The-Laker-Issue-Fall-2021

Empire Medicinals is exploring a faster way to grow the mushroom mycelia – via fermentation in tanks – both for its food business and the aspiration behind its name: the dietary supplement market. Mushrooms are well established as a health food; they are low in calories and high in fiber, protein and antioxidants. Sugars they produce, called beta-glucans, are studied for their potential to boost the immune system, lower cholesterol and fight cancer. Isolating the sugars requires growing the mycelia in a broth-like medium, separating the liquids and solids, then filtering the liquid. The problem for Empire Medicinals is that it has no lab, no bioreactor for growing mushroom fibers, and no filtration equipment. Buying equipment for exploratory research is expensive and risky for a young company. Through mutual connections, Chris Carter, executive vice president, met James Hewlett, a biology professor and founder of the Community College Undergraduate Research Initiative, or CCURI. Jim has long championed the use of research to teach scientific principles and techniques. The mushroom project is a perfect example of how biotechnology research can yield a commercial product. “This is called ‘proof of concept,’” Jim explained. “A lot of startups do not have large budgets for research and development, so they partner with institutions.” “We’d have no capacity if we were not aligned with university processes,” Chris agreed. Companies commonly work with large research universities, but thanks to CCURI, community colleges can get in on this action. The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded FLCC about $7 million to fund CCURI over the last 15 years to develop and share its model for teaching science through research. What began as a pilot project in 2006 among FLCC and four partner schools has become a national network of dozens of community and technical colleges that give more than 6,000 community college students the opportunity to engage in research each year. FLCC has also received NSF funding through the Northeast Biomanufacturing Center and Collaborative, including $141,000 for the mushroom project with its partner Montgomery County Community College in Blue Bell, Pa. The funding pays for training, equipment, even salaries for research assistants like Demi, Philip and Matthew. Over the summer, FLCC received a shipment of filtration equipment necessary for the next phase in their research process with Empire Medicinals. In the lab Jim, adjunct faculty member Sarad Parekh, and instructional specialist Jessica Halliley direct and mentor students as though they are working in a research and development lab. “Their role is to develop, implement and analyze experiments and research protocols designed to get a better understanding of how to optimize the production of fungal exopolysaccharides from mushroom mycelia,” Jim said. They start with a liquid growing medium and add the mycelia of one of two types of Ganoderma mushrooms that are part of the research project. Each batch goes into a bioreactor, a device for culturing organisms that allows researchers to manipulate variables such as temperature, nutrient content, pH, and oxygen. After a set period – usually 14 days – the team evaluates how much the fibers grew and the quantity of beta-glucan. The liquids and solids are separated and measured. The liquid, or broth, is filtered for the beta-glucan. They change one or more variables and do it again. Time will tell how changes in the variables affect the output and what the optimal growing conditions are. Jim Hewlett photo by J an regan Mycelia are the root-like strands that extend from mushroom caps into rotting trees or the ground. A mycelium refers to the network of fibers.