Abstract
The production of high added-value chemicals from renewable resources is a necessity in our attempts to switch to a more sustainable society. 3-Hydroxypropionic acid (3HP) is a promising molecule that can be used for the production of an important array of high added-value chemicals, such as 1,3-propanediol, acrylic acid, acrylamide, and bioplastics. Biological production of 3HP has been studied extensively, mainly from glycerol and glucose, which are both renewable resources. To enable conversion of these carbon sources to 3HP, extensive work has been performed to identify appropriate biochemical pathways and the enzymes that are involved in them. Novel enzymes have also been identified and expressed in host microorganisms to improve the production yields of 3HP. Various process configurations have also been proposed, resulting in improved conversion yields. The intense research efforts have resulted in the production of as much as 83.8 g/L 3HP from renewable carbon resources, and a system whereby 3-hydroxypropionitrile was converted to 3HP through whole-cell catalysis which resulted in 184.7 g/L 3HP. Although there are still challenges and difficulties that need to be addressed, the research results from the past four years have been an important step towards biological production of 3HP at the industrial level.
Highlights
The use of fossil resources for the production of fuels, chemicals, and materials has caused serious environmental problems, which—together with their imminent depletion—has made the establishment of renewable alternative production methods an important priority
This strategy resulted in the engineering of an E. coli strain capable of producing up to 56.4 g/L 3-hydroxypropionic acid (3HP) in a fed-batch bioreactor, with the addition of glucose together with glycerol
Another option is the conversion of glucose to 3HP through the intermediate propionyl-CoA, which was initially reported in the yeast Candida rugosa strain NPA-1 [50]
Summary
The use of fossil resources for the production of fuels, chemicals, and materials has caused serious environmental problems, which—together with their imminent depletion—has made the establishment of renewable alternative production methods an important priority. 1,3-propanediol, acrylic acid, acrylamide, acrylonitrile, propiolactone, malonic acid, homopolymers, and heteropolymers [2,3] These compounds have a broad range of applications, and can be used for the production of adhesives, polymers, plastic packaging, fibers, cleaning agents, and resins. Fermentation 2018, 4, 13 they have mainly been produced by the petrochemical industry from fossil resources This is not sustainable, and there is an urgent need to switch to economically and ecologically sound production using renewable resources. The aim of the current review is to provide an update on the progress that has occurred in the biotechnological production of
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