Lisa Marie Schmitz, Nicolai Kreitli, Lisa Obermaier, Nadine Weber, Michael Rychlik, Largus T Angenent
{"title":"Power-to-vitamins: producing folate (vitamin B<sub>9</sub>) from renewable electric power and CO<sub>2</sub> with a microbial protein system.","authors":"Lisa Marie Schmitz, Nicolai Kreitli, Lisa Obermaier, Nadine Weber, Michael Rychlik, Largus T Angenent","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.06.014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.06.014","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We recently proposed a two-stage Power-to-Protein technology to produce microbial protein from renewable electric power and CO<sub>2</sub>. Two stages were operated in series: Clostridium ljungdahlii in Stage A to reduce CO<sub>2</sub> with H<sub>2</sub> into acetate, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae in Stage B to utilize O<sub>2</sub> and produce microbial protein from acetate. Renewable energy can be used to power water electrolysis to produce H<sub>2</sub> and O<sub>2</sub>. A drawback of Stage A was the need for continuous vitamin supplementation. In this study, by using the more robust thermophilic acetogen Thermoanaerobacter kivui instead of C. ljungdahlii, vitamin supplementation was no longer needed. Additionally, S. cerevisiae produced folate when grown with acetate as a sole carbon source, achieving a total folate concentration of 6.7 mg per 100 g biomass with an average biomass concentration of 3 g l<sup>-1</sup>. The developed Power-to-Vitamin system enables folate production from renewable power and CO<sub>2</sub> with zero or negative net-carbon emissions.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142296437","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Eric J Buenz, Victoria M Wallace, Suzanne Levy Friedman
{"title":"Requirements to bring a medical device to market.","authors":"Eric J Buenz, Victoria M Wallace, Suzanne Levy Friedman","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.016","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A roadmap for medical device innovators is presented that highlights the essential steps for regulatory authorization, market access, and reimbursement strategies in the USA, with a focus on strategic planning for commercial success, underscoring the integration of regulatory and market access considerations from the initial development of a medical device.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142047259","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Naorem Bela Devi, Gopal Pugazhenthi, Kannan Pakshirajan
{"title":"Synthetic biology approaches and bioseparations in syngas fermentation.","authors":"Naorem Bela Devi, Gopal Pugazhenthi, Kannan Pakshirajan","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.008","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Fossil fuel use drives greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, highlighting the need for alternatives like biomass-derived syngas. Syngas, mainly H<sub>2</sub> and CO, is produced via biomass gasification and offers a solution to environmental challenges. Syngas fermentation through the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway yields valuable chemicals under mild conditions. However, challenges in scaling up persist due to issues like unpredictable syngas composition and microbial fermentation contamination. This review covers advancements in genetic tools and metabolic engineering to expand product range, highlighting crucial enabling technologies that expedite strain development for acetogens and other non-model organisms. This review paper provides an in-depth exploration of syngas fermentation, covering microorganisms, gas composition effects, separation techniques, techno economic analysis, and commercialization efforts.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142018769","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abigail J Clevenger, Aakanksha Jha, Erika Moore, Shreya A Raghavan
{"title":"Manipulating immune activity of macrophages: a materials and mechanics perspective.","authors":"Abigail J Clevenger, Aakanksha Jha, Erika Moore, Shreya A Raghavan","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Macrophage immune cells exist on a plastic spectrum of phenotypes governed by their physical and biochemical environment. Controlling macrophage function to facilitate immunological regeneration or fighting pathology has emerged as a therapeutic possibility. The rate-limiting step in translating macrophage immunomodulation therapies has been the absence of fundamental knowledge of how physics and biochemistry in the macrophage microenvironment converge to inform phenotype. In this review we explore recent trends in bioengineered model systems that integrate physical and biochemical variables applied to macrophage mechanosensing and plasticity. We focus on how tuning of mechanical forces and biomaterial composition orchestrate macrophage function in physiological and pathological contexts. Ultimately, a broader understanding of stimuli-responsiveness in macrophages leads to informed design for future modulatory therapies.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142000739","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Therapeutic applications of cell engineering using mRNA technology.","authors":"Yujia He, Angus P R Johnston, Colin W Pouton","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Engineering and reprogramming cells has significant therapeutic potential to treat a wide range of diseases, by replacing missing or defective proteins, to provide transcription factors (TFs) to reprogram cell phenotypes, or to provide enzymes such as RNA-guided Cas9 derivatives for CRISPR-based cell engineering. While viral vector-mediated gene transfer has played an important role in this field, the use of mRNA avoids safety concerns associated with the integration of DNA into the host cell genome, making mRNA particularly attractive for in vivo applications. Widespread application of mRNA for cell engineering is limited by its instability in the biological environment and challenges involved in the delivery of mRNA to its target site. In this review, we examine challenges that must be overcome to develop effective therapeutics.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141996582","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Valorization of lignin from aqueous-based lignocellulosic biorefineries.","authors":"Xueli Chen, Nathan Mosier, Michael Ladisch","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>An additional 100 million tons/year of lignin coproduct will result when lignocellulosic biomass is processed in biorefineries to fiber, sugars, biofuels, and bioproducts. This will double the amount of lignin already generated from pulping and paper production. Unlike pulping that results in lignosulphonate (88% of total) or Kraft lignin (9%), aqueous-based biorefining leaves behind non-sulfonated lignin and aromatic molecules. This new type of lignin provides opportunities for large volume agricultural uses such as controlled-release carriers and soil amendments as well as feedstocks for new chemistries that lead to molecular building blocks for the chemical industry and to precursors for sustainable aviation biofuels.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141914092","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Oriol Cabau-Peinado, Marijn Winkelhorst, Rozanne Stroek, Roderick de Kat Angelino, Adrie J J Straathof, Kunal Masania, Jean Marc Daran, Ludovic Jourdin
{"title":"Microbial electrosynthesis from CO<sub>2</sub> reaches productivity of syngas and chain elongation fermentations.","authors":"Oriol Cabau-Peinado, Marijn Winkelhorst, Rozanne Stroek, Roderick de Kat Angelino, Adrie J J Straathof, Kunal Masania, Jean Marc Daran, Ludovic Jourdin","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.06.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.06.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Carbon-based products are essential to society, yet producing them from fossil fuels is unsustainable. Microorganisms have the ability to take up electrons from solid electrodes and convert carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) to valuable carbon-based chemicals. However, higher productivities and energy efficiencies are needed to reach a viability that can make the technology transformative. Here, we show how a biofilm-based microbial porous cathode in a directed flow-through electrochemical system can continuously reduce CO<sub>2</sub> to even-chain C2-C6 carboxylic acids over 248 days. We demonstrate a threefold higher biofilm concentration, volumetric current density, and productivity compared with the state of the art. Most notably, the volumetric productivity (VP) resembles those achieved in laboratory-scale and industrial syngas (CO-H<sub>2</sub>-CO<sub>2</sub>) fermentation and chain elongation fermentation. This work highlights key design parameters for efficient electricity-driven microbial CO<sub>2</sub> reduction. There is need and room to improve the rates of electrode colonization and microbe-specific kinetics to scale up the technology.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141914091","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Microbial messengers: nucleic acid delivery by bacteria.","authors":"Alison Heggie, Teresa L M Thurston, Tom Ellis","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.07.010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The demand for diverse nucleic acid delivery vectors, driven by recent biotechnological breakthroughs, offers opportunities for continuous improvements in efficiency, safety, and delivery capacity. With their enhanced safety and substantial cargo capacity, bacterial vectors offer significant potential across a variety of applications. In this review, we explore methods to engineer bacteria for nucleic acid delivery, including strategies such as engineering attenuated strains, lysis circuits, and conjugation machinery. Moreover, we explore pioneering techniques, such as manipulating nanoparticle (NP) coatings and outer membrane vesicles (OMVs), representing the next frontier in bacterial vector engineering. We foresee these advancements in bacteria-mediated nucleic acid delivery, through combining bacterial pathogenesis with engineering biology techniques, as a pivotal step forward in the evolution of nucleic acid delivery technologies.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141907780","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Geng Binan, Wu Yalun, Wu Xinyan, Yang Yongfu, Zhou Peng, Chen Yunhaon, Zhou Xuan, Liu Chenguang, Bai Fengwu, Xu Ping, He Qiaoning, Yang Shihui
{"title":"Efficient genome-editing tools to engineer the recalcitrant non-model industrial microorganism Zymomonas mobilis.","authors":"Geng Binan, Wu Yalun, Wu Xinyan, Yang Yongfu, Zhou Peng, Chen Yunhaon, Zhou Xuan, Liu Chenguang, Bai Fengwu, Xu Ping, He Qiaoning, Yang Shihui","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.05.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.05.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Current biotechnology relies on a few well-studied model organisms, such as Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, for which abundant information and efficient toolkits are available for genetic manipulation, but which lack industrially favorable characteristics. Non-model industrial microorganisms usually do not have effective and/or efficient genome-engineering toolkits, which hampers the development of microbial cell factories to meet the fast-growing bioeconomy. In this study, using the non-model ethanologenic bacterium Zymomonas mobilis as an example, we developed a workflow to mine and temper the elements of restriction-modification (R-M), CRISPR/Cas, toxin-antitoxin (T-A) systems, and native plasmids, which are hidden within industrial microorganisms themselves, as efficient genome-editing toolkits, and established a genome-wide iterative and continuous editing (GW-ICE) system for continuous genome editing with high efficiency. This research not only provides tools and pipelines for engineering the non-model polyploid industrial microorganism Z. mobilis efficiently, but also sets a paradigm to overcome biotechnological limitations in other genetically recalcitrant non-model industrial microorganisms.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142112389","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Systematic development of a highly efficient cell factory for 5-aminolevulinic acid production.","authors":"Houming Zhou, Chengyu Zhang, Zilong Li, Menglei Xia, Zhenghong Li, Zhengduo Wang, Gao-Yi Tan, Ying Luo, Lixin Zhang, Weishan Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.06.004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2024.06.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The versatile applications of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) across the fields of agriculture, livestock, and medicine necessitate a cost-efficient biomanufacturing process. In this study, we achieved the economic viability of biomanufacturing this compound through a systematic engineering framework. First, we obtained a 5-ALA synthase (ALAS) with superior performance by exploring its natural diversity with divergent evolution. Subsequently, using a genome-scale model, we identified and modified four key targets from distinct pathways in Escherichia coli, resulting in a final enhancement of 5-ALA titers up to 21.82 g/l in a 5-l bioreactor. Furthermore, recognizing that an imbalance of redox equivalents hindered further titer improvement, we developed a dynamic control system that effectively balances redox status and carbon flux. Ultimately, we collaboratively optimized the artificial redox homeostasis system at the transcription level with other cofactors at the feeding level, demonstrating the highest recorded performance to date with a titer of 63.39 g/l for the biomanufacturing of 5-ALA.</p>","PeriodicalId":23324,"journal":{"name":"Trends in biotechnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141903027","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}