An integrated process for the in situ recovery of prodigiosin using micellar ATPS from a culture of Serratia marcescens

Abstract BACKGROUND In situ product recovery ( ISPR ), or extractive fermentation, is a strategy for the primary recovery of metabolites. A micellar aqueous two‐phase system ( ATPS ) composed of a surfactant‐rich phase was coupled to batch and continuous fermentations for the production and in situ recovery of the red alkaloid prodigiosin from Serratia marcescens . A cloud point ATPS was formed at 24 °C using triton X‐114 and used as a production/extraction system for this metabolite, which shows therapeutic properties as antibiotic, anti‐proliferative and anti‐malarial activities. RESULTS The integration of the micellar ATPS in batch fermentation resulted in the production of 342 mg prodigiosin L −1 with a recovery of 81% in the extractive phase. When a continuous fermentation was performed, based on a cloud point system, 1.2‐fold prodigiosin content was obtained compared with batch mode and a recovery of 88% of the metabolite. This continuous operation resulted in 0.43 g of purified prodigiosin from a 1.5 L bioreactor with a concentration of 872 mg prodigiosin L −1 of extractive phase and a purity of 82%, demonstrating particular selectivity of the system for prodigiosin as a primary recovery method. This is the first report on the continuous production of this generally recognized secondary metabolite. CONCLUSION The experimental approach proposed proved that an ISPR system could lead to the establishment of a more efficient process for continuous large‐scale prodigiosin production. The proposal of a primary recovery strategy with only one bioprocess step enhances this metabolite production by lowering the inhibiting properties of prodigiosin for the microorganism. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry