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Metabolic and process engineering for biodesulfurization in Gram-negative bacteria
I Martínez1, M El-Said Mohamed2, V E Santos3
1Environmental Biology Department, Biological Research Center (CIB-CSIC), 28040 Madrid, Spain.
Journal of Biotechnology
|September 27, 2017
Summary
Microbial desulfurization (BDS) offers a green alternative for removing sulfur from fuels. Research focuses on engineering bacteria, like Pseudomonas, to overcome limitations for industrial application.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology and Environmental Science
- Microbial Engineering for Fuel Desulfurization
Background:
- Microbial desulfurization (BDS) is a cost-effective, eco-friendly method complementing chemical hydrotreating for removing recalcitrant sulfur compounds from crude fuels.
- The 4S or Dsz pathway, crucial for desulfurizing dibenzothiophene (DBT) and its derivatives, is well-studied in Gram-positive bacteria.
- Gram-negative bacteria, particularly Pseudomonas strains, are increasingly utilized in BDS due to their metabolic versatility and amenability to genetic manipulation for systems metabolic engineering.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review advancements in microbial desulfurization (BDS) using engineered bacteria, focusing on overcoming bottlenecks for industrial applicability.
- To highlight the potential of Gram-negative bacteria, especially Pseudomonas, as chassis for enhancing BDS efficiency.
- To explore the integration of genetic and metabolic engineering insights with process engineering for scalable BDS.
Main Methods:
- Genetic engineering of bacteria (e.g., Pseudomonas) to express the dsz operon and enhance enzyme activity for sulfur removal.
- Metabolic engineering strategies to address limitations such as substrate uptake/secretion, reducing power availability, and tolerance to solvents and metals.
- Focus on process engineering aspects including kinetic modeling, scale-up of biphasic systems, and mass transfer enhancement.
Main Results:
- Numerous recombinant bacteria, predominantly Pseudomonas, have been developed to tackle specific BDS process bottlenecks.
- Progress has been made in optimizing enzyme function, pathway regulation, and host tolerance for improved desulfurization.
- The potential for producing high-value products from organosulfur compounds in oil is an emerging area.
Conclusions:
- Translating genetic and metabolic engineering advances to process engineering is critical for achieving industrial-scale microbial desulfurization.
- Further research is needed to optimize BDS processes for economic viability and broader application.
- The exploration of valorizing organosulfur compounds presents a promising avenue for the future of BDS.
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