Flow fermentation: microsystems for whole-cell bioproduction processes

Trends in biotechnology, vol. 43, pp. 1528–1539

Abstract

Industrial biotechnology utilizes whole cells for the production of value-added goods in large-scale bioreactors. The miniaturization of bioreactors has greatly contributed to the understanding and optimization of bioprocesses. However, microsystems for the production of value-added goods have thus far only been established in chemistry and biocatalysis/biotransformation but are rarely applied for whole-cell bioprocesses. Here, we discuss the fundamental and translational aspects of how microsystems could be used as production units for future whole-cell bioproduction processes. The characteristics and resulting advantages of microsystems are introduced and current production approaches are highlighted. Finally, we provide perspectives on establishing future whole-cell bioproduction processes at the microscale, here introduced as flow fermentation. Flow fermentation potentially enables entirely new bioprocesses and application fields.

Authors 3

1. Lina Hollmann

   Karlsruhe Institute of Technology

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Process Engineering in Life Sciences, Microsystems in Bioprocess Engineering (MBVT), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Fritz-Haber-Weg 2, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany

2. Lars M. Blank Aachen Institute of Applied Microbiology

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Applied Microbiology (iAMB), Aachen Biology and Biotechnology (ABBt), RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany

3. Alexander Grünberger

   Karlsruhe Institute of Technology

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Process Engineering in Life Sciences, Microsystems in Bioprocess Engineering (MBVT), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Fritz-Haber-Weg 2, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany. Electronic address: alexander.gruenberger@kit.edu