Data and knowledge based experimental design for fermentation process optimization

A novel method for the sequential experimental design in order to optimize fed-batch fermentations was applied to a hyaluronidase fermentation by Streptococcus agalactiae. A Λ-optimal design was introduced to minimize the model parameter estimation error and to maximize the performance of the fermentation process. The method employs hybrid models that contain mechanistic, fuzzy and neural network components.     

Profiling of dynamic changes in the microbial community during the soy sauce fermentation process

Soy sauce is a traditional condiment manufactured by natural inoculation and mixed culture fermentation. As is well known, it is the microbial community that plays an important role in the formation of its flavors. However, to date, its dynamic changes during the long period of fermentation process are still unclear, intensively constraining the improvement and control of the soy sauce quality. In this work, we revealed the dynamic changes of the microbial community by combining a cultured dependent method and a cultured independent method of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis. Results indicated that the two methods verified and complemented each other in profiling microbial community, and that significant dynamics of the microbial community existed during the fermentation process, especially the strong inhibition of the growth of most of the microbes when entering into the mash stage from the koji stage. In the analysis of bacterial community, Staphylococcus and Bacillus were found to be the dominant bacteria and detected in the whole fermentation process. Kurthia and Klebsiella began to appear in the koji stage and then fade away in the early stage of the mash fermentation. In the analysis of fungal community, Aspergillus sojae and Zygosaccharomyces rouxii were found to be the dominant fungi in the koji and mash fermentation, respectively. It was clearly shown that when A. sojae decreased and disappeared in the middle stage of the mash fermentation, Z. rouxii appeared and increased at the meantime. Aspergillus parasiticus, Trichosporon ovoides and Trichosporon asahii also appeared in the koji and the early period of the mash fermentation and disappeared thereafter. Similar to Z. rouxii, Millerozyma farinosa and Peronospora farinosa were also found spontaneously which appeared in the mid-late period of the mash fermentation. The principal component analysis suggested that the microbial community underwent significant changes in the early period of the fermentation and, thereafter, tended to the stabilization in the mid-late periods. This study gave us important clues to understand the fermentation process and can serve as a foundation for improving the quality of soy sauce in the future.     

Conditions for a continuous production of transient microbial products in a two-stage fermentation system

Summary The optimal residence time in the inducing reactor of a continuous two-stage system has been studied in order to maximize the yield in such a process. The attention has been focused on the case in which the product (or one of its forms) appears in the culture only transiently after the induction. Whereas in some cases the two-stage system is able to improve the yield and to allow a continuous product concentration in the outgoing stream, in others, and depending on how the product is accumulated in the induced culture, no optimal residence time can be found, and a higher productivity will be achieved by using the one-stage continuous strategy or a batch fermentation.     

Production of microbial lipases in a solid state fermentation system

Summary Several filamentous fungi were grown on solid state fermentation systems and selected for their highest yield in lipolytic activity, low protease levels and dairy flavor generation.P. candidum,M. miehei andP. camembertii were the selected ones. A comparison between kinetics in solid and submerged fermentation was performed usingP. candidum, with the solid system giving the highest titers and a stable production.     

An on-line physiological state recognition system for the lysine fermentation process based on a metabolic reaction model

A metabolic reaction model was developed for the lysine fermentation process by Corynebacterium glutamicum AJ-3462 to estimate the physiological state of the cells-that is, the growth and production activity, and the flux distribution of metabolites-from on-line measurable rates only. First, the extended Kalman filter was applied to eliminate noise in the measured rates. Then, using the metabolic reaction model, the lysine production rate and flux distribution were calculated. The estimation results allowed the physiological state of lysine production to be recognized, and an appropriate measure corresponding to the estimated state, such as intermittent addition of glucose and/or leucine, to be taken to maintain a high level of lysine productivity in batch culture. Finally, application of the recognition system enabled lysine to be produced from glucose at a higher yield than that from glucose- or leucine-limited exponential fed-batch cultures. (c) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 55: 170-181, 1997.     

Chemical characteristics and immuno-modulating activities of exo-biopolymers produced by Grifola frondosa during submerged fermentation process

The immuno-modulating activities and chemical characteristics of exo-biopolymer (EX-GF) produced by a submerged mycelial culture of Grifola frondosa were studied. The EX-GF was fractionated into EX-GF-Fr.I, II, and III by Sephadex G-100 gel chromatography. Anti-complementary activity of EX-GF-Fr.III was highest (71.1%) among them, and its activation system occurred through both classical and alternative pathways, where the classical pathway found to be major one. Lysosomal enzyme activity and nitric oxide production ability of macrophage were also found to be mediated by EX-GF-Fr.III. The molecular weight of the EX-GF-Fr.I, II, and III was estimated to be about 163, 40, and 2.8 kDa, respectively. Total sugar and protein contents of the three fractions were 80.3, 61.9 and 89.3%, and 17.3, 35.2, and 10.7%, respectively. The sugar and amino acid compositions of the EX-GF-Fr.I, II, and III were also analyzed in detail.     

谷氨酸发酵过程葡萄糖自动流加系统

补料（流加葡萄糖）操作是谷氨酸发酵过程最重要的操作之一,工业上有各种各样的补料操作方法。控制葡萄糖浓度于一个较为平稳且适中的水平有利于提高谷氨酸发酵的性能指标。通过在线计量谷氨酸发酵中的氨水耗量并据此在线推定发酵液中的葡萄糖浓度,构建了一个谷氨酸发酵自动在线补料系统。使用该控制系统,谷氨酸发酵过程的葡萄糖浓度可以控制在任意水平,平稳、无波动的谷氨酸发酵可以得到实现。     

A pilot process of solid state fermentation from sugar beet pulp for the production of microbial protein

The bioconversion of sugar beet pulp (SBP) into microbial protein by the process of solid state fermentation (SSF) was studied. Two SSF reactors (each having overall dimensions of 17.6 × 3.6 × 2.0 m) with appropriate control systems were constructed. This pilot plant has a maximum working capacity of 50 metric tons (20% dry metter). The production strain used was Aspergillus tamarii 827, which was isolated by our laboratory. The protein content of the products amounted to 22.4% in 48 h.     

A low cost adiabatic process controller for measurement of heat evolved during fermentation

Summary A control system for maintaining a fermentation process in an adiabatic condition using equipment commonly available in a research laboratory is described. It consists of a water bath controlled at the same temperature as that of the fermentation chamber by means of a temperature differential sensing circuit.     

Studying the dynamics of microbial populations during food fermentation

The dynamics of growth, survival and biochemical activity of microorganisms in food are the result of stress reactions in response to the changing of the physical and chemical conditions into the food microenvironment, the ability to colonise the food matrix and to growth into a spatial heterogeneity, and the in situ cell-to-cell ecological interactions which often happen in a solid phase. In food, ecological approaches to study the evolution of microbial flora would be useful to comprehend better the microbiological processes involved in food processing and ripening, to improve microbiological safety by monitoring in situ pathogenic bacteria, and to evaluate the effective compositions of the microbial populations. This paper gives a general overview of biotechnological approaches to study microbial populations in food fermentation.     

Structured modeling of a microbial system: I. A theoretical study of lactic acid fermentation

Most fermentation models presented in the literature are unstructured, i.e., the biomass composition is assumed constant during all operating conditions. These models are unable to simulate experiments carried out at widely different operating conditions. It is therefore interesting to examine simple structured models where knowledge of the cell physiology is taken into account in the modeling phase. In this article, a simple structured model is presented. The model is based on experimental work with the lactic acid bacteria Streptococcus cremoris, but due to the similarities in basic metabolism for many microorganisms it is applicable also for other fermentation system. The basic assumption in the model is that the biomass can be divided into two parts (compartments)-an active part and a mainly inactive structural part. The size of the active part has a pivotal role in the model.     

A downstream process with microemulsion extraction for microbial transformation in cloud point system

A downstream process strategy for a whole microbial transformation to produce l-phenylacetylcarbinol (PAC) in a nonionic surfactant Triton X mediated cloud point system was developed. By application of a Winsor I microemulsion, the product and the nonionic surfactant in the microbial transformation broth was separated successfully. Then the nonionic surfactant was recovered with a Winsor II microemulsion. In a single stage Winsor I microemulsion extraction process, the product recovery ratio 76.9% and the nonionic surfactant recovery ratio 66.5% were achieved. A discrete countercurrent extraction operation was also carried out to improve the separation efficiency. Finally, character of the recovery nonionic surfactant was also examined.     

发酵工业菌种的迭代创制

生物发酵是以微生物菌种为生物催化剂,以淀粉糖、生物质等可再生资源为原料发酵生产各种食品、化学品、燃料、材料等物质的生产过程,具有绿色、低碳和可持续等特征。我国拥有全球规模最大的生物发酵产业,尤其氨基酸、维生素等传统发酵产品占全球市场份额的60%–80%。发展生物发酵产业对于我国实现“碳中和、碳达峰”的战略目标和生物经济发展具有重要的意义。微生物工业菌种是生物发酵产业的核心,直接影响原料路线、产品种类和生产成本。创新发酵工业菌种,提升其原料转化利用效率,提高产物生产水平,拓展产品种类,是生物发酵产业高质量发展的关键。近年来,合成生物学、系统生物学等学科的发展,进一步加深了研究者对微生物底盘细胞生理代谢机制的理解,加速了基因编辑等菌种设计创制使能技术的发展,为发酵工业菌种改造提升提供了新动能。本文选取了具有代表性的大宗氨基酸、B族维生素、柠檬酸、燃料乙醇等发酵产业,从其工业微生物底盘的基础研究和技术开发角度,综述发酵工业菌种改造提升的最新进展,并展望人工智能、自动化与生命科学交叉融合将对工业菌种迭代产生的重要影响。     

A method for online-estimation of cellulose concentration in a fermentation process

Summary A method based on the elemental balance of the process has been developed to calculate the consumption of cellulose in cellulase production byTrichoderma reesei Rut-C30. Using a synthetic medium only the oxygen in effluent gas and consumption of base for pH-correction has to be measured.     

Integrated hydrogen production process from cellulose by combining dark fermentation, microbial fuel cells, and a microbial electrolysis cell

Hydrogen gas production from cellulose was investigated using an integrated hydrogen production process consisting of a dark fermentation reactor and microbial fuel cells (MFCs) as power sources for a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC). Two MFCs (each 25 mL) connected in series to an MEC (72 mL) produced a maximum of 0.43 V using fermentation effluent as a feed, achieving a hydrogen production rate from the MEC of 0.48 m³ H₂/m³/d (based on the MEC volume), and a yield of 33.2 mmol H₂/g COD removed in the MEC. The overall hydrogen production for the integrated system (fermentation, MFC and MEC) was increased by 41% compared with fermentation alone to 14.3 mmol H₂/g cellulose, with a total hydrogen production rate of 0.24 m³ H₂/m³/d and an overall energy recovery efficiency of 23% (based on cellulose removed) without the need for any external electrical energy input.     

A database system for fermentation processes

Data base management is needed in the whole industries, particularly in the fermentation industry, whose jobs are tedious yet require carefulness. The most important problem in the database system is not how to collect many informations, but how to handle the meaningful ones.The authors have recently developed an on-line monitoring and control system for the fermentation processes in co-operation with Fuji Facom Co. Ltd. and Komatsugawa Chemical Engineering Co. Ltd.This system enables us to measure directly those concentrations in fermentation systems which have been measured by offline so far, such as cell mass, substrate and metabolic products. The physiological activities of a microorganism, such as specific rate of cellular growth, that of substrate consumption, that of metabolites production, etc., became estimable precisely by eliminating the effect of noises.By enlarging the function of our monitoring and control system, we have developed a database system which is applicable in job scheduling not only in the laboratory but also in the production line, in automatic resource allocation and fault analyses of the fermentation processes.     

Anaerobic-aerobic process for microbial degradation of tetrabromobisphenol A

Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) is a flame retardant that is used as an additive during manufacturing of plastic polymers and electronic circuit boards. Little is known about the fate of this compound in the environment. In the current study we investigated biodegradation of TBBPA, as well as 2,4,6-tribromophenol (TBP), in slurry of anaerobic sediment from a wet ephemeral desert stream bed contaminated with chemical industry waste. Anaerobic incubation of the sediment with TBBPA and peptone-tryptone-glucose-yeast extract medium resulted in a 80% decrease in the TBBPA concentration and accumulation of a single metabolite. This metabolite was identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) as nonbrominated bisphenol A (BPA). On the other hand, TBP was reductively dehalogenated to phenol, which was further metabolized under anaerobic conditions. BPA persisted in the anaerobic slurry but was degraded aerobically. A gram-negative bacterium (strain WH1) was isolated from the contaminated soil, and under aerobic conditions this organism could use BPA as a sole carbon and energy source. During degradation of BPA two metabolites were detected in the culture medium, and these metabolites were identified by GC-MS and high-performance liquid chromatography as 4-hydroxybenzoic acid and 4-hydroxyacetophenone. Both of those compounds were utilized by WH1 as carbon and energy sources. Our findings demonstrate that it may be possible to use a sequential anaerobic-aerobic process to completely degrade TBBPA in contaminated soils.