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A method based on the survival of yeast cells subjected to an ethanol or heat shock was utilized to compare the stress resistance of free and carrageenan-immobilized yeast cells. Results demonstrated a significant increase of yeast survival against ethanol for immobilized cells as compared to free cells, while no marked difference in heat resistance was observed. When entrapped cells were released by mechanical disruption of the gel beads and submitted to the same ethanol stress, they exhibited a lower survival rate than entrapped cells, but a similar or slightly higher survival rate than free cells. The incidence of ethanol- or heat-induced respiratory-deficient mutants of entrapped cells was equivalent to that of control or non-stressed cells (1.3 +/- 0.5%) whereas ethanol- and heat-shocked free and released cells exhibited between 4.4% and 10.9% average incidence of respiration-deficient mutants. It was concluded that the carrageenan gel matrix provided a protection against ethanol, and that entrapped cells returned to normal physiological behaviour as soon as they were released. The cell growth rate was a significant factor in the resistance of yeast to high ethanol concentrations. The optimum conditions to obtain reliable and reproducible results involved the use of slow-growing cells after exhaustion of the sugar substrate.

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This review explores recent advances in the use of immobilized cells for the production of metabolites used in the food industry, such as enzymes, amino acids, organic acids, alcohols, aroma compounds, polysaccharides, and pigments. Some food bioconversions such as fermentation of soy sauce and various hydrolysis are also considered. Special emphasis was placed on existing or potential industrial processes. This article also reports the effects of the reactor (configuration and working conditions), the immobilized cell physiological status (growing, nongrowing, or permeabilized), and of the carrier type, configuration, and size on the performance of immobilized cell systems. Compared with free cell fermentation, the main advantage of using immobilized cells is an increase in productivity, particularly in the case of continuous fermentation. For monoenzymatic reactions, nongrowing immobilized cells are often reported to exhibit a higher stability than free or immobilized enzymes.