%0 Journal Article
%T Challenges in Enzymatic Route of Mannitol Production
%A Sheelendra Mangal Bhatt
%A Anand Mohan
%A Suresh Kumar Srivastava
%J ISRN Biotechnology
%D 2013
%R 10.5402/2013/914187
%X Mannitol is an important biochemical often used as medicine and in food sector, yet its biotechnological is not preffered in Industry for large scale production, which may be due to the multistep mechanism involved in hydrogenation and reduction. This paper is a comparative preview covering present chemical and biotechnological approaches existing today for mannitol production at industrial scale. Biotechnological routes are suitable for adaptation at industrial level for mannitol production, and whatever concerns are there had been discussed in detail, namely, raw materials, broad range of enzymes with high activity at elevated temperature suitable for use in reactor, cofactor limitation, reduced by-product formation, end product inhibition, and reduced utilization of mannitol for enhancing the yield with maximum volumetric productivity. 1. Introduction Expanding applications in food and medical sector raises the demand of mannitol constantly, and according to an estimate, the present global market of mannitol is around $100 million with a growth rate of 5%-6% annually (2005¨C2009). According to Aldrich catalogue 2008, mannitol price was around $79.16 per kg [1], and current price of mannitol according to Sigma catalogues is around 42$ per Kg (2011, M4125, D-mannitol 98% pure). According to the research report entitled ¡°Polyols: A Global Strategic Business Report¡± announced by Global Industry Analysts Inc., the global market for polyols has been forecasted to reach 4.0 billion pounds by the year 2015. Around 50,000£¿tons/year of mannitol are produced currently by the chemical hydrogenation alone around the world via hydrogenation of 50% fructose/50% glucose syrup at high pressures and temperatures using a Raney nickel catalyst, but the major product obtained is racemic mixture of mannitol and sorbitol; ¦Â-fructose is hydrogenated into mannitol, whereas ¦Á-fructose is hydrogenated into sorbitol [2]. Substrate rich in high fructose content or pure fructose is more suitable for mannitol 50% (w/w) production via chemical hydrogenation step and is patented [3]. However, using these raw materials is very expensive, and therefore, an alternative cheap substrate based on enzymatic conversion method was used. In nutshell, chemical route has low yield 17% (w/w), requires costly operations, and produces racemic mixture, and thus, alternative biotechnological methods via microbes may be better solutions for industrial applications [4]. Various alternative substrates have been used by researchers for mannitol production such as pure D-glucose and its epimerization
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn.biotechnology/2013/914187/