Development of a microbial cell factory for 3-hydroxypropionic production

• Grant number: 19/07902-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: September 01, 2019
• End date: April 30, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Adilson José da Silva
• Grantee: Gabriel Luz Chaves
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Exatas e de Tecnologia (CCET). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 16/10636-8 - From the cell factory to the Biodiesel-Bioethanol integrated biorefinery: a systems approach applied to complex problems in micro and macroscales, AP.BIOEN.TEM

Abstract

3-hydroxypropionic acid (3-HP) was ranked by the US Department of Energy (DOE) among the Top 10 most promising value-added chemicals that can be derived from biomass in a biorefinery. Thanks to its two functional groups, 3-HP is readily reactive and has great potential to replace petroleum derivatives in the chemistry industry and for biopolymers production. In this project, we propose the development of recombinant strains of Escherichia coli for establishment of a bioprocess to produce 3-HP, to replace the expensive and harmful conventional processes. For this purpose, metabolic engineering strategies will be employed for design and development of 3-HP producing strains that will be grown using xylose, simulating the usage of the hemicellulosic fraction residue from a bioethanol biorefinery. For the strain design, literature data will be combined with in silico optimization results from simulations of a genome-scale metabolic model to define the set of genetic modifications most promising to improve the 3-HP production. The predicted modifications will be gradually implemented in E. coli K-12 cells, and shaken flasks cultures will be run to analyze the production of 3-HP, cell growth and byproducts formation during the process. At the end, it is expected the development of E. coli cells able to produce 3-HP for the future implementation of this bioprocess in the context of a biorefinery. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

CHAVES, GABRIEL LUZ; BATISTA, RAQUEL SALGADO; CUNHA, JOSIVAN DE SOUSA; OLIVEIRA, DAVI BENEDITO; DA SILVA, MATEUS RIBEIRO; DERIGGI PISANI, GRAZIELE FERNANDA; SELISTRE-DE-ARAUJO, HELOISA SOBREIRO; ZANGIROLAMI, TERESA CRISTINA; DA SILVA, ADILSON JOSE. Improving 3-hydroxypropionic acid production in E. coli by in silico prediction of new metabolic targets. NEW BIOTECHNOLOGY, v. 72, p. 9-pg., 2022-10-25. (16/10636-8, 19/07902-6)

CHAVES, GABRIEL LUZ; BATISTA, RAQUEL SALGADO; CUNHA, JOSIVAN DE SOUSA; ALTMANN, DANIEL LOSSA; DA SILVA, ADILSON JOSE. Teaching cellular metabolism using metabolic model simulations. EDUCATION FOR CHEMICAL ENGINEERS, v. 38, p. 13-pg., 2022-01-01. (19/07902-6, 19/09332-2)