocellulosic biomass utilization. Specific strains of Escherichia coli, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Zymomonas mobilis have been engineered for simultaneous glucose and xylose utilization via mutagenesis or introduction of a xylose metabolic pathway. Other microbes, such as Lactobacillus brevis, Lactobacillus buchneri, and Candida shehatae possess a relaxed CCR mechanism, showing simultaneous consumption of glucose and xylose. By exploiting CCR-negative phenotypes, various integrated processes have been developed that incorporate both enzyme hydrolysis of lignocellulosic material and mixed sugar fermentation, thereby enabling greater productivity and fermentation efficacy.     

Segregation of altered parental properties in fusions between Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the D-xylose fermenting yeasts Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis.

A prototrophic strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae CSIR Y190 MATa xyl-, resistant to high levels of ethanol, was hybridized with xylose-fermenting, auxotrophic mutants of Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis through polyethylene glycol-induced protoplast fusion in an attempt to produce ethanol-tolerant, xylose-fermenting hybrids. Mononucleate fusants were obtained, but these dissociated into a mixture of parental-type segregants. Purified Candida- and Pichia-resembling segregants failed to acquire improved ethanol tolerance but expressed other novel properties of S. cerevisiae, suggesting that karyogamy was impaired after internuclear gene transfer.     

The effect of aeration on xylose fermentation by Candida shehatae and Pachysolen tannophilus

Summary The ability of a Candida shehatae and a Pachysolen tannophilus strain to ferment D-xylose to ethanol was evaluated in defined and complex media under different levels of aeration. Aeration enhanced the ethanol productivity of both yeasts considerably. C. shehatae maintained a higher fermentation rate and ethanol yield than P. tannophilus over a wide range of aeration levels. Ethanol production by C. shehatae commenced during the early stage of the fermentation, whereas with P. tannophilus there was a considerable lag between the initiation of growth and ethanol production. Both yeasts produced appreciable quantities of xylitol late in the fermentation. P. tannophilus failed to grow under anoxic conditions, producing a maximum of only 0.5 g · l^-1 ethanol. In comparison, C. shehatae exhibited limited growth in anoxic cultures, and produced ethanol much more rapidly. Under the condition of aeration where C. shehatae exhibited the highest ethanol productivity, the fermentation parameters were: maximum specific growth rate, 0.15 h^-1; maximum volumetric and specific rates of ethanol production, 0.7 g (l · h)^-1 and 0.34 g ethanol (g cells · h)^-1 respectively; ethanol yield, 0.36 g (g xylose)^-1. The best values obtained with P. tannophilus were: maximum specific growth rate, 0.14 h^-1; maximum volumetric and specific rates of ethanol production, 0.22 g (l · h)^-1 and 0.07 h^-1 respectively; ethanol yield coefficient, 0.28. Because of its higher ethanol productivity at various levels of aeration, C. shehatae has a greater potential for ethanol production from xylose than P. tannophilus.