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Bringing Photosynthesis 2.0 to Life

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Curious Future Insight

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Abstract

Can we redesign the central operating system of the global carbon cycle? Natural photosynthesis provides the blueprint for the sustainable capture and conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) at planetary scale. Yet, it is only one possible solution that nature has realized over billions of years. Recent research has identified several new principles of CO2 fixation, which are more efficient than those used by photosynthesis. Moreover, with the advent of synthetic biology, it has become possible to further expand this natural diversity of biological CO2 fixation by “new-to-nature solutions". This opens up the possibility to develop radically novel, more efficient biological paths for CO2 conversions that nature has not explored so far. Here, we will discuss current efforts and challenges in designing and realizing such new solutions that could pave the way towards a human-made, alternative photosynthesis 2.0.

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank the many friends, colleagues, and mentors that encouraged, supported, and inspired me, in particular Georg Fuchs, Birgit Alber, John A. Gerlt, Ivan Berg, and Julia Vorholt. I have been blessed to work in and with a team of outstanding scientists and wonderful human beings, and have received generous support through many funding agencies in different countries. I am very grateful for the long-term trust and support by the Max Planck Society. Finally, I would like to express my very personal thanks to my parents, Heidi and Hansjörg Erb, who have always supported me along the way, as well as my family, Annette, Florian, and Jule, my joy and my personal source of energy and inspiration. This text is based on thoughts and elements of several publications and presentations from our lab over the years. 

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany

    Tobias J. Erb

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  1. Tobias J. Erb
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Correspondence to Tobias J. Erb .

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  1. Innovation, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Hessen, Germany

    Ulrich A.K. Betz

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Erb, T.J. (2024). Bringing Photosynthesis 2.0 to Life. In: Betz, U.A. (eds) Curious Future Insight. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-41781-8_3

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