New Production Method of Exopolysaccharides Using Engineered Living Materials [EPS by ELM]
Final Report Abstract
In the DFG project ‘EPS by ELM’, the idea of producing a novel engineered living material (ELM) for dextran fermentation was developed. The presented ‘ELM cell’ consists of a specially designed ELM unit that enables the colonisation of microorganisms and dextran production simultaneously. Two methods were tested for colonising the microorganisms in the ELM cell: In the first method, a rheotactically anisotropic, hierarchically structured BC matrix was functionalised as a pH indicator after growth by chemical modification. In a second step, the dextran-producing lactic acid bacteria Leuconostoc mesenteroides were able to grow on the growth surface and produce dextran there. In the second method, the co-culture of BC and dextran-producing microorganisms was grown in the ELM cell. The biofilm could then be used for dextran production.
