Microbial Production and Applications of L-lysine

Abstract

L-lysine is one of the nine essential amino acids and important for human and animal growth. L-lysine constitutes a crucial part of a billion dollar animal feed industry and represents the fastest growing amino acid segment. The global market for L-lysine has increased almost 20 times in the past 20 years. As a supplement in cereals, it forms a balanced feed for animals including poultry and other livestock. It is used in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, dietary and feed supplement. L-lysine is used in overcoming Angina pectoris as key factor to clean arteries and also in cancer prevention. It is important for adequate calcium absorption and hence for maintaining bone health. It is also an integral component of musculature and has a role in antibody production. L-lysine, along with arginine, is shown to have a role in collagen synthesis and also the highest proportion of these two amino acids has been reported in histone nucleoprotein. Soybean meal, malt extract, corn steep liquor and molasses are rich source of L-lysine and are generally used as substrates for the industrial production of the amino acid. Various species like Corynebacterium glutamicum, Brevibacterium flavum, Brevibacterium lactofermentum, Corynebacterium lilium, Brevibacterium divaricatum and Escherichia coli are used for industrial production of L-lysine. More than 2.2 million tonnes of lysine salts are produced annually worldwide and the demands have been continuously increasing in recent years. Ajinomoto Co. Inc., Archer Daniels Midland Co. and Global Bio-chem Technology Group Company Ltd. are some of the leading manufacturers of L-lysine.