Trehalose production by Cupriavidus necator from CO2 and hydrogen gas. (January 2021) - Löwe, Hannes
Graphical abstract: Highlights: The disaccharide trehalose is naturally produced by Cupriavidus necator H16. Trehalose can be secreted by the sugar efflux transporter A from E. coli. Trehalose production from synthesis gas by C. necator H16. Trehalose production from glycerol by C. necator H16. Abstract: In this work, the hydrogen-oxidizing bacterium Cupriavidus necator H16 was engineered for trehalose production from gaseous substrates. First, it could be shown that C. necator is a natural producer of trehalose when stressed with sodium chloride. Bioinformatic investigations revealed a so far unknown mode of trehalose and glycogen metabolism in this organism. Next, it was found that expression of the sugar efflux transporter A ( setA ) from Escherichia coli lead to a trehalose leaky phenotype of C. necator . Finally, the strain was characterized under autotrophic conditions using a H2 /CO2 /O2 -mixture and other substrates reaching titers of up to 0.47 g L −1 and yields of around 0.1 g g −1 . Taken together, this process represents a new way to produce sugars with high areal efficiency. With further metabolic engineering, an application of this technology for the renewable production of trehalose and other sugars, as well as for the synthesis of 13 C-labeled sugars seems promising.