High Production of 2,3-Butanediol (2,3-BD) by Raoultella ornithinolytica B6 via Optimizing Fermentation Conditions and Overexpressing 2,3-BD Synthesis Genes

Metabolic engineering for the production of acetoin and 2,3-butanediol at elevated temperature in Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius NCIMB 11955

The current climate crisis has emphasised the need to achieve global net-zero by 2050, with countries being urged to set considerable emission reduction targets by 2030. Exploitation of a fermentative process that uses a thermophilic chassis can represent a way to manufacture chemicals and fuels through more environmentally friendly routes with a net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. In this study, the industrially relevant thermophile Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius NCIMB 11955 was engineered to produce 3-hydroxybutanone (acetoin) and 2,3-butanediol (2,3-BDO), organic compounds with commercial applications. Using heterologous acetolactate synthase (ALS) and acetolactate decarboxylase (ALD) enzymes, a functional 2,3-BDO biosynthetic pathway was constructed. The formation of by-products was minimized by the deletion of competing pathways surrounding the pyruvate node. Redox imbalance was addressed through autonomous overexpression of the butanediol dehydrogenase and by investigating appropriate aeration levels. Through this, we were able to produce 2,3-BDO as the predominant fermentation metabolite, with up to 6.6 g/L 2,3-BDO (0.33 g/g glucose) representing 66% of the theoretical maximum at 50°C. In addition, the identification and subsequent deletion of a previously unreported thermophilic acetoin degradation gene (acoB1) resulted in enhanced acetoin production under aerobic conditions, producing 7.6 g/L (0.38 g/g glucose) representing 78% of the theoretical maximum. Furthermore, through the generation of a ΔacoB1 mutant and by testing the effect of glucose concentration on 2,3-BDO production, we were able to produce 15.6 g/L of 2,3-BDO in media supplemented with 5% glucose, the highest titre of 2,3-BDO produced in Parageobacillus and Geobacillus species to date.

Prospects on bio-based 2,3-butanediol and acetoin production: Recent progress and advances

The bio-based platform chemicals 2,3-butanediol (BDO) and acetoin have various applications in chemical, cosmetics, food, agriculture, and pharmaceutical industries, whereas the derivatives of BDO could be used as fuel additives, polymer and synthetic rubber production. This review summarizes the novel technological developments in adapting genetic and metabolic engineering strategies for selection and construction of chassis strains for BDO and acetoin production. The valorization of renewable feedstocks and bioprocess development for the upstream and downstream stages of bio-based BDO and acetoin production are discussed. The techno-economic aspects evaluating the viability and industrial potential of bio-based BDO production are presented. The commercialization of bio-based BDO and acetoin production requires the utilization of crude renewable resources, the chassis strains with high fermentation production efficiencies and development of sustainable purification or conversion technologies.

Rapid Production of a Novel Al(III) Dependent Bioflocculant Isolated From Raoultella ornithinolytica 160-1 and Its Application Combined With Inorganic Salts

An efficient bioflocculant-producing strain, Raoultella ornithinolytica 160-1, was identified by 16S rRNA and mass spectrometry analyses. Rapid production of bioflocculant EPS-160 was obtained with 10.01 g/(L⋅d) after optimized by response surface methodology. With the aid of Al(III), more than 90% flocculation activity of EPS-160 at 8 mg/L dosage was achieved in 5 min. Thus, this novel Al(III) dependent bioflocculant was used in combined with chemical coagulants AlCl₃ to remove kaolin suspensions and wastewater treatment. The results indicated that the addition of EPS-160 in aggregation system not only largely improved the flocculation ability than the individual use of chemical flocculant (over 30 percent), but also overcome the decrease of flocculation activity due to the overdose of AlCl₃ and maintained the optimum dosage of AlCl₃ in a wide range (11–23 mg/L). The zeta potentials and EPS-160 structure indicated that both charge neutralization and bridging were the flocculation mechanism with kaolin. During the wastewater treatment, this composite flocculants consisted of EPS-160 and AlCl₃ also had great performance for turbidity elimination. Moreover, with the properties of high flocculation activity, hyperthermal stability, pH tolerance and non-toxicity, EPS-160 shows great potential applications.

Metabolic engineering of Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius for the efficient production of (2R, 3R)-butanediol

High-temperature fermentation using thermophilic microorganisms may provide cost-effective processes for the industrial production of fuels and chemicals, due to decreased hygiene and cooling costs. In the present study, the genetically trackable thermophile Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius DSM2542^T was engineered to produce (2R, 3R)-butanediol (R-BDO), a valuable chemical with broad industrial applications. The R-BDO biosynthetic pathway was optimized by testing different combinations of pathway enzymes, with acetolactate synthase (AlsS) from Bacillus subtilis and acetolactate decarboxylase (AlsD) from Streptococcus thermophilus yielding the highest production in P. thermoglucosidasius DSM2542^T. Following fermentation condition optimization, shake flask fermentation at 55 °C resulted in the production of 7.2 g/L R-BDO with ~ 72% theoretical yield. This study details the microbial production of R-BDO at the highest fermentation temperature reported to date and demonstrates that P. thermoglucosidasius DSM2542^T is a promising cell factory for the production of fuels and chemicals using high-temperature fermentation.

The current strategies and parameters for the enhanced microbial production of 2,3-butanediol

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2,3-Butanediol (2,3-BD) is a propitious compound with many industrial uses.

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2,3-BD production has always been hampered by low fermentation yields and high production costs.

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2,3-BD production may be enhanced by optimization of culture conditions and use of high-producing strains.

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TMetabolic engineering tools are currently used to generate high-yielding strains.

2,3-Butanediol (2,3-BD) is a propitious compound with many industrial uses ranging from rubber, fuels, and cosmetics to food additives. Its microbial production has especially attracted as an alternative way to the petroleum-based production. However, 2,3-BD production has always been hampered by low yields and high production costs. The enhanced production of 2,3-butanediol requires screening of the best strains and a systematic optimization of fermentation conditions. Moreover, the metabolic pathway engineering is essential to achieve the best results and minimize the production costs by rendering the strains to use efficiently low cost substrates. This review is to provide up-to-date information on the current strategies and parameters for the enhanced microbial production of 2,3-BD.

The many faces of Raoultella spp

Raoultella genus consists of Gram-negative, aerobic, encapsulated and non-motile rods. The name of the genus derives from the name of the French bacteriologist Raoul. Currently, four species belong to the genus: R. planticola, R. ornithinolytica, R. terrigena and R. electrica. The standard biochemical test used to identify Raoultella genus should be supplemented with additional tests, because of the close relationship between the genera Raoultella and Klebsiella. In 2001 Klebsiella planticola, K. ornithinolytica and K. terrigena were re-classified to new genus Raoultella. Re-classification was based on 16S rRNA sequence and rpoB, gyrA and gyrB genes. An alternative to phenotypic identification may be mass spectrometry or genetic methods (16s rRNA). These bacteria are commonly associated with natural environments (plants, water, soil). Raoultella spp. rods are not a highly virulent pathogen. Their virulence factors include polysaccharide capsule, fimbriae, siderophores, toxins and ability to form a biofilm. It has been shown that Raoultella spp. may colonize the gastrointestinal and upper respiratory tract in humans and cause cholangitis and lung infections. The literature also includes works on the antimicrobial activity of Raoultella rods and the possibility of using them in the environment protection. This review summarizes the current knowledge of Raoultella species identification, virulence and the possibility of using them in the protection of the environment.