Production of vitamin B2 (riboflavin) by Bacillus subtilis

Abstract

Riboflavin is one of the main micronutrients required for the human body for cellular respiration. It is the precursor of flavin mononucleotide and flavin adenine dinucleotide coenzymes crucial for the production of energy. The development of biotechnology has given rise to microbial procedures that strongly compete with the chemical synthesis approach and hence the fermentation process of riboflavin by microorganisms was initiated. Therefore, the main aim of this review is to investigate the production of riboflavin by Bacillus subtilis fermentation. The introduction of the microbial synthesis method has found that regulatory and structural genes involved in the synthesis of vitamin B2 are overexpressed, which has eventually enhanced the strain productivity and production of the vitamin via industrial fermentation. Using B. subtilis to synthesize riboflavin can reduce the production cost and increase the yield of riboflavin. The emergence of microbial synthesis methods has effectively increased the yield of riboflavin, and the study of the process of riboflavin synthesis by B. subtilis is of great significance for improving production, reducing costs and using renewable raw materials. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).

Microbial Pigments: Major Groups and Industrial Applications

“…Once there is no unique way to extract pigments from microbial cells, it is essential to investigate different methods to find the most feasible methodology to obtain the bioproduct with the least cost. Moreover, the cleaner and "greener" these processes are regarding environmental subjects, the better for a promising industrial application [150,[194][195][196].…”

“…In extraction processes, several factors may influence the microbial pigment yield obtainment, such as solvent choice, type of pigment, complexity of microbial cell wall, and presence of culture media residues [195]. Conventional extraction of different pigment groups may include maceration, distillations, Soxhlet extraction, and water/solvent infusions [150]. Even being used until present days, it is well-known that these methods present disadvantages, such as large volumes of solvent usage, poor extraction, time-consuming processes, chemical degradation of pigment structure when performed with high temperatures, and thus loss of bioactivity [37,150,197].…”

“…Conventional extraction of different pigment groups may include maceration, distillations, Soxhlet extraction, and water/solvent infusions [150]. Even being used until present days, it is well-known that these methods present disadvantages, such as large volumes of solvent usage, poor extraction, time-consuming processes, chemical degradation of pigment structure when performed with high temperatures, and thus loss of bioactivity [37,150,197]. Moreover, during these processes, the use of organic solvents such as acetone, benzene, petroleum ether, hexane, and methanol is prevalent.…”

Biotechnological Applications of Microbial Pigments

“…The names of microorganisms, their producers, and their functions are described. Research and industrial production [71,72] Molelekoa et al [73] characterized different microbial pigments extracted from fungi, such as bostrycoidin (a red aza-anthraquinone), with antioxidant and antimicrobial properties produced by Fusarium solani. Another red one called rubropunctamine extracted from Talaromyces verruculosus with antioxidant and antimicrobial biological activities described too; and sclerotin (yellow-brown) with antioxidant, antibiofilm and antimicrobial properties produced by Penicillium multicolour and P. mallochi.…”