Chemoautotrophic production of gaseous hydrocarbons, bioplastics and osmolytes by a novel Halomonas species.

BACKGROUND: Production of relatively low value, bulk commodity chemicals and fuels by microbial species requires a step-change in approach to decrease the capital and operational costs associated with scaled fermentation. The utilisation of the robust and halophilic industrial host organisms of the genus Halomonas could dramatically decrease biomanufacturing costs owing to their ability to grow in seawater, using waste biogenic feedstocks, under non-sterile conditions. RESULTS: We describe the isolation of Halomonas rowanensis, a novel facultative chemoautotrophic species of Halomonas from a natural brine spring. We investigated the ability of this species to produce ectoine, a compound of considerable industrial interest, under heterotrophic conditions. Fixation of radiolabelled NaH14CO3 by H. rowanensis was confirmed in mineral medium supplied with thiosulfate as an energy source. Genome sequencing suggested carbon fixation proceeds via a reductive tricarboxylic acid cycle, and not the Calvin-Bensen-Bassham cycle. The mechanism of energy generation to support chemoautotrophy is unknown owing to the absence of an annotated SOX-based thiosulfate-mediated energy conversion system. We investigated further the biotechnological potential of the isolated H. rowanensis by demonstrating production of the gaseous hydrocarbon (bio-propane), bioplastics (poly-3-hydroxybutyrate) and osmolytes (ectoine) under heterotrophic and autotrophic CO2 fixation growth conditions. CONCLUSIONS: This proof-of-concept study illustrates the value of recruiting environmental isolates as industrial hosts for chemicals biomanufacturing, where CO2 utilisation could replace, or augment, the use of biogenic feedstocks in non-sterile, industrialised bioreactors.

Assessing the risk of resistance to cationic biocides incorporating realism-based and biophysical approaches.

The control of microorganisms is a key objective in disease prevention and in medical, industrial, domestic, and food-production environments. Whilst the effectiveness of biocides in these contexts is well-evidenced, debate continues about the resistance risks associated with their use. This has driven an increased regulatory burden, which in turn could result in a reduction of both the deployment of current biocides and the development of new compounds and formulas. Efforts to balance risk and benefit are therefore of critical importance and should be underpinned by realistic methods and a multi-disciplinary approach, and through objective and critical analyses of the literature. The current literature on this topic can be difficult to navigate. Much of the evidence for potential issues of resistance generation by biocides is based on either correlation analysis of isolated bacteria, where reports of treatment failure are generally uncommon, or laboratory studies that do not necessarily represent real biocide applications. This is complicated by inconsistencies in the definition of the term resistance. Similar uncertainties also apply to cross-resistance between biocides and antibiotics. Risk assessment studies that can better inform practice are required. The resulting knowledge can be utilised by multiple stakeholders including those tasked with new product development, regulatory authorities, clinical practitioners, and the public. This review considers current evidence for resistance and cross-resistance and outlines efforts to increase realism in risk assessment. This is done in the background of the discussion of the mode of application of biocides and the demonstrable benefits as well as the potential risks.

Enantioselective Benzylic Hydroxylation Catalysed by P450 Monooxygenases: Characterisation of a P450cam Mutant Library and Molecular Modelling.

Cytochrome P450 monooxygenases can catalyse the stereoselective C-H activation of a very broad range of substrates. Prediction and control of enantioselectivity of this enzyme class is of great interest for the synthesis of high-value chiral molecules. Here we have used a combination of molecular dynamics simulations and experimental screening to study the enantioselectivity of a library of active-site mutants of chimeric P450cam-RhFRed towards the benzylic hydroxylation of structurally related regioisomers of ethylmethylbenzene. Small variations either in substrate structure or in enzyme active site architecture were shown to lead to dramatic changes in enantioselectivity; this was broadly in agreement with computational predictions. In addition to validating computational approaches, these studies have provided us with a deeper understanding of effects that might control stereoselectivity in these biooxidation reactions.

Whole-Cell Biocatalysts for Stereoselective C-H Amination Reactions.

Enantiomerically pure chiral amines are ubiquitous chemical building blocks in bioactive pharmaceutical products and their synthesis from simple starting materials is of great interest. One of the most attractive strategies is the stereoselective installation of a chiral amine through C-H amination, which is a challenging chemical transformation. Herein we report the application of a multienzyme cascade, generated in a single bacterial whole-cell system, which is able to catalyze stereoselective benzylic aminations with ee values of 97.5%. The cascade uses four heterologously expressed recombinant enzymes with cofactors provided by the host cell and isopropyl amine added as the amine donor. The cascade presents the first example of the successful de novo design of a single whole-cell biocatalyst for formal stereoselective C-H amination.

Active site diversification of P450cam with indole generates catalysts for benzylic oxidation reactions.

Cytochrome P450 monooxygenases are useful biocatalysts for C-H activation, and there is a need to expand the range of these enzymes beyond what is naturally available. A panel of 93 variants of active self-sufficient P450cam[Tyr96Phe]-RhFRed fusion enzymes with a broad diversity in active site amino acids was developed by screening a large mutant library of 16,500 clones using a simple, highly sensitive colony-based colorimetric screen against indole. These mutants showed distinct fingerprints of activity not only when screened in oxidations of substituted indoles but also for unrelated oxidations such as benzylic hydroxylations.

Regio- and stereoselective oxidation of unactivated C-H bonds with Rhodococcus rhodochrous.

The ability of Rhodococcus rhodochrous (NCIMB 9703) to catalyse the regio- and stereoselective hydroxylation of a range of benzyloxy-substituted heterocycles has been investigated. Incubation of 2-benzyloxytetrahydropyrans with resting cell suspensions of the organism yielded predominantly a mixture of 5-hydroxylated isomers in combined yields of up to 40%. Exposure of the corresponding 2-benzyloxytetrahydrofuran derivatives to the cell suspensions gave predominantly the 4-hydroxylated isomers in yields of up to 26%. Most interestingly, 2-(4-nitrobenzyloxy)tetrahydrofuran and 2-(4-nitrobenzyloxy)tetrahydropyran were transformed in high yields to the 4-hydroxylated and 5-hydroxylated products, respectively.

Chimeric self-sufficient P450cam-RhFRed biocatalysts with broad substrate scope.

A high-throughput screening protocol for evaluating chimeric, self-sufficient P450 biocatalysts and their mutants against a panel of substrates was developed, leading to the identification of a number of novel biooxidation activities.