Project type:   Proof of Concept

Unique project identifier:   PoC-5395

Project is funded by:   Innovation Fund of the Republic of Serbia (Belgrade, Serbia)

The research is conducted in:   University of Belgrade - Faculty of Chemistry (Belgrade, Serbia)

Project realization is scheduled from September 15, 2020 till September 15, 2021.

Project staff

Principal investigator:   Vladimir P. Beškoski, University of Belgrade - Faculty of Chemistry (Beograd, Serbia)

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Short description of the project

Beer enriched with zinc and hyaluronan would be an innovative and an attractive commercial product for both the stimulation of immunity and the skin rejuvenation. For the proof-of-concept we propose to formulate processes for the creation of essential components necessary for the generation of this product. Process for enrichment of beer yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae with zinc will be established in Serbia. This will be achieved using inorganic zinc salts followed by the analyses of biomass yield, and zinc accumulation and localization in yeast cells. Process for enrichment of beer with hyaluronan will be established in The Netherlands. This will be performed by supplementation of sodium hyaluronate of various sizes during brewing process. Varying the physicochemical conditions of brewing process, in combination with different types of malt and hops, we will establish the protocol for tasty craft beer containing the amount of hyaluronan demonstrated to have anti-ageing effect. As the zinc enrichment and hyaluronan supplementation will be performed simultaneously, the latter part of the project will be done using yeast with physiological levels of zinc. Fusing the results from Serbia and The Netherlands would represent the transition into the next TRL and the first step towards the creation of the prototype.

[Graphical project abstract 1]
BEER+HyZn: Zinc and hyaluronan enriched beer with immune-stimulating action and anti-aging effect