Effects of Dissolved Oxygen Level on Avermectin Production by Streptomyces avermitilis in Computer-Controlled Bioreactor Cultures

In order to investigate the effect of dissolved oxygen (DO) level on AVM $B_{1a}$ production by a high yielding mutant of Streptomyces avermitilis, five sets of bioreactor cultures were performed under variously controlled DO levels. Using an online computer control system, the agitation speed and aeration rate were automatically controlled in an adaptive manner, responding timely to the oxygen requirement of the producer microorganism. In the two cultures of DO limitation, the onset of AVM $B_{1a}$ biosynthesis was observed to casually coincide with the fermentation time when oxygen-limited conditions were overcome by the producing microorganism. In contrast, this phenomenon did not occur in the parallel fermentations with DO levels controlled at around 30% and 40% throughout the entire fermentation period, showing an almost growth-associated mode of AVM $B_{1a}$ production: AVM $B_{1a}$ biosynthesis under the environments of high DO levels started much earlier than the corresponding oxygen-limited cultures, leading to a significant enhancement of AVM $B_{1a}$ production during the exponential stage. Consequently, approximately 6-fold and 9-fold increases in the final AVM $B_{1a}$ production were obtained in 30% and 40% DO-controlled fermentations, respectively, especially when compared with the culture of severe DO limitation (the culture with 0% DO level during the exponential phase). The production yield ($Y_{p/x}$), volumetric production rate (Qp), and specific production rate (${\bar{q}}_p$) of the 40% DO-controlled culture were observed to be 14%, 15%, and 15% higher, respectively, than those of the parallel cultures that were performed under an excessive agitation speed (350 rpm) and aeration rate (1 vvm) to maintain sufficiently high DO levels throughout the entire fermentation period. These results suggest that high shear damage of the high-yielding strain due to an excessive agitation speed is the primary reason for the reduction of the AVM $B_{1a}$ biosynthetic capability of the producer. As for the cell growth, exponential growth patterns during the initial 3 days were observed in the fermentations of sufficient DO levels, whereas almost linear patterns of cell growth were observed in the other two cultures of DO limitation during the identical period, resulting in apparently lower amounts of DCW. These results led us to conclude that maintenance of optimum DO levels, but not too high to cause potential shear damage on the producer, was crucial not only for the cell growth, but also for the enhanced production of AVM $B_{1a}$ by the filamentous mycelial cells of Streptomyces avermitilis.