A multi-omics study to boost continuous bolaform sophorolipid production

Biodegradable and biobased surface active agents are renewable and environmentally friendly alternatives to petroleum derived or oleochemical surfactants. However, they are accompanied by relatively high production costs. In this study, the aim was to reduce the production costs for an innovative type of microbial biosurfactant: bolaform sophorolipids, produced by the yeast Starmerella bombicola ΔsbleΔat. A novel continuous retentostat set-up was performed whereby continuous broth microfiltration retained the biomass in the bioreactor while performing an in situ product separation of bolaform sophorolipids. Although a mean volumetric productivity of 0.56 g L^(−1) h^(−1) was achieved, it was not possible to maintain this productivity, which collapsed to almost 0 g L^(−1) h^(−1). Therefore, two process adaptations were evaluated, a sequential batch strategy and a phosphate limitation alleviation strategy. The sequential batch set-up restored the mean volumetric productivity to 0.66 g L^(−1) h^(−1) for an additional 132 h but was again followed by a productivity decline. A similar result was obtained with the phosphate limitation alleviation strategy where a mean volumetric productivity of 0.54 g L^(−1) h^(−1) was reached, but a productivity decline was also observed. Whole genome variant analysis uncovered no evidence for genomic variations for up to 1306 h of retentostat cultivation. Untargeted metabolomics analysis identified 8-hydroxyguanosine, a biomarker for oxidative RNA damage, as a key metabolite correlating with high bolaform sophorolipid productivity. This study showcases the application of a retentostat to increase bolaform sophorolipid productivity and lays the basis of a multi-omics platform for in depth investigation of microbial biosurfactant production with S. bombicola.