title: A study of oxygen transfer in shake flasks using a non-invasive oxygen sensor.
abstract: We describe a study of oxygen transfer in shake flasks using a non-invasive optical sensor. This study investigates the effect of different plugs, presence of baffles, and the type of media on the dissolved oxygen profiles during Escherichia coli fermentation. We measured the volumetric mass transfer coefficient (k(L)a) under various conditions and also the resistances of the various plugs. Finally, we compared shake flask k(L)a with that from a stirred tank fermentor. By matching k(L)a's we were able to obtain similar growth and recombinant protein product formation kinetics in both a fermentor and a shake flask. These results provide a quantitative comparison of fermentations in a shake flask vs. a bench-scale fermentor and should be valuable in guiding scale-up efforts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, University of Maryland-Baltimore County, 101 ECS Building, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250, USA.
authors.forename: Atul
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.forename: Govind
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rao
mesh_terms: D001692:Biological Transport / Q000502:physiology; D019149:Bioreactors / Q000382:microbiology*; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D010100:Oxygen / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology*; D010783:Photometry / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D014159:Transducers
chemical_list: D010100:Oxygen