SBIR Phase II: Protecting beneficial microbes from harmful stressors

The broader/commercial impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project is to enable the widespread adoption of beneficial microbes as an alternative to traditional chemical products. Products composed of microbes are highly efficient and can often replace or supplement traditional chemical products, but their adoption has been limited because living microbes often lose viability during manufacturing, storage, and distribution, leading to inconsistent performance. Enabling reliable microbial products will support a transition from chemically intensive manufacturing toward biologicals which potentially offer a lower cost. The proposed project aims to address a fundamental limitation in the use of beneficial microbes, which is their inability to survive the rigorous demands of the supply chain. The research objective is to develop a general, scalable approach to physically stabilizing a wide variety of microbial strains, while preserving biological function under real-world conditions. Building on Phase I results, this work will investigate how the underlying mechanisms of formulation and process control that govern physicochemical properties affect protection of microbial products when exposed to stressors including heat, humidity, UV-light, oxidative stress and mechanical handling. The project combines systematic formulation screening with quantitative characterization of structure and viability using industry standard protocols. These studies will extend beyond the benchtop to pilot-scale production to understand key engineering parameters required for a robust and reproducible manufacturing process. The anticipated technical outcomes include (1) a generalizable process and formulation framework applicable to any microbe and (2) mechanistic and engineering understanding of microbial stabilization that enables scalable manufacturing and deployment. These results will advance the fundamental science of microbial formulation and enable broader use of beneficial microbes in a myriad of applications. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.