Bioreactor Class 12

Recent advancements in microbial biotechnology and fermentation technology have vastly improved the production of everyday items like cheese, bread, and beverages such as beer and coffee. These advancements also extend to producing antibiotics and various primary and secondary metabolites. This process depends on the ability of microorganisms to transform specific metabolites into the desired product under controlled conditions.

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Creating an optimal environment for microbial growth is crucial for effective production. This environment is controlled in a bioreactor—a large tank where conditions like pH, temperature, airflow, nutrient flow, and stirring are precisely managed to maximize product yield. Essentially, each cell within a bioreactor functions as a mini-bioreactor itself.

Types of Bioreactors

  • Batch Reactors: Simple, closed systems where once the tank is set up, no further inputs or outputs occur until the end of the reaction.
  • Continuous Stirred Tank Bioreactors (CSTR): These reactors allow for continuous input and output, ideal for ongoing chemical processes.
  • Photobioreactors: Utilize transparent materials to encourage growth in light-dependent microbial cultures.
  • Airlift Bioreactors: Best suited for cultures that produce or rely on gases.
  • Fixed-bed Bioreactors: Feature cells attached to a solid surface, enhancing stability and reaction efficiency.

Bioprocessing Phases

  1. Preparation: Involves setting up and sterilizing equipment.
  2. Production: The main phase where the microbial culture processes and produces the target metabolite.
  3. Purification: Separates and purifies the final product from the culture.

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Steps in Producing Products from Foreign Genes

  1. Isolate the desired gene.
  2. Select a suitable vector and insert the gene using ligase, creating recombinant DNA.
  3. Introduce the recombinant DNA into an appropriate host, like a bacterial cell.
  4. Select cells that have successfully incorporated the foreign gene.
  5. Initiate and maintain expression of the desired protein or metabolite by these recombinant cells.

Benefits of Bioreactors

Bioreactors are essential for scaling the production of biochemical products. They provide a controlled environment that enhances microbial growth and product formation while minimizing labor costs due to automation.

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Applications of Bioreactors

  • Production of secondary metabolites like penicillin or cyclosporin-A.
  • Fermentation of dairy products including cheese and yogurt.
  • Creation of organic acids such as citric and lactic acids.
  • Manufacture of critical enzymes and even microbial cells for various uses.
  • Cultivation of algae in photobioreactors for biofuel production.

By integrating modern biotechnological methods, bioreactors play a pivotal role in producing a vast array of bioproducts efficiently and sustainably.

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Frequently Asked Questions on Bioreactor Class 12

The best materials for bioreactors are those that don't corrode and can handle steam sterilization, high pressures, and changes in pH.

Techniques like protoplast fusion, genome shuffling, mutation, and recombination are commonly employed to enhance strains used in bioprocessing.

Photobioreactors are typically used to grow photosynthetic organisms like cyanobacteria and microalgae.

Microorganisms produce bioplastics known as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), which include types like polyhydroxy butyrate (PHB).

Primary metabolites are crucial for an organism’s growth and reproduction and are produced during the growth phase. Secondary metabolites, however, are not essential for growth or reproduction and typically fulfill an ecological role.