Kinetics of growth, plantaricin and lactic acid production in whey permeate based medium by probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum CRA52

In the present study, the prospect of alternate carbon and nitrogen sources was ascertained for plantaricin (PL) and lactic acid (LA) production from the probiotic lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus plantarum CRA52. The alternate carbon sources used in the present study were whey permeate (WP) and palmyra palm sugar (PJ), and the alternate nitrogen source was whey protein hydrolysate (WPH). Experimental use of WP as carbon source and WPH as nitrogen source led to enhanced production of LA and PL, with the yield being 17.69 gL(-1) and 462.32 AUmL(-1) respectively. WP and WPH concentration ratio of 2:1 was found to be optimal for the production of PL and LA. Kinetic modeling revealed that Aiba substrate inhibition model exhibited best fit for the experimental data. On performing a medium based process economic analysis, WP and WPH-based medium were economical for the production of LA. The present investigation validates the potential of WP-WPH based medium for heightened economical production of PL and LA. It is envisaged that this study will lend fundamental insights in order to leverage the innate nutritional potential of raw products such as PJ and WP for economical production of industrially relevant products.

Automated summary

This study validated the potential of using whey permeate and whey protein hydrolysate as alternate carbon and nitrogen sources for enhanced production of plantaricin and lactic acid. The optimal WP and WPH concentration ratio of 2:1 was found for the production of PL and LA. Kinetic modeling revealed that Aiba substrate inhibition model exhibited the best fit for the experimental data.