Bacterial Fermentation

Bacterial fermentation is a metabolic process in which bacteria break down carbohydrates and amino acids to obtain energy for growth. Industrial fermentation is the process of using microbes to produce plasmids, enzymes, proteins, peptides, and other products on a large scale. Due to this, bacterial fermentation is used in many industrial settings including the manufacture of biopharmaceuticals, food and feed, chemicals, and biofuels. In the biopharmaceutical industry, microorganisms are a tool to produce therapeutics such as plasmids, proteins, peptides, and small molecules. Here, we will mainly talk about the applications of bacteria like Escherichia coli, and how to optimize E. coli production and other bacterial fermentations. However, bacteria are not the only microorganisms used to produce chemicals and therapeutics. Find out more about yeast fermentation and its applications in biopharma.

If you are just getting started with E. coli culture in bioreactors, you might look for information on how to set up an E. coli bioprocess. In this section you find guides, protocols, and information that help you to getting started.

Plasmids are circular molecules of DNA that are found naturally occurring in bacteria and can replicate independently of genomic DNA. Plasmid DNA serves an essential role in bioprocessing - particularly for biopharmaceutical applications – as it is involved in the production of recombinant proteins and viral vectors.

Fermented foods have been a part of the human diet for thousands of years and were initially produced as a way to preserve foods and improve flavor. Today, many people are now turning to fermented foods to improve their lifestyles since they are associated with a variety of health benefits, including improved digestion and immunity, due to the presence of beneficial bacteria known as probiotics. Culturing microbiome bacteria requires specific growth conditions that mimic the bacteria’s natural environment such as the gut or soil. This generally requires fine control of key parameters such as oxygen, pH, temperature and substrates. For example, in order to cultivate Lactobacilli and their natural fermentation by-products, bioreactors need to be able to reproduce the microaerobic conditions found in the gastrointestinal tract.