Enhanced Bio-Valorization of Methane

一类被称为甲烷氧化菌的细菌可以将甲烷转化为其他化合物。甲烷是天然气的主要成分，也是石油钻探的副产品。它也是一种比二氧化碳更强大的温室气体。从大气中去除甲烷在维护我们的环境中起着重要的作用。甲烷氧化菌也可以被改造以生产有价值的产品。该项目旨在确定修改甲烷氧化菌代谢以从甲烷中生产燃料和产品的最佳方法。这个项目也会让本科生参与研究。此外，提高科学素养的实践活动将被开发并交付给当地一所小学，为他们的STEM职业做好准备。甲烷氧化菌在控制甲烷排放和甲烷增值方面具有巨大的潜力。它们的代谢受到许多环境参数的强烈影响，特别是铜和稀土元素的生物利用度。这些金属控制着参与甲烷转化的关键酶的活性。一个基本的，机械的理解这些金属如何影响甲烷营养生理和基因表达必须发展。在这个项目中，将采用一套分子和建模技术来描述这些金属是如何控制甲烷营养代谢的，然后将敲除/敲入目标基因，以增强碳向所需最终产品的重新定向，例如聚羟基烷酸酯（用于生物塑料生产）和甲醇（用于生物燃料生产）。因此，该项目的总体目标是测量和模拟甲烷氧化菌的转录组/代谢组，以制定有利可图的甲烷捕获和增值策略。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

A class of bacteria called methanotrophs can convert methane to other compounds. Methane is the principle component of natural gas and a byproduct of oil drilling. It is also a more powerful greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. The removal of methane from the atmosphere has an important role to play in maintaining our environment. Methanotrophs could also be modified to produce valuable products. This project is designed to identify the best way to modify methanotroph metabolism to produce fuels and products from methane. This project will also engage undergraduates in research. In addition, hands-on activities to enhance science literacy will be developed and delivered to a local elementary school, preparing them for STEM careers. Methanotrophs have great potential for both control of methane emissions and methane valorization. Their metabolism is strongly affected by a number of environmental parameters, especially the bioavailability of copper and rare earth elements. These metals control the activity of key enzymes involved in methane transformation. A fundamental, mechanistic understanding how these metals affect methanotrophic physiology and gene expression must be developed. In this project, a suite of molecular and modeling techniques will be pursued to delineate how these metals control methanotrophic metabolism, and then targeted genes will be knocked out/knocked in to enhance the re-direction of carbon to desired end products, e.g., poly-hydroxyalkanoates (for bioplastic production) and methanol (for biofuel production). Thus, the overall goal of this project is to measure and model the transcriptome/metabolome of methanotrophs to develop lucrative strategies for methane capture and valorization.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.