Team:Paris Bettencourt/Project/VitaminB2

Background

Aims

Results

Some microorganisms (e.g. B. subtilis) naturally produce riboflavin in high amount. Make Idli batter microorganisms produce high amount of riboflavin during fermentation to increase the vitamin B2 content of the batter.
  • Successfully cloned the full riboflavin biosynthesis pathway of B. subtilis in E. coli and made it over-produce vitamin B2 and proceeded to chromosomaly integrate the full pathway in Lactococcus lactis
  • BioBrick submitted to the BioBrick Registry: BBa_K1678001, BBa_K1678002, BBa_K1678003, BBa_K1678004

Riboflavin derived coenzymes (FMN and FAD) are the cofactors of numerous oxydo-reduction enzymes and are also used in the energy transduction process. It is also used in antioxidative reactions and is required for several other vitamins metabolism.
Riboflavin is mostly found in dairy products, offal and almonds.

Riboflavin deficiency is rampant in India:
only 13% of the households meet the riboflavin dietary requirements and more than 70% of women and children of low-income groups (2009 Indian Council of Medical Research report) and 66% children from middle-income groups have biochemical evidence of riboflavin deficiency (S. Swaminathan & al., European J. Clin. Nut., 2013).

Riboflavin is synthesized by Plants, Bacteria and Fungi. Two fungi, Ashbya gossypii and Candida famata and a Gram positive bacteria, Bacillus subtilis are industrially used as riboflavin overproducer(K.-P Stahmann & al, Appl Micr. Biotech., 2000).
In Idli batter, a broad range of micro-organisms have been characterized. Mainly, Gram positive bacteria as Leuconostoc, Weissella, Pediococcus, Lactobacillus, Bacillus (C. Saravanan & al, J Food Sci Technol, 2015)