[Progress in microbial production of succinic acid]

Succinic acid is one of the key intermediates in the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA)and has huge potentials in biopolymer, food, medicine applications. This article reviews recent research progress in the production of succinic acid by microbial fermentation, including discovery and screening of the succinic-acid-producing microbes, the progress of genetic engineering strategy and metabolic engineering technology for construction of succinic acid-producing strains, and fermentation process control and optimization. Finally, we discussed the limitation of current progress and proposed the future research needs for microbial production of succinic acid.

Cell recycled culture of succinic acid-producing Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens using an internal membrane filtration system

Cell recycled culture of succinic acid-producing Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens was anaerobically carried out using an internal membrane filter module in order to examine the physiological response of A. succiniciproducens to a high-cell-density environment. The optimal growth of A. succiniciproducens and its enhanced succinic acid productivity were observed under CO2-rich conditions, established by adding NaHCO3 and Na2CO3, in the cell recycled system. A. succiniciproducens grew up to 6.50 g-DCW/l, the highest cell concentration obtained so far, in cell recycled cultures. The cells did not change their morphology, which is known to be easily changed in unfavorable or stress environments. The maximum productivity of succinic acid was about 3.3 g/l/h, which is 3.3 times higher than those obtained in batch cultures. These results can serve as a guide for designing highly efficient cell recycled systems for succinic acid at a commercial level.

Comparative kinetic effects of Mn (II), Mg (II) and the ATP/ADP ratio on phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinases from Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The kinetic affinity for CO(2) of phosphoenolpyruvate PEP(5) carboxykinase from Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens, an obligate anaerobe which PEP carboxykinase catalyzes the carboxylation of PEP in one of the final steps of succinate production from glucose, is compared with that of the PEP carboxykinase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which catalyzes the decarboxylation of oxaloacetate in one of the first steps in the biosynthesis of glucose. For the A. succiniciproducens enzyme, at physiological concentrations of Mn(2+) and Mg(2+), the affinity for CO(2) increases as the ATP/ADP ratio is increased in the assay medium, while the opposite effect is seen for the S. cerevisiae enzyme. The results show that a high ATP/ADP ratio favors CO(2) fixation by the PEP carboxykinase from A. succiniciproducens but not for the S. cerevisiae enzyme. These findings are in agreement with the proposed physiological roles of S. cerevisiae and A. succiniciproducens PEP carboxykinases, and expand recent observations performed with the enzyme isolated from Panicum maximum (Chen et al. (2002) Plant Physiology 128: 160-164).

[The research progress of succinic acid fermentation strains]

The potential of succinic acid as an important chemical intermediates had been realized and fermentation is one of the best ways to make it possible in economical aspect. Fermentation organism is the key part of the fermentation method. The updated research developments of fermentation organisms and the fermentation characteristics and problems of them were reviewed and analyzed in this paper. Finally,the development future of fermenation organism was forecasted.

A new process for the continuous production of succinic acid from glucose at high yield, titer, and productivity

A novel three stages continuous fermentation process for the bioproduction of succinic acid at high concentration, productivity and yield using A. succiniciproducens was developed. This process combined an integrated membrane-bioreactor-electrodialysis system. An energetic characterization of A. succiniciproducens during anaerobic cultured in a cell recycle bioreactor was done first. The very low value of Y(ATP) obtained suggests that an ATP dependent mechanism of succinate export is present in A. succiniciproducens. Under the best culture conditions, biomass concentration and succinate volumetric productivity reach values of 42 g/L and 14.8 g/L.h. These values are respectively 28 and 20 times higher compared to batch cultures done in our laboratory. To limit end-products inhibition on growth, a mono-polar electrodialysis pilot was secondly coupled to the cell recycle bioreactor. This system allowed to continuously remove succinate and acetate from the permeate and recycle an organic acids depleted solution in the reactor. The integrated membrane-bioreactor-electrodialysis process produced a five times concentrated succinate solution (83 g/L) compared to the cell recycle reactor system, at a high average succinate yield of 1.35 mol/mol and a slightly lower volumetric productivity of 10.4 g/L.h. The process combined maximal production yield to high productivity and titer and could be economically viable for the development of a biological route for succinic acid production.