Enhanced electrosynthesis performance of Moorella thermoautotrophica by improving cell permeability

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Microbial electrosynthesis systems (MES) are promising devices in which microbes obtain electrons from electrodes to produce extracellular multicarbon compounds. This study investigates whether improvement in cell permeability can enhance electrosynthesis performance of Gram-positive Moorella thermoautotrophica in MES. Results showed that when ≤30mg/L penicillin was added, the cell permeability was doubled, and the electron uptake per biomass (including both cathode-associated biomass and suspended biomass) was 1.84 times that of the control, while formate and acetate production rates per biomass were 1.96 and 2.23 times those of the control, respectively. Enhanced cell permeability caused higher redox activities of outmost cytochrome C and increased release of redox electron shuttles, both of which were beneficial to extracellular electron uptake. Coulombic efficiencies increased from 73%±3% to 88%±3% with better cell permeability, demonstrating that higher proportion of electrical energy recovered in the chemical-production reaction. This research demonstrates that making a moderate decrease in peptidoglycan of cell walls to improve cell permeability can enhance electron uptakes and chemical production rates of Gram-positive microbes in MES, which would serve as a base for the future genetic modification study of superior electrosynthesis strains.