Abstract
Styrene is a large volume, commodity petrochemical with diverse commercial applications, including as a monomer building-block for the synthesis of many useful polymers. Here we demonstrate how, through the de novo design and development of a novel metabolic pathway, styrene can alternatively be synthesized from renewable substrates such as glucose. The conversion of endogenously synthesized L-phenylalanine to styrene was achieved by the co-expression of phenylalanine ammonia lyase and trans-cinnamate decarboxylase. Candidate isoenzymes for each step were screened from bacterial, yeast, and plant genetic sources. Finally, over-expression of PAL2 from Arabidopsis thaliana and FDC1 from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (originally classified as ferulate decarboxylase) in an L-phenylalanine over-producing Escherichia coli host led to the accumulation of up to 260 mg/L in shake flask cultures. Achievable titers already approach the styrene toxicity threshold (determined as ∼300 mg/L). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of microbial styrene production from sustainable feedstocks.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Title of host publication | Food, Pharmaceutical and Bioengineering Division - Core Programming Topic at the 2011 AIChE Annual Meeting |
Publisher | AIChE |
Pages | 340-350 |
Number of pages | 11 |
Volume | 1 |
ISBN (Print) | 9781618397355 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 1 2011 |
Event | Food, Pharmaceutical and Bioengineering Division - Core Programming Topic at the 2011 AIChE Annual Meeting - Minneapolis, United States Duration: Oct 16 2011 → Oct 21 2011 |
Other
Other | Food, Pharmaceutical and Bioengineering Division - Core Programming Topic at the 2011 AIChE Annual Meeting |
---|---|
Country/Territory | United States |
City | Minneapolis |
Period | 10/16/11 → 10/21/11 |
Keywords
- Aromatic
- Cinnamic acid
- E. coli
- L-Phenylalanine
- Phenylalanine ammonia lyase
- Styrene
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
- Safety Research
- Chemical Health and Safety