Production of mannitol by a novel strain of Candida magnoliae

A novel microorganism was isolated which is able to produce mannitol when grown in the presence of fructose and glucose as carbon sources. In flask culture in a medium containing 150 g fructose l(-1), it yielded 67 g mannitol l(-1) after 168 h. In fed-batch culture with 3-12% (w/v) fructose, production reached a maximum of 209 g mannitol l(-1) after 200 h, corresponding to an 83% yield and a 1.03 g l(-1) h(-1) productivity. The isolated strain was identified as Candida magnoliae based on identical sequences in the D1/D2 domain of its 26S rDNA and a similar carbon source utilization pattern with C. magnoliae reference strains.