On‐line untargeted metabolomics monitoring of an Escherichia coli succinate fermentation process

Cortada‐Garcia, J., Haggarty, J., Moses, T., Daly, R. , Arnold, S. A. and Burgess, K. (2022) On‐line untargeted metabolomics monitoring of an Escherichia coli succinate fermentation process. Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 119(10), pp. 2757-2769. (doi: 10.1002/bit.28173) (PMID:35798686) (PMCID:PMC9541951)

Abstract

The real-time monitoring of metabolites (RTMet) is instrumental for the industrial production of biobased fermentation products. This study shows the first application of untargeted on-line metabolomics for the monitoring of undiluted fermentation broth samples taken automatically from a 5 L bioreactor every 5 min via flow injection mass spectrometry. The travel time from the bioreactor to the mass spectrometer was 30 s. Using mass spectrometry allows, on the one hand, the direct monitoring of targeted key process compounds of interest and, on the other hand, provides information on hundreds of additional untargeted compounds without requiring previous calibration data. In this study, this technology was applied in an Escherichia coli succinate fermentation process and 886 different m/z signals were monitored, including key process compounds (glucose, succinate, and pyruvate), potential biomarkers of biomass formation such as (R)-2,3-dihydroxy-isovalerate and (R)-2,3-dihydroxy-3-methylpentanoate and compounds from the pentose phosphate pathway and nucleotide metabolism, among others. The main advantage of the RTMet technology is that it allows the monitoring of hundreds of signals without the requirement of developing partial least squares regression models, making it a perfect tool for bioprocess monitoring and for testing many different strains and process conditions for bioprocess development.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Burgess, Dr Karl and Daly, Dr Ronan and Haggarty, Dr Jennifer
• Authors: Cortada‐Garcia, J., Haggarty, J., Moses, T., Daly, R., Arnold, S. A., and Burgess, K.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Cancer Sciences; College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity
• Journal Name: Biotechnology and Bioengineering
• Publisher: Wiley
• ISSN: 0006-3592
• ISSN (Online): 1097-0290
• Published Online: 07 July 2022
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2022 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Biotechnology and Bioengineering 119(10): 2757-2769
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License