A Review on The Bioconversion of Lignin to Microbial Lipid with Oleaginous Rhodococcus opacus

Rhodococcus opacus produces intracellular lipids from the biodegradation of lignocellulosic biomass. These lipids can be used to produce biofuels that could potentially replace petroleum-derived chemicals. Current studies are focusing on deconstructing lignin through efficient and cost-effective pretreatment methods and improving microbial lipid titers. R. opacus can reach high levels of oleaginicity (>80%) when grown on glucose and other aromatic model compounds but intracellular lipid production is much lower on complex recalcitrant lignin substrates. This review will discuss recent advances in studying R. opacus lignin degradation by exploring different pretreatment methods, increasing lignin solubility, enriching for low molecular weight lignin compounds and laccase supplementation.