Potentials and limitations of cold-adapted hydrogen producing bacteria: A mini review

Abstract

Low-temperature bacteria have potential to produce biohydrogen and are often considered a potential renewable energy generator for the future. However, the bacteria have presented poor hydrogen yield due to slow metabolic rate and prolonged lag phase often caused by their restricted growth temperature limit. The ineffective search for new biocatalysts from cold environments and the application of modification techniques almost jeopardize the economic viability of these strains in the biohydrogen production research. This article examined cold genetic and enzymatic adaptation potentials that led to the continuous expression of novel biocatalysts of biotechnological importance under the following headings; cold-adapted bacteria, biohydrogen-producing bacteria, strategies for adapting to stress in low temperatures, performance of cold-adapted bacteria in biohydrogen production, challenges of cold-adapted bacteria in biohydrogen production and future prospect. Finding new strains and studying their unique properties can improve the efficiency of hydrogen production by cold-adapted bacteria, as this new area has not yet been extensively studied.