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Continuous d-lactic acid production by a novelthermotolerant Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis QU 41

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Abstract

We isolated and characterized a d-lactic acid-producing lactic acid bacterium (d-LAB), identified as Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis QU 41. When compared to Lactobacillus coryniformis subsp. torquens JCM 1166 T and L. delbrueckii subsp. lactis JCM 1248 T, which are also known as d-LAB, the QU 41 strain exhibited a high thermotolerance and produced d-lactic acid at temperatures of 50 °C and higher. In order to optimize the culture conditions of the QU 41 strain, we examined the effects of pH control, temperature, neutralizing reagent, and initial glucose concentration on d-lactic acid production in batch cultures. It was found that the optimal production of 20.1 g/l d-lactic acid was acquired with high optical purity (>99.9% of d-lactic acid) in a pH 6.0-controlled batch culture, by adding ammonium hydroxide as a neutralizing reagent, at 43 °C in MRS medium containing 20 g/l glucose. As a result of product inhibition and low cell density, continuous cultures were investigated using a microfiltration membrane module to recycle flow-through cells in order to improve d-lactic acid productivity. At a dilution rate of 0.87 h−1, the high cell density continuous culture exhibited the highest d-lactic acid productivity of 18.0 g/l/h with a high yield (ca. 1.0 g/g consumed glucose) and a low residual glucose (<0.1 g/l) in comparison with systems published to date.

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Correspondence to Kenji Sonomoto.

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Tashiro, Y., Kaneko, W., Sun, Y. et al. Continuous d-lactic acid production by a novelthermotolerant Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis QU 41. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 89, 1741–1750 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-010-3011-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-010-3011-7

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