Microbial Biocatalysis, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Catalysts (ISSN 2073-4344). This special issue belongs to the section "Biocatalysis".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 3887

Special Issue Editors

Jiangxi Province Key Laboratory of Mining and Metallurgy Environmental Pollution Control, School of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Interests: biocatalysis and biodegradation; bioavailability of hydrophobic organic compounds; environmental stress and microbial metabolic response
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
Interests: microbial transformation; bioprocess engineering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Following a successful first edition, we are pleased to announce the launch of the second edition of this Special Issue, entitled "Microbial Biocatalysis, 2nd Edition".

Biocatalysis is a sustainable alternative for the chemical industry in manufacturing, monitoring, and waste management. Biocatalytic processes are performed with isolated enzymes or whole cells as biocatalysts. Whole-cell biocatalysts offer some unique advantages of cascade reactions catalyzed by multienzymes as well as a single bioredox reaction with cofactor regeneration in a single strain. Therefore, whole-cell biocatalysts are widely applied for biosynthesis/biotransformation to produce value-added chemicals as well as to achieve the complete mineralization of organic pollutants.

Biological catalytic processing using whole-cell biocatalysts includes biocatalyst engineering, bio-reaction engineering, and downstream processing. In addition to the traditional screening of microbial strains and immobilized whole-cell biocatalysts, modern genetic engineering, metabolic engineering, and synthetic biology make tailored whole-cell biocatalysts possible. At the same time, some integrated processes have been successfully applied in the catalytic processing using living whole-cell biocatalyst, such as harnessing biocompatible chemistry to interface with the microbial metabolism and using various separation techniques for in situ product removal.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to collect original research papers and reviews focusing on progress using living whole-cell biocatalysts in biosynthesis, biotransformation, and biodegradation.

Dr. Tao Pan
Dr. Zhilong Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • whole-cell biocatalyst
  • immobilized cells
  • genetic engineering
  • metabolic engineering
  • synthetic biology
  • bio-reaction engineering
  • fermentation
  • interfacial biocatalysis
  • biocompatible chemistry
  • chemo-enzymatic cascade reaction
  • designing bioreactor
  • process optimization
  • separation engineering
  • integrated processes
  • in situ product removal
  • extractive fermentation
  • biosynthesis
  • industrial enzymes
  • antibody
  • biosurfactant
  • biopigments
  • bioflavors
  • biofuels
  • bio-based materials
  • bioactive chemicals
  • extracellular polymeric substances
  • biotransformation
  • drug intermediate
  • chiral chemical
  • value-added chemical
  • biodegradation
  • crude oil
  • aromatic hydrocarbon
  • aniline
  • plasticizer
  • pesticide
  • environmental hormone
  • microplastic
  • bio-desulfurization

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 3652 KiB  
Article
Identification of Aniline-Degrading Bacteria Using Stable Isotope Probing Technology and Prediction of Functional Genes in Aerobic Microcosms
by Baoqin Li, Muhammad Usman Ghani, Weimin Sun, Xiaoxu Sun, Huaqing Liu, Geng Yan, Rui Yang, Ying Huang, Youhua Ren and Benru Song
Catalysts 2024, 14(1), 64; https://doi.org/10.3390/catal14010064 - 15 Jan 2024
Viewed by 879
Abstract
Aniline, a vital component in various chemical industries, is known to be a hazardous persistent organic pollutant that can cause environmental pollution through its manufacturing, processing, and transportation. In this study, the microcosms were established using sediment with a history of aniline pollution [...] Read more.
Aniline, a vital component in various chemical industries, is known to be a hazardous persistent organic pollutant that can cause environmental pollution through its manufacturing, processing, and transportation. In this study, the microcosms were established using sediment with a history of aniline pollution as an inoculum to analyze the aniline biodegradation under aerobic conditions through stable isotope probing (SIP) and isopycnic density gradient centrifugation technology. During the degradation assay, aniline that was 13C-labeled in all six carbons was utilized to determine the phylogenetic identity of the aniline-degrading bacterial taxa that incorporate 13C into their DNA. The results revealed that aniline was completely degraded in the microcosm after 45 and 69 h respectively. The bacteria affiliated with Acinetobacter (up to 34.6 ± 6.0%), Zoogloea (up to 15.8 ± 2.2%), Comamonas (up to 2.6 ± 0.1%), and Hydrogenophaga (up to 5.1 ± 0.6%) genera, which are known to degrade aniline, were enriched in the heavy fractions (the DNA buoyant density was 1.74 mg L−1) of the 13C-aniline treatments. Moreover, some rarely reported aniline-degrading bacteria, such as Prosthecobacter (up to 16.0 ± 1.6%) and Curvibacter (up to 3.0 ± 1.6%), were found in the DNA-SIP experiment. Gene families affiliated with atd, tdn, and dan were speculated to be key genes for aniline degradation based on the abundance in functional genes and diversity in different treatments as estimated using Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States version 2 (PICRUSt2) and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG). This study revealed the functional bacteria and possible degradation genes for aniline degradation in simulated polluted environments through SIP. These findings suggest that important degrading bacteria for the transformation of aniline and potential degradation pathways may be useful in the effective application of bioremediation technologies to remediate aniline-contaminated sites. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbial Biocatalysis, 2nd Edition)
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15 pages, 5347 KiB  
Article
Mining, Identification, and Characterization of Three Xylanases from the Microbiota of T. fuciformis with Its Companion Strains
by Yanhuan Lin, Changle Li, Chenxin Wei, Hui Lin and Liaoyuan Zhang
Catalysts 2024, 14(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/catal14010015 - 24 Dec 2023
Viewed by 824
Abstract
Microbial xylanase has wide application in bioenergy, animal feed, environmental protection, the pulp and paper industry, and agricultural development. In this study, three xylanases from the microbiota of T. fuciformis with its companion strains were identified by metagenomics sequencing. The three enzymes were [...] Read more.
Microbial xylanase has wide application in bioenergy, animal feed, environmental protection, the pulp and paper industry, and agricultural development. In this study, three xylanases from the microbiota of T. fuciformis with its companion strains were identified by metagenomics sequencing. The three enzymes were subjected to cloning and expression in E. coli or P. pastoris, purification, and characterization for their properties. The results showed that AsXyn1, from Annulohypoxylon stygium, among the three enzymes possessed high thermostability at 40 °C and broad pH tolerance in the range of 2.0–10.0, exhibiting its application potential. Furthermore, it was found that post-translational modification (such as glycosylation) of AsXyn1 enzyme modulated its activity, kinetic parameters, and thermostability. These results and findings provided a hint for enzyme modification and design in future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbial Biocatalysis, 2nd Edition)
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17 pages, 7920 KiB  
Article
Synergistic Use of Thermostable Laccase and Xylanase in Optimizing the Pre-Bleaching of Kraft Pulp
by Kartik Patel, Nilam Vaghamshi, Kamlesh Shah, Srinivas Murty Duggirala, Anjana Ghelani, Pravin Dudhagara and Douglas J. H. Shyu
Catalysts 2024, 14(1), 1; https://doi.org/10.3390/catal14010001 - 19 Dec 2023
Viewed by 900
Abstract
The continuous requirement for pre-bleaching processes on kraft pulp, employing a range of compatible enzymes, aims to mitigate the pollution caused by chemical bleaching agents. In the present study, the laccase-producing bacterium Bacillus licheniformis BK-1 was isolated from the Bakreshwar hot spring in [...] Read more.
The continuous requirement for pre-bleaching processes on kraft pulp, employing a range of compatible enzymes, aims to mitigate the pollution caused by chemical bleaching agents. In the present study, the laccase-producing bacterium Bacillus licheniformis BK-1 was isolated from the Bakreshwar hot spring in India and tested for laccase production using different lignocellulosic substrates. The isolate was found to produce maximum laccase (8.25 IU/mL) in the presence of rice bran as a substrate, followed by 5.14 IU/mL using sawdust over a 48 h period. Laccase production doubled when medium parameters were optimized using a central composite design. The bleaching of rice straw pulp was accomplished using a laccase, xylanase (previously extracted from the same bacteria), and laccase–xylanase mixture. The mix-wood kraft pulp treated with the enzyme mixture at pH 7.0 and 50 °C temperature for up to 180 min reduced the chlorine amount by 50% compared to the control. The results also revealed that the enzyme mixture improved the pulp’s optical (brightness 10.39%) and physical (tear index 39.77%, burst index 22.82%, and tensile strength 14.28%) properties with 50% chlorine dose. These exceptional properties underscore the enzyme mixture’s suitability for pulp pre-bleaching in paper manufacturing, offering a safer and more environmentally friendly process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbial Biocatalysis, 2nd Edition)
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11 pages, 2717 KiB  
Article
Microbial Transformation of Pimavanserin by Cunninghamella blakesleeana AS 3.970
by Ming Song, Qi Yu, Yuqi Liu, Sulan Cai, Xuliang Jiang, Weizhuo Xu and Wei Xu
Catalysts 2023, 13(8), 1220; https://doi.org/10.3390/catal13081220 - 17 Aug 2023
Viewed by 706
Abstract
Pimavanserin is an approved selective 5-HT2A receptor inverse agonist for treating Parkinson’s disease psychosis. However, few studies on its metabolism in vitro have been investigated. In this research, eight strains of fungi are used to study the pimavanserin metabolism profiles in vitro [...] Read more.
Pimavanserin is an approved selective 5-HT2A receptor inverse agonist for treating Parkinson’s disease psychosis. However, few studies on its metabolism in vitro have been investigated. In this research, eight strains of fungi are used to study the pimavanserin metabolism profiles in vitro and six of them demonstrated positive transformation results. Factors influencing the transformation rate, like substrate concentration, culture time, initial media pH value, culture temperature, and shaking speed, were evaluated and optimized. Cunninghamella blakesleeana AS3.970 provided the best transformation rate of 30.31%, and 10 unreported metabolites were screened by LC-MS/MS. Among these metabolites, M1 is the major one and identified as 1-(4-fluorobenzyl)-3-(4-(2-hydroxy-2-methylpropoxy)benzyl)-1-(1-methylpiperidin-4-yl)urea, which is a hydroxylation product of the pimavanserin. A preliminary molecular docking simulation was performed, which indicated that M1 exhibits similar binding properties with pimavanserin and may become a potential candidate for Parkinson’s disease treatment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbial Biocatalysis, 2nd Edition)
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