Ingenza, Phibro Ethanol to engineer novel yeast strain that will increase yield in bioethanol production
In the UK, Ingenza and Phibro Ethanol – a division of Phibro Animal Health Corporation – have joined forces to engineer a novel yeast strain that will increase yield in the commercial production of bioethanol under both challenging and conventional environmental conditions.
This latest innovation will help to make this valuable natural resource more widely available for processing into sustainable fuels across a range of industries, the partners said.
In the US, bioethanol is produced by fermenting typically corn-based biomass with yeast. However, large volumes of enzymes, including glucoamylase (GA) must be added to render the glucose in this feedstock available to the yeast. In addition, the elevated temperatures generated in the production vessels can stress the yeast, resulting in reduced fermentation performance and, subsequently, lower ethanol yield.
The successful partnership between Ingenza and Phibro sought to solve this issue, and led to the introduction of KinetX yeast solutions – a highly thermotolerant yeast strain that secretes GA throughout growth and fermentation stages – into the market. The novel strain was obtained using Ingenza’s proprietary strain construction and adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) platforms.
It offers superior robustness and reliability at higher temperatures while greatly reducing GA addition in comparison to traditional yeasts, bringing significant financial benefits to bioethanol producers, the partners added.
Leonardo Magneschi, Head of Molecular Biology at Ingenza, said: “Increasing the efficiency of bioethanol production is crucial to boost the commercial viability of biofuels as green alternatives to the fossil fuels we currently rely on. We are strongly committed to Phibro’s goals, and we are confident our ongoing collaboration will play a leading role in reducing the carbon footprint of the transportation sector, helping to achieve global sustainability targets.”
Category: Research
