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Metabolic Engineering of Plants for the Synthesis of Polyhydroxyalkanaotes

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Book cover Plastics from Bacteria

Part of the book series: Microbiology Monographs ((MICROMONO,volume 14))

Abstract

Synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) in crop plants is viewed as an attractive approach for the production of this family of biodegradable plastics in large quantities and at low costs. Synthesis of PHAs containing various monomers has so far been demonstrated in the cytosol, plastids, and peroxisomes of plants. Several biochemical pathways have been modified to achieve this, including the isoprenoid pathway, the fatty acid biosynthetic pathway, and the fatty acid β-oxidation pathway. PHA synthesis has been demonstrated in a number of plants, including monocots and dicots, and up to 40% PHA per gram dry weight has been demonstrated in Arabidopsis thaliana. Despite some successes, production of PHAs in crop plants remains a challenging project. PHA synthesis at a high level in vegetative tissues, such as leaves, is associated with chlorosis and reduced growth in some plants. The challenges for the future are to succeed in the synthesis of PHA copolymer with a narrow range of monomer composition, at levels that do not compromise plant productivity, and in creating methods for efficient and economical extraction of polymer from plants. These goals will undoubtedly require a deeper understanding of plant biochemical pathways as well as advances in biorefinery.

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Acknowledgement

This work was made possible by grants from the Herbette Foundation and the Chuard-Schmid Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Département de Biologie Moléculaire Végétale, Biophore, Université de Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland

    Yves Poirier

  2. Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, c/o BSES Limited, 50 Meiers Road, Indooroopilly, QLD, 4068, Australia

    Stevens M. Brumbley

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  1. Yves Poirier
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Correspondence to Yves Poirier .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Biological Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China, People's Republic

    George Guo-Qiang Chen

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Poirier, Y., Brumbley, S.M. (2010). Metabolic Engineering of Plants for the Synthesis of Polyhydroxyalkanaotes. In: Chen, GQ. (eds) Plastics from Bacteria. Microbiology Monographs, vol 14. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-03287-5_8

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