The identification of the controlling metabolic reactions in micro-organisms under process conditions is necessary for a target-oriented bioprocess development. Objective of this study was thus the identification of in-vivo enzyme kinetics of the central metabolic pathways in Escherichia coli. A new sampling system with in-situ inactivation of cell metabolism inside a bioreactor was developed and applied for the measurement of intracellular metabolite concentrations under defined process conditions. The corresponding intracellular metabolic fluxes were estimated based on a stoichiometric model of the central metabolic pathways. In-vivo kinetics of specific enzymes of the central metabolic pathways were identified by making use of the estimated metabolite concentrations and fluxes at different steady states. Thus, for the first time, metabolic control analysis based on in-vivo data was enabled.
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