Electrons to Molecules by Engineering and Evolution: Biological Upgrading of Formate by Cupriavidus necator
Waste carbon from industrial point sources can be captured, stored, and/or transformed using electrochemical conversion or "electrons to molecules" technologies using low-cost renewable electricity. One such process involves electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 to generate formate/formic acid, a C1 carboxylic acid. Formate is a promising potential feedstock for microbial upgrading, as it is water soluble and can be consumed as the sole source of carbon and energy by some microbial species, such as the soil bacterium Cupriavidus necator. Here we will present progress toward improving C. necator as a host for biological conversion of formate to value-added products. Using the power of adaptive laboratory evolution, we were able to isolate mutants of C. necator with significantly faster growth rates on formate. We then sequenced the genomes of these strains, elucidated the metabolic role of the mutations we found, and then used these insights to build rationally engineered strains that outperform even the best evolved isolates. These results highlight the utility of "genome streamlining" as a route for generating platform strains with potential industrial applications.
- Research Organization:
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Transportation Office. Bioenergy Technologies Office
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC36-08GO28308
- OSTI ID:
- 1997373
- Report Number(s):
- NREL/PR-2700-87076; MainId:87851; UUID:92c2414f-bcaa-48fa-b9c7-4acd539fbb52; MainAdminID:70316
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Presented at the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology Annual Meeting, 30 July - 2 August 2023, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Improving growth of Cupriavidus necator H16 on formate using adaptive laboratory evolution-informed engineering
BETO 2021 Peer Review - Improving Formate Upgrading by Cupriavidus Necator 2.3.2.111