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Improved Alkane Production in Nitrogen-Fixing and Halotolerant Cyanobacteria via Abiotic Stresses and Genetic Manipulation of Alkane Synthetic Genes

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Abstract

Cyanobacteria possess the unique capacity to produce alkane. In this study, effects of nitrogen deficiency and salt stress on biosynthesis of alkanes were investigated in three kinds of cyanobacteria. Intracellular alkane accumulation was increased in nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC7120, but decreased in non-diazotrophic cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942 and constant in a halotolerant cyanobacterium Aphanothece halophytica under nitrogen-deficient condition. We also found that salt stress increased alkane accumulation in Anabaena sp. PCC7120 and A. halophytica. The expression levels of two alkane synthetic genes were not upregulated significantly under nitrogen deficiency or salt stress in Anabaena sp. PCC7120. The transformant Anabaena sp. PCC7120 cells with additional alkane synthetic gene set from A. halophytica increased intracellular alkane accumulation level compared to control cells. These results provide a prospect to improve bioproduction of alkanes in nitrogen-fixing halotolerant cyanobacteria via abiotic stresses and genetic engineering.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported in part by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture of Japan and the International Research Center for Natural Environmental Science of Meijo University.

Conflict of interest

We have no conflict of interest to declare.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Environmental and Human Sciences, Meijo University, Nagoya, 468-8502, Japan

    Hakuto Kageyama, Yoshito Tanaka & Teruhiro Takabe

  2. Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Pathumwan, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand

    Rungaroon Waditee-Sirisattha

  3. Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research, Pathum Thani, 12120, Thailand

    Sophon Sirisattha & Aparat Mahakhant

  4. Research Institute of Meijo University, Nagoya, 468-8502, Japan

    Teruhiro Takabe

Authors
  1. Hakuto Kageyama
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  2. Rungaroon Waditee-Sirisattha
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  3. Sophon Sirisattha
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  4. Yoshito Tanaka
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  5. Aparat Mahakhant
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  6. Teruhiro Takabe
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Teruhiro Takabe.

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Kageyama, H., Waditee-Sirisattha, R., Sirisattha, S. et al. Improved Alkane Production in Nitrogen-Fixing and Halotolerant Cyanobacteria via Abiotic Stresses and Genetic Manipulation of Alkane Synthetic Genes. Curr Microbiol 71, 115–120 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-015-0833-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-015-0833-7

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