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Commercial Success of ECLAIR Programme
AGRE-0014: New methods for the selection of raw materials and the control and monitoring of microbiological parameters within the brewing industry |
Science Background
As beer manufacture becomes increasingly industrialized in order to meet the needs of international markets, the industry has been seeking to improve process efficiency and maintain product quality. Beer manufacture is a complex procedure in which several highly variable raw materials are fermented by microorganisms (yeasts) that are themselves subject to variability from batch to batch. The main shortcoming of analytical methods used in the industry at the time of this project was their lack of speed, sensitivity and specificity. Hence, in many cases they fail to provide the brewer with a decision-making tool enabling rapid corrective action at the appropriate process stage.
Objectives
To develop new biological tests for use throughout the brewing process that give rapid results.
Significant changes and results since end of ECLAIR
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A prototype of ChemScan, a laser-based scanner for detecting micro-organisms or cells on filter membranes, developed by Chemunex (a Paris based chemical reagent manufacturer, the coordinator of this project), was available at the end of this project. However, this technology was not specific enough to be cost-effective for detection of bacterial spoilers in beer process rinse water and beer. ChemScan has been developed further by The Technology Partnership (TTP - a product development company) under contract to Chemunex, and is manufactured by TTP in Royston, UK. It is sold mainly into the pharmaceutical and potable water production control industry. |
The use of ChemScan by the food, drink and water industries to detect Escherichia coli and Cryptosporidium could be instrumental in preventing public health scares. It incorporates the only technology capable of detecting single bacteria in a few minutes without the need for incubation. The location of the bacterium is displayed on a computer screen and the bacteria can then be viewed under an automated microscope, if confirmation is needed. This technology has also been used at a leading hospital in Paris for rapid detection of very low numbers of both cancer cells in cervical smears and early detection of viral infection cells such as HPV. Results are possible within minutes and with minimal, unskilled manual intervention, reducing the risk of human error.
Initial development was funded by private investors, including two brewers, however during the late 1990s, Chemunex became a public company which helped fund further development. Development since the end of the ECLAIR project has involved an investment in excess of FF 150 million (22 MEuro). Sales in 1998 increased by 70% from the previous year when 15 machines were sold at about £100,000 (150 KEuro) each, and continued growth is expected in Europe and the USA. The 100th system is expected to be installed in September 1999. A growth in reagent sales for use in the ChemScan and other Chemunex technology has also been seen.
Results
At end of this ECLAIR project
Many control techniques were developed and tested including:
TEPRAL, the Beer Research Centre of the Danone Group, was involved in the testing and development of two technologies. The first used flow cytometry to monitor the fermentation behaviour of yeast. However there was too much variation in instrumentation, thus a correlation between the fluorescence intensity of cell labelling, yeast activity and the quality of the fermentation could not be made. The second used ChemScan, a laser filter membrane scanning system for the detection of rare events, developed by Chemunex. A final prototype was working at Chemunex at the end of this project. TEPRAL and Alfred Jorgensen Laboratory (AJL) developed a beer filtration system based on ChemScan. TEPRAL used this to develop a method for rapid detection of bacterial populations in pasteurised and unpasteurised beer.
Current position
The product ChemScan has been developed by TTP in collaboration with Chemunex. It is sold mainly into the pharmaceutical and potable water production control industries. The liquid sample of interest, containing bacteria, is filtered through a standard filter membrane of 1 inch diameter. Bacterial and other particles trapped on the membrane surface are labelled with fluorescein that glows when excited by blue light. A blue light laser is focused to a spot about 1/10th the diameter of a human hair and then scanned across the membrane surface at a speed of 2 metres per second. Overlapping scan lines ensure that the entire surface of the membrane is seen at least twice. Over 1 billion measurements are made in a single scan of which only 10 may represent a single bacterium. This data is processed in real time such that a result is available within 10 seconds of scan completion. Scan time is less than 3 minutes. The location of the bacterium is displayed on a computer screen and the bacteria can then be viewed under an automated microscope, if confirmation is needed.
ChemScan has been delivered to two brewers who helped finance development of the system, however they are not used in this industry because they do not meet the specific needs. TEPRAL considered ChemScan to be a promising technique and continued in-house development of the techniques. However they do not use this routinely due to a lack of specificity since their main objective was to detect lactic acid bacteria (LAB). They were not able to develop a specific antibody against LAB, while the technique is too costly to use simply as a means of counting total flora.
In 1993, Chemunex approached TTP with the prototype, which they developed into a commercial product. ChemScan, owned by Chemunex has been on the market since 1996 and is priced at around £100,000 (150 KEuro). Accelerated development efforts in 1996 at Chemunex and under contract at TTP resulted in the launch ahead of schedule of the ChemScan, which is marketed under the ChemScan RDI trade name (Rapid Detection and Identification). Chemunex achieved placements of 15 ChemScan microbial analysers in 1997, predominantly to major multinational pharmaceutical companies. Chemunex sales for the full year increased by over 85% to FF 18 million (2.5 MEuro) compared with FF 9.7 million (1.5 MEuro) in 1996. Placements in 1998 increased by 70% and the management expects placements of the ChemScan to accelerate, both with new customers and through existing customers purchasing additional units for other plants or new applications. As a result of the ChemScan system progressively becoming part of routine microbial testing, reagent sales (including a viability marker for all organisms and specific markers for Escherischia coli and Cryptosporidium) are also expected to increase steadily. Chemunex are now targeting North America.
The ChemScan is a laser scanning system capable of finding, within minutes, a single living bacterium in a cup full of liquid. Before ChemScan was developed, detection time ranged from 2 to 14 days depending on the application. Applications where such tests are mandatory range from water, food and beverages as well as pharmaceutical products. The potential savings to companies in employing the ChemScan have been conservatively estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars.
In particular TTP specializes in exploitation of the fluorescent detection technology that is used in the ChemScan. They are also developing other systems that will have a dramatic effect on cell-based screening and drug discovery. TTP has received the UK Queen’s Award for Technological Achievement for the development of the ChemScan, the world’s first rapid bacterial detection system that can give results in minutes rather than days or weeks. The ChemScan has also been selected as a Millennium Product and may appear in the Millennium Dome, UK. Other related products have been developed by TTP incorporating technology from ChemScan.
Associated
Although TEPRAL did not obtain any direct commercial benefit from this project, the experience gained was invaluable. This has enabling them to make better scientific evaluations of rapid methods of detection. TEPRAL have maintained their contacts with Chemunex (who have continued research of relevance to the brewing industry) and are interested in evaluating any new relevant procedure. The Alfred Jörgensen Laboratory has been involved in EUREKA project EU 1636: Yeast typing: new approach for typing of brewing yeast. This project aims to introduce and continue development of new molecular approaches for typing Saccaromyces cerevisiae. Detection of genes involved in sugar transport, ester formation and flocculation is of interest to brewers as this can be used to obtain detailed descriptions of yeast behaviour during fermentation and to predict the characteristics of the beer produced.
Further Information
Brailsford, M. (1998) Light on Cryptosporidium. Laboratory News, Mar 98.
Brailsford, M. (1997) Profiting from lack of growth. Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Review, 10/97
Brailsford, M. (1997) Making the switch to real-time microbiological process control. Manufacturing Chemist, 3/97.
Fricker, C. (1998) Cryptosporidium screening now achievable within three hours. Water and Waste Treatment, 3/98.
Herman, L., Reybroeck, W., D'Haese, E., Nelis, H.J., (1999) Detection and enumeration of Mycobacterium paratuberculosis in milk. Presented at the 6th International Colloquium on Paratuberculosis.
Rolland, X., Cornet, P., Drocourt, J.-L. (1999) The ChemScan RDI: A new in-process control tool combining speed with sensitivity in microbial detection. In: Biotechnology International II (Eds: T.H. Connor, H.-U. Weier and F. Fox). Universal Medical Press, Inc., San Francisco, USA.
Wallner, G., Tillman, D. Haberer, K., Cornet, P., Drocourt, J.-L. (1997) The ChemScan system: a new method for rapid microbiological testing of water. Eur. J. Parenteral Sci. 2(4): 123-126.
Contacts
Author
Chemunex SA
TEPRAL
Technology Partnership pl
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