Efficient production of ectoine using ectoine-excreting strain.

Halophilic bacteria strain Halomonas salina DSM 5928 was found to excrete ectoine, suggesting its potential in the development of a new method of ectoine production. We performed HPLC and LC-MS analyses that showed that Halomonas salina DSM 5928 excreted ectoine under constant extracellular osmolarity. Medium adopting monosodium glutamate as a sole source of carbon and nitrogen was beneficial for ectoine synthesis. The total concentration of ectoine was not affected by NaCl concentration in the range 0.5-2 mol l(-1). The total concentration of ectoine and productivity in a 10-l fermentor with 0.5 mol l(-1) NaCl were 6.9 g l(-1) and 7.9 g l(-1) d(-1), respectively. These findings show that Halomonas salina DSM 5928 efficiently produces ectoine at relatively low NaCl concentration. This research also indicates the potential application of free or immobilized cells for continuous culture to produce ectoine.