SBIR Phase I: Microbial production of renewable monoethylene glycol

该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力将是用一种新的、可持续的生物工艺取代传统的、基于化石燃料的单乙二醇（MEG）化学生产工艺。MEG是一种大量生产的商品化学品，主要应用于聚（对苯二甲酸乙酯）的前体之一，聚（对苯二甲酸乙酯）是一种普遍存在于聚酯织物和塑料饮料瓶中的聚合物。目前，MEG主要来自化石燃料，这是有限的资源，造成了与MEG生产相关的大量温室气体排放和碳足迹。因此，通过减少对环境的影响，利用可持续的原材料具有积极的作用。该项目提出了一种新技术，其中植物来源的糖在单步生物过程中转化为MEG；这项技术如果成功，将大大减少MEG的碳足迹。此外，生物工艺应该具有成本竞争力，资本投资要少得多。这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目是为了开发一种单步生物过程，将植物来源的糖转化为MEG。生物过程将包括发酵，其中微生物菌株代谢糖并产生MEG作为产品。由于MEG不是典型的发酵产物，第一阶段的研究将是为了实现这一目标而设计一种微生物菌株。第一步是设计一个或多个从糖开始产生MEG的生化反应系列。设计包括识别进行适当反应的酶和识别可能产生其他产物的反应。下一步是将设计好的代谢途径导入宿主微生物。为此，通过分子生物学技术对微生物进行基因改造，使其含有必要的酶，而缺乏导致副作用的酶。对微生物进行测试，在代谢途径得到证实后，该系统将需要优化。该优化将包括进一步的遗传修饰和/或发酵条件的调整。预计第一阶段的研究将证明该公司独特设计的代谢途径，并证明微生物发酵方法用于可再生MEG生产的可行性。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project would be supplanting the traditional, fossil fuel-based chemical process for monoethylene glycol (MEG) production with a novel, sustainable bioprocess. MEG is a commodity chemical produced in large quantities and has primary application as one of the precursors for poly(ethylene terephthalate), a polymer that is commonplace in the form of polyester fabric and plastic beverage bottles. Presently, MEG is mainly derived from fossil fuels, limited resources that are responsible for the significant greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprint associated with MEG production. Therefore, utilizing sustainable source materials has a positive effect by reducing the environmental impact. This project proposes a new technology in which plant-derived sugars are converted into MEG in a single-step bioprocess; this technology if successful, would dramatically reduce the carbon footprint of MEG. Furthermore, the bioprocess should be cost-competitive with a significantly less capital investment.This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is for the development of a single-step bioprocess for the conversion of plant-derived sugars into MEG. The bioprocess will consist of fermentation in which a microbial strain metabolizes sugars and yields MEG as the product. Because MEG is not a typical fermentation product, the Phase I research will be to engineer a microbial strain toward this goal. The first step is to design one or more series of biochemical reactions that result in MEG starting from sugars. The design consists of identifying enzymes that carry out the appropriate reactions and identifying reactions that may result in other products. The next step is to engineer the designed metabolic pathway into the host microbe. For this, the microbe is genetically modified through molecular biological techniques such that it contains the necessary enzymes and lacks those that lead to side-products. The microbe is tested, and after the metabolic pathway has been demonstrated, the system will require optimization. The optimization will comprise of further genetic modification and/or adjustment of fermentation conditions. It is anticipated that the Phase I research will prove out the company's uniquely designed metabolic pathways and demonstrate feasibility on a microbial fermentation approach for renewable MEG production.