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On the improvement of bacterial growth on complementary substrates by partial segregration in the broth
Author(s) -
Patnaik Pratap R
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
journal of chemical technology and biotechnology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.64
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1097-4660
pISSN - 0268-2575
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-4660(200003)75:3<229::aid-jctb208>3.0.co;2-r
Subject(s) - mixing (physics) , substrate (aquarium) , inoculation , bioreactor , escherichia coli , bacteria , bacterial growth , food science , chemistry , biology , biochemistry , ecology , organic chemistry , horticulture , physics , genetics , quantum mechanics , gene
Previous studies have shown that when two species compete for the same substrate, a controlled degree of segregation in a bioreactor favours growth of the desired species. That concept has been extended to the growth of bacteria on a mixture of two substrates for one of which the organism has a natural preference. However, using the example of Escherichia coli cultivated in a medium containing glucose and fumarate, it has been shown that, while the physiological preference for glucose is maintained, incomplete macromixing promotes growth and enables better utilisation of both substrates. While the preferred substrate (glucose) is consumed first in a perfectly mixed reactor, imperfect mixing allows both substrates to be utilised simultaneously, at different rates. By dividing the broth conceptually into an inoculated region and a non‐inoculated region, it is seen that cell growth is favoured by an initial period of good mixing followed by poor mixing in the non‐inoculated region. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry