Speciality enzyme manufacturer, Biocatalysts Ltd, recently partnered with a food ingredient company that had developed a novel biocatalytic route for synthesis of a high value flavour compound. The biocatalyst was initially developed for the company by a Contract Research Organisation who did not have sufficient capacity or logistics to supply this enzyme on a routine basis.
The challenge was to improve the enzyme production process and scale-up production to meet the customer’s annual enzyme requirements. The final product required halal, kosher and food-grade certification.
The existing expression system (Pichia pastoris) and enzyme production methodology were reviewed against Biocatalysts’ best-in-class production methodologies, applying “design for manufacture” principles. The redesigned fermentation and original fermentation were performed in parallel at small-scale (3 L) to confirm acceptability of the new process. The result of this was an improved production level with the product performing exactly as the original biocatalyst. Following the successful parallel runs the production was scaled-up to routine production and validated in a series of 3 production runs, all of which yielded usable product for the customer.
Within 6 months Biocatalysts completed the project, moving from the initial stages of process redesign and confirmation right through to routine enzyme production. The reliable supply of this enzyme at the required scale meant the customer could benefit from an exclusive end product, providing market differentiation.
