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Lignin valorization to bioplastics with an aromatic hub metabolite-based autoregulation system
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Researchers engineered the bacterium Ralstonia eutropha H16 to convert lignin—a biorefinery by-product—into the bioplastic polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), achieving a production titer of 2.38 g/L by integrating aromatic metabolism modules and developing a novel autoregulation system responsive to the hub metabolite protocatechuic acid.
Exploring microorganisms with downstream synthetic advantages in lignin valorization is an effective strategy to increase target product diversity and yield. This study ingeniously engineers the non-lignin-degrading bacterium Ralstonia eutropha H16 (also known as Cupriavidus necator H16) to convert lignin, a typically underutilized by-product of biorefinery, into valuable bioplastic polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB). The aromatic metabolism capacities of R. eutropha H16 for different lignin-derived aromatics (LDAs) are systematically characterized and complemented by integrating robust functional modules including O-demethylation, aromatic aldehyde metabolism and the mitigation of by-product inhibition. A pivotal discovery is the regulatory element PcaQ, which is highly responsive to the aromatic hub metabolite protocatechuic acid during lignin degradation. Based on the computer-aided design of PcaQ, we develop a hub metabolite-based autoregulation (HMA) system. This system can control the functional genes expression in response to heterologous LDAs and enhance metabolism efficiency. Multi-module genome integration and directed evolution further fortify the strain's stability and lignin conversion capacities, leading to PHB production titer of 2.38 g/L using heterologous LDAs as sole carbon source. This work not only marks a leap in bioplastic production from lignin components but also provides a strategy to redesign the non-LDAs-degrading microbes for efficient lignin valorization.
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Researchers reviewed strategies for converting lignocellulosic agricultural and forestry residues — including rice straw, sugarcane bagasse, and wood waste — into polyhydroxyalkanoate bioplastics, identifying optimal pretreatment methods and microbial strains that maximize PHA yield from these low-cost, abundant feedstocks.
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Researchers combined a genome-scale metabolic model of Rhodopseudomonas palustris with machine learning surrogates and Pareto optimization to identify nutrient regimes that maximize PHB bioplastic yield at minimal substrate cost, then validated thermodynamic feasibility of top strategies — providing a computational blueprint for scaling microbial bioplastic production as a fossil-plastic alternative.
Insightful Advancement and Opportunities for Microbial Bioplastic Production
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This review surveys advances in microbial production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) and other bioplastics, highlighting fermentation optimization, feedstock diversification, and genetic engineering strategies that could make microbially-derived bioplastics economically competitive with petroleum-based plastics.
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