Enhancement of Thermal Resistance by Metal Ions in Thermotolerant TISTR 548.

The thermal resistance of fermenting microbes is a key characteristic of stable fermentation at high temperatures. Therefore, the effects of various metal ions on the growth of TISTR 548, a thermotolerant ethanologenic bacterium, at a critical high temperature (CHT) were examined. Addition of Mg and K increased CHT by 1°C, but the effects of the addition of Mn, Ni, Co, Al, Fe, and Zn on CHT were negligible.

Thermotolerant genes essential for survival at a critical high temperature in thermotolerant ethanologenic TISTR 548.

Background: High-temperature fermentation (HTF) technology is expected to reduce the cost of bioconversion of biomass to fuels or chemicals. For stable HTF, the development of a thermotolerant microbe is indispensable. Elucidation of the molecular mechanism of thermotolerance would enable the thermal stability of microbes to be improved.