NovelBioChem

Initial situation & project description

Residual materials from food production and agriculture are promising starting substrates for the fermentative production of bio-based chemicals. Robust and efficient production organisms are an essential prerequisite for their efficient use.

The aim of the NovelBioChem project is to isolate and characterize new potential production organisms from biogas fermenters for the fermentative production of chemical precursors.

Highly efficient and robust microorganisms with low substrate requirements are promising candidates for the production of platform chemicals based on biogenic residues. Biogas fermenters harbor a variety of microorganisms that are capable of degrading various substrates such as agricultural residues or food waste. In addition, the high selection pressure in the fermenters favors the growth of strains with particularly high activity. This makes biogas fermenters an ideal reservoir for isolating new production strains. Due to the great microbial diversity in biogas fermenters, novel screening tools are needed to identify promising candidates. The NovelBioChem project will first develop molecular screening tools tailored to the target genes involved in the production of the platform chemicals addressed. These innovative screening tools will greatly facilitate and accelerate the targeted identification and isolation of potential candidates. Furthermore, the ongoing enrichment and cultivation processes can be monitored and controlled.

The aim of the project is to use this new approach to isolate and characterize high-performance producers for selected target molecules. The focus is on the platform chemicals lactic acid, butanediol, and succinic acid, which are key building blocks of various bio-based polymers.

Within the joint project, the PFI focused on the isolation and characterization of strictly anaerobic microorganisms and their use for the fermentative production of platform chemicals. The project partner, Kaiserslautern University of Applied Sciences, concentrated primarily on the isolation of facultative anaerobic bacteria and their suitability as potential production organisms. AMODIA Bioservice developed the molecular-based screening tools for the identification and accelerated isolation of the target organisms.

The project with the funding code FKZ 03WIR4505A is financially supported by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) as part of the ‘WIR! Change through Innovation in the Region’ funding programme via the project management agency PTJ.