Since L. japonica hydrolysate (Fig. 1) contained a high amount of
mannitol, the ability of E. coliKO11 and S. cerevisiaeto ferment this
sugar was determined. The yeast was unable to ferment mannitol
whereas E. coliKO11 produced as much as 25.8 g ethanol /L after
116 h of cultivation when provided with 75 and 90 g/L of mannitol
(Fig. 2).E. coliKO11 could ferment mannitol to ethanol up to a yield
of 0.41 g ethanol /g mannitol.