UNIFERTEX, a universal fermenter for growing micro-organisms

The Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles and PIERRE GUERIN have developed a fermenter that can grow micro-organisms in a liquid medium and on a solid support in a single device. The patented UNIFERTEX fermenter is currently in operation at the CNRS site in Gif-sur-Yvette.

Many micro-organisms are a source of molecules of interest for applications in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and nutrition. UNIFERTEX has the unique advantage of combining fermentation on a solid support (nutrient agar, agricultural by-products, etc.) with fermentation in a liquid medium, used by researchers and industry.

Liquid fermentation, which is the most widespread technology, is simpler to implement, but limits the production of certain valuable compounds.

Solid fermentation on nutrient agar is closer to conditions in natural habitats, but was only feasible on small surfaces. The partners have combined the two processes in a single piece of equipment, combining it with solid-phase extraction technology (the molecules of interest are captured during cultivation by a specific resin), making the process economical in terms of solvents and energy. The new fermenter was developed as part of the European Tascmar* project.

With the new fermenter, researchers and industrialists will be able to benefit from both culture technologies in a limited space. Better still, the two liquid and solid fermentation chambers communicate to ensure homogeneous culture conditions, and their juxtaposition will make it possible to compare the two culture methods for the same micro-organism, with the aim of choosing the optimum option for producing a molecule of interest.

*The Tascmar project, coordinated by the CNRS (Institut de chimie des substances naturelles, ICSN) has developed tools and strategies for culturing marine invertebrates and their associated symbionts from the mesophotic zone, enabling the discovery of new molecules of interest in the fight against age-related diseases and disorders.

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More information : TASCMAR VIDEO