APPLICATION OF 5-STATE STRUCTURED MODELS FOR GROWTH AND SECONDARY METABOLITE PRODUCTION IN CULTURES OF NICOTIANA-TABACUM

A new structured model was constructed and applied to batch suspension cultures of Nicotiana tabacum in an airlift bioreactor with a draught tube. This model was developed by modifying the structured model prop osed by Bailey and Nicholson1,2 for cultures of Catharanthus roseus ce lls. In this model, a plant cell was considered to consist of a vacuol e and non-vacuole. A secondary metabolite was also assumed to be synth esized by viable cells and stored at a constant concentration in the v acuole. Parameters for the model equations were estimated based upon e xperimental data using numerical optimization techniques. The simulate d results using these parameters showed that the present model was sup erior to the earlier model for describing growth and product synthesis during all culture periods for the tobacco cell cultures.