Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company, Inc.

Shunsaku Ueda

Teizi Urakami

Tsuneo Yamane

Shigeki Imagawa

Torakazu Tahara

Yoshiharu Tokunaga

Hiroyuki Iesaka

Disclosed is a process for the preparation of a copolymer, which comprises propagating cells of a bacterium having a capacity of producing poly-3-hydroxybutyrate mainly at a former stage, synthesizing and accumulating in the cells a copolymer comprising D-3-hydroxybutyrate and D-3-hydroxyvalerate by contacting the bacterium with a mixture of a carbon source utilizable by the bacterium and a primary alcohol having 3 to 7 carbon atoms, or with a primary alcohol having 3 to 7 carbon atoms, at a latter stage, and recovering the copolymer from the cells. According to this process, a copolymer comprising D-3-hydroxybutyrate and D-3-hydroxyvalerate can be manufactured in a large quantity at a low cost.

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Toyoake, Japan

Shunsaku Ueda