Lactobionic acid

Chemical properties

White to off-white crystalline powder

The Uses of Lactobionic acid

Lactobionic acid is mainly used in preservation solutions for organ transplantation. It is used to produce erythromycine lactobionate.

The Uses of Lactobionic acid

food additive

The Uses of Lactobionic acid

Arginine metabolite in bovine brain; clonidine-displacing substance activity

The Uses of Lactobionic acid

An inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinases

What are the applications of Application

Lactobionic acid is an inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinases

Definition

ChEBI: A disaccharide formed between beta-D-galactose and D-gluconic acid.

Biotechnological Production

Currently, lactobionic acid is produced by chemical synthesis using refined lactose as feedstock. This process is expensive due to the energy demand. Alternatively, Acidic Organic Compounds in Beverage, Food, and Feed Production 111 enzymatic processes have been suggested. For example, lactose could be reacted to lactobionic acid using an enzymatic system with co-factor regeneration. First, lactose is converted to lactobionolactone by a cellobiose dehydrogenase. This reaction requires an electron acceptor, which is regenerated by a laccase reducing oxygen to water. Finally, lactobionolactone spontaneously hydrolyzes to lactobionic acid.
Moreover, microbial production of lactobionic acid has been described. In a fed-batch cultivation of Burkolderia cepacia growing in a complex medium (lactose, salts, peptone, and yeast extract), a final titer of 400 g.L-1, a yield of approximately 1.0 g of lactobionic acid per gram of lactose, and a productivity of 1.67 g.L-1.h-1 have been achieved.
Another promising strategy for an inexpensive biotechnological process is the utilization of cheap raw materials. For example, lactobionic acid could be obtained from concentrated cheese whey by fermentation with Pseudomonas taetrolens. In a fed-batch process, a product concentration of 164 g.L-1 with a productivity of 2.05 g.L-1.h-1 and a yield of 0.82 g of lactobionic acid per gram of lactose have been observed. Furthermore, whole-cell biocatalysis using permeabilized Zymonmonas mobilis cells and an equimolar mixture of lactose and fructose has been tested. In a batch process, a maximum lactobionic acid concentration of 268 g.L-1 and a conversion rate of 72 % within 24 h have been measured. The productivity of lactobionic acid was 11.2 g.L-1.h-1 .

Clinical Use

Erythromycin lactobionate is a salt with enhanced water solubility that is used for injections.

Purification Methods

Crystallise lactobionic acid from water by addition of EtOH. [NMR: Taga et al. Bull Chem Soc Jpn 51 2278 1978, Beilstein 17 III/IV 3392, 17/7 V 436.]