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Index >> Microbial Metabolism >> Fermentations

Fermentations

Fermentations -
In applied microbiology, the term fermentation is loosely used to denote any process in which microorganisms are involved even if the process involves strong aeration and is respiratory in nature as in the antibiotic fermentations. Energetically, fermentations are poor energy yielding processes and the products have lower energy content than the substrates. In terms of bond energy, fermentation may be viewed as a process in which the H and O atoms in an organic molecule are regrouped to yield a carboxyl group or CO2.

Fermentation in a broad sense, can be defined as a reaction in which organic compounds serve both as electron donors and electron acceptors. Since there is no net oxidation in a fermentation, the number of moles of C, H and 0 remain the same in the products as in the substrate, as it occurs in the conversion of glucose to lactic acid or ethanol

F ermentation differs from anaerobic respiration in that in the latter oxygen is replaced by an inorganic electron acceptor such as NO3 or SO4.

Two typical fermentations that have been studied in detail art
(i) the ethanol fermentation in yeast, and
(ii) the lactic acid fermentation in the lactic bacteria

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