A method for producing a microbial oil includes steps of: genetically modifying a labyrinthulid by disrupting and/or silencing a gene, or by transforming another gene in addition to the disruption and/or gene silencing of the gene, and culturing the labyrinthulid, such that a fatty acid composition accumulated in the labyrinthulid comprises an increased EPA content; and collecting the microbial oil having the increased EPA content from the labyrinthulid. The labyrinthulid before the modification is selected from (A) a labyrinthulid belonging to the genus Parietichytrium or genus Schizochytrium and having very weak or no activity of producing PUFAs via a PUFA-PKS pathway; and (B) a labyrinthulid belonging to the genus Thraustochytrium in which a host PUFA-PKS gene is disrupted or silenced to a very weak level. The increased EPA content is preferably not less than 11.5% of a total fatty acid composition.

The present invention relates to a process for depositing at least a culture of microorganisms to an elongated element, preferably a yarn, comprising the steps of: providing at least a first feeding device comprising at least a first outlet; supplying at least one elongated element to said at least first feeding device; feeding to said first outlet at least a first culture comprising at least one microorganism; dispensing said first culture from said at least first outlet; contacting at least part of said elongated element with said first culture of microorganisms, to provide at least a part of said elongated element with an amount of said first culture of microorganisms.

The present invention relates to a mutant organism having the ability to produce aspartic acid derivatives, wherein a gene encoding the glyoxylate shunt regulator and a gene encoding fumarase are deleted and a gene encoding aspartase is overexpressed compared to that in a wild-type strain, and to a method for producing L-aspartic acid derivatives using the same. According to the present invention, various aspartic acid derivatives, including L-alanine, 3-aminopropionic acid, threonine, 1,3-diaminopropane, lysine, methionine, 3-hydroxypropionic acid, cadaverine, 5-aminovaleric acid, etc., can be produced by biological methods.

Disclosed herein are microbial consortia and compositions including microbes, for example, for use in agricultural or biodegradation applications. In some embodiments, soil, plants, and/or plant parts (such as seeds, seedlings, shoots, roots, leaves, fruit, stems, or branches) are contacted with a disclosed microbial consortia or composition including microbes. The microbial consortia or microbe-containing compositions may be applied to soil, plant, and/or plant parts alone or in combination with additional components (such as chitin, chitosan, glucosamine, amino acids, and/or liquid fertilizer). In additional embodiments, the disclosed microbial consortia or compositions including microbes are used in methods of degrading biological materials, such as chitin-containing biological materials.

A species of Burkholderia sp with no known pathogenicity to vertebrates but with pesticidal activity (e.g., plants, insects, fungi, weeds and nematodes) is provided. Also provided are natural products derived from a culture of said species and methods of controlling pests using said natural products.

Disclosed herein are microbial consortia and compositions including microbes for use in agricultural or biodegradation applications. In some embodiments, soil, plants, and/or plant parts (such as seeds, seedlings, shoots, roots, leaves, fruit, stems, or branches) are contacted with a disclosed microbial consortia or composition including microbes. The microbial consortia or microbe-containing compositions may be applied to soil, plant, and/or plant parts alone or in combination with additional components (such as chitin, chitosan, glucosamine, amino acids, and/or liquid fertilizer). In additional embodiments, the disclosed microbial consortia or compositions including microbes are used in methods of degrading biological materials, such as chitin-containing biological materials.

Disclosed are compositions and methods related to eukaryotic microorganisms that can produce unsaturated fatty acids which can be purified and used.

New Lactococcus lactis strains, NRRL B-50571 and NRRL B-50572, and a bacterial preparation containing the same, have the ability to produce bioactive peptides that reduce blood pressure, lower LDL-cholesterol (bad cholesterol) and present antioxidant properties for better cardiovascular health. These biologically active peptides may be produced within the food for the production of a food product, such as a functional food, or they may be produced from protein sources and subsequently added to a food as part of the formulation or as part of a food supplement or a pharmaceutical preparation.

A method of making a flavoured sweetener or food product by incubating an unrefined plant extract containing sucrose as the main solute with a microorganism or microorganisms to form a modified unrefined plant extract; evaporating water from the modified sucrose-based plant extract to form a concentrate; and cooking the concentrate to develop colour and flavour to produce the flavoured sweetener is disclosed. The flavoured sweetener can serve as a coconut sugar substitute. In a preferred embodiment the unrefined plant extract comprises sugarcane juice or sugar beet juice, and the microorganisms may be selected from Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus flexus, or a Klyveromyces species. The flavoured sweetener can be used to make a range of food and beverage ingredients and also food products including sauces, natural flavour extracts and flavour molecules, chocolate, health foods and convenience forms of the various forms of flavoured sweeteners.

A production method of low molecular weight ?-glucan includes: inoculating an activated Leuconostoc mesenteroides in a 5 L fermentor at a 10% inoculum. Fermentation broth is placed in the fermentor at an initial pH of 6.8-7.0, temperature of 25? C. to 28? C., stirring speed at 120 r/min, and fermented for 20-40 hours. Dextranase is added after 5-30 hours of fermentation at a dosage of 1/10,000 to 5/10,000 by volume. The molecular weight of ?-glucan is controlled within 10000D by the amount of enzyme added, and the total fermentation process is about 20-40 hours. After the reaction is terminated, the fermentation liquid is concentrated and dried to prepare dietary fiber products with a molecular weight of 500-5000D. The viscosity of the fermentation liquid and concentration of ?-glucan in the fermentation liquid may be reduced to promote the forward reaction, accelerate the sucrose conversion rate and increase the product yield.