Scale-up of high cell density Escherichia coli fermentation for protein production from small scale to large pilot scale using Eppendorf bioprocess systems

The ultimate goal in bioprocess development is the realization of large-scale commercial production. Currently, the scale-up of fermentation processes, which is critical to the success of industrial fermentation for bioproduction, is receiving much attention. The fermentation scale-up from small/benchtop (1 L to 10 L scale) to pilot/production scale (> 100 L) is the important step for effective production of biologicals, including small proteins, in the biopharmaceutical market.

In a previous study, we investigated engineering parameters critical for scaling-up fermentation processes, such as vessel and impeller geometry, tip speed, mixing time, oxygen transfer rate (OTR), and power consumption. The primary scope of the study presented here is to evaluate the scale-up of protein production. We used an E. coli strain expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) as a model. Eppendorf fermentation systems from small scale (1 L) to pilot scale (100 L) were utilized following the constant power consumption per volume (P/V) scale-up strategy.