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Alginate molecular mass produced by Azotobacter vinelandii in response to changes of the O2 transfer rate in chemostat cultures

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Abstract

Alginate production by Azotobacter vinelandii growing in chemostat cultures was evaluated under different O2 transfer rates (OTR). As a result of modifying the culture’s agitation rate from 300 to 500 rpm, the OTR increased from 9 to 15.1 mmol l−1 h−1 and a slight variation in the alginate production (1.7–2.2 g l−1) was observed. At a constant growth rate (0.1 h−1), the mean molecular mass of the alginate was strongly influenced by changes in the OTR, varying from 860 to 1,690 kDa. These results support a possible relationship between alginate polymerization-depolymerization process and the O2 uptake rate.

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Acknowledgement

We thank to the Programa Bicentenario de Ciencia y Tecnología (PBCT, Project PSD-081/2008) for financial support.

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Correspondence to A. Díaz-Barrera.

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Díaz-Barrera, A., Silva, P., Ávalos, R. et al. Alginate molecular mass produced by Azotobacter vinelandii in response to changes of the O2 transfer rate in chemostat cultures. Biotechnol Lett 31, 825–829 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10529-009-9949-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10529-009-9949-9

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