Manus and UT Austin Advance Biomanufacturing Product Recovery Through BioMADE Program
A new study showed that a prgrammed lysis approach cut mechanical separation energy by over 50 percent at pilot scale, widening the range of bioalternatives that can compete pricewise. The post Manus and UT Austin Advance Biomanufacturing Product Recovery Through BioMADE Program appeared first on GEN - Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News .
Manus, a biotechnology firm, and the University of Texas at Austin have successfully completed a BioMADE-sponsored program to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of industrial yeast fermentation. The collaborative effort, led by Hal Alper and his team at UT Austin's McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering, developed yeast capable of self-destructing at the end of fermentation.
This innovation, known as programmed lysis, simplifies downstream processing by minimizing the need for costly mechanical disruption and eliminating the use of hazardous solvents for extraction. Consequently, the process leads to reduced production costs and enhanced sustainability for a wide range of intracellular products, including lipids, proteins, vitamins, pigments, biosurfactants, and polysaccharides.
The researchers demonstrated the technology at pilot scale, up to 300 liters, for two industrially relevant yeast strains - Yarrowia lipolytica and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In Yarrowia lipolytica, engineered strains achieved a more than 50 percent reduction in mechanical separation energy requirements. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the team accomplished autolysis in a relevant production strain.
The team's advancements transformed the technology from a laboratory demonstration to integrated pilot operation, bringing it closer to commercial viability.
Christine Santos, PhD, Chief Technology Officer of Manus, emphasized that downstream processing is a significant hidden cost in biomanufacturing and can impact product pricing. By engineering yeast to disrupt their own cell walls, the team effectively cuts costs, energy consumption, and process complexity, thus expanding the range of products that can be produced economically and sustainably at scale.
By reducing processing intensity and improving recovery, these advancements bolster the case for domestic biomanufacturing, which relies on abundant, low-cost American feedstocks. The researchers note that the technology has broad applications across various products that accumulate inside microbial cells, contributing to a more cost-effective and environmentally friendly manufacturing process.
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