Title: Thermodynamic analysis of serogroup C antigen production by Neisseria meningitidis

Authors: Bahar Değerli; Kübra Küçük; Esra Sorgüven; Mustafa Özilgen

Addresses: Department of Food Engineering, Yeditepe University, Kayisdagi Istanbul 34755, Turkey ' Department of Food Engineering, Yeditepe University, Kayisdagi Istanbul 34755, Turkey ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yeditepe University, Kayisdagi Istanbul 34755, Turkey ' Department of Food Engineering, Yeditepe University, Kayisdagi Istanbul 34755, Turkey

Abstract: Kinetic and thermodynamic models are developed to relate substrate consumption, serogroup C antigen production and growth rate of Neisseria meningitidis, a meningitides causing bacterium during the uncontrolled, pH controlled and dissolved oxygen controlled cultivation. The model shows that the microorganisms used their energy metabolism the most efficiently in the case of the guaranteed presence of the dissolved oxygen, e.g., the ultimate acceptor of the electrons in the electron transport chain. The largest heat loss per unit biomass production, the largest exergy loss per unit biomass production, and the largest entropy generation per unit biomass production are accounted in the pH controlled experiment, indicating that the growth is achieved under thermodynamically unfavourable conditions. The exergetic efficiency of the microbial production and the antigen production are not parallel, confirming the discussion accounted in the literature that the antigen is produced best under the stress conditions.

Keywords: microbial growth; antigen production; metabolic irreversibility; microbial heat generation; metabolic exergy destruction; entropy generation; thermodynamic analysis; Neisseria meningitidis; kinetic modelling; biomass production; exergetic efficiency; stress conditions.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEX.2015.067297

International Journal of Exergy, 2015 Vol.16 No.1, pp.1 - 21

Received: 24 Sep 2013
Accepted: 14 Dec 2013
Published online: 03 Feb 2015 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article