title: Microvinification--how small can we go?
abstract: High-throughput methodologies to screen large numbers of microorganisms necessitate the use of small-scale culture vessels. In this context, an increasing number of researchers are turning to microtiter plate (MTP) formats to conduct experiments. MTPs are now widely used as a culturing vessel for phenotypic screening of aerobic laboratory cultures, and their suitability has been assessed for a range of applications. The work presented here extends these previous studies by assessing the metabolic footprint of MTP fermentation. A comparison of Chardonnay grape juice fermentation in MTPs with fermentations performed in air-locked (self-induced anaerobic) and cotton-plugged (aerobic) flasks was made. Maximum growth rates and biomass accumulation of yeast cultures grown in MTPs were indistinguishable from self-induced anaerobic flask cultures. Metabolic profiles measured differed depending on the metabolite. While glycerol and acetate accumulation mirrored that of self-induced anaerobic cultures, ethanol accumulation in MTP ferments was limited by the increased propensity of this volatile metabolite for evaporation in microlitre-scale culture format. The data illustrates that microplate cultures can be used as a replacement for self-induced anaerobic flasks in some instances and provide a useful and economical platform for the screening of industrial strains and culture media.
authors.affiliation: School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia.
authors.forename: Tommaso
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Liccioli
authors.forename: Tina M T
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Tran
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cozzolino
authors.forename: Vladimir
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Jiranek
authors.forename: Paul J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: Simon A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Schmidt
mesh_terms: D000431:Ethanol / Q000378:metabolism; D019649:Food Industry / Q000379:methods*; D057166:High-Throughput Screening Assays / Q000379:methods; D007218:Industrial Microbiology / Q000379:methods*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000378:metabolism; D027843:Vitis / Q000737:chemistry; D014920:Wine / Q000382:microbiology*; D015003:Yeasts / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D010936:Plant Extracts; D000431:Ethanol