Braunegg G, Lefebvre G, Genser K F
Institut für Biotechnologie, TU Graz, Austria.
J Biotechnol. 1998 Oct 27;65(2-3):127-61. doi: 10.1016/s0168-1656(98)00126-6.
Polyhdroxyalkanoates (PHAs), stored as bacterial reserve materials for carbon and energy, are biodegradable substitutes to fossil fuel plastics that can be produced from renewable raw materials. PHAs can be produced under controlled conditions by biotechnological processes. By varying the producing strains, substrates and cosubstrates, a number of polyesters can be synthesized which differ in monomer composition. By this means, PHAs with tailored interesting physical features can be produced. All of them are completely degradable to carbon dioxide and water through natural microbiological mineralization. Consequently, neither their production nor their use or degradation have a negative ecological impact. After a historical review, possibilities for the synthesis of novel PHAs applying different micro-organisms are discussed, and pathways of PHA synthesis and degradation are shown in detail for important PHA producers. This is followed by a discussion of the physiological role of the accumulation product in different micro-organisms. Detection, analysis, and extraction methods of PHAs from microbial biomass are shown, in addition to methods for polyester characterization. Strategies for PHA production under discontinuous and continuous regimes are discussed in detail in addition to the use of different cheap carbon sources from the point of view of different PHA producing strains. An outlook on PHA production by transgenic plants closes the review.
聚羟基脂肪酸酯（PHA）作为细菌储存碳和能量的物质，是可由可再生原料生产的化石燃料塑料的生物可降解替代品。PHA可通过生物技术过程在受控条件下生产。通过改变生产菌株、底物和共底物，可以合成许多单体组成不同的聚酯。通过这种方式，可以生产出具有定制有趣物理特性的PHA。它们都可以通过自然微生物矿化完全降解为二氧化碳和水。因此，它们的生产、使用或降解都不会产生负面生态影响。在进行历史回顾之后，讨论了应用不同微生物合成新型PHA的可能性，并详细展示了重要PHA生产者的PHA合成和降解途径。接下来讨论了积累产物在不同微生物中的生理作用。除了聚酯表征方法外，还展示了从微生物生物质中检测、分析和提取PHA的方法。从不同PHA生产菌株的角度详细讨论了间歇和连续生产方式下PHA生产的策略，以及使用不同廉价碳源的情况。转基因植物生产PHA的展望结束了本综述。
