Challenges, Progress, and Future Perspectives for Cyanobacterial Polyhydroxybutyrate Production

Technical Report · Thu May 23 04:00:00 EDT 2024

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/2377312· OSTI ID:2377312

Rueda, Estel ^[1]; Gonzalez-Flo, Eva ^[1]; Mondal, Soumila ^[2]; Forchhammer, Karl ^[2]; Arias, Dulce María ^[3]; Ludwig, Katharina ^[4]; Drosg, Bernhard ^[5]; Fritz, Ines ^[6]; Gonzalez-Esquer, Cesar Raul ^[7]; Pacheco, Sara Louise ^[7]; García, Joan ^[1]

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1. Univ. Politecnica de Catalunya (Spain)
2. Univ. of Tubingen (Germany)
3. Univ. Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM), Temixco (Mexico)
4. Bioenergy and Sustainable Technologies GmbH (BEST), Graz (Austria)
5. Bioenergy and Sustainable Technologies GmbH (BEST), Graz (Austria); Univ. of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (Austria)
6. Univ. of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (Austria)
7. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) are a promising bio-based alternative to traditional plastics derived from petroleum. Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic organisms that produce PHA from CO₂ and sunlight, which can potentially reduce production costs and environmental footprint in comparison to heterotrophic bacteria cultures because (1) they utilize inorganic carbon sources for growth and (2) they do not require intensive aeration for oxygenation. Moreover, supplementing precursors such as propionate, acetate, valerate, etc., can be used to obtain various copolymers with plastic customizable properties in comparison to the classical homopolymers, such as polyhydroxybutyrate, PHB. This critical review covers the latest advances in PHA production, including recent discoveries in the metabolism interplay between PHA and glycogen production, and new insights into cultivation strategies that enhance PHA accumulation, and purification processes. This review also addresses the challenges and suggests potential solutions for a viable industrial PHAs production process.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program; USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); PROMICON
• DOE Contract Number: 89233218CNA000001
• OSTI ID: 2377312
• Report Number(s): LA-UR--23-30430
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES
bioplastic
cyanobacteria