Lecture 1: Chapter 1 & 2

Definition of Biochemical Engineering

Introduction to microbial process and their metabolites
biophysics and the cell doctrine
the structure of the cells
different biochemicals such as lipids, sugar and
polysaccharides, amino acids, hybrid biochemicals.
 Definitions
Biotechnology -
•“the application of scientific and engineering principles to the processing of
materials by biological agents to provide goods and services”
•"Commercial techniques that use living organisms, or substances from those
organisms, to make or modify a product, including techniques used for the
improvement of the characteristics of economically important plants and
animals and for the development of microorganisms to act on the environment
... " (Congress of the United States, 1984).

Biochemical engineering -
•“the contribution of chemical engineering to biotechnology”.
•Concerned with conducting biological processes on an industrial scale
Biochemical engineering fundamentals

Biochemical engineers work together with biological

scientists to carry out a bioprocess on a large scale:
1. To obtain the best biological catalyst (microorganism,
animal cell, plant cell, or enzyme) for a desired process
2. To create the best possible environment for the catalyst
to perform by designing the bioreactor and operating it in
the most efficient way.
3. To separate the desired products from the reaction
mixture in the most economical way.
Biochemical engineering process?
Biochemical engineering fundamentals
Basic questions which need to be asked by Biochemical
Engineer for the process development and design:

1. What change can be expected to occur?

2. How fast will the process take place?
3. How can the system be operated and controlled for the
maximum yield?
4. How can the products be separated with maximum purity and
minimum costs?
What are the different types of microorganisms
used in Biochemical process?

Protist Kingdom

Procaryotes Eucaryotes

Bacteria Blue-green algae Fungi Algae Protozoa

Mold Yeasts
Different types of microorganisms
used in Biochemical process?
 Procaryotic cell

Bacteria
•Relatively small organisms
•Usually enclosed by rigid walls
•Typically unicellular – in three forms;
rods (Bacilli), spirals (Spirilla), spheres (Cocci)
-Can be classified into Gram positive and Gram
negative
•Capable of motion (motile) and binary fission
Chemical composition of a procaryotic cell

Cells- composed of small molecules as well as macromolecules;

made up of four basic elements (carbon, oxygen, hydrogen and
nitrogen)
Other elements: phosphorous, iron, sulphur, zinc, manganase,
copper, molybdenum, cobalt
Water accounts ~ 90% of the weight of the cells
Of the macromolecules, proteins are most abundant by weight
(55%)
The chemical composition of a procaryotic cell: Table 1
The dry weight of an actively growing E.coli ~ 2.8 x 10-13 g
Table 1:Chemical composition of a
procaryotic cell
 Nutritional requirements

Organisms can assimilate various organic compounds and use

them to make new cell wall material; amino acid, fatty acids,
organic acids, sugars, nitrogen bases, aromatic compounds
Other macronutrients that are required are:
i) Phosphorus which is required by the cell during nucleic acid synthesis
and phospholipids
ii) Sulphur which has a structural role in amino acids like methionine,
cysteine and vitamins like thiamine, biotin
iii) Potassium which is involves in the protein synthesis and for proper
functioning of enzymes
iv) Magnesium – stabilizes ribosomes, cell membrane, nucleic acid and is
required for the activity of enzymes
v) Calcium – essential for growth, stabilizes cell walls and is responsible
for the stability of endospores
Table 2: Macronutrients in nature and
culture media
Table 3: Micronutrients required by cells
Table 4: Vitamins and their functions
Eukaryotes vs Prokaryote
 Eukaryotes: Fungi, algae, protozoa

Fungi
-A diverse group of eucaryotes lacking chlorophyll and are filamentous, with the cell
wall made up chitin and coenocytic (i.e. cytoplasm mingles between adjacent walls
through pores)

-Typically aerobic, found in damp and dark places

-Active producers of various hydrolytic enzymes – can decompose cellulose and lignin

-Can grow on the surface of electrical insulators and make them transmit electricity

-Important role in ecological cycles as they rapidly decompose the dead and release
carbon and minerals back to the environment

- classified into moulds and yeasts

 Fungi

Septate hyphae contain cross-walls (septa), which divide them into

uninuclear cell-like units.
Septa usually have openings that allow the cytoplasm of adjacent “cells” to
be continuous.
Coenocytic hyphae have no cross-walls and look like one long, filamentous,
multinucleated cell.
Source: http://classes.midlandstech.edu/carterp/Courses/bio225/chap12/lecture1.htm
i) Yeasts – capable of anaerobic growth and survive in the different environments
If access is given to oxygen, yeasts perform aerobic respiration to metabolize
carbohydrates to CO2 and H2O
-In the absence of oxygen, they ferment carbohydrates to ethanol and CO 2
-relatively complex morphology, single, small cells from 5 to 30mm long and
from 1 to 5mm wide
-Reproduction of yeasts are asexual (budding and fission)

ii) Molds
- higher fungi with a vegetative structure called a
mycelium
- mycelium is a highly branched system of tubes
- the long, thin filaments of cells within the
mycelium are called hyphae
- do not contain chlorophyll, generally non-motile
- reproduction – spores
- most important classes : Aspergillus and
Penicillium
 fungi, algae, protozoa
Algae
-eucaryotic, photosynthetic, mostly multicellular, branching organisms and are non-
motile
-More similar to plants i.e. most algae have branching structures (leaf), attached to
substrate by root-like hold fasts, and some species contain pigments (photosynthetic)
-Reproduction have resemblance close to animals
- considered as primary food producers as they convert chemically simple nutrients to
complex organic matter
-Their dead cells contribute to the formation of a complex organic material called
‘humus’ – provided as food to other microbes

Protozoa – heterogeneous group with highly specialized cell structure, mode of life
and reproduction
-Greatly vary in size; cell wall is absent in them, unicellular, found in soil and water
- all protozoa are chemoorganotrophic, capable of taking solid particles into cell
-Respond to stimuli such as heat, chemicals, gravity and electricity
-Some protozoa can produce a cyst, which provides protection during adverse
environmental conditions.
Algae - unicellular, filamentous, or multicellular (thallic).
- Most algae live in aquatic environments.
- eukaryotic photoautotrophs that produce oxygen (except for the
water molds, which are fungus-like chemoheteroptrophs).
- Algae reproduce asexually by cell division and fragmentation.
- Many algae reproduce sexually.
- Algae are classified according to their structures and pigments.
Animal and plant cells
•Eukaryotes which implies that they have cell nucleus containing chromosomes.
•Both have cell membranes surrounding the cell that controls the movement of
substances in and out of the cell.
•the biggest differences between a plant and an animal cell is the presence of a cell wall
made up of cellulose in plants. This allows plants to build up high pressure inside the
cell without bursting.
•Animal cells do not have this cell wall.
•Plant: the use of photosynthesis, a process through which plants convert sunlight into
food. For this purpose, plants have chloroplasts having its own DNA. This is absent in
animal cells.
•Plant cells have a large vacuole which is present in cells’ cytoplasm. This vacuole takes
up all the space in a plant cell with cell membrane encircling them. This vacuole
contains waste materials, water and nutrients that plant can use or secrete whenever
necessary.
•animal cells have small vacuoles

Read more: http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-animal-cell-and-vs-plant-cell/#ixzz1VoloUoCF

Animal and plant cells
 Cell structures and functions:
Chromosomes
- Usually in the form of chromatin
- Contains genetic information
- Composed of DNA
- Thicken for cellular division
- Set number per species (i.e. 23 pairs for human)

Nuclear membrane
- Surrounds nucleus
- Composed of two layers
- Numerous openings for nuclear traffic

Centrioles
- Paired cylindrical organelles near nucleus
- Composed of nine tubes, each with three tubules
- Involved in cellular division
- Lie at right angles to each other
Nucleolus
- Spherical shape
- Visible when cell is not dividing
-Contains RNA for protein manufacture

Chloroplasts
- A plastid usually found in plant cells
- Contain green chlorophyll where photosynthesis takes place

Cytoskeleton
- Composed of microtubules
- Supports cell and provides shape
-Aids movement of materials in and out of cells

Endoplasmic reticulum
- Tubular network fused to nuclear membrane
- Goes through cytoplasm onto cell membrane
- Stores, separates, and serves as cell's transport system
- Smooth type: lacks ribosomes
- Rough type (pictured): ribosomes embedded in surface
Golgi apparatus
- Protein 'packaging plant'
- A membrane structure found near nucleus
- Composed of numerous layers forming a sac

Lysosome
- Digestive 'plant' for proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates
- Transports undigested material to cell membrane for removal
- Vary in shape depending on process being carried out
- Cell breaks down if lysosome explodes

Mitochondria
- Second largest organelle with unique genetic structure
- Double-layered outer membrane with inner folds called cristae
- Energy-producing chemical reactions take place on cristae
- Controls level of water and other materials in cell
- Recycles and decomposes proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, and forms urea

Ribosomes
- Miniature 'protein factories'
- Composes 25% of cell's mass
- Stationary type: embedded in rough endoplasmic reticulum
- Mobile type: injects proteins directly into cytoplasm
Vacuoles
- Membrane-bound sacs for storage, digestion, and waste removal
- Contains water solution
- Contractile vacuoles for water removal (in unicellular organisms)

Cell wall
- Most commonly found in plant cells
- Controls turgity
- Extracellular structure surrounding plasma membrane
- Primary cell wall: extremely elastic
- Secondary cell wall: forms around primary cell wall after growth is complete

Plasma membrane
- Outer membrane of cell that controls cellular traffic
- Contains proteins (left, gray) that span through the membrane and allow
passage of materials
- Proteins are surrounded by a phospholipid bi-layer.