Claims for Patent: 6,746,862

Summary for Patent: 6,746,862

Title:	Method for cultivation of filamentous fungi
Abstract:	The invention discloses a method for cultivation of filamentous fungi using a suspended nutritionally solid substrate, the method including the steps of: (a) preparing a medium comprising a nutritionally solid substrate; and (b) inoculating an inoculum into the medium comprising the nutritionally solid substrate in a bioreactor to carry out fermentation. The present invention combines the properties of solid-state culture and submerged culture. In addition, the present invention may employ an air-lift bioreactor with a net draft tube and the fed-batch process to elevate the yields of filamentous fungi and metabolites thereof.
Inventor(s):	Wu; Wen-Teng (Hsinchu, TW), Wang; Pei-Ming (Kaohsiung, TW), Huang; Ting-Kuo (Chang-He, TW), Yuan; Gwo-Fang (Hsinchu, TW)
Assignee:	Food Industry Research & Development Institute (Hsinchu, TW)
Application Number:	09/611,992
Patent Claims:	1. A method for cultivation of filamentous fungi comprising the steps of: (a) preparing a medium for submerged culture comprising rice particles that receive said filamentous fungi, wherein the rice particles are husked, cooked, and sterilized before being added to said medium; and (b) inoculating said medium with said filamentous fungi in a bioreactor to carry out fermentation wherein the mycelia of said filamentous fungi are attached to said rice particles. 2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said filamentous fungi comprise Monascus, Penicillium or Aspergilus. 3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said medium in step (a) further comprises a nitrogen source, inorganic salts and trace elements. 4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein step (b) further comprises culturing said filamentous fungi prior to introduction into said medium. 5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the culturing step comprises: (1) inoculating said filamentous fungi from a stock culture to a new agar plate and incubating in an incubator for 5 to 7 days; (2) washing spores and mycelia grown on said plate with sterile water; and (3) cultivating for about 36 to 48 hours said spores and mycelia in a medium comprising rice particles by shaking to form a culture. 6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said bioreactor is a pneumatic bioreactor. 7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein said pneumatic bioreactor is an air-lift bioreactor with a net draft tube. 8. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising cultivating said filamentous fungi using the fed-batch process. 9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the medium of the batch comprises a nitrogen source and rice particles. 10. A method for cultivation of the Monascus species comprising the steps of: (a) preparing a medium for submerged culture comprising rice particles that receives said Monascus species, wherein the rice particles are husked, cooked and sterilized before being added to said medium; and (h) inoculating said medium with said Monascus species in a bioreactor to carry out fermentation wherein the mycelia of said Monascus species are attached to said rice particles. 11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein step (b) further comprises culturing said Monascus species prior to introduction into said medium. 12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the culturing comprises: (1) inoculating said Monascus species from a stock culture to a new agar plate and incubating in an incubator for 5 to 7 days; (2) washing spores and mycelia grown on said plate with sterile water; and (3) cultivating for about 36 to 48 hours said spores and mycelia in a medium comprising rice particles by shaking, to form a culture. 13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein said bioreactor is a pneumatic bioreactor. 14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein said pneumatic bioreactor is an air-lift bioreactor with a net draft tube. 15. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising cultivating said Monascus species using the fed-batch process. 16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the medium of the batch comprises a nitrogen source and rice particles. 17. A method for producing metabolites from cultivation of the Monascus species comprising the steps of: (a) preparing a medium for submerged culture comprising rice particles that receive said Monascus species, wherein the rice particles are husked, cooked, and sterilized before being added to said medium; and (b) inoculating said medium with said Monascus species in a bioreactor to carry out fermentation wherein the mycelia of said Monascus species are attached to said rice particles. 18. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein step (b) further comprises culturing said Monascus species prior to introduction into said medium. 19. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein the culturing comprises: (1) inoculating said Monascus species from a stock culture to a new agar plate and incubating in an incubator for 5 to 7 days; (2) washing spores and mycelia grown on said plate with sterile water; and (3) cultivating for about 36 to 48 hours said spores and mycelia in a medium comprising rice particles by shaking, to form a culture. 20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein said bioreactor is a pneumatic bioreactor. 21. The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein said pneumatic bioreactor is an air-lift bioreactor with a net draft tube. 22. The method as claimed in claim 17, further comprising cultivating said Monascus species using the fed-batch process. 23. The method as claimed in claim 22, wherein the medium of the batch comprises a nitrogen source and rice grain particles.

Details for Patent 6,746,862

Applicant	Tradename	Biologic Ingredient	Dosage Form	BLA	Approval Date	Patent No.	Expiredate
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.	ZOSTAVAX	zoster vaccine live	For Injection	125123	05/25/2006		2020-03-03