INDUSTRIAL

MICROBIOLOGY
Lecture V
THE BASIC NUTRIENT
REQUIREMENTS OF
INDUSTRIAL MEDIA

THE BASIC NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF

INDUSTRIAL MEDIA
All microbiological media, whether for
industrial or for laboratory purposes must
satisfy the needs of the organism in terms
of carbon, nitrogen, minerals, growth
factors, and water.

CARBON OR ENERGY
Carbon or energy requirements are usually
met from carbohydrates, notably (in
laboratory experiments) from glucose. It
must be borne in mind that more complex
carbohydrates such as starch or cellulose
may be utilized by some organisms.

CARBON OR ENERGY

In composing an industrial medium the

carbon content must be adequate for the
production of cells. For most organisms the
weight of organism produced from a
given weight of carbohydrates under
aerobic conditions is about 0.5 gm of dry
cells per gram of glucose. This means that
carbohydrates are at least twice the
expected weight of the cells and must be
put as glucose or its equivalent compound.

NITROGEN
Nitrogen is found in proteins including
enzymes as well as in nucleic acids hence it
is a element in the cell. Most cells would
use ammonia or other nitrogen salts.

The quantity of nitrogen to be added in a

fermentation can be calculated from the
expected cell mass and the average
composition of the micro-organisms used.

NITROGEN
For bacteria the average N content is
12.5%. Therefore to produce 5 gm of
bacterial cells per liter would require about
625 mg N.

MINERALS
Minerals form component portions of some
enzymes in the cell and must be present in
the medium. The major mineral elements
needed include P, S, Mg and Fe.

Trace elements required include

manganese, boron, zinc, copper and
molybdenum.

GROWTH FACTOR
Growth factors include vitamins, amino
acids and nucleotides and must be added to
the medium if the organism cannot
manufacture them.