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Abstract

AbstractBiocatalyst and bioprocess designKuhn et al., Eng. Life Sci. 2010, 10, 384–397.Microbial biocatalysis has emerged to a standard technology in the food, feed, pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries. Effective engineering strategies are required to satisfy the growing demand of new, economically competitive and environmentally friendly products and processes. Recent advances in systems biology allow a genome‐scale characterization of the complex composition and function of cells. However, a comprehensive understanding of a bioprocess is not restricted to the quantitative description of cellular functions but includes analyses on the reaction and process level. Today, new whole‐cell catalyst design targets can be systematically identified and the host specifically fine‐tuned according to the requirements of a given bioprocess. Authors from the TU Dortmund, Germany, summarize recent advances in the field of systems biotechnology for whole‐cell biocatalysis on the basis of selected examples.………………384http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/elsc.201000009magnified imageBacillus subtilis for biocommodity productionZhang and Zhang, Eng. Life Sci. 2010, 10, 398–406.Lignocellulosic biomass, the most abundant renewable biological resource, is a low‐cost energy source. One‐step consolidated bioprocessing that integrates cellulase production, cellulose hydrolysis and product fermentation is widely accepted for low‐cost production of biofuels or other value‐added biochemicals. Bacillus subtilis is the best‐characterized Gram‐positive microorganism and is a major industrial microorganism. As compared with other potential consolidated bioprocessing microorganisms such as Clostridium spp., E. coli, and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, recombinant cellulolytic B. subtilis strains are a potential platform for biocommodity production from nonfood biomass. Authors from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute Blacksburg (VA, USA) review the advances in recombinant cellulolytic B. subtilis development and metabolic engineering for biocommodity production and discuss its opportunities and challenges.…………… 398http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/elsc.201000011magnified imageEngineering microbial consortiaSabra et al., Eng. Life Sci. 2010, 10, 407–421.The development of industrial biotechnology for an economical and ecological conversion of renewable materials into chemicals and fuels requires new strategies and concepts for bioprocessing. Biorefinery has been proposed as one of the key concepts with the aim of completely utilizing the substrate while producing multiple products in one process or at one production site. An‐Ping Zeng and co‐authors argue that microbial consortia can play an essential role in biorefinery processes. First, some examples of existing industrial bioprocesses are discussed that involve microbial consortia. Then, new currently developed bioprocesses, which make use of the advantages of microbial consortia, are introduced. Finally, key issues and challenges for the analysis and engineering of bioprocesses involving microbial consortia are addressed from a perspective of biosystems engineering.…………… 407http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/elsc.201000111magnified image