Tag: Microbial fermentation

While the human body cannot produce its own vitamin B12, a select group of microorganisms can synthesize both B2 and B12. This ability is harnessed for large-scale production, primarily through microbial fermentation, to meet the global demand for nutritional supplements and fortified foods.

While many people associate B vitamins with animal products, a significant amount of the world's riboflavin (Vitamin B2) supply is now produced by microorganisms. Riboflavin is not exclusively from animals but is found naturally in both animal-based foods and a wide variety of plants.

Over 90% of all commercially produced vitamin B12 is generated through a complex microbial fermentation process, not through pure chemical synthesis. This is the definitive answer to where does synthetic vitamin B12 come from, providing the vast majority of supplements and fortified foods worldwide.

Over 35 tons of vitamin B12 were produced globally in 2008, with the vast majority being fermented cyanocobalamin. This process involves culturing specific bacteria to create precursors, which are then converted into the stable and widely used form of vitamin B12.

While the human body can produce non-essential amino acids, it lacks the necessary metabolic pathways to synthesize the nine essential amino acids. Instead, these crucial building blocks of protein must be obtained from external sources, primarily through our diet.

Riboflavin, or vitamin B2, is produced naturally by plants and many microorganisms, but animals cannot create it, making it an essential dietary nutrient for humans. The vitamin is found in both natural food sources and in mass-produced synthetic form, primarily used for supplements and fortifying foods.

Lysine is a critical alpha-amino acid with a specific molecular formula of $C_6H_14N_2O_2$. Addressing the query, "what is the main ingredient in lysine?", is not about finding a single component but understanding its chemical makeup, which is defined by a unique molecular structure rather than a simple recipe of parts.

Over 90% of all manufactured vitamin B12 is produced by companies, primarily in China, using large-scale microbial fermentation. This manufactured form, known as cyanocobalamin, is not found in nature and is the most common form found in supplements and fortified foods.

Rhamnose is a rare deoxy sugar that is unusual because it occurs naturally in the L-configuration, unlike most other naturally occurring sugars. The exploration of the diverse sources of rhamnose reveals its prevalence in unexpected places, including a wide array of plants, specific microorganisms, and modern biotechnological processes.

Over 70% of commercially produced riboflavin (Vitamin B2) for animal feed is derived from fermentation using genetically modified strains of microorganisms. This statistic highlights that while many vitamins are not 'genetically modified' in the common sense of altered crops, they are frequently manufactured using genetically engineered microbes for industrial efficiency.