Nisin innivative downstream processing using membrane and chromatographic separation processes – NISINNOV

Nisin is produced by lactic acid bacteria belonging to Lactococcus and Streptococcus genera. This bacteriocin is FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved natural biopreservative under reference E234. Nisin also has potential for therapeutic use to treat a range of infectious diseases. Nisin commercially available is mainly produced by liquid fermentation. The production of high-quality commercial nisin is hampered by the lack of a cost effective production process.
Laboratory-scale purification of nisin typically consists of a succession of ammonium sulfate precipitation, solvent-based precipitation, and chromatographic-based techniques such as ion-exchange, hydrophobic interaction, gel filtration, and reversed-phase high pressure liquid chromatography. Despite excellent results in term of purity, these procedures are not suitable for an industrial scale. Usually, low yields are obtained, due to the involvement of a number of steps in the protocols, resulting in tedious and time-consuming processes.
In this context, NISINNOV project aims to develop an efficient purification strategy scalable on a large scale to obtain nisin with different degrees of purity with a minimal number of steps as possible. In this proposal, we propose to: (i) optimize nisin fermentation conditions ; (ii) implement an innovative on-line recovery process, (iii) design a first stage purification step by applying membrane-based methodologies, (iv) achieve the purest nisin as possible by Ion-Exchange Chromatography with a satisfactory yield for the global process while coupling unit operations, and (v) provide an efficient overall purification design adaptable to large scale.
This project involves a microbiologist, plasma, membrane, and chromatographic processes specialists. The innovative nature of the project is related to its multidisciplinary and sustainable approach. It also addresses key bioseparation issues that severely limit the commercial development of this class of molecules.