STTR Phase I: Carbon capture and high-value isoprene production by fast-growing cyanobacteria

STTR第一阶段：通过快速生长的蓝藻进行碳捕获和高价值异戊二烯生产

• 批准号: 1449043
• 负责人: Matthew Nelson
• 金额: $ 22.5万
• 依托单位: Algoma Algal Biotechnology LLC
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-01-01 至 2016-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1449043&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: STTR; Phase; Carbon; capture; value

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I project proposes to develop cyanobacteria (blue-green microalgae) and photobioreactor (algal culture) systems that efficiently use sunlight, nutrients from wastewater, and waste carbon dioxide (CO2) to produce a sustainable, carbon-neutral source of isoprene. Isoprene is a high-value component of thousands of terpene products including synthetic rubber, pharmaceuticals, flavors, fragrances, oils, and biofuels, and has an annual market of $2 billion. Ingredients for flavors and fragrances, of which isoprenoids are a large part, are expected to reach $10 billion annually by 2017. Currently, almost all isoprene is produced from petroleum. Because of growing awareness of the dire impacts of climate change, the development of "carbon neutral" bioproducts and biofuels has become a global economic and security imperative. Renewable isoprenoids will be in demand as companies seek to mitigate their carbon footprints and improve their "green" credentials. Some bio-isoprene is being produced by microbial fermentation, but this still releases CO2, and no company currently produces isoprene photosynthetically. Thus, "photo-isoprene" produced by microalgae with energy from sunlight and carbon captured from the atmosphere or industrial flu gases will offer significant benefits for society and the environment as well as important potential for business development. This STTR Phase I project proposes to develop Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 cyanobacteria that use CO2, sunlight, and wastewater to efficiently produce a sustainable, "green" source of isoprene (C5H8), a volatile, high-value precursor for numerous terpene products. Cyanobacteria capture rather than produce CO2. Synechococcus 7002 is among the fastest growing algae on earth, tolerates extreme light intensities that are lethal to many algae, grows in saline waters at temperatures up to 45°C, and is readily amenable to bio-engineering. These features make Synechcoccus 7002 an excellent platform for growth on wastewaters in arid regions unsuitable for crops, and cost-effective carbon capture and "photo-isoprene" production. The plan is to use a modified 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol-4-phosphate (MEP) pathway of Synechococcus and optimized genes for isoprene synthesis to develop strains that continuously produce isoprene for weeks at rates much higher than any published for cyanobacteria. Commercialization will require further bio-engineering and photobioreactor design to maximize production and develop efficient isoprene capture. Phase I will: 1) integrate further genetic modifications to increase isoprene production 5-fold to convert 10% of captured carbon into isoprene 2) optimize photobioreactors for CO2 capture and isoprene production, and 3) develop a prototype system that captures at least 50% of the isoprene from the culture gas effluent.

这个小企业技术转让（STTR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力建议开发蓝藻（蓝绿色微藻）和光生物反应器（藻类培养）系统，有效地利用阳光，废水中的营养物质和废弃的二氧化碳（CO2）来生产可持续的，碳中性的异戊二烯来源。 异戊二烯是成千上万种萜烯产品的高价值成分，包括合成橡胶、药品、香料、香精、油和生物燃料，每年的市场价值为20亿美元。到2017年，香精香料的原料（其中类异戊二烯占很大一部分）预计将达到每年100亿美元。目前，几乎所有的异戊二烯都是从石油中生产的。由于人们日益认识到气候变化的可怕影响，开发“碳中和”生物产品和生物燃料已成为全球经济和安全的当务之急。随着企业寻求减少碳足迹和提高“绿色”认证，可再生类异戊二烯将成为需求。一些生物异戊二烯是通过微生物发酵产生的，但这仍然会释放二氧化碳，而且目前没有公司通过光合作用生产异戊二烯。因此，微藻利用阳光和从大气或工业流感气体中捕获的碳产生的“光致异戊二烯”将为社会和环境带来显着效益，并为业务发展提供重要潜力。该STTR第一阶段项目提出开发聚球藻PCC 7002蓝藻，该蓝藻利用CO2、阳光和废水有效地生产可持续的“绿色”异戊二烯（C5 H8）来源，异戊二烯是许多萜烯产品的挥发性高价值前体。蓝藻捕获而不是产生二氧化碳。Synechococcus 7002是地球上生长最快的藻类之一，耐受对许多藻类致命的极端光强度，在温度高达45°C的盐水沃茨中生长，并且易于进行生物工程。这些特性使聚球藻7002成为在不适合农作物生长的干旱地区的废水中生长的极好平台，并具有成本效益的碳捕获和“光异戊二烯”生产。该计划是使用聚球藻的改良2-C-甲基-D-β-4-磷酸（MEP）途径和优化的异戊二烯合成基因来开发菌株，这些菌株连续数周以比任何已发表的蓝藻高得多的速度生产异戊二烯。商业化将需要进一步的生物工程和光生物反应器设计，以最大限度地提高产量和开发有效的异戊二烯捕获。第一阶段将：1）整合进一步的遗传修饰以将异戊二烯产量增加5倍，以将10%的捕获碳转化为异戊二烯，2）优化用于CO2捕获和异戊二烯生产的光生物反应器，以及3）开发从培养气体流出物捕获至少50%的异戊二烯的原型系统。