P2.10 - "In-situ microscopy for real-time determination of singlecell size distribution and activity in microbial cultures"

A photo-optical in-situ microscopy device was adapted and applied to monitor morphological features of single cells directly in the cell suspension of bioreactors. The real-time measurement is conducted by coupling of the photo-optical probe to an automated image analysis. Several parameters, which are gained from the captures of the microscope, can be related to process relevant features like growth, cell activity and lipid content in algae and yeast cultivations. Moreover, the single-cell distribution of several morphological parameters provides an information about the cell activity, and the degree of population homogeneity. The possibility to monitor changes in cell morphology directly on-line enables to gain new parameters for monitoring and control on a single-cell level, in process development as well as in production scale.