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LABIP Expert Workshop 2024 “AI tools for fermentation modeling” 7-8 November 2024

LABIP will have its 2024 Expert Workshop 7-8 November 2024 at the Lesaffre facilities in Lille, France with the overall title “AI tools for fermentation modeling”

With the Expert Workshop 2024 LABIP will give its members the opportunity to learn from and discuss with experienced researchers within this field regarding the future application of AI tools for fermentation modeling.

9 well-known experienced researchers have signed up to give their views on this topic at the Expert Workshop.

There is currently a growing acknowledgment that fermentation processes can provide new sustainable solutions to improve food, feed and dietary supplements

In this context Artificial Intelligence AI and modeling can provide fast, useful and reliable tools to develop new functional and beneficial micro-organism.

The Expert Workshop will address and elucidate different issues of applying AI tools and fermentation modeling for functional and beneficial microbes such as Lactic Acid Bacteria, Yeasts, Molds, Firmicutes and other relevant microbes.

The program for the Expert Workshop:

Venue: Lesaffre Campus 101 rue de Menin, 59700 Marcq en Baroeul, France

Thursday 7 November 2024:

12:00                   Arrival and Lunch

13:00                   Welcome and introduction to the Expert workshop / Sophie Legrain, LABIP

1.        Definitions

“Beyond the buzz – What is AI? How can it be leverage for bioscience” / Mathieu Clement-Zika, Lesaffre, FR

2.        Predictability

“Ominicrobe a user-friendly database linking fermented food, microbial taxonomy and functionalities of microbial species” / Helene Falentin, INRAe , FR

“Alpha Food” / Claus Heiner Bang- Berthelsen, DTU, DK

15:30                   Coffee

3.        Metabolic modeling/genomics

“non-GMO improvement of yeasts and LAB guides by metabolic models” / Kiran Patel, Cambridge University, UK

“Revealing the dynamics and mechanisms of bacterial interactions in cheese production with metabolic modeling” / David Sherman, INRAe, FR

 “Data-driven or mechanistic models for fermentation: can we do both / Bas Teusink, VU Amsterdam, NL

18:00                   End of day 1.

                                 Transfer to Hotel Najeti Lille Nord, Airfield Park, 59910 Bondues.

19:00                   Drinks and Dinner

Friday 8 November 2024

09:00                   Welcome and impressions from day 1 / Sophie Legrain / LABIP

4.        Application and upscaling

“Efficient optimization of plant-based products by application of fermentation technology” Sanne Wiersma, WUR, NL

“Integrating genetic algorithms and language models for enhanced enzyme design” / Yves Gaetan Teukam, University of Eindhoven, NL

“GEMs, kinetic modeling and fluid dynamics for scaling up fermentation processes” / Carl Johan Franzen, Chalmers, SE

11:00                   Panel discussion and recommendations / Sophie Legrain, LABIP

12:00                   End of Expert Workshop and Lunch

14:00                  Departure

The outcome of this Expert Workshop will be published in a LABIP position paper.

Francesco Carratta from Nestle, R&D, CH will be the lead writer of this position paper.

LABIP Members can attend the Expert Workshop by e-mail to LABIP Secretary esbenlaulund@live.dk by Monday 30 September 2024

Sophie Legrain from Gnosis by Lesaffre elected as President of LABIP

At the Steering Group meeting in LABIP held 6 December 2023 Sophie Legrain from Gnosis by Lesaffre was unanimously elected as President of LABIP.

Sophie Legrain

Sophie replace Esben Laulund from Chr. Hansen as President.

At the LABIP General Assembly held at the LAB 14 Symposium in August 2023 our long serving secretary and one of the founding fathers of LABIP Aat Ledeboer stepped down as secretary and was replaced by Esben Laulund.  

The LABIP Steering Group now consist of the following members:

Sophie Legrain, Gnosis by Lesaffre. Chairman

Arjen Nauta, Friesland-Campina. Treasurer

Bruno Pot, Yakult

Jean-Philippe Obert, IFF

Raish Oozeer, Danone

Patrick Derkx, Chr. Hansen / Novonesis

Stephane Duboux, Nestle

Esben Laulund , Secretary

LABIP Awards at the LAB 14 Symposium

The LABIP awards are given within the following categories:

–                        The LABIP award for Mid-career Senior Researcher – accompanied with 2500 €

–                        Best Poster :   LABIP will give 3 prizes each of 500€

The LABIP 2023 Award for Mid-career Senior Researcher:

The prize gives for the persons work in relation to :

• Relevance to industrial application.
• Upfront and novel research findings.
• High Scientific Quality
• The person to be able to bridge the gap between Research and Industry
• Have proven to be a project manager
• Have a high personal integrity

The prestigious LABIP Mid-Career Senior Research Scientist was awarded to associate Professor Giovanna Felis from Verona University in Italy for her outstanding work in relation to the elaboration and introduction of the new taxonomy of the former lactobacillus genus. 

The LABIP 2023 Awards for best posters:

The Steering Group of LABIP selected 3 poster from the + 200 poster presented that live up to high scientific excellence and also have an industrial relevance within the areas of :

• Understanding how to apply LAB strains in an novel way
• How to get LABs to produce important compounds – like vitamins in situ
• How to do metabolic adaptation of LABs

The 3 LABIP poster prizes were awarded to: 

Xiangang Li from Technical University of Dresden, Germany

For the poster: Lactiplantibacillus plantarum as an aroma-producer in sour beer fermentation

Yui Liu from Wageningen University, The Netherlands

For the poster: Good things come in small packages – delivery of vitamin K2 to human cells by extracellular vesicles from Lactococcus cremoris

Sybille Tachon, from University of Marseille, France

For the poster Metabolic adaptation of Lactic Acid Bacteria

From Left: Esben Laulund, LABIP. Xiangang Li, Yui Liu, Sybille Tachon, Giovanna Felis

LABIP Activities at LAB13

LAB13 was, due to Corona, postponed from 2020 till 2021 and finally was held as a virtual symposium from August 23 till 25. Even though the LAB community could not really meet, great presentations were listened to by over 300 participants, among several from LABIP member companies. Due to the restricted time frame, it was unfortunately not possible to have the traditional LABIP Thematic Session, but there was a timeslot on the last day where the LABIP Chairman Esben Laulund could present the awards for the Mid-Career Senior Scientist and for the 3 best posters.

Taxonomy changes in the genus Lactobacillus finally published

The publication of the extensive taxonomical changes in the genus Lactobacillus has now been published in the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology (IJSEM). In October 2018 we organised an Expert Workshop on this topic in Verona. The changes in the genus and its consequences for industry were extensively discussed and the outcome of this workshop was published in Trends in Food Science and Technology November 2019. Find herewith a blog by Bruno Pot with a link to the publication in IJSEM and a tool that allows you to check the conversion from the old to the new name or vice versa. Also the publication on the outcome of the workshop is enclosed. We thank Bruno Pot and all scientists involved for all the work done.

LABIP blog taxonomical changes genus Lactobacillus

Supporting two Stakeholder documents initiated by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)

Following the discussions at the LABIP Expert Workshop on the human microbiota and the Nagoya protocol and the publication of the outcome of the workshop in Microbial Cell Factories, LABIP has been asked to contribute to and co-sign two documents, initiated by the ICC knowingly:

1. Implications of EU regulation 511/2014 on research on the human microbiome
2. Promoting sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity through open exchange of Digital Sequence Information (DSI)

LABIP Contribution to the first Assessment and Review of the Nagoya Protocol

As an extra outcome of the LABIP Expert Workshop “Future access and improvement of industrial LAB cultures”, LABIP did send in a contribution to the first Assessment and Review of the Effectiveness of the Nagoya Protocol, asked for by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) which is part of the United Nations Environmental Programme. Find here the Notification for a contribution: Notification contribution Nagoya ProtocolBased on the discussions at the workshop and the publication of the outcome, the following contribution has been send on behalve of LABIP: LABIP contribution assessment Nagoya Protocol

LABIP Activities at LAB12

At the LAB Symposium 12, held from August 27 till 31 at Egmond aan Zee, The Netherlands, for the fifth time the LABIP awards for the Mid Career Senior Scientist and for the best 3 posters have been presented by the LABIP Chairman Esben Laulund. Also for the third time LABIP has organized a thematic session at the LAB Symposium.

LABIP Awards at LAB11

At the LAB Symposium 11, held from August 31st till September 4th 2014 at Egmond aan Zee, The Netherlands, for the fourth time the LABIP awards for the Mid Career Senior Scientist and for the best 3 posters have been presented by the LABIP Chairman Esben Laulund.

LABIP awards at the Final Cross-Talk Symposium

The ITN Cross-Talk has organized its final Symposium in Paris on September 3-4 2012 entitled “The Disruption of the War Metaphor of Human-Microbe Interactions in the Gastrointestinal Tract”. With this meeting a highly interesting EU financed project has ended, in which LABIP was an associated partner.