NCIMB senior scientist Dr Brandon Childers reflects on his attendance at the Clostridium XVII conference, held in China Last month.
Clostridium is a genus of strictly anaerobic endospore forming bacteria. Species within this genus are highly diverse in terms of their potential applications – some have been extensively studied for their ability to produce butanol, and the contribution they could make to net zero goals, whilst others have potential use in probiotic products and live biotherapeutics. With so much industrial potential, it’s no surprise that the National Collection of Industrial, Food and Marine Bacteria includes more than 150 strains of this genus.
With so much potential within this genus, I was delighted to have the opportunity to attend Clostridium XVII – The International Conference on the Genetics, Physiology, and Synthetic Biology of Solvent- and Acid-forming Clostridia which was held in Qingdao, China from 19th to 22nd September.
The conference highlighted the use of Clostridial species as a tool to synthesize clean biofuel alternatives and other chemical commodities, especially using renewable feedstocks, C1 chemicals, and other waste products as substrate. Excellent talks from speakers around the world showcased an array of different Clostrdial species that are being genetically and metabolically optimized to maximize chemical production and reduce atmospheric carbon.
Talks also included the introduction of new technologies that can be used to study these processes in greater detail, even at the single-cell level. The conference was a great way to highlight the R&D projects currently underway at NCIMB, as well as to network with both academic and industrial groups, leading to future collaborations.
It also served to highlight the value of culture collections like NCIMB in preserving and storing strains. The acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation is one of the oldest known industrial fermentations, with plants in operation from early in the 20th century. The era of cheap oil resulted in a shift to butanol production by other means, but strains deposited at NCIMB in 1950 remain available to researchers today.
You can search the NCIMB catalogue’s Clostridium strains at www.ncimb.com/culture-collection
