Quantification of the robustness of industrial yeasts and real-time monitoring of intracellular state, through genetically-encoded biosensors, in the presence of lignocellulosic inhibitors and contaminating bacteria

• Grant number: 23/07553-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: May 08, 2024
• End date: May 07, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Thiago Olitta Basso
• Grantee: Thamiris Guerra Giacon
• Supervisor: Lisbeth Cecilia Olsson
• Host Institution: Escola Politécnica (EP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden
• Associated to the scholarship: 22/02332-0 - USE OF EVOLUTIONARY ENGINEERING AND OMIC APPROACHES TO OBTAIN MORE ROBUST YEASTS TO LIGNOCELLULOSIC INHIBITORS, BP.DR

Abstract

The growing concern about environmental impacts increases the interest in renewable energy sources that are technically feasible, economically competitive, and have a lower environmental impact. Thus, there is an increase in demand for new technologies, such as second-generation ethanol (2G). 2G ethanol is produced using agro-industrial, forestry, and even municipal waste to obtain lignocellulosic biomass. This is subjected to pre-treatment to release fermentable sugars for ethanol production, with the potential to increase ethanol production by up to 45%. However, the fermentation of these lignocellulosic hydrolysates still faces many scientific and technological challenges. Pre-treatment processes generate a variety of compounds that act as inhibitors of the metabolism of ethanol-producing microorganisms, thus reducing fermentation efficiency. In addition to inhibitors, another problem faced in both first-generation (1G) and 2G ethanol production is the constant presence of contaminating microorganisms, especially lactic acid bacteria (LAB). The objective of the proposal is to evaluate the mechanisms of resistance (greater tolerance) to inhibitors in yeasts and bacteria in the context of ethanol production from lignocellulosic sources. This objective will be pursued through quantitative studies of LAB and yeast robustness, and through real-time monitoring of intracellular yeast state in the presence of these lignocellulosic inhibitors. (AU)