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Isothermal calorimetry and microbial growth: beyond modeling

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Abstract

A phenomenological approach, based on the simple consideration of the cell duplication mechanism, is suggested to describe the microbial growth monitored through isothermal calorimetry. Correlation of the calorimetric trace with the cell microbial population can be assessed. The method permits to obtain directly the generation time trend τ(t) in all the phases of the growth process discriminating the influence of the peculiar experimental setup and focusing on the factors that are intrinsic to the microorganism. This type of elaboration offers a reference point in order to compare results from different laboratories for similar systems and for further kinetic and energetic exploitation of the microbial system. The paper reports the case of Lactobacillus helveticus as an experimental evidence.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Prof. Maria Grazia Fortina, DeFENS University of Milan, for kindly supplying the L. helveticus cells.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Sciences (DeFENS), Università di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133, Milan, Italy

    Dimitrios Fessas & Alberto Schiraldi

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  1. Dimitrios Fessas
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  2. Alberto Schiraldi
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Correspondence to Dimitrios Fessas.

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Fessas, D., Schiraldi, A. Isothermal calorimetry and microbial growth: beyond modeling. J Therm Anal Calorim 130, 567–572 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-017-6515-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-017-6515-x

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